Impact of Samsung crisis on Samsung Brand
Impact of the crisis
Every corporate brand develops its credibility through right combination of performance and also their ethical conduct which converts into goodwill in the eyes of the stakeholders. The latest crisis situation at Samsung where the top executives have been imprisoned on the basis of fraudulent activity has tarnished the image of the company that has a long history of being a technology major and research driven company (CNN, 2017). the brand equity comprising of the strengths of the brand like technology, innovation, research, Korean legacy have come under question that puts a question mark on how the company is managed and administered (BBC, 2015). The unethical conduct of the chief executive would determine the conduct of the company and how they undertake their regular business. The stakeholders would get impacted and also the consumers in terms of loyalty towards the brand as they would feel the company is undertaking business in the wrong manner. the corporate brand that would get impacted would also impact the individual brand under which the various white goods are sold worldwide. Samsung is a conglomerate that have business in diversified field that would get impacted in the future as the unethical image of the company would be harmful for the brand (Reuters, 2017).
Samsung’s strategy to minimize the impact
The unethical conduct of the chief executive and the subsequent impact on the corporate brand Samsung needs a strategic brand building intervention by repositioning the brand in the minds of the stakeholders both internal and external (Android Authority, 2017). In such crisis, communication would play a very important role that would rebuild the trust and image of the company. Samsung has developed an integrated brand communication with the stakeholders providing surety about the company and its core values (The Guardian, 2017). The core mission and vision are being promoted that have developed the 100 years old company into an conglomerate in South Korea. Various statements are being given in media about the strict action that would be taken against the wrong doers and how it does not impact the integrity of the brand for its consumers (Science Direct, 2017). As the company is a global one, the brand credibility is being built at a global level by discussing about the quality and standards that would be maintained. The unethical conduct of one of the executives is being communicated as a one person conduct and does not reflect the integrity of the organization (NY Times, 2018).
Strategy for revitalizing the brand
The tarnished image of the company and the brand needs to be revitalized through making changes in their core values and repositioning it to earn the love and respect again. In the case of unethical case of the chief executive, the image of the company and its internal practices is under question. Samsung can undertake the brand revitalization through repositioning their name for ethics and honesty (Digital Trends, 2016). This can be done by communicating about their social activities and welfare to the right audience which will communicate their true intentions. The company should also undertake integrated brand communication from both offline and online methods in order to develop a higher consumer involvement with its strengths like innovation and technology and how the conduct of the executive would not impact the business conduct (Business Standard, 2017). This should also involve an apology from the executive side where he should take all the responsibility and provide a clean chit to the rest of the company (NBC News, 2017). the results and profitability of the company needs to be emphasized to prove the trust people have in the company and that it would be maintained through all kinds of assurance (LA Times, 2018).
References
AdWeek (2016), Samsung marketing, retrieved from: http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/qa-how-samsung-embraced-innovation-become-global-master-brand-marketing-171893/ [Accessed on 25th March, 2018]
Android Authority (2017), Samsung boss corruption, retrieved from: https://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-boss-arrest-company-impact-750439/ [Accessed on 26th March, 2018]
BBC (2015), Samsung corruption case, retrieved from: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-39214545 [Accessed on 26th March, 2018]
Business Standard (2017), Samsung stock plunges, retrieved from: http://www.business-standard.com/article/markets/samsung-stocks-plunge-after-arrest-of-heir-over-corruption-scandal-117021700175_1.html [Accessed on 24th March, 2018]
CNBC (2017), Samsung chief arrested, retrieved from: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/17/samsung-chief-jay-y-lee-arrest-likely-will-not-affect-global-brand-analysts-say.html [Accessed on 26th March, 2018]
CNN (2017), Samsung corruption scandal, retrieved from: http://money.cnn.com/2017/02/28/technology/samsung-jay-lee-indictment-bribery-corruption-scandal-south-korea/index.html [Accessed on 25th March, 2018]
Digital Trends (2016), Samsung Global, retrieved from: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/samsung-group-offices-raided-korea-political-scandal-news/ [Accessed on 25th March, 2018]
HBR (2016), Samsung crisis, retrieved from: https://hbr.org/2016/10/why-samsungs-note-7-crisis-wont-hurt-its-brand-long-term [Accessed on 24th March, 2018]
LA Times (2018), South Korea chaebol, retrieved from: http://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-south-korea-samsung-appeal-20180205-story.html [Accessed on 23rd March, 2018]
NBC News (2017), Samsung Scandal, https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/business-booming-samsung-scandal-all-n796461
NY Times (2018), Samsung corruption case, retrieved from: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/05/business/samsung-lee-jae-yong-appeal.html [Accessed on 24th March, 2018]
Reuters (2017), Samsung controversy, retrieved from: http s://www.reuters.com/article/us-samsung-lee/south-korea-prosecutors-seek-12-years-jail-for-samsung-heir-lee-in-corruption-case-idUSKBN1EL08H [Accessed on 25th March, 2018]
Science Direct (2017), Samsung scandal, retrieved from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042816300696 [Accessed on 25th March, 2018]
The Guardian (2017), Samsung heir in jail, retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/25/samsung-heir-lee-jae-yong-found-guilty-of-corruption [Accessed on 27th March, 2018]
Wired (2016), Samsung Lee arrest, retrieved from: http://www.wired.co.uk/article/samsung-boss-arrest-lee-president-park [Accessed on 25th March, 2018]