Mac and accessories



A REPORT ON THE BRAND “APPLE”PREPARED BYSANGAMITHRA10CN13PARK GLOBAL SCHOOL OF BUSINESS EXCELLENCECONTENTSABOUT APPLE3PRODUCTS3VISION7MISSION7SLOGANS7BRAND CHARACTERISTICS7BRAND IDENTITY8BRAND EQUITY10BRAND ASSOCIATION11BRAND SALES &PROFIT12MARKET SHARE14BRAND AWARENESS & LOYALTY16BRAND POSITIONING19MAJOR COMPETITORS20STRENGTH21WEAKNESS,OPPURTUNITIES & THREATS22RECOMMENDATIONS22ANNEXURES23BIBLIOGRAPHY26ABOUT APPLEApple was established on April 1, 1976 by?Steve Jobs,?Steve Wozniak, and?Ronald Wayne,?to sell the?Apple I?personal computer kit. They were hand-built by Wozniak?and first shown to the public at the?Homebrew Computer Club. Apple was incorporated January 3, 1977 without Wayne, who sold his share of the company back to Jobs and Wozniak for $800. Multi-millionaire?Mike Markkula?provided essential business expertise and funding of $250,000 during the incorporation of Apple.Apple Inc.?formerly?Apple Computer, Inc is an American?multinational corporation?that designs and markets?consumer electronics,?computer software, and?personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the?Macintosh?line of computers, the iPod, the?iPhone?and the?iPad. Apple software includes the?Mac OS X?operating system; the?iTunes?media browser; the?iLife?suite of multimedia and creativity software; the?iWork?suite of productivity software;?Aperture, a professional photography package;?Final Cut Studio, a suite of professional audio and film-industry software products;?Logic Studio, a suite of music production tools; the?Safari?web browser; and?iOS, a mobile operating system. As of October 2010, the company operates 317?retail stores?in ten countries,?and an?online store?where hardware and software products are sold.?As of September 2011, Apple is the?largest publicly traded company in the world by market capitalization?and the largest technology company in the world by revenue and profit.PRODUCTS:Mac and accessories Mac mini, consumer sub-desktop computer and server introduced in 2005.IMac, consumer all-in-one desktop computer introduced in 1998.Mac Pro, workstation-class desktop computer introduced in 2006, replacing the Power Macintosh.MacBook, consumer notebook introduced in 2006, replacing the iBook, now only being sold to educational institutions.MacBook Pro, professional notebook introduced in 2006, replacing the PowerBook.MacBook Air, ultra-thin, ultra-portable notebook introduced in 2008.Apple also sells a variety of computer accessories for Mac computers including the?AirPort?wireless networking products,?Time Capsule,?Thunderbolt Display,?Magic Mouse,?Magic Trackpad,?Wireless Keyboard, and the?Apple Battery Charger.IPadOn January 27, 2010, Apple introduced their much-anticipated media tablet, the?iPad?running a modified version of?iOS. It offers multi-touch interaction with multimedia formats including newspapers, magazines, eBooks, textbooks, photos, movies, TV shows videos, music, word processing documents, spreadsheets, video games, and most existing iPhone apps.?It also includes a mobile version of?Safari?for web browsing, as well as access to the?App Store, iTunes Library,?iBooks Store, contacts, and notepad. Content is downloadable via?Wi-Fi?and optional?3G?service or synced through the user's computer.?AT&T?was initially the sole US provider of 3G wireless access for the iPad. On March 2, 2011, Apple introduced an updated iPad model which had a faster processor and two cameras on the front and back respectively. IPodThe current iPod family, featuring the?iPod Shuffle,?iPod Nano,?iPod Classic, and?iPod TouchOn October 23, 2001, Apple introduced the?iPod?digital music player. It has evolved to include various models targeting the wants of different users. The iPod is the market leader in portable music players by a significant margin, with more than 220 million units shipped as of September 2009.?Apple has partnered with?Nike?to offer the?Nike+iPod?Sports Kit enabling runners to synchronize and monitor their runs with iTunes and the?Nike+ website. Apple currently sells four variants of the iPod.IPod Shuffle, ultraportable digital audio player first introduced in 2005, currently available in a 2?GB model.IPod Nano, portable media player first introduced in 2005, currently available in 8 and 16?GB models. The latest generation has a?FM radio, a?pedometer, and a new?multi-touch?interface that replaced the traditional?iPod click wheel.IPod Classic?(previously named iPod from 2001 to 2007),?portable media player?first introduced in 2001, currently available in a 160?GB model.IPod Touch, portable media player that runs?iOS, first introduced in September 2007 after the?iPhone?went on sale. Currently available in 8, 32, and 64?GB models. The latest generation features the?Apple A4?processor, a?Retina Display, and dual cameras on the front and back. The back camera allows for HDvideo recording?at?720p.IPhoneAt the?Macworld Conference & Expo?in January 2007, Steve Jobs revealed the long anticipated?iPhone, a convergence of an Internet-enabled?smartphone?and iPod.?The original iPhone combined a?2.5G?quad band?GSM?and?EDGE?cellular phone with features found in hand held devices, running scaled-down versions of Apple's Mac OS X (dubbed?iOS, formerly iPhone OS), with various Mac OS X applications such as?Safari?and?Mail. It also includes web-based and?Dashboard?apps such as?Google Maps?and?Weather. On February 5, 2008, Apple updated the original iPhone to have 16?GB of memory, in addition to the 8?GB and 4?GB models. On June 8, 2009, at Apple's annual worldwide developers’ conference, the?iPhone 3GS?was announced, providing an incremental update to the device including faster internal components, support for faster 3G speeds, video recording capability, and voice control. Another was iPhone 4S Siri?voice assistant technology, which Apple had acquired in 2010, as well as other features, including an updated 8 megapixel camera with new optics. Apple sold 4 million iPhone 4S phones in the first three days after its release, which made it not only the best iPhone launch in Apple's history, but the most-successful launch of any mobile phone ever.Apple TVThe Apple TV, in its most recent revisionAt the 2007 Macworld conference, Jobs demonstrated the?Apple TV, (previously known as the iTV);?a set-top video device intended to bridge the sale of content from iTunes with high-definition televisions. The device links up to a user's TV and syncs, either via Wi-Fi or a wired network, with one computer's iTunes library and streams from an additional four. On September 1, 2010, alongside the release of the new line of iPod devices for the year, Apple released a completely redesigned Apple TV. The new device is 1/4 the size, runs quieter, and replaces the need for a hard drive with media streaming from any iTunes library on the network along with 8 GB of?flash memory?to?cache?media downloaded.?SoftwareApple develops its own?operating system?to run on Macs,?Mac OS X, and the latest version being?Mac OS X Lion?(version 10.7). Apple also independently develops computer software titles for its Mac OS X operating system. Much of the software Apple develops is bundled with its computers. An example of this is the consumer-oriented iLife software package that bundles?iDVD,?iMovie,?iPhoto, iTunes and?iWeb. For presentation, page layout and word processing,?iWork?is available, which includes?Keynote,?Pages, and?Numbers. iTunes,?QuickTime?media player,?Safari?web browser, and?Software Update?are available as free downloads for both Mac OS X and?Windows.Apple also offers a range of professional software titles. Their range of server software includes the operating system?Mac OS X Server;?Apple Remote Desktop, a remote systems management application;?VISIONTo become the worldwide leader in computer and mp3 player sales. MISSIONTo bring the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software and Internet offerings.SLOGANSApple's first slogan, "Byte?into an Apple", was coined in the late 1970s.?From 1997–2002, Apple used the slogan "Think Different" in advertising campaigns. Although the slogan has been retired, it is still closely associated with Apple.?Apple also has slogans for specific product lines?— for example, "iThink, therefore iMac" was used in 1998 to promote the iMac?and "Say hello to iPhone" has been used in iPhone advertisements.?"Hello" was also used to introduce the original Macintosh,?Newton, iMac ("hello (again)"), and iPod.BRAND CHARACTERISTICSApple has a branding strategy that focuses on the emotions. The Apple?brand personality?is about lifestyle; imagination; liberty regained; innovation; passion; hopes, dreams and aspirations; and power-to-the-people through technology. The Apple brand personality is also about simplicity and the removal of complexity from people's lives; people-driven product design; and about being a really humanistic company with a heartfelt connection with its customers.The huge promise of the Apple brand, of course presents Apple with an enormous challenge to live up to. The innovative, beautifully-designed, highly ergonomic, and technology-leading products which Apple delivers are not only designed to match the brand promise, but are fundamental to keeping it. The company projects a humanistic corporate culture and a strong corporate ethic, characterized by volunteerism, support of good causes or involvement in the community. Apple comes across as profoundly humanist. Its founding ethos was power to the people through technology, and it remains committed to computers in education. It's always about people. The company has a unique visual and verbal vocabulary, expressed in product design and advertising. This is true of Apple. Its products and advertising are clearly recognizable. The company has established a "heartfelt connection" with its customers. This can take several forms, from building trust to establishing a community around a product. In Apple's case, its products are designed around people. Take the iPod; it brings an emotional, sensory experience to computing. Apple's design is people-driven. Apple has always projected a human touch from the charisma of Steve Jobs to the notion that its products are sold for a love of technology. It's like having a good friend. That’s what's interesting about this brand. Somewhere they have created this really humanistic, beyond-business relationship with users and created a cult-like relationship with their brand. It's a big tribe, everyone is one of them.Apple is no longer selling products. They are selling brands, which evoke a subtle mix of people's hopes, dreams and aspirations. The "1984" ad began a branding campaign that portrayed Apple as a symbol of counterculture -- rebellious, free-thinking and creative. It was built with a sense of belonging to an elite club by portraying the Mac as embodying the values of righteous outsiderism and rebellion against injustice. It started in the early '80s with the famous '1984' TV commercial that launched the Mac, and continued with 'The computer for the rest of us' slogan and several ad campaigns playing on a revolutionary theme.BRAND IDENTITYBRAND IDENTITY =NAME +LOGO +SLOGANApple computer is an excellent example of a company that understands branding and uses the integrated identity to the fullest.THE NAME:Apple is a familiar word and friendly name for a computer. One could say that the name is non traditional, tempting and cute. These are all the associations that work toward thecomputer maker’s identity as a different kind of non- threatening, easy – to – use computer that empowers the user to think freely and creatively. Steve Jobs thought apple was the perfect fruit and he wanted the Apple to be the perfect computer.THE LOGO:The Apple symbol with a bite taken out of it is simple and memorable. The bite has connotations to the garden of the Eden- insinuating that it is an irresistible and tempting product. The logo incorporates a multi color(rainbow)that signifies diversity- the association here is that Apple is inclusive, not exclusive. The logo is bright, cheerful and easily recognized. In fact the symbol of Apple is so recognizable and strongly associated with the word apple.SLOGAN:While “Think Different” is a short slogan, it says a lot. The “Think Different” campaign is very effective and memorable campaign. When used in combination with oversized images of “various heroes of different”-Ali, Gandhi, Martha Graham, John and Yoko, Ricky and Lusy, Jackie Robinson and many others- the ads are extremely attractive, symbolic, memorable and communicative. These ads help to create relationship with customers and extend the promise to potential users. They are actually rewarding their extreme loyal customers. The campaign associates apple users with the famous original thinkers used in the images. The ads makes user feel better and smarter for using apple products, for not following the crowd, for having the courage to follow their own beliefs, despite the ridicule of window users.Apple takes the integrated identity concept one step further by incorporating the customer experience into the actual design of the product and the user interface. Apple computer is a piece of art, highly stylized, in the user’s choice of color and configuration with a look and feel that is unmatched in computing. People who use Apple computers, like to think themselves as creative, original types and the product meet their expectations in an actual, physical and emotional way.The “Think Different” campaign strategically positions apple to play almost any role- software developer, OS developer, internet guide, and design portal as long it is innovative and “different”. In this way Apple has successfully created brand identity by using its name, logo and slogan.BRAND EQUITYAsk 1 million people what brand they think of when they see the color WHITE, the majority will say APPLE! Apple has developed one of the strongest brands in existence. From the Apple iMac, Mac book, Powerbook, Mini, iPod, iPhone, shuffle, to the 2010 iPad they have knocked it out of the ball park. Apple LISTENS to those who matter most…. their customers. Apple has kept their customer as #1 priority, always! Apple has continued to deliver value above and beyond what their markets expect, desire or need.What makes Apple “cool” is what you can do with their products. What you can become. Who you become. How they make you feel! Although they have struggled in the past as all companies do, they have never lost site of their community and the importance of inspiring them to do more, be more and enjoy life! They don’t have to say the words “enjoy life”. The truth is people find their brand enjoyable simply because it is. Apple is REAL! The people are real. It is not hype, gimmick, over selling. You walk in the store and normal geeks greet you in blue jeans and blue t-shirts. They smile, they listen and they make you feel like you matter. Apple doesn’t care if you are a geek or a want to be geek. They will teach you with kindness to be the best geek on your block. Because you will tell all your new geek friends about your great geek service you received and the cool geeky things you can do with your new white products! They are masters of brand experience, communities and tribes.Apple has institutionalized the brand. The whole company reflects the brand and a solidBrand Resonance too. It has not branded the product as much as it has “branded thebigger idea”, which in the case is the alternative, non-Windows solution, that allows morefreedom and self expression. In this way Apple has created a brand equity that is truly portable.BRAND ASSOCIATIONAs expected, the brand has a high level of association with descriptive terms such as ‘computer’, ‘pc’ and ‘software’. It boasts strong levels of association with their product line; ‘Windows’, ‘Mac’, ‘iPod’ , ‘Office’ and ‘Word’. Also, interestingly the brand maintains a strong association with their founder and leader; ‘Steve Jobs’ reflecting the brand equity that the industry icon continue to maintain. The Apple brand is openly loved, maybe even adored with strong levels of association to words like ‘cool’ ‘awesome’ and even ‘love’. Plenty of brands want to be loved, but very few can lay claim to that strongest of positive associations. The words ‘design’, ‘creative’ and ‘innovation’ are also strongly associated with the Apple brand. When pooled with associations of ‘quality’, ‘sleek’, ‘simple’ and ‘style’ it is easy to see why Apple commands such high levels of brand loyalty and continues to create enormous anticipation for each new product launch.15989305715Creating a connection with people is important for all organisations and a brand can embody attributes which consumers will feel drawn to. Apple’s original launch of the iPod, for example, catapulted the company from computer business to mass-market entertainment brand, with iPod marketing drawing heavily on people’s emotional relationship with their music. By moving into music and film, Apple has redefined what the company does and shifted its brand association to something that connects with larger numbers of people outside computing or creative community.Researchers exposed to the Apple logo “had a goal to be creative,” based on a seemingly unrelated additional task using bricks, Chart and explain in the video. "Apple has worked for many years to develop a brand character associated with nonconformity, innovation and creativity."BRAND SALES AND PROFITFinancial periodNet sales (Mil USD)Net profits (Mil USD)Revenue growthReturn on net salesFY 200513,9311,32868%10%FY 200619,3151,98939%10%FY 200724,5783,49527%14%FY 200837,4916,11953%16%FY 2009 42,9058,23514%19%FY 201065,22514,01352%21%In 2005, as the pie chart at right shows, 59% of Apple's sales came from the U.S. Five years later, the U.S. share had shrunk to 44%, and 56% of sales were coming from overseas. Moreover, Apple's international sales are accelerating.Apple's sales were experiencing triple digit percentage gains overseas; its profits were growing between 1,500% and 3,000%.APPLE’S MARKET SHARE:250 million iOS devices (iPhones, iPods, iPads) have been sold to date.People have downloaded 18 billion apps from the Apple App Store. Now downloading more than a billion per month.More than 500,000 apps are available in the App Store, 140,000 are specifically for the iPad. Apple has paid out $3 billion to developers.There are 67 million game centre accounts.92% of Fortune 500 companies are testing or deploying iPads. Over 80% of the hospitals in the US are now testing or piloting iPad. Every state in the US has an iPad deployment program either in place or in pilot. 1,000 schools have a 1:1 program.125% year-over-year growth for iPhone sales. Smartphone sales are up 74% in the same period. iPhone is five% of the overall mobile phone market.The iPhone 4 now makes up half of the overall iPhone market.iTunes is the number one music store in the world with 16 billion songs downloaded and 20 million songs available.IPod has 78% market share of portable music players. Over 300 million iPods have been sold to date. 45 million iPods from July 2010 to June 2011. It took Sony 30 years to sell 220,000 Walkman cassette players.Apple is approaching 60 million Mac users worldwide. This amounts to 23% market share for Apple as of August 2011.The Mac platform has grown by 23% since last year. The PC grew 4%.The MacBook Pro and the iMac are the number one best selling notebook and desktop in the United States.Six million copies of Lion have been downloaded so far. That's 80% more than Snow Leopard (the previous OS release). It took 20 weeks for Windows 7 to reach 10% of the Windows install base. It took Lion two weeks.Apple has 357 total stores in 11 countries.Growth: After Apple introduced the Intel Macs, Mac sales grew 37% in 2007, more than double the industry-wide rate of 15%. 2.0 to 2.1 million Macs for the March quarter (vs. the Street's 1.95 million) are being modelled. It is believed that Apple will continue to outpace its competitors with upgraded iMacs and Mac minis in the next 3 months and redesigned Mac Books and MacBook Pros in time for the '08 education season.Market Share: According to IDC, Apple's worldwide market share grew from 2.4% in 2006 to 2.9% in 2007. (See chart below.) Munster is conservatively modelling global market share to remain flat this year, but he notes that enterprise sales account for 70% of the worldwide market, a segment Apple is not aggressively targeting. In the consumer market, where Apple does compete, he estimates the Mac's share is now 10% worldwide and an impressive 21% in the U.S.Sales Price: While Apple has gained market share over the past three years, it has also been able to resist the industry trend of decreasing sales prices. In fact, it actually increased its average sales price (ASP) by more than $150 from December '05 to December '07. "The combination of increasing ASPs and rising market share is evidence of a compelling product lineBRAND AWARENESSThe brand is so hot that there are waiting lists for their products, and they won’t even take your money in their stores.?Apple has been innovating and determining the way consumers of all walks of life live, do business, and interact. It is a brand that applies to all industries and it reinvents itself all the time while dominating the markets of Telecom, Tech, and mass consumption, how many people are walking around with “walkmans” these days? No one, now it’s the iPod, stupid. Today, Apple can afford the iPhone 4 recall because – from the public’s view – they are almost vital to our “existence.” The awareness this brand gained and maintained in the minds of the masses stands as a symbol of technological modernity. It defined mobility.? It reads portability and integration. It defines social interaction through its apps. As a business, it acts as a generator of income for app developers and social media marketers, and let’s not forget how it revolutionized the music industry through iTunes.What Apple did that no other brand could do is integrate and harmonize all its sub-brands as leverage for a major awareness-building stunt – known to us as “Apple”. In contrast to Toyota, people will return the device and impatiently await its replacement, because Apple doesn’t have peers. In addition, Apple lures customers to the next innovation – be it iPad 3, iPod 5 or Shuffle 8. The strength of Apple stems from its brand awareness. The probable recall reinforces the public opinion of Apple that displays it as a highly-crucial piece of equipment in our daily lives. Apple described the possible recall as a “sign of its commitment to consumer quality devices,” and that shows how well the PR machine works for Apple. For any other brand this would mean a disastrous outcome and a possibleend to periodicalsuccess.BRAND LOYALTYHow Apple Creates Brand?LoyaltyWhen shoppers sleep outside of stores just to be one of the first to buy an iPhone, it’s obvious that Apple Inc. is a company that enjoys fanatical brand loyalty. However, this brand success is not a result of dumb luck or forces beyond Apple’s control; it’s part of a well-thought-out plan to deliver strong products and create an Apple culture. Find out more about these and other strategies that Apple employs to achieve its tremendous customer loyalty.A store just for Apple: Apple has historically been troubled by big-box sales staffers that are “tragically ill-informed” about its products, a problem that made it difficult for Apple to set its very different products apart from the rest of the computing crowd. By creating a store strictly devoted to Apple products, the company has not only eliminated this problem but has made an excellent customer-loyalty move. Apple stores are a friendly place where Mac and PC users alike are encouraged to play with and explore the technology that the company offers. This is a space where Mac heads can not only get service but also hang out with others who enjoy Apple products just as much as they do. By creating this space, Apple encourages current and new customers to get excited about what it has to plete solutions: Apple’s products complement and complete each other. Buy an iPod, and you can download music via iTunes. For the average user, most Mac programs are produced by Apple. This sort of control over the entire user process, from hardware to software, strengthens customer loyalty. Apple users generally don’t have to stray to find products and solutions they want.Are you a Mac? Let’s face it, Apple is a hip brand. It pushes a strong identification with everything young, up-to-the-minute and smart. Consider Apple’s?I’m a Mac?campaign. The Mac guy is smooth and confident, while PC appears uptight and old. Once you’ve become smooth, would?you?want to go back to uptight?Varied products: Many consumers may not be ready to buy an Apple computer, but they’re willing to give gadgets like the iPod or iPhone a try. By selling products with lower entry costs, it creates an opportunity for new users to be introduced to Apple. If these users enjoy their gadgets, they’re more likely to consider buying an Apple computer in the future.Proprietary formats: Apple products are often not compatible for use with other systems, at least where customer transitions are concerned. If a user has a digital music collection comprised entirely of .aac files, it’s not likely he’ll want to start from scratch with a new MP3 player that won’t accept them. Instead, this customer will probably look at replacing his old Mac with a new Apple model when the time comes.Media fodder: Media outlets, especially bloggers, love to write about Apple. Because Apple makes it so easy. With leaked rumours about new developments, its?very own expo?and mysterious shutdowns of its online store, Apple gift wraps news stories that are just begging for speculation and hype. By perpetuating this cycle of media frenzy, Apple reminds its customers that they’re excited about buying new Apple products now and in the future.Education sales: By selling its products to schools and universities, Apple turns classrooms into showrooms. If students go through school using Apple products, they become comfortable with the interface and familiar with the superior performance the brand offers. By creating this early exposure, Apple captures customers before they even know that they?are?customers.Products that deliver: Apple carefully considers what consumers are looking for, so its products are a result of both extensive research and strong design. This meticulous planning is a large contributor to Apple’s high customer-satisfaction rates. It’s plain and simple: robust and easy-to-use products not only make your customers happy, but also make them want to buy more products from you in the future.Outsourcing unpleasantness: With Apple products, the average consumer’s interaction with the company is likely to be low. Unless something goes wrong, you don’t have any reason to speak with an Apple customer service representative. Of course, the iPhone presented an opportunity that could have made Apple much more involved, similar to administering iTunes for the iPod. With a phone, interaction becomes multifaceted. You have to consider billing errors, quality of wireless service, contracts and a number of other factors that often lead to customer frustration. With the iPhone, Apple was wise to stick with building a good product and letting AT&T handle the service.Consistency: All of Apple’s products have the same basic architecture. Because of this consistency, customers who already own Apple products have a good idea of what they’ll be getting before they make a purchase. They know that it will be easy to adapt to new hardware, and this makes them more open to making a repeat purchase.New innovations: Although the architecture of Apple products is consistent, its portfolio is not. The company offers consumers a number of different ways to enjoy its products. By giving customers and opportunity to employ Apple in their living rooms, pockets and offices, Apple makes it easy to stay loyal to a brand they already like.Attractiveness: From packaging to aesthetic design to user-interface experience, Apple makes its products accessible and attractive. Bright colors, a smiling icon and slick-looking hardware remind customers every time they use Apple products that what Apple offers is appealing.BRAND POSITIONINGIt is widely recognized that Apple is a premium brand that demands and earns a price premium.? This price premium spans the entire Apple product line-up encompassing the Macintosh, iPod, iPhone, software, and accessories.? Apple's positioning is aligned with targeting a less price sensitive customer.? As a result, Apple's culture and internal activities are structured to meet the needs of these customers; strategists call this needs-based positioning.? Apple has thus created a culture and a set of activities to differentiate it from rivals in order to meet the needs of their target customers. ?If Apple were to attempt to compete for all customer segments, it would have to lower product prices.? The danger with such an approach is that it would not only undermine and erode the company's premium brand image but it would also undermine the company's cultureandinternalactivities.Each new Mac revision has either maintained or been subjected to modest price increase while Apple has simultaneously improved product features.? A few examples include the introduction of the unibody MacBook and MacBook Pro, larger displays on the iMac, and the replacement of the $499 Mac mini with a higher priced ($599) model.By maintaining its price premium at the expense of unit volume, Apple has created an imitation barrier that competitors cannot easily cross.? PC competitors cannot realistically enter Apple's space by transforming themselves into a premium brand without alienating or pricing out existing customers.? If a competitor decided to reposition or straddle it would have to compete with Apple's decade’s long premium brand equity.? Thus, PC vendors have two transformational issues working against them, time and cost.? Apple's competitors will not be able to transform their brand image overnight.? Any such effort will take considerable amount of time on numerous dimensions ranging from product design to marketing.Apple's positioning, brand image, and loyal following have created an entry barrier that PC vendors must cross in order to enter the premium computer market, a market that the Macintosh has exploited for years.? Customer loyalty, advertising, lower price sensitivity of target customers (relatively inelastic demand), sunk costs, patents and innovation speak to this point.? If a PC manufacturer wanted to enter Apple's market segment, it would have to overcome the barriers that Apple and the market have constructed.Apple is preventing the commoditization of their business by integrating hardware and software.? PCs that run Windows or Linux are simply commodities that offer no true differentiation against a competitor's offering.? Apple on the other hand has undertaken an end-to-end integrated approach to both hardware and software design.? The resulting products are differentiated from competitor products in that Apple controls the entire stack that in turn results in a better user experience.? The end result is the ability to price their products at a premium.MAJOR COMPETING BRANDSDell and HP are its major competitors.1. Apple iPad:Though many competing brands of tablet PCs were introduced, still iPad dominates the tablet PC market. The good things?about?this tablet are they are incredibly thinner with both front and rear cameras, which many of the other PCs don’t have, Face time video chat, 3G connectivity option in both AT &T and Verizon, and a faster processor. What is not good about this tablet PC is that the screen resolution could still be made better, photos shot are of mediocre quality, Adobe Flash support and with connectivity like HDMI, USB and SD all requiring additional money from your pocket to buy the specific adapters. This is the tablet I have with me now, which I got due to the earnings from my go to meeting promo code and go to webinar promo code blog, Overall, this tablet PC has been defined as the excellent product with an easy to use user-interface, vast application catalogue, and an unbeatable marathon battery life.2. Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1:This is the tablet PC that you will have to choose if you are looking for something that is lighter and something more appealing. This is the Honeycomb tablet PC that is available in the market running on the latest of the Android OS, also has a 3 MP back camera and a 2 MP front camera with powerful dual speakers. However, somehow the tablet failed to have enough ports for connectivity, and the plastic back makes this feel much lighter than hardier, which is both a plus and a minus, lighter tablet PC, which is na?ve. Overall, this tablet PC has been admired to be sleek, sexy and light and is supposed to be one of the closest competing brands to the Apple’s iPad.3. Asus Eee Pad Transformer (16 GB, Wi-Fi):This is one of the lowest priced tablet PC coming on a budget of $400 only, which does not compromise on the quality and comes loaded with the latest version of Android OS, honeycomb. The high quality screen and a much relatively cheaper keyboard and dock make this PC much attractive. What is not good about this PC is that the transformer is not good, choppy recording and playback by the camcorder. The look of the PC is also not good because of the sharp edges and a low quality build to make this available at a much cheaper rate. Overall, the Asus Eee Pad is a low budget but high quality Honeycomb tablet with useful options.4. BlackBerry Playbook:This is a notebook from Research in Motion (RIM), and is fast with a powerful 7” tablet HDMI output, advanced multitasking and security. The tablet PC has a browser with integrated Adobe Flash 10.2 for desktop style web experience. What fails this tablet is that the 7” web browser cramps down the powerful browser to nothing, and the wake button hardly works properly in most of the cases, and some of the features are available only when pairing with a BlackBerry Phone. This tablet PC is one of the best ways to explore the RIM’s all-new mobile operating system in the end, despite all the disadvantages.5. T-Mobile G Slate:This is one of the most attractive tablets PC that is available in the market coming with 4G support and a wide angled screen with IPS screen, out-of-the-box streaming TV features for viewing pictures, making this as the perfect choice for entertainment. Besides, the G Slate is one of the best Android line up that is available in the market as tablet PC. Unless, you buy this on a contract the tablet PC is not attractively priced and is not worth the money being spent, especially for the poor battery performance. STRENGTHSiTunes Music Store is a good source of revenue, especially with the iPod and the availability on Windows platform. Developing own software and hardware. Apple’s niche audience provides the company with some insulation from the direct price competition. Revamping desktop and notebook lines. Web technology can be used to improve product awareness and sales.Low debt—more maneuverable.Good brand loyalty.WEAKNESSWeak relationship with Intel and Microsoft. Weak presence in business arena. Dependency on new product launches.Weak presence in markets other than education and publishing.Slow turn around on high demand products.OPPORTUNITIESIncrease in worms and viruses on PCs. Large population (Gen X&Y) which are extremely individualistic and name brand conscious.Weak ties with Microsoft products.Downloadable music and MP3 players are highly marketable.Increase sales of computers online by 25 percent.Increase sales of laptops by 20 percent.THREATS Companies not seeing Apple as compatible with their software.Dell and HP are major competitors.Increasing competition with music downloads.Dell does not invent but provides computers at a more cost effective rate for customers.Recession—price of Apple computers are higher.Intel’s future Pentium release.RECOMMENDATIONSStrategy 1 Open more computer retail stores (not just peripheral and accessories). Apple currently has stores opened throughout the United States with only peripheral and accessories for their computers. Adding the hardware should generate more hands-on awareness and use already established locations. This will increase product accessibility for those who wish to view items other than just accessories and increase awareness of the originality of Apple’s products.Strategy 2 Contract music spokesperson to attract the upcoming generation who are attending high school and college. This will invoke a sense of style and linking apple with a distinctive and memorable top 10 hit. This will stay in the customer’s awareness and influence future purchase decisions. Strategy 3 Add more features to current products for greater compatibility. Features such as iTunes software compatible with windows based computers, Office programs loadable from PC installation disk.It will increase the United States market share at least 30 percent for the next 2-3 years.ANNEXURESIPOD TOUCH IPOD NANOIPOD TOUCHIPOD SHUFFLEAPPLE IMACAPPLE IMAC THUMBAPPLE IPHONE 3GAPPLE IPADBIBLIOGRAPHYspecials.plugged.in ................
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