Introduction
Samsung among the leading companies for the electronic digital products has their business covered almost all around the world, their success are mainly predicated on the innovative products with a relatively good deal. Although they are not in the primary position in the photographic processing industry, their products with the progressive design and relatively low prices can still help them hold a certain selection of customers. This statement will give a view of just how do Samsung deal with their supply chain while find themselves an effective position in the digital camera making industry.
The market qualifiers and order winner
There are some huge obstacles that every hi-tech companies facing in the current market conditions ---- the short product life pattern, product variability and progressively declining prices. Rather than investing huge percentage of capital into growing new solutions for the digital camera models, Samsung made a decision to put their effort in making their product with the existed solutions, and attributes more on the fashion outlook of the average functional products. As it happens that they thrived in low-margin consumer electronics.
As a result, Samsung do not have such ambitious to win the technology authority position as Cannon and Nikon have at the current level, they simply concentrating on low prices and the style design. Therefore, the primary competencies of Samsung can be explained as low cost, ground breaking design and overall flexibility.
Thus, the market qualifiers for Samsung cams are 3 aspects nearly as good brand image, good quality and feasible functions. Moreover, since Samsung has adhere to their cost cutting down strategy, the relatively low prices and the impressive design of their product have added to the order champion aspects.
Market segment
Based on the standards that Samsung have as their market qualifier and order success, a group of non-professional customers can be easily attracted. The market portion is mainly towards middle-class consumers who pursue fashion designs with an acceptable price range. Not talking about the geographic segmentation, within Europe, the market segment of certain customers can be classified into the following paragraph.
Standard
Age
Salary level
Interests
Groups
20 -- 40
Low to middle
Fashion pursuit, non-professional
Besides, according to the Roger Moore Curve (make reference to Appendix 1), Samsung have jumped from the innovator and early adaptor categories, who target more on the technology and performance, and straight put themselves in to the market where customers pursue more on alternatives and convenience (the sets of Early majority, Overdue bulk and Laggards).
Customer values
It is essential for Samsung to value their customers and place different strategies towards them, in order to reach an improved performance and lastly get an improved profit margin. However, Samsung should firstly explain themselves in a proper value position and regularly operate according to that. Treacy and wiresema model is the one helping companies determining their value position.
The aim of Samsung is to create a competitive gain by their progressive designs and some special functions utilizing the existed technology. Therefore, the price of their product development would be relatively low looking at to their challengers. Additionally, Samsung provide more selections for their customers on both functions and the styles, and the global allocated product and service support centers also help fulfilling the consumer has to a very large extent. Because of this, Samsung is the position of a product leadership, and these advantages are also reflecting in their customer value aspects.
Based on the four main targets for customer value ---- quality, cost, service and lead time, the customer value of Samsung can be summarized as follow: Customers who bought the Samsung camcorders would normally perceive that they were delivered for a much better product and service than other brands on the same price.
To sum up, the type of customer value in the camera industry is somehow to provide the innovative products while cut the cost low. However, since the product life cycle in this industry gets shorter, companies should do more effort to balance the price tag on expanding new technology and the steadiness of turning revenue. Samsung's success is a good exemplory case of value position and the caution of their customer value.
Pressure on the source chain
In the high-tech industry, operational performance is tightly connected to the supply string performance. Product supply, lead time and cost as three major factors define the profitability of a product series are also influenced by supply chain performance to a large extent.
In the case of Samsung, who do not outsource their processing part, instead, they have created their own "cell-based" manufacturing system that doubles the development for their entire product collection. Thus, they have got less strain on the product availability comparing to their competition. However, being cared for diversely to the LCD products, the production of Samsung digital camera models is not invested a lot for technology development. They simply choose the technology from others and then add functions as well as the designs. Therefore, the time to market is among the most major pressure within the Samsung supply chain.
In addition, your competition within the photographic industry has brought the series of short product life issue, Samsung has to contribute more on their product development part, to be able to establish their product to the marketplace at a fast swiftness, and ensure a certain profit margin.
Moreover, as Samsung establish their production bottom part mainly in the far-east countries, the price and the potential risks from the transfer sector have also become a pressure on the supply chain, and finally donate to the strain on the business lead time.
Summary
Samsung as the world's leading electronic creation company have successfully managed their marketing strategy, by setting up themselves into an effective value position and understanding the needs of their target customers. Therefore, an effective service could be supplied into the certain target groups which attributes with their huge profit margins even in period of the global financial crisis. However, the pressure on the supply chain, especially in the lead time sector has brought them some obstacles that would have to be conquered. Nevertheless, the outstanding performance of Samsung continues to be reflecting their successful online marketing strategy as well as the best control of their source chain.
