The LG G6 is a phenomenal smartphone — leaps and bounds better than the mediocre G5, its predecessor that had failed to push its modular schtick into wide commercial adoption.
LG has gone back to basics to create the G6, eschewing gimmicks and quirks to deliver a top-rank premium phone with a huge screen, but LG's having difficulty selling it. Not because it's not a good phone. Not quite. In fact, the LG G6 might be one of this year's best.
LG G6: Unfortunate Timing
LG's facing a hard time trying to sell the G6 because of, well, unfortunate timing. Samsung's newest pair of flagships, the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, have now launched, and both are taking all the spotlight they can get, which means the G6 now hovers somewhere in the background as the Galaxy S8 takes the stage.
So with this in mind, how will LG fight back? More importantly, how can it encourage consumers to pick the G6 over the Galaxy S8? The latter question might prove more difficult to answer, especially since some may view the Galaxy S8's upped chipset, stellar camera, security features, and AI assistant as a better set of features than what the G6 has to offer.
Well, TechnoBuffalo has gotten hold of a document fished from an LG presentation that outlines exactly how the company plans to market its flagship device.
LG is going to convince users that the G6 is a "trendy phone," and that it offers a "differentiated value" by pitting it directly with the Galaxy S8.
LG G6 Campaign Goes Head-To-Head With The Galaxy S8
The document goes on to compare the G6 with the Galaxy S8 in various categories, including design, usability, and ergonomics. LG highlights the G6's stylish and minimalist design, in addition to its "strong heritage in wide-angle cameras."
LG will attempt to capture the attention of millennial consumers, which it believes prefers experiences over owning things.
LG plans to leverage to these comparisons in an attempt to market itself as a leader in form factor, usability, and reliability. LG is clearly banking on the hope that everyone still remembers the whole Note 7 fiasco. Presumably, LG will target that narrative to present its quality assurance.
But LG also knows where it falls short. For example, the G6 doesn't feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip or biometric features, both of which are found on the Galaxy S8.
Yet, LG will ignore these facets and instead market the phone in a way that says specifications don't matter much, but "consumer value" does.
There's no telling whether that approach will win the hearts of its audience, but because of its lower price, it stands a chance. That said, it's easy to imagine that people would be willing to shell out a bit more for features the Galaxy S8 has that the G6 lacks.
Still, there's always the possibility that the G6 will be successful with this type of comparative campaign, but it has to be ready when Samsung retaliates and plots its own response.
Let the smartphone wars of 2017 begin.
