Why is apple a success?

Answer 1

Key Success Factors

Core Strengths

Apple has numerous internal strengths that make it a successful and

competitive company. For one, Apple has a powerful footing in the personal

computer market by being "different" with its innovative style and ease of use.

Its operating system is developed in house, leaving it free from the tangles of

the dominant Microsoft operating systems. This gives apple a very large degree

of control over its product in the physical appearance, specifications, and overall

usability. Apple does all this while keeping its Macintosh computers compatible

with existing PC computers. Additionally, Apple fosters a research intensive

office environment and is constantly releasing products with the current trends

and styles as seen through its latest iPod and Mac mini. This makes Apple one

of the biggest innovators in the computer and portable music industries, being

first to bring new and creative ideas to the market.

Core Weaknesses

Due to their research intensive nature, Apple has high R&D costs, which

means that Apple is far less cost effective in a very saturated market. While they

currently hold 90% of the portable music market, Apple is constantly relying on

innovation to keep it ahead, putting the company in a risky position if its R&D

does not come through.

Moreover, Apple has a hard time selling the Mac

computer to many customers do to the perception that the Macintosh is

incompatible with other PCs and software. In other words, customers get scared

of an operating system that looks different then windows and assume it doesn't

work the same. While this is not true, it hinders the ability of Apple to steal

away existing PC users to grow its market share.

Finally, Apple has problems

with some customers due to the high prices of many of their products. While

this has not hindered their sales in the portable music market yet, it can be

traced to problems within their computer market sales.

Market Opportunities

Within the industries that Apple competes there are numerous

opportunities for increased market share and growth. Since Apple is already

recognized as one of the main leaders in the portable music market they have

the ability to further increase their company image and quality

image reputation. This will allow Apple to maintain their already

well established clientele as well as attract new customers. Within

the personal computer market Apple is expected to sustain

substantial market share gains in 2005 because customers are

awaiting the launch of Windows Longhorn for Microsoft.

On the portable music side of things, it is speculated that if Apple were to

release a flash-memory based mp3 player that its music business

would be worth close to 5 billion by 2006.

As a final point, many speculate that Apple's entire line of Macintosh computers will gain market share due to the halo effect of the iPod.

Market Threats

There are many potential threats that Apple faces everyday. The primary threat that they face is the rapid advancement in technology. Since most people judge the computer on the speed (GHz) of its CPU, Apple has had a hard time with customers considering the Macintosh inferior in

speed to the PC. Although, recently the new Macintosh

computers have begun using 64bit technology as opposed to the PC which is still primarily using 32bit technology.

This has given Apple a slight edge to their

speed problem. Therefore, Apple must make sure that

they stay up-to-date and on the cutting edge of

advancements and innovations. One slip in their R&D

department and Apple could lose an enormous amount of their market share.

One final note is the threat of Napster, Apple's primary competitor to its iTunes

Provided by Apple.com

iPod Shuffler Flash Player Image property of Napster.com

music service. Napster has begun aggressively marketing its new service which

allows unlimited music downloads which are "rented" to the mp3 unit while the

subscription is active. This service, costing only $14.95 a month, is the first

serious challenge to iTunes 99 cent per song download business strategy.

Whether or not Napster will effectively unseat Apple is yet to be seen, but shows

the vulnerability of Apple's portable music market share.

Competitive Strategy Analysis

In such a highly competitive industry where superior quality and brand

image are key success factors for a computer company, it is necessary for

computer companies to become cost leaders or differentiate themselves by

offering a unique product. Apple has become known as a computer company

that has innovative and stylish computers and music playe

Answer 2

because an apple a day keeps the doctor away so all its employees are always well and ready to work! because an apple a day keeps the doctor away so all its employees are always well and ready to work!
because their products are easy to use, modern, cool, organised, fun and just great.