What can be learned from Samsung’s “Fast Follow” marketing methods?

It wasn’t too long ago when the iPhone 5 made it’s debut here in San Francisco at the Moscone Center. Nor was it much longer (2 hours) after that debut when Samsung’s CMO Todd Pendleton crafted their first Ad Campaign mocking the iPhone line sitters. Maybe you remember this? Or maybe a better example is this. Right after the Australian Police advised their citizens NOT to use Apple Maps for risk of putting their lives in danger. Evidently some people were being led hundreds of miles in the wrong direction into a ‘desert-like’ environment with no available water.  At the time, Apple was under A LOT of criticism from everyone under the Sun.  Luckily, Google came in and saved the day on December 21st, 2012 (The end of the world, you remember that day?) The take away from both of these publicity stunts and ‘parody’s’ as I look at them is: Any smart marketer can use their competitions flaws to their own advantage. This however does require a bit of creativity...