Apple IPhone X In The Australian Market

Discuss about the MKT100 Principles of Marketing.

Company and product overview

One of the most improved sectors in the international market in terms of technology is the telecommunication industry. The industry has experienced an improvement in technology in the recent years in the international market. Different phone model of phone have been discussed by innovators. Some of the leading companies which steer head this sector include Nokia, Samsung, apple, Motorola, Techno among other companies (O'Grady, 2012). Every company started in its own country before venturing in international market which currently all companies is almost found in every country. Some of the reasons why those companies started operating in international market was to their customers and increase their revenues. In this case study we are going to discuss iphone X which entered Australian market on 3^rd of November 2017.

Company and product overview

Iphone X is a mobile phone which is under communication category. The product’s parent name is Apple which is located at apple park way, Cupertino, California, U.S.A. The company was founded by Steve Jobs Steve Wazniak Ronald Wayne in April 1, 1976. In the international market the company has around 500 retail store worldwide (O'Grady J. D., 2014).

In the international market Apple took the world by storm when it launched the iphone X at Australian market. What most amazed everybody were their IOS operating system and also the multi touch features (Tar, 2015). For sure, this was the first phones which bared the title smart phone in the market. Some of strengths which were associated with the product include tag of innovation, consumer loyalty, amazing software and OS, wide developer support, design consistency and control in the hand of users. However, in the market the product had some weakness which included high price, restrictions on the phone, no variety and no Steve jobs anymore. In the long run the product offered some opportunities in the market which included existence of new market for potential customers, advancement of technology, an increase in dependence on digitalization and lastly but not least geographical expansion (Tar, 2015). Additional, some of the threats which faced the product and the company in general include other androids, existence of Samsung Company, risk of the company losing its shine and continued lack of innovation.

Industry overview

Australian market has developed just like any other market in neighboring countries. Consumers are continuing to be loyal to every company which offers quality products and satisfy their needs fully. Iphone X has tried its best to satisfy Australian so far. However, for the company to fully utilize the telecommunication market in the country more innovation must be done which will fully fulfill customers need in the long run. The product has potential to become a leader in the marketing in the future. Apple as a company took advantage of a shrinking Australian market to increase its shares to around 50 percent. Since the company invaded Australian market its market share have increased with more than 6 percent which is a great move for any company.

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of the Product in the Market

PESTEL analyses include factors such as political, economical, social, technology, environment/ecological and legal issues which affect company growth. Apple on its sale of iphone X product at Australia market also faces these factors. The factors affect the company one way or the other. However, this piece of work won’t deal with all factor bust it will discuss how political and technology has affected the company’s operations (Hasan, 2013).  

Political

In the long run political challenges will continue to affect the company, especially with the current EU move to hunt the tech giants. In August 2016 the European Union declared the compared owned it $14.5 billion in terms of taxes to Ireland. The tax claims almost threatened the relationship between US and EU as US felt the claim was unfair and unjustified. Also the company felt it was unfairly and untruthfully targeted by the EU. On the other hand, Ireland as a country felt EU regulators was interfering with its sovereignty. This move shook the relationship between Ireland, Us and the EU regulators (Condoleezza Rice, 2016). However, some scholars and researchers felt this move was politically motivated. Among other companies, apple is the biggest taxpayer in the whole world which means such political moves affects the company revenue in the long run. However, the move never got many in surprise as the EU for the past years have been targeting other big companies such as Google, Apple and Amazon. The move means an increased tax burden and as a result reduced profits for the tech giant.

Technology

The company is bound to be affected either positively or negatively by the technology changes as it is a tech giant. In the recent years the company has witnessed rapid technological changes which in returns have altered the market dynamics (Gallo & Mangan, 2014). According to the recent research apple is almost losing its position to other companies such as Google in the fortune list of world’s most valuable brands. Also the increased number of competitors in the market which is providing a matching technological value at reduced price has also to a certain point affected the company’s profits and revenue. While other companies such as Lenovo and Hp have consistensely maintained their market position in PC industry, Apple Company is losing the market significantly. The reason is both technological and economical. However, the growth in telecommunication sector can drive sales of I-phones but in some extents it can hurts Mc sales in the market. Another threat which has entered in the market is Google with Nexus and Pixel (Gallo & Mangan, 2014).

Industry Overview

Just like any other products and company in the market apple company on its sales of iphone X is facing stiff competition from Samsung Galaxy Note 8, LG V30, HTC U11 and Pixel XL. In one way or the other this competitor affect the apple operations in the market. Competitors reduce the revenue generated by the company which in return reduces the profit generated by the company. The above four competitors are discussed in details below

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 parent company is Samsung. The company is believed to manufacture the best quality products in the market. The product’s customers are believed to be the most loyal customers in the market. From the research the consumers are believed require quality and satisfactory products which satisfy their needs to the fullest Samsung is believed to deliver this. Even though, the Samsung prices its product lowly it does not differ much from those produced by Apple products. The products are readily available at any given time, and also it carries enough promotions to reach as many customers as possible (Michelson, 2017).

LG V30

LG V30 is a product from LG based in Korea. The company also produces mobile phones which are also sold at Australian market. This company is the second biggest competitor which competes with Apple. It offers cheap, readily available and satisfactory products to the market. The product is unique and durable which makes customers to like and love them in the long run. The company is believed to be good at customer social responsibility.

HTC U11 

The third biggest competitor of apple’s product in the market is HTC U11 which is produced by HTC Corporation. The company is also known for produced quality, cheap and durable products. The company enjoys a significant market. Some of the company advantage amongst other product in the market is the company uses high technology to produce unique and durable products which satisfy customers need fully (Michelson, 2017).  

Pixel XL 

The last but not least competitor which competes with Iphone X in the market is Pixel XL which is produced by Google. The company is believed to produce products loved by lower and middle class as the products are affordable. Products from Google are of best quality and durable compared to other products. The products are unique in nature to their users.

Target market

This advertisement for IPhone x is about all the unique technologies such as wireless charging , one of the most powerful chip that ever has been invented for speed , face If to maximise security  , also using face id to create unique emoji to have even more fun communicating with other people (Sally Dibb, 2011). All glass screen which means no more home button and one of the best cameras which will capture all the memories in highest quality with professional photography options and lightening. This ad is targeted to wide range of  people from all ages whom are looking to engage to others and word with using newest technologies that apple  has to offer but mostly young people who enjoy taking photos and after high security and high quality camera. In the mean time the company targets both youths and old people. However, due to its complexity in usage the company realizes that majority of youths uses apple more than old people and a result the company mostly stresses on youth than old consumers (Sally Dibb, 2011).

In marketing or business world perceptual mapping is a diagrammatic technique which is used by businesses which attempts to visually display the perceptions of customers or potential customers. Perceptual maps are also commonly known as the market maps. Also, positioning refers to the place that a brand occupies in the mind of the customers and how it is distinguished from products from competitors. Iphone X is considered by customers to be a product of high quality, and also high priced compared to other products in the market. As a result most of customers who buy the product are from high class (Sengupta, 2017).

Based on the above analysis I would recommend the company mostly to focus its marketing mix to young people. The research reveals that majority of consumers who uses iphone X are youths. Some of the reasons why old people do not like using the product are because of its complexity on the usage. Majority of iphone user’s largely old people must be taught on how to use the products. Also, due to its high price the company must focus on high class and educated people who preferable use the product. The company must also focus on looking for new customers as well as maintaining the old ones.

References

Condoleezza Rice, ‎. B. (2016). Political Risk : How Businesses and Organizations Can Anticipate Global Insecurity. New York: Grand Central Publishing.

Gallo, C., & Mangan, S. (2014). The Innovation Secrets of Steve Jobs. Bolinda: Bolinda Audio.

Hasan, M. R. (2013). Apple Inc. - An Analysis PESTEL analysis, Porter's 5 Forces analysis, SWOT analysis, Comprehensive analysis of financial ratios, and Comprehensive analysis of share performance of Apple Inc. Munich: Munich GRIN Verlag.

Michelson, D. (2017). Samsung Galaxy Note 8 : learning the best features. [United States]: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.

O'Grady, J. D. (2012). Apple Inc. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press.

O'Grady, J. D. (2014). How Apple Inc. changed the world. Mumbai: Jaico.

Sally Dibb, ‎. S. (2011). The market segmentation workbook : target marketing for marketing managers. London: Routledge.

Sengupta, S. (2017). Brand positioning : strategies for competitive advantage. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

Tar, A. (2015). Apple SWOT Analysis. Munich : GRIN Verlag GmbH.