Although the iPhone 11 has been out for almost 2 months now, I thought now is as good as a time of ever to look at Apple as a company and see how crucial they are as a major player in the world economy. When Apple launched in 1976, it quickly became known as a company that had its core customers at heart. Through the early 2000s, Apple continued to advertise to this base, with slogans such as “The computer for the rest of us” and probably their most famous, “Think Different.” When Steve Jobs founded Apple, I don’t think even he, as the visionary as he was, could have imagined the size and influence Apple would have in the modern-day.
According to Forbes, Apple ranks in at number 1 for its “Largest Tech Companies In The World” for 2019, and this is rightfully so. In 2018, Apple brought in 265 billion dollars in revenue, which would rank it 18th in Gross Domestic Product in Europe coming in right under Finland. Although they only have 10% of the global market share for smartphones in 2019, in western countries their market share is as high as 50%. To say that Apple is a phenomenon would be an understatement, but how has Apple done it.
The main idea has to do with brand perception. Apple has put their brand into a premium segment, but what makes this segment different than normal luxury segments is they have advertised their products so well that they keep the premium price, but sell to everyone. They are able to do this by their ease of use and brand status. The perception now has become that anyone, no matter who you are, can use an iPhone. Whether that be the UI design or the fluidity and ecosystem that ties everything together or the fact that it “just works,” Apple has made the iPhone the phone for people who are not enthusiasts and just want a phone that works.
*Financial Numbers based on 2019 Q3 earnings