A couple of weeks ago I talked a bit about Pursuing Wow! as a strategy. Most noteworthy to me is how Samsung's Galaxy series of products were giving Apple a run for their money. BECAUSE they made the customer go WOW, I gotta get me one of those.
Remember, today's tech-savvy customer is not
brand loyal, they are brand obsessed.
But no one is an island anymore. Samsung makes devices for Motorola and their Nextel brands which uses Sprint’s network. Apple has iTunes, which is downloadable on any device or any network.
What is really happening is a convergence of mobility, Internet, computing, entertainment and consumer content. So mobile device manufacturers, Internet and content providers all have to work together.
Everyone is going to need each other in the Device Wars as they fight to gain interest from a tech-savvy, fickle customer.
But let’s take a look at other market sectors where Eastern Competition is WOWing Western Consumers.
First of all, what is a brand? The best definition of a brand I could find is..."A distinguishing symbol, mark, logo, name, word, sentence, or a combination of these items that companies use to distinguish their product from others in the market."
But a definition is only half the story. Yes, a brand is a symbol, or a mark or logo, but more importantly, when a consumer sees your logo they are reminded of the experience they have with your products, your company and your customer service. A Brand is a customers experience with your products.
The power of your logo represents your reputation. Case in point, Hyundai Motor Company introduced the Excel to American consumers in 1986. At first it was well received. Here was an affordable foreign car that the average person could purchase—$4,995! A price that so captivated bargain-hunting Americans that Hyundai set a first-year record by selling 126,000 cars. By the second year they sold over 264,000 Excels.
But, the Excel's faults quickly became apparent; cost-cutting measures began to catch up to Hyundai price tag…and people began to talk, and word spread. The car was cheaply made and Hyundai’s reputation became a joke. To make matters worse, in their effort to capture a large market share in a short amount of time, Hyundai gave credit to noncreditworthy customers (Think Sub-Prime Mortgage Meltdown and go from there). In other words, they gave credit to customers who couldn’t afford the car in the first place.
Despite many years of financial difficulties and family infighting, Hyundai embarked on a campaign to earn back the trust it lost with that first introduction to the American consumer. Not an easy task when you consider that first impressions are usually the last impression for a company. Once your products have a bad reputation, no amount of marketing will make them happy. You have to start over and rewin your reputation.
It was a very bumpy ride over the years as families fought for control of the company. But in 2011 Fortune magazine featured Hyundai's chief technology officer, Hyun-Soon Lee showing the aerodynamic properties of the Sonata. The headlines read “Hyundai smokes the competition.” It took twenty-six years, some very hard work, and their worst days behind them, Hyundai Motor Company has regained our trust here in The States.
How did they do it? When chairman Mong-Koo Chung took over from his father in 1999, his mission shifted the company’s focus from high volume to high quality. And THAT has made the difference in every product they make. From the Accent to the Elantra, from the Veloster to the Sonata, and the Azera, Hyundai is showing off their ability to build an affordable car that is built well and priced for families and regular people.
Today Hyundai has built the world's largest automobile manufacturing plant in Ulsan, South Korea, which builds over 1.6 million vehicles per year, selling in 193 countries through some 6,000 dealerships and showrooms worldwide.
But that’s not all, Hyundai’s sister company Kia is kicking it up a notch as well—the difference in sales from 2011 to 2012 The Kia Optima is selling like hotcakes here in the United States…sales are UP 99%. In China sales are up 150% due to stimulus packages.
And now Hyundai is introducing their first luxury line: The Equus. I don’t know about you, but I get excited when a brand not only stages a comeback, but exceeds our expectations. That’s just good business. Smart business too.
Your reputation must be earned. Guard your brand’s reputation well. And if you stumble, do like Hyundai Motor’s—work hard to regain our trust. Give us Wow! We want you to succeed. And South Korean brands like Hyundai, Kia, LG and Samsung are forcing the Western World of business to pay attention.
Get ready...BIG innovation and quality is coming from the East.
Thanks for stopping by,
Brad Szollose
21st Century Change Agent: Generational expert, award-winning author, business consultant and keynote speaker
But this is not based on management theory: With a 30 year career as an entrepreneur he knows firsthand what it’s like to grow a company from a simple idea in a coffee shop to an internationally recognized brand.
Brad is a former C-Level Internet Executive who went from entrepreneur to IPO in 3 yrs—co-founding K2 Design, the very first Dot Com Agency to go public on NASDAQ. His company experienced 425% hyper-growth for 5 straight years, expanded from 2 business partners to 4 with 60+ employees and offices worldwide. At its height, K2 was valuated at over $26 million. His results only management model (ROWE) was applied to the first wave of young Generation Y workers producing great results—winning K2 the Arthur Andersen NY Enterprise Award for Best Practices in Fostering Innovation.
Brad Szollose is also the *award-winning author of Liquid Leadership: From Woodstock to Wikipedia which explores the subject of new leadership styles – mainly how to get the tech-savvy Generation Y and analogue driven Baby Boomers working together. ISBN-13: 978-1608320554
Known for his humorous and thought-provoking presentations, Szollose received the highest testimonial of his career from a C-Level audience member: "I just had my mind blown." Brad’s keynotes and workshops are highly interactive, heart-warming, humorous, and filled with high-content information that challenge assumptions and help leaders and managers create a better work environment for innovation to thrive.
Liquid Leadership has been called "THE guidebook for the 21st Century" and has won the 2011 Axiom Business Book Award silver medal for leadership, The Indie Business Book runner up silver medal as well as becoming a #1 Best-Selling Business Book on Amazon for Organizational Learning. Published in the United States by Greenleaf Book Group, in India by Prolibris and in South Korea by UI Books/Iljinsa Publishing.
Mr. Szollose also writes a monthly column on business and marketing techniques that reach Generation Y for A Captured Mind newsletter and is part of The Mind Capture Group faculty.
Today, Brad helps businesses close the Digital Divide by understanding it as a Cultural Divide – created by the new tech-savvy worker...and customer.
* 2011 Axiom Business Book silver medal winner in the leadership
* #1 Amazon Best-Selling Author
