In the dynamic landscape of 1990, where innovation knows no bounds, we’re thrilled to unveil a modern communication plan that perfectly aligns with the spirit of Apple’s groundbreaking products…
In this talk, Steve Jobs discusses the company’s focus on understanding the target customer and product positioning in the evolving workstation market. He emphasizes the emergence of a new segment called the “professional half” within the workstation marketplace, highlighting various submarkets like publishing, tech pubs, medical, higher education, and legal.
Jobs identifies Sun as the major competitor in this market, with an 80 percent market share. The talk explores Apple’s potential dominance in this growing professional workstation segment, predicting a substantial market size increase from 50,000 units to 300,000 units by 1992. The growth is expected to come from professionals moving from PCs and Macs to workstations and users of 3270 terminals transitioning to powerful desktop workstations connected via networking.
Despite Sun being a major player, Jobs sees an opportunity to win customers over, emphasizing that once users decide to enter the professional workstation segment, Sun becomes a competitor, and Apple has been successful in winning against Sun in recent encounters.
The key reasons compelling users to move into the professional workstation category are the need to write custom applications, demand for sophisticated networking capabilities, and the database-driven nature of applications. Jobs expresses confidence that Apple’s development environment, advanced networking, and seamless database communication will position the company to succeed against Sun in this market.
Objective:
To effectively communicate the company’s positioning in the emerging professional workstation market and highlight key differentiators that make our products superior to competitors, specifically against Sun Microsystems.
Target Audience:
1. Existing customers currently using PCs and Macs.
2.Professionals using 3270 terminals or equivalents for database-driven applications.
3.Decision-makers in publishing, tech pubs, medical, higher education, legal markets, and other submarkets within the professional workstation segment.
Key Messages:
1.Unique Value Proposition: Communicate the unique value proposition of our professional workstations – powerful, user-friendly, and with sophisticated networking capabilities.
2. Market Opportunity: Emphasize the substantial growth in the professional workstation market, indicating the potential for the company to capture a significant market share.
3. Competitive Advantage: Highlight that our products have consistently outperformed Sun Microsystems in head-to-head comparisons, winning 15 out of 15 opportunities in the last 90 days.
4. Custom Application Development: Emphasize the importance of our development environment for professionals needing to write custom applications, addressing a critical need in the market.
5. Networking Capabilities: Stress the superior networking capabilities of our workstations, crucial for network-intensive applications, setting us apart from PCs and Macs.
6. Database Integration: Showcase the seamless integration with SQL databases running on large servers, catering to the database-driven nature of applications in the professional workstation segment.
Channels and Tactics:
1. Website and Online Content:
-Create a dedicated section on the company website highlighting the new professional workstation category.
-Publish case studies and success stories of professionals who have transitioned from PCs, Macs, or 3270 terminals to our workstations.
2. Social Media:
-Utilize social media platforms to share key messages, success stories, and engage with the target audience.
-Run targeted advertising campaigns highlighting our competitive advantages.
3. Industry Events and Conferences:
-Participate in relevant industry events and conferences to showcase our products and engage with potential customers.
-Conduct live demonstrations to illustrate the superiority of our workstations.
4. Press Releases:
-Issue press releases announcing the company’s focus on the professional workstation market and recent successes against competitors.
5. Customer Outreach:
-Initiate direct communication with existing customers to introduce the new product category and encourage upgrades.
-Offer exclusive promotions or discounts for early adopters.
6. Training Programs:
-Develop training programs for sales teams to effectively communicate the key messages and product advantages to potential customers.
-Provide resources for customers to better understand the benefits of our workstations.
7. Collaborations and Partnerships:
-Explore collaborations with influencers, professionals, or organizations in the identified submarkets to enhance credibility and reach a broader audience.
Measurement and Evaluation:
1. Sales Performance:
-Monitor sales figures for the professional workstation category compared to projections.
-Track market share growth and assess the impact on overall revenue.
2.Customer Feedback:
-Gather and analyze customer feedback through surveys and reviews.
-Assess the sentiment on social media platforms to gauge public perception.
3. Competitive Analysis:
-Regularly evaluate the competitive landscape, keeping a close eye on Sun Microsystems’ activities and market share.
4.Website Analytics:
-Track website traffic, engagement, and conversions on the dedicated professional workstation section.
5.Media Coverage:
-Measure the extent of media coverage generated by press releases and other communication efforts.
Timeline
-Follow up with ongoing campaigns across various channels throughout the year.
Budget:
– Allocate resources for marketing materials, website development, social media advertising, event participation, and any required training programs.
