Strategic Marketing in iPhones

Please use iPhone 4S as the topic for this paper.

1) Find at least 3 people who will talk to you easily, such as friends, and/or family members. Each person should be an actual or potential buyer of Apple's iPhone 4S.

(2) Ask each person these questions:

1) When was the last time you bought Apple's iPhone 4S?
2) What was your decision process in making this choice?
3) How would you describe Apple's Inc. brand's personality? [If the brand were a person, who would it be? You might also ask, "If the brand were an animal, what would it be and why?" You can substitute for "animal' any other category, such as tree, flower, famous movie star... use your imagination!]
4) Suppose the Apple Inc. brand appeared on a totally different product. For instance, imagine if KIA motors decided to offer computers. Or imagine if Fancy Feast created dog food or pet supplies. What is your reaction?

(3) Under Marketing Research summarize what you did in a paragraph or two. How many people did you talk to? Briefly summarize how each person responded.

(4) The major part of your assignment involves interpreting these answers. In the Marketing Research section, do not just transcribe the responses you obtained in dialogue form. Interpret their answers to the 4 questions with reference to the background readings: For instance, you might say, "The answers of Person A and B confirmed what Smith (2011) proposes; however, the answer from C seems to be different. I believe these differences may be due to ..."

1) Identify common themes among the responses. If your respondents seemed to offer widely divergent answers, explain why (using good logic and reasoning, with reference to the background).
2) Review the discussion of decision-making in the background readings for Module 1. One source is
http://www.consumerpsychologist.com/cb_Decision_Making.html
3) Explain whether the consumers you interviewed seemed to follow decision processes that resembled those discussed in the reading.
4) How did these consumers balance the "should" vs. "want" factors? Refer to
http://hbr.org/2008/07/tap-consumers-desire-for-shoulds/ar/1
5) What did you learn from the experience of asking questions (a) about marketing and (b) about the way consumers respond to your product/brand?

(5) Under Strategies/Product and Marketing Environment/Buyer Decision-Making and Behavior, with proper reference to what you placed under Marketing Research indicate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and/or Threats to the financial future of your product that you learned from your research.