Marketing Case Study

Samsung have made a big name for themselves here the the United States with its high quality and  highly diverse array of products such as TV's, washers, dryers, laptops, and of course, phones. Speaking about phones, Samsung was aiming to top its already top selling phone, the Samsung Galaxy 7 edge (sold 13.3 million units according to Geekygadgets). However, Samsung has undergone some major setbacks on its new flagship phone: the Note 7 that undermined their value proposition: quality that is reliable, fully featured. Samsung has become a brand that people trust when they look for a product to be the highest end in technology and features. However, due to allegations of the new phone blowing up, they have really tainted that trust in people. 

Soon after the launch of the Note 7 in August, users were reporting problems with their phones spontaneously catching fire. Samsung said that it was due to faulty batteries that were bought in China that was the cause.  Last month, the major carriers set a huge recalling of the phones. Consumers thinking thought that would solve the problem. Nevertheless, more reports and videos of the phones blowing up have surfaced; causing a major distrust among consumers towards the brand. That of which included an American consumer reporting that his new Note 7 just started smoking without it being plugged in. Additionally, Southwest Airlines had to cancel a flight due to a replaced Note 7 catching fire.  

To make matters worse, the three major carriers within the United States--Verizon, AT&T, and T-mobile have stopped replacing phones all together with a plan to stop distributing potentially dangerous devices. Furthermore, all carriers are encouraging people to trade in the phone for a phone that isn't as risky. 

Just today, Samsung tells their users to turn off their phones due to their faulty devices. It went so much that on the Samsung have told consumers to turn off their phones all together and get a different device all-together. 

Samsung's stock throughout this ordeal has also taken a hit. The company's stock has plummeted more than 5%. 

It feels like Samsung were too eager to get their flagship off before their biggest competitor: Apple. By releasing it a whole two months before Apples flagship: the iPhone 7 plus, Samsung have dug themselves into a huge ditch in which will have to do tremendous repair, before getting back on their feet. 

Articles 1: Samsung tells users: Turn off your Galaxy Note 7 phone NOW
Articles 2: Samsung nightmare gets worse as carriers bail on Galaxy Note 7 replacements