Everyone is familiar with Apple and Samsung’s rivalry and they also know that being arch rivals these two companies do not miss a single chance to needle one another. During all these years Apple has dominated Samsung and recently the Korean manufacturer has been able to take charge. The two tech companies are fighting against each other on almost every front, which includes marketing and advertising. However, the best man to judge the marketing efforts of Apple is none other than Ken Segall, as he is been working together with the creative team of the California-based company for over a decade. This team was formed by the late Steve Jobs and Segall has produced some outstanding ads for Apple like the celebrated Think Different campaign.
However, the most important contribution from Segall was the famous “i” that he actually added in iMac. The former creative director has now taken some time off and made an interesting post on his Observatory blog on Tuesday, February 26th that depicts his thoughts regarding the marketing department of Apple, which according to him has lost the momentum to no other than its biggest competitor, Samsung. Segall writes:
“While you can still argue that Macs and i-devices have a ton of appeal, you can’t argue that Apple is still untouchable when it comes to advertising…The fact is, it is being touched — often and effectively — by none other than Samsung…Samsung has made remarkable inroads in a very short time, for two big reasons.”
Segall also pointed out the two main reasons behind Apple’s marketing department’s poor show against Samsung of which one was that the South Korean company has allocated a huge budget for advertising and secondly it is willing to “bash away at Apple,” by “delivering ads that are well produced, well written and seem to be striking a nerve.” Segall also indicated that Samsung is making more creative new ads than Apple for instance its Super Bowl and Oscars’ ads.
“In contrast to Apple, which has been sticking to its product-based ads, Samsung has been scoring points with its people-based ads — most of which play off some growing negative perceptions about Apple… Samsung invested in a two-minute Super Bowl ad; Apple chose to remain silent. Samsung created a new story for the Oscars, tapping the eccentric Tim Burton; Apple ran only a variation of its more traditional product-centric campaign.”
In addition to this, Segall also wrote that “the last time Apple tried to stir things up was when it unveiled a brand-new campaign during the summer Olympics.” The ad became controversial and eventually the Cupertino-based company had to take it down.
All these indications from Segall are pointing at the opinion that Apple has lost touch. It was a feelin that used to inspire Apple fans and motivate them to rush to stores and buy its products. In his blog post Segall also noted that Samsung’s Oscars ad that features famous director Tim Burton was the one that gained more attention.
Creative director Jason Norcross and 72andSunny’s partner are a part of the squad that was behind the latest ads from Samsung. He spoke to Bloomberg and said that:
“One of the big competitors was really owning the mobile market. Samsung wanted to make a big splash. We tried to take advantage of all the momentum around their competitors. It is a choice of a new generation. Samsung is the flag bearer of android nation. They have quite a bit of innovation. Going back a year-and-a-half ago we just wanted to position Samsung as the leading technology in the category and just used that line of “people lined up.”
The next big thing is already here. You do not have to wait for its. That was the genesis of the whole next big thing is here. We have just built on that from there.”… “I think the results are shown the growth of the Marketshare. Those results speak for themselves. Cool is never something we go for. We just try to show the benefit and to really respond in an honest way.”
Source: 9t05Mac
Photo: CultofMac