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It is a highly established brand and has been successful with many of their rodents. This year, 2012, Apple launch their latest smart phone, the phone 5. This has the newest and most up-to-date technology that has ever been used on any of their products with the launch of the ISO 6 software. The marketing environment will aid the launch of this product if used effectively. 2. Method Diagram 1. This represents the elements of the Macro-environment and I will use this diagram to show these elements in an effective way in relation to Apple’s phone 5.
Geoff Primp. (2012). I intend to cover the macro-environment in terms of technology and social and demographic. I will not discuss the factors of politics and legal or the economy as during research I found more significant evidence to suggest that technology and social and demographic changes affect Apple’s phone 5 greater. I will discuss the micro-environment in terms of customers, competitors and intermediaries in detail because these factors have a greater impact on Apple in comparison to suppliers and other stakeholders.
Finally, I will finish my analysis and interpretation by covering the internal environment in relation to the company’s responsibility and the importance of employee morale as these are more relevant than finance and sources. 3. Analysis and Interpretation The Macro-environment The macro-environment is comprised of the external factors that a company interacts with, directly or indirectly, states Palmer, A. (2000), 51 . It relates to trends and factors that may affect the relationship an organization has with its customers, suppliers and intermediaries. Areas that consist in the macro-environment are shown in Figure 1.
I aim to discuss two of these: Technology and Social Demographic. Technology is constantly being developed and is evolving rapidly, therefore it is essential for arresters to be aware of these developments taking place and how they may affect their organization. Coinage, G. (2006). Writes that when technology is developed it can affect customer demand for a company’s products or services. This shows that it is important for companies like Apple to use the most up-to-date technology, if they do not have the appropriate technology within their products; customers will not invest in them and will turn to competitors.
Coinage, G. (2006). Also states that changing technology may bring forward new opportunities and threats that the company will face in relation to a products lifestyle. This suggests that Apple will have to evaluate new technology available in order to keep customer demand high and to gain competitive advantage by identifying opportunities and threats. Apple will have to ensure that their phone 5 meets the ever changing expectations of their consumers. Apple’s pod sales have gradually decreased as a result of their customers increasing demand for phones and pads instead of MPH devices. Theorizing, D. 2012). Therefore, Apple must analyses the technological changes occurring in the market and evolve to ensure that all products remain up-to-date and desirable to customers. Social and demographic changes in society will have an impact on an organization such as Apple due to the fact that they are constantly dealing with customers who are part of a changing population. Organizations must be able to deal with demographic changes such as the ageing population that we are in today. The section of the population aged 65 and over is expected to rise from 13% up to 20% over a 50 year period, states Paul Withered.
This shows that it is essential for companies to consider the older generation as they are a large segment of the market. Therefore, if companies are able to develop their products and services to tit elderly people, they will find themselves in a much better position in the market. Apple has been able to cater for this segment as they have the “App Store” which allows customers to download a variety of APS from “Matcher”, to “Angry Birds”. Apple have allowed themselves to appeal to a mass market which enables them to deal with the demographic change of the ageing population and still keep their younger customers interested.
The Micro-environment The micro-environment of an organization is the companies or individuals that affect the organization’s activities, directly or indirectly. In the micro-environment, the key groups are Customers; Competitors; Suppliers; Intermediaries; and Other stakeholders. I will discuss this environment in terms of Apple’s customers, competitors and intermediaries. For a company like Apple, it is important to be aware of customer markets and their needs as each market have distinct, separate needs.
For example, consumer markets are individuals who will use Apple’s products for personal and leisure use. The needs of this market will differ noticeably from those of Business markets and Reseller markets who are essentially looking to make further refit/use from Apple’s products. Palmer, A. (2000) states that ideally, organizations should be able to predict what customers will want next rather than waiting to see before acting. From this, Apple must be aware of their customers’ needs as the success of the phone 5 will rely on how well the company know their customers.
Apple is at an advantage as they have had huge success with several other products that has given them an established brand with a huge number of loyal customers. Steve M. Chain, former Apple Marketing Executive and Consumer Marketing Expert moments on Apples advertisements: “They are inviting you to experience the Apple lifestyle and to become part of the pod community. ” This comment shows how Apple have created a ‘community that is associated with the company that customers want to be a part of, this will market their products in itself.
As well as predicting what their customers may do/want next, companies must be aware of what their competitors might do next. A company can have direct competitors and indirect competitors. Direct competitors are similar companies who aim to meet customer needs in a similar way as they intend to. For example Samsung would be a direct competitor to Apple as they are in the same industry (mobile phones) and have similar customers who expect similar products and features within those products. Analysis’s predict that by the end of 2012 the phone 5 will have sold an estimated million phones, and Samsung Galaxy SO is to sell around 30 million.
Williams, A. (2010). This shows how competitive the mobile phone industry is and the success of a company depends on the loyalty of customers, modern technology in the product and how well the product meets customer’s expectations. Indirect competitors produce efferent products, but ultimately satisfy the same need. This type of competitor is hard to identify and therefore it is important for companies to research potential competitors fully in order to be able to respond quickly to changes. Intermediaries are companies such as retailers, distributors and wholesales.
These are companies in which most organizations will be involved in and therefore it is important for them to be selling the right image of the organization. Carapace Warehouse would be a retailer of Apple. This could affect Apple because the employees selling an phone 5 erectly to a customer will be able to project a positive image of the product to the customer. Similarly, if an employee appears lethargic and detached a customer is unlikely to want to purchase the product they are promoting.
The Internal Environment The internal environment of an organization in relation to marketing consists of the organizational structure, its responsibility, finance and the development of its employees. If internal marketing is done effectively, it can help to create an ethos resulting in high quality services to customers. “Apple’s core mission: making the best rodents and experiences it can for customers. ” Cog, E. (2012). Cog, E also states that Apple have made their employees a priority as they have recognized that when their staff are happy, productivity is increased and therefore profits and revenue is increased in turn.