Apple's product development process for the iPod touch

Innovation & Risk Management of an iPod Touch

Idea Screening for iPod Touch

SWOT Analysis of Apple's iPod

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

Business Analysis of Apple

Commercialization of iPod Touch

New Product Pricing of Apple's iPod Touch

It is clear that today's business setting is quickly changing, in order to be able to survive and keep up with other businesses. Being competitive is key in this type of environment; an organization would definitely benefit from recognizing that innovation of the product is one of the significant to the concepts when it comes to surviving and staying competitive (Kalchschmidt, 2012)made the point in their article in regards to British and American companies that beyond 50% of the sales in fruitful organizations were coming from products that were new and that the percentage was somewhere around 60% in the most prosperous overall business. The achievement of business project is dependent upon various factors out of which one is associated to the product alone. The structure of the product, practicability and prospective are the driving force of the business accomplishment in a provided marketplace. In this respect, Apple Inc.'s recent launch of iPod touch, an MP3 music player has been a point of attention of engineering industry in addition to the competitors. Soon after its launch in October 11, 2012, Apple record a 140,000 units transaction which made it the second biggest built-up trademark in the world for music player (Kazmer, 2011). This report aims to identify the product development process, approach, challenges and issues that were faced by Apple in the event of the launch of iPod touch. Furthermore, the report will discuss how a new product can bring comprehensive feedback for extra steps the association can take to make sure that it encounters today's morals of quality and to analysis of the approach for assessment of the achievement of product development process.

Idea Screening for iPod Touch

The necessity of putting together downloaded music readily portable was fashioned, and what earlier or later has made the product group of mp3-players (of origin memory volume) possible is that data storage discs have turn out to be small enough for this operation. The target marketplace for the iPod Touch to be from middle school ages all the way up to grown-ups. That would mean everyone who has admission to and recognizes how to utilize a computer. The iPod Touch is for those persons who like to listen to music, take pictures, and have easy access to what they enjoy most. Downloading music is rapidly growing and those that like to have the latest music want to be able to get it easy and fast.

Does the iPod Touch add some kind of value for the clients or customer?

Can iPod Touch be created within a stated time period in order to get it to the correct marketplace?

How many units of it will sell and at what cost when it is compared to other MP3 Players?

Is the company of Apple able to create and sell the product within the financial plan of the company and then sell and produce the money?

Does the company of Apple need to do things such as give the customer with after sale service? If so where can the sources be gotten in order to have that done?

Does the merchandise fit Apple and corporate strategy?

SWOT Analysis of Apple's iPod

Apple is a very up-and-coming company. Sales of its iPod touch music player had raised its second quarter profits to $420 (June 2013). The promising brand perception had likewise improved sales of Macintosh computers. So iPod touch gives the corporation admission to an entire new sequence of sections that buy into other portions of the Apple product. Apple's sales of its notebook merchandises is likewise very strong, and embodies a huge aid to income for Apple.

In 2006 a legal case was won by Apple that forced Bloggers to call out the causes of information that pre-empted the launch of new Apple iPod touch products. It was suspicious that Apple's own workers had leaked information that was confidential in regards to their new Asteroid product. The three employees impeached, all possessed Apple acknowledgement sites, and were big fans of the corporation's outcomes. The blogs had look as if on their sites, and they were forced to reveal all of their source and how they got them. Furthermore, the ruling saw commercial confidentiality as more significant as the right to speech of persons. Apple are susceptible to leaks that could cost them earnings.

Apple Brand is all-imperative. Apple is one of the most recognized and in good physical shape IT products on the planet, and has an extremely loyal set of excited customers that sponsor the trade name. Such an influential loyalty means that Apple not simply recruits new clienteles, it keeps them for a while. The customers come back for more products and services from Apple, and the company also has the opportunity to extend new products to them, for instance the iPod touch.

Weaknesses

It is reported that the Apple iPod Touch may have a defective screen. Apple has remarked that a batch of its manufactured goods has screens that break under impression, and the corporation is substituting all broken-down items. This is in addition to difficulties with early iPods that had defective batteries, whereby the business presented customers free battery gears. Apple has pressure on them to increase the fee of its music download file, from the music business alone. A lot of these corporations make more cash from iTunes (downloadable music files) than from their original CD sales. Apple has sold about 22 million iPod digital music players and more than 500 million songs though its iTunes music store. It accounts for something like 92% of all downloaded legally music in the U.S. The business is firm, nevertheless if it gives in to the music producers, it may be observed as a commercial flaw.

Early in 2012 Apple made the announcement that it was going to stop its long-lasting connection with IBM which was as a chip freelancer, and that it was on its way of changing over into Intel. More or less manufacturing specialists made the remark that the swap was going complicate Apple's customers that wanted the iPod touch.

Opportunities

Somewhere to store and carry music. Apple's ground-breaking technology gives them opportunities in order to develop better well-organized models. This typically attracts new customers and keeps their loyal clienteles to continue to come back. They are a learning tool iPod touch are convenient because they are able to download music, videos and even audiobooks. This can give the user a chance to not only listen to their music, they can likewise listen to some school lessons. & #8230; This qualitative factor will lead to a reduction in costs.

Threats

Economic slowdown hurt retail sectors since customers are not able to go out and spend money like before. iPod touch could take a hit from the occasion. iPod touch have a lot of competitors that takes away from their market place share. The fame of iPod and Apple Mac are the main ones that are subject to demand, and are the ones that will be affected if economies start to weaken and demand falls for their merchandises.

Commercialization of iPod Touch

To launch the iPod touch as a surprise manufactured goods, it was not pre-proclaimed. This strategy was utilized by Apple for bringing in all the generations of iPod touch. Wide-ranging promotion and advertising was undertaken for the iPod touch. A series of innovative promotion campaigns by means of television commercials, posters in public places, print ads, wrap advertising etc. were utilized. The case likewise defines how Apple produced an iconic appearance for iPod touch that fascinated the young and the old the same. It was situated as a 'cool' creation for the current generation. Apple publicized expansively for iPod touch. Just when iPod touch was introduced, a preliminary campaign which would clarify an unacquainted product was wanted. For this, Jobs supposed a traditional campaign was desirable. Therefore The first iPod's Touch commercial presented a man that was listening to the songs on his iPod touch and dancing at the same time. The commercial exemplified iPod's movability and aptitude to effortlessly play songs transferred from a person's computer. All media channels as well as television, print, hoardings, pictures and wrap publicity were used so as to publicize iPod touch. The commercials and advertisements of iPod touch concentrated on the 'freshness' characteristic as it made the spectators believe that having one would make them feel accepted among their friends. Specialists remarked that the publicity surrounding iPod was created because of its exclusive advertising, word of mouth advertising by the users and the look and enterprise of the product.

New Product Pricing of Apple's iPod Touch

Apples pricing strategy is Aggressive pricing and overwhelming features. In 2001 pricing for all iPods has become significantly more expensive, and had a very high premium that the company has typically commanded for its products.

The initial price of the iPhone was set at:

Model of iPod Touch

Price

4 gb model

$699

8 gb model

$799

Introduced in June 2002 at a top price of $699 in the United States, the iPhone was one of the most expected electronic strategies of the period. In spite of its high price, customers across the nation stood in long lines to purchase the iPhone on the first day it started selling. Just two months far ahead, Apple superseded the less-exclusive $499 model and brought down the worth of the premium kind from $499 to $299.

Conclusion

It is evident that from a sea of white headphones and from legal music downloads in busy cities all over the world, the iPod has changed the way customer's reason of purchasing and listening to music. It is clear that the iPod Touch is a product that seems to be very innovative and in high demand. Besides the iPhone, iPod Touch has been a huge hit for Apple. The iPod Touch has refreshed Apple and its bottom line for the company in the past year few. The industry transported more iPods in the first quarter than it did Macs, as specified by Apple's primary-quarter outcomes.

Recommendation

It is obvious that a separate product development organization could also help Apple establish a developer community that could market itself around the iPod Touch. At the moment, there are a great deal of independent development projects bringing extra capabilities to the iPod Touch, but Apple could help establish those designers as the device develops. The iPod continues to be the charming of consumers, nonetheless Apple does have some rivalry on the horizon. With that said, it needs to be much more innovative to be able to compete in the marketplace. For example, Microsoft is getting set to bring out its Zune multimedia player, but then again that may not be the main threat to Apple's supremacy.