A friend of mine recently drew my attention to a BBC article on how Samsung’s profits are weaker than expected probably for the first time after the release of Gaxaxy SII which made me think about the way not only Samsung, which I’m a fanatic of as readers of my blog already know, but in general how multinational companies work on their marketing strategy.
I’m going to use Samsung in my article as an example but whatever I have to say does apply to any company out there on the way a consumer like me and not a Marketing Manager (thanks God I’m not one of them or will ever be) sees things.
I think sales for Samsung are going to drop more because too many devices are coming out too quickly one after the other. What should be done in my humble opinion is produce devices that give buyers the feeling that their brand new possession is not going to be replaced by a new one after six months.
Perhaps companies of this “size” should reconsider what they offer each time.
For example, why S3 when they could have made S4 or even S5 right away?
The expertise was there and a device with the S4 or even S5 technology launched last May would have blown all competition away.
S4 is certainly a great mobile device but the “normal” buyer will stick to the previous model. It’s the middle class that sends a product to the top not the rich and a new 700 euro device every year is certainly not easy to afford by most.
Give the public a device that will blow their minds away just like…hmmmm Steve Jobs did and make a myth of it that will last long enough for your company and product to become a legend into the public’s subconscious.
Create a need that was not there. What’s the point of a better camera when there is already a very good one on the S3? Why buy a loaf of bread with rectangle-shaped sesame on it when there is already a half loaf on your table with normally shaped sesame still serving its original purpose to satisfy your hunger?
But a loaf of bread made of a new kind of flour that helps feed more and stays fresh for more days…then yes, that would be worth buying!
What’s your opinion on this? Do you think companies are bombarding us with new products that actually don’t have much to offer compared to their predecessors? Do you think Samsung has probably started making the same mistake as Apple did with launching new i-phones that were almost identical to the previous model?