Introduction
The report covers the iPhone 12 and its related information. The product is going to be launched in 2020, and this report has taken various aspects of the product launch next year. The report includes competitive information, SWOT, demand forecast, and segmentation and positioning strategies. The report helps know the expected performance of the product in the coming year upon launch.
Competitive Information
Apple is going to launch iPhone 12 in 2020, and there are rumors about the specification and design of the product. The first thing with the launch is that iPhone 11 launched in 2019 was a success. Millions of iPhones are sold out, and it is getting a response. However, the market response to iPhone 11 can help forecast the response for iPhone 12 in 2020. With the help of the competition faced by the iPhone 11, it is easier to predict the competition in the business for iPhone 12.
At the moment, the highest competition for iPhone 11 would be for storage and 5G compatibility features. Samsung and Huawei have emerged as a threat to iPhones because they offer affordable, high-quality products. Samsung Galaxy Note 10, Samsung Galaxy S10, LG V50, Huawei Mate X, and Moto Z4 are some of the competitors of the iPhone 12 on the 5G technology basis (La, 2019). Direct competitors for the company and its upcoming product are Samsung and Huawei. Samsung is a direct competitor because it has been competing with the company successfully for years. Huawei has the edge over the Chinese market where iPhone 11 could not perform well.
Competitive theory
Batko (2017) presented the theoretical approach of dynamic analytical capabilities and competitive advantage. The theory states that there is a relationship between dynamic analytical capabilities, competitive advantage, and analytical maturity of an organization. The theory is appropriate for iPhone 12, and the company may make it competitive using this theory (Batko, 2017).
Environmental Scanning SWOT
iPhone 11 has got acceptance in the market, but there are some indications of low response from Asian markets. Therefore, iPhone 12 has to consider elements of internal and external analysis. SWOT analysis has both the features of a product and company.
| Strengths
Apple has a high position in terms of quality and market value Customers wait for its products It has the power to lead customers in a unique way |
Weaknesses
The company offers high prices of its products iPhone 11 could not get desired response in Asian markets especially in China iPhone 12 may face a similar challenge iPhone 12 would also lack software compatibility with other software |
| Opportunities
iPhone 12 has the opportunities to present 5G technology iPhone 12 may come with more excellent storage and widescreen The company can deal with Chinese regulators to be attractive to the Chinese market |
Threats
iPhone 12 may find risks of low acceptance in the Asian market A high price may prevent a large number of customers from buying it
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Weaknesses and threats faced by iPhone 12 and Apple Inc. are because of turbulence in the environment. The technology company does business in a dynamic environment. Research states that turmoil in the external market hurts the planning. Organizations choose a complexity reduction strategy or the complexity absorption strategy to minimize threats and weaknesses (Kim, 2016). Apple has to select a complexity reduction approach to deal with risks and deficiencies present in the SWOT analysis. The decline of sales in the Chinese market requires the company to use social media strategies to respond to their concerns so that they can repurchase its products (Fan & Niu, 2016).
Demand Forecasted
The iPhone 12 has an advantage of 5G technology. There are strong rumors from experts that Apple Inc would offer 5G technology compatible sets. There are reports that predictions of sales of iPhone 12 are beyond the 100 million orders as sources claim, Apple has informed supply chain partners. The reason for the increase in consumption is the demand of 5G technology. The comparison of sales of previous iPhones can help understand the difference. Currently, the forecasted sales for iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro are approximately 80 million units. Experts also claim that the company is thinking of bringing upgrades in the hardware of the iPhone 12 in comparison with the last two years. It shows an enormous difference in the product (Mayo, 2019).
The iPhone 12 would appeal to customers eager to purchase high quality and innovative technology featuring phones for their use. If the product contains innovative features in its hardware, then it would sell at high quantity. As a result, there is an enormous, forecasted demand for iPhone 12 when it will be released in 2020 (MacRumors , 2019). Estimates are that iPhone 12 might have bundled AirPods (Page, 2019). The demand forecast shows high sales for the product, and it may become one of the highest sold iPhones from Apple Inc. The company has to now look at the segmentation, targeting, and positioning strategies as well.
Specific Market Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning Statements
The iPhone 12 would be a high-priced phone because of two main reasons. First, it is coming with the latest 5G technology, and it may contain significant hardware advancements in it. Second, there are high rumors of the phone, and they are higher than previous models from the company. Market segmentation for iPhone 12 would consist of affluent people with high incomes. The company has to target those who are technology conscious, and they may decide to purchase the product only because of significant innovations in this phone. The positioning statement for the iPhone 12 would be fascinating because the company pays little attention to the advertisement. The company feels relaxed in the positioning of its products that are highly innovative and remain in a prestigious position in the market. However, it requires expertise if the product attracts customers from Asian and Chinese markets where the previous iPhone 11 could not perform well. It would be a big challenge for iPhone 12 to keep away from the US-China trade war. However, there is not much change expected in segmentation, target market, and positioning statements for iPhone 12 as they would be similar to the previous ones. At this point, the company has to adopt a strategy to facilitate user perceptions and choices in product development (Wang, 2016). For this reason, the company has to orient its STP strategy to have more information from customers (Barton, 2015).
References
Barton, L., 2015. Active Positioning: The Importance of Relevancy. Journal of Marketing Perspectives, 1, pp.48-57.
Batko, K., 2017. Relation between dynamic analytical capabilities and competitive advantage: theoretical approach. Ekonomia i Prawo, 16(3), pp.259-273.
Fan, Y. & Niu, R.H., 2016. To tweet or not to tweet? Exploring the effectiveness of service recovery strategies using social media. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 36(9), pp.1014-1036.
Kim, S., 2016. Strategic predisposition in communication management. Journal of Communication Management, 20(3), pp.232-254.
La, L., 2019. iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max specs vs. Galaxy S10, Note 10 and Pixel 3 XL Android phones. [Online] Available at: https://www.cnet.com/news/iphone-11-pro-max-specs-vs-samsung-galaxy-s10-note-10-and-pixel-3-xl-android-phones-price-camera-compare/ [Accessed 3 December 2019].
MacRumors , 2019. iPhone 12. [Online] Available at: https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/iphone-12/ [Accessed 3 December 2019].
Mayo, B., 2019. Apple reportedly forecasting >100 million iPhone 12 sales in 2020, thanks to 5G demand. [Online] Available at: https://9to5mac.com/2019/11/25/iphone-12-5g-demand/ [Accessed 3 December 2019].
Page, C., 2019. Apple’s iPhone 12 might ship with bundled AirPods. [Online] Available at: https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/3065654/iphone-12-release-date-price-specs-free-airpods [Accessed 3 December 2019].
Wang, C.-h., 2016. Integrating correspondence analysis with Grey relational model to implement a user-driven STP product strategy for smart glasses. Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, 27(5), pp.1007-1016.
