Apple’s PC/laptop market share is now 20% in the US and 10% worldwide. That’s cause for celebration, right? The underdog, the computer for weenies and artists, is making inroads in the mainstream. The halo effect of the iPod and the iPhone is convincing kids to pick up a MacBook — or two — and make Apple shareholders happy. All is right with the world, right?
Wrong.
In the electronics industry, success is a dangerous thing. Back when Apple was an “exclusive” company selling “special” products, the Mac fanboys were fine and even accepting of the few problems that cropped in in Apple hardware. You could head down to the Apple in your artsy, urban area and get one-on-one help without much of a wait and when a screen broke or you dipped your iPod in water, you went and bought a new one.
Now, however, Apple has new support issues: supporting everyone else. Consider Sony. They are immensely popular and a well-known electronics brand. But what do you hear about most? Their problems. They overload their laptops with junk. Their batteries explode. They install malware on your PC. And that’s just the big news. Read forums around the world and find complaints and problems and scams galore. Apple, it seems, no has to deal with the average Joe and the average Joe is considerably more cranky than some turtle-necked fanboys in their loft in SoHo.
Support is one of the biggest money sinks in the electronics industry. Do you know why all the stuff you buy says “Do not return this to the store, call 1800YURDUMB?” It’s because they don’t want to deal with a slow tech at Best Buy boxing up your possibly not broken PS3 or gas grill and sending it back at the company’s expense. Instead, they want to send you a few parts and hope things get fixed before they have to start shipping boxes, involving warehouses, and handling service calls. They would rather, in most cases, send you a new device than have to face your wrath. You being on the phone or in a Genius Bar costs Apple, Sony, and everyone else sometimes more than the price of a new device, provided the support problem is their fault. This is doubly true in the era of blogging. You can get your story out to millions of people in seconds if its compelling enough. Try to get your pro-Sony story out there (”Sony sold me a great product. I’m happy with it.”) Crickets.
If the problem is your fault, however, God help you. Steve will email you himself telling you you’re a moron and ignore your pleas.
What brought up this little rant? We saw a scam today in which some kid burned his iPhone to make it look like it overheated in order to get a replacement. This kid was not an Apple fan, per se. He was an Apple user. Companies spend most of their marketing budgets to gain fans and settle for users. Users, on the whole, want their money’s worth, are upset by system failures, and will scam a company to get their cash back. Fans will sit quietly on their hands while their iMacs and Vaios and Escalades burst into flames and politely give their beloved a second chance. Apple’s success, like Sony’s, is throwing a spotlight on everything bad about the company. While there is plenty to be happy about regarding Apple’s rise in market share, there’s plenty to be afraid of.
UM.. hmmmm.
My gut tells me Apple has learned from their mistakes of the past and will learn even more from Dell’s nightmarish situation today.
When it comes to support Apple will provide it. But it will come @ a price after 90 days and 1 year. I’m talking about Apple Care here and its worth EVERY penny. NOTHING COMES FOR FREE!!!
PC users… in particular Dell nerds, corp weasles and tight wads want everything free free free.. or cheap cheap cheap….a very shortsighted mindset…
Look @ Dell now…..Take a GOOD LOOK @ where cheap and crappy
in ALL areas got them.. ONE BIG MESS of an ark and its listing BAD because no one knows how to pick up the massive amounts of DUNG that have built up below deck.
Jah Live Apple.
iJah420 OUT!!!!
“You get what you pay for” and support is no exception.
ex. Give me a COKE Danny!!!!
OK…. That’ll be 50 cents……..
WHAT!!!
50 CENTS FOR A COKE!!!
I AIN’T PAYIN’ NO 50 CENTS FOR A COKE!!!
WELLLLLLL THEEENNNN YOU AIN’T GETTIN’ NO COKE!!!!
BOOM! END OF STORY.
A very simple concept. No grey areas. Black and white.
Everyone today wants somthin’ for NOTHIN’
@#$%@^ THEM! PAY UP!!!
iJah420 is now done.
20% of what?
New sales?
Total install base?
The story doesn’t do a very good job of explaining the numbers.
sorry: mac sales meaning PC/laptop sales. Basically Apple as a computing platform is up to 20% compared to all other computer companies.
Just so you know. I wasn’t knocking your story. I thought the source material wasn’t very clear. You were just reporting, and editorializing, what you had read.
Market share is new sales, not installed base. Japanese cars have a larger installed base than they should based on market share because their cars stay on the road longer. The same might be said of Apple computers. Installed base takes in a lot of factors, such as past market share, longevity, etc. I have a fifteen year old Mac at work that still faithfully receives my faxes. In the morning I review them, delete the junk faxes, put the one I don’t need to print on hold, then turn on the laser and the rest print for distribution. This computer is running OS 7.
Google is an obvious exception to your rule
Apple has, and continues to have some of the best support in the world. As they grow, I really havn’t seen a decline in service at all. It wins customer service awards every year like it was a harvest you could count on. Don’t be to quick to point out their doom, lets wait a few years and see what happens.
Happened to come across this doing a Google search on Apple market share. Your numbers are nice and round, and don’t match any other source anywhere. High be a factor of 2+
There is no truth in your story.
Saying that fans are more fault tolerant is a lie. So you blame masses for being too demanding (what is that?) and cheating their money back? Where is the proof?
So when products fail and you get angry responses… you are selling to the wrong customers?
When Apple makes wrong growth decisions and streches their capabilities and responsibilities into grey areas without proper consideration, it is the company that is failing, never the customer. Is it wrong to demand the quality that was there before?
I think there is a lot of truth in what he said. It is one side of the story and an observation on use of a product that is expanding from a more cult group of fans and into the general market circumstances change. This was also the situation back in the late eighties and early nineties before the market share collapsed, back when I was selling them.
Yes the customerbase is changing. No I do not think the new customers are any more demanding. I actually think new customers know less what to expect from “Apple quality”. No I do not think it is the customer to be blamed.
Apple has stretched capabilities and resources trying to deliver superior groundbreaking products on multiple fronts and failed delivering decent quality (noted demands are high today, but so it is for every company).
Bad excuse to blame the customer.
I think the article lacks substance. I don’t get the purpose for the article. Did this ever pass through an editor?
Your all complete GIMPS!!!
Your all complete GIMPS!!!
yeah I’m a gimp. good program.