Question

The product is Apple AirPods

1. Discuss consumer responses to the current marketing communications and provide examples of these strategies.
2. Summarize brand influencers and describe how they affect the consumer decision-making process. Include examples of these influences.
3. Discuss how marketers have applied the diffusion of innovation model to their marketing communications for the brand.

Answer 1

Apple's marketing strategy on its products like Airpods is so very placed to the consumers so that it feels like a premium brand to have it as a status with its own unique selling point (USP).

Apple's marketing its products have achieved so much excellence from manufacturing to marketing consumers the products that they love with an effective benchmarking for others who engaged in gaining global popularity, revenue growth & staying in power.

1. The consumer responses to the current marketing communications apple uses can be best understood with the strategies that it follows which is explained below:-

• Rethinking the need for Advertising- Here apple uses PPC ads with Google or Facebook when it's required to increase sales by communicating in this means but apple knows that's not always working so apple relies on two strategies for example- product placement with celebrities & in popular shows & another is the buzz created by the positive reviews in the media.
• Avoiding price wars by focusing on Unique Value proposition- Here apple knows that competing on prices like other businesses will not benefit them so they never wavered on pricing strategy. Here apple focuses on UVP( Unique Value proposition) which on its beautiful design, it's a marketing strategy that gets juice through social media which is a very important competitive advantage for apple & its market share.
• To keep the Marketing & products Simple- Here it's another strategy where apple understands that technology consumers often get overwhelmed. For Example- Apple reduces consumer confusion by simplifying thier web & sales copy, they completely removed jargon or industry terms instead focused on direct words to communicate as part of thier brilliance in content marketing.
• By knowing who your audience is & talking them in thier language- Here apple uses this strategy to communicate the consumers where it knows very well thier customers & developed a loyalty in thier market share which can speak to them in thier language which makes them comfortable not confused. For Example- for iPod, it isn't just a music player & storage device but it lets you store hours of music in your pocket. Creating the customer based customized interface to communicate each group of customers apple as made remarkable presence.
• Apple Aims at prospects of Emotions- Here apple knows how to communicate the consumers by using this strategy. Emotional connections are the key to successful marketing strategies where apple uses. For example- Apple knows that positive feelings about the business actually have a bigger impact on customer loyalty than the level of trust & other judgment based thoughts that might be more objectively supported with emotions that are used to position the product.

2. Here to understand the brand influencers & how they affect the consumer decision-making process can be explained below:-

• Brand influencers focus on consumer behavior analysis to understand thier decision-making process.
• Here there is a wheel of consumer behavior to research about them as effect & cognition, Consumer behavior & consumer environment which affect the consumer decision-making process.
• Here affect is the response made by an individual towards stimuli. For example- here apple uses brand assets such as logo & brand messages across to communicate to attract the feelings/ emotions to get such effect. Cognition- here it performs the mental process which is planning to decision making. For example- here cognition is consumers' knowledge, belief's & meanings where apple focuses.
• Here consumer behavior is the physical actions of consumers that can be observed directly & measured by others which is another decision-making tool in understanding, analyzing & influencing behavior which leads to sales & profits ultimately. For Example- Apple uses the insights to tailor products & brand messages that focus on audience making products & understanding the consumer decision making process.
• Lastly, the consumer environment influences a lot on the decision-making process which is based on social & physical attributes of the world around with relationships, physical objects & social behavior overall. For example- The brand loyalty apple uses in the physical environment gives a lot of attention & focus in retail as a consumer environment for decision making.

3. Here the marketers apply the diffusion of innovation model of thier marketing communications for thier brand can be explained as follows:-

• Based on Rogers's research we see that everyone will not immediately adopt disruptive ideas despite obvious benefits. Here based on this can identify some personality traits that help in organize how people accept innovation & can understand.
• The Innovators (2.5%)- here these are the first individuals to adopt the innovation which willing to take risks, having the highest social classes & great financial stability.
• The Early adopters(14%)- Here these are the second fast set of people who adopt innovation have the highest degree of opinion leadership among the other adopter categories.
• The Early Majority(34%)- Here these individuals adopt an innovation after a varying a degree over time. The time of adoption is longer captured to others which have average social status & hold seldom position of opinion leadership.
• The Late Majority(34%)- Here the individuals will adopt an innovation after the average member in the society & high degree of skepticism.
• The Laggards (16%)- Here these individuals are last to adopt the innovations, unlike the other categories which are explained by Rogers in this model. These are the aversion as change agents & tend to advance the age which they have lower social status & have very little or no opinion leadership.

Therefore based on all of this the diffusion of innovation model of thier marketing communicates thier brand by which the company initiates to bring the change in its marketing strategies on innovation.