iPhone 5S vs. Samsung Galaxy S4 iPhone 5S:

iPhone 5S is the latest smart phone developed by Apple Inc. which is one of the most successful smart phone brands of the present times. iPhone 5S is the most advanced phone in the company's iPhone product line. It was released on September 20, 2013. Its predecessor, iPhone 5 was released on September 21, 2012. iPhone 5S has same design as of iPhone 5, except for the new home button design, a fingerprint recognition system, Touch ID, an updated camera with a larger aperture, and A7 processor. iPhone is known for its sleek and stylish design, unique features, and high level of brand loyalty in the worldwide markets (Apple, Inc., 2013).

Target Market and Location:

The target market for iPhone 5S consists of students, business professionals and corporate users, medical users, entrepreneurs, and other individuals that fond of highly innovative smart phones. iPhone 5S comes with numerous features which can meet the personal, study, and professional needs of its customers in a variety of ways. The age group of the target market is between 18 to 45 years. It is more demanded by the customers who want supreme graphics quality, audio and video capturing and editing, useful applications, and astonishing user experience. The target market for iPhone 5S can also be segmented on the basis of income class of the customers. It is a premium-priced product like all its predecessors from iPhone 1 to iPhone 5. Therefore, the most potential customers for iPhone 5S belong to the higher income class only. iPhone 5S is available all over the world and sold through private retailers to the general consumers (Apple, Inc., 2013).

B. Samsung Galaxy S4:

Samsung Galaxy S4 is an innovative smartphone developed and marketed by Samsung Electronics. It is an Android smartphone and was released on March 13, 2013. Its predecessor is Galaxy S III. The design of Samsung Galaxy S4 is quite similar to its predecessor with some additional features and better software and hardware. Currently, it is the fastest selling smartphone of the present times (Samsung, 2013).

Target Market and Location:

Samsung Galaxy S4 also targets the same customers as iPhone 5S, i.e. The target market for this innovative smartphone consists of students, medical and engineering professionals, businessmen, artists, and household individuals. The age group of the target market is also same as of iPhone 5S. Samsung Galaxy S4 is also sold all over the world and has greater demand than its biggest competitor, iPhone 5S (Samsung, 2013).

Marketing Mix: iPhone 5S

i. Product Strategies:

iPhone 5S is the latest smartphone in the iPhone series of Apple Inc. It is best known for its sleek design, top quality camera and graphics, super-fast operating system (iOS), and astonishing applications. iPhone 5S has improved hardware and software capabilities and is lighter, slimmer, and more advanced than all its predecessor iPhone models (Apple, Inc., 2013).

ii. Pricing Strategies:

iPhone 5S is a product from a premium-price brand, Apple Inc. However, customers are still willing to pay this price due to their emotional attachment and brand loyalty associated with the name 'iPhone'. Apple iPhone 5S is more expensive than most of its top competitor brands like Samsung, Nokia, BlackBerry, HTC, etc.

iii. Promotion Strategies:

Apple Inc. uses all types of promotional and advertising mediums to market its iPhone 5S to its potential customers all over the world. It uses electronic media, print media, social media networking sites (including the video sharing sites), and its own official marketing website. In addition, it promotes iPhone 5S through retailers, business development firms, and supply chain members in the potential markets of the world (Apple, Inc., 2013).

iv. Place Strategies:

iPhone 5S, when launched was available for sale in the most developed countries of the world. Within 20-30 days, it was made available all over the world. Currently, it is sold through private retailers and the company's official website. iPhone is one of the most liked and appreciated smart phone brands in the world. Therefore, consumers from all over the Globe rush to buy it when it is launched in their markets.

Marketing Mix: Samsung Galaxy S4

i. Product Strategies:

Like iPhone 5S, Samsung Galaxy S4 is also the latest smart phone in the Galaxy series of Samsung Mobiles (Samsung Electronics). It has the most advanced hardware and latest version of the Android operating system. With its supreme quality graphics and support for thousands of Android applications make it the best ever smart phone introduced by Samsung. Galaxy S4 is best known for its super-fast processor, high resolution display; scratch less screen, and compatibility with all new Android applications (Samsung, 2013).

ii. Pricing...

Samsung claims to be the world's number one smartphone selling brand due to the exceptional sales performance by its Galaxy S4. Consumers are ready to buy this innovative smart phone because it truly gives value to their money (Bruch & Walter, 2005).
iii. Promotional Strategies:

Samsung Galaxy S4 is primarily promoted on the electronic and print media. However, consumers get exposure of this latest android phone on cell phone retailers' websites, application stores, and third party websites. The company also promotes Samsung Galaxy S4 through mobile advertising (Samsung, 2013).

iv. Place Strategies:

Samsung has greater number of retail stores as compared to Apple. It is sold in all the corners of the world. However, like its industry rival, Samsung Galaxy S4 is also sold in the large cities and towns only. The place strategies for Apple and Samsung are almost same except for the difference in the number of retail stores.

The Core Strengths of the Marketing Mix Elements for Apple iPhone 5S and Samsung Galaxy S4

The biggest strength of marketing mix is that it gives different marketing considerations to the companies on how they should design their product features, price it, promote it, and make it available for the ultimate consumers. For Apple iPhone 5S, the marketing mix elements are helpful in understanding the core marketing strategy elements which Apple needs to consider while presenting its latest smart phone to its most potential target customers.

i. Product Strategies:

Apple has to expend millions of dollars on the marketing and promotional activities for its smart gadgets. Having the marketing mix elements in hand, Apple can better understand the four major ingredients of the marketing strategy. First of all, the product strategies are helpful for Apple in deciding the core attributes and features which it has to incorporate and include in its iPhone models (Schultz, 2008). These attributes include product design, screen size, display resolution, color, etc. In short, product strategies help Apple Inc. In deciding how the customers will experience the latest model of iPhone (Frazier, 2006).

Similarly, Samsung uses product strategies to build new features and exterior design of the Galaxy smartphone. These strategies enable Samsung in giving those features which are highly demanded by its customers. Clancy & Krieg (2006) also believe that only those companies are successful which keep their focus on the changing consumer preferences. The same (Consumer Behavior) theory is discussed by Van Heerden, & Barter (2008). They state that customer preferences change with the change in their demographic, cultural, social, and economic patterns. Therefore, companies need to mold their products according to those preferences. Like external features, the use of software (operating system), support for applications, storage capacity, camera, lens, etc. are also decided in the light of product strategies.

ii. Pricing Strategies:

Pricing strategies help Apple and Samsung in setting a price that will truly add value to the customers. Apple is more expensive brand than Samsung; but it still has stronger brand loyalty than any other brand. It shows that price is not a purchase decision parameter for those who are truly loyal to one particular brand (Gourville & Soman, 2002). In contrast, Murphy (2006) believes that price is the leading factor that affects the purchase decision of customers in all types of products and services. Samsung charges comparatively lower price than Apple, but still enjoys superior sales performance. It is because it has given more features, application support, and superior hardware in its latest smart phone, Galaxy S4 (Samsung, 2013). The fluctuation in sales performance of both the companies can be attributed to the global financial crisis and current economic crunch in various markets of the world (Austrade, 2009).

iii. Promotional Strategies:

The biggest strength of promotional strategies for Apple and Samsung is that it enables them to market their products to their most potential target customers in a more effective and well-organized way (Benady, 2006; Porter, 2008). First of all, promotional strategies help them decide what marketing mediums or channels must be selected to promote a particular brand. Secondly, based on their previous experience with these channels, the companies can decide which among them is the best and the most effective marketing channel. Moreover, they can keep an eye on the market segments which are to be targeted as well as the overall competitive environment for their products (Austrade, 2009).

Apple uses almost every marketing channel to promote its iPhone 5S except…