Samsung is a successful multinational electronic company that is thriving elegantly in the market even in stiff competition. Started from the bottom and made it to the top. In this case study, we shall discuss the marketing mix of Samsung, as in how it became one of the leading brands in the industry.

 As of 2020, Samsung has the 8th highest brand value. It is considered amongst the top brands such as Apple, Huawei, Panasonic etc. This blog will walk you through the successful Marketing Mix of Samsung.

About Samsung

 

 

The Samsung Group is a multinational South Korean association headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul. It encompasses multiple related businesses, most of them combined under the Samsung name and is the large business conglomerate. 

Samsung was founded in 1938 by Lee Byung-Chul. Started as a trading company, they further diversified their realms to textiles, food processing, insurance, etc. Samsung made an entry into the electronics market in the late 1960s and started growing thereafter.

Unfortunately, the company was divided into 5 business groups after Lee’s death namely – Samsung Group, Shinsegae Group, CJ Group, Hansol Group, and Joongang group. By 2020, Samsung has 287,439 employees and have assembly plants and a sales network in over 75 countries.

Samsung’s mission statement is “We will devote our human resources and technology to create superior products and services, thereby contributing to a better global society.

If you wish to learn more about the successful marketing strategies employed by Samsung, we have another blog covering that topic.

 

Let’s further dive into the marketing mix elements of Samsung.

 

Marketing Mix of Samsung

 

The marketing mix refers to a company’s combination of actions and techniques, for promoting its brand or product in the marketplace. Price, Product, Promotion, and Place are the four Ps of a conventional marketing mix. These revolve around: price strategy of the product giving details about how the product is priced, the product strategy giving details about how the products are differentiated for product diversification and quality, promotion strategy gives details about how the brand chooses to highlight their products by creating awareness about the brand in the market and the place strategy focuses on the channels of distribution and placement of the product.

Let’s discuss the aforementioned 4Ps of Samsung marketing mix in detail –

 

1. Product Strategy of Samsung

 

 

Being a leading electronic brand, Samsung has to keep up with the dynamic industrial changes in order to meet customer satisfaction. Ever-changing innovations, newer features, and improved performance can help give tough competition to its competitors.

Samsung generates revenue by selling smartphones, home appliances, sound devices, etc,  excelling in all areas of product diversification. Their products can be classified into: 

 

• Mobile devices- Smartphones like Samsung Galaxy series, Tablets, Wearables, Phones Accessories
• Samsung Home Appliances- Refrigerators, Cooking Appliances, Washing Machines, Air conditioners, Vacuum cleaners
• TV/AV – Samsung Television, Accessories, Audio and Video accessories
• Information Technology – Printer and Multifunction, Monitor
• Memory/Storage- SSD, Portable SSD, Memory cards, USB Flash drives

 

2. Pricing Strategy of Samsung

 

Samsung is a leader in smartphones and also dominating the home appliances area uses 2 types of pricing strategies as follows:

• Pricing based on competition– Samsung still lags in certain product categories. It might have a great presence in the home appliances realm but has not surpassed many brands who lead the home appliances market such as LG.

 

It is critical for the company to use competitive pricing to face stiff competition from its market competitors. Samsung is also not a market leader in these product categories, so it must protect its position because the competition is cut-throat.

• Skimming price policy- When Samsung launches its products with newer features and capabilities, they tend to price it a bit higher than others. (This is called Skimming Price Strategy) On the other hand, when some other company launches a smartphone with the same or better features, Samsung reduces the price and easily avoids losing market share as a result of the competitor’s debut.

 

 

 

3. Place Strategy of Samsung

 

Samsung sells to retailers and service providers directly. As a result of this strategy, only service dealers are responsible for corporate sales. The strength of this company lies in its distribution system.

Samsung’s products are likewise distributed by a single distribution company in one location, which then distributes them to other locations. 

 

4. Promotion Strategy of Samsung

 

Promotion is an important part of the company’s marketing mix. Advertising, according to Samsung, is the most effective kind of marketing for attracting new customers and positioning the brand.

Samsung uses print media, social media platforms, and digital media to market new goods. To take advantage of celebrities’ large followings, the brand has invited several celebrities to serve as brand ambassadors and market the product that proves to be very efficient.

Recently Samsung released their new range of smartphones related to the Korean singer band BTS. (It includes exclusive packaging, colours, and in-box items featuring members of the band)

 

 

Samsung also introduced its new feature known as the Samsung Virtual Assistant to drive in the audience.

Recently, Samsung introduced many new advancements in their online site too for user convenience. For example, E-Catalogue provides an overall description of all the products in a simple user-friendly book form. 

 

Now, let’s see how Samsung took Environment Sustainability to its advantage

 

Samsung Sustainability Strategy

 

Samsung has this informative section on their website which focuses on Environmental Sustainability, Corporate Citizenship, Digital Responsibility, Labor and Human Rights, Diversity and Inclusion, and Sustainable Supply Chain.  This whole section highlights the Eco-management value system where they mentioned that all their products are environment friendly and the planet will always be their priority. Their slogan “Planet First” expresses commitment to social responsibility through business practices that prioritize environmental protection.

 

Through Corporate Citizenship, they promote, empowering and supporting the next generation to achieve their full potential and bring in positive social changes.

 

 

Conclusion

 

The Marketing Mix of Samsung has worked well for them and have proved to be quite beneficial. Constant product diversification and the introduction of newer features have helped them spot a place at the top in the industry. With product differentiation, their customer satisfaction also helped them to get on a long way. Along with innovation and newer technologies, their environmentally sustainable policies have also made them stand above the crowd.

Hope you enjoyed reading this case study and gained enough insights into the marketing mix of Samsung. To read more case studies on such popular brands, visit IIDE’s blog page and explore the library of enriched case studies on different brands.

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