Apple evolves outside the boundaries with brilliant customer driven marketing. The average person sees thousands of advertisements each day, so the company employs strategic tactics to stand apart from the competition – essentially, simplifying the decision-making process and focusing on a positive customer experience. The value proposition of Apple simply states a product should be more than a collection of features, but one that is simple, beautiful, and enjoyable to use. Apple’s team extensively explores what their consumers desire, and develops products and ideas that fulfills those needs and wants.
The foundation of Apple’s customer experience is demonstrated in more than 400 retail stores internationally. In a modern, upscale setting, customers can get inspired by trying out programs on Apple devices, or even take part in events. For example, the downtown Portland Apple store hosted a Photo Walk in August 2017. During the event, instructors shared techniques on setting up the right shot to capture exciting moments.
Apple segments markets on the basis of demographic, geographic, psychographic, and behavioristic variables. John Dudovskiy illustrated a table on Apple’s marketing segmentation in his online article, “Apple Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning.” He showed that services, such as the iTunes store, Apple Pay, and iCloud are marketed to younger adults, such as those in their bachelor stage, while accessories, like the Apple TV or Apple Watch, are targeted to adults with families. (Dudovskiy, 2017)
Another example of Apple’s marketing segmentation strategy can be found by examining the iPad. As smart phones continue to revolutionize the market, tablet sales have been steadily declining over the last three years. Apple cleverly positioned a product separation between the iPad and iPad Pro. The iPad was targeted to students and educational institutions, while the iPad Pro was targeted enterprises and professionals. This simple decision resulted in iPad sales growing 15%, 30% more than last quarter’s sales. (Mitter, 2017)
Apple has historically sold products at top-tiered pricing. This strategy never prevented customers to purchase their products, since experiences and lifestyle justify the cost. However, Apple recently introduced a price reduction on their entry level products, in efforts of bringing more people into their customer circle. The effect of this strategy caused people to intuitively purchase more items from different product lines, so Apple was successful again in establishing its credibility as a lifestyle technology brand.
The best products in the world will not be successful unless companies make them available where and when customers want to buy them. (Ferrell, 2017) Apple uses a selective distribution strategy to channels that include Apple stores, online Apple store, authorized retailers (such as Walmart, Target, and BestBuy), telecom companies (such as AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon), and fulfillment services.
The cornerstone of Apple’s promotion strategy is to create a mystery around their product development. They strategically start rumors before a new product is unveiled. This tactic causes a halo effect. Customers will crave Apple technology buy whatever it is, rather than stopping to think if they need what Apple is introducing. (Kulkarni, 2016) Furthermore, Apple advertises their products through their website and other relevant technology sites. Apple Store employees are trained to provide customers product-specific information, encouraging them to make purchases. Through public relations, Apple will release information about new product features, press releases, and interviews to maximize positive publicity. (Greenspan 2017)
In summary, marketing creates value. Firms like Apple that synchronize all the areas in the marketing mix – product, price, distribution, and promotion – with marketing strategy will gain a vast competitive advantage in the industry, keeping demand high and continuing to bring in more consumers.
Written by Kimberly O’Hanlon
Essay for BA101: Business Now
Instructor: Jon Broome, MBA
August 13th, 2017
Works Cited
Apple. “Photo Walks: Capturing Action and Video.” www.apple.com, 6 August 2017, www.apple.com/today/event/photo-walks-capturing-action-and-video-6293591213266540649/. Accessed 6 August 2017.
Dudovskiy, John. “Apple Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning.” research-methodology.net/, 6 March 2017, research-methodology.net/apple-segmentation-targeting-and-positioning/. Accessed 7 August 2017.
Ferrell, O.C., Hirt, Geoffrey, Ferrell Linda. Business, A Changing World, Tenth Edition. McGraw Hill Education, 2016.
Greenspan, Roberta. “Apple Inc’s Marketing Mix (4P’s).” panmore.com, 29 January 2017, http://panmore.com/apple-inc-marketing-mix-4ps. Accessed 7 August 2017.
Kulkarni, Chirag. “10 Things You Need to Learn from Apple’s Marketing.” www.entrepreneur.com, 8 September 2016, https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/280692. Accessed 8 August 2017.
Minhaj, Misbahul Islam. “Adopting an unconventional pricing strategy, can Apple last for thousands of years?” thetechnews.com, 10 April 2017, http://thetechnews.com/2017/04/10/adopting-unconventional-pricing-strategy-can-apple-last-thousands-years/. Accessed 7 August 2017.
Mitter, Sohini. “How the Apple iPad defied industry trends in a declining tablet market.” BGR.in, 2 August 2017, www.bgr.in/news/how-the-apple-ipad-defied-industry-trends-in-a-declining-tablet-market/. Accessed 6 August 2017.
