Ferraris and Fords

The consumer electronics market in 2012 can be easily summed up as Ferraris and Fords. Apple, of course, is the Ferrari of the tech market, while the competition is the Ford.

I’m not talking about speed, obviously, but rather their outlook on similar markets.

Apple builds quality products — I don’t think anyone can dispute that. Ferrari builds incredible cars, and like Apple, they put a great amount of work into the details of their respective products.

The rest of the PC, tablet and phone manufacturers are like Ford. They mass manufacturer as many different models as they can, often confusing customers more than helping them. These companies also tout market share, out of date features, and price as selling points for their products.

Apple trumpets workmanship, design, functionality and integration as its selling points. That has led to mass adoption of its products in at least four major consumer markets.

While there was a time that Apple products were more expensive than its competitors, that’s not really the case anymore. iPhones, iPads, iPods and Macs are all priced in line with its competitors and in line with what people can afford, and are willing to pay.

Apple refuses to play the games of its competitors, which usually come in two ways:

  1. Racing to price their products as low as they can

  2. Adding as many features as they possibly can to say they have it.

It’s far easier to continue adding features to a product than to simplify its use while including the features that people want. As far as price goes, Apple doesn’t have to play in the race to the bottom — people want their products and will pay a fair price for them.

Like a Ferrari, Apple’s products are coveted by the people who buy them. For a long time users refused to switch out their white iPod headphones because they wanted everyone to know they had an iPod. Users show off their iPhones and iPads, because they are proud of them.

When your customers are proud to carry your products, you have won.

Fords, like Android phones, Dell and the rest of the industry mass produce copycat crap hoping people will buy it. These products lack innovation, design and thought.