Marketing Strategy: Apple Inc - Case Study Example

Introduction Apple Inc. formerly known as Apple Computer Inc. is a multinational corporation based in America. It was established in 1979 April in Cupertino in California. It is involved in the design and marketing of computer software, personal computers and consumer electronics. Its most common products include the ipod, Macintosh computer line, iPad and iPhone. Their softwares include iTunes media browser, Mac OS X operating system, the iLifesuit of multimedia, Aperture among others. By October 2010 Apple Inc was running 317 retail stores found in 10 countries. It is the largest company that is traded publicly in the entire world considering market capitalization. It is also the largest technology company all over the world by profit and revenue. Apple Inc. has employed a number of elements in its marketing strategy some of which are unique to it while others are common elsewhere. Common strategies include market targeting, differentiation, positioning and segmentation. In this essay the elements of the strategy used by Apple in marketing have been discussed as well as other ideas that would be used in the development of a different business idea. Apple marketing strategy Over the years it has been in operation, Apple has accumulated a lot of success and wealth. Many people watching the company believe that this success comes form the company’s relentless hard work and the ability of the company to foresee and take action on changing trends in the market Frank (1990). The success of Apple has been contributed much by its simplicity. Apple is identified with simplicity. This could look untrue but it is one of the things that the company boasts of. Apple managed to strike a chord with its clients and has been increasing its market share significantly in a very competitive mobile industry. iPhone for example was introduced in 2007. It has registered much success and this was because of the aggressive marketing strategy used by Apple Inc. Frank (1990). Apple has discovered the secret of presentations as one of its strategy elements. In this it beats the rest of the giants like Samsung, Nokia and Microsoft. When Apple is in the process of producing new products the world begins analyzing the upcoming products. The company could have a lot of information to share but it then takes the simplest way of doing this which is to address the general public. This was the mark of simplicity in Apple. Steve Jobs was a genius but he could afford to speak a language that could be understood by a common man on the street. The presentations made by Apple had this characteristic. They targeted the media as well as the general public. Communicating in the language of the audience is important. Talking about things like gigahertz, megabytes or processing power to people who do not understand technical jargon does not help. The Apple product pages discuss technical information and product specifications but these things are hidden behind those benefits that the audience is looking for. The jargon is used for the sake of those who want it but is normally put in a way that can make a person desire to know megapixels. Frank (1990) notes that another thing that aided in the marketing of Apple products was brand loyalty. Apple Inc. came into the market one year behind Microsoft. Currently it is at the peak of its success and popularity. Compared to many of its competitors Apple does not care about the budget of the common person. Since it was founded it has been targeting a particular class that is brand conscious. Because of this the products of Apple are not expected fall in the common man’s budget but the observation is that many more people are becoming covetous of the products because they are made for “a certain class.” Apple fever became an epidemic which has spread widely to this moment. Looking at Nokia for example a very interesting observation can be made. Nokia is a manufacturer of many types of mobile phones including the expensive and the cheap ones. These phones are reliable and economical at the same time but Nokia has been reported to lose an important share of the market to Apple although Apple never lowers its prices. Many more people have decided to change their loyalties to favor a brand which gives them a promise to deliver or even to give them enrolment in the “class.” Kotler, Kevin (2009). Another important thing that the company emphasizes on is effective advertisement. Apple has employed this technique with tremendous success. When carrying out its advertisement campaigns instead of challenging the intellect of the public by throwing at them difficult computing and mobile jargons the company maintains the basics. In the latest iPhone 4, advertisement campaign instead of dwelling on their oh-so-powerful processors they simply magnified some of their basic functions like email experience and improved picture. In presentations and advertisements the marketing strategy use by Apple is that of a language that is easily understandable by people. This is the major reason why the company has registered tremendous success in all the things it has set out to do. The secret of success is also vested in the design standards and product lines Keller (2001). It lies in something bigger than Steve Job sticking to core philosophy of the company which says that ‘the user doesn’t always know what they want.’ Marketing is not easy and in the process there are many discouragements especially those coming from critics. Critics may be competitors or those who do not believe in what the company is doing. A secret of successful marketing that is being used by Apple is ignoring its critics. Entrepreneurs can have critics who tell them that they should reach out and know the requirements of the people. This means the company will be listening to its critics. Apple flips the script and instead of listening to the critics they focus on what they want done regardless of the costs. When the iPad was debuted by Steve Jobs there were the critics standing in line and throwing insults at Apple. They said iPad would not succeed. However the numbers say something different. Every time the company went into innovation there were people laughing at it but at the end they would come out victorious. For along time PC fans were happy with buying their own parts as well as building tower systems for themselves. At that time PC makers were making the hardware for standard applications. Apple never did anything of this kind Keller (2001). Justification of the price of the products of the company is another important strategy. In these times pricing strategies are being used everywhere. Many people have no idea what they need to charge. In most cases they tend to go down instead of working at strategic pricing in a market that bears that cost. Apple decides to ignore the standard by pricing its technology two times more than their rivals without any apologies. In order to overcome any negative outcome they make smart products for an audience that has passionate love for them. They go ahead to justify their prices with benefits and features that cannot be matched by other products. There is no computer whose display marches that of a 27” iMac. There is no other software matching iTunes and no other laptop can be as thin as Macbook air. There is no intuitive software and no product has more value than Apple products. Apple takes great care to ensure that the nice experience the customers get does not end quickly. They are careful to design a user experience from the point of browsing to unwrapping which depends on superb procedures of packaging and installation. They reduce installation and place it at the lowest common denominator which makes the buying of new products a snap. They spend a lot of time on packaging just like they do on the product itself and ensure that the product matches with the box. Because of this they tend to build an experience that cannot be matched Kotler & Kevin (2009). Building a tribe is important in marketing of products such as those of Apple. Apple has over the years created a hardcore fan base better than that of any other product and of any other time. Apple serves an elite audience and goes on to embrace that fact. Another strategy used by Apple is becoming the name of the product. Instead of one buying MP3 players he buys an iPod. Instead of buying a smart phone he buys an iPhone. Apple is not just content in leading in sales only but is aiming at owning the market as well. This explains their reason for engineering iTunes as a major music provider and the iPad. They have the luxury of being the first which sets the trend for tablet devices of the future. From the time of innovation of the iTunes, iPod, iPad and iPhone everything will then be compared to them Van Trijp, Hans, Hoyer, and Inman (1996). This strategy is hard but is not impossible. It needs a clear head start with the company being the first to market. It also needs a USP that will differentiate a product from others so that wish it was first. The iPhone was not the first phone but it was engineered in a unique way that one could think it was the first. The iMac was not the first ‘all in one’ but it was made to be the only one that matters. In comparing Apple’s strategy to others a number of observations can be made. Some elements of the Apple strategy can be found in other companies while others are unique to it. However the strategy comes out strongly successful when compared to other marketing models. One thing that is a strength that is absent in other strategies is the innovation aspect, charging high prices to create a buying class and being able to justify those prices. Targeting a given class that is brand conscious has made the company grow Kotler & Kevin (2009). This is brand loyalty that cannot be found in other companies’ marketing strategies. Apple maintains simplicity in its advertisements, communications, and unveiling of its new products. Presentation in which information is shared with the general public beats the other marketing models by far. Ideas to be incorporated in a business idea In the development of a business idea a number of business marketing strategies should be incorporated. To begin with it would be prudent to set realistic goals in the development of he marketing strategy. In this what should be accomplished with the marketing plan is stated clearly. The goal of any strategy of marketing is to get customers. The name of the company and reputation are developed as well and built in the community and more particularly in the target market. The brand that the company develops and the identity establish the foundation on which customers view the company. Provision of consistent and quality customer service is the other goal in the strategy. Targeting the market is also important in the strategy. The customers both potential and any existing should be identified together with their needs. Having this information the company then embarks on addressing the needs in a better way than the competitors. The business may not be able to meet every need presented by all people. The market should then be analyzed so that it is known how best the needs of individual people can be focused in the target market. It is a waste of time, money and energy if the target is not focused upon. The process of the identification of the target market and meeting their needs is developing customer loyalty and relationships Keller (2001). A good marketing strategy should include a SWOT analysis of the business through which the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the business are broken down. If the name of the company is known in the market then that can act as strength. Not being recognized acts as a weakness. Growing demand in the market could present an opportunity while a threat could come from upcoming competitors. The results obtained from the SWOT analysis give guidance to the strategy. For example in cases where suppliers are raising product prices yet the products are unpopular, changing the product line or getting a new supplier would work. Is from the SWOT analysis there is revealed outstanding relationships with customers but the financial position is weak then the marketing will need to make efforts in free word of mouth advertising. De Pelsmacker & Kitchen (2004) observes that in the marketing strategy of a company the message is also critical. It should be clear and inviting to people. Through the communication of a marketing message that is full of consistency the business should be able to stand apart from the others. This shows that the company has a unique stature and as a business it can offer better or more service or products of high quality compared to the competitors. Every message should have the benefits that the service or product of the company will bring to the customers. In selling the company and its products it is good to perform various activities which can educate the target market concerning the services and products. The various activities performed build on the strengths of the company as well as the needs that the target market has. The activities include public relations, advertisements, networking on the internet, using print media and exhibitions and any other events. According to Kotler & Kevin (2009) advertising especially on the internet is very useful currently. An emphasis on this would definitely boost the marketing strategy. Other important activities could include market segmentation in which large markets are divided into smaller parts so that customers can be efficiently served according to their unique needs. The company can also do market differentiation in which it decides on how to create differentiated value for the segments it is targeting and the positions it is willing to occupy inside those segments. Positioning is also important whereby the position of a product is the way consumers define that product on important attributes. It refers to the place occupied by the product in the minds of the consumers relative to rival products Rakesh (2005). Conclusion In conclusion, Apple Inc. has been examined in its marketing strategy in this paper. The company has grown into a very successful technology giant because of its unique and fruitful marketing techniques. Among the techniques being use is brand loyalty, advertising effectively, maintaining simplicity in presentations and communications and building a tribe. These techniques have elevated it above other companies with different marketing models. The strategy is stronger and more acceptable to the people compared to what other companies offer. Innovation and the unveiling of new technology have also helped the company to beat its competitors. Ideas that could be incorporated in a business model include internet advertising, giving messages, SWOT analysis and goal setting. Bibliography De Pelsmacker P. & Kitchen P.J 2004, Integrated marketing communications: a primer, Routledge, New York. This sources has a lot of information on communication in marketing. Frank R. (1990), West of Eden: The End of Innocence at Apple Computer, The source gives relevant information about the marketing techniques of Apple. Keller, K. 2001 “Building Customer-Based Brand Equity.” Marketing Management 10 (2001): 14-19. This source talks about marketing that brings the customer into consideration. Kotler, P. Kevin L. K. (2009). "1". A Framework for Marketing Management (4th ed.). Pearson Prentice Hall. The source has information about how to manage the marketing process. Rakesh M. (2005) International Marketing, Oxford University Press, New Delhi and New York  This book gives information on marketing internationally. Van Trijp, Hans C. M., Hoyer W. D., and Inman J. J. 1996 “Why Switch? Product Category Level Explanations for True Variety-Seeking Behavior” Journal of Marketing Research 33 (1996): 33 (1996): 281-292 The source talks about how to change products to satisfy the market demands. "Apple unveils new marketing strategy" Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service. November 10, 1997. Retrieved October 15, 2011 From this source one would know how the marketing strategy of Apple changed. Read More