Analysis of the Buzz Generated Around the Launch of iPhone - Essay Example

1-What, according to you, was the reason for such a huge amount of buzz being generated around the launch of iPhone? Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the strategies adopted by Apple in launching iPhone The success of the massive campaign done by Apple for the iPhone was reiterated as a success as the market data indicated excellent sales figures. The actual sales were in lines with the estimated impact of the campaign and in totality the product confirmed to have a splendid response from the customers. iPhone was launched in the United Sates of America on June 29, 2007 and Apple announced the market expansion through its launch in Europe in late 2007 and in Asia by 2008. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008) The marketing strategies adopted by Apple in order to market its iPhone, gained the praise of business experts all across the world. The basic strategy of the company was to create an initial market boom through extensive campaigning on the uniqueness of the product. Further Apple ensured to utilize the ripples created in the market by these campaigns in favor of the product. The company could successfully initiate an impatience in the customers to wait for the release of the product. The launch of iPhone was much discussed in the media especially by the business critiques and eventually the launch was made to matter much for the common man as well. Apple could successfully use its previous product iPod which was launched in 2001 as background to the campaign for its new mobile technology titled ‘the iPhone’. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008).The iPod was proved to be a splendid success in terms of business. The product was unique in its utility and portability. This uniqueness was very well utilized by the company while launching iPhone. The similarity in the name was deliberately created by Apple, in order to help its customers relate the quality and market repute of its new product to that of iPod. The company and it’s marketing policy makers were wise enough to envisage that the pride that was held by the earlier product would prompt the customers to be a proud owner of iPhone. This pride was proved as an integral factor which made the customers to queue in front of the outlets so as to be the proud owners of iPhone at the earliest moment as possible. In a report by Laura Smith Park, in the BBC website, the huge quantum of fans for the newly releasing iPhone was reported and a customer who managed to own an iPhone in the very first day was stated to say that he was going to rush to his house and ring up his friends to let them know that he got an iPhone. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008) The price of the product was also a part of the strategy followed by Apple as a part of the campaign. The prices of the products on the launch date were US Dollar 499 for the Four Gega Byte Version and US Dollar 599 for the Eight Gega Byte Version (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008). This was premium price which was a part of the marketing strategy which believed that the price of the product was not going to limit the initial customers of the product. Moreover the market performance and the technical excellence of the previous products of Apple like iMac and iPod would assure the customers on the reliability of the product and they would not mind spending for a quality product. The loudness of the marketing was another striking specialty in the way Apple strategically planned the marketing of iPhone. The product was hyped to create a buzz in the mobile market. The technical excellence and innovations which adhered with the product was reasserted as unmatchable by the advertising campaign carried out by Apple. Though the quantum of advertising was less in terms of quantity, the quality of the strategy effectively hyped iPhone as a state of the art product. The continuous success of Apple’s previous products automatically served as a promoting principle. The strategy followed by apple was to connect indirectly and invisibly this back to back success stories to the marketing strategy of iPhone. Apple deliberately incurred a major policy change on the same day on which the announcement of the revolutionary product of iPhone was done. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008) The company dropped out the term Computers from its name to be renamed as Apple Inc. This gave the customers an insight that the technology related to mobiles is not ‘out of the box’ for the company. The customers, by themselves, weaved a relationship between the announcement of the new product and the change in the company’s name. This strategy relating to the accuracy in the timing of integral business events accelerated the public attention on the product. Market analysts followed these events with due attention which further enhanced the product and its technology as a never seen one. This announcement was read together with the launch of iTV, by the market experts to define it as a transforming process of the company from a mere computer producer to a quality consumer electronic goods producer. The strategy of the company was to assert the upcoming branding of the company as a leading innovator. When this branding is coupled with the success stories of the past, it was envisaged that the customers would be eager to acquire another innovative and concurrent instrument which in turn would urge people to buy the new product. The technical innovation in the mobile technology was another strategy of the company which enhanced the creation of a market buzz. The technology related to Apple’s music player called iPod, was faced with immense competition from the advancement in the mobile technologies. Ipod was facing immense market pressure due to the availability of similar and even more advanced music related utilities in the modern era mobile phones. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008) The reason for this was quite simple because the latest mobiles were offering the same quality of music that iPod offered and much more functions like cameras, storage etc. The strategy followed by apple was to integrate many technologies in demand into single electronic device making it a multi utility portable device. The touch screen, Safari Browser for internet connectivity, all which were included in the iPhone was technologies of the future. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008). The uniqueness and the innovations in the technologies involved in the iPhone were averred by the fact that it resultantly had more than two hundred patents filed in favor of Apple. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008). These technologies were unmatched with reference to the market of the date. This strategy to follow the unmatched realms of business made the marketing process easier for Apple. However this perspective was followed by Apple although in their history. The announcement of the arrival of an unmatched technology made extensive remarks in the market and facilitated the creation of a real buzz in the market. The advertisement policy for iPhone was a very silent and teasing during the actual launch of the project. It ensured to keep the suspense live, when enough praise on the technology of the product was automatically done by the critiques and the market analysts. The advertisement never even revealed the name of the product but propagated the concept that a change was coming. The need for a change was put into the mind of the people by highlighting the limitations of the current technologies in mobile phone industry. Rather than delivering big promises on the product and occupying huge space in the media, the advertising policy of Apple for the product “iPhone”, concentrated on the target group who were looking on for the product to be launched, and successfully initiated a technological and marketing campaign favoring the product. The limitations in the information delivered by the advertisements in a sense aggregated the ripple created by the product among the customers. To catalyze the interpersonal advertising process, the company strategically allowed an ample time gap of six months between the announcement of the release and the actual release. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008). Adding to this, the framework of the internet and the allied platforms efficiently did the advertising process for the product. The product sale strategy of the company also was tailored to cater for the target group of the initial boom. The product was initially sold through almost two Thousand outlets based in places where the company had strong customer base. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008). The company ensured in the campaign that a technical expert of the company would be made available in each of the outlet which practically minimized the technical literary fear of the customers. The basic strategy to substantially utilize the initial buzz was very well supported by this approach. Another advantage in the marketing policy was the collaboration with packages supporting the technical attributes of the product. The product was launched in association with mobile service packages which supported data transfer and other related technical requirements. The company created stipulations on the availability of the phone as well. Initially only two pieces were sold to a single customer which automatically created a demand for the product. This also ensured the distribution of the available initial stock to a wider range of customers which in turn accelerated the process of mouth to mouth advertisement. These spread of the word proved the agenda of Apple true as the buzz created about the product was considered as the biggest boom ever created for a product before its launch. The critiques backed the extension process as the product was followed critically on every stage of its production. This promotional activity was averred by the fact that almost eleven thousand articles were written on the product before its launch and almost sixty nine million hits were recorded on the matters pertaining to the iPhone. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008). However a number of disadvantages could be evaluated in the marketing strategies adopted by Apple so as to promote iPhone. The major concern posed by the strategy was the over hype on the technology of the product. Though this hype managed to make an initial ripple in the market effectively, favoring the product and the company, the sustainability of the hype created by this marketing strategy was under doubt. The hype if not maintained its consistency, would backfire very badly. If the product is not able to ensure the reliability of the people on the technology propagated by the campaign it would even affect the company’s future ventures as well. The collaboration of the company with a particular service provider was another major disadvantage in the marketing strategy of iPhone. This particularly limited the scope of the customer on the diverse utility of the product. Adding to the concern, the specific service provided at that point of time recorded a lower performance with regard to the acceptability among the customers. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008).The cost efficacy of the product offered by this service provider was another major issue pertaining to the long term market performance of the iPhone. This cost when added up with the premium price of the product would be a major limitation for the growth of sale of the product. The over branding of the product was another major concern. This statement must be read together with the fact that a wholesome of two hundred technologies which were patented were branded and marketed under a single name. (Rao, A Sreenivasa, 2008) However a differential strategy on the marketing would have helped to cater for a wide range of customers with varied needs on the products. Overall, the strategy was very defensive when considered jointly with the growth prospects of the product. The advertisement catered only the elite customers of Apple. The people who are comparatively new to the quality of Apple would really feel a scarcity of information in the advertisements. A more generalized approach would have open wider doors for the product. The policy of advertising lacked diversity in terms of the target group. The sales outlets were concentrated on the pockets where Apple had predominant market monopoly. This strategy literally meant to limit the scope of growth to the comfort zone of the company. The launch considering the uniqueness in the technology, if dealt more strategically would have equipped the company to explore newer realms and arenas of business. Though the buzz created by Apple while launching its iPhone is considered to be one of a historic achievement, the strategy in totality lacked a long term approach. The company was successful in utilizing the market response in favor of the sales performance. However the vulnerability of this trend is unexplored by the strategy. The strategy would have addressed the variables in the market and would have had a sustainable outlook on the market. The advertisement also required to be more expansive and exploratory. If the technology would have been explained in a more detailed manner, it would have fetched more quantum of audience which in turn would have assured the expansion of the market for iPhone. 2-Prepare a note on what should be Apples strategy for iPhone in Europe and Asia (except Japan), considering that Europe is a relatively mature market for mobile phones and Asia is largely an emerging market. “Marketing is about understanding the customer’s needs and ensuring that products and services are of the highest possible standards in order to satisfy the potential customers wants and needs” (Revision notes,2003).While preparing a marketing strategy for iPhone to address Europe and Asian markets, a primary analysis of the nature of these markets and the response of the customers towards mobiles and related technologies should be evaluated in priority. Defining the market has been confirmed as a primary principle of marketing by Bale Jeffery (2004).As far as the European market is concerned, it is a mature market and experienced in the technological advancements in the mobile industry. While considering Asian countries, more dependency should be on the utility, the quality of product and the relation of the utility with the cost efficacy. However the Asian markets should be considered as an arena with huge prospect of growth. Apple can depend on its brand name to an extent while dealing with the European market. However it should be duly considered that the market and the consumers would have taken lessons from the performance of the product in the American Market. The lacunas in the performance of the product in the American market should be considered while formulating the marketing policy for the European market. It should also be considered that the situation of monopoly as existed while launching the product would have changed while introducing the product in the European market. A number of competitors would have evolved as they would have adopted the technology in differential forms. An effective strategy should include extensive and informative campaign evaluating the value of the iPhone over other market competitors. The advertisements must be broader in their approach. The Asian market while considering the quantum of the consumers should be taken into account as a massive one. Accordingly the campaigns must be diverse in nature, addressing the maximum number of audience. It should also be considered that the brand value of the company would not help here as in other markets. This would make the scenario tougher for Apple. Rather than depending on the brand, strategies should be worked to make the people concentrate more on the quality and uniqueness of the product. Propagating the product as pioneer in the concerned industry should be of help in dealing with the competition in the Asian market. A persuasive approach integrating the strategies of Information, Influence, Emotions, Exposure, and other media specific strategies can be followed in the Asian market. (Armstrong Scott J,2006).The consideration of the Asian customers on the utility of the product rather on the brand name should be taken into account while formulating the strategies. Assurance of customer service should also be ensured while marketing the product. As cost efficacy would be another consideration of the Asian market, a change in the price should also be considered. An easy approach to meet the requirements and satisfaction of extensively wide market demands of the Asian market would be to introduce more number of specialized products with varied cost and utility. WORKS CITED Rao, A Sreenivasa, Launching iPhone: ‘Apple’s Entry Into The Mobile Phone Market’. ICFAI Centre for Management & Research, 2008. Revision Notes, 2003, UK-Marketing, 07 December 2008, < http://www.revision- notes.co.uk/revision/853.html> Bale Jeffery, “Principles of Marketing”, Marketing Solutions For Businesses, 2004, 07 December 2008, http://www.jazardezign.com/articles/marketing_principles.html Armstrong Scott J, 2006, “Summary List Of Advertising Conditions And Principles From Persuasive Advertising”, Evidence Based Advertising, 2006, 07 December 2008, Read More