Ch. 7 - Business Marketing

55-inch is a great size for many consumers, but it may be not big enough for some/many businesses. In the current (Ultra) High Definition LED/LCD television market, there are many TVs that are much larger than 55-inch. As far as size is concerned, LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV (55EA9800) is absolutely the best in its game and it has received great reviews since its first appearance in the market. However, many companies that utilize large area displays for business purposes would need displays bigger than 55 inches and they should pay attention to LG's another game changer.

LG introduced a 77-inch Ultra HD OLED TV prototype in September at the IFA 2013 in Berlin. After all the great reviews that LG has gotten for 55EA9800, LG added 22-inch and also increased the resolution to 4K, not to mention the curved OLED panel. According to Jay Vendenbree, senior VP of LG's USA home entertainment division, said that the official debut for the U.S. market will be at the International CES 2014 in January. He said, 

“some may say it’s too early to kick off the future, I’m here to say the future is now. Today, consumers already are purchasing Ultra HD TVs in ever-increasing numbers. And the reason is simple – they can really see the difference. Consumers’ jaws literally drop when they see it, even more than HDTV.”

LG's confidently forecasts that their sales will be as high as 800,000 units during 2014 while other industry research organizations, such as DisplaySearch, estimates up to 500,000 units.

He also mentioned that businesses will soon need Ultra HD because of an increase in consumers' demand for Ultra HD in businesses such as hotels and airports.

Here are some pictures of 77-inch Curved Ultra HD TV:

Source: IBTIMES, TWICE

Ch. 8 - Segmenting and Targeting Markets

A month after the U.S. launch of 55EA9800, it went on sale in Germany, Australia, and United Kingdom in September and Saudi Arabia in November. Prices vary but mostly it was lower than the U.S. retail price.

When 55EA9800 went on sale in Germany, the initial price was €8,999, which was $3,000 lower than the U.S. retail price. In Australia, LG launched it at $11,999 AUD.The same model but different model number, 55EA980W, also launched in the United Kingdom in September at £7,999. 

Earlier last month, LG introduced 55EA9800 in Saudi Arabia.

“The new curved model compliments our core OLED TV family with a unique design that capitalizes on the thinness of the screen and the aesthetic beauty of OLED TV,” president of United Yousef Mohammad Naghi (UYMN), Ammar Naghi said.

“We have huge expectation because LG is No. 1 and it will remain No. 1,” he added.

According to B.W. Park, managing director of UYMN, Saudi Arabia is one of the biggest premium TV market for LG. With its beautiful design, colors, and viewing experience, 55EA9800 can surely spoil wealthy Arabs. As the technology matures and prices go down, LG will be able to contribute the tv market where many consumers use televisions as their primary entertainment source.



In East Africa, Kenya, although many Kenyans are still obsessed by Smartphones and tablets, LG plans to grow the premium television market share by launching the 55-inch Curved OLED TV, so that they can stay ahead of other competitors.

55EA9800 is available in Kenya at about Ksh.1.2 million (approximately US $14,000) 

Source: HDTVtest, HDTVtest, Arab News, allAfrica

Ch. 11 - Developing and Managing Products

Senior designer/ researcher, Sunha Park, at LG has designed many televisions. She wanted to design something more than just thin, flat screen televisions that are prevalent in the current market. She wanted to design a television with LG's newest panel technology, OLED, and she knew that the OLED display can be flexible. According to Ms. Park, what bothered her the most was that there were some people who didn't believe what she wanted to achieve was possible.

After they found the perfect curvature of a screen, they faced another problem. Since the display was curved, they had to find the matching conduction angle and the level of conductivity for the curved OLED television. She said, "...every department involved in LG CURVED OLED TV faced and overcame their fair share of obstacles."

In order to maximize the viewers experience, they added a crystalline stand so that the tv looks like it is floating and it also gives an IMAX-like view experience. After 5 years of research and development process, they have introduced the prototype Curved OLED TV, received prestigious design award from the Red Dot Design, and started manufacturing for consumers.

Source: WHY LG TV Blog, GIZMAG


Check out their design story commercial video:

Ch. 18 -Social Media and Marketing

LG utilizes various social media tools to develop relationships with their consumers. They post articles on their blog(US) about various news on their products. However, LG has more Web traffic on their Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, and YouTube pages. Each social media site has basically two different pages per medium, LG Mobile and LG USA.

The 55-inch Curved OLED TV article is posted on their blog. Click the picture below to read more.

On October 30, 2013, LG announced their new social media campaign, Hidden Worlds. It is a campaign that tells LG's products are "bringing excitement to consumers' daily lives." Participants can engage in the campaign by playing a rescue mission game either with a webcam or mouse to save a female author who is trapped in one of the beautiful colors of television pixels of LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV. According to LG, they try to increase their brand awareness and also their new brand identity theme, It's All Possible, through the campaign, Hidden Worlds. The campaign will eventually be roll out in more than 20 countries in Europe, Asia, Central/South America, Middle East and Africa. Source: LG Newsroom

You can participate the campaign HERE.

Also, here is the full campaign video on YouTube:

For those who wonder about how they make this kind of video, you can check out a video made by the company that produced the LG's campaign video. Click HERE.

Ch. 10 - Product Concepts

As technologies change rapidly, many not only small gadgets but also a lot of consumer electronics become obsolete. However, when consumers buy electronics that are expensive or that are expected to last longer than other small gadgets, such as televisions or computers, they tend to make their decisions carefully. For early adopters and those who are willing and able to pay more than 10 times higher prices than current LCD/LED televisions on the market for LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV,(55EA9800) you won't regret your decisions.

Whether consumers install 55EA9800 in their living room or businesses install it at a lounge/waiting area for clients in their companies, the viewing experience will impress anyone who sits in front of this television. One of the most important reasons is LG's OLED panel technology. While other competitors use RGB OLED panel technology, LG chose WRGB OLED panel technology. This allows infinite contrast and also wider viewing angles. This superior panel technology absolutely sets apart 55EA9800 from other competitors OLED televisions. 

source: DIGITALVERSUS

For some consumers who need their display output devices in a bright environment, 55EA9800 will be able to surpass their expectations on televisions. Thus, such customers who have seen and experienced high-quality, satisfying results with LG's products, look for LG's product lines. 

LG's logo, symbol, and tag-line are quite easily noticeable. 

Because they all have similar elements that connect each other. The symbol has a letter 'L' in the middle of a red circle and a carefully designed letter G is between the letter 'L' and inside the circle. This symbol is always accompanied by the letters 'L' & 'G' right next to it. Their tag-line, "Life's Good" alliterate with their brand name, LG. Wherever in the world LG's product is sold, their logo symbol and  brand name are used consistently. 

AS the display panel technology matures and the manufacturing costs are reduced, LG will produce more variety of televisions that will serve general consumers who need less options and features at competitive prices for everyday use and power users and businesses who want more useful options and features.

Ch. 17 - Personal Selling and Sales Management

When consumers purchase high-end electronics such as LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV(55EA9800), they look for a help/advice from experts so they can make a right decision.When you buy LG's 55EA9800 TV, you are definitely in good hands. Especially at Best Buy, they have a dedicated store-within-a-store, Magnolia, which provides you all kinds of help you would need when it comes to high-end electronics.

Here are some features that you can hear more about from experts.

4.8mm thin. The slimmest 55-inch tv currently available on the market. How does this work for you? You may be able to impress your clients in your waiting lounge area with this TV.

LG's Smart Touch Control for a minimalistic design. 

Reading a manual may not be as clear as seeing it in person.

LG used a special material,carbon fiber-reinforced plastic, on the back of the TV. It protects the TV more securely. But you should note that a wall-mount option isn't available for this model.

If you have other electronics that can be connected to this TV, you need to make sure what ports and inputs are available. Obviously, the easiest and best input would be HDMI.

Photo source: http://asia.cnet.com/product/lg-55ea9800-55-inch-oled-46730710.htm

You can get detailed information about LG's 55-inch Curved OLED TV at Best Buy's Magnolia. Many reviewers on the Internet have said that it is hard not to like this TV. If you like this TV but wanted to wall-mount it, you may still be able to it. Even though this TV is not designed to be wall-mounted, you can find out what Magnolia can do for you if you wanted it to be wall-mounted. 

Ch. 16 - Advertising, Public Relations and Sales Promotion

We all know that the current main stream television panels are mostly LCD/LED based products and LG manufactures many main stream products that are available in the market, not to mention LG offers them at very competitive prices. While LG prepares the next generation TV panel technology, OLED, they use various marketing tools to attract consumers. One of the most important tools is CES, the Consumer Electronic Shows. It is a trade show/exhibition produced by the Consumer Electronic Association (CEA). According to the 2013 attendee summary audit, the number of attendees from all over the world were over 150,000. Among them, about 6,400 attendees were media related attendees from 73 different countries. A show like this is very effective not only for LG but for any company that can afford to participate. 

Before the 55-inch Curved OLED TV (55EA9800), LG introduced 55EM9600 flat-panel OLED TV and it was selected by CNET (reputable online review website) as the winner of TV category of 2012 CES. 

And at the 2013 CES, LG showed off the 55-inch OLED TV (55EM9700) and they were planned to arrive in the U.S. in March 2013. 

Along with the 55EM9700 model, LG started selling the 55-inch Curved OLED TV(55EA9800) model in August 2013 worldwide.

Also, LG works with a brand ambassador, Ewan McGregor, for the Australian market. As they introduced the 55-inch Curved OLED TV in Australia along with other large area TVs, they introduced Ewan McGregor as their brand ambassador. According to CNET, before he described his brand ambassador role, he said, “LG makes f**king good tellies.”