#LifeIsGood for Indian Consumers

LG is the darling of Indian masses for consumer appliances; mobile phones is where the going has not been that smooth

They are almost in every household and it’s became a synonym for electric appliances for Indians. Yes, we are talking about #LifeIsGood LG. This year LG is 20 years old brand in India. Not only company is enjoying their presence in India, their consumers are also sharing kind words in form of LG stories on the company site.

Amit Gujral, Head- Corporate Marketing

As consumers are becoming smarter, the scenario for consumer needs has also changed. With these shifts LG is also modifying technologies and bringing innovation into its products. Amit Gujral, Head- Corporate Marketing says, “We came in this country in 1997 and this year we are celebrating our 20th anniversary. This 2 decade long journey has been phenomenal and we have strong belief that we are almost in every house hold of the country. The philosophy behind the brand is Life’s Good and we ensure that we live up to that. And it has been possible on one strength i.e technology and R&D.”

Citing an example of air condition purchase and nature of consumer usage LG has brought dual inverter technology into air conditioner. He says, “We continuously and consciously reach out to customers to know what they want from the products. Being the leader, we have changed the entire industry by bringing the dual inverter technology into air conditioners. What it does in nutshell it reduces your electricity consumption by 50%. And now, the market is following LG’s footstep. Other companies have also started building inverter air conditioners.”

Similarly LG’s water purifiers are one step ahead of industries regular. Apart of RO, UV technologies LG has propagated with ideas what we use in general. LG has launched water purifier with stainless steel container which is meant for best use for preservation of water, while other companies provide plastic containers which are not 100% pure.

Talking about the refrigerators they are also different from others, “We have technologies that preserve the freshness of the fruit or vegetables two and the half times more than any company refrigerator in the market. So, extreme focus is on consumer insights in products and localization has been the key mantra for success of LG in the country for last 20 years in all categories.” Says Gujral. Like wise in the mobile phones, with the government order to implement 112 services in phones, LG has already implemented a panic button in its portfolio which can be reached on one touch. LG is the market leader in the consumer durable industry, the turnover for last year (2016) was INR 22,000 CR. This year LG is expecting to touch 20% rise from what they achieved last year. These are the number of market share in all categories of consumer durables till May YTD’ 17 across all categories.

Seeing is Believing

In terms of GTM strategies and initiatives LG focus is on attracting customers, “The biggest marketing being where the customer is. Our focus is on strengthening experiential drives. Lot of efforts is going on building experiential connect at the store because customers want to see, feel and observe and then buy.” tells Gujral.

As India is becoming more digital, LG is totally considerate on that aspect too. “We have become the No1 electronic brand in terms of social media connect. Our intent is very simple –be where the customers are and be close to consumers. We are present everywhere where a customer is going to buy.” adds Gujral.

Online platform is another channel for LG however all the products are not for online sale. “We are very selective in terms of what goes online and offline. As purchase behavior of consumers is different online and offline. Thus we have very specific and exclusive products online which are consumer centric and exhibit purchasing behavior.”says Gujral commenting on Online sales.

What’s Next

South Korean consumer electronics major LG will launch premium products under its new ‘LG Signature’ series. The company has brought its best technology and designs under the single brand, LG Signature, which represent 20 successful years in India.

“India is a one of the most important markets for us. We will be launching our LG Signature series here as we target the premium segment. And it will be across categories and something never seen before,”

Products under the LG Signature range include OLED TVs, refrigerators using the company’s Inverter Linear Compressor which automatically adjusts cooling capacity on the basis of load conditions and washing machines equipped with LG’s proprietary Centum System that enhances durability and energy efficiency with an advanced suspension system.

The LG Signature brand will also have air purifiers featuring an advanced aqua-cyclone feature that allows harnessing the power of water to filter out harmful chemicals and contaminants while bringing room to comfortable humidity levels.

Every silver cloud has one dark lining so it is with LG in India. While it has been highly successful on the consumer appliances part, the mobile story has not been so successful. LG, though is trying to make amends now. “The way mobility advancement happened we missed it. On mobile front, somewhere as an organization we were not able to read the right pulse. Twelve years back we had fair share in the CDMA market but we had never anticipated that the changes will be so dramatic and CDMA will fail. One slight understanding gap and having experience of huge success in this very case has become wrong example for us.”

Gujral further predicts that time has come when this technology is going to stabilize in terms of innovation and you will shortly see and hear from LG about very different phenomenal India insight mobiles.