Apple, founded by Steve Jobs is one of the big four of technology, the other three being Google, Amazon and Facebook. Headquartered in California, USA, it deals with computer software, consumer electronics, and online services. Let us talk about how this multinational company uses marketing research to contribute to the marketing plans. The data pertaining to the marketing product and services is collected and analysed in a systemic manner .This process is known as marketing research.The complications arising in the business can be solved by marketing research. It helps the company to understand the need of new customers, for example why a customer chose a particular company over another.
Apple uses the process of marketing research to learn about the needs of its customers and get their feedback on the products. This helps in maintaining a good relationship between the customer and the company. For a smooth running of the organization, it is important to understand the needs of the customers, understanding the competitors and the market environment. Apple gets feedback from its customers to serve them better by releasing a new product or by updating the ios. The company could have suffered if they did not take into consideration the feedback of the customers. Getting regular feedback from the customers is an important part of marketing research and can save the company from enduring heavy losses. It is important to understand the competitors as Apple competes with big brands like Samsung. Both these companies closely keep an eye at each other, from analyzing the sales to the products launched. They try to compete with each other to such an extent that they both release the same type of products at almost the same price range. Let us take the example of the smartwatches released by both the companies.
Understanding the environment of the market helps the company during market research. It can be carried out by SWOT analysis, which is a method to identify threats, strengths, and weaknesses of a certain organization. SWOT analysis is undertaken by organizations to detect their internal strengths and weaknesses and also identify external opportunities and threats. Apple also uses this analysis as a part of its marketing strategy.
Let us discuss the SWOT analysis of Apple. Apple has a brand value of more than $234 billion and is a valuable brand of the world. Their brand value increases every year. They have launched many products like IPhone, IPod, IPad, MacBook, Apple watch for their customers to purchase. They always focus on the feedback of their customers whenever they design their products. This is the reason Apple has become so successful over the years. They care about the happiness and satisfaction of the customers and this has helped them to grow over the years. Apple is one of the most well-known brands of the world and thus it has done the advertising very well to catch everyone’s attention. Without proper advertisement, they would not have been half as successful as they are now. This is the strength of Apple.
The most prominent weakness of Apple is its price range. The price of the phones is more than that of its competitor, Samsung. The price of Samsung’s two latest phones S8 and S8+ both offering 64 GB of memory space are priced at 669 Pound and 779 Pound respectively. Whereas the two latest phones IPhone 8 and IPhone 8+ both offering 64 GB of memory spaced are priced at 699 Pound and 799 Pound respectively. The price ranges of Samsung is thus much cheaper than Apple and can be afforded by mediocre people. This is a drawback for the company as not all people prefer expensive phones. Moving on to the opportunities in Apple, it can be said that Apple is among the most valuable and successful brands in the World and has created many opportunities over the years. It has decided to launch its own car line to expand its business. This will attract new customers like people who are planning to buy a new car or people who are interested in cars. They are supposed to launch ‘Apple car’ in the year 2020 . They hope that this car line will be a success like it’s precious products MacBook, IPhone, IPad, IPod. Let us now discuss the threats to Apple.
Apple’s MacBook laptop has a tremendous amount of competition between rival companies like Dell, Lenovo, and Sony. These rival companies are successful and purchased by customers all over the world. So Apple has to keep launching newer and innovative products to combat the rival companies. Apple marketing strategy mainly focuses on an attractive value proposition, effective use of product placement and positive reviews in social media as well as traditional media. Apple does not have any complex nature of marketing strategy rather it believes in keeping the marketing as simple as possible. Customers and prospects do not need overflow of information. Apple aims to maintain its brand image, sustain brand loyalty through complimentary products as a part of its marketing strategy. The 4 P’s of marketing are product, place, promotion, and price and Apple follows this as a part of its marketing strategy. It promotes its products through commercials, print ads, and social media. Apple contributes proactively to create positive reviews in the media. For example, it sends new products to select technology and media before sale to allow them to publish reviews. Apple’s massive success can be attributed to its unique marketing strategy and brand loyalty. It has established a strong connection with its customers over the years.
The above picture depicts the growth curve of Apple over the last few decades and also some of its notable product releases. In the recent years, the growth of Apple has been phenomenal and this can be attributed to the innovative and unique marketing strategy of Apple. The annual revenue keeps on increasing every year and this a proof of a successful marketing research. Marketing research has helped the company to reach the crest of success.