The Pit - IMI Trust

Honestly… Apple are brilliant!  I say this as a previous Apple hater.  I am now a convert.  Apple’s products and their marketing of them is pure genius.  Though, that is a Guinness slogan but it applies perfectly well here.

Who else could hold a conference call, to talk about their future product development and tell their biggest competitor to “Get out your photocopiers!” I thought it was brilliant how they highlighted that their major competitor is continuously delaying their release of their next Operating System version.  

In the last 5 years, Apple has re-invented the way we listen to music and even the way we buy music. Never again do we have to carry around gloveboxes full of CD’s, or purchase mammoth CD cases to house a collection.

The Ipod has been, and continues to be, an amazing profit centre for Apple. What I love about the iPod, is that it is everywhere and even when you dont realise it… it is being promoted to you.
Think about these points…

* If you see someone on a train or street with a white cord and white ear phones, what are they listening to their music on?
* When you are getting onto a plane… they ask you to turn off your MP3 player or your iPod
* When the plane is going to land, what are they telling you to switch off again?
* If you like todays music, what is the only MP3 player they will show in music videos?
* Even popular TV programmes like The Simpsons are parodying it with its famous DiePod eutanasia experience.

What is amazing is that, every day on most plane flights around the world, in multiples of languages, airlines are marketing the iPod and they don’t even know it. The other thing you have to love about the IPod, is find me 1 person on this planet that has… and has not purchased any more accessories. By the time you get the belt, the microphone, the speakers, the additional case etc. It is almost a 25%to 50% on the original sale.

Household Items Now Include Apple Products

iTunes, responsible for changing the way we purchase music. Over 1 Billion songs have been downloaded! That is insane if you consider the enormity of it. The best part is… people are chosing to pay the US$0.99, instead of downloading it for free. How rare is that? You have the choice of Free vs Paid, and people are chosing to pay.

Being in the finance industry, all we seem to care about is the latest earning announcements and or the potential future earnings. It saddens me that sometimes we miss the genius behind the growth of these companies, and how they evolve their success. When Apple announced they were going to be using Intel chips in their computers, their share price skyrocketed. Thankfully for me… I was on it! The true merging for Mac users being able to use all the software the PC users could, was coming closer.  

Now the whole world is convinced of Apple. From consumers, to Mum and dad investors, to retails shops and the institutions. The hype of Apple is backed up with brilliant products, which keep evolving the digital world. 2 Years ago, I did not know anyone that owned a Mac computer. Now, I feel like I am one of the few that don’t.

That is an amazing turn around! Web Designers are now having to design their sites with Apple in mind! Even though the savvy designers use an Apple to do their design in the first place.  The web designers that do are the ones that are getting the financial rewards for their clients. It is that extra business, the extra profit, the extra sales that are making companies take notice. Trading platforms which don’t have Mac capability, are losing business every day!  

Over the next few years, it will be great to see how Apple keeps growing. One of my Mac owner friends, recently commented to me, how his whole digital world now revolves around Apple products. From Music, to Photos, to Videos, to Radio and for people who are blind… Apple has them catered for too. Apple has me convinced! Check out their new Operating System being released… Leopard

I am quite confident my next laptop or desktop will have an Apple logo on it.  Financial groups tend to use PC based technology though.  Are there any groups out there that use Apple? 

All the best,  

From The Pit