There’s no bigger lesson in marketing than the one out there in the real world. There is a brutal competition between brands and the effectiveness of their marketing strategies. Marketing campaigns are like case studies for distance MBA students and budding entrepreneurs to learn the ins and outs of marketing.

 

 

Source: OnePlus

 

Everyday lessons for budding entrepreneurs

 

One such recent case study is that of OnePlus disrupting the smartphone industry with its unique marketing strategy. The brand has gone on to capture 48% of the premium smartphone segment in India, giving tough competition to biggies like Apple and Samsung.

 

Do you remember a few years ago several people were seen dropping text messages and emails to friends asking them for an invite to buy a phone, which they had never seen, touched or even heard about? Probably, you were one among them too. That was OnePlus’s innovative strategy and boy did it work like a charm!

 

 

Three lessons entrepreneurs can learn from the flagship killer

 

So, how on earth did OnePlus change the game with an incredibly small marketing budget? As budding entrepreneurs and distance MBA students, there’s a lot you can learn from OnePlus and its marketing strategy

 

1.Don’t get overwhelmed by competitors and believe in yourself

 

A newly born Chinese smartphone maker competing with the biggest mobile market players like Samsung and Apple seemed illogical in the beginning. But as OnePlus’s intelligent positioning as a powerful phone with every feature at the lowest price started to work, it made everyone notice the brand.

 

This brilliant positioning of every OnePlus phone made it overcome the competition in a similar price bracket by offering more features at a nominal price. The slogan “Never Settle” is aimed at a tech savvy audience that has good knowledge about gadgets and wants better features from their smartphones.

 

If you are a budding entrepreneur, you should always think of creating a unique positioning for your product, which will help fight competition.

 

 

Source: hooklineandclincher

 

2.Try new methods of marketing

 

OnePlus’s unique invite-only marketing gimmick worked well for the brand. It created curiosity and desirability in the audience for the phone by portraying it as something rare and exclusive.  The invite-only concept worked as a mouth to mouth campaign in itself and increased awareness about the brand without increasing the ad budget on OnePlus’s marketing efforts. Although the company’s brand ambassador is Amitabh Bachchan, he’s prudently used in the brand’s communication.

 

Say you’ve completed a management or marketing related distance learning course in Bangaloreand have thought of a product idea that can make waves in the market. Will you try out an idea that’s never seen before? Will you experiment with the norms? OnePlus showed us that a big marketing budget is not necessary if you have a bright idea.

 

 

Source: brandequity

 

3.Understand your market

 

 What makes OnePlus irresistible is not just the fact that it’s exclusive, but also that it is pitched to a focused market. OnePlus’s target audience consists of tech savvy millennials. The company focuses on giving customers more features while cutting back on advertising.

 

OnePlus is hugely leveraging social media to reach the youngsters. Visitors from Facebook, Reddit and Twitter to the brand’s website comprises of nearly 8% of the entire traffic. Thanks to the huge OnePlus community in India that prefers cost benefit over brand value, the company is growing its market share in the country.

 

Do you walk in the customer’s shoes? The greatest businessmen have spent valuable time trying to understand their customers and their market. It all begins with understanding the customer’s need and ends with fulfilling it.

 

Learning on the streets

 

You MBA or BBA course may not cover every marketing strategy, so you will have to take some effort to study a few on your own. Something as simple as observing billboards and hoardings can help you understand the marketing strategy employed by several brands. Once you start putting the puzzle pieces together, you’ll understand how different marketing strategies are influencing you and those around you.

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