05/15/2008, 12:35am, EDT
Thursday, May 15th
Part I: Apple's success due to solid infrastructure
Some in the industry attribute Apple's recent success with luck or happenstance, while others believe that the company's meticulously laid plans have contributed to the Mac state of mind. Inside CRM reports that Apple's retail stores are a shining example of this, cutting out the oft-uninformed middle man to speak directly to the consumer, allowing it to dispel rumors based on inexperience with the platform. It also provides a face-to-face customer basis, rather than relying on third party retailers.
Apple's ability to create product ecosystems – such as Mac OS X and the Mac computing platform, or iTunes and the iPod – also helps with the matter, providing the company an unprecedented amount of quality control.
The "Get a Mac" ad campaign also helps consumers relate to the company, providing a physical interpretation of the Mac mindset. A varied product portfolio, which now spans music, TV, communication and computing, has also helped Apple's image.
Apple's proprietary technologies, such as the FairPlay digital rights management software, is another way (albeit a slightly darker one) the company holds on to its users. Users who download from the iTunes store are less likely to jump ship to a competing brand, due to their investment in the platform.
Filed under: iPod, iPhone, industry, Apple
Other story tags: retail
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Or...
Or maybe its the switch to Intel and the fact that they make compelling and superior tech (software and hardware). What do I know though, it's not like I switched in the past couple years and turned into a Mac addict... oh wait I did and did
about??
"providing the company an unprecedented about of quality control"
for the love of god, is it really too much to ask that you proofread your own stories?
mix, burn, rip
All my iTunes music is safely backed up on CD in un-DRMed format, and it plays fine on my non-Apple music player. Apple makes it so easy to "Mix, Burn, Rip"... why would anyone NOT take advantage of that to keep from being locked in?
Temp ban the grammar nazi
eldarkus, shut the hell up. I'm sick and tired of reading all of these grammar or spelling related comments.
On Topic:
Apple's Solid base in OS X has allowed it to come out with products like AppleTV and the iPhone/iTouch far more quickly than the competition and with fewer bugs because of that shared common OS X core.