Apple growth strategies that have made Apple successful in the field of technology

Apple growth strategies that have made Apple successful in the field of technology

Apple is a US-based technology company that started in 1976. The company is famous for its goods such as iPhone, iPad, iPod, and Mac. Though the company has been into existence for a long time, Apple gained massive popularity after its introduction of iPods in 2004. The company further increased a robust market after the submission of its first iPhone in 2007. The iPhone product was successful, and this has motivated the company to innovate a series of iPhones with the latest model, iPhone 11 pro. The company faces stiff competition from other companies, including Samsung, Google, Microsoft, and Nokia. Also, the field of technology is flooded with many companies, which also give competition to Apple Inc. Despite the competition, Apple Inc. has remained at the top of the other companies, creating more revenues out of their products. This paper examines the Apple growth strategies that have made Apple successful in the field of technology.

Apple’s Generic Strategy

Apple Company employs the Porter Model of generic strategy. The company uses broad differentiation as a competitive strategy in the market. Apple products are mostly unique from their competitors’ products. The field of technology deals with the innovation of new products; however, there is much borrowing of ideas from one company to another. As a result, most companies use similar inventions. However, during innovation, Apple invests a lot of time to ensure that it comes up with a unique product. For instance, Apple was the first company to introduce face ID technology in mobile phones.

Apple company software and hardware are very different from other phones. Many phone manufacturing companies use similar software like the Android operating system invented by Google Inc. Apple uses iOS, which is their invention in their iPhone, iPad, and Mac products. Customers tend to like unique products and Apple differentiation strategy gives such customers the options. Furthermore, Apple iPhone applications differ significantly from Android apps. This has made people believe that Apple products are more secure than products from their competitors.

Apple Inc. can use its differentiation strategy to meet their diverse customers’ needs. Many technology companies put more focus on a specific product. However, Apple strategizes to develop products that satisfy their customer’s needs in every corner. For instance, the Samsung Company concentrates more on developing phones. Contrary, Apple is capable of satisfying phone users through iPhones. Mac computers are capable of meeting the needs of businesses. Lastly, music lover’s needs are met through the innovation of iPods. This differentiation strategy gives Apple a competitive advantage over its competitors.

Apple’s Intensive Growth Strategies

Product development is the pillar of the intensive growth strategy for Apple. The company invests more in the products that it develops. Some of the company’s projects can take up to years to make sure that the final product has features that will impress the customers. The company continuously introduces new products with new features that generate additional revenues making the company successful.

Market penetration is the second crucial intensive growth strategy for growth. The company aims at entering new markets, which it did not initially operate. This strategy helps to increase the market share for their unique and existing products. There are several ways in which Apple facilitate this strategy. First, Apple is adding authorized sellers of its products in the US and other countries. Second, Apple invests more on the advertisement of their products to encourage customers to purchase their customers. Lastly, the company embraces the promotion of their products on other websites and media programs.

There are new opportunities for Apple, and I believe that the company should redefine its business and venture into them. First, Artificial Intelligence is a field that every technology company is investing in. Artificial Intelligence will be a significant boost to the company in the future, as it is expected to be incorporated into their products. In 2018, Apple employed John Giannandrea, who worked in the Artificial Intelligence department at Google to head the AI projects like Siri, a voice assistant project at Apple Inc. AI is a critical issue, and thus, Apple should take it with much serious because it is going to be widely used in the future.

Another business opportunity for Apple company wearable tech. Apple’s wears, such as Apple Watch and Airpods, seem to be successful in the market. Over the last two years, the company witnessed a rampant growth of revenues from the wearable products. This makes it a necessity for Apple to venture seriously into the business through investing into the innovation and development of wearable products.

The third opportunity for is service business. Apple currently offers services including Apple Music, App Store and iCLoud Storage. This segment is very profitable because people make periodic subscriptions for the services. For instance, in 2019, the company was reported to have over 360 million paid subscriptions for the services it offered. This was a positive growth from 2018, when the company had 240 million subscriptions for the services. This shows the necessity of the company to venture more into the service business through introduction of new services and improvement of the existing ones.

Apple Company is successful in most of the products that it ventures in. It has gained popularity in the market, as customers trust their products. The company needs to venture into the electrical industry like its biggest rival, Samsung. Samsung manufactures products such as Fridges, Televisions among others. This gives Samsung a competitive advantage and may affect Apple’s penetration into the market. Venturing into electronics business will boost Apple’s overall revenue. This will give the company additional competitive advantage as well as supporting the company’s growth strategy of differentiation.

There are several recommendations that can help Apple increase its sales while practicing its growth strategies. There have been criticisms on the Apple’s market penetration strategy. Many people argue that Apple Company concentrates on setting its market share on the developed countries while ignoring the developing countries. This is true because for instance, there are very little Apple authorized sellers in African countries. This is because Apple’s products are expensive and few people can afford them. However its competitors like Samsung are prevalent in developing countries, because it is capable of producing affordable phones. It is recommendable for Apple to have products that can meet the needs of developing countries residents, as this will help to increase the market share.

Apple’s growth strategies have been successful in helping the company growth in terms of revenue and market share. The company uses employs the Porter’s Model generic strategy and intensive growth strategies. There are three opportunities that if the company put more emphasis on, it will give the company a competitive advantage either now or in future. The opportunities include Artificial Intelligence, wearable tech and service business. In conclusion, I would encourage Apple to produce cheap products which will meet the needs of middle and lower class individuals, as it will increase its market share.