Apple Inc., the American multinational company which reshaped and redesigned the world of technology, is the No1 example which illustrates that with the right Public Relations and (online and offline) marketing any company with special products can not only survive but conquer the market. Though many years of innovative advertising and carefully protecting its symbol in an area of glass, Steve Job’s brand is one of the most recognizable and respected brands in the world.
iPhone, iPod, iPad, Mac, Apple watch are few examples of the company’s products for which millions of customers have waited and are still willing to wait for hours in the queues just to be the first to touch or buy an Apple product. Most of Apple’s products become a sensation before even they are launched! Customers’ loyalty knows no limit in the case of Apple; what is also different regarding this leading company was and is that they care about their customer and that is the reason why they offer an exceptional customer service, an important factor which is neglected by many technology companies. The targeted customers of Apple were always the rebels, the misfits the “cool” and friendly people who think different from the rest. The rest, who were not their targeted group, were the customers of IBM and relevant competitors who were the too “serious” ones. TV advertisements, videos, printed advertisements, memorable campaigns communicated perfectly the message the company wanted to reflect and showed clearly which customers wanted to target. The success is still counting to billions of dollars for the company.
However, this was not always the case. In the late of 90s the company was facing a strong competition by other technology competitors and it was close to bankruptcy; Apple didn’t seem to take the lead. But it was until 1997 when Steve Jobs returned to the company and changed the direction completely. From the start of the millennium the launch of unimaginable products promoted through clever and simple-language advertisements, unordinary campaigns with strong storytelling, content partnerships with famous TV professionals such as Oprah etc enhanced the profitability of Apple at a great extent.
In spite of all the above marketing & PR factors that helped the company boost its profitability and dominate the world, there are few more useful and important PR & marketing lessons which we all can learn from Apple. Few of them are: The Principle of scarcity in always simple products (free publicity due to long queues); Simple communications & press releases towards our audience; Cultivation of close relationships with media influencers & reporters covering a specific area; Creation of digital communities though social media (social media accounts and communities should reflect our corporate values), to name but a few.
Apple has always been a premium brand that delivered premium value to its customers. The company needed to differentiate in everything they did and still do. Today, Apple has smartly introduced new products and is keep diversifying into new areas.
“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do”
— Steve Jobs.
Public Relations 