SWOT Analysis of iPhone
Discuss abou t the Apple NC IPhone-Case-Study.
Marketing and management are essential aspects for the success and growth of any organization. The Apple Inc. is a perfect example of how marketing can create demand for a product and enhance brand awareness of an organization. Apple Inc. was founded in 1976 by entrepreneurs Steve Jobs, Ronald Wayne and Steve Wozniak. Today, the brand has earned a significant position in the marketplace through consistent improvement in their offerings and innovative use of technology. This report throws light on one of the most highly sold products of the brand known as the IPhone. IPhone is a mobile handset that runs on the IOS (Grant, 2016). The sturdy exterior, flamboyant design and extensive features make it one of the bestselling phones of the current times. The brand Apple Inc. is the largest information technology firm in the world by revenue.
In order to understand the internal and external environment of the product, SWOT analysis of IPhone is conducted which helps in gaining a deeper insight about the product’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (Kotler, 2015).
Strengths
The biggest strengths of the IPhone is its sturdy exterior. The phone’s specifications attract a large number of customers and enable the phone to process fast. The IOS upon which the phone operates is highly user friendly.
Large reach of IPhone across over 22 countries is a major strength for the phone. In order to promote the phone, Apple Inc. uses innovative marketing strategies which appeal to wide customer segment. Despite these qualities of the phone, the most important strength of the phone and the brand lies with its fiercely loyal customer segments (Payne, 2017). An IPhone user often finds it difficult to switch to any other brand and the community in itself is highly faithful to the brand.
Weaknesses
Premium pricing strategy adopted by the Apple brand makes its products unaffordable to a large segment of customers which affects the brand’s reach (Yoffie & Cusumano, 2015). Moreover, an IPhone can only be repaired at IStores. The presence of only a few repair stores across the world makes it difficult for the firm to address customer issues in a timely manner. Incompatibility to IPhone with various leading models is a definite weakness and the absence of Bluetooth or FM radio makes the phone relatively less user friendly.
Opportunities
Expanding to new markets is an opportunity that the brand can bank upon. IPhone is exported in a lot of countries at the moment. However, if IStores would open up at these countries then it would surely help in increasing the reach of the brand.
Strengths
Introducing a low priced model in order to target middle income class groups is also an opportunity for the brand. There are many people who are unable to afford the brand and hence end up opting for inexpensive options with other brands. Introducing low priced models would surely enhance customer base of the brand.
Threats
Android’s reach is one of the biggest threats faced by IOS. Android also has a loyal set of customers and is considered a lot more user friendly than IOS. Moreover, android is compatible with a larger number of mobile phones than IOS. Competition within the mobile phone industry also poses a threat as the increasing innovation and technology aids in introducing new models of phones every few weeks.
Customers of any brand are the brand’s most prized assets. Therefore firms work hard in understanding consumer needs and wants and works towards satisfying those needs in order to gain an advantage over competitors (Rothaermel, 2015). Premium Positioning of the IPhone works in the favor of the brand. Customer take immense pride in owning an IPhone and the phone brings with itself a symbol of style and class.
IPhone customers are fiercely loyal and are always willing to pay the extra price in order to own an IPhone. The phone works towards fulfilling the basic as well as the augmented needs of the consumers and this is why the consumers are loyal to the brand. The positioning of the brand is positive and helps the brand gain an advantage over its competitors (West, Ford & Ibrahim, 2015).
Target market for any business refers to the set of customers whose needs the business aims to fulfil (Armstrong, Kotler, Harker & Brennan, 2015). IPhone divides its customers on the basis of two segments viz. a viz. demography and income group. IPhone is targeted to attract high income segments of the world who are willing to afford an additional price for great quality product. IPhone also targets between the ages of 18 to 45. The phone is highly suitable for businessman who are in the need of a fast processor. Sending and receiving documents is relatively easy with an IPhone.
Threat of new entrants
The threat of new entrants in the mobile phones industry is not high. Even though there are new brands as well as new models of existing brands that are introduced very frequently, it will be difficult for any new brand to impact the customer base that has been created by the Apple Inc. It will take time by any new mobile model to affect such a large brand.
Weaknesses
Threat of substitution
Threat of substitution is minimal as there are no devices that are compatible with the IOS besides the IPhone. Moreover the loyalty of IPhone customers makes it extremely difficult for any other brand to make them shift to another brand
Bargaining power of buyers
Bargaining power of buyers doesn’t exist with IPhones. Apple Inc. has been introducing new models of IPhone which are always more expensive than the previous ones. However, people pay for the phones and the sales of the business have not been affected yet. The high price of the products enables customers to position the product in a premium manner which makes them willing to pay higher for the phone.
Bargaining power of suppliers
There are a large number of suppliers of IPhone that exist and hence the bargaining power of suppliers is also very less. The brand can switch to other supplier at the drop of a hat. Moreover the wide reach and the gigantic size of the brand makes it a privilege for the suppliers to be associated with the Apple Inc. This further reduces their bargaining power.
Industry competition
Competition in the industry is very high. There are various mobile phone brands including Samsung, Acer, Lenovo, Nokia, Blackberry and MI. Low priced brands introduced in the Chinese subcontinent are also rapidly gaining reach. Therefore the competition in the industry is very high.
Premium pricing strategy has been adopted by the Apple Inc. This strategy involves pricing the products of the brand higher than industry standards in order to make it available to a smaller set of customers (Nagle, Hogan & Zale, 2016). The high prices of the IPhone has a massive impact on the brand.
Positive impact: Premium pricing of the brand enables the brand to effectively position the brand in the minds of the consumers. Those buying an IPhone feel like a part of the community and associate a sense of style, class and charisma by owning an IPhone.
Negative impact: On the other hand, premium price of the IPhone makes it unaffordable to a large number of customers who might be otherwise willing to buy the phone.
Besides premium pricing, IPhone also follows a price skimming strategy wherein the brand prices the product very high at the time of introducing it into the market and within a span of time, reduces the prices (Spann, Fischer & Tellis, 2014). Any new IPhone model it first introduced at a high price in order to target a specific set of consumers. This price is aimed at targeting that niche set of consumers who associate well with the idea of owning an expensive product. These customers relate the IPhone with class and luxury.
Opportunities
Over a period of time, especially when a new IPhone’s launch is in the process, the brand reduces the prices of its previous models. This helps other customers to be able to afford the brand and hence leads to an increased customer base.
Product
The product in discussion is the highest selling product by the Apple Inc. The IPhone. It is a leading name in the mobile phone segment and runs on IOS. The phone has a sturdy exterior, great quality camera and an effective processor.
Place
At present the IPhone is sold through over 500 retail stores present in 22 countries. IPhone is also exported in over 40 countries across the globe. The brand is known worldwide and has a massive presence around the world.
Price
Apple Inc. follows a price skimming and a premium price strategy. The products are priced high as compared to other competing brands. Moreover, a new model is introduced at a high price but eventually the price is reduced in order to attract a wider customer segment.
Promotion
Promotions form an important part of any business. Promotional strategies adopted by the brand help the brand in reaching out to a wide customer segment. Promotional strategies of the Apple Inc. include advertising the product (IPhone) through television ads, Billboards or outdoor marketing, social media marketing, digital marketing and word of mouth promotions.
Even so, the advertising budget at the Apple Inc. is relatively low and the brand does not try to promote its products much. They truly believe that their products already have a customer base and they don’t need to advertise the product much. However, the little steps taken by the brand have reaped benefits and have attracted customers.
The Apple Inc. believes in real and honest advertising and therefore, their TV ads do not have famous models but rather everyday people who are the current users of the phone and are willing to share their experience. Their billboards also contain high quality pictures which have been clicked by the IPhone itself. This strategy adopted by the brand throws light on the value system of the brand and also helps in building trust and respect among consumers.
- Low price model: Introduction of low price models at the time of introduction will help the brand in reaching out to a wider customer segment and make the brand more affordable for customers. The idea is to introduce products which are relatively low priced such that they increase the customer base for the brand without impacting the brand’s positioning in the minds of its consumers.
- Increased number of stores: There are various countries where the brand does not has stores but IPhone are exported to these places. Increasing the number of stores will make the phone available to a large number of people and it will also be beneficial for the customers. This will make it easy for the brand to address customer grievances effectively.
- Social media marketing is the art of promoting any brand or product through social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Youtube or Twitter (Tuten & Solomon, 2017). IPhone brand Apple Inc. must focus on enhancing marketing through these channels. Such promotions help in building relationships with the customers and creating a two way communication between the brand and its customers.
Conclusion
The Apple Inc. is a leading information technology in the world with its presence across the globe. The most prominent product manufactured and sold by the brand is the IPhone. The phone comes with various models and is compatible with IOS. Apple has a set of fiercely loyal customers. This has been possible owing to extensive positioning strategies adopted by the brand.
The brand has been successful in gaining customers throughout the globe and the brand has done a fantastic job in gaining market share owing to effective pricing strategies and the quality of the product deliver. However, the brand could work hard and improve upon its social media marketing strategies as well as increase the number of stores. Introduction of a low priced model would also help the brand target a wider set of consumers. Apple Inc. has been a success story in all aspects and impeccable management of the brand has helped the brand leave a significant mark in the world today.
References
Armstrong, G., Kotler, P., Harker, M. and Brennan, R., 2015. Marketing: an introduction. Pearson Education.
Grant, R.M., 2016. Contemporary strategy analysis: Text and cases edition. John Wiley & Sons.
Kotler, P., 2015. Framework for marketing management. Pearson Education India.
Nagle, T.T., Hogan, J. and Zale, J., 2016. The Strategy and Tactics of Pricing: New International Edition. Routledge.
Payne, B., 2017. Brand Positioning and its Usefulness for Brand Management: the Case of Apple Inc. Newcastle Business School Student Journal, 1(1), pp.51-57.
Rothaermel, F.T., 2015. Strategic management. McGraw-Hill Education.
Spann, M., Fischer, M. and Tellis, G.J., 2014. Skimming or penetration? Strategic dynamic pricing for new products. Marketing Science, 34(2), pp.235-249.
Tuten, T.L. and Solomon, M.R., 2017. Social media marketing. Sage.
West, D.C., Ford, J. and Ibrahim, E., 2015. Strategic marketing: creating competitive advantage. Oxford University Press, USA.
Yoffie, D.B. and Cusumano, M.A., 2015. Strategy Rules: Five Timeless Lessons from Bill Gates, Andy Grove, and Steve Jobs. HarperBusiness
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