Powered By Blogger

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Chapter 10. Nokia's Product Concepts

Nokia has built its legacy around cell phones and smart phone devices. It all started in 1982 when Nokia introduced Mobira Senator - the first mobile phone. Then little by little the company started introducing a whole lines of new phones. Original Series were followed by 1000 - 9000 series where the 1000 models represented the line of ultrabasic/most affordable phones and 9000 - the communicator series that grew into Eseries cell phones - so called business optimized smartphones, that were developed mostly in 2005-2011 time frame. Almost simultaneously three Modern groups of cell phones were introduced into the market: Cseries (cell phones optimized for social networking and sharing), Nseries (advanced smart phone series that also included Tablets), Xseries (with focus on young people interested in music and entertainments). 


The latest smartphone product line is Lumia Windows Phones. It was introduced by Nokia and Microsoft on October 26, 2011. The first WP was launched in Europe and companies have many expectations for this new product. Nokia Lumia 800 will enter the US market in 2012 and will be selling at the price of $585. As an alternative for a lower price company has also introduced Lumia 710 with little less features on one hand but more reasonable price of $376 on the other hand. 


Aside from tangible products Nokia's product mix also contains Internet services and Software solutions. Ovi is an Internet service platform that provides Games, Maps, Media, Messaging, Music etc. for mobile devices, computers and can be accessed through the web. The service is currently undergoing re-branding and will appear under company's main brand name. Among solutions Nokia has to offer several concepts such as Nokia PC Suite - a software package that helps to establish interface between your mobile device and a computer that runs Microsoft OS.  Nokia Sports Tracker is another good example of software that allows cellphone users who are dedicated runners, joggers and cyclers to track their route, speed and timing while engaged in their favorite sports activity.


In conclusion, Nokia Corporation offers tangible and intangible spectrum of products. All its products are classified as both business and consumer oriented.
Company's product mix includes cell phones, smart phones, laptops, Tablets, Internet services and Software solutions. 

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Chapter 18. Sales Promotion and Personal Selling by Nokia.

Nokia just announced the results of this year's third quarter sales report.  The numbers showed that the net sales for this period were EUR 8 980 million. 57% of this figure represent sales of mobile and smart devices. Lets have a better look at what helps the company to generate such profits.

Nokia sells most of its products via retailers, wholesalers and online Internet stores. Company does not invest in opening of new retail stores either due to the lack of profit or recession hardship. The company pushes its products with the popular service carriers from Verison, T-Mobile and AT&T in the US to the Orange, Life :), MTS in Europe and to the Aircel and China Mobile in Asia. Even though the manufacturer is willing to provide the retailers with all the necessary training about the product it has little to no influence on the consumer. For instance lack of companies retail stores in the US makes it harder for Nokia to compete with the growing force of the Apple Inc.

Nevertheless, Nokia is engaged in different activities for promotion of its products. The most common tools used by Nokia are rebates, coupons and loyalty programs. Mail in rebate and free shipping are offered to customers who are renewing their contracts and subscribing to particular service providers. Customers can receive Nokia's coupons and promotional codes from such websites as retailmenot.com or goodshop.com. By buying Nokia's products you can also contribute to some cause. Company promises to donate 4.5 % of the sale to charities, which makes costumers feel involved in making this world into a better place to live.

Nokia's loyalty program invites its customers to join Nokia's Club and receive assistants with any questions and concerns and be first ones to receive news on the recently launched devices and the future plans on innovation of companies products.

Even though Nokia is saying that they are on a way of a good improvement since 2008 (year of introduction of IPhone) I believe that the lack of personal selling is the milestone for the company. They are one step away from launching Windows Phone and the product of such magnitude will require a lot of customer support, which can be provided only at specialized stores. 

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Chapter 17. The Effects of Advertising

The latest news about Nokia are on advertising campaign for the new Windows phone. The company plans to come strong on this one and according to the latest news $128 millions were already spent on Mango platform. Company hopes that this money will be payed back by the high volume of sales that both Nokia and Microsoft are expecting from the new product. The leaked ads for new WP7 were posted on the Internet few days ago.

"Today the Sun will rise and set. The rest is up for grabs" - is a quote of a new Nokia's poster . We can only speculate on what does this message bring with it. Maybe the SUN is a new brand name for a long waited WP7. "Will rise" - may mean that this product will have unique features which will put it above other products of its kind. "The rest is up for grabs"- leaves us wondering weather it means that the new smart phone will have a competitive price or it will be easy to find at any mobile store due to its mass production.
"Take, tag, sort and share. All in a flash" - speaks for another apparent feature, that the concept of new smartphone is build around social networks. We are yet to find out either it will be done via the software itself or it will require the download of new applications.

Nokia also promotes its name by patronising and sponsoring different events. It is an integral part of company's marketing communication strategy. In 2011 Nokia took over as a sponsor of one of the biggest cricket tournaments in the world the Championship LeagueT20 which took place in India. In the passed Nokia had sponsored many sporting and educational programs and competitions. Another marketing strategy that promotes a good name of the company is participation in different causes like education for underprivileged children and "Helping Hands" programs. 

Nokia built its strong reputation by producing quality products and it made sure that the whole world knows about it. 


Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Chapter 15. What Should Nokia Learn From Apple About Retailing?

Retailing is defined as all the activities directly related to the sale of goods and services to the ultimate consumer for personal, nonbusiness use.

It is sad to know that Nokia's stores were closed in United States since company is suffering from the lack of innovation to fight with IPhones. I decided to go ahead and dedicate this post to an actual competitor of Nokia the Apple, Inc.
The main Apple retail store is located in the heart of the City at 59th Street and 5th Avenue steps away from the Central Park. This place is always full of tourists and usual new yorkers. The store attracts your sight by its original design. A logo on the white square makes you remember the motto "Think outside the box" and this is exactly what Apple applied for designing its core retail location.  The stairs and the modern elevator make you feel like you are entering not just a regular store but a future world of technology. The inside has a very simple but yet sophisticated design. White walls make you feel like you are in the laboratory and are witnessing the products of the great effort of many brilliant computer genius. The store is separated into three major sections: tech support, training area and sales area. My first fascinating was a number of sales representatives that are there to assist you. Every one of them is assigned to his/hers specialty area. As an Apple customer I was able to ask few of the questions regarding the updates of the software and the improvement of the battery on the laptops. From my interaction with the sales assistants it was easy to conclude that these people not only have the perfect knowledge of the product that they are selling but they also have  exceptional customer's service skills. I was asked if I need any help  by at least 20 people for the whole time spent in the store.  

It is amazing that your experience in the store is not just limited to buying something. At the same location you can receive a proper training on how to operate any of the high technology devices sold there. Personal approach to the customer is a key to success in the case of Apple. Also there is a special event calendar that you can grab and glance through quickly. Some of the events for the month of October feature New York Film Festival, meeting with a musician Jack Mannequin and animation artist Liz Artinian.

In conclusion, I want to highlight that Apple stores represent a chain ownership of specialized stores with unique and narrow assortment of products. Customer is surrounded with high level of service and even though the Apple products are on the high price range the company is still able to show high gross margins.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Chapter 6. Consumer Decision Making

Today phone consumers are highly educated about the mobile devices. With a help of direct and indirect sources they learn about new products in cell phone industry. Mobile phone market is always changing and there are new devices launched very often by the leading companies. It is important for the marketing teams to determine what are the factors that drive customers to buy a new phone. First of all the cell phone is not a luxury in todays life it is rather a necessity. When buying a new phone people consider quality, appealing design, battery durability, software compatibility and new features.  Nokia presents its customers with a variety of mobile devices that satisfy wide range of tastes and needs. Its software enables people to experience not only the basic phone purpose to be connected to the rest of the world, but also being able to listen to the music, navigate, videotape, take images, watch TV, play games and conduct business. 
When searching for a smartphone consumer gives preference to the Nokia phone due to its affordable price and great battery power, which is important for people who travel a lot and do not have the access to the power source or if they use their phone too much and tend to drain the battery very fast. Another feature that helps Nokia win its customers is a large memory card in all its models that have cameras. It allows customers store more images and videos on their phones. 
Phone design is another factor taken into consideration during the phone purchase. Nokia manufacture phones in any color from toxic yellow and bright pink to sophisticated silver and classic black. Design is something that appeals to teenagers and business people where first group is looking for something bright while the second one is trying to appear professional and not flashy. The second group of consumers also gives the preference to the phone applications that help with navigation and information including news, currency exchanges and stock market prices. 
Nokia helps its consumers to find a phone that defines and fulfills their needs and tastes.