Apple

Consumer Buying-Decision Process
You can go out and buy an mp3 player for a fraction of the price that an iPod cost, but why don't you? Apple manages to charge us hundreds of dollars for theirproducts because they have successfully marketed their product to us.(by "us" I refer to any one who owns an iPod of any generation) They are definitely not the low cost competitor in the market but theyhave surely learned how to promote their product's efficiency and beauty.
    The consumer decision making process begins by us recognizing something that we want and don't have.
Apple marketsegmentation process
Apple's product strategy is a study in market segmentation. Versus merely trying to stuff a product, burrito-style, with as many different features as possible, they target specificuser experiences, and build the product around that accordingly.
Consider the recent iPod event in September, where Apple completely rebooted the iPod nano, rolled back the iPod shuffle to an earlierinteraction model, and majorly forked the iPod Touch in a way that also speaks to iPhone positioning.
Mind you, each of these efforts represent major strategic iterations of successful products, notreboots of failed ones, so it speaks volumes about how the company thinks about its users, their workflows and corresponding segments.
Moreover, it underscores the integral-ness ofcontinuously re-calibrating on the definition of the situation; not merely doing more for the sake of an added bullet point or to support a desired price point.
Does Apple have a perfect crystal ball on these things?The history of the nano and the degree of iteration of this generation's shuffle, suggests that no, in fact, they don't always have a perfect read. But make no mistake: While they may not always be right,they are never confused or haphazard in their approach, and that is the hallmark of sound market segmentation strategy.
Apple marketing positioning

Apple has positioned itself to be a...