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Introduction of the Company:

Apple Inc. is among the largest technology firms in the globe, and has its headquarters located at Silicon Valley, California. The enterprise was an initial plan by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne (Forbes, 2020). Apple started as a computers manufacturing firm that were used across the market even by people who did not much technological expertise. The current Chief executive for the company is Tim Cook after Steve Jobs died in 2011 (Gansky, 2017).

There are various challenges the company encountered on the way which were critical to their current level of success. These challenges include losing market to competitors such as Microsoft and Intel in the 90s, and many would not have chosen it for investment at the time. However, through the technological dynamics they were able to come up with the first cell phone that made a turnaround for the company in the 2000s after the company developed the first iPhone. The company started as a private owned company but later became a publicly traded company. The company makes revenues of over $270 billion annually, has employed over 135,000 employees, and has a brand worth of more than $1 trillion (Gansky, 2017).

Its unique products continue to be one of the most trusted by customers across the globe. This client loyalty is based developing by implementation of unique marketing and promotion techniques as well as a business model that has enhanced client satisfaction and also making products that attract users across different segments, which are easily usable.

Competitive Analysis: Competitors, Strengths and Weaknesses

Apple Inc. manufactures products that are closely related to those made by their major rivals in the market but they differentiated. The company has made tremendous progress ahead of its competitors. The company faces different competitors in different product lines. The computer product line faces competition from firms like Microsoft and Dell, who are also well established in the market. However, given its revenue stream it is evident that Apple performs much better compared to its competitors in the market. Microsoft is much known for software development and inner frameworks of the computer, making it the best computer program seller globally. Dell on the other hand, is more oriented to providing devices to business.

In terms of clients, Apple has a larger market base compared to its competitors, Microsoft and Dell. The product they supply to the market has enhanced customer loyalty. The company also has a larger market share and domination over other firms. However, the company does not deal with software manufacturer like their competitor that competes directly with Microsoft products. In addition, Apple top market brands which are sold at exemplarily higher prices compared to those of their competitors (Dolata, 2017).

On the other, cell phone market is faced by competition from Samsung which has one of the most established personal devices market in the world. Samsung makes android phones, and operates on a revenue base of more than $186 annually. Apple competes directly in the cell phone market since they are most established firms in the industry (Zhang, Q. (2017). Samsung devices are different from those manufactured by Apple due to their focus on functionality of the device rather than ease of use. In terms of performance, Samsung does better compare to Apple although Apple focus on markets that needs devices that are easier to use (MarketLine Industry Profile, 2020).

           Apple has a loyal client base, which is one of the strengths it has over Samsung. Besides, the Apple brand has a larger client base compared to that of Samsung. Nonetheless, Apple products are outperformed by Samsung devices, which is one of the major weaknesses Apple Inc. has over Samsung making hard to compete favorably (Zhang, Q. (2017).

Marketing Strategy: Using 4Ps

Product and how it affects marketing strategy

A product refers to goods or services that are produced by a firm sold in the market. Apple offers a line of differentiated products, which include computers and personal laptops. Apple was the first company that developed a computer, which was known as the Macintosh computer that did not require a programming language. However, with time the product line declined significantly, which influenced the company to come with more visual computers, the iMac. After the iMac Apple embarked on developing many powerful computers which included the Power Macintosh, at which stage the company realized more companies were moving from the traditional computers to more personalized ones, the laptops. This is the period when the first MacBook was developed.

Prior to the development of the iMac there was no clearly defined marketing strategy, but they later realized the importance of selling the products to customers through direct promotion. Despite this discovery, Apple is more popular for their smart devices, the iPhone and iPads. This has been made possible by regular advancements and production of new versions with more advanced features that are more attractive to customers.

The development of a marketing strategy is never an option for companies that want their products be reached by companies at whatever level. The regular updates on its phone devises require updating the clients on a regular basis so that they are aware of the added features, which requires significant spending on the advertisement budget. Besides, they have to employ an aggressive marketing strategy which requires channeling more resources to advertisement. The budget spent of advertising is huge that shows the dedication of the company in coming up with better marketing approaches to remain relevant in the face of growing competition.

Place and channels of distribution used

A channel is the route that the product passes before reaching the final consumer. Apple Inc. is dedicated to using any available channel by turning into new opportunities for the firm and sold both in large and small retail dealers. There also a dedicated Apple stores where everything about Apple products such as iPads, iPhones and even maintenance services are advertised. Apple is considering closing the Apple store though it is expected to have insignificant impacts on the company’s revenues (Apple Newsroom, 2020).

Price and price strategy for Apple

           Price is the value that a company attaches to its products enough to generate revenues, and at the same time attract their clients. When it comes to Apple products, they are highly priced compared to other similar products since they are considered to be high end products. The high prices are associated both exemplary services as well as high quality of their brands.

Apple pricing strategy is based whether a new product is being launched or it’s just the old product that allowing for friendly prices. Different products contain different features and are priced differently depending on the complexity of the user, ranging from the basic iPhone to the top of the line brands. On the other, top of line devices have exemplary features and complexities that allow the user to perform unique operations as they may need. The more complex a devise is, the more prices they attract and the better the operations and the experiences the user derives from their use.

Promotion: traditional and digital promotional methods

Promotion is the process undertaken by organizations to remind or to inform customers about their products in the market. Promotion is used create public awareness of new or improvements on the features of the product so that they develop a desire to use the product and experience the same. However, Apple does not employ much promotion to their products since they mostly deal with premium products. Customers are waiting for better deals or discounts to be announced for them to start advertising.

Moreover, Apple does not employ promotional discount pricing, but they offer discounts to their products much often. There a number of advertising techniques that the company utilizes. The traditional approaches to promotion include using Black Friday Deals, bundle pricing, and giving discounts to previous lines of products. On the other hand, various digital techniques are used by the company to promote its products. Cyber Monday is a promotional platform used annually by the company. They are also collaborating with ecommerce giants Amazon and offering discounts to products that are purchased in this platform. If the prices are low on the Amazon, customers will purchase from the site instead going to the Apple Stores which are more expensive. Apple uses its social media platforms to promote their brands, which is targeted to their customers and updating them on i8mportant events such as launch of new product prior to actual launch.

Competitive Advantage on each of the 4Ps

Most of the Apple products do not offer competitive advantage to the firm against other existing brands in the market. Most of the Apple products are high end brands that are user friendly, and are associated with the well to do individuals, who on using the first device cannot wait for the next.

Place

The competitive advantage Apple has is connected to the distribution channel they use. This makes it possible to target certain class of people are able to purchase certain brands that goes with class, given that they already offer high end products. However, Apple products are found in most of the stores where they have a stall that solely dedicated to selling of their product line. The effectiveness connected to the services offered in the Apple Stores has created competitive advantage for Apple over other firms.

Price

When it comes to pricing, Apple basically sells at higher prices for the same brand with the same features compared to those of the competitors. However, the company has created a strategy of offering high quality product that is dependable by the user, who decide to purchase the product regardless of the price. As such, the company does not directly compete with other firms in the market. Besides, they do not look at how their companies responds to its product offering, because they are aware of the quality of the brand and the value the customer will derive from using the product. As a result the customers deem the extra cost to be worth it.

Promotion

As much as the company believes its brand is of high quality and worth high pricing, there is need for the company to employ more aggressive promotional strategy to reach out to the market. Further, Apple does not offer discount pricing strategy as a promotional strategy. Besides, their brand is quite expensive which makes it important to engage in promotion since they do not have the required competitive to make sales. Nonetheless with appropriate marketing strategy, it will be easier for the company to reach out to a larger market and drive more sales.

References

Dolata, U. (2017). Apple, Amazon, Google, Facebook, Microsoft: Market concentration-competition-innovation strategies (No. 2017-01). SOI Discussion Paper.