We know that BlackBerry devices kick ass when it comes to e-mail, but let’s be honest here, email will only get you so far. RIM’s marketshare is certainly nothing to laugh about, but the real question is if they’re doing anything to ensure that current BlackBerry users don’t bolt for the greener pastures of Apple and beyond.

The answer to that question, it would appear, is ‘No’. RIM has tried to jump into the consumer smartphone market with the Storm 1 and 2, but those devices have largely been panned by critics and caused headaches for its users. And in an age where most smartphone users expect an easy to use multitouch UI along with an assortment of quality apps from their smartphone, RIM’s dominance may be waning.

In a recent customer survey conducted by Crowd Science, 40% of current BlackBerry users reported that they’d prefer that their next smartphone be an iPhone. Meanwhile 32% of current BlackBerry users reportedly want an Android device to step in as their next smartphone. Taken togther, it seems that RIM is having a helluva time with brand loyalty, with over 70% of respondents saying they’d prefer to jump ship altogether from RIM devices.

“These results show that the restlessness of Blackberry users with their current brand hasn’t just been driven by the allure of iPhone,” said John Martin, CEO of Crowd Science. “Rather, Blackberry as a brand just isn’t garnering the loyalty seen with other mobile operating systems.”

And in the world of tech, where nerdy slobs drool over spec sheets, brand loyalty is an often overlooked factor in a companies continued success. Case in point – estimates for iPad pre-orders thus far are hovering in the 150,000 range, all for a product that most people have never used, let alone even seen in person.

And as for the iPhone, 92% of surveyed iPhone owners indicated that they “would definitely or probably” purchase another iPhone as their next smartphone. That’s a statistic and a benchmark of brand loyalty that no amount of advertising dollars can buy.

via CrowdScience