Apple and Google Go Head to Head Over Mobile Maps - Article Example

? Apple and Google Go Head to Head over Mobile Maps Introduction The article “Apple and Google Go Head To Head over Mobile Maps” has been published in The New York Times on June 17, 2012. The article discusses regarding the plan of Apple to include maps application in its iPhone and it has also asserted that it will not use Google maps but would possess its own inbuilt maps, part of its new mobile based operating system. Marketing Concept and Marketing Myopia The product that Apple is planning to introduce is mobile maps. It has been evidently recognized by the researchers that maps are one of the essential components of a mobile web. The article asserts the fact that Apple’s maps will assist the users at locating numerous places on earth. It will offer greater value to its services. The main objective of the company is to retain the customers within its ecology as its iPhone. The new Apple maps service will offer the customers with 3D images of cities and towns, known as ‘Flyovers’. It will also offer the customers with traffic updates as well as turn-by-turn navigation. The article also states that the best marketing concept that Apple uses is offering the customers with an experience which is different from that of others. It has been evident that the intended amalgamation of the feature of mobile maps app with iPhone can render Apple substantial profitability as according to a research conducted it is observed that people who use iPhone spent 35% greater amount of time on using maps than other phone users. Therefore, this marketing concept can provide Apple a major scope of market growth prospect. Apple can also get hold of the useful consumer data which was earlier received by Google. Apple can also earn greater revenue from opportunities such as sponsored links. These factors can affect on long-term profitability of Apple by a considerable extent. The article demonstrates the fact that in this instance of launching maps application the company is product focused rather than customer focused which is closely associated to the concept of marketing myopia. Apple has also solely intended to render consumers’ such an application which can be quite value adding, thus though the concept relates to marketing myopia however not entirely. Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning Apple mobile maps will be provided as an application with iPhone itself. The purchasers of iPhone are generally high income group people who have the capability to purchase the product. The product can be used by the youth and the middle aged to old aged people. It can be used by both the male as well as the female. The high-end consumers of iPhone generally also desire use their phones to operate navigation facilities for their business or social networking purposes. This can enable the mobile apps to generate user activity with regard to the provided service. The product can be targeted generally to the businessmen who want to make their businesses available or traceable to the local as well as international customers. Through Apple mobile maps, customers will be easily capable of determining the exact locations of the stores that they will be looking for. The app is likely to target the app stores. The company, Apple can position its product as adding a new feature to its iPhone in order to attract a significant portion of the customers. This would help Apple to uphold competitive advantage and assist in maintaining sustainability. One of the unique features which will be inculcated in the Apple mobile maps is ‘Siri’, which is a voice-activated search tool. The company can as well position its product of mobile maps in terms of value addition with the popular product i.e. iPhone. As the application would be in-built within the iPhone, the positioning of it would not be a major concern for Apple. However, Apple needs to ensure superior quality of the maps service to draw the consumers in the long run to use the facility. Apple will entrust on outside parties for maps related information at first, the way its competitor Google does. The company has released an instruction set which is referred as software development kit in order to guide developers in creating the app. The developers are putting into practice user-friendly walking directions for maps depending upon the things such as landmarks as well as street views. Product Life Cycle The product Apple mobile maps’ is in its introduction phase and thus Apple might have to bear considerable amount of cost at this phase. It has been observed from the article that Apple plans to purchase few features such as store locations as well as hours along with information regarding- walking paths, public transportation and landmarks. It also expects to buy such information from independent developers as well as customer information service providers such as Yelp. Therefore, the company might have to pay substantial amount of finance in order to avail such services. During this phase, it would be necessary for Apple to generate demand for its new service/product (Apple mobile maps) to enhance the sales of iPhone. It must prepare new strategies in order to reach growth stage at a relatively short span of time. In the product life cycle of iPhone, the mobile maps can play a major role, as it can create buyer interest towards the iPhone in the long run, which can in turn increase its profitability and also ensure sustainability of the brand of iPhone. It can facilitate the extension growth and maturity phase of iPhone considerably. Environmental Factors Technological factors tend to have a major impact upon the creation of the new features of Apple. Apple’s new maps app will possess a voice navigation feature. The Apple’s mobile maps will be coordinated with Siri virtual assistant feature so that the users will be capable of making queries for finding directions along with posing other questions. The company’s map service is a part of its new operating system namely iOS 6. It would also be feasible to conduct a competitor analysis for Apple’s mobile maps. One of its close competitors is Google which had been previously offering its services to iPhone with Google maps. Microsoft making use of the Bing maps and Yahoo maps which relies essentially upon Navteq, possessed by Nokia can also be the close competitors of Apple mobile maps. Apple can leverage major benefits from the maps service, thus in turn benefiting its growth and sustainability in the market. Overall Evaluation of the Strategy Related To Apple Mobile Maps Apple’s strategy to create its own mobile maps instead of using the service of Google can be considered as effective strategy because Google is considered to be a rival of Apple. Hence, it might be reluctant to offer its services in terms of Google maps to Apple. It can be analyzed that by making its own mobile maps, Apple can enhance the value of the brand and thus attract a significant portion of the customers of Google maps towards the product. By inculcating Siri in its maps, the users will be capable of making queries about direction. Such strategies enforced by the company can help in attaining competitive advantage in the market and will lead to sustained growth. It has been observed from the article that if Apple is unable to meet or exceed the benefits offered by Google maps then it is likely to displease the prime customers of Apple. Hence, it is quite significant to pay due attention towards its positioning and segmentation strategies that will assist in driving the traffic towards the iPhone’s mobile maps. Apple mobile maps service can be identified to be quite a prudent step by Apple. However, in order to ensure success of the service it needs to not only expend substantial revenue so that precise and high quality service is rendered but it also is required to continuously update its facility as per the consumer needs. Conclusion Product development is considered to be one of the cumbersome tasks for the marketers. The marketers are supposed to prepare their strategies in a way that can help the prepared or launched product to flourish in a short span of time. Apple mobile maps which is in its introduction phase needs to focus upon creation of the demand for the product so that the sales and revenues of the company can be escalated through the incorporation of it in devices such as iPhone. Furthermore, a close watch towards the strategies of the rivals also needs to be ensured on a continuous basis in order to remain competitively ahead of the competitors and thus sustain in the market for a longer period of time. Bibliography The New York Times. (2012). Apple and Google go head to head over mobile maps. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/18/technology/apples-goes-head-to-head-with-google-over-mobile-maps.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all Read More