The Overall Problem At Apple Inc.

In 1996, Apple was a struggling company that had lost more than 70% of its market capitalization in the past decade. Apple’s sales had fell dramatically and their new personal computers weren’t particularly popular with consumers. The return of Steve Jobs to the company was a turning point for Apple and initiated a new era for the firm. With the launch of innovative products such as the iPod, iPhone and iPad, Apple became the biggest brand in the world. Now it remained to be seen if Tim Cook would be able to continue to develop new products and maintain Apple’s success.

Even the greatest companies in the world have a weakness, and Apple Inc. is no different. The few weaknesses of Apple Inc. include higher prices than competitors, matching consumer expectations, overdependency on a few products, and incompatibility with third-party products and software (Bhasin, 2018; Dudovskiy, 2018). In 2017, the average price of a cell phone was $400. The cost of a new iPhone in 2017 was about $749 (Dudovskiy, 2018). However, Apple Inc. claims the value and superior craftmanship justifies the higher price tag. As mentioned earlier, Apple Inc. has produced unapparelled products year after. The downside to this is that consumers now have great expectations of Apple Inc (Bhasin, 2018). Consumers want the continued high level of innovativeness year after year which is difficult for any company to provide. The product line-up of Apple Inc. includes seven to eight main categories of products. A fail in any category results in a huge hit to Apple Inc. Apple Inc. products are mostly only compatible with other Apple products. This is really a double edge sword for Apple Inc. On one side, it forces consumers to purchase other Apple products on the other side some consumers refuse to own any Apple products and Apple Inc. loses out on many possible relationships with third-party products and

A competitive strength assessment reveals that Apple’s success is unmatched. They have been able to maintain the leading industry position while developing and introducing new products. Stock price is continuously rising and products are always improving. The current products are improved with software updates and new products are improved by

Since 1976 Apple’s innovation has helped the company become a market leader in computer and mobile electronics. Through this time the company has faced a number of challenges either it be an internal power struggles or criticism from the media for certain aspects of their business model. This report covers five different issues that the company is facing or may face in the future.

Edwards, J. (2015). The iPhone 6 Had Better Be Amazing And Cheap, Because Apple Is Losing The War To Android Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-v-android-market-share-2014-5#ixzz3YoonFpp6. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-v-android-market-share-2014-5

Apple was established as an IT company dealing in exclusively in computers. However, competition in the technology sector forced the firm to focus on other consumer products. The diversification strategy has seen Apple’s sales grow tremendously in the last decade, earning the firm the No. 1 brand position at Forbes. The Apple brand is recognized on an international scale and enjoys a strong recognition thanks to its aggressiveness when it comes to creativity and innovation (Tar, 2013). It has a large number of loyal customers who would purchase the new products regardless of the market price, which guarantees profits from the new division.

In this report, I prove that Apple’s iPhone has dominated all other smartphones in the years leading up to 2016. It is the epitome of what a globally recognized product can accomplish when considering how quickly it globalized and the image it provides for those who buy an iPhone. Owning one of these phones is not only a statement, it holds power and value that other smartphones simply cannot top. The company owns the stage when compared to other smartphones, and it’s journey to become the world’s second-largest mobile phone manufacturer is truly incredible. In fact, not only does it lead in technology and phone production, it’s become the largest publicly traded TNC in the world. Everything from its assets to its brand loyalty prove why it has expanded across the globe, and will continue to for many years to come. Apple Inc. has globally expanded by outsourcing nearly every level of its production and became one of the most successful and revolutionary TNC’s in the world, mainly due to the release of the infamous iPhone in 2007.

In the article “Apple Forecasts First Sales Drop Since 2003 on iPhone Slowdown” by Adam Satariano he discusses many factors contributing to Apple’s first sales decline in over 13 years and what steps they plan to take to recover. Apple’s revenue was expected to produce $55.5 billion this quarter but the company believes it will be $50-$53 billion dollars (Satariano, “Apple Forecast”). This decreased is believed to show signs of saturation in the smart phone market. Along with iPhones, Apple also had a pause in its iPad and Mac sales last quarter (Satariano, “Apple Forecast”). Apple is still overwhelmingly profitable but they cannot rely on the adoption of smart phones to carry the iPhone sales anymore.

The first steps in the mobile phone market let us understand once more what the key points in Apple strategy are. Innovation and Exclusivity go together, a higher-than-the-average price place the new device as a cult and trend object, something everybody want to have, a real status symbol. In few words Apple probably believes that a key concept in Innovation is the creation of a need. Along with the innovation in design, Apple is a pioneer and a leader as well in Environmental issues, another innovative approach that is granting more and more importance among customers of any product and people in general, due to very sensitive issue like Global Warming and home safety.

I learned that Apple is a juggernaut when it comes to their technological products and marketing goals. Apple focuses on the needs of customer’s light years ahead of their competition and even before most consumers have realized they want Apple’s products. Through their innovative marketing involving social media, word of mouth, Apple Stores they have convinced consumers about the high value of their product even lending to the formation of a “Mac cult” for its diehard fans. The way ahead for Apple is not to lose sight of its brand loyalty and continue to service the customers and entice them with the brand’s prestige. Even with the death of Steve Jobs, I believe Apple forge ahead to differentiate itself from the markets they are in.

Issue 02: Apple is a wildly successful company that generates billions of dollars in profits every year. This is one of the strongest examples of how a company with the right strategy, great products, a strong leader and the willingness to take some risks can become vastly successful. The market in which Apple is strong has intense rivalry for market share. Apple is challenged with staying ahead of its competitors and maintaining long-term relationships with its customers. In order to stay ahead of the competition Apple is forced to keep product innovation a top priority. I would maintain a Blue Ocean Strategy to market our product and maintain our competitive advantage (McGraw-Hill Irwin, Page 152). The company has a strong and loyal customer base which will allow Apple to concentrate the focus to highlighting the features of our products. I will not focus on what our competitors can and cannot do; I will focus the attention to the benefits of having Apple products. Strategic marketing campaigns highlighting the different uses and features of the popular iPhone and iPad will headline the campaign.

We chose to research Apple Incorporated, one of the most innovative companies of our generation. It is safe to say that nearly every one in the US and many foreign countries have used or at least heard of Apple products. We will be looking at the macroeconomic variables that impact Apple’s business as well as how the current developments in the industry have impacted Apple’s financials and we will also look at how Apple competes with other firms in the same industry.

Apple continues to focus their demographic trend on all consumers nationally and internationally. Apple’s business model has not altered since the company’s arrival in the late 1970s. Apple is a pioneer in consumer electronics innovation and has dominated the production of proprietary hardware and software, which has provided the company a competitive benefit in gaining a share of any market into which they have attempted (Gupta, A., 2013). Apple’s new iPad Air will continue to deliver a product that is useful and appealing to all private and commercial consumers. The large global customer base Apple has generated will continue to grow, while maintaining the loyal customers and reaching all demographics.

Apple prides itself on offering innovative technology to a society that has become dependent on it. In markets inundated with companies offering similar products and services, Apple has had to rise above and distinguish itself from the masses. While their products have a cultivated a devoted-customer following (our family is one of them), their organization and the values it espouses are what will help them to remain a relevant and successful company in the tech world.

With Apple being so far ahead of their competition, the only problem one can foresee in Apple’s future is how long they can sustain such innovation before they plateau. Apple does a phenomenal job at releasing their innovative products before their competition, but if their innovation cannot hold steady, this may lead to changes in demand for their products considerably. This can be seen with their release of the iPhone, the first successful touch screen cellular phone. Although people swarmed to the iPhone when it was first released because of its advanced technology, as the years have passed, other similar designs, including those with android and windows based operating systems, have drawn a considerable portion of the market. A clear representation of Apple’s attempt to regain some of this market can be seen when the iPhone was released to Verizon Wireless’ customers in