"You can be watching TV and see Coca-Cola, and you know that the President drinks Coke, Liz Taylor drinks Coke, and just think, you can drink Coke, too. A Coke is a Coke and no amount of money can get you a better Coke than the one the bum on the corner is drinking. All the Cokes are the same and all the Cokes are good."
-- Andy Warhol
I don't think Apple's goal with iPhone is to make you want it because it's exclusive; you're supposed to want it because it's good.
The Macintosh ended up as more an exclusive, niche product, but with later products Apple has moved away from that as a market strategy.
It is still a premium price, and the people are willing to pay this because it is a status symbol.
The huge profits come from a overpriced product, Coke makes his profits from a clearly distinctive product in huge amounts.
You have to explain a customer why it is worth to pay a huge bonus for a similar product. Coke lost this status symbol and is now cheap since Red Bull became the next cool thing.
Apple is incredibly good in sustaining a premium image with new versions etc. That is what the high profit margins come from today, i just don't believe that this holds on forever.
Apple wants you to believe that they are the "best" not good, everything they do is dependent on that promise. When the regular people don't believe that any more they have a problem.
-- Andy Warhol
I don't think Apple's goal with iPhone is to make you want it because it's exclusive; you're supposed to want it because it's good.
The Macintosh ended up as more an exclusive, niche product, but with later products Apple has moved away from that as a market strategy.