3. Executive Summary
Apple was founded on April 1, 1976. The company designs,
manufactures, and markets personal computer, mobile communication
devices, portable digital music players, along with related software,
services, peripherals and networking solution (Apple Inc. (AAPL), 2014).
This company being in the sales industry sells a variety of products not
only manufactured by the company itself but also from other branded
companies they have formed contracts with. For example, Apple sells their
own products from their iPhone's all the way to iMac computers, but they
also sell Beats by Dre headphones and sound systems.
The company started off as a strictly computer software and
manufacturing company co-founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak.
They began selling the Apple 1 for $666.66 each, which would earn the
corporation roughly $774,000 in revenue. Three years after the release of
Apple's second model, the Apple ll, the company's sales increased by 700
percent, to $139 million (Jobs, 2014). Apple would then begin to compete
for the top position in the industry against IBM. Going back and forth with
IBM holding the top spot for a good amount of time because of Apple's
few computer models having issues and needing recall. Apple would later
fix these issues and begin to create new products to the table.
Apple is now one of the most recognizable brands in the market next
to companies like Google and Coka-Cola. They have a number of products
recently released from the MacBook Pro to the iPhone 6 and 6 plus. They
also have a new product to be release in early 2015 called the iWatch. All of
which is making Apple a leading competitor in their respected industry.
3
(Glazzo,
2014)
4. Audience
Apples target audience
for the iPhone 6 and 6 plus
are younger and better
educated people who live in
urban areas. Key features of
the smartphone that caters to
this audience is a sleek
business look along with high
power innovative technology
resting in the palm of your
hands.
About 60 percent of
Apple iPhone users earn over
75,000 per year compared to
Android phone users of 44
percent (Nicholls, 2013).
Most Apple consumers use
their iPhone to make their
lives simpler and easier, by
using apps such as calendar,
notes, reminders, stocks, and
the health app.
4
(Easelly,
2014)
5. Brand Image
The iPhone 6 is a 4.7-inch
screen smartphone and 6.9mm in
thickness. This product’s pricing
starts from as low as 199 dollars.
This lightweight phone
comes in two different colors such
as white or black. The iPhone is
made to look modern and up to
date on its latest technology. The
sleek and luxurious look of the
phone will make your life easier,
not only from the Apple
applications, but also the billions
of other applications on the market
that it has to offer.
The smartphone caters not
only to businessmen and women
but also according to the younger
generation, “If you own an iPhone
than you're cool” (Segal, 2014)
5
(Apple
Inc.,
2014)
6. Competitors
Apple's top three competitors are
Samsung, Google, and Microsoft. In the
mobile phone category Samsung’s brand
image is to have a lengthy extension of
its products starting from basic phones to
the most advanced smartphones
(Samsung Electronics Company Ltd.,
2014). Google's brand image is to
maintain a large index of websites and
other online content, which it makes
freely available via the company's search
engine to anyone with an Internet
connection. This automated search
technology helps people obtain nearly
instant access to relevant information
from Google's vast online index (Google
Inc. (GOOGL), 2014). Microsoft Corp.
develops, manufactures, licenses, and
supports software products and services,
including operating systems, server
applications,
6
(Mosquito Eradication, 2014)
7. Competitors
information worker productivity applications, business solutions applications, computing applications,
software development tools, and video games. The company provides consulting and product support
services, and trains and certifies computer system integrators and developers (Microsoft Corp. (MSFT,
2014).
Two of the iPhone's indirect competitors are Skype and Pandora. Skype's brand image allows
users to have free video service and messaging allowing to share videos and audio calls. They aim
constantly for the best kind of social impact (Skype, 2014). Pandora's brand image is an automatized
music recommendation and Internet radio service. They also categorized hundreds of attributes of
song, which have many directions to draw inspiration (M-Fortress, 2014).
8. iApprove
Since
its
release,
the
company's
iPhone
has
spurred
a
revolution
in
cell
phones
and
mobile
computing
(Apple
Inc.
2014).
The
phone
is
considered
one
of
the
top
smartphones
on
the
market
and
looks
to
be
striving
to
provide
more
for
its
users
in
the
years
to
come.
(Dilger,
2013)
"The
things
we
should
be
doing
at
Apple
are
things
that
other
can't"
-‐
Tim
Cook,
CEO
of
Apple
Inc.
(Stone,
2014,
p.
7)
7
9. Sources
Apple Inc. (AAPL) (2014) Company Profile, Gale Business Insights Online Collection, 2014. Retrieved from
http://bi.galegroup.com.www2.lib.ku.edu/essentials/company/300559?u=ksstate_ukans
The most serious Apple smartphone yet. (2014, September 16). Retrieved from http://www.cnet.com/products/apple-iphone-6-plus/
Segal, H (2014). Teens' and Tweens' Usage - UK - May 2014. Retrieved from http://academic.mintel.com.www2.lib.ku.edu/display/679660/#
"Top Cell Phone Makers Worldwide, 2012." Market Share Reporter. Ed. Robert S. Lazich. 2014 ed. Detroit: Gale, 2014. Business Insights: Essentials. Web. 9. Nov. 2014.
Galazzo, L (2014, May 5) 9 Tips to Make Your App Icon Stand Out. Retrieved from https://www.apptweak.com/learn/9-tips-to-make-your-app-icon-stand-out/
Galazzo, L (2014, April 28) Develop an Android or iOS App: The Dilemma. Retrieved from https://www.apptweak.com/learn/develop-an-android-or-ios-app-the-dilemma/
Google Inc. (GOOGL) (2014). Company Profile, Gale Business Insights Online Collection,2014. Retrieved from
http://bi.galegroup.com/essentials/search#q=google&displayGroup=company|Y
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) (2014). Company Profile, Gale Business Insights Online Collection, 2014. Retrieved from
http://bi.galegroup.com/essentials/search#q=microsoft&displayGroup=company|Y
Samsung Electronics Company Ltd. (2014) Company Profile, Gale Business Insights Online Collection,2014. Retrieved from
http://bi.galegroup.com.www2.lib.ku.edu/essentials/company/937517?u=ksstate_ukans
Adam Anderson (2014). Apple Inc. Hoovers. Retrieved from
http://subscriber.hoovers.com/H/company360/overview.html?companyId=12644000000000#
Jobs, Steven Paul. (2014). The Biography.com website. Retrieved from http://www.biography.com/people/steve-jobs-9354805.
Apple Store. (2014, January 1). Retrieved from http://store.apple.com/us/iphone?afid=p238|stVA9ZOL9-dc_mtid_1870765e38482_pcrid_67298812447_&cid=aos-us-kwg-iphone
Nicholls, C. (2013, November 25). Three Marketing Tactics to Tap Into the Emerging Apple Demographic Retrieved from Http://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2013/12158/three-marketing-
tactics-for-the-emerging-apple-demographic#ixzz3KfIAztdj
Mosquito Eradication. (2014, January 1) Easelly. Retrieved from http://www.easel.ly/create/?id=https://s3.amazonaws.com/easel.ly/all_easels/627387/MosquitoEradicationFinal&key=pri
Stone, Brad. "Tim Cook Interview: The IPhone 6, the Apple Watch, and Remaking a Company's Culture." Bloomberg Business Week, 1 Jan. 2014. Web.
<http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-09-17/tim-cook-interview-the-iphone-6-the-apple-watch-and-being-nice>.
ARNOLD, N. (2013, January 1). Who are Apple’s 3 Biggest Competitors?. Retrieved from http://wallstcheatsheet.com/stocks/3-of-apples-competitors.html/?a=viewall
M-Fortress (2014, January 1). Retrieved from http://cargocollective.com/mfortress/Pandora-Case-Study
Skype (2014). Retrieved from http://www.skype.com/en/
Dilger, D (2013, March 2) First look: Apple’s new Campus 2 construction site. Retrieved from http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/03/02/heres-the-office-sprawl-apple-campus-2-will-replace
8
