Sample content Integrated Marketing Communications Plan Paper MKT 498 Executive Summary Apple has a great reputation in the field of electronics and after evaluation it was observed that the business sector was indeed an appropriate target market for the iPad 2. Apple’s Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) analyzed small and medium scale businesses. These factors were evaluated during the analysis: the competition, value chains, opportunities, product life-cycles, consumers, target market, and market segmentation. Through the analysis it was seen that Apple not only has competitive advantages but also a brand name because of efficient marketing and loyal customers. All these advantages have not stopped Apple from observing the market minutely and preparing strategies that will give them a market share of small and medium businesses (SMB). The IMC has divided the business sector into more groups based on the size of the firm and the amount of workers. Apple is constant

1. MKT 498 Week 5 Integrated Marketing Communications Plan Paper
Link : http://uopexam.com/product/mkt-498-week-5-integrated-marketing-communications-
plan-paper/
Sample content
Integrated Marketing Communications Plan Paper
MKT 498
Executive Summary

2. Apple has a great reputation in the field of electronics and after evaluation it was
observed that the business sector was indeed an appropriate target market for the
iPad 2. Apple’s Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) analyzed small
and medium scale businesses. These factors were evaluated during the analysis:
the competition, value chains, opportunities, product life-cycles, consumers, target
market, and market segmentation. Through the analysis it was seen that Apple not
only has competitive advantages but also a brand name because of efficient
marketing and loyal customers. All these advantages have not stopped Apple from
observing the market minutely and preparing strategies that will give them a market
share of small and medium businesses (SMB). The IMC has divided the business
sector into more groups based on the size of the firm and the amount of workers.
Apple is constantly keeping a check on these groups and the respective distribution
channels to ensure efficiency of IMC.
Apple brand positioning targeting innovation, quality and entrepreneurialism add
up to $348.2M. The amount Apple spends on advertising is $411M which includes
all the various means like trade shows and exhibitions, print, web, and video
media, television commercial productions, and merchandise and apparel branding.
Sales budget of iPad amounts to $165.6M which enables Apple to carry out
forceful marketing and communications campaign concentrating on the domain of
retail. The sales campaign is hoped to grab 20% of the business consumers.
Corporate branded PR (Public Relations) will make the IMC more effective and
give the brand a name. Three small business association conferences allow the PR
techniques to be carried out. Promotional tactics created for the target market can
be used by the sales team.
Integrated Marketing Communications Plan Paper
Business men will find the iPad 2 very efficient for business activities. Apple
intends to place the iPad strategically among the business sector through effective
marketing. To achieve this goal a well-developed Integrated Marketing Campaign
(IMC) is required. The whole IMC plan will be summarized in this paper. A market
opportunity analysis will also be defined. After this, tablet market appraisal will be
carried out which is the founding stone of market penetration strategy. In other
words, an effective IMC plan will be described in this paper and to measure the
probability of it being successful.
Opportunity Analysis
Competitive Analysis

3. A tablet is a tool which is a combination of a smart phone and a laptop. When
Apple released the first iPad in 2010, the industry of electronic devices saw a
massive rise in the demand for tablets. When the demand rose, more tablets
started coming into the market released by competitors. Since August 2011, twenty
one tablets parallel to the iPad have been released, but market analysis says that
every tablet developed is not exactly the same (Tablet Comparison, 2011). This
analysis was conducted to compare the five best and most liked brands
manufacturing tablets. A tablet has many qualities and applications but the analysis
will be conducted based on the following qualities of each tablet: price, weight,
battery life, diagonal screen size, screen resolution and disk size. This
comparison’s objective is to identify what tablet offers the best value corresponding
with the retail price and which has the most noticeable competitive advantages.
Table 1
Tablet side-by-side comparison
Device
Price
Weight lbs
Battery hrs
Screen Size
Resolution
Disk Size
Samsung Galaxy
$435
.80
6
7.0

4. 1024 x 786
32
Acer Iconia
$445
1.60
7
10.1
1280 x 800
16
BlackBerry Play Book
$460
.90
7
7.0
1024 x 786
64
Apple iPad 2
$519
1.33

5. 10
9.7
1024 x 768
64
ASUS Eee
$1199
2.53
5
12
1280 x 800
64
A glance at table one tells us that BlackBerryTM, Apple iPad 2 and ASUS Eee
rank the highest in the domain of disk size. When the rest of the qualities are taken
into account that is weight, battery life and price, Apple and BlackBerryTM are at
the top of the list. With the above table in front of us, it is clear that the Apple iPad 2
is not the absolute best in each attribute but nevertheless it has been the leader of
the tablet market ever since its launch in March 2011. The Apple brand has a high
reputation and the applications which are exclusive to apple such as iTunes,
FaceTime, and iCloud give iPad an advantage. Thus the qualities which really
make the iPad stand out are the facilities of downloadable applications, battery life,
screen size, and cost. International Business Times (2011) states, that people who
are in the search for PC items still go for Apple products and software. 95% of the
tablets in the world belong to Apple. Apple is known for its creative and up-to-date
products. The modern designs and the high quality operating system display the
reputation of Apple. Apple is popular not because it is perfect and is unable to
make any errors but because they address these errors and alter them as soon as
possible.
Value chain analysis (Distribution)

6. The value chain analysis consists of these steps: traffic raw materials,
development, production, advertising, distribution, and listening to the consumer.
Every stage of this process is essential because each has its own value, unique
quality and competitive advantage. The Apple iPad 2 can be taken as an example.
Apple has a reputation for the development of the most innovative technology.
Along with the best marketing campaign to increase the brand name, the product
becomes the first choice of all customers, be it for entertainment or for business.
R&D and
Product Design
Marketing & Advertising
Distribution Channels
Service &
Product Support
-Product Features/Style
-Promotion & Price
-Placement
-Apple Stores
-First Generation
Upgrades/Modifications
-Price Flexibility
-Distribution warehouse
-Apple.com
-Apple Accessories

7. -Quality Expectations
-Speed/Graphics
-Resolutions
-Advertising budget
-Product Exposure
-Sales team
-Personal Selling
-Interaction
-Applications & Software
-Itunes
-App Store
-Time line &
Date of Release
-Public Relations
-Distribution (selected vendors)
-Customer service support
-Warranty & Repairs
Figure 1. Value chain analysis for Apple iPad 2
Opportunity analysis

8. The competitive advantage of Apple is another thing that makes it successful. It
not only gives its products to the customers, but also gives some tantalizing
possibilities with it: the numerous applications, the advancements the product will
experience as time goes by and also the possibility of accessories, support and
maintenance on a physical, online location. Customer loyalty also plays a part.
Customers know that Apple products improve every time. If they have a complaint
about the product, Apple doesn’t ignore it but addresses it in the next update or in
the next product. Apple pays attention to the customers and doesn’t disappoint
them. The Research & Development team of Apple knows what to do to
improve a product. When the first iPad came out, iPad was ready with the next
version only a year after. The latest features and customers’ views incorporated
into the iPad made it very successful and it soon became one of the most popular
technological products used.
Product Cycle Analysis
The Apple iPad 2 was launched this year and the growth in its sales has never
stopped. IPad 2 is still considered the newest product and has just deviated from
the growth phase. Apple always endeavors to improve its products which mean
that a new product may already be in the hands of the Research &
Development department. IPad 2 is close to its maturity phase but Apple is still
working on producing more accessories and updates for iPad 2 to improve it as
much as possible. The iPad continues to linger between growth and maturity
because of these constant updates. Because of Apple’s brand name, it
does not have to reduce its prices in order to stay above the competitors. IPad 2
has defeated the competition in the amount of sales as well as the quality of the
features. A push strategy is not essential at this stage. The product’s life
cycle can easily be increased through various applications like iTunes and App
Store. Since PCs can be used with other Apple devices, Apple has begun to cross
sell Mac and other products. The latest versions of Apple products contain an
application called iCloud which can access data, software, music and other
applications. This new app makes the customer more satisfied with the usage of
new Apple products (Apple, 2011b).
Top of Form
Target Market Analysis
Ever since the iPad 2 was unveiled in March, 2011, it has been the forerunner of
tablets. International Business Times (2011) says that customers are still more
attached to Apple devices. 95% of the tablets that are used are iPads. An
approximate number of online users in America will reach 217 million in 2012 from
the entire population of 307,007,000 people (2010 US census). 10 million iPads of

9. the first generation were bought last year while this year 9.25 million iPad 2 tablets
have been sold in the first three quarters.
The 217 million people who are online users on a daily basis, past tablet sales and
prospective sales are some factors on w
http://uopexam.com/product/mkt-498-week-5-integrated-marketing-communications-plan-
paper/