Implications of Market Research and Orientation
As different service organizations ar expanding continuously to different international markets a need for better understanding of the consumer mindset in faraway markets is rising. As organisations try to contemplate this worldwide marketplace, the demand for managers to understand the behaviour of the customer from multiple countries is also increasing (Lucivero & Jongsma, 2018). The major implications of market research and orientation primarily revolve around a notion that in the hyper competitive markets of today service firms have to have a clear idea of the orientation of the market in order to remain in the competition and thus attribute that market research will play a critical role for the generation of data that is needed to develop and implement a market orientation which will in turn be responsible for the enhancement of customer relationship management practices.
The evolution of marketing oriented organisations from production oriented organizations was developed due to a change in the marketplace from a strict delivery of product functionality and features to a more lenient customer oriented service that catered to the customers wants and needs. Till the late 1950s organizations believed that they would have a profitable business as long as they delivered products of high quality that worked well and were durable (Dolata, 2017). This model of business was called production orientation and was soon outdated with the advent of globalisation which change the market place into a crowded and international phenomenon. In the arriving decades brands chose the model of marketing orientation thus selling products that effectively compete for brand value, loyalty and attention from the consumer.
Apple watch or iWatch is a smartwatch produced from its parent company Apple Inc. its main association is with the consumer electronic industry. This line of product was introduced on 24th april of 2015. By the second quarter of the 2015 financial year it became a best seller with total product sales of 4.2 Million units. Its main competitors are brands like a Sony and Samsung (Popescul & Georgescu, 2017). The product is a multi functional watch that has a touch screen interface with special specifications like fitness tracking features and is integrated with other apple services and facilities. The watch’s first generation were available in the 1.7 and 1.5 inch screen variants and other 4 other variants soon launched.they were the apple watch edition, the Apple watch sport, the apple watch Hermes and the Apple watch. The product connects wirelessly to an IPhone and performs functions ike calling and texting (Blanjean & Thöne, 2018). It has a pressure sensitive touch panel and side buttons meant for accessing apple play and displaying contacts. It runs via bluetooth and can be charged via inductive charging. The brand Apple is a global one and this product is easily available in the markets of several countries like US, UK, Canada, India etc.
The strong network of distribution for the brand enables it make its product highly obtainable to its customers. During the earlier days after the launch of the product the customer had to book the product before hand and wait for a fitting and demonstration. It was not available in the retail market and was to be ordered through the company’s website. The distribution policy was later changed and selected model were made available in the retail outlets. iWatch is considered to be the most premium product in its segment and offers more convenience and functionality than any of its competitors (Iancu & Iancu, 2017). It is a product designed to be worn and not carried. The wearability of the product is high and the company has a premium pricing policy for the product. Though prices are higher than similar products, Apple trusts the loyalty of its customers and believes that customers will buy the product for it quality and a gesture of status symbol.
In the market iWatch has been produced both as a precise and elegant timepiece as well as a fashion accessory. Several promotional campaigns were launched for the new product and the company emphasised on its special fitness and health oriented campaigns. The adverts are both televised and promoted through the use of print media. The company has extensively promoted the product through a 12 page spread in Vogue magazine with its main focus on the styles of band and different combinations of the body (Kitchen, 2017). To increase its Brand visibility several hoardings and billboards have also been displayed throughout the world. Time magazine listed the iWatch as belonging to the 25 best innovations 2014.
- The product created a new Innovation in the market. The segment of smartphones started its journey over a decade ago and apple was its pioneer. It is doing the same thing again by giving its consumers another product to look forward to.
- The software that already exists will be supported in the upgraded operating system of the iWatch. And thus it can better used by integrating it with multiple devices.
- A chain of supply and value has already been established thus supporting the production and sales of the new product.
- Apple’s products already resemble a symbol of status and the iWatch will earn a similar status of royalty.
- The new product might engulf Apple’s wn older products in the long run. Since iWatch objective is bringing capabilities of the smartphone in a watch it has the possibility of ruining the already set market for Iphone
- iWatch is a luxury product that the company is not sure about whether the customers will need or be ready to use. This amount of uncertainty can prove to be fatal for the iWatch.
- The brand value of apple is a dream for most of its competition (Rawal, Awasthi & Upadhayay, 2017). This provides them with an opportunity for experimentation with products in different geographies with different ways.
- The new generation is always in demand for the next big thing and these kinds of propositions ensure that they hit this spot of the demographic aptly and at the right time.
- The iWatch has the capacity create a define a new product category for generations to come.
- The market for technological innovation is one of the most competitive ones that exist and in this segment the competition can rise from anyplace. Watchmakers and phonemakers will be in the top with new innovations that can make this product irrelevant very quickly.
- Most products that are futuristic in nature have a tendency to fail as a consumer friendly product thus customer acceptance is always a key threat to such innovations.
- Using already existing technology like different apps that are already present in the ecosystem for integration in the new product thus driving innovation in this new platform of hardware.
- Linking the watch to home automation systems like Alexa and google now thus creating a new venture in Artificial intelligence governed homes.
- Applying sensors in the watch that are already present on the phone like a gyroscope thus increasing functionality.
Conclusion:
marketing orientation is the most commonly used business model by companies. It focuses on delivering products that are designed according to the needs of the customer. The watch by Apple Inc. focused on a need for a device that can remotely access its smartphones this anticipating the need of consumers for a wireless device that will be user friendly and innovative thus they created a new segment and innovation in a highly competitive market.
References:
BHATTACHARYA, S. (2018). From rags to riches. Retrieved from https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1073&context=ami
Blanjean, B., & Thöne, C. (2018). The internationalization of SMEs in declining industries-cases from the watch industry. Retrieved from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1233159/FULLTEXT02
Dolata, U. (2017). Apple, Amazon, Google, Facebook, Microsoft: Market concentration-competition-innovation strategies (No. 2017-01). Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Organisations-und Innovationsforschung, SOI Discussion Paper. Retrieved from https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/152249/1/880328606.pdf
Iancu, I., & Iancu, B. (2017). Recall and Recognition on Minimalism. A Replication of the Case Study on the Apple Logo. KOME-AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PURE COMMUNICATION INQUIRY, 5(2), 57-70. Retrieved from komejournal.com/files/KOME_IIa.pdf
Kitchen, P. J. (2017). Guest editorial. European Journal of Marketing, 51(3), 394-405. Retrieved from https://usir.salford.ac.uk/40215/1/PDF_Proof.pdf
Lucivero, F., & Jongsma, K. R. (2018). A mobile revolution for healthcare? Setting the agenda for bioethics. Journal of medical ethics, medethics-2017. Retrieved from https://jme.bmj.com/content/early/2018/06/15/medethics-2017-104741
Popescul, D., & Georgescu, M. (2017). A user perspective on the vulnerabilities of smart watches: is security a concern?. Timisoara Journal of Economics and Business, 10(2), 135-150. Retrieved from https://www.degruyter.com/downloadpdf/j/tjeb.2017.10.issue-2/tjeb-2017-0009/tjeb-2017-0009.pdf
Rawal, P., Awasthi, A., & Upadhayay, S. (2017). Creating a Hunger Driven Smartphone Market by Xiaomi. International Journal of Engineering Science, 11250. Retrieved from https://ijesc.org/upload/fbe98570acd3d3a4a841b32a971af81b.Creating%20a%20Hunger%20Driven%20Smartphone%20Market%20by%20Xiaomi.pdf
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