Samsung hopes to be 'human global brand'

By Kang Seung-woo

NEW YORK ― Setting aside its image as a global tech company, Samsung Electronics seeks to stand out as a “human global brand,” its ranking officials said, Monday (local time).

Pio Schunker, senior vice president of the company’s mobile communications business, and Lee Young-hee, executive vice president of global marketing at the company’s mobile communications business, held a press briefing at Samsung 837 in Manhattan, the firm’s flagship experience center.

“As we look to appeal to the millennial audience and to the generations that come after that, there are two very important things we have to do,” Schunker said.

“The first thing is we no longer can afford to be just a tech company. In order to grow our business globally, we have to become a lifestyle brand. That is a very big priority. The second priority is we have to grow brand love.”

Schunker, a veteran marketer who has worked for Coca-Cola, American Express and Mercedes-Benz, joined Samsung in March 2015.

Lately, Samsung has been trying to define its corporate philosophy after Koh Dong-jin, president of its mobile division, first proposed some ideas at last year’s Mobile World Congress.

“With the millennial generation, it is no longer enough to just tell them this is what we sell. We are no longer in the business of selling information. We are in the business of selling emotion. And that’s what all iconic brands do,” he said.

“In the past few years, I frequently received questions from clients and the media about the brand personality of Samsung. They tended to call us just a big-sized company without the brand personality, which gave us a wakeup call,” Lee said.

“Since then, all communications personnel of Samsung Electronics and its 70 branches across the globe have made continuous efforts to show the brand’s philosophy.”

According to Lee, the tech giant began to prepare for the job four years ago, which was accelerated after Schunker joined them.

It marked the first time for the world’s largest smartphone maker to unveil its brand philosophy in what seems to be an effort to improve its marketing for the upcoming Galaxy S8 handset, to be introduced here Wednesday, and regain consumer confidence after the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco.

Samsung recalled the jumbo phones, some of which caught fire while charging, only two months after the Note 7’s global release.

“The Note 7 recall eroded loyalty and confidence among Samsung’s fans,” Lee said. “But since we introduced our eight-point safety measures on Jan. 23, we have engaged in campaigns to bring back the customers.”