Bachelor of Business Apple Inc

Question: Discuss about theBachelor of Businessfor Apple Inc. Answer: Introduction The marketing of a product is one of the important components in the life cycle of a product (Papadopoulos and Heslop 2014). This report would discuss the basis of segmentation such as demographic, geographic, psychographic, usage-rate and benefit. The targeting strategy would also be defined. The analysis of the positioning bases is also done. The company selected for the purpose of study is Apple Inc. Discussion Analysis and Segmentation Variables Apple has made segmentation polices based on the different variables such as geographic, demographic, psychographic, usage-rate and benefit. They are discussed as below- Geographic- These segmentation is based on the region and the density of the Apple products. The target geographic segmentation of Apple is United States of America and the global market (Nagamia 2015). Apple has ventured in all the major markets all around the world (Pisano 2015). The density criteria indicate that Apple is concentrated in the urban population. Demographic- This segmentation has criteria based on age, sex, occupation, income group and the degree of loyalty (Sharma and Lambert 2013). The brand targets age group of 20-45 and is popular among both males and female counterparts. The segmentation of the brand rests on the high earners and the hard core loyal who are loyal with the company. Psychographic- This kind of segmentation takes into account the social class, user status, lifestyle and the personality of the users (Muhsin et al. 2014). The brand targets people who belong to the middle and upper middle class and persons with high class. The brand targets determined as well as ambitious individuals. Usage-rate- The usage rate is based on the nature of product usage which ranges from medium to high for the Apple brand. Benefits- The different benefits on which the segmentation is based are the sense of belonging as well as achievement, efficiency, speed of delivery and the advanced features (Nagamia 2015). Analysis of Targeting Strategy A typical targeting strategy depends on the segmentation of the market, selection of the best marketing strategy and the determination of the products that would be implemented in the particular segment. The company uses psychographic segmentation strategies for targeting the customers (Hardcastle and Hagger 2015). It uses lifestyles, social class and personality of the users. The company targets the population based on the nature of the customers belonging to the market segments (Kotler et al. 2015). The company selects the potential customers based on the lucrative markets in which it is possible to sell their products. The brand aims to provide multiple products to the target market such as iPad, iPhone, Mac, iCloud, iLife and other (Dreyer and White 2015). The products of Apple brand cater to the premium customer segments and are expensive. Hence, the company chooses its customer segment accordingly (Nagamia 2015). It targets the middle income group and mostly the elite or the su per-rich for targeting their products. Analysis of Positioning Bases The core competence of Apple lies in providing the exceptional customer service to the target market audience. They also strive to make their products easy to use and simple so that the customers would find it easier to use them. For example, the Apple Watch which is comparatively easy to operate as well as it is user friendly (Nagamia 2015). The brand positioned themselves as the mobile devices company which created an image that the company has lot many to offer to the customers other than computers (Cornelissen 2014). The positioning strategy is concerned with the implementation of the targeting principles decided by the company. The positioning bases would be based on the 4 Ps of marketing used by the company. The 4Ps of marketing includes the product, price, place and promotion (Kotler et al. 2015). The following positioning bases are applied for Apple- Product- The product is premium and hence the organization would cater to the upper middle class target market (Kotler et al. 2015). Price- The brand has premium pricing level and hence it targets higher income groups. This would make the company increase the revenue generation. Promotion- The promotion events of the brand is a combination of prestige, powerful and informative (Kotler et al. 2015). The brand advertisements are being done in an intelligent manner which attracts the attention if the premium market segments. Place- The brand focuses on the selective and exclusive distribution of the products (Kotler et al. 2015). The regions where there is higher density of upper middle class families and high end stores are being targeted for this purpose (Montgomerie and Roscoe 2013). References Cornelissen, J., 2014.Corporate communication: A guide to theory and practice. Sage. Dreyer, A. and White, K.M., 2015.Managing Apple Devices: Deploying and Maintaining iOS and OS X. Peachpit Press. Hardcastle, S.J. and Hagger, M.S., 2015. Psychographic profiling for effective health behavior change interventions.Frontiers in psychology,6. Kotler, P., Burton, S., Deans, K., Brown, L. and Armstrong, G., 2015.Marketing. Pearson Higher Education AU. Montgomerie, J. and Roscoe, S., 2013, December. Owning the consumerGetting to the core of the Apple business model. InAccounting Forum(Vol. 37, No. 4, pp. 290-299). Elsevier. Muhsin, Z.F., Rehman, A., Altameem, A., Saba, T. and Uddin, M., 2014. Improved quadtree image segmentation approach to region information.The Imaging Science Journal,62(1), pp.56-62. Nagamia, N.K.A., 2015. Apple Inc-A Marketing Analysis Case Study.MacEwan University Student eJournal,2(1). Papadopoulos, N. and Heslop, L.A., 2014.Product-country images: Impact and role in international marketing. Routledge. Pisano, G.P., 2015. You need an innovation strategy.Harvard Business Review,93(6), pp.44-54. Sharma, A. and Lambert, D.M., 2013. Segmentation of markets based on customer service.International Journal of Physical Distribution Logistics Management.