INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
This has so far not been a great year for Apple in India, if we talk specifically about iPhones
Preliminary estimates suggest it has shipped just around one million units in the first half of 2018
Compared to this, in 2017, Apple shipped over 3.1 million iPhones in the country, according to CMR''s India Monthly Mobile Handset Report
It is only in Kerala and Punjab, as per CMR Mobilytiks, that Apple figures among the top three smartphone brands by installed base
In Kerala, it stood third with 5.25 per cent of installed smartphones share as of March-end 2018
In Punjab, it ranked second with 8.03 per cent.So, the big question is: "Has iPhone reached the saturation point of its addressable market"
Well, to my mind, No!There are three segments that could potentially buy an iPhone in India.The first is a technologically-evolved segment
They are well aware of the product and the brand and capable of making the decision on their own.The second segment comprises those who can
afford, and want, the iPhone only because it has a premium tag
Whether or not they understand the iPhone, they would still keep on upgrading to the latest.There is yet another segment, which Apple is not
looking at in any significant way
This segment is of potential buyers who have the pockets to buy the iPhone, but do not understand Apple as a brand and the iPhone as a
For them, it is just another brand and eventually they buy something comparing features and specifications.In that decision-making process,
Apple is always a loser as it has never been in the specs race
Most of these potential buyers go with Android smartphones where they get a huge number of specs at probably half the price of an
iPhone.Converting this segment has never been a focus at Apple India
Over the past few years, we have seen Apple busy only in streamlining its retail channel.Well, I am a strong believer that, among
smartphones, Apple is the only one that has brand-pull and it does not need a push approach where channel becomes paramount
It''s a phone that should have pioneered online sales and that would have worked very well for the company.So, what is it that needs to be
fixed Here are some India-specific points that should constitute its strategy.First and foremost, it has to be consistent in marketing
In a country with an overcrowded smartphone market -- where there is a "flagship" launch of one or the other brand almost every week -- it
is important that a brand that launches just a couple of models a year communicates.This has not been happening so far with Apple in India
It does sometimes get aggressive, painting all newspaper front pages with its ads; but then it goes into hibernation
This is not going to work in India
They have to be consistent in outreach.Second, it is a very closed ecosystem
I have been talking to co-analysts as well as senior media people and all have one feedback: Apple India does not engage with them
The same holds true for the larger ecosystem around devices, especially smartphones
Apple is not engaging the ecosystem and influencers
This is again not creating enough talking points for the brand in India.Third is about educating potential buyers
There are unique features in Apple as an ecosystem which could still excite someone having the capacity to buy an iPhone
For instance, Apple holds very high equity where privacy and security of data are concerned
This is what is being currently aggressively debated in the country
But there is hardly any participation from Apple to make potential buyers aware about how Apple treats privacy and security.Since this
segment of potential buyers is not an evolved one, they would need a bit of hand-holding to understand Apple and the iPhone
This requires a persistent campaign.Moreover, from the products'' point of view, Apple has not invested much in creating India-specific
content or apps that could give more reasons to iPhone users to enjoy their smartphones as well as make them productive
There are still several apps of enterprises and small and mid-size business (SMBs) in India which have a presence only on Android.Lastly, it
is almost absent digitally in India
Apple has to activate itself digitally and engage with the audiences over social media as well as other digital platforms
Otherwise, it looks like one of the icons of technology is not so social.These actionable points could support the iPhone, which is still
one of the best smartphones we have, and increase its potential in India
Here, just having a well-engineered product is not enough
Spice needs to be added to the marketing.(Faisal Kawoosa is Head, New Initiatives, at CyberMedia Research
The views expressed are personal
He can be contacted at releases@cmrindia.com)Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author
The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of TheIndianSubcontinent and TheIndianSubcontinent does not assume
any responsibility or liability for the same.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is
published from a syndicated feed.)
