Apple Watch Market Segmentation

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Blog,

I know you are all on the edge of your seat in anticipation for the release of the newest Apple product, the Apple watch. The Apple watch is the latest edition to Apple’s fleet of tech products. Apple watch is sought to be the most high tech watch in the market, come its release in April 24. The iWatch comes with many new age features that separates itself from the competition, putting the iWatch into a league of it’s own. From health features such as heart rate monitoring to picture messaging, the iWatch can do it all.

Apple plans to release this revolutionary product in three segments, watch, watch sport and watch special edition. Also within these three segments apple is breaking them into sub-segments, with multiple designs for each segment. This makes sense for Apple to get the product into as many hands as possible, and as early as possible. The segmentation also give the consumer a diverse portfolio of options to purchase from. Apples price segmentation offers different product versions and prices attached to each version up front. In contrast to price skimming by using a single product with an initial high price. 

While the Apple watch is a new and innovative piece of technology, I don’t believe there's a big enough market for the watch to be successful. The product is a sub-segment in the smartwatch market because without an iPhone you cannot access the full potential of the watch. You have to first be a consumer of an iPhone to access the full potential of the watch. In order to fully enjoy the Apple watch you need to invest yourself into the brand. This is where Apple will see the bulk of their success, selling mostly to their brand loyal consumers

As far as competitors in the smartwatch market, Apple faces up against their usual rival, Samsung and their GEAR watch, as well as several other smartwatches making up the market. Although the GEAR watch is priced at $325, which is $200 dollars lower than the Apple watch price point, the GEAR is still a sub-segment of a market and only concerns Samsung Galaxy phone owners. The watch will be most popular with consumers who are brand loyal to apple and the techno geek demographic.