This article was a good find for the 1st week of class. It is scary to think that the Apple brand is worth half of it's market capitalization...scary if you own stock in Apple anyways. If 50% of the $350 stock price is the value of the brand, that puts a lot of pressure on Apple to continue to come out with products that keep adding value to the brand. It will be interesting to see if this continues as Steve Jobs ends up taking an extended leave of absence, like he had planned before the launch of the ipad2. I guess it has worked on me so far though.
In addition to 50% of the market value coming from brand value, Apples brand value grew whopping 84% last year. People willing to pay such extreme premium is surely a sign of irrational exuberance. Last quarter, Android market share grew 26% to become #1 in smartphone market, while #3 Apple's iPhone market share grew by meager 0.5%. Competition is heating up in the tablet PC market. And it will be interesting to see who will be taking charge of Apple, in the event of Steve Job's extended leave of absence. Maybe the bubble is ready to burst.
It is not surprising that Apple has taken the #1 spot considering the numerous competitive advantages it has created for itself in the Marketplace. The number one advantage is Marketing and brand reputation; even my nine year old daughter told me that for her birthday she wants her very own iPod despite the fact that she has a perfectly good Barbie MP3 player- but that isn't cool anymore. The job that she is hiring it to do fulfills multiple needs: music of course, but also status and self-worth, relaxation and stress removal (yes, even at that age), and fuels her dreams that she is going to be the next Taylor Swift (hope and encouragement). Long gone are the days where we would sit by the radio with our boom box waiting for the DJ to play our favorite song to put on our "mixed tapes." Apple has created a way to deliver instant mood altering experiences via iTunes and allows its customers to hire its services 24/7.
I think Brand Value is obviously very fluid, especially in the technology industry. It is quite clear that Apple has set itself apart from the competition as far as branding is concerned; however, the competition is trailing, and very close behind. I think eventually we will see more and more similar products hit the market, like the Android Operating System. In my experience, my Droid phone is comparable to what have seen in the iPhone. I also own an iPad, so I have been able to compare many of the Droid applications to the iPhone/iPad applications, lots of similarities. I think we will see other products hit the markets in the coming years from heavy hitters like Intel, that already have established branding and deep pockets that will give Apple a run for its money, especially in the tablet market. Maybe someday we will see a heavy shift in marketing strategy from other companies that will create a buzz for their products, they way Apple has for its’ products.
Good work...
ReplyDeleteWay to go on the first post Kristine :-)
ReplyDeleteIt's always a competition with you, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteThis article was a good find for the 1st week of class. It is scary to think that the Apple brand is worth half of it's market capitalization...scary if you own stock in Apple anyways. If 50% of the $350 stock price is the value of the brand, that puts a lot of pressure on Apple to continue to come out with products that keep adding value to the brand. It will be interesting to see if this continues as Steve Jobs ends up taking an extended leave of absence, like he had planned before the launch of the ipad2. I guess it has worked on me so far though.
ReplyDeleteIn addition to 50% of the market value coming from brand value, Apples brand value grew whopping 84% last year. People willing to pay such extreme premium is surely a sign of irrational exuberance. Last quarter, Android market share grew 26% to become #1 in smartphone market, while #3 Apple's iPhone market share grew by meager 0.5%. Competition is heating up in the tablet PC market. And it will be interesting to see who will be taking charge of Apple, in the event of Steve Job's extended leave of absence. Maybe the bubble is ready to burst.
ReplyDeleteIt is not surprising that Apple has taken the #1 spot considering the numerous competitive advantages it has created for itself in the Marketplace. The number one advantage is Marketing and brand reputation; even my nine year old daughter told me that for her birthday she wants her very own iPod despite the fact that she has a perfectly good Barbie MP3 player- but that isn't cool anymore. The job that she is hiring it to do fulfills multiple needs: music of course, but also status and self-worth, relaxation and stress removal (yes, even at that age), and fuels her dreams that she is going to be the next Taylor Swift (hope and encouragement). Long gone are the days where we would sit by the radio with our boom box waiting for the DJ to play our favorite song to put on our "mixed tapes." Apple has created a way to deliver instant mood altering experiences via iTunes and allows its customers to hire its services 24/7.
ReplyDeleteI think Brand Value is obviously very fluid, especially in the technology industry. It is quite clear that Apple has set itself apart from the competition as far as branding is concerned; however, the competition is trailing, and very close behind. I think eventually we will see more and more similar products hit the market, like the Android Operating System. In my experience, my Droid phone is comparable to what have seen in the iPhone. I also own an iPad, so I have been able to compare many of the Droid applications to the iPhone/iPad applications, lots of similarities. I think we will see other products hit the markets in the coming years from heavy hitters like Intel, that already have established branding and deep pockets that will give Apple a run for its money, especially in the tablet market. Maybe someday we will see a heavy shift in marketing strategy from other companies that will create a buzz for their products, they way Apple has for its’ products.
ReplyDelete