APPLE - MARKETING

Apple - Marketing

Apple - Marketing

Task One audit/ preparatory work

Three key customer groups

This audit of the organization has revealed that Apple has three key customer groups. These three key customer groups are:

Professionals in media and design

Upper Middle income group

Music enthusiasts and fans ages 12-35

Professionals in media and design: Professionals in media and design choose to opt for Apple's products because of the fact that Apple has managed to develop a reputation that insists on the utility of Apple's products. As a result, professionals who require high powered technology choose to go for Apple's products that provide the professionals with an edge over traditional products that are designed for the home based user. For instance, the Mac, in comparison to the Windows based Pentium series, is considered to be a machine that is used by individuals who are tech-savvy and require the execution of specialized tasks on their systems. Furthermore, challenges that prevented users from moving from other brands to Apple are now easily dealt with through easily accessible patches. As a result, users now switch to Apple far more readily.

Upper Middle income group: The upper middle class income group chooses to opt for Apple's products because of the fact that Apple's pricing strategy aims for this particular income group. It merits highlighting at this point that the tendency of users in this group to purchase Apple's products is in fact an indication of the success of Apple's pricing strategy. The pricing of Apple's products have almost always insisted on the premium standing of its products. Because of this reason, consumers belonging to the upper middle income group generally readily move to adopt Apple's new products. Considering this income group to be a key customer group for Apple is a justified approach because of the fact that Apple has almost always chosen to target this income group for its early adopters. The general trend exercised by Apple is generally aligned towards a decrease in the price of products; thereby enabling Apple to target the Upper Middle income group as well as the middle income group.

Music enthusiasts and fans ages 12-35: Apple has made a killing by consistently targeting music enthusiasts and fans ages 12-35. This perspective and segmentation of Apple's key customer groups is evident through the fact that some of Apple's most successful products deal with music and target consumers between that age group. In fact, the iPod, iPhone and other similar products brought Apple out of the dark ages far more rapidly than the Mac. This serves to show that Apple has been rather successful in customizing its products to the demands of music enthusiasts and fans who are aged between 12 and 35.

Current approach to development of customer retention

Apple created a store strictly devoted to Apple products. In addition, Apple's products complement and complete each other and the brand continues to push a strong identification with everything young, up-to-the-minute and smart. Apple offers products with lower entry costs, creating an opportunity for new users to be ...