Even Apple has picked up the weapon of "topic marketing"!

Entering October, the technology industry has been holding new product launches, and various brands have formed a matrix release model, and competition has entered a new stage. As a representative of emotional stability, Apple has also begun to rethink its marketing strategy due to declining sales. This article will explore the changes in Apple's marketing strategy under the changes in industry competition for your reference.

01.

Let me first explain the time and space background.

• On October 28, 2024, OPPO held a new product launch conference. In addition to the blockbuster Find X8 series, it also launched its first Pro-level tablet OPPO Pad 3 Pro, OPPO Enco X3, and OPPO Watch X.

• On October 29, 2024, Xiaomi held a new product launch conference, launching the Xiaomi 15 series of mobile phones, Xiaomi Pengpai OS 2, Xiaomi SU7 Ultra mass production version, as well as 16 new "full ecosystem" products such as Xiaomi Tablet 7, Xiaomi Mi Band 9 Pro, and Xiaomi Watch S4;

• On November 26, 2024, Huawei will hold a new product launch conference, and will release the Mate70 series, Mate X6, MatePad Pro 13.2, Extraordinary Master Watch, Freebuds Pro4, Watch D2, and the modified version of Zhijie S7;

In the golden months of September and October, the technology circle is either holding a press conference or on the way to a press conference.

02.

Have you found the common pattern?

More and more press conferences have begun to expand from one product to multiple products, forming a matrix press conference style unique to the technology circle.

OPPO's entire family of products is called a flagship model; Xiaomi's advantage lies in IOT, connecting the entire ecosystem of people, cars and homes; Huawei focuses on the Hongmeng system, and its ambition is self-evident.

This trend is understandable, as it not only spreads marketing costs but also improves business efficiency. But the more fundamental point is that "the industry has moved from single product competition to full ecological competition."

03.

As the originator of the "press conference model", Apple's marketing has always been known for its simplicity, potential, efficiency and scarcity.

Although Apple has been facing increasing revenue pressure in Greater China in the past two years, and has even rarely participated in the e-commerce "Double 11" promotion, products such as the iPhone, iPad, iMac, and iPods are still the champions in their respective categories.

Apple’s marketing philosophy of simplifying things is well worth analyzing and learning, and its strategy is still being upgraded and iterated.

04.

To sum up Apple's marketing strategy in one sentence: "Advertisements should be kept as advertisements, and topics should be kept as topics."

Not only do the two have clear boundaries, but they also cooperate with each other.

05.

You might not imagine that Apple is a company with “very stable advertising sentiment.”

Three characteristics:

① Before and after every important new product launch, Weibo opening screen, Toutiao opening screen, subway ads, bus ads, and important outdoor large-screen ads are all standard features of Apple's publicity, mainly for exposure;

② Focus on the Spring Festival and cooperate with well-known directors to shoot brand blockbusters. Chen Kexin's "Three Minutes" in 2018, Jia Zhangke's "A Bucket" in 2019, "Daughter" in 2020, "Anian" in 2021, "Come Back" in 2022, "Passing Five Gates" in 2023, "Little Garlic" in 2024... Through the powerful shooting function of iPhone, tell the stories of small people and reflect the humanistic feelings of the brand;

③ Occasionally try to broadcast drama episodes. In 2022, 10 TV series and variety shows were launched, and in 2023, as many as 33 TV series were launched.

One small change is that Apple has paid more attention to the aggregation effect this year and has upgraded its traffic investment method. By releasing products through V, it has aggregated the originally scattered content of multiple products to form a higher market voice, achieving a mental effect of 1+1>N.

06.

Another big change is that in the past, Apple only needed to use hard advertising to attract traffic to its press conferences, because it had strong brand potential and many Kol/Koc/Media would spontaneously speak for it.

But now the situation is getting more and more complicated, and consumers' attention is becoming more and more scattered, so even Apple has to pick up the "topic weapon". Yes, the best topic source is, of course, Cook, the CEO of the world's No. 1 company.

On September 10, 2024, Apple held its fall new product launch conference, releasing the new iPhone 16 series, AirPods 4, Apple Watch Series 10 and other products; on September 20, they were officially released worldwide.

A month later, on October 21, Cook started his 17th visit to China (the second time this year), which netizens jokingly called "returning to his mother's home again."

The three-day trip was fully packed with people. They first visited Beijing hutongs with well-known photographer Chen Man and took photos with iPhone 16 Pro Max. They also visited the "Technology Courtyard" project to promote Apple products to promote sustainable agricultural development. They then met with musician Liu Boxin and sports game company Wangchen Technology to demonstrate the powerful capabilities of iPhone in music creation and gaming performance.

The most important thing is that I went to Weibo company to visit the building and it was on several hot searches, which was also the most influential action of the whole process.

07.

New product marketing = opening screen advertising x public opinion topic.

Looking back at Apple's marketing moves, they are actually quite simple. Based on an offline press conference shared globally, it bought out the advertising contracts of social media platforms during the window period, and then created a wave of invisible public opinion topics. The strategy is clear, concise, and rhythmic.

Many brands, due to cost considerations, only choose one of the two, which results in a very low return on investment. Having only traffic but no topics means a lack of potential energy, and having only topics but no traffic makes it difficult to stand out.

There is reason to believe that Apple's new combination of strategies has been carefully calculated in the big picture.

08.

Cook is really working hard for performance.

The number one position is every company’s strategic resource, the chief brand officer, and the main force in obtaining potential traffic.

The most important product promotion and public relations actions of the entire Apple company are released through @TimCook Weibo. All his content serves the key indicators of the key sales cycle.

Even the founder of Apple has gotten involved in IP, so what qualifications do you have to make excuses?

09.

Apple seems to have a slight preference for Weibo. Since around 2010, it has been almost the only social media platform that Apple has actively promoted, and it continues to this day.

Personally, I think this has both historical roots. Weibo did play an important role in the development of Apple fan culture in the early years. It also reflects Apple's recognition of the value of social media platforms. It is the main battlefield of public opinion that cannot be avoided in the press conferences of various technology companies.

If you think about it carefully, you will find that there is a tacit understanding between the two that has come about through time.

10.

summary:

The technology circle has entered into competition across the entire product line vertically and has also broken through national boundaries horizontally.

It doesn’t mean that all brands should copy the Apple model, but its underlying commonality is worth learning from. Advertising traffic represents the greatest common divisor of user reach, aggregating multiple products to form a stronger force; content topics need to be continuously extended according to consumer sentiment to form a hot discussion atmosphere. The two are inseparable and resonate with each other.

This set of marketing concepts is very consistent with the first principles and has a subtle and silent effect.

Less is more!