How Much Has the Samsung Note7 Explosion Influenced its Brand?

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INTRODUCTION

In today’s world where there has been burgeoning competition brand reputation is the main concern for all the brands around the world. Consumer preferences change over time due to a number of factors. The same is the case with Samsung Note7. With the ongoing incidents regarding the explosion of the Samsung Note7 recently, the brand has faced a number of challenges regarding its brand reputation and consumer preferences, and satisfaction.

Within less amount of time, many Samsung devices have been recorded to be caught on fire which has also assessed many voluntary recalls. The company’s production has been halted as the battery malfunction has caused bodily harm and serious damages.

There have been many devices of Samsung which are in circulation all over the world posing a great threat to the people and their security. The product portfolio has also been harmed due to the spill-over of the news which has seriously affected brand loyalty. The explosions have put Samsung in a difficult position putting it on the verge of low prestige and low buying behaviour on the part of the consumers.

This study was conducted to evaluate how much the explosions have influenced Samsung Note 7 and for that matter following are the aims of the study; to identify the impact of Samsung Note7 explosions on consumer buying behaviour, to determine the influence of the explosions of Samsung Note7 on its market share, to evaluate the importance of public relations and the effect of Samsung Note7 explosions on public relations and to identify the impact of banning of the use of Samsung Note7 by the airline companies on the brand.

DATA ANALYSES

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Introduction

This chapter includes the data analyses of the data extracted by the researcher in order to answer the research questions. As the research was based on mixed-method research so the survey questionnaire has been analysed by using the Likert Scale and the interview questions have been analysed by breaking the questions into themes. Lastly, a brief discussion has been given in order to align data analyses with the main objectives of the research.

Survey Questionnaire

Demographic Analyses

The first two questions of the survey questionnaire were about the gender and age of the respondents. The data analyses have been drawn below:

The first question was about the gender of the respondents. There were fifty respondents to whom the questions were asked. Out of fifty respondents, thirty respondents were male and twenty were female. The results derived that most of the customers who use the Samsung Note7 were male.

The second question was asked about the age of the respondents. It was identified that out of fifty respondents ten were between the age of sixteen to twenty and ten were between the age of twenty-five and thirty-one. Out of the remaining respondents, fifteen were between the age of thirty-two and thirty-eight and ten were between thirty-nine and forty-five. Lastly, five respondents were above the age of forty. It had been determined that most of the users of the Samsung Note7 were between the age of thirty-two and thirty-eight.

Descriptive Analyses

The survey questionnaire consisted of eight descriptive questions as well the analyses of which have been given below:

The next question was regarding the respondent’s opinion if the brand image of the Samsung Note7 has been damaged due to exploding problems. It was determined that five out of fifty respondents strongly disagree whereas twenty respondents strongly agreed to the fact demonstrating that the exploding problem has damaged the brand image of Samsung Note7.

The next question was about the ban by airline companies on the use of the Samsung Note7. It was determined that most of the respondents strongly agreed with the fact that many airline companies had banned the use of Samsung Note7 whereas only five respondents disagree with the statement.

The above diagram determines the question asked from the respondents about the problems in other products of Samsung. It was determined that ten respondents strongly disagreed while twenty of them strongly agreed. There was also a neutral response from five respondents. It has been identified that most people have been facing problems with Samsung products other than Note7.

The aforementioned diagram illustrates the user’s opinions on the use of Samsung over any other brand. According to the answers achieved out of fifty respondents, twenty strongly disagree that they do not prefer Samsung over any other brand although ten people gave a neutral response over the preference of Samsung over other brands.

Another question was about the effect of explosions on the market share of China. According to the above diagram, it has been demonstrated that twenty respondents out of fifty strongly agree on the fact that the explosions of the Samsung Note7 have affected its market share negatively. There were also ten people who had a neutral response towards the questions and only five respondents disagree with the question.

The above diagram illustrates the response of the respondents regarding the question about the fault in Samsung products on its public relations. It has been determined that fifteen respondents agreed and fifteen strongly disagreed developing the notion that the public relations of Samsung have been severely affected by the explosions and other defaults in the product. Only five respondents disagreed with the question where ten had neutral responses.

The next question was regarding Samsung’s efficacy in overcoming the consequences of the explosion of the Note7 in the market. It has been identified that out of fifty respondents twenty strongly disagreed and ten disagreed will the notion that Samsung has a tendency to recover within less time than expected although ten respondents agreed to the questions given that respondents had somehow mixed responses towards the ability of Samsung to recover in given time.

The last question of the survey questionnaire was about the opinion of people regarding the fact that Samsung is still one of the top companies which manufacture top quality products. The response as shown in the above diagram was somewhat neutral. Fifteen of the respondents had a neutral response whereas ten strongly agreed and five strongly disagreed.

Thematic Analyses

The answers derived from interview questions have been analyzed by using thematic analyses. The questions have been asked from ten respondents and the results have been broken down into themes. These themes have been defined below:

The Exploding Problem in Samsung Note7

One of the respondents said,

“The people are even getting more scared of using Samsung Note7 because it’s a self-harming device which harms the people by exploding”

The ongoing incidents regarding the explosions of the Samsung Note7 have created havoc amongst consumers. The people have been more concerned about their safety as there has been news about the explosions and it harmed many users of Samsung Note7. The consumer preferences regarding Samsung Note7 have drastically changed as the product could not be able to reach their satisfaction.

The Decision of Airline Companies to Ban the Use of Samsung Note7

One of the respondents stated,

“The airline companies have taken the right decision of banning the use of Samsung Note7 because using the product during a flight would cause a life of not only the user but to the hundreds of people travelling through the same flight”

The airline companies had banned the use of the Samsung Note7 due to the threat of aircraft explosion and fire. News had been reported about the phones catching on fire which led the airline companies to put a ban on Samsung Note7 during the flight, onboard, or even in luggage. The decision is considered to be right due to the safety of the passengers as the lithium batteries have a tendency to heat up and explode even when the phones are not operating.

Problems in the Other Products Offered by Samsung

One of the users of Samsung products said,

“There have been a number of problems witnessed in different products of Samsung which added to the low efficiency of the products”

The other products of Samsung have been showing products amongst the consumers. The people have been facing the problem of heating up the devices. The people have also faced the problem of slow functions of the devices. The use of lithium in the batteries has heated up devices ranging from mobile phones to hoverboards.

Preference of Samsung over Other Technological Brands

One of the respondents stated,

“There are other products in the market which can provide more efficiency and safety to the people at every phase of life”

The overall brand image of Samsung has been affected negatively due to the explosions. Consumer loyalty has been severely affected due to these incidents. As people have been more concerned about their safety, they prefer other products over Samsung. In this regard, consumer preferences have also been affected as well.

Opinions on Regaining Market Share by Samsung

One of the respondents said,

“The ongoing competition in the market can be a big issue for Samsung and it would be difficult for a brand to regain its position in the market”

The market share of Samsung has dropped in the past years due to these explosions. As the people do not prefer the brand due to the prohibitions of the Samsung Note7 at many places especially by the airlines, the people are reconsidering the usage of the product. The ongoing competition in the market would make it more difficult for Samsung to regain its stance in the market.

Considerations of Samsung as a Top Class Brand

One of the respondents stated,

“The brand can be considered preferable but only if it recovers from a bad image because safety first for all”

For becoming a top-class brand the most important thing is consumer’s buying behaviour towards a brand. As the market share of Samsung Note7 has been dropped the brand is no more considered a top brand in the market. Another reason is the market competition and the threat of substitutes. The people prefer those products which offer high quality which has been down in the case of Samsung due to explosions.

Discussion

Impact of Samsung Note7 Explosions on Consumer Buying Behaviour

According to one study conducted by Luiela et al. (2012) in the tech world, consumers prefer those products which provide high-scale safety and security. The devices which inflict harm on consumers can be regarded as the low preferred products. The same results have been derived in this research. The primary survey questionnaire and interview questions suggest the same notion that the explosions of Samsung Note7 have influenced consumer buying behaviour negatively and their preferences have also been altered regarding the brand.

Influence of Explosions of Samsung Note7 on its Market Share

As one study conducted by Tuttle (2016) stated that the Samsung explosions have caused a drastic impact on its market share. The explosions have raised millions of questions regarding consumer safety and this issue has let the market share of Samsung fall. The research findings of this research demonstrated the same result.

The interview questions which were asked by ten respondents suggested the same that the market share of Samsung has fallen down due to explosions. The market share of Samsung has been affected by the annual sales as well because the safety of people has been an issue on both domestic and international levels.

Effect of Samsung Note7 Explosions on Public Relations

According to the empirical analyses drawn by Gu (2017) the public relations are affected by a number of upheavals in the brand. Consumers often have a number of expectations from a brand and in the high-tech world, the high efficiency of the product is necessary.

If it’s not being provided by the product the public relations get affected. This research evaluated that public relations have been severely affected by the explosions of the Samsung Note7 as the public considered the explosion a threat to the security and safety of a person and the people around them.

Banning of Use of Samsung Note7 by the Airline Companies on the Brand

One study conducted by Tamalero and Tumiwa (2016) suggested that the ban on the use of exploding devices has been prohibited causing a great impact on the brand’s name and its prestige. The study also demonstrated that Samsung Note7 explosions have caused brand loyalty to deteriorate because the consumers have started to prefer other brands over Samsung.

The many incidents during the airplane flights such as the incident of smoking of Note7 due to which the passengers had to be evacuated inclined the airline companies to put a ban on Samsung Note7 onboard and even in luggage. This research gave the same implications that the explosions had a negative impact on the brand image of Samsung and the banning of Note7 on aeroplanes has caused a great thud to its sales and brand reputation.

Conclusion – Chapter 4

The data analyses have been drawn in this chapter giving an insight into the research findings. As the research was conducted under mixed-method the findings have been analysed by using the Likert scale and thematic analyses. The overall analyses suggest that the brand image of Samsung has been negatively impacted by the Samsung Note7 explosions. The objectives have been discussed to align the research findings with the previous work of the authors.

PROJECT CONCLUSION

The research was conducted with the aim to find the influence of Samsung Note7 explosions on its brand. First, the literature review was given in order to have a better understanding of the history of the issue. In the literature review, it was briefly defined by the number of authentic references that Samsung has been under a great influence due to the explosions due to which the product Samsung Note7 had also been banned by various airlines in the world.

Second, the research design was given identifying the methodology through which the research was conducted. The research was based on mixed-method so both quantitative and qualitative reasoning has been used in order to answer the research questions.

For assessing the influence on brand due to explosions of Samsung Note7 the survey questionnaire was conducted using the responses from fifty respondents. Further, for comprehending the research objectives the in-depth interviews were conducted by generating six questions which were asked from ten respondents.

After the data was collected the analyses were drawn. The survey questionnaire was analysed by using the Likert scale which identified that Samsung Note7 has not been considered a preferred brand due to safety issues and the market share has also been low due to low sales. The data collected from interview questions have been analysed by using thematic analyses.

It has been identified from the overall research findings that with high tech comes high risks and Samsung could not overlook the fact that its products have been regarded as exploding devices and harming people around the world.

Moreover, the banning of the products by the airlines has caused the brand its name, reputation, and prestige. In essence, it can be said that the explosions have Samsung a great deal of negative impact due to which the market share has fallen and consumer’s buying behaviour has been altered.

REFERENCES

• Gu, C., 2017. Status Consumption in High Tech Products Upgrading Purchase: A Study of the Extended Theory of Planned Behaviour Model (Doctoral dissertation, Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa).
• Luiela, C., Florin, I., Radu, C. and Sergiu, R., 2012. The Mobile Phones Consumers Protection. BOOK OF, p.1.
• Tamalero, F. and Tumiwa, J.R., 2016. Analyzing The Effect Of Brand Personality And Brand Experience On Customer Loyalty (A Study Of Samsung Galaxy Smartphone). Jurnal Riset Ekonomi, Manajemen, Bisnis Dan Akuntansi, 4(5).
• Tuttle, H., 2016. Samsung’s Vertical Integration Challenge. Risk Management, 63(10), p.6.