TASK 1 – Case Study – Apple iPhones
LB5202 Marketing Management
Case Study Analysis:
o Present the recommendations in essay format. This requires well-structured
paragraphs (use headings.
o The word limit of 1,200 words is a maximum for ALL essays in total.
o Use tables, diagrams and further analysis of data to clarify, illustrate and
supplement analysis and support your recommendations.
o Use page numbers, double spacing for ease of reading and feedback.
o Arial 11 font
o Use citations from original sources when they are used, using APA6 style
referencing (with doi’s).
o [Proof read your essays thoroughly, for grammatical and spelling errors.
DUE Monday August 10th
READ:
Provided Academic Case Study:
Mickalowski, K., Mickelson, M., & Keltgen, J. (2008). Apple's iPhone launch: A case study in
effective marketing. The Business Review, 9(2), 283-288. Retrieved from
http://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/39573263/iPhone_case_study.pdf?AW
SAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1499992016&Signature=0JccEA1D
%2B8YK%2BA67htwyc7TTGpU%3D&response-contentdisposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DI_Phone_case_study.pdf
Provided Online Blog:
O’Boyle, B. (2017, July 10). Apple iPhone 7S, 7S Plus and iPhone 8: What's the story so far?
[Web Log Comment]. Retrieved from http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/138301-apple-iphone-
7s-7s-plus-and-iphone-8-what-s-the-story-so-farASSESSMENT TASK 1: DESCRIPTION
THE ABOVE ARTICLES FORM THE BASIS OF YOUR CASE STUDY
1. Analyse the two articles provided in terms of the marketing strategies that
Apple Corporation has used for their iPhone range over the last decade.
2. How effective are the current strategies in terms of preparing for the release of
the 10th anniversary model of iPhone?
Analysing case studies provides you with insights into real-world companies’ and the
problems and challenges they face with marketing and general management decisions.
These challenges provide you with an opportunity to diagnose problems, analyse and
evaluate the situation and develop strategic decision choices based on the conceptual
frameworks learned in this subject. It allows you to connect your academic theoretical skills
with your practical business skills, this is a very important attribute for developing your
professional career.
Subject concepts should form the basis of analysing case information, developing alternative
solutions and making recommendations. You should read the papers a number of times
before attempting to write anything. This will highlight areas that you need further information
on and you can then conduct the necessary secondary research, including academic papers,
reports and media coverage. You should then apply marketing concepts, theories and
empirics covered in the subject to the problem.
You may find sometimes that cases have incomplete information from which to make
decisions, or that managers have made decisions based on incomplete information. In this
instance, you may need to (a) make some assumptions about why they made these
decisions and describe these, or (b) research the company, industry or issue and determine
the appropriateness of your assumptions or you may wish to conduct some additional
research into the industry or similar type of companies or issues for ideas and trends. Some
cases do not focus on one firm or decision maker but may take an industry perspective. In
this specific case, take the view of a consultant analysing the issue and consider what
organisations may be involved and how you would analyse the situation from their
perspectives.
From past experience, the most difficult aspect of case analysis for students is the idea of
“analysis”. Most students simply repeat what’s in the case in their own words or simply rearrange the same information. While the latter is definitely desirable and helps students to
break up the case into smaller components that can be analysed, analysis takes one furtherstep and that is to explain, using the language of marketing, the implications of this
information for the firm and the key decision makers.
Following are some general guidelines on presentation and essay writing. Respond to the
issue in essay format with a short introduction, body and conclusion.
This assessment piece requires you to work individually to research and then present your
solutions to the problem in a formal written document that is well structured and
appropriately referenced.
This written assessment task will help you attain the following learning outcomes:
understand relevant marketing concepts and explain the concepts through
application to the specific marketing problem;
analyze and evaluate information in a marketing context;
using appropriate information sources, analyze information gathered to
provide depth and breadth to recommendation; and
demonstrate effective written communication skills and use of correct
referencing method.
Ensure that answers are adequately justified where required and that APA referencing
method is used.
Do:
o Present the recommendations in essay format. This requires well-structured
paragraphs.
o The word limit of 1,200 words is a maximum for ALL essays in total.
o Use tables, diagrams and further analysis of data to clarify, illustrate and
supplement analysis and support your recommendations.
o Use page numbers, double spacing for ease of reading and feedback.
o Use citations from original sources when they are used, using APA6 style
referencing (with doi’s).
o [Proof read your essays thoroughly, for grammatical and spelling errors.Do not:
Use bullet points unless you are simply presenting a list which is self-explanatory.
Bullet points do not lend themselves to discussion and
Copy material from other sources without acknowledging the source. Failure to
acknowledge the source will be interpreted as plagiarism which is a serious offence.