Apple Inc. Increasing Corporate Market Share - Research Paper Example

Apple Inc. Increasing Corporate Market Share Introduction Apple Inc. is committed towards being the market leader in personal computing and digital music products and services. To achieve its business goals, the company has endeavored to provide quality for its customers within businesses, institutions and government agencies. This has been made possible through creativity and innovativeness of its computer hardware and software in addition to computer peripherals, internet services and digital music devices. Regardless of the company’s business success, it is faced with challenges of achieving a greater share in its corporate market. This is due to the increasing market competition of its business rivals. Within the global mobile market, Apple has only 1% market share while its computer market enjoys a 5% market share (Cusumano 23). Additionally, the company’s TV features are relatively unpopular. This paper presents a report of an analytical analysis of Apple Inc. with a view of illustrating how the company would achieve a greater corporate market share for its PC and non-PC products and services. The scope of the report will include analysis of the needs of the company’s customers, strategies through which the company will increase corporate market share and its competitiveness. Both Qualitative and Quantitative research methodologies are applied in collection of quantifiable and qualitative data for analysis and interpretation. The collection of data employs secondary research design in which findings for the company investigation are obtained from credible secondary information sources such as peer reviewed journal articles, online databases and books. Data Analysis and Discussion The needs of Apple Inc.’s customers are quality of products and services. The company’s PC systems are expected to be of superior quality which includes creative and innovative design of hardware architecture and software platforms. Apple Inc. is faced with a challenge of maintaining its core success factors and competencies which include innovativeness, creativity, marketing, brand management and building relationships within the organization and with its customers (Casacchia 59). This scenario illustrates that the needs of the company’s customers are not being met effectively. Furthermore, the needs of the company’s customers include affordable prices for its OC and non-PC products. It has been revealed that Apple Inc. is experiencing difficulty in overcoming business rivals who provide low-priced products to the mobile and computer markets (Fontevecchia 6). The mobile products from Google for example are posing a threat to the company’s success due to the low prices that the business rival provides for the customers. Additionally, the computer market is characterized by competitive prices from Dell and Microsoft both for hardware and software (Gelles, Chris and Richard 15). These findings demonstrate that Apple Inc. is faced with a challenge of satisfying the product and service cost effectiveness that its customers require. The strategies which Apple Inc. has employed in order to increase the market share for its products include marketing, strategic alliances, customer relations, creativity and innovativeness, provision of variety of products and services and the iPod platform. Within the digital music market, Apple’s iPod has enjoyed 70% of the market share as opposed to its closest competitor which has only 8% of the market share. Nonetheless, the company’s strategy for providing variety of products to its consumers has been faced by threats of new entrants to the market and substitutes for its computer and mobile products (Seitz 1). These threats have reduced the value that the customers have for the company. Additionally, the company’s customer base is increasingly becoming more diverse (Mallin and Finkle 52). New entrants in the market have also implemented new strategies and strengths in marketing which are posing new threats to the company’s strategies of increasing its market share. It has been revealed that Apple Inc. has been unable to maintain the demands of its stakeholders and thus being unable to attain more investment to support its growth and expansion of the market (Svensson 1). However, the company’s strategies for expanding the market have achieved success. For example its marketing alliances have enabled the company to increase the popularity of its products within the market. The competitiveness of Apple Inc. within the computer market is relatively low. For example, the company’s computer growth in 2005 was only 8% which was 3% lower than the previous year (Mallin and Finkle 53). This is due to the competitive business rivals in the computer market such as Microsoft and Dell. Additionally, Apple Inc. concentrated in the mobile market by providing its customers with high quality iPods, iPhones and iPads. It is through the mobile market that the company’s success was retained because the Macintosh products were losing their competitive edge to the computer giants and business rivals (Mallin and Todd 1). However, the pricing pressures and the increased competitions for iTunes has been a threat to the company’s success in the market. The market share for Apple TV is the lowest among the company’s products which illustrates the need for employing of suitable product and marketing strategies for promoting this products and achieving a greater share of the market. To achieve a greater share within the market, companies must invest in research and development. This is because research and development acts to enable a company to investigate the market needs and implement the findings to satisfactorily satisfy the need of the customers (Gelles, Chris and Richard 15). At Apple Inc. the research and devilment costs are very high (Mallin and Finkle 55). This finding illustrates that the company is comparatively less cost effective especially since the market is already saturated. Even though the company holds the portable music market by 90%, it is notable that the company only relies on innovation as a way of enjoying a larger share of the market. This means that the company is at risk of losing a large portion of its market share especially if its investment in research and development fails to achieve the desired results. Nonetheless, investment in research is one of the best approaches through which a company can increase its corporate share of the market. In this sense, it is argued that Apple would achieve the benefits of research and development by investing appropriate amount on this strategy while diversifying its approaches to increasing market share. Apple Inc. has many market opportunities through which it would expand its share within the computer and mobile market. The company would expose its products through retail store and increase awareness, interest and desire for its products within potential markets (Gelles, Chris and Richard 15). Furthermore, there are opportunities for international expansion and growth for the company’s products and services as a way of increasing the corporate market share. Apple Inc. has received high competition within the market because of lack of compatibility for its products. Moreover, the company’s music computer and music products take long to provide the consumers with the updates (James 1). Therefore it is arguable that the company has an opportunity of providing compatibility and regular updates to its consumers as a way o increasing its corporate market share. Web technology in marketing and product extensions have been described as one of the most effective approaches through which a company can increase its market share (Casacchia 59). As a result, Apple Inc. could make extensive use of web technology to promote its computer and mobile products to the international market and thus increase its corporate market share. Additionally, the threat of new entrants to the computer and mobile market would be overcome by the company if it implements an opportunity of differentiating its products and meet the needs of the diverse market. By providing diversity, the company will be able to meet the unique needs of the market and thus increase its corporate market share. Works Cited Casacchia, Chris. "Apple Audit Confirms WD, M-Flex Business." Orange County Business Journal, 2012, 35.4, 59 Cusumano, Michael. “Technology Strategy and Management Platforms and Services: Understanding the Resurgence of Apple”. Communications of the ACM, 2010, 53.10, 22-24 Fontevecchia, Agustino. “Apple To Dominate Tablet Market Through 2015, Google Takes Smartphones”. Forbes, 2011, 6 Gelles, David. Chris, Nuttall and Richard, Waters. "Apple Unveils $99 iPhone in Attempt to Raise Market Share." Financial Times, 2009, 15 James, Sarah, Barry. "Apple Ready to School Education Market." SNL Kagan Media & Communications Report, 2012, 1 Mallin, Michael and Todd, Finkle. “Apple Inc.: Product Portfolio Analysis”. Cullowhee, United States, Cullowhee, 2011, 1 Mallin, Michael and Finkle, Todd. “Apple Inc.: Product Portfolio Analysis “. Journal of the International Academy for Case Studies, 2011, 17.8, 49-56 Seitz, Patrick. "Apple iPhone Expanding its Smartphone Market Share." Investor’s Business Daily, 2012, 1 Svensson, Peter. "Apple Market Value Hits $500B, Where Few have Gone." Spartanburg Herald Journal, 2012, 1 Read More