MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS MODULE CODE: MG2048

Marketing Communications Module Code: Mg2048

Table of Contents

Introduction2

Market Review2

Literature Review4

Critical Analysis and Discussion7

Recommendations9

Conclusion10

Marketing Communications Module Code: Mg2048

Introduction

This paper intends to provide a comparative analysis of integrated marketing communications mix strategy for laptop manufacturers 'Apple' and 'Samsung.' Being appointed as International Strategic Brand Manager for a laptop manufacturer of Samsung; I am required to prepare a comparative analysis paper for Samsung and Apple marketing communication mix. This paper will analyze the theoretical knowledge on integrated communications as well as wider business knowledge to prepare a comprehensive analytical report. The focus of this paper will be on the utilization of marketing messages, media and other marketing strategies. Lastly, marketing communication strategies will be recommended to the company for the purpose of increasing the competitiveness. The purpose of this paper is to make the reader aware about the significance of marketing communications mix strategies for Apple and Samsung.

Market Review

Not long ago, this recent Samsung commercial would have been laughably inaccurate-and to some, borderline blasphemy. Neuroscientists have compared brain activity in Apple fanatics upon seeing iProducts to religious zealots shown holy imagery. How the hell do you compete with that? That's been the question facing Apple competitors since the dawn of the iPhone in January 2007. It may have taken almost five years for someone to find an answer, but it's happened. Over the past 18 months, Samsung has managed to not only match the iPhone's technical prowess but perhaps more important, convince consumers that cool doesn't have to be spelled with a lowercase (Pachal, 2012 Pp. 1-2).

In the second quarter of 2012, Samsung shipped about 50 million smart phones; the most ever shipped in a single quarter by any vendor, according to market research firms Strategic Analytics and IDC Worldwide. By contrast, in the latest quarter Apple sold 26 million iPhones and Research in Motion shipped just 7.4 million Blackberries. Just as the iPhone educated one-time giants like Nokia and RIM to rubble, now Samsung has managed to wreck havoc on Apple's once invincible image. So how did a company that sells everything from refrigerators to insurance become the world's bestselling smart- phone maker? The answer is equals parts smart engineering, killer advertising and a volatile market where nobody-not even Apple-stays the hip new thing forever (Smith & Taylor, 2004 Pp. 25-30).

After years of consistent Apple domination, the quality of new competitors has risen. Couple that with the robustness of competing operating systems, like Microsoft's Windows 8 and Google's open-sourced Android, and smartphone consumers seem to have finally been shaken from their default settings of iPhone-or-nothing. Over the past few months, there's been a flurry of launches, releases and unveilings in the market, ushering with it a level of competitive optimism not seen in half a decade. In May, Samsung unleashed the Galaxy SIII, beating the release of the iPhone 5 by four months. Between these two seismic events, HTC launched new Android phones, Nokia unveiled the latest offerings of its Windows-powered Lumia series, and RIM previewed its long-awaited ...