anjalicutek
Anjali Khurana
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL; previously 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; and iOS, a mobile operating system. As of August 2010, the company operates 301 retail stores[5] in ten countries,[6] and an online store where hardware and software products are sold.
Established on April 1, 1976 in Cupertino, California, and incorporated January 3, 1977,[7] the company was previously named Apple Computer, Inc., for its first 30 years, but removed the word "Computer" on January 9, 2007,[8] to reflect the company's ongoing expansion into the consumer electronics market in addition to its traditional focus on personal computers.[9] As of September 25, 2010, Apple had 46,600 full time employees and 2,800 temporary full time employees worldwide[4] and had worldwide annual sales of $65.23 billion.[4]
For reasons as various as its philosophy of comprehensive aesthetic design to its distinctive advertising campaigns, Apple has established a unique reputation in the consumer electronics industry. This includes a customer base that is devoted to the company and its brand, particularly in the United States.[10] Fortune magazine named Apple the most admired company in the United States in 2008, and in the world in 2008, 2009, and 2010.[11][12][13] The company has also received widespread criticism for its contractors' labor, environmental, and business practices.
Apple Marketing Strategy
Apple has been so successful in these last years thanks to his fresh, imaginative way to think and do its business: a winning combination of exceptional products, great style and design, great strategy, innovative marketing, sleek and enticing communications.
Apple owes its overwhelming success in the last years to the iPhone and to the smart iPod and iTunes product combination, a combination of a great hardware piece with great style, great software, great performance, user friendly interface, with a good e-business service. The iPod + iTunes halo effect and new great Mac computers and Mac OS software did the rest in increasing Apple revenue stream.
In the 5 years between 2003 to 2008 the Apple share value increased 25 times, from $7.5 to $180 per share. At july 2008 prices, before the US Financial Crisis, Apple stock market capitalization was $160 billion.
In January 2010 Apple shares topped the $210 mark.
But even the best companies with the best products have bottleneck factors which often avoid full exploitation of the opportunities.
The iPad.
The new Apple Tablet, the iPad - an unnecessary product? -
iPad Marketing Strategy
Steve Jobs claims the iPad gives the best way to experience the web.
Yet, the iPad does not have Flash Player, Flash is essential on the web and is used everywhere. Surfing the Web without Flash gives you big empty boxes in the middle of a page. Video on the web is mostly implemented in Flash. No Flash, no video.
So, what Steve Jobs says is untrue. Actually the iPad gives one of the worst web experiences you can imagine.
Besides, the iPad does not have USB ports.
ipad marketing
More on the iPad Marketing Strategy
The iPod.
Few people are aware - and few market analysts too - that for the first 3 years the iPod was an absolute flop. The iPod was launched in october 2001, and between 2001 and 2004 iPod sales were between 100-200 thousand units per quarter, very far from today's 10-20 million units per quarter, and the iPod sales were not even covering the product research & development costs.
Then, in June-Aug 2004 something happened, and iPod sales began to grow strongly, quarter after quarter. Today, we all know where the iPod stands, and what a remarkable success it is.
The iPod made the fortune of Apple, and it stands out as the major turning point in the company growth.
Few people know that the iPod + iTunes business idea was not conceived inside Apple, but was proposed to Apple by an outside source, a music lover and Engineer named Tony Fadell.
More on Tony Fadell and on the iPod marketing on iPod Marketing Strategy
The iPod marks another outstanding result in marketing:
the annihilation of competitors. To know more see the analysis on
The iPod competitors
It should be noted that, since the second generation of iPods in 2002, the iPods were made compatible not only with the Mac operating systems but with Microsoft Windows operating systems as well.
We should ask ourselves (and to Steve Jobs): how many iPods would have been sold if the iPods would had been compatible only with Mac operating systems?
Where the iPod is manufactured and assembled
The iPhone.
The pipeline of new products which came out from Apple in the last years is impressive, and overwhelming. In 2007, with the successful launch of the iPhone, Apple has marked another milestone in its development and growth.
And moreover, the iPhone enters a market - the market of mobile phones - a market which is mature, and saturated. Nonetheless, Apple has been able to develop a revolutionary product, and to change the paradigm in the mobile phone market.
The iPhone is 5 years ahead of all its competitors. A wonderful product, amazing user interface, great design. It is not only a mobile phone, it is a product between a mobile phone and a laptop computer. Even calling it a smartphone is not enough.
In July 2008 Apple launched the second generation iPhone, the iPhone 3G.
The iPhone 3GS.
In June 2009 Apple launched its third generation iPhone: the iPhone 3GS.
The iPhone 3GS has a 3 megapixel autofocus camera, video recording and editing capabilities, voice control, longer battery life, 7.2 Mbps HSDPA internet connection. iPhone 3GS is twice faster than the iPhone 3G. The iPhone 3GS prices: $199 for the 16GB model, $299 for the 32GB model.
more on the new iPhone 3GS on the iPhone 3GS page.
More on iPhone Marketing on the iPhone Marketing Strategy page.
Apple did great. no doubt. However Apple has done some serious mistakes.
The most serious mistakes Apple has done concern marketing and distribution strategies in Europe.
Apple has overlooked the European markets, and missing big numbers in unexploited sales. With better marketing strategy, better communication and distribution, Apple could have made 300% more revenues in Europe in the last 4 years. Apple Marketing in Europe
We met with with Erik Stannow, Apple Vice President of Marketing for Europe & EMEA. We have been talking with Erik Stannow about the marketing and distribution issues of Apple in the European markets and we gave some valuable suggestions to improve the Apple marketing strategy and distribution in Europe.
Well, it seems that in Cupertino they don't care so much about Europe.
Established on April 1, 1976 in Cupertino, California, and incorporated January 3, 1977,[7] the company was previously named Apple Computer, Inc., for its first 30 years, but removed the word "Computer" on January 9, 2007,[8] to reflect the company's ongoing expansion into the consumer electronics market in addition to its traditional focus on personal computers.[9] As of September 25, 2010, Apple had 46,600 full time employees and 2,800 temporary full time employees worldwide[4] and had worldwide annual sales of $65.23 billion.[4]
For reasons as various as its philosophy of comprehensive aesthetic design to its distinctive advertising campaigns, Apple has established a unique reputation in the consumer electronics industry. This includes a customer base that is devoted to the company and its brand, particularly in the United States.[10] Fortune magazine named Apple the most admired company in the United States in 2008, and in the world in 2008, 2009, and 2010.[11][12][13] The company has also received widespread criticism for its contractors' labor, environmental, and business practices.
Apple Marketing Strategy
Apple has been so successful in these last years thanks to his fresh, imaginative way to think and do its business: a winning combination of exceptional products, great style and design, great strategy, innovative marketing, sleek and enticing communications.
Apple owes its overwhelming success in the last years to the iPhone and to the smart iPod and iTunes product combination, a combination of a great hardware piece with great style, great software, great performance, user friendly interface, with a good e-business service. The iPod + iTunes halo effect and new great Mac computers and Mac OS software did the rest in increasing Apple revenue stream.
In the 5 years between 2003 to 2008 the Apple share value increased 25 times, from $7.5 to $180 per share. At july 2008 prices, before the US Financial Crisis, Apple stock market capitalization was $160 billion.
In January 2010 Apple shares topped the $210 mark.
But even the best companies with the best products have bottleneck factors which often avoid full exploitation of the opportunities.
The iPad.
The new Apple Tablet, the iPad - an unnecessary product? -
iPad Marketing Strategy
Steve Jobs claims the iPad gives the best way to experience the web.
Yet, the iPad does not have Flash Player, Flash is essential on the web and is used everywhere. Surfing the Web without Flash gives you big empty boxes in the middle of a page. Video on the web is mostly implemented in Flash. No Flash, no video.
So, what Steve Jobs says is untrue. Actually the iPad gives one of the worst web experiences you can imagine.
Besides, the iPad does not have USB ports.
ipad marketing
More on the iPad Marketing Strategy
The iPod.
Few people are aware - and few market analysts too - that for the first 3 years the iPod was an absolute flop. The iPod was launched in october 2001, and between 2001 and 2004 iPod sales were between 100-200 thousand units per quarter, very far from today's 10-20 million units per quarter, and the iPod sales were not even covering the product research & development costs.
Then, in June-Aug 2004 something happened, and iPod sales began to grow strongly, quarter after quarter. Today, we all know where the iPod stands, and what a remarkable success it is.
The iPod made the fortune of Apple, and it stands out as the major turning point in the company growth.
Few people know that the iPod + iTunes business idea was not conceived inside Apple, but was proposed to Apple by an outside source, a music lover and Engineer named Tony Fadell.
More on Tony Fadell and on the iPod marketing on iPod Marketing Strategy
The iPod marks another outstanding result in marketing:
the annihilation of competitors. To know more see the analysis on
The iPod competitors
It should be noted that, since the second generation of iPods in 2002, the iPods were made compatible not only with the Mac operating systems but with Microsoft Windows operating systems as well.
We should ask ourselves (and to Steve Jobs): how many iPods would have been sold if the iPods would had been compatible only with Mac operating systems?
Where the iPod is manufactured and assembled
The iPhone.
The pipeline of new products which came out from Apple in the last years is impressive, and overwhelming. In 2007, with the successful launch of the iPhone, Apple has marked another milestone in its development and growth.
And moreover, the iPhone enters a market - the market of mobile phones - a market which is mature, and saturated. Nonetheless, Apple has been able to develop a revolutionary product, and to change the paradigm in the mobile phone market.
The iPhone is 5 years ahead of all its competitors. A wonderful product, amazing user interface, great design. It is not only a mobile phone, it is a product between a mobile phone and a laptop computer. Even calling it a smartphone is not enough.
In July 2008 Apple launched the second generation iPhone, the iPhone 3G.
The iPhone 3GS.
In June 2009 Apple launched its third generation iPhone: the iPhone 3GS.
The iPhone 3GS has a 3 megapixel autofocus camera, video recording and editing capabilities, voice control, longer battery life, 7.2 Mbps HSDPA internet connection. iPhone 3GS is twice faster than the iPhone 3G. The iPhone 3GS prices: $199 for the 16GB model, $299 for the 32GB model.
more on the new iPhone 3GS on the iPhone 3GS page.
More on iPhone Marketing on the iPhone Marketing Strategy page.
Apple did great. no doubt. However Apple has done some serious mistakes.
The most serious mistakes Apple has done concern marketing and distribution strategies in Europe.
Apple has overlooked the European markets, and missing big numbers in unexploited sales. With better marketing strategy, better communication and distribution, Apple could have made 300% more revenues in Europe in the last 4 years. Apple Marketing in Europe
We met with with Erik Stannow, Apple Vice President of Marketing for Europe & EMEA. We have been talking with Erik Stannow about the marketing and distribution issues of Apple in the European markets and we gave some valuable suggestions to improve the Apple marketing strategy and distribution in Europe.
Well, it seems that in Cupertino they don't care so much about Europe.