Is Apple still cool?

There's no doubt about the popularity of Apple. In a classroom at UGA filled with middle to upper-class students, it's safe to guess that over 75% of them own an iPhone. A majority of these students also own a MacBook and someone in their family probably has an iPad. Apple has clearly dominated the technology industry in the past. At the beginning of time when the iPhone first hit the market, its technology and its sleek design dominated a market of clunky, boring devices. The iPhone was cool, new, and advanced. If you had one, you were an innovator, a leader, someone who had money and liked to think they had power too.

The current problem Apple faces, however, is that their competitors have begun to catch up. No longer are they the only business with smartphones and touchscreens. No longer are they the brand associated with the innovators and creators. Instead, Apple has seemingly clung on to their history of success while their competitors begin to develop new innovations that have the potential to overtake the Apple empire.

Take, for example, the newest Samsung Galaxy S8.

It's about the same price as the iPhone 8 and performs essentially the same functions, even the feature which allows you to unlock your phone with your face. From a deeply technological standpoint, this phone might not be as strong as the iPhone, but from an average consumer's standpoint, it's essentially the same. Which leaves me wondering, what's Apple's plan?

Their competitors are catching up to them in the smartphone market, their Apple music platform is unsuccessful in comparison to platforms such as Pandora and Spotify, the popularity of the Amazon Alexa is dominating an industry that the Apple HomePod device can't stand up in, and the Apple TV is being threatened by the Roku.  

So what's keeping Apple afloat?

From a marketing standpoint, Apple is crushing the game. Although their products may no longer be the most innovative in the market, their commercials and marketing campaigns convince customers that they still are. To top their successful marketing decisions, Apple is still a household name. While their competitors might be increasing in popularity, they still can't beat Apple's brand name recognition. As a consumer of Apple products, I'm personally wary of trading in my iPhone for the newest Samsung galaxy simply because their product benefits are not as well-known to me as the latest iPhone; a feeling that I'm sure much of the market would agree with. 

From my point of view, as long as the marketing team at Apple keeps doing their job, Apple should still succeed to be the coolest kid on the block.