5 Reasons Why Apple Is Successful

Many of us on TekSocial are huge Apple fans. That goes without saying. With the recent resignation of Steve Jobs as CEO, I think it is a good time to have a look back on why Apple is so successful, and will continue being so. First off, I'd just like to say these are my opinions on how Apple has become so successful, and I'm happy for you all to post your comments on how you feel about the reasons, and add any that you feel are neccesary.

Note, These are no specific order.

1. Experience - Apple has been in the technology industry for 35 Years! That gives them the edge on newer industrys, as they have that kind of knowledge of the technology market, and know what consumers want. (Now don't get me wrong, Apple has made a couple of mistakes in the past, but nobody is perfect)

2. Innovation - When innovation comes to mind, we all think 'futuristic' am I right? Well that is exactly what Apple are, they produce products that nobody would have ever thought of for another 10, 20 years.

3. Constant change - Now when I say constant change, what I mean is that Apple changes their own competitors market by themselves. Apple has a very positive history of being able to 'innovate' new products into the market, which then puts their competitors on the back foot, as they are years behind them.

4. Marketing - Myself & friends are always talking about the latest ways that Apple has found to advertise their products, most notably their TV commercials. Apple has potentially the best marketing experts in the world working on how to promote their product. Most notably, I remember the first iPad commercial, at the perfect time at Superbowl half time break.

5. Creativity - This is very much like Innovation, but the two together are basically what make Apple what it is today. Apple creates/innovates new products, so well, again their competitors find it hard to keep up with them. And with competitors that are behind them, Apple is always going to be on top.

I understand guys that this is really 4 reasons, as 2 of them are pretty much the same thing, but these I feel are the main reasons Apple is so successful in todays business.

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The iPad's Niche Market

There is a lot of hype about Apple’s new iPad. Their newest tablet device. But who is this iPad for? The problem with tablets is that’s hard to figure out who they’re for. In my personal opinion, the iPad will come in handy for a lot of people. Here are some of the instances where an iPad would work well. 

One market of people this is for is for people who travel a lot. Let’s face it, you’re on the plane for 8 hours, it’s cramped, and you don’t adequate room for your 17” MacBook Pro. So you pull out your iPad. Since it has a reported 10-hour battery, you can read your favorite eBook, play 2x apps or surf the web with either 3G or WiFi.

The second use for the iPad would be for around the house. Whether you’re looking for a recipe in the kitchen with the AllRecipes Dinner Spinner, or finding out the name of that song on IMDb in the living room. I think the iPad is a really good around the house type of computing device. It’s small enough to where it is easy to carry around and will get the job done for all the little computing odds and ends you need to take care of. 

The third and final market in my opinion of for kids. Mainly ages 10-14. The iPad has been speculated to be just an iPod touch of steroids. Since the iPod touch has flourished in the market, I imagine it would be very popular among young adults. Since it is compatible with all App Store apps, it would be a very smooth transition for those coming from a smaller iPod. 

So in conclusion, who do you think the iPad’s niche market is? You know my opinion, so I want to hear your opinion. Leave a comment below. 

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Can Your Network Do That?

Marketing wars. The concept is nothing new. Two companies who have competing products or services often turn to marketing to get what marketing guru's call "mind share". And, unless you have been living in a completely disconnected state from society for the past three weeks or so, you know that Verizon has launched some pretty hard hitting adds against AT&T and their network. My guess is these ads have been pretty effective, because AT&T is now suing Verizon claiming that the ads are deceptive. 

I assumed it was only a matter of time before AT&T shot back at Verizon with an ad of their own, and they did. Sort of. AT&T's ad (which you can see below) featured Luke Wilson and some lame magnet board that listed all of the advantages that AT&T has over Verizon. I must say... after I saw the ad for the first time, I said (out loud): "Really? That's the best you could do?" It was just... bad. 

So here's the scorecard at this point.

Verizon: The most effective marketing campaigns the company has ever had
       The hottest phone of the year.
AT&T: Luke Wilson
           Magnets

But here's the thing, something that AT&T has that they didn't mention in their ad... is the iPhone; And the iPhone has Apple, who you could argue has had some of the most effective marketing campaigns in recent memory. And, in my brain... I imagine an internal conversation at Apple going something like this.

Marketing Genius 1: They have Luke Wilson. Luke Wilson... and a magnet board.
Marketing Genius 2: Seriously?
Marketing Genius 1: We have exclusivity for the next six months. We've got to do something.

Behold. The two Apple ads that do what Luke Wilson and his magnet board could not.

Apple iPhone Ad - What Time's The Movie? from Arik Hesseldahl on Vimeo.

Apple iPhone Ad - Did You See My Email? from Arik Hesseldahl on Vimeo.

Marketing War, commence.

What’s So Bad About The Ad? Get A Mac Ads vs Laptop Hunters Ads, Why It All Evens Out.

The one thing that really bothers me about advertising is that most of the time all of the time they aren’t true. One thing that bothers me even more, is that people go out and criticize the ads, my self included. It’s human nature, that’s for sure, to critique.

Perhaps one of the most common advertisements you could see people criticizing are the Laptop Hunters ads by Microsoft, which aim at people looking to buy a laptop within a certain price range, and the Get a Mac ads by Apple, which are aimed at PC users who are frustrated with their computer.

I myself, have even criticized the Laptop Hunters ads, along with several other YouTubers, including thecreativeone and cockyjeremy. The reason for criticizing the ads is quite simple, we are the opposing team, or side. The PC users criticize our ads, therefore we criticize their ads.

But that’s not the only reason. We, as humans, have the logic to know that ads are there to promote the opposing “faction” and we see it as “cheap”, or as a lie. For instance, the Get A Mac ads by Apple usually summarize PCs by associating them with viruses, sluggish performance, and more for the business people.Whereas Microsoft’s Laptop Hunters ads will display Macs as too expensive.

But it all evens out.

No matter what side you are on, you are going to have to accept the truth and realize that all ads are biased and completely untrue, in a sense.

It just depends on what side you’re on.

JD

My Bite Into Apple

http://mybiteintoapple.com