Our Newly Released Product Is the Maccharger. the Maccharger Is, the One and Only to Date

Our newly released product is the MacCharger. The MacCharger is, the one and only to date, wireless charging device for all Apple’s MacBook laptops. The product has just been developed by our team and we have big things planned for its future. The MacCharger first and foremost screams to potential buyers, convenience and that was our goal exactly when designing it. The product is no bigger than the palm of one’s hand and is easily stored. It can be slipped into your jeans, coat, purse or backpack with ease and barely take up any room. The charging device is a square shaped, white piece of incredibly smart technology that plugs into the same spot as the already existent cord charger does on the MacBook’s. It is simply magnetized like the cord so there is no worry of it falling out of your computer and becoming broken or misplaced. In order to give the device it’s power to charge the laptops it comes with a charging device of its own. This charging device is just a small base that plus into any normal wall outlet. It is very compact and convenient as well and can be easily transferred to work, home or school in a backpack, briefcase or purse. The charging device actually provides the wireless charger with more power which means it can charge your laptop much quicker than the cord could. The base also charges the MacCharger fully in only a half hour. To compare our product to something already popular in the world to give you a better mental image we chose a USB drive. The small, compact data holders, that plug into the USB slot in your computers. Now although the MacCharger serves a completely different purpose the concept of the two is what’s similar. They both can be slid into your pocket and transferred to wherever your headed then easily popped into the side of your laptop. So that is a good comparison to make to show our products size, weight, convenience and portability. The MacCharger is ideal for anyone who owns a MacBook laptop. Why not use the cordless version? It makes things easier for you. Our goals and mindset throughout our entire design process, was how could we make, through our product, life easier for you, customers. I believed our team has achieved that goal and people will be thrilled with the MacCharger.

Products of technology, in today’s world, have to be incredibly smart, fast and convenient in order to survive/be successful. In our case our products is made up of those exact three characteristics and more. When looking at the macro environment it brings multiple forces and factors into our thinking regarding the MacCharger. Considering our surroundings we looked and researched how people react to certain products and if those products were successful. Of those that were successful we analyzed and then asked ourselves, what does it take to produce a successful product. The majority of the population loves to do things the easiest way possible. People truly enjoy the fact that with the use of technology, doing things is incredibly faster and requires less effort. We considered how successful products of Apple had been such as the IPod touch, Nano, IPhone, MacBook and analyzed their characteristics. They are all compatible, fast, convenient, reliable, useful pieces of technology. Looking at the macro environment it is easy to see that these features of a product is what people look for and leads to success. Our plan throughout the design of our project was to take these popular features and apply them to a computer charger. This way we know the MacCharger will not go unnoticed. We also had to take into effect the cultural forces, that we would face, of the macro environment. When looking at these it was important to analyze and realize that certain cultures may not work with advanced technology in everyday life, like many do, or even at all. Culture has different effects and influences on people, some much bigger than others. It was important for our project team to see the realistic side of things. This means that although technology like an IPhone or MacBook may have won the majority over, nothing will ever be of use and value to fit different people’s circumstances and lifestyles. Economic and natural factors really are out of our reach and we cannot do much other than appreciate they will affect the success of our product. Our MacCharger will be sold as a top of the line item and will be highly priced especially as a brand new product. Now we realize that individuals or families that have particularly good incomes or are “well-off” will be the ones buying our product. Of course many, many people, especially with today’s economy are not as lucky and do not fall under that category. Although that can be hard for a higher ended product, we continue to discuss why we took the risk with our target market analysis part of our presentation.

The main thing people consider when purchasing a product is will this product be of value to them. So our goal that we believed has been achieved is the creation of a valuable product. Although we know that it will not be of value to all consumers we have targeted quite a large chunk of people. This is topped off by the business world. Technology runs the business world today. If you look at some of the most successful businesses in the world, for example Coca-Cola, they are so effective and efficient because of the amazing capabilities of technology that they put to use. All the people working within these large businesses must have access to their work from wherever they are and of course many do this by using a laptop. After doing research you can see that Apple’s line of MacBook’s are the top seller in the overall laptop department. So because of the popularity of the MacBook’s within the business world we saw this as an opportunity and therefore targeted businesses men and women around the world. We believe our product is and will be of huge value to people working in businesses. It will add efficiency and effectiveness to an already huge tool, their MacBook. Secondly we are planning to look at the market segment of university/college students. As our main target students that fall under this category are using MacBook laptops all over the world. If you were to walk into a university class today at least 80% of that class would be taking there notes on an Apple laptop. Looking at these numbers we like our chances of success with this side of the market. Students live on their laptops. Throughout their college days they get incredible use out of the portable computers and to many are their life line. This being there school life and their social life. When analyzing how reliant students are on their laptops again grew an opportunity for our product. The MacCharger will be providing value to potential student customers by being the most convenient way to make sure their MacBook laptop is full of juice whenever the need to use it. With business people and students being the core of our target market, our MacCharger being high priced, doesn’t provide too much of a risk for us. This is because chances are the majority of people working in businesses using high levels of technology will have the income to go out and purchase our product. As for students, although slightly riskier, if they are in university and own a MacBook laptop, there has to be a money source somewhere along the line that can support the prices of our MacCharger. Going out on more of a limb we will also target older teenagers, ages 15-19 and the average working adult, just not as intensified as we will the business and university roads. Obviously not every 16 year old teenager is going to have MacBook computer, but those who do have it for a reason. The reasons they have these expensive laptops that benefit us are one; they are part of a family that has a wealthy income and can afford to buy expensive things. Two; they are good at persuading their parents who may not be as well off as some into buying them expensive things and three they earn their own money to buy what they want. Now the first two reasons provide more opportunities for our product much more than the last one does. When analyzing the population of working adults that may not be in businesses, they still make money. We have to take into effect that many people around the world make very good money doing other things then business. We have to find ways to reach out to these people and make our product visible to them. This category of the population enjoys having nice things and can afford to do so. Our possibilities with the above two segments of the market are basically seen as additional opportunities for success. Our core target market is what we are reliant on to profit but as a team we believe with this kind of additional market population are product can become extremely successful and profitable.

Apple has grown to be one of the leading technology companies in the world. Apple has been one of the firsts to come out with life altering technology year after year, starting back in 2001 when they came out with the iPod mini. Ever since the launch of the iPod mini the iPod/MP3 market sky rocketed with other companies trying to develop and come out with a product that could compete with the iPod, but with Apples strong customer loyalty no company came close or compare to the quality of the iPod. After the immediate success of their iPod apple started to develop the iPod being one of the first to have a handheld music and video player. In 2007 Apple really changed the way of technology by coming out with the first touch screen cellular device the iPhone. Ever since the introduction of the iPhone in 2007, the cellular device market changed and a high demand for touch screen forced other major cell phone companies like Samsung and Blackberry to develop their own version of touch screen devices. With Apple just coming out their 5th generation of iPhones this past September they are still one of the leading cell phone companies in the world, with each new version of iPhones Apple has new features or new technology in them that no other company has come out with yet. Apples market strategy is simple be the first to come out with a life changing product that benefits the consumer greatly. Apples newest product that is about to come out is the MacCharger.

Apple, the most valuable tech company in the world has the best rated laptop in 2012 according to laptopmag.com, the only problem people have with their leading MacCharger is the charging. The wireless charger is targeted towards students and professionals as that’s the majority of people who buy and use MacBooks. We believe that our product fits into the societal marketing as it is defined as “ The idea that a company’s marketing decisions should consider consumers’ wants , the companies requirements, consumers’ long run interests and societal long run interests” (Armstrong, Kotler, Trifts, Buchwitz, 2011). The MacCharger can satisfy customers’ wants while still satisfying our company’s requirements of being the first to market a life changing product. This product can satisfy the customers wants as wires are always a pain and in the way, whether they are getting tangled up with other wires you may have in your office/desk area or in the way where someone can trip over them and cause your laptop to fall off the surface it’s on and possibly break it another problem with the current charger is that you can always reach a plug from where you are sitting. With the wireless charger all those problems can be resolved; it is tangle proof, safe and no problem with distance from a plug.

Product

The MacCharger is made up of two components. The first component is called the ‘wall plug’. The ‘wall plug’ is a three-prong plug with a cubic white transformer (see appendix X). The second component, called the ‘laptop adapter’, is a wireless and slightly bulkier version of the ordinary MacBook power adapter. The new ‘laptop adapter’ has a circular transmitter with 6 tiny prongs on it that connect to the 6-prong unit on the side of the MacBook. Both the ‘wall plug’ and the ‘laptop adapter’ share the same code (created by the laptop owner), which allows the two components to wirelessly transmit signals to each other and initiate the charging process.

The main benefits of the MacCharger is to reduce the pain and frustrations that come with cords, they are either always getting tangled up or there isn’t any plugs in reaching distance. The MacCharger eliminates those problems, obviously you aren’t going to run into the problem of your cords getting tangled up as there isn’t any cord to get tangled, also once the ‘wall plug’ is plugged in and charged up it sends electric signals up to 50 feet to the adapter that is plugged into your MacBook. It solves the problem of not being close enough to a plug, you can plug it in on one side of a room then sit and use your laptop on the other side of the room, hassle free, no worrying about if it will reach or not. Another benefit of the wireless MacBook charger is that you can be in a completely different room than where it is plugged in as the ‘wall plug’ has a range of 50 feet. Our product can help create efficient and effective work environment, it can eliminate any stress someone could have, for example a student could be in the library doing work but the only available plug is on the other side of the room, or a business professional is giving a presentation and all the plugs in the boardroom are being used, simple solution plug it in outside in the hallway.

The wireless MacBook charger is an easy setup, the first time its plugged in, and easy setup window will open on the home screen, you select a name and password (one time password) so the two components can distinguish what to connect to. The name and password are also for protection and security so if another person wished to use the charger they would be asked for the name and password in order for the charger to work, the owner is capable of changing the security settings so that once it is plug into another person’s MacBook it won’t ask for a password.

The new MacCharger is available now with a purchase of a new MacBook, it is also available for purchase at any store that sells Apple products. In packaging the MacCharger we kept to the design of how we package our iPod products, a clear hard plastic case. We decided to go with this design as the hard plastic exterior prevents the product getting damaged during the shipping phase, we wanted it to be clear so the consumer can see what it looks like. The interior will be lined with thin foam another precautionary measure for the safety of the product during the shipping phase. The MacCharger comes with a velvet pouch with two magnets for transportation needs.

The MacCharger is a high quality product, first of its kind and is going to change the way of charging laptops. Our marketing team believes that we are fulfilling the needs of our customers and giving Apple a competitive advantage over any other laptop companies. The MacCharger comes with Apple one-year limited warranty, Apple warrants the included hardware product and accessories against defects in materials and workmanship for one year from the date of original retail purchase.

Place

The MacCharger will be available in retail stores around North America and Europe. Retails that the MacCharger will be available in are technology based retailers such as Future Shop, Best Buy, The Source, Radio Shack. MacCharger will also be available at every Apple store around the two continents. We believe that the retail stores listed above are a great place for our new product as Apple has a great relationship with the retailers as they also sell other Apple products like MacBooks and iPhones. Another option to purchase the MacCharger will be through Apples website, where you also have the option to have your named engraved on it and an option to get Apple Care (Apples extended warranty) for a small price. Apple does charge for shipping from their website and the product will arrive to the customer in 1-2 business days. Our marketing team believes that by putting our product in smaller technology based retailers will be an easier and faster shopping experience for the consumers, as there won’t be as much searching for the product it can be easily displayed at smaller retailers rather than larger retailers like Wal-Mart or Costco where more competition from other companies to have their products on display. Having it in the Apple store is essential and gives a competitive advantage for Apple as the Apple store has just Apple products.