Table of Contents

Executive Summary…………………………………………………………………………….. 1
Current Marketing Situation……………………………………………………………………2
Market Description……………………………………………………………………….2
5 Year Financial Overview……………………………………………………………….3
Product Review………………………………………………………………………….. 3
Overview of Competition………………………………………………………………... 5
Overview of Distribution………………………………………………………………... 6
SWOT Analysis…………………………………………………………………………………..7
Strengths………………………………………………………………………………….7
Weaknesses………………………………………………………………………………..8
Opportunities……….………………………………………………………………….. 10
Threats……..…………………………………………………………………………….11
Objectives and Issues…………………………………………………………………………...11
Marketing Strategy……………………………………………………………………………..12
Product…………………………………………………………………………………..13
Price……………………………………………………………………………………...13
Place……………………………………………………………………………………. 14
Promotion………………………………………………………………………………..14
Positioning……………………………………………………………………………….15
Action Programs………………………………………………………………………………. 16
January - March………………………………………………………………………...17
April - June……………………………………………………………………………...17
July - September…………………………………………………………………………18
October - December……………………………………………………………………..18
Budgets…………………………………………………………………………………………..19
Controls………………………………………………………………………………………….19
References……………………………………………………………………………………….20
Executive Summary

Founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, Apple Inc. has established itself as a major

technology company within the consumer electronics industry. Now headquartered in Cupertino,

California, Apple has grown and continues to grow its brand across the world. A global leader in

innovation, the company boasts a diverse portfolio of products, services, and software, targeting

and fulfilling the needs of its loyal customer base. One of its growing product categories is its

wearable technology. For this marketing plan, it will focus on developing an effective marketing

strategy for Apple’s wearable wireless headphones, specifically the company’s newest Airpods

Pro 2nd Generation. With increased competition, the company has seen a slow in growth and

sales for its Airpods line in recent years. To combat this, the company will use its already strong

brand presence to further promote the Airpods Pros’ innovative technology. The plan will

suggest partnering with celebrity influencers and pushing advertisements to promote the

product’s advanced features. Given Apple’s young, health conscious, and working class

audience, these advertisements will position the Airpods Pro as a multifunctional product,

highlighting the products’ benefits in different scenarios such as during exercise, work, and

relaxation. The plan also aims at expanding Apple’s Airpod distribution to expanding markets

like India and Vietnam. By further marketing these capabilities, the plan hopes to increase

awareness and sales surrounding its Airpods Pro 2nd Generation product. These campaigns will

be implemented throughout the year to analyze results and make further improvements. In

addition, they will be made to the high standards and quality to best match Apple’s current

positioning and brand image.

1
Current Marketing Situation

Market Description

As Apple CEO, Tim Cook, puts it, Apple values “bringing the best user experience to its

customers through its innovative hardware, software, and services” (Apple Mission and Vision

Statement Analysis, n.d.). These values can be seen in Apple’s product involvement within the

smartphone, computer, tablet, and wearable technology industries. While Apple is a global brand

serving markets across the globe, its biggest market is the United States. Apple’s typical

customer is highly educated, lives in urban areas, and is between 18-45 years old (Statista). They

are often working professionals that have an annual income of around and above $90,000. They

live a busy lifestyle, are technologically advanced, of the middle and upper class, and value a

comfortable, convenient lifestyle (Dudovskiy). Apple’s consumers are also loyal to brands, enjoy

the newest technology, and seek to follow consumer trends.

As of recently, Apple has experienced increased difficulties with strict zero-COVID policies in

China. This has led to slowed production of Apple’s products due to Covid outbreaks, worker

riots, and shutdowns of factories. These protests have affected the recent holiday season, causing

major supply chain disruptions and shortages of products (Biron, 2022). While these challenges

are relatively new, Apple as a whole has done quite well in managing Covid-19 these past few

years. Despite supply chain issues, it has been able to maintain sales and even grow its revenue

throughout Covid. Apple continues to maintain its presence within the market by releasing new

products and technology to fit its consumers needs and desires in its iPhones, iPads, MacBooks,

Computers, Apple Watches, and Airpods. Specifically for its wireless headphones line, it

recently released its new Airpods Pro 2nd Generation.

2
5 Year Financial Overview

Fiscal Year 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017

Ending

Net Revenue 365,817 274,515 260,174 265,595 229,234

Gross Profit 152,836 104,956 98,392 101,839 88,186

Net Income 94,680 57,411 55,256 59,531 48,351,000

Selling, general, 21,973 19,916 18,245 16,705 15,261

& administrative
costs

Stock Price 176.84 131.33 72.04 38.12 40.30

*numbers reported in millions (except for stock price)

Apple as a company has continued to grow over the past 5 years. Despite Covid-19, Apple has

been able to maintain revenue growth and increase its annual profits. The company has also seen

steady growth in its stock when looking at a 5 year scope. With its net revenue of $365,817 in

2021, Apple’s financial position is expected to continue to increase over the coming years.

Product Review

Apple Inc. offers a variety of different products and services, separating them into 5 main

categories: iPhone, Mac, iPad, Wearables, Home and Accessories, and Services. Apple’s iPhone,

Mac, and iPad represent the company’s version of smartphones, computers, and tablets. Apple’s

3
wearable, home and accessories category consists of its Airpods, Apple Watches, and Apple TV.

Lastly, its services segment includes services such as Apple Pay, Apple Music, Apple News,

iCloud, and Apple Card. Of all of Apple’s products and services, Apple’s gross profit margin in

2021 was $152,836 million (Apple 10-K Form 2021).

Among the wearable category, one of Apple’s highest selling products is its Airpods (“Apple

Statistics”, 2022). There are three product models currently being sold under the Apple Airpods

collection consisting of the original Airpods, the Airpods Max, and the product I will be focusing

on, the Airpods Pro. Of the two Airpods Pro products, I will be concentrating on the newest

Airpods Pro 2nd Generation. The product is priced on Apple’s website at $249 and is also sold at

other major retailers (“Airpod Pro (2nd generation)”, n.d.). Although the price may seem high,

the Airpods Pro 2nd Generation is designed with the newest innovative technology. It is

equipped with 2x more active noise cancellation, an adaptive transparency mode, personalized

spatial audio, a redesigned microphone system, and new touch controls allowing you to adjust

the volume just by touch (“Airpod Pro (2nd generation)”, n.d.). In addition, the device can last

up to 6 hours with a full charge and comes in a magsafe case allowing for wireless charging. The

net sales of Apple’s wearable, home and accessories segment in 2021, mainly from sales of its

Airpods and Apple Watches, was $38,367 million (Apple 10-K Form 2022). This was a 25%

increase from 2020’s net sales. This was promising for Apple’s wearable category. However,

Apple’s recent 2022 10-K form shows that there was only a 7% increase in the category’s net

sales in 2022. With a net sales of only $41,241 million, this is an area the company can improve

on.

4
Overview of Competition

While being a major technology brand, Apple Inc. still faces competition within the market.

Some major competitors to Apple’s smartphones, computers, and operating systems include

Samsung, Microsoft, and Google (Nagpal, 2014). For its wireless headphones, Apple has a

strong market share in the true wireless stereo (TWS) headphones industry. However, it still has

threats from multiple growing competitors like Samsung, Xiaomi, and Bose (Laricchia, 2022).

Since the release of Apple's first wireless earphones, many other companies have come out with

their own products with similar features, attempting to win over potential customers. Among the

global market, both Samsung’s galaxy buds and Xiaomi’s buds each held a little less than 10% of

the TWS market in the second quarter of 2021, while Apple held 26.5%. (Laricchia, 2022).

Comparatively, in the United States, Apple has had 26% of online revenue from wireless

headphones since 2015, while Bose has held 16.1% (Richter, 2017). While Apple holds the

majority of market shares in the wireless headphone industry, their shares have slowly been in

decline since 2019 (Laricchia, 2022). Comparing the brands, both Samsung and Bose’s buds are

priced similarly to Apple’s, targeting the middle to upper class consumers with a premium

product. Both their newest buds have noise cancellation and long battery life, matching the

Airpod features in many ways. On the other hand, Xiaomi offers a cheaper option of around

$100 dollars for similar features, providing a more affordable option to those that may not want

to spend as much (“Redmi Buds 4 Pro”, n.d.). Despite these similarities, Apple’s positioning of

innovation and creativity differentiates its product from other majors brands. Its higher prices

also gives its products a sense of quality. While these aspects do provide Apple unique value,

with the growing amount of consumer options, it is also becoming increasingly important for

5
Apple to continue developing new technology for their Airpods in order to retain customer

loyalty and beat out the rest of the market.

Overview of Distribution

From the beginning of product design, all product processes start in California. From there, the

product is assembled from parts worldwide, with a majority of Apple’s products manufactured in

China (“Airpods Pro Manufacturing”, 2020). Airpods production specifically is mainly split

between the companies, Foxconn and Luxshare (Lovejoy, 2022). However, since the Covid-19

pandemic and on-going trade wars between the U.S. and China, Apple has started to diversify its

location of manufacturing from China to other countries like India and Vietnam (“Airpods Pro

Manufacturing”, 2020). After the product is manufactured, it is then distributed to both direct

and indirect channels. Apple’s direct channels consist of their physical stores and online store,

while their indirect distribution channels consist of third-party sellers and carrier providers. In

2021, 64% of Apple's total sales came from indirect channels, while the remaining 36% came

from direct channels (Cuofano, 2022). While direct distributions through in person purchases

work to build customer relationships through the customer experience and quality customer

service, indirect distributions have provided broader availability and reach to new customers

(Cuofano, 2022). Overall, it’s this combination of distribution channels that allows Apple to

maximize sales and gain market coverage.

6
SWOT Analysis

Internal Factors Weight Rating Weighted Comments

Score

Strengths
1. Strong Global .15 3 .45 - established, trusted, high quality
Brand Image brand
2. R&D/Ingenuity .20 4 .8 - continuous development in
innovative features
3. Product Design .05 3 .15 - sleek, fashionable product
4. User-friendly .10 2.5 .25 - can be paired with both Apple
Usability and non Apple products
5. Functionality .10 3 .30 -multi-situational uses

Weakness
1. Lack of Consumer .20 2 .40 -need to promote specific product
Awareness features and technology more
2. Product .10 3 .30 -need to promote product uses
Positioning more
3. Long Replacement .10 3 .30 - products last long limiting the
Cycle need to buy new replacements

Total Scores 1.00 2.95

Strengths

Apple’s strengths within its Airpods Pro 2nd Generation product lies within Apple’s strong brand

image and global presence, innovative features through research and development, unique

product design, usability with other products, and various functionalities. Firstly, Apple’s strong

brand reputation gives the product a sense of quality and reliability. Often consumers, especially

younger generations, are willing to stay loyal to Apple and pay a premium price for its products

because of Apple brand image (Pattuglia, 2019). Secondly, Apple is known for its research and

development of its products. Through R&D, Apple is able to compete with other companies by

developing new technology and upgrading existing products. In 2021, Apple spent $21,914

7
million on R&D alone (Marketline 2022). With its Airpods Pro product, Apple has continued to

develop and advance its features in order to make its products more competitive. Among other

features, the new Airpods Pro are equipped with 2x more noise cancellation to cancel out

surrounding sound and improve focus, personalized spatial audio to adapt all around sound to

your personal ear shape, and a new interfacing microphone to improve your voices’ clarity and

natural tones during voice calls. Beyond the Airpods Pro’s striking features, the unique product

design also differentiates Apple’s product. Apple’s chief design officer, Jony Ive, talked about

Apple’s long process in designing the products color, shape, architecture, and even the sound the

Airpods make when clicking into their case (Wilde, 2019). This attention to detail in all aspects

of the Airpods Pro design is what makes the product stand out. Its bright white color and sleek

design stirred up a lot of conversation and word of mouth when Apple’s Airpods first came out.

The last two major strengths of the Airpods Pro 2nd Generation lies within the product's usability

and functionalities. The Airpods through bluetooth can easily be connected to any device making

it usable for Apple product owners and non-Apple product owners alike. The product is also

functional and advantageous in many situations. For music enthusiasts, working professionals

and students, and active individuals, Airpods’ product helps fit their needs.

Weaknesses

The Airpods Pro’s weaknesses stem from the lack of consumer awareness, unclear product

positioning, and a long replacement cycle. With the growth of the True Wireless Stereo Industry,

there is a need for Apple to make itself known to consumers beyond its typical loyal consumer.

Apple’s Airpods Pro product has great features, but the company lacks in marketing these

features to its customers. From 2021 to 2022, Apple only saw a growth of 7% in the net sales of

8
its wearables category, compared to a 25% increase the previous year (Apple 10-K Form 2022).

In addition, Apple’s market share of the True Wireless Stereo (TWS) market saw a 8% drop in

the second quarter of 2021. Further analyzing the Airpods Pro 2’s weaknesses, unclear product

positioning can hurt the market. While Apple positions its product as a high tech product,

consumers are often left unaware of the actual uses and situations the product is best used in.

Lastly, a long replacement cycle of the product, means less sales of the product. Because the

product is able to last a couple of years, consumers do not have a major need to buy a

replacement, and it is additionally hard to bring in new customers in the competitive market

(TOI, 2021). However, like many of Apple’s other products, it can combat this effect by

continuing to release new products with new innovative features to attract consumer purchases.

External Factors Weight Rating Weighted Comments

Score

Opportunities
1. Strategic Sales .15 3 .45 - increased product packages
Promotions and deal to incentivize purchase
2. Sustainability .10 3 .30 -100 percent recycled elements
in magnets of Airpods Pro
3. Expansion in India .25 4 1.0 -expansive, lucrative markets to
and Asia grow in
4. Wellness and .10 2 .2 - expanding product use for
fitness trend fitness/active activities

Threats -increasing consumer options

1. Intense .20 2 .40 bring need to differentiate and
Competition innovate
2. Covid-19 impact .20 5 1.00 - affected supply chain and
on distribution production process

Total Scores 1.00 3.35

9
Opportunities

Some of Apple’s external opportunities that can affect its Airpods Pro 2 include strategic sales

promotions, promoting sustainability improvements, and the trend in wellness. Increasing

consumer deals and the awareness around them can be beneficial for Apple’s Airpods. Such

deals like its educational package with free original Airpods with the purchase of a Macbook in

the past has helped with Airpods Pro sales. Consumers who have purchased this package often

have an option to upgrade their original Airpods to the Pro version for an additional cost.

Another sales promotion that Apple can further promote is its free 6 months of Apple Music with

the purchase of the new Airpods Pros. These sales promotions provide an opportunity for Apple

to incentivize customers to make Airpods Pro purchases. Additionally, promoting Apple’s

increasingly sustainable materials and packaging is a way to further position its product within

the market. Recyclable and renewable materials have increasingly been used in product

packaging and 100 percent recycled rare earth elements are used in the magnets of Apple

Airpods (Apple, 2022). With increased consumer values with sustainability and environmentally

friendly practices, this is a unique opportunity and lens for Apple to promote its products.

Another major opportunity for Apple is to expand its promotions of its Airpods Pro 2 in India.

With Apple growing its brand in India in recent years, Apple has seen major success and profits

of its iPhone sales within the country. Apple can take advantage of this growing lucrative market

by targeting its Airpods Pros marketing toward India’s consumers.

10
Threats

Considering Apple’s external product threats, there exists intense competition and covid’s

disruptions on the distribution network. While Apple holds a large market share within the true

wireless stereo industry, there are growing competitors with significant market shares as well. In

2021, Apple cut its production of Airpods by around 25-30% because of decreased sales and

increased competition (Li, 2021). Due to this compacted industry, Apple needs to continue to

differentiate itself in the market. One way it does this is through its high price-high quality and

price skimming strategies. Another way is through continuing to update and develop the Airpods

Pro’s features. The second major threat to the product is Covid’s disruptions to the distribution

network. As mentioned, strict covid policies and increased tensions between the US and China

have caused supply chain issues and slowed production. For product sales, Apple has been

dependent on China for its production of its products, but Apple is slowly moving production to

other countries like Vietnam and India.

Objectives and Issues

The first objective the marketing plan aims to attain is to increase Apple’s worldwide market

share in the True Wireless Stereo (TWS) headphones market to 40%. Recently, Apple has seen a

decline in its market share in 2021, so this strategy plans to help Apple regain its shares and

grow beyond that. Specifically, Apple will expand its market share through further brand

development and promotion in India and Vietnam. These countries have previously shown areas

of growth for Apple and are a prime opportunity to take advantage of. In this similar process,

Apple plans to reach its second marketing plan objective of raising its Airpods Pro 2nd

Generation net sales by 15%. The plan aims at targeting loyal Apple customers, current Airpods

11
owners, and new consumers. Apple can expect to achieve this objective by expanding consumer

awareness of its product and product features and strengthening its product positioning through

strategic advertising.

Marketing Strategy

This marketing strategy is based on improving the 4 P’s plus positioning of Apple’s Airpods Pros

2nd Generation. Focused heavily on new approaches to promotions, place, and positioning with

the support of the strengthened product and price structure, the strategy’s goal is to address

current strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities to best meet our marketing objectives.

SWOT as Strategy Weight Rating Weighted Short, Long, Comments

Score Intermediate

Internal
S1 Strong Global .10 3 .30 Long - well positioned,
Brand Image trusted brand
S2 R&D/ Ingenuity .15 4 .60 Int, Long - innovative features
W1 Lack of Consumer .15 2 .30 Int., Long - slowed sales and
Awareness global demand
W2 Product -mixed purpose/
Positioning .10 2 .20 Int. need to promote
W3 Long uses
.05 2 .10 Short -lack of need to
Replacement Cycle
repurchase

External - offers more

O1 Strategic Sales .05 2 .10 Short, Int. attractive purchase
Promotions options
O3 Expansion in India .15 3.5 .525 Long - potential in
and Asia growing markets
- growing
T1 Intense
.15 2.5 .375 Int, Long manufacturers and
Competition
global brands
T2 Covid-19 impact .10 3 .30 Int, Long - disrupted
on distribution production and costs

Total Scores 1.00 2.80

12
Product

Apple currently does a proficient job at the research and development of its Airpods product line.

For its Airpods Pro 2 or 2nd Generation, Apple has improved the noise cancellation by 2x,

extended the battery life, added volume touch controls through finger swiping, and created a

wireless charging case. These improvements are just a few of the standout features that Apple

Airpods Pro 2 contains. By further developing and upgrading its product features, Apple can

further differentiate its earphone products from competitors. Apple’s competitors have come out

with their own products with similar features and capabilities, so it is important in Apple’s

strategy to emphasize what makes its Airpods Pro 2 different and better quality. In the marketing

campaigns, Apple will be able to highlight these advanced features and competitive differences

along with Airpods Pro’s unique design, universal usability, and multiple functionalities in its

promotions. With 100% recyclable magnets and increasingly recyclable product packaging,

Apple can also market its product’s sustainable materials and efforts.

Price

Apple as a company has historically been known for its high prices compared to competitors.

However, this pricing strategy provides Apple more advantages than disadvantages. The Airpods

Pro 2’s $249 price brings a feeling of high quality to the product. In addition, Apple has been

able to build out its brand image and brand equity. Consumers are more than willing to pay these

high prices for an Apple branded product because they trust the company’s technology and are

excited about all of the product’s features. With these high prices, Apple can continue to price

skim for its Airpods Pro product. While Apple’s prices will remain high, the company will also

13
need to emphasize the value consumers are getting out of the product. By explaining the product

value in the marketing plan’s promotions, both new Apple consumers and loyal consumers will

see the value in paying the high price.

Place

For the Airpods Pro 2nd Generation, place is a focus of expansion in aiming to reach the

marketing goals. To help increase sales and market share of its Airpod Pros, Apple can expand

its production and distribution in India and Vietnam. Currently US sales make up 40% of Apple’s

net sales (Larricha, 2022). This strong US market shows that there are still areas of growth

internationally. Given India and China’s roughly 1.4 billion population each, expanding Apple’s

marketing strategy to these countries provides a unique opportunity. For India specifically, Apple

has already seen rapid success with its iPhone sales expected to reach 7 million in 2022 in India

alone (Press Trust of India, 2022). Apple can ultimately expand its distribution by opening more

physical Apple stores throughout urban areas in India. Apple currently only has one store in

India, but opening more can help meet and increase India’s demand for its products. In addition,

Apple can continue to grow its third party sellers within India. Its third party sellers and online

website are the current main methods of getting products into consumer hands. Overall, by

expanding both Apple owned and third party distributors, it can expand its Airpods Pro sales in

India and similarly in other countries

Promotion

Apple currently does little advertising to promote its products. However, with this marketing

strategy, we aim to implement new promotion strategies to increase sales and market share of

14
Apple’s Airpods. Firstly, Apple will promote its sales promotions of student discounts and free

Apple music during certain seasons. Secondly, Apple will implement a public relations campaign

by collaborating with 2 global celebrities for its Airpods Pro 2nd Generation product. They will

serve as ambassadors and promoters of the product. One of these celebrities will be selected to

best fit and represent the European and American markets, while the other will best represent

India or Asia. The purpose of this is to reach all sides and interests of the global market. These

partnerships will ultimately work to expand consumer awareness and connection with Apple’s

Airpods Pro product. As Jonas Berger writes in his book Contagious, creating a trigger for a

product such as a celebrity can increase the desire and awareness of the product (Berger). This is

expected to lead to increased interest and sales of Apple’s Airpods. News of these partnerships

will also help to build public relations and increase conversations and virality due to social

currency and excitement. Furthermore, these celebrities will be featured in advertising that is

pushed out to consumers. These advertisements will mainly be in the form of commercials

pushed on TV and Youtube. There will also be select billboard advertisements in certain major

cities like New York and London. The purpose of the advertisements is to again push brand and

product awareness. They will help to highlight the Airpod Pro 2’s advanced product features and

help to support and reframe the Airpods’ product positioning.

Positioning

As mentioned, through advertisements, the positioning of Apple’s Airpods Pro 2 will be clarified

and redefined. The advertisements will work to continue to push the product as an innovative,

high tech product, but also give consumers a better picture of where and when they can use the

product. Specifically, in advertisements, the Airpods Pro 2s will be featured with the celebrity in

15
three different scenarios. These scenarios are chosen based on recent consumer trends and best fit

potential users’ uses for the product. The scenarios will include during exercise, during work,

and during relaxing. For exercising, the product’s noise cancellation, touch controls, personalized

ear fit, and spatial audio features will be highlighted. For working, the celebrity involved

advertisements will emphasize features like the product's clearer and more natural sounding

microphones for work calls and its 2x more noise cancellation for focusing. Lastly, for relaxing,

the advertisements might highlight the H2 chip and personalized spatial audio for music

listeners. An example of how celebrities and scenarios can be used to position and promote the

Airpods Pro is given in the next paragraph. Overall, by positioning the Airpods Pro to these

different functions, it can help connect consumers to the product. Potential customers will

develop a need and desire for these products. By emphasizing and restructuring the Airpods

position within its customers mind, Apple can expect increased sales and market share.

An example of an influencer partnership that will be a strategic move for both the public

relations, advertising, and positioning of the Airpods Pro is a partnership with Gymshark CEO,

Ben Francis. Gymshark is a global company that has skyrocketed within the fitness and clothing

16
industry. By partnering with Ben Francis and Gymshark, Apple can position its product as a

quality earphone brand to use while working out. In addition, the partnerships can help bring

more awareness and interest for the product.

Action Programs

January - March

With the start of the new 2023 year, Apple can begin implementing this marketing strategy.

Within the first month, Apple should have started its outreach to potential strategic partners and

begun its research into urban cities in India and Vietnam that are best fit for new Apple

storefronts. In February, Apple will finalize deals with global influencers that will serve as

ambassadors for Apple’s Airpods Pro 2nd Generation product. In this process, they will discuss

future public announcements and potential advertisements to market this partnership and

promote the product. In March, Apple will film and complete all video advertisements for its

Apple Airpods, influencer collaboration. It will also finalize 5 locations for its distribution

expansion.

April - June

In April, Apple will release its first new Airpods Pro 2 influencer commercial on TV channels. It

will continue to facilitate and monitor public opinion and conversation surrounding this

advertisement. It will also start preparing billboard designs for its next month showing. For its

global distribution strategy, Apple will start building its storefronts in respective cities. In May,

Apple will release more well positioned advertisements on Youtube and in desktop ads and start

displaying its billboard ads in major cities. In June, it will continue these advertisement methods

17
in preparation for the summer months. It will also begin optimizing its website to feature these

celebrities on the Airpods Pro product page.

July - September

From July to September, Apple will continue to push its influencer involved advertisements. The

company will also check in on its new storefronts and start getting storefronts ready for opening.

It will also start reaching out to more third party sellers to sell its Airpods Pro. In terms of sales

promotions, it will start creating and pushing Youtube and Desktop ads promoting its student

discounts for its Airpods Pros in preparation for the new school year. By the end of September,

Apple will continue to analyze its public relation, advertising, and positioning strategies. It will

start its market research and development of new features for its next new Airpods Pro product

launch.

October - December

From October to December, Apple will open its new stores in India and Vietnam in time for the

holiday season. It will solve any upcoming issues or challenges that its storefronts may face. It

will also begin selling its Airpods Pro through new approved third party distributors. For

promotions, Apple will again push the specific influencer product commercials and advertising

for these countries in order to push product awareness and sales in its new stores. By the end of

December, it will analyze its overall campaign results and strategically plan for the next launch

of its next Airpods models.

18
Budgets

The average selling price of the Airpods Pro 2nd Generation is $249 per unit and the forecasted

number of units sold in 2022 is 23.8 million units, bringing the expected revenue to be $5,926

million. The estimated manufacturing cost of one unit of Airpods is around $70 per unit, thus the

total cost can be estimated to be $1,666 million. Given the expected revenue and costs, we can

estimate the projected profit to be $4,260 million. With this budget, the plan can be implemented.

The costs of the marketing plan includes the collaboration cost of working with a strong

influencer, the advertising costs, and the costs of distribution expansion. The costs of working

with the influencers can be estimated to around 15 million or more depending on the celebrity.

The cost of advertising can be a couple hundred million dollars due to TV ads, Youtube ads,

Desktop ads, and billboard ads. Building costs estimated based on just the wearables percentage

of the business will be roughly $1 million per store or $5 million for 5 new stores. Despite these

costs, the plan will likely be profitable considering the plan reaches its target objectives.

Controls

To monitor the progress of this plan’s goals, Apple will utilize software and Google analytics to

track the results of its advertising campaigns. Through analyzing various metrics throughout the

year, Apple can see which advertisement did the best and where they were the most effective.

The company then can use these results to alter how and where it places the Airpods Pro

advertisements to further increase awareness and sales. In monitoring its progress with its

distribution strategy, Apple can analyze the success of its storefront based on the change of sales

of Apple products, more importantly the sale of its Airpods. Increases in sales are good results

and show that the expansion into new markets were successful.

19
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https://www.apple.com/airpods-pro/

Apple, Inc. (2022). 2022 Annual Progress Report. https://www.apple.com

Apple, Inc. (2021). Form 10-K, For the Fiscal Year Ended September 25, 2021. United States

Securities and Exchange Commission.

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/320193/000032019321000105/aapl-20210925.

htm

Apple, Inc. (2022). Form 10-K, For the Fiscal Year Ended September 24, 2022. United States

Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.apple.com

Apple has moved some AirPods Pro manufacturing from China to Vietnam. (2020, May 21). The

Verge. Retrieved October 24, 2022, from

https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/21/21266574/apple-airpods-pro-vietnam-china-chinese

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