4 Changes Competitors Will Have To Make To Beat Apple

The is no disputing that Apple is one of the most powerful and influential companies in tech right now. It enjoys large profit margins, huge amounts of device sales, and a soaring stock price. If its competitors want to in any way catch up to this level of success they will need to change many parts of their business and the way they sell devices. Read our list below of 4 of these changes companies will need to make to beat Apple at their own game.

1. Better UI Experience

One of the biggest advantages which Apple’s iOS has over its competitors is that its UI is much better optimised than that of its Android competitors. While the ‘pure’ Android experience by Google is generally sound, often manufacturers will cover it with their own ‘skins’ which are often poorly optimised. The results of this is often poor battery life, and unnecessarily slow load times for applications and windows.

Image: © 2014 Apple

2.  Lifestyle Marketing

A major area which Apple succeeds at is so-called lifestyle marketing. Through advertising their products alongside depictions of a certain kind of lifestyle - in Apple’s case one that is creative, energetic and luxurious - people begin to associate this with their products. If competitors can replicate this on a similar scale, consumers will feel that their products too have added value, and that buying into them will allow access to an entire ‘lifestyle’.

Image: © 2014 Apple

3. Secure Exclusive Apps

Despite having less market share than Android, iOS features a much greater number of exclusive apps (eg. Instagram Hyperlapse). In addition many developers build an app first for iOS before creating an Android version. To beat Apple in this respect, Google and hardware manufacturers like Samsung, will need to develop better relationships with app developers, and in doing so, secure their own range of exclusive apps.

Image: © 2014 Flickr - Jason Howie

4. More Hardware Innovation

One of Apple’s major selling points is its ability to consistently introduce new mobile device form factors which continue to wow the public. Recent examples of this include the Apple Watch and the ultra thin iPad Air 2’s. While competitors in the Android ecosystem like Samsung have stepped up their game with devices such as the Galaxy Note Edge, there is still a huge room for improvement in hardware innovation.

Image: © 2014 Apple