Business-level strategies

Business-level strategies

Apple Inc. adopts innovations to engage in the production of high quality for the market. Although the changes are directed at new products, Apple also utilizes modification in the output of existing goods. He uses the differentiation approach ensures that the company products stand out in the market. Hence the products are exclusive at premium prices. The implication is that the company relies on brand loyalty for continuous sales and the distribution of the products. Apple focuses on aligning the marketing approach and business strategy with product development. The use of the plan gives apple an edge over the competitors.

Apple has previously engaged in the promotion of the brand to the extent that most of the customers are willing to pay premium process for the premium products. Must of the customers for products in all the categories are individuals who are willing to pay higher prices to gain better user experiences. Apple focuses on identifying the needs of the customers and offers products with advanced features for photos videos and quality music. Apple focuses on recruiting highly experienced individuals designing and programing the products to meet the expectations of the market. Therefore the iPhones, personal computers, music watches and TVs have unique features that address the specific requirements of the customers. Apple acknowledges that there is a dependence on the sales of iPhones compelling the business prioritizing the service divisions. Leadership has been a core component of the marketing approaches with critical restructuring to focus on other divisions. As a result, the current approach provides that the company profitability does not depend entirely on the sale of mobile phones.

The corporate level strategy of apple inc.

  Apples  Inc. adopts cooperate level strategies which include the diversification of the company’s products. An application of the high and moderate levels ensures that the company presents mobile phones, personal computers, software, music stores, among others to address the specific needs of the market. Apple Inc. combines entertainment and personal computing with a high rate of integration which ensures that the company achieves the desired efficiency. The use of the approach ensures that the company meets the efficiency in production and distribution of the goods and services at premium prices. Apple endeavours to offer products to compete effectively meet profit targets in different markets of the globe.

An application of diversification strategy offers the clients the opportunities to get high-quality products at reasonable standards. Apple applies standard design in the manufacturing of the company products ensuring that they are integrated and utilizes a standard operating system. Use of the approach has been a strong selling point of the business maintaining the uniqueness required to capture the attention in the market. The plan is necessary for retaining customers for various products in the consumer electronics sector.

Apple adopts internationalization in production to cut costs and efficiency and hence pass on the savings to the customers. Apple Inc. management acknowledges that it should exploit the low labour costs, an active market with huge potential. Furthermore, the chines market has accessibility to raw materials, among other factors associated with the stability of the chines market. Use of the approach ensures that apple retains a level of profitability which would be hard to achieve had the country maintained all manufacturing activities in the US.

 Another corporate approach of the company is the formation of strategic alliances to reap from the associated economies of scale. Use of plan offers them an opportunity to gain from the skills and the experiences of the competitors intensifying the ability of the business to operate and succeed in different markets. Besides, the adoption of strategic alliances provides sharing of risks and costs. The approach maintains a  given level of profitability. An example of a partnership that apple Inc. has adopted is AT&T  for the production of mobile phones. The company also engages in another alliance with Intel for the creation of the processors. Another agreement is one with Microsoft for the production of Mac computers.

Another corporate level strategy is the production of the standardized products making it easy to distribute in the international market. A critical aspect of the outcome of the regulated is that the company controls all aspects of manufacturing and the engineering design. The manufacturing activities are centralized, which is vital for reducing the cost of production and achieving the necessary efficiency. Standardized functions and products make the products and services stand out in the market, ensuring easy identification.

 Alliance formation is an appropriate strategy for the apple in the long term. It is explicit that Apple Inc. prices for the various products are premium, but the creation of the alliances would allow for reducing risks and costs and passing the savings to the customers. Use of an alliance approach will continue increasing the capacity of the company to enter the various markets around the globe. Using the method enhances the distribution of the products lowering the cost of company stores. Application of the procedure is necessary n ensuring that the company avails products in most markets. Alliance formation promotes the outsourcing of most products that the company applies in manufacturing.  The company engineers would be able to focus on the innovations as other activities take place elsewhere.

Competitive environment

The consumer electronics market is very competitive, implying that Apple faces intense competition in all product categories that the company engages. Apple Inc. products also face intense competition in different geographic markets from around the globe. The implication is that the company must engage in a high level of innovation to maintain its hold in the market. The problem is compounded by the fact that pale competes in the different product categories such as mobile phones, tablets, mobile payment systems. Watches, laptops and software. The rivalry in the entire products category is intense with the apple management considering the competition as the primary threat to business profitability. Game is a critical threat to the company’s profitability apple competition hugely affects the financial results and growth of the company. From the analysis, apple faces competition in the different product categories. Significant competitors in the smartphones category are Samsung, LG, Huawei, HTC, Lenovo, Google, Sony  And Vivo, among others. In the smartphones category, the main competitor is Samsung. The Galaxy smartphone for the company rivals Apple’s iPhone in various ways. Other significant competitors include HTC, Google and Huawei. In the tablets category, major competitors include Samsung, Huawei, Lenovo Sony, Google and Amazon. Therefore Samsung is the main rival in the tablet market. Analysis indicates that apple controls more than 20% of the tablets market, but Samsung poses a stiff competition in the product category. Currently, Apple controls 7.1% of the pc market, but intense competition from Hewlett Packard, Dell, Lenovo Toshiba and Acer, among others offers a  fierce competition.

Comparison of apple and Samsung strategy

Samsung uses a pricing strategy to retain ahold of the market, while Apple focuses on innovation to promote the brand. Although Samsung ensures that the products are more affordable to broad customer base Apple Inc. management ensures that the current strategy will continue creating unique customer segments.  Samsung achieved 37% of the smartphone market in 2016, while Apple accounted for 26% of the market in the same year. In 2015 Apple sold 74.8 million phones in comparison to 73 million smartphones. Another difference in the approach between the two giants is that Samsung makes use of all the social media platforms, effective marketing strategies and celebrity endorsements. Apple has no Facebook or twitters accounts and relies entirely on the popularity of the brand. From the analysis, apple will be the more successful of the two in the long term. The innovation approach that t the company applies indicates that the business can create products for any kinds of markets. The popularity of the brand is an indication that the company wills can serve customers from different markets from around the world. Hence from all perspectives, it is explicit that apple will be a more successful company than Samsung in the future.

Choice of the most successful company would differ in Slow-cycle and fast-cycle markets. Apple would perform better in fast cycle markets, while Samsung would be more successful in slow cycle markets. The innovation approaches that apple employs indicates that the company would continue in customizing the products to suit the needs of the customers. Apple would perform better in a fast-changing market that is keen on the innovations for maintaining the changing demands of the customers. On the other hand, Samsung is well prepared for producing goods for different categories of the market. Thus the company would perform better if it is enjoying a monopoly.