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Overview:
Apple Inc is a world-renowned name for innovation and breakthroughs in the
consumer electronics and computer industry. Apple is known to be one of the
most outstanding marketers of all time because they understand that marketing
is one of the most crucial aspects of a business venture which significantly
determines its success in the consumer’s realm. Thus, Apple has always taken
steps to keep its marketing process free of new market challenges to penetrate
deeper into the market.

4Ps:
Apple’s marketing is so effective that it has become a benchmark for other
companies who want to achieve global popularity, revenue growth, and staying
power. Moreover, it boils down to the 4P’s of marketing: Product, Price,
Promotion, and Place.

(1)Product: When it comes to the first P: Product, they keep it simple: they
do not overwhelm their targeted customers with too many choices,
options, or even parameters. Apple lets its products speak for themselves
and keeps its messages and visuals simple. They know their products will
sell without relying on over-the-top and expensive advertisements.
(2)Promotion: It also covers their Promotion: keeping it simple. Apple
advertisements show happy people having a great time with the
simplicity of their iPads. This consistent display of positive emotion is
the driving force behind sales. They are not selling more storage or
battery life, but it is way more. For example, the iMac product
advertisements portray the iMac as not just “a computer”. It helps make
your computing experience exciting and pleasurable, or the iPhone is not
just “a smartphone”. It lets you put the power of an Apple computer in
your phone. When Apple decides to launch something new, they create
excitement by withholding information about new products as they tease
it out.
(3)Place: Then, we have Place: their retail stores are designed for testing and
checking out the products rather than just buying the boxes. There,
customers can compare different products and try new ones. The retail
store is also carefully designed with warm lighting and monochromatic
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colour schemes, and the layout of the store features all appeal to the
shopper’s requirements.
(4)Price: Everything above contributes to the Price, which might be higher
than your average Android. Apple’s loyal customer base meant continued
success over its competitors as customers may be willing to pay a higher
price because they deem the brand to be of high quality or a higher status
symbol. Despite Samsung selling more phones during the last months of
2017, Apple still managed to receive 87% of total smartphone profits,
which is a giant monopoly.

STDP:
1. Market Segmentation of Apple

Segmenting is a process of grouping the audience into smaller segments

based on specific characteristics like occupation, gender, age, and other
customer preferences. These segments or variables must be accessible,
measurable, and actionable to benefit the company.

With Apple, market segmentation is grouped into demographic,

geographic, behavioural and psychographic variables.

Apple's demographic market segmentation includes developing its

products around the target customers' age, lifestyle, and occupation. Apple's
products are then distributed to various areas and classified based on family size
and age (Bara & Al-Refaie, 2016). An example of this is a PC with the latest
features and software for professionals and a PC containing more games for
kids. You might also notice that Apple provides several features to its other
gadgets. Those with the higher graphic resolution for the younger people and
digital watches with the capabilities to monitor one's pulse rate will be highly
favoured by the later generations.

Since Apple caters to a broader range of global markets, geographic

elements must be considered part of its segmentation. As of December 2021,
Apple already has more than 500 retail stores across 25 countries worldwide.
Besides its physical locations, customers can access its products through online
retail stores wherever they may be in the world. This way, Apple can expand its
market and reach several customers.

Apple also includes the behavioural variables of its target market in its
market segment. It consists of attitudes, usage, responses, and product
knowledge.
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The psychographic element of Apple's market segmentation tackles

developing products based on the target market's lifestyles.

2. Targeting of Apple

Apple’s targeting strategies involve determining the more attractive

segments for the firm. This stage implies choosing particular groups identified
from the segmentation process, which Apple can sell its products to. The
company positions its brand as a premium provider of products and services
with high-quality and advanced functions and capabilities.

Apple's target customers include the well-off individuals willing to spend

more on technology products and services with advanced capabilities, functions,
and designs. After years of evaluating Apple's customers' characteristics, it has
been revealed that most of them tend to appreciate the quality, performance, and
design of tech products and services over the prices.

3. Positioning of Apple

The positioning approach for every marketing plan plays a critical role in
promoting a brand image in the customers' minds. A practical and critically
selected positioning strategy can hugely influence the firm's success. When
deciding on the brand's positioning, companies vary on the aspects they want to
highlight and emphasise, based on the industry, company time, size, and
products.

The technology industry is rapidly growing and constantly evolving,

hence the continuous introduction of new products with technical resolutions
and innovative features. Apple is one of the top firms in this sphere, and most of
the players in the industry often look up to Apple, its new technologies, and its
products.

This success is partially due to its solid and effective positioning based on
various elements. Apple positions itself in the market as a premium brand
sought by everyone. Surely, the company's products are not cheap, but you will
find people, even those who cannot afford to find ways to get their hands on
Apple products.

Apple positioning its brand to create an emotional connection with its

customers through exceptional experiences is an excellent approach, especially
in this competitive industry. In the same manner, Apple uses its positioning
approach based on competition. Since competition is tight in the technology
industry, Apple ensures to continuously invest in R&D and introduce innovative
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products and features all the time. It keeps on making unique technologies for
the brand and cannot be copied anywhere else.

4. Differentiation

Apple differentiates its products by pricing them higher than its

competitors implying that the products are better quality and incorporate the
latest technology. The company also stimulates consumer interest by
introducing hype before product launches through clever marketing and
distribution strategies.

GAHY

Market Segmentation of Apple

With Apple, market segmentation is grouped into demographic, geographic,
behavioral and psychographic variables. Segmenting is a process of grouping
the audience into smaller segments based on specific characteristics like
occupation, gender, age, and other customer preferences. These segments or
variables must be accessible, measurable, and actionable to benefit the
company.
Apple's demographic market segmentation includes developing its products
around the target customers' age, lifestyle, and occupation. Apple's products are
then distributed to various areas and classified based on family size and age
(Bara & Al-Refaie, 2016). An example of this is a PC with the latest features
and software for professionals and a PC containing more games for kids. You
might also notice that Apple provides several features to its other gadgets.
Those with the higher graphic resolution for the younger people and digital
watches with the capabilities to monitor one's pulse rate will be highly favored
by the later generations.

Since Apple caters to a broader range of global markets, geographic elements

must be considered part of its segmentation. As of December 2021, Apple
already has more than 500 retail stores across 25 countries worldwide. Besides
its physical locations, customers can access its products through online retail
stores wherever they may be in the world. This way, Apple can expand its
market and reach several customers.

Apple also includes the behavioural variables of its target market in its market
segment. It consists of attitudes, usage, responses, and product knowledge. The
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psychographic element of Apple's market segmentation tackles developing

products based on the target market's lifestyles.

Targeting of Apple
Apple’s targeting strategies involve determining the more attractive segments
for the firm. This stage implies choosing particular groups identified from the
segmentation process, which Apple can sell its products to. The company
positions its brand as a premium provider of products and services with high-
quality and advanced functions and capabilities for additional cost.

Apple's target customers include the well-off individuals willing to spend more
on technology products and services with advanced capabilities, functions, and
designs. After years of evaluating Apple's customers' characteristics, it has been
revealed that most of them tend to appreciate the quality, performance, and
design of tech products and services over the prices.

Differentiation strategy of Apple

Since the 1980s, Apple Inc. has successfully used product differentiation to
separate its products from those of other electronics manufacturers, it has
employed a differentiation strategy to target a section of the consumer market
and send a powerful message that its products stand out from the crowd.
INTERNALLY
So, the first way Apple sets itself apart from the crowd is to “think different”
and not let what others do impact the products or services Apple creates and
brings to market. This has to be a very freeing feeling for Apple executives as
they continue to put themselves in the driver’s seat by creating new products —
and new categories of products — that have driven innovation in MP3 players,
smartphones, tablets and computers over the years.
There is another important way that Apple sets itself apart from its competitors;
the way the company is run and controlled. Apple has one central executive
committee that works together seamlessly to design products and make
decisions about how the company moves forward. All decisions are made by
this single executive committee, unlike other companies’ decisions that are
made by committees and by having to get approvals from one or more of their
silo businesses before they can move ahead with something. that is why
everything Apple does works together so seamlessly.
A major aspect of a product differentiation strategy comes from product design.
Apple has made product design a hallmark of its differentiation strategy since
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the company's origins. When Apple introduced the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, there
were no similar consumer electronics products that included so many features in
one distinctive, iconic package.
EXTERNALLY
Another factor in product differentiation plans stems from the company's
pricing strategies. Apple differentiates its products by pricing them higher than
its competitors implying that the products are better quality and incorporate the
latest technology.
Apple's pricing strategy extends to its differentiation in the retail electronics
marketplace. While users can purchase computers, tablets and mobile phones
from nearly any electronics outlet, Apple differentiates itself by providing
limited quantities to big box retailers and focusing its retail efforts on its Apple
Stores. For its third-party retailers, Apple imposes a minimum advertised price
policy to prevent outlets like Walmart and Best Buy from undercutting the
prices found at the Apple Stores.
Apple has been among the most successful technology companies in the
development of loyalty to a brand. Loyal Apple customers will wait in line to
purchase the latest iPhone, download music through iTunes, watch their favorite
television shows on Apple TV and play games on their iPads. The company also
stimulates consumer interest by introducing hype before product launches
through clever marketing and distribution strategies. The company's efforts
toward building brand loyalty have allowed Apple to differentiate itself from
Microsoft, Samsung and other competitors in its various arenas.

Positioning of Apple
Positioning is the selection of products and services most appealing to each
segment and presenting it to them. The positioning approach for every
marketing plan plays a critical role in promoting a brand image in the
customers' minds. A practical and critically selected positioning strategy can
hugely influence the firm's success. When deciding on the brand's positioning,
companies vary on the aspects they want to highlight and emphasize, based on
the industry, company time, size, and products. For Apple, this involves
tailoring products, services, and its overall business approach to appeal to each
customer segment.

The technology industry is rapidly growing and constantly evolving, hence the
continuous introduction of new products with technical resolutions and
innovative features. Apple is one of the top firms in this sphere, and most of the
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players in the industry often look up to Apple, its new technologies, and its
products.

This success is partially due to its solid and effective positioning based on
various elements. Apple positions itself in the market as a premium brand
sought by everyone. Surely, the company's products are not cheap, but you will
find people, even those who cannot afford to find ways to get their hands on
Apple products.

Apple positioning its brand to create an emotional connection with its customers
through exceptional experiences is an excellent approach, especially in this
competitive industry. In the same manner, Apple uses its positioning approach
based on competition. Since competition is tight in the technology industry,
Apple ensures to continuously invest in R&D and introduce innovative products
and features all the time. It keeps on making unique technologies for the brand
and cannot be copied anywhere else.

Apple’s SWOT analysis

1. Strengths
● Most Valuable Brand:

Apple is ranked #1 position for the 9th consecutive year by Interbrand –

with a brand value of $408 Billion. Followed by Amazon ranked at #2
with a brand value of $249 Billion, and Microsoft ranked at #3 with a
brand value of $210 Billion.
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● Globally Iconic:

Apple is one of the most reliable companies when it comes to

personalized advanced computers and smart technology devices. It has
millions of loyal customers with steady increments.

● Top Technology:

Apple was the first to introduce some of the most innovative products that
have changed the world (iPhones, iPods, AirPods). Apple is still
determined to build and craft better, more proficient technology devices.

● Brand Of Choice:

It isn’t big news that Apple is a favorable brand in corporate offices,

especially among creative professionals. Apple offers top-quality
technology solutions for every corporation’s needs. Professionals prefer
high-performance technology such as Mac Pro or iMacs for visual design,
animation, video production, and other creative work.

● Proficient Research & Development:

Apple puts dedication into its product designs. Careful study and
extensive research are performed to help understand customer needs and
market trends. Apple continues to invest a substantial amount of money
in research and development for future growth and a competitive edge.
For example, Apple spends $21.9 Billion (about 6%) of its revenue on
R&D.

● Sustainability made Possible through Liam:

Liam is an iPhone recycling robot that breaks down and dissects an

iPhone. It strips them down to a single bolt. Most parts of an iPhone can
be reused.

Liam is designed to yield as many reusable parts as possible. These

reusable parts are then categorized and safely stored so they can be used
for new manufacturing.

● Expansion in services:

Apple has been expanding its services portfolio for many years. For
example, about 19% of Apple’s annual revenue ($68 B out of $365 B in
FY 21) came from its services, which are the second biggest contributor
to its revenue after the iPhone (52% of its revenue).
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Apple’s services include digital content stores, streaming services,

iCloud, AppleCare, payment services, etc. Recently, Apple has
introduced many new services, such as Apple TV+, Apple news+, Apple
Card (credit card services), Apple Arcade (game subscription), Apple
Fitness+, etc.

2. Weaknesses
● High Priced Products

Apple’s products can be considered a luxury due to their premium prices.

The products are priced for middle and high-income consumers. Low-
Income consumers can’t simply afford Apple products.

Due to their premium pricing, only middle or high-earning individuals

can afford their products.

● Limited Advertisement & Promotions

Apple has solidified its grounds by establishing loyal customers, even

with limited advertising resources. Apple’s marketing relies heavily on its
iconic and flagship retail stores.

Because of their success, Apple does not feel the need to have excessive
spending on advertisements in comparison to other big brands such as
P&G, Pepsi, Verizon, Coca-Cola, etc.

● Entering into Area of Non-Competency

Apple is rapidly expanding into new services such as video content

streaming, game streaming, and payment services (credit cards) –
competing with the dominant players such as Netflix, Disney, Citi,
Chase, Paypal, etc.

They might be entering into areas in which they lack competencies;

remember the failure of Apple maps.

● Incompatibility With Other Software

When a customer buys an apple product, they enter the Apple universe.
Apple’s products do not support other software or technologies making
them incompatible with other devices.

Customers have to exclusively purchase Apple apps or accessories to

continue using their Apple products.

● Allegations of Tracking
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Tracking users undermines trust. Apple has been accused of using

tracking apps on its phones, which revealed the precise location of users.

Even though the latest version of Apple’s phones gives users the right to
decline tracking, trust is difficult to regain once it is lost.

● Unfair Business Practices

Apple is under investigation for unfair business practices after receiving

payments to make Google’s search engine the default search engine for
its Safari web browser. Collusion between the two giants makes it
difficult for rivals to enter and expand into the search engine market.

● Integrate Stronger Parental Control Software

Parents allege that Apple’s parental control software isn’t good enough.
And that’s true because popular apps such as Instagram, YouTube,
TikTok, etc., are integrated with independent control systems, which
make it a technological nightmare to monitor and track children’s social
media activity. Although Apple and Google have both boasted that their
parental control is the best, kids easily find numerous ways to bypass
those controls.

3. Apple’s Opportunities
● Consistent Customer Growth

Apple has been dominating the technology sector for years now. They
provide top quality and cutting-edge technology that offers a
breakthrough in customer experience.

Their customer retention rate of 92% is phenomenal. Apple can always

rely on the power of the internet for future opportunities to gain new
customers and form new alliances.

● Qualified Professionals

Apple’s researchers, developers, and product specialists are a team of

highly qualified professionals that have years of experience in branding
consumer products. With the expansion of its team, Apple can
continuously build new opportunities.

● Expansive Distribution Network

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Apple Inc. has the opportunity to expand its distribution network.

Currently, the distribution network that Apple has is very limited and
leaves room for minimal growth.

Apple can generate higher revenue and sales if it focused on creating an

expansive distribution network. Furthermore, the company can benefit
from diligent marketing and promotions.

● Lack of Green Technology

Apple is yet to launch products that are created using green technology.
The company has not yet implemented or participated in creating eco-
friendly and sustainable technology.

● Smart Wearable Technology

Smart wearable technology will soon dominate the world. According to

Forbes, smart wearable technology device sales will double by 2022. It
will become a $27 billion+ market with 233 million unit sales.

Apple has the opportunity to continue to grow beyond just the Apple
Watch and AirPods into other wearable categories.

● Utilize Artificial Intelligence

To increase its profit margins and have a strong market position, Apple
should utilize artificial intelligence. Recently, the company has extended
its AI portfolio.

In the year 2017, Apple acquired Regaind, a French AI startup, and

DeskConnect, an AI tool. The former acquisition helps Apple to integrate
intelligent search to the photos app on the iPhone, while the latter
acquisition automates tasks by helping the consumers to arrange apps and
features with a string of commands.

The company should focus on extending its AI portfolio to have a strong

foothold in the future.

● Expand Music Streaming Services

The youthful population and rapid economic growth in emerging

economies offer immense opportunities for expansion. Apple is already
planning to expand its music streaming services to 52 emerging markets
in Africa and the Middle East.

● Deliver Self-Driving Software Technology

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The demand for autonomous cars is increasing rapidly. Apple has the
expertise needed to deliver self-driving car technology rather than fully-
functional autonomous or electric cars.

Apple has the opportunity to focus on delivering self-driving software

technology instead of building an actual car as Tesla does.

In a Bloomberg interview, Apple CEO Tim Cook says: “ We are focusing

on autonomous systems. And clearly, one purpose of autonomous
systems is self-driving cars. There are others. And we start to see it as the
mother of all A.I. projects. It’s probably one of the most difficult A.I.
projects actually to work on.”

● Kia Motors to build Apple’s driverless car

Apple has partnered with Kia Motors (parent company – Hyundai) to

assemble driverless electric cars in Georgia. According to the Wall Street
Journal, Kia will begin production by 2024 and produce about 100,000
vehicles in the first year.

● Expanding into Chip Manufacturing

Apple announced that it’s going to start manufacturing its chips and
semiconductors going forward, competing with Intel and Broadcom, etc.
The tech giant is already onboarding engineers for a new South California
location.

Apple’s continually expanding silicone team to make next-gen wireless

silicone. The company’s chip manufacturing manoeuvre boosted its total
market value, propelling it close to $3 trillion.

● Dominating in Smart Speakers

Apple is dominating the market for smart speakers. The tech giant’s
HomePod mini has been a massive success. According to a report by
Strategy Analytics, Apple now has a 10.2% market share after selling 4
million smart speakers.

● Fitness Feature in Apple Watch

While the Apple Watch’s activity rings are a neat feature that allows you
to monitor your exercise routine and frequency, users say that it’s time
Apple incorporates a readiness score feature like the Oura and Fitbit.

One of the best benefits of a readiness score is that it helps prioritize

when to rest and recover. While Fitbit and Oura have had this feature for
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a long time, Apple is yet to incorporate a feature like this, and users can
only access this feature via third-party apps such as AutoSleep.

4. Threats
● After effects of Coronavirus Outbreak

Apple is highly dependent on China for its manufacturing and supply

chain. The recent events have significantly affected and disrupted its
operations. In addition, about 18 % of its $365 billion in revenue came
from China (a big market for Apple). The outbreak has significantly
affected and may continue to disrupt Apple’s business in the coming
years.

● No Effective Countermeasure for Air Tags

While Apple’s AirTags are meant to help people find frequently

misplaced items using Bluetooth, the technology is also being used with
malicious intent. There have been a lot of instances where criminals have
used AirTags to steal cars and, worst, stalk people.

Apple commented that the Find My app will immediately let users know
if an unknown accessory is tracking them. However, there is yet to be a
more permanent solution.

● Apple Bullied By Counterfeits

Apple has become vulnerable to third-world countries illegally utilizing

the brand image to sell counterfeit products. The illegal dealers sell Apple
counterfeit products at the same value as an original Apple product.

Counterfeit products can make potential customers believe that it is a

product made by Apple with low quality. big news can result in negative
reviews and bad publicity for the company.

● Increasing Competition

Although Apple as a brand has solidified itself, it still faces threats from
competitors. With the advancement in technology, brands like Samsung,
Google, and Dell are giving Apple tough competition.

As the competition is getting stronger, Apple either has to introduce new

technologies or revise its pricing policy to stay ahead of its competition.

● Market Penetration
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There has been a significant change in market penetration by other brands

in the smartphone market. Companies like Samsung, HTC, and Lenovo
are using Android software to create new smartphones.

Currently, Android has captured 72.23% of the market share, while Apple
has only 24.55% of the market share globally.

● China Tariffs

The US government has imposed a higher tariff on imports from China,

increasing the overall cost of the products. Consequently, it adversely
affects the gross margin on the products and may make the product more
expensive for customers.

● Lawsuits

60 class-action lawsuits have been filed against Apple. Consumers were

upset and baffled when Apple announced that it deliberately throttles
CPU performance on iPhone models with older and degraded batteries.

The tech giant said that it did so to prevent unexpected shutdowns.

Despite the clarification, consumers felt betrayed because Apple does not
believe in transparency. This led to several people filing lawsuits against
the company.

The first class-action lawsuit was filed on December 21st, 2017, and
alleged that Apple’s actions not only negatively affect the resale value of
its products but also force its users to upgrade to newer versions
prematurely.

● Backdoor Mechanism

Apple has been under constant pressure by government agencies to

unlock the iPhone via a backdoor, which means unlocking the encryption
of the iPhone and giving access to its data.

In several instances, Apple has denied providing the backdoor mechanism

because it can be exploited by the bad guys, which eventually exposes the
security of millions of iPhone users.

● Mark Zuckerberg criticized the monopoly of the iPhone’s app store

In a recent webcast, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s CEO, criticized Apple

for its monopoly on App Store and hefty charges.
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Mark Zuckerberg states that: iPhone App Store ” blocks innovation,

blocks competition,” and “allows Apple to charge monopoly rents.”Apple
charges a 30% cut for in-app purchases through its app store. The
company is often criticized because a 30% cut is a significant
commission for small businesses or app developers.

● Apple Motions for Case Dismissal

The CCI (Competition Commission of India) recently alleged that Apple

is eyeing a monopoly, dominating with its app development in the
country. The CCI filed the complaint after going through numerous
allegations, stating that Apple is compelling developers to use its
proprietary system, wiping out existing competitors.

However, Apple responded by stating that the allegations are completely

baseless because they have a relatively smaller market share compared to
Google, which dominates the Indian tech market. Apple has moved to
have the case dismissed.