Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Analysis: Apple's Approach

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Apple's customer relationship management (CRM) strategy. It begins with an executive summary that highlights the key areas of focus, including governance, culture, and external relationships. The report examines Apple's approach to CRM, considering its impact on channel strategies and the use of technology in business operations. The analysis delves into Apple's organizational structure, marketing communications, and customer engagement practices, emphasizing the role of innovation and technology in its products and services. The report further explores Apple's channel strategies, detailing its distribution network and the integration of these channels with its targeted customer segments. The study also emphasizes the role of technology and databases in managing customer relationships. The analysis concludes with a need for improved real-time data processing and socialization of CRM activities. The report highlights the company's ability to adapt to customer preferences, emphasizing the importance of market research and the integration of technology to meet customer needs. The findings provide insights into Apple's successful customer relationship management practices and its impact on the company's overall performance.

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Executive Summary:
The paper is concentrated in the assessment of the success of the customer relationship
management of one of the market giants of the global consumer electronics market, Apple.
The paper delivers a significant investigation of the customer relationship management
strategy of the selected organization with a specific focus on the governance, culture and the
external relationships of the company. In addition to this, the paper also examines the CRM
strategy of the stated company on the basis of its contribution to the development of the
channel strategies and in the improvement of the usage of the technology in the business
operations of the mentioned company. From the analysis of the findings of the paper, the
improved processing of the real time data and the socialization of the CRM activities of the
company are seen to be much needed.

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Introduction:
The importance of the customer relationship management amongst the leading
organizations of the modern business industry is seen to increase in a notable manner. As the
intensity of the competition in the business industry is increasing in a rapid fashion, the
companies are facing the need of incorporating an efficient customer relationship
management. Majority of the modern business organizations are observed to be keen in
identifying the demands or the requirements of the customers as that provides them the
opportunity to design their products and services in accordance to the preferences or the
demands of the customers. The main aim is to gather the information from the part of the
customers regarding the needs of them and then design the products so that it effectively
becomes a bestseller products for the company.
Khodakarami and Chan (2014) commented that the objective of the senior
management of the modern organizations in improving their customer relationship
management, is to create the improved level of customer loyalty amongst the customers of
the organization. Along with that, the improvement in the customer relationship management
from the part of the companies will enable the company to trigger the intention of repetitive
purchasing of the customers and that has the possibility to increase the sales of the products
and the services that the company offers to their customers. Hence it improves the generation
of the profit and the financial stability of organizations. The paper is focused in the evaluaton
of the success of the customer relationship management of one of the market giants of the
global consumer electronics market, Apple. The paper provides a significant analysis of the
customer relationship management strategy of the mentioned organization with a precise
focus on the governance, culture and the external relationships of the company. Along with
that, the paper also analyses the CRM strategy of the mentioned company on the basis of its

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contribution to the improvement of the channel strategies and in the enhancement of the
usage of the technology in the business operations of the mentioned company.
Overview of the company:
Apple is one of the top most companies of the global consumer electronics industry
and that is pretty evident with the significant market share of the company. The company is
able to serve the customers across globe and the expanded reach of the organization with
store presence in more than 500 locations is seen to be crucial in the success of the mentioned
company (Apple.com. 2019). Along with that, the visionary leadership of Steve Jobs had
played a significant role in the development of strong brand for the mentioned company
which enables it to create an expanded customer community that is highly loyal towards the
products and the services of the company. The excellent leadership of the senior management
team of the company which includes Arthur D. Levinson, the Chairman of the company, Tim
Cook the CEO of the company, Luca Maestri the CFO of the company, Jeff Williams the
COO of the company along with the CDO of the company, Jony Ive has enabled the
company to the generation of an increased revenue of 265.595 billion US dollars in the year
2018 along with an increased operating income of 70.898 billion US dollars in the same year
(Apple.com. 2019).
Analysis:
Governance, Culture and External Relationships:
The structure of the company is one of the main factor that promotes the continuous
urge of innovation and plays a crucial role in maintain the spirit of innovation. The company
is currently having a hierarchical structure which is headed by the chief executive officer of
the company, Tim Cook. The executive board of the mentioned company contains 16 senior
vice presidents of different departments and officers. Tor Myhren is the vice president of the

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Marketing Communications for the company and along with that, Philip W. Schiller was
observed to be responsible for the Worldwide Marketing (Apple.com. 2019). Tor Myhren and
Philip W. Schiller led marketing teams of the company is seen to play a crucial role in the
improvement of the customer relationship management of the company.
The diversified corporate structure of the company is seen to provide the much
required scope to the mentioned marketing team of the company in increasing their activities
in both online and in offline medium. With a precise focus on the comments of the pioneer of
the company, Steve Jobs where he claimed that the management of the modern business
organizations have the necessity of evaluating the experiences of the customers even before
starting their research regarding the technology and the incorporation of the technology, the
base of the increased consideration of the board of the company in achieving the information
regarding the preferences and the requirements of the customers is pretty evident. The
company has the tradition of undertaking a different genre of customer engagement. While,
the other market giants of the consumer electronics industry are more focused in the
identification of the requirements of the customers in deciding for their products, the
excellent flexibility and depth of the research and development department of the mentioned
company along with the excellence of the marketing department has enabled the company to
be in such a position where they can effectively communicate what the customers need to
have to maintain their relevancy in the modern market (Symons 2014). The company has the
expertise of conducting the required market research way before the other competitor
organizations which places the mentioned company in a preferable position for the
achievement of the capability to dictate about the need of the technology.
The company’s urge in educating the customers regarding the modern technology is
seen to be based on the comments of their former CEO, Steve Jobs. The hierarchical
formation of the board of the company is seen to be one of the main factors that promote an

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organizational culture which contributes to the incorporation of the innovation and
technology in the products of the organization. With a precise focus on the management of
the company, the reflection of the out of the box thinking from the part of the senior
management of the company is pretty prominent. While the other companies of the consumer
electronics industry were observed to be focused in identifying the preferences of the
customers, the added advantage for the company ensures the existence of the capability of the
company in incorporating the technology that will be in demand in near future. The success
of the customer relationship management system of the company was pretty evident with the
increased occurrences of the marketing activities in social media platforms and in the official
website of the company (Cioca et al. 2013). The effective marketing of the products of the
company has enabled it to achieve the desired excellence in communicating to the customers
regarding the availability of the products, the features of the products and the improved
incorporation of the modern technology in the products.
Hence it is pretty evident that the success of the company in interacting with the
customers regarding the products is notably dependent on the research and development and
marketing communications department of the mentioned company.
Channel Strategies:
With a precise focus on the business operations of Apple, the diversification of the
channels is pretty prominent and along with that, the strength of the channel strategies of the
company is seen to be significant in stating the possible growth of the mentioned company.
Considering the distribution structure of the company, it is petty evident that the company has
an excellent strategy in place for the management of the distribution channels.
The distribution channels of the company is seen to be divided into four phases which
are the online store, retail stores, direct sales force along with third party wholesalers. The

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online and the retail stores of the company serves the customers of the company directly and
on the other hand, the direct sales force of the company is observed to serve the customers
through the retailers of the company (Cbsnews.com. 2019). The third party wholesalers
employ the same type of method where they meet the demands of the customers through the
retailers. However, both the third party sellers and the direct sales force of the company are
observed to have common section in the name of value added retailers which play a crucial
role in increasing the business activities of the company in terms of selling their products.
The above mentioned channels of the company have considerable amount of coordination
amongst each other and the comments of Deirdre O’ Brien regarding the effective
management of the distribution channels of the company is pretty significant in stating the
urgency and interest of the senior management of the company in improving the coordination
between the various distribution channels of the company. Along with that, the success of the
management of the company in the establishment of an efficient distribution structure for the
products and the services of the company is visible with the increment in the generation of
the revenue for the mentioned company.
The integration of the channel strategies with the targeted segment of the customers is
seen to significant. As the diversified structure of the distribution segment of the company
has the excellence in serving the diverse groups of the targeted customer in an efficient
manner, the reflection of the strong integration of the channels is prominent. The main
targeted segment of the customers that are the youth generation, is seen to be managed well
by the excellence of the online retail channel of the company and along with that, the
company is seen to have the flexibility of serving the customers of the regions in which, it
does not have any sort of business activities, though the third party wholesalers. Apart from
this, the existence of the retail stores play a crucial role for the company in the targeting the
customers with the apathy of online purchasing. Hence, it is pretty evident that the

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diversification of the distribution channel structure of the mentioned organization has enabled
the company in meeting the various demands and requirements of the customers in an
efficient manner. The importance of the customer relationship management in the appropriate
management of the distribution channels is based on the need of serving the customers of the
different segments in accordance to the specified distribution channels.
Technology:
The main basis of the customer relationship management system of the company is
the application of the modern technology. With a precise focus on the urge of the company
and the senior management of the company in the incorporation of the innovation and the
modern technology in the products and services of the company, the company’s intention
regarding the incorporation of the technology in the management of the customer
relationships is significantly evident. The company uses the databases for the effective
management of the customer relationships and under such situation, the usage of the
technology becomes essential for the company (Forbes.com. 2019). The usage of the
database becomes important for the organization in the collection of the data of the customers
of the organization which helps them in identifying the purchase characteristics of the
customers of the organization. Through the usage of the database, the company gathers the
information regarding the purchase intention of the customers with the help of the internet.
On the other hand, the usage of the media technology plays a crucial role for the
organization in interacting with the customers of the company in an effortless manner. The
usage of the technology enables the company in communicating regarding the features of the
products of the company. Along with that, the presence of the company in various social
media platforms is significant in communicating and educating the customers regarding the
need of the modern technology and the scope of experiencing that with their products as

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services. The usage of the technology from the part of the company in the improvement of
the quality and the design of the products is pretty prominent with the introduction of the
products such as the iPhone, iPad or iPod (Trainor et al. 2014). The craze amongst the
customer community regarding the product is a significant proof of the success of the
company in the providing value of their money with the application of the technology in the
research and developmental activities of the product. The incorporation of the artificial
intelligence in the operations of the sales, marketing and the services teams of the
organizations is pretty evident with increment in the formation of the sales forecast, the social
media marketing contents along with the advertisements for the products of the company.
The marketing communication from the part of the company regarding the introduction of the
new products from the various social media platforms is considered to be one of the
important factors responsible in strengthening the brand of the company.
Recommendations:
The recommendations for the improvement of the CRM strategy of the company will
be:
The CRM system of the company needs to make sure that they process real time data.
The CRM system needs to be more social and interact with the customers.
The company is facing a major need in mobilizing the CRM system of the company.
The improvement in the usage of the cloud based customer service software will be
much required for the mentioned company.
Conclusions:
On a concluding note, it is pretty evident that the success of the mentioned company
is notably dependent on the capability of the management of the company in dealing with the

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intense level of competition of the market from the part of the competitor organizations such
as Xiaomi or Samsung. The company has the potential of managing the impact of the
competition with the improved research and development and marketing communications.
The improvement of the customer relationship management system thus becomes important
for the company in managing the intensity of the competition.

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References:
Apple.com 2019. Apple Leadership. [online] Available at: https://www.apple.com/leadership/
Apple.com 2019. Apple. [online] Available at: https://www.apple.com/
Cbsnews.com. 2019. How to Sell Like Apple. [online] Available at:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-to-sell-like-apple/
Cioca, M., Ghete, A.I., Cioca, L.I. and Gifu, D., 2013. Machine learning and creative
methods used to classify customers in a CRM systems. In Applied Mechanics and Materials
(Vol. 371, pp. 769-773). Trans Tech Publications.
Forbes.com. 2019. Here's The Simple Secret To Apple's Marketing Success. [online]
Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2014/07/08/heres-the-simple-
secret-to-apples-marketing-success/#62081ff611e3
Khodakarami, F. and Chan, Y.E., 2014. Exploring the role of customer relationship
management (CRM) systems in customer knowledge creation. Information & Management,
51(1), pp.27-42.
Symons, M.J., Single Funnel Pty Ltd, 2014. Customer relationship management (crm)
systems. U.S. Patent Application 14/192,692.
Trainor, K.J., Andzulis, J.M., Rapp, A. and Agnihotri, R., 2014. Social media technology
usage and customer relationship performance: A capabilities-based examination of social
CRM. Journal of Business Research, 67(6), pp.1201-1208.