Marketing Strategies of Apple Inc.

This report covers the marketing strategies used by Apple Inc. to position itself in the market, including its competition position and strategy, marketing objectives, market segmentation, and marketing mix.

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Marketing Management
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Executive summary
Marketing strategy involves the objectives put in place by a business with the aim of
achieving a long-term goal. Under marketing strategies, there are numerous factors to consider
such as factors that affect the business internally or externally. Additionally, there is the
competitive positioning which deals with how the business structure itself to counter competition
from other brands. Market segmentation requires the business to establish ways on how to attract
different consumers.
Apple Inc. has established itself in the global market. This is because the company’s
corporate and marketing objectives are intertwined. The company has positioned itself in the
market by use of marketing mix and effective evaluation of its SWOT analysis. Apple has
additionally segmented its market well to cater for the different needs of the consumer

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Table of Contents
Executive summary.....................................................................................................................................2
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................4
Apple strength and weakness......................................................................................................................4
Apple Inc. competition position and strategy..............................................................................................5
Competition position...............................................................................................................................5
Competition strategy...............................................................................................................................5
Apple Inc. marketing objectives..................................................................................................................5
The link between Apple corporate objectives and marketing objectives................................................6
Apple market segmentation and marketing mix.........................................................................................6
Apple market segmentation....................................................................................................................6
Apple marketing mix................................................................................................................................6
The product level of iPhone.........................................................................................................................7
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................................7
Bibliography................................................................................................................................................9

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Introduction
Apple Inc. has its headquarters in Cupertino, California in the United States of America.
The company was established in the year 1976 by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniac. Over the years
Apple has grown to become among the most successive brand in the world. This is because the
company has positioned itself strongly in the market due to its effective innovation and quality
products. This report will cover the marketing strategies used by Apple Inc.
Apple strength and weakness
The ability of Apple Inc. to develop its own software and hardware gives the company an
edge over its competitors. The company is able to introduce applications that are unique,
innovative and give a good user interface (Wouters, 2014, PP.40). The ecosystem of the
company is one of the reasons consumers buy the company’s premium products. Additionally,
Apple is a worldwide recognized brand (Heracleous, 2013, PP.95). The company also has a
reputation for developing quality and well-performing devices. This has resulted in the company
building a powerful image. The weakness of Apple marketing strategy lies in their premium
pricing strategy. The company products are expensive and therefore they do not tap into all
market segments. Their distribution network is also limited to the company stores and various
trusted online and retail stores. This limits the distribution of their product.
The above strength shows that Apple positions itself as a leader in innovation in the
company’s marketing strategy. The brand also attracts consumers based on their brand image and
reputation. Their limited distribution channels seek to uphold the premium image of their
products. Additionally, the premium pricing strategy gives the company high-profit margins.

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Apple Inc. competition position and strategy
Competition position
The competitive positioning of Apple Inc. is through the aspect of differentiation. The
company focus is primarily in making its product to attractive and unique to the customers. The
company has succeeded highly in creating a huge demand for its products (Khan, Alam, and
Alam, 2015, PP.959). They have achieved this through innovation, ensuring loyalty for its brands
and emphasizing on the quality of their product. The company also hypes the launch of its new
products. Through this, the company has been able to position itself strongly in the market by
having consumers willing to pay more despite their premium pricing strategy.
Competition strategy
Apple competition strategy is based on four key pillars. This is; offering a limited number
of products, focusing on high-end products, prioritizing profit as opposed to market share and
creating a halo effect by making consumers crave for their new products (Yeung, 2018). Vertical
integration is also another strategy giving the company a competitive advantage. Apple owns
both its software and hardware, as well as controlling its manufacturing process (Tanwar, 2013,
PP.15). This enables the company to adhere to strict standards that have been set through the
production process of its products. Apple operates in a closed ecosystem giving the company an
edge in the control of its component costs and the value chain.
Apple Inc. marketing objectives
Marketing objectives are the goals a business sets with the aim of promoting its products
and services to the consumers. These objectives are also aimed at achieving the overall corporate
objectives (Lee, Kozlenkova, and Palmatier, 2015, PP. 80). Some of Apple’s marketing
objectives are offering premium products while at the same time maintaining a large market
share. Apple has overtime produced quality product that attracts huge consumer base despite

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their high pricing. Another objective of Apple is in innovation. Apple studies the emerging
markets and future technology, and through this, they constantly upgrade their devices each year
to tap into the new markets. The company also builds hype on their upcoming product. This
creates a halo effect on their consumers and the product advertises itself through buzz from
social media platforms.
The link between Apple corporate objectives and marketing objectives.
Apple is a leader in innovation. The company develop exciting products that gives the
consumer a seamless service. This is innovation is linked with the marketing objectives of
ensuring consumers get a quality product (Malik, 2013, PP.140). Premium pricing is another
corporate objective that Apple employs. The company reaps a huge profit margin despite limited
distribution channels. This is because Apple taps on the high-end market.
Apple market segmentation and marketing mix.
Apple market segmentation
Marketing segmentation involves identifying the different gaps in the market in order to
address the needs of potential customers. Apple applies the psychographic mode of segmentation
in its iPhone distribution (Hatheway, Kwan, and Zheng, 2017, pp.2400). The devices include
features that fit different consumer lifestyle. For example, the iPhone comes with a family
sharing option that enables members of a family to share content across all their devices (Hamka,
et al., 2014, pp.225). Apple has also utilize geographical based segmentation by establishing
itself all over the world.
Apple marketing mix.
In the product segment, Apple releases a new iPhone model each year that supersedes the
current version. The iPhone offers a swift operating system which best integrates the hardware
and software. In the price segment, Apple uses the skimming strategy for its iPhone. It has a

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higher price compared to other phones in the market as the brand wants to stand out. Apple does
not give a discount in order to prevent brand dilution. In the place strategy, the iPhone is
distributed through online stores, mostly on Amazons (Chen, and Ann, 2016, pp.230). The
phones can also be found on Apple physical stores known as I-stores and limited shops such as
Walmart and best buy. In its promotion, iPhone does not compete with other brands but the
company emphasizes additional features as opposed to previous iPhone. The company also hype
new iPhone through annual announcement events.
The product level of iPhone
The iPhone is a smartphone device developed by Apple Inc. under the product levels, the
core product entails the main benefit that attracts customer to buy a product, and the actual
product level involves the capabilities and features of the device, including the brand name and
design while the augmented product is mainly the support factor of the product (Mazzei, and
Noble, 2017, pp.410). The core product of the iPhone is its ability to make phone calls. The
actual product is the phone design and features including the Apple brand logo (Heracleous,
2013, PP.95). The augmented product is the support service offered by apple such as how to use
the phone.
Conclusion
The foregone are some of the strategies used by Apple to counter competition and ensure
the success of the brand. This strategies are effective for any business success. The company
understands its strength and weakness and move swiftly to capitalize on them. Additionally,
Apple knows its competition position and consequently develops a strategy for strong market
position. In its marketing objectives, the company for example focuses on innovation to attract

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more consumers. The company also applies effective marketing mix to promote its product in the
market.

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Bibliography
Chen, C.M. and Ann, B.Y., 2016. Efficiencies vs. importance-performance analysis for the
leading smartphone brands of Apple, Samsung and HTC. Total Quality Management & Business
Excellence, 27(3-4), pp.227-249.
Hamka, F., Bouwman, H., De Reuver, M. and Kroesen, M., 2014. Mobile customer
segmentation based on smartphone measurement. Telematics and Informatics, 31(2), pp.220-
227.
Hatheway, F., Kwan, A. and Zheng, H., 2017. An Empirical Analysis of Market Segmentation
on US Equity Markets. Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 52(6), pp.2399-2427.
Heracleous, L., 2013. Quantum strategy at apple inc. Organizational Dynamics, 42(2), pp.92-99.
Khan, U.A., Alam, M.N. and Alam, S., 2015. A critical analysis of internal and external
environment of Apple Inc. International Journal of Economics, Commerce and
Management, 3(6), pp.955-961.
Malik, Z.A., 2013. Assessment of apple production and marketing problems in Kashmir
valley. Journal of Economic & Social Development, 9(1), pp.152-156.
Mazzei, M.J. and Noble, D., 2017. Big data dreams: A framework for corporate
strategy. Business Horizons, 60(3), pp.405-414.
Tanwar, R., 2013. Porter’s generic competitive strategies. Journal of business and
management, 15(1), pp.11-17.

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Wouters, A., 2014. Apple & Google: a comparative analysis of marketing approaches and
strategies. Czech Journal of Social Sciences, Business and Economics, 3(4), pp.31-43.
Yeung, N. (2018). The marketing strategy of Apple: A concise analysis | Version Daily. [online]
Version Daily. Available at: http://www.versiondaily.com/the-marketing-strategy-of-apple-a-
concise-analysis/ [Accessed 5 Dec. 2018].