Will iPhones in Best Buy Stores Help AT&T?

Last week, Best Buy (BBY) announced that it will begin to sell the iPhone, the still very hot new device that is exclusive to carrier AT&T, on September 7th.

Best Buy has been selling mobile phones and plans for some time now, and they have made a considerable investment in building their presence with a “store within a store” concept. This announcement made me wonder about how much traction Best Buy could actually get from selling the iPhone.

The chart shows the percentage of people who visited both the wireless section of Best Buy’s website and a major US carrier site in the same month. Are consumers already cross-shopping between Best Buy and AT&T (T)? The short answer is some do, but not a lot - at least not yet.

• In the last year, an average of 11% of Best Buy wireless shoppers have also gone to AT&T each month.
• Cross shop between Best Buy’s wireless section and Sprint (S) has historically been low compared to AT&T and Verizon (VZ). However cross-shop this July, since the launch of the Instinct (also sold at Best Buy), has nearly doubled.

What might this mean for Best Buy and AT&T come September 7th? Sprint’s Instinct has generated a lot of buzz and interest in the market, but it’s nowhere near the headliner that the iPhone is. If that one trend holds true, we could see a substantial increase in shared traffic between AT&T and Best Buy.

Offline, Best Buy’s retail dominance gives a more diverse group of consumers more opportunities to see and experience the much hyped iPhone in person in the bricks-and-mortar stores.

Even if those Best Buy consumers ultimately buy the iPhone from more specialized reps at the Apple Store or AT&T, more people spending more time with Best Buy could bring the retailer more sales in iPhone accessories and other products as we lead into the crucial back-to-school and holiday shopping seasons.

Comments

[billddrummer:]

Back to school has run its course--in fact, it began in June.

I think iPhone accessories will be high on shopping lists this Christmas, as consumers look for lower price-points to satisfy the gift giving crazes.

2008 Aug 21 11:12 AM