Life Cycle Management Analysis

Essay by angiekayCollege, UndergraduateA+, August 2009

download word file, 3 pages 1.0

Apple Inc., a well-known consumer electronics company, has released a high-demand product to the marketplace…the iPod portable MP3 player. The iPod is a small, portable, digital music player that allows consumers to quickly and easily purchase, download, and listen to music. "As with any new product in the marketplace, Apple Inc. has taken steps to manage this product throughout its marketing life cycle"(Solomon, Marshall, & Stuart, 2008) .

A description of the product's objectives and marketing strategiesThere are several aspects of Apple Inc.'s marketing of the iPod. However, the company's product marketing strategies have evolved and changed throughout the product life cycle.

According to Shiu (2005) "Apple has identified an opportunity in a growing market and has exploited it effectively by coming up with a concept that is valued by consumers". Apple Inc. has the objective of making Mac the "hub" of consumer lifestyles which supports the company's goal of frequently releasing innovative new products in an effort to stay ahead of the competition as well as keeping consumers happy.

Solomon, Marshall, and Stuart (2008) state "To be effective, product-related objectives must be measurable, clear-cut, and realistic. Also, they must indicate a specific time frame". Apple Inc. quickly began creating software for the growing market of personal digital devices. Digital cameras, camcorders and organizers had well-established mainstream markets, but the company found existing digital music players insufficient with user interfaces that were "unbelievably awful,"(Shiu, 2005). So in less than one year, Apple decided to develop its own.

Objectives for new products such as the iPod, also relate to successful introductions…The Introduction phase of the productThe goal in the introduction stage is to get first-time buyers to try the product. Apple Inc. definitely achieved that goal, mostly through effective advertising campaigns, as well as a number of publicity events.