Sunday Communications was one of six mobile operators launched in Hong Kong in 1997. It focused on innovative marketing with creative advertisements, positioning itself as a "lifestyle brand". This helped Sunday achieve higher profits than competitors initially. However, as other operators copied Sunday's strategies, customers became confused about differentiating operators. Sunday's profits dropped 78% in 2004 as revenues declined and it invested in 3G. In 2005, PCCW acquired Sunday. To be successful going forward, Sunday should enhance its original brand image focusing on innovative, user-friendly services relating to consumers' lives, with different strategies for 2G and 3G users.
Sunday Communications was one of six mobile operators launched in Hong Kong in 1997. It focused on innovative marketing with creative advertisements, positioning itself as a "lifestyle brand". This helped Sunday achieve higher profits than competitors initially. However, as other operators copied Sunday's strategies, customers became confused about differentiating operators. Sunday's profits dropped 78% in 2004 as revenues declined and it invested in 3G. In 2005, PCCW acquired Sunday. To be successful going forward, Sunday should enhance its original brand image focusing on innovative, user-friendly services relating to consumers' lives, with different strategies for 2G and 3G users.
Sunday Communications was one of six mobile operators launched in Hong Kong in 1997. It focused on innovative marketing with creative advertisements, positioning itself as a "lifestyle brand". This helped Sunday achieve higher profits than competitors initially. However, as other operators copied Sunday's strategies, customers became confused about differentiating operators. Sunday's profits dropped 78% in 2004 as revenues declined and it invested in 3G. In 2005, PCCW acquired Sunday. To be successful going forward, Sunday should enhance its original brand image focusing on innovative, user-friendly services relating to consumers' lives, with different strategies for 2G and 3G users.
Introduction Sunday Communications Limited was one among the six mobile operators launched in Honk Kong in 1997. It was a very competitive market and with the introduction of MNP (Mobile Number Portability), competition for subscribers became a virtual free of all. Sunday with its innovative market approach started gaining popularity and positioned itself as the lifestyle brand. Its unique advertising strategy that translated a lifestyle enhancing services helped it to connect with the customers. Analysis Unlike its competitors, Sunday focused on an innovative marketing approach with a series of creative and unique advertisements that were well received by the audiences. It was praised for its originality and creativeness. This uniqueness and brand awareness helped Sunday to achieve more success. Their ARPU and locked up period was much higher than the competitors. This was attributed to the companys differentiating marketing as well as its bundling strategy. Issues Despite all the successes, Sunday claimed a mere 9.8% of market in 2000 and 8.3% in 2005 and now Sundays wacky strategy was no longer new and exciting because copycat market diluted the effect. With similar advertisements, offers and services, customers are confused to differentiate and choose. In 2004, Sunday reported a 78% drop in net profit owing to declining revenues and substantial investments in 3G and in the summer of 2005, PCCW made a successful bid for the company. Recommendations Sunday has built a strong & unique brand image and should keep this brand image with enhancing its originality and creativity. If PCCW decides to do away with this brand image, then it might lead to drop outs of existing customers. Its core strategy was to capitalise on the convergence of wireless communications and data technology to develop innovative lifestyle enhancing services as well as business to business solutions therefore user friendly and innovative services should be its focus to enhance the customer values. Adding services that relate to consumers life as well as having different strategies for 2G and 3G should be the focus. Therefore it should create a strategy that would align with its core strategy and keep its existing brand image by focusing on the latest trends. For 2G users, it should focus more on the existing locked up users and provide them with better services as it is a highly saturated market. And for 3G users, it should again come up with some unique & creative advertisements that would capture the lifestyle of the early adopters and resonate with them.