Strategic Planning: Apple Inc. Event

What you will find interesting about this post is that I am not writing about what Apple has released today. That, I am not certain of. But when large companies release major news after a major lead-up - it's a great opportunity to analyze it from the PR prospective.

Each year, consumers anticipate Apple's announcement of brand new products. What once started out as an all-new PC, Apple now carries all sorts of products from laptops to iPhones to tablets. Thanks to the internet, there are a plethora of rumors regarding what new product will be announced. Will it be a bigger iPhone? The iPhone 6? Two different versions of the iPhone 6? Or the iWatch?

(Source: Exact Target / 2013 Apple Event promo)

Consider the announcement from the internal side. It's possible that all of the information about the products was leaked on purpose. It's also possible that it wasn't. Either way, strategic decisions needed to be made in order for Apple to sustain a sense of mystery until today, the day of the unveiling event. It's ironic that as PR professionals we want to hear people talking about what we're working on, while at the same time it can be a double-edged sword and lead to possible customer disappointment. After hearing so much about these products, consumers may be easily let down if what they were excited about was not released or below their expectations.

Rumor has it that the iWatch may be announced, but not put on shelves for sale until months from now. Why? The strategic plan behind this could be that Apple really does want to surprise us. A new iPhone and iPad will only be innovations on a current category, but the iWatch is the first product in a new category. Additionally, the iWatch is not considered a necessity to most. With more time, Apple (and its consumers) can figure out why the iWatch is something that we need. Showing us what we desire without even knowing we desired it is something Apple does oh-so-well.

(Source: Telegraph)

Chances are you've found out what the new Apple product if not before, but by the end of this article. What do you think about the hype and results of one of America's favorite brands?