The secrets to Apple’s Success: Counterintuitive Strategy
Oct 26th, 2011 by ziyansun
Just few weeks ago, a couple days before Steve Job’s death, I wrote a blog about Apple app. Store. Instead, now I have started moving my eyes on real Apple Store, this huge treasure that Steve Jobs has left behind. I want to share this blog “ Steve Jobs And The 4 Counterintuitive Business Strategies Of Apple ”here This blog has drawn me quite a few reflections about the marketing theories I have learned so far. Below are the four atypical strategies while the first three are marketing-based.
- Control the uncontrollable
- Forget the low end
- Use partnership as a last resort
- Obsess over the little things
Those sound very impressive as Apple is doing just the opposite thing against normal marketing. The first one listed above states that Apple control more aspects of their product from development, usage to sales marketing and service. Apple designs their own store and developed a locked down software platform and ecosystem. They don’t even allow media access to the company, which is why we can’t even see the commercial ads of Apple on TV show.
Apple positions their products as “high end” and keeps consistent on it. Marketers usually follow the rules that when economy environment changes, customers buying power and spending patterns change as well, thus marketing strategies should change to adjust this outside change. However, Apple never lowered its status and “produced too many or compromise products quality” even in the tough period.
It is kind of funny when we first see the third strategy—the last resort is partnership??!! Unbelievable! However, it’s true and moreover, Apple has already proved the success of this strategy. Isn’t partnership a good thing to marketing?
From my point of view, there are no certain rules for marketing operation, which is exactly the beauty of marketing—people oriented. As long as it works for customers, it is the right marketing strategy.