iPhone Market Share Stats (Research Paper Sample)

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The IPhone Market Share Status
As time moves passes, the necessity to improve the available means of communication increases well. Globalization has led to the improvement in competition avenues and, as such, the call for better business management strategies to compete in the corporate sector. As such, it is important that management of the various products improve on accountability of the said companies through a better understanding of the products with which they are involved in the production. It is only after understanding the product niche in the market, setting the goals and proper marketing of the product that a company can survive competition. The transport and communications sector is a vital sector in the development of any society. There have been several changes in the technology industry thus leading to changes in the telecommunication sector.
The number of communication gadgets available in the modern world is not in any way close to being something that would have been imagined five decades ago. The communication device market is oligopolistic with the fight for the superior share of the market being between Apple’s IOS and Google’s Android. The question many would ask would be what Apple would do so as to retain the bigger part of the market. Apple products are manufactured in such a way as to target the well-off members of the society. According to societal dynamics, the number of well-off folk in any given society is bound to be way less than the struggling individuals. As such, will the IPhone, operating on IOS platform, manage to stay relevant in the market irrespective of the other mobile phone brands operating on the Android platform?
As of the fourth quarter of the year 2013, the IOS controlled 18 percent of the market while Android controlled 78 percent (Edwards, 2014). Conversely, the IPhone controlled such a market as compared to the Android. Other principal competitors in the Smartphones industry include Blackberry and Microsoft with the latter having the smallest market share. The IPhone Smartphones as it is designed for the high class in the society is distributed among people of high income. There are, as a result, some places where one is not likely to see as many IPhones. For instance, the number of IPhones in a Europe is undoubtedly higher than the number in Africa based on the fact that most people in European countries are better off than those in African countries. Most Europeans are, for this reason, in a better position to purchase the product than Africans.
Product SWOT Analysis
The IPhone derives a lot of strength from the brand differentiation advantages. IPhone is viewed as a better phone as it is from Apple, a better and well-distinguished name (Romaniuk 288, 2012). The name has been in the market for long and has established itself as a producer of high-quality electronic products. The success of a product partially relies on the brand name of the given product. At the mention of the name IPhone, what goes through the minds of many is that it is an Apple product. From the knowledge people have of Apple products, one would go for the IPhone without thinking of how suitable the phone will be in his or her daily activity. Having the apple logo is enough to get the phone off the shelf.
In addition to the brand strength, the ability to improve within short periods means that the level of innovation at IPhone is high enough to keep the consumers waiting for the next big thing. In the event that a user knows that there will always be a new product to try out he or she will always stick around waiting for the said new product. The IPhone production team has managed to retain most of its consumers due to the innovative ability of the development team and the ability to keep on improving quality. As such, very few are times when one will hear that a consumer stopped using the product for the option of another better product. In most cases, cost is often the factor behind quitting the use of IPhones.
High cost is the main weakness of IPhones. The phones are manufactured with the aim of being marketed to consumers of high income. There, however, are other manufacturers whose products target all classes of people in the society. The availability of a gap presents a weakness for the company. In its absence, the IPhone would, probably, control a larger market share than it does currently.
There is, as a result, an opportunity as there are no Smartphones operating on the IOS platform that are available or the middle and lower class in the society. There are lots of people in that class who would like to have the pride of owning an Apple product, but are unable to due to their limited finances. In the event, that IPhones, suitable for such a society would be made available, the IPhone would compete better with other Smartphones in the market. Aiming at the unreached market would lead to an increase in the product’s market share.
The primary threat faced by the IPhone comes from Samsung, which runs on an Android platform. Samsung Smartphones have been, over time now, the main competitor to IPhone. The company is, for this reason, IPhones most significant threat. The Korea-based company has, however, been facing challenges in the recent past and has been unable to keep up with the IPhone in making innovations for the Android users. However, Samsung smart phones are just the major competitors. Windows phones, running on a Microsoft platform have recently taken the market by storm and may be out to frustrate IPhone’s efforts to contend for the second majority market shareholder after Android. Conversely, the ever occurring revolution in the technology sector means that the IPhone has to keep on its toes in terms of remaining innovative and optimizing on available opportunities.
Sales volume objectives
Sales made of IPhone have been on the rise in over time. The increase is courtesy of increased awareness of the advantages of owning an IPhone. In 2014, the shipment of 184.1 million units was made by IOS a figure the company seeks to grow to 247.4 million by 2018 (Edwards, 2014). With such a perspective, the company is bound to make adjustments that will see to it that the desired objective is met. Among the factors to contribute to sales increment would be to maintain quality. In the event, that the quality of IPhones is to decrease in any way the goal would not be achieved. A quality product is deemed to market itself. The self-marketing is based on the fact that the consumer is rational and always seeks to maximize utility. Utility from a high-quality product is always more than that from a less quality product due to the less susceptibility to breakages.
Other than quality, another factor that would influence the attainment of sales target volume would be the marketing involved. Choosing the right marketing channel is the road to reaping the highest fruits of any marketing endeavor (Irani, Shahanaghi and Jandaghi 26, 2011). The proper channel means that there would be the correct approach to marketing the product and, in the process, reaches some unreached potential consumers.
Market share goals
Forecast made on market shares indicate that IPhone’s market share in 2018 is likely to shrink to 13.7 percent, down from 14.8 percent in 2014. Much of the loss is likely to go to the Windows phone with the Android phones also shrinking from 80.2 to 77.6 percent in 2018 (Edwards, 2014). IPhone’s market share goals, as a result, are to increase its market share and, at the worst, maintain the same. The ever-changing dynamics in the telecommunication industry would mean that the company has to pool all its resources and fight for its place in the oligopolistic market. Having a better place in the market than other commodities would mean that the company would enjoy economies of scale in addition to gaining the benefits of a being a price setter in the industry.
Profit share objectives
Being the price setter in the industry, Android has been lowering the prices of Smartphones over the past years (Edwards 2014). In the event that an organization is not able to make a lot of sales, the said company is bound to make losses if it sets its prices in accordance with ones set by smart phones running on Android platforms. One of the objectives of any given business is often to increase its revenue over time and, consequently, increase profits. In the event, that the goal is not reached, then the company can be said to have stagnated and beaten the reason for its existence. Given the possibility of shrinking in the market share, the IPhone has to devise mechanisms to ensure that it does not make losses in the end.
The objective of those in management o IPhones at Apple should be to work towards minimizing costs of production. Minimizing costs is a route to increasing profits since the two have an adverse relationship with each other. Other factors that help improve sales made and, as a result, revenue collected, also help increase profits obtained. As such, improvement in marketing shall always result in higher profits cet par.
Marketing strategy
Where a given company cannot manage to satisfy the needs of a consumer, the consumer is highly likely opt for a better product (Irani, Shahanaghi and Jandaghi 26, 2011). It does not mean that satisfaction of a consumer is automatic given the quality of the said product. The initial step in ensuring a particular product reaches an intended client is always making the potential client aware of the presence of the said product. The process of creating awareness of a particular product to the product consumers is known as marketing. As such, marketing marks the most important phase in business as it determines whether all that the management has worked for is to bear fruits by having revenue surpas...