“How much do all those iPod commercials cost? It’s a bundle. Apple Computer spent $287 million on advertising in its last fiscal year, up nearly 40 percent from the $206 million it spent a year earlier. And the company spent $193 million in the year before that, according to its annual report, filed Thursday with the Securities and Exchange Commission,” Ina Fried reports for CNET News.
“The ad spending, though significant, is far less than the billions of dollars spent each year by the very largest advertisers–companies such as consumer products giant Procter & Gamble and automakers such as General Motors and Ford,” Fried reports. “And, though its spending is a lot for a tech company, Apple has also seen a significant spike in its sales, particularly the heavily marketed iPod music player. The company sold $4.5 billion worth of the players in its fiscal year, a more than threefold increase over the prior year.”
Full article here.
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The $287 million was for all Apple products, including Macs, Mac OS X Tiger, etc., not just for iPods. Apple probably spent only about $286.9 million advertising iPods. All the rest went towards telling the world that the Mac was the best choice for most personal computer buyers. Yeah, yeah, we know, iPods sell Macs.
Related articles:
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Wish they had spent some of it on OS X TV commercials
Ouch, MDN!
Harsh.
Strategically-placed advertising is always superior to massive shock-and-awe approaches. That way no one gets tired of seeing your damn ads all the time.
Go Apple.
yeah, exploiting the luxury of having a secure computer that actually works when micro$oft is slowing stewing in it’s own poop.
i’d like to see more tv advertisements than finding ads in the back of Time, US weekly, and selective news paper. they have to be more general and more AV than just posters of ipods. i thought they were a computer company.
I’ve seen many Mac ads in their respective marketplace. One example — an entire pop-out booklet for the Powermac and the Final Cut Pro Studio in a movie magazine. It’s actually just a thin book, but it looks so cool that I keep it in my bag with me. “Introducing Final Cut Studio. From the first frame to The End in HD.”
So the “take” needs an amendment — 98% for iPods and 2% for everything else.
But let’s get real — Apple is doing very well so their approach is working.
I. Apple is an idiot. They spend a ton of R&D money on the OS, apps, new Macs, and new CPUs, but they don’t put any money or effort into actually selling them.
II. iPod TV ads + Mac print ads + Apple Stores + online promotion + press events sell Macs better than Mac TV ads would.
Seeing as how Apple sales are on the rise, I’d say II is the right answer.
It would be fun–FOR US–to see Mac TV ads. But Apple doesn’t make money by entertaining us for 30 seconds. They make money with a business plan that sells Macs.
Yes, Macs. Not just iPods. Look at the numbers. Sales are good all around.
Wait for Intel. Wait for Leopard. Good will become great. People are catching on. You can’t turn that train around, not even if you’re Bill Gates. Can you speed it up with TV ads? Apple doesn’t think so–and I bet they have their reasons.
And Apple tends to advertise on TV during the most popular shows – which, naturally, cost more to place than, say, a buy during a “Love Boat” marathon on Cable Channel 35.
When the curiosity factor about Apple is at an all time high for many reasons, now is the time to answer the questions that people are asking about Apple and Macs.
If you have an ad agency that knows what they are doing, and does not do artsy craftsy crap designed to impress other ad agencies as opposed to actual communication with potential buyers, you can actually produce a 30 second ad that will actually demonstrate some valueable feature of the OS. You don’t have to say everything in each ad, just one important thing.
It actually can be done if your people dont’ overthink it.
My theory is that Apple knows they can sell a LOT more Macs now if they advertise, but they wouldn’t be able to keep up with the demand that the advertisements could generate. Number one reason: supply of PowerPC chips.
If my theory is correct, you will see Apple start to advertise Macs again, and in a big way, once they start shipping computers with Intel processors in them. Apple knows they can get as many Intel processors as they could ever need fron Intel and never have to worry about whether Intel can deliver.
2006 will be the year of the Mac baby, just wait and see…
I think the print ads are the most effective type of advertising for the Mac (not the iPod). It’s kind of hard to explain why Tiger and the Mac are superior to WinTel in a 60 second TV ad spot. And forget about radio.
Not saying it can’t be done. Just that they haven’t done it yet accept for the Switcher Ads which I think were more effective than anything they had done before.
But those don’t get to the technical nitty gritty like most Mac fanatics would like. Most seem to want to be able to blast WinTel off the planet with the technical specs and facts. If the viewer isn’t already thinking Mac it probably won’t translate well. (the snail and bunny ads were great but did they really sell any more Macs?) Dell sells on price and price alone. People already know what they want when they see an ad for Dell: Windows.
The print ads seem most effective with tech oriented people (IT Guys and Gals) and actually (in my experience work well in that they get people thinking.
I crave another “1984” commercial but don’t see it happening until the switch to Intel happens. Then we’ll be comparing OSes and value. The Mac will fare much better when the hardware is somewhat equal. At least the pundits won’t have to compare disparate systems and explain haphazardly about stuff they only half understand.
Ok, its all about the ability to provide the product! Lets say Apple did pour half of that advertising amount into ads for the Mac or OSX – the question would be is, can Apple supply the product if the ads pay off? Unless Apple has been building or acquiring more and more production capacity for G5’s, iMacs, etc, the advertising isn’t doing them any good. As an example, my family owns 2 wholesale tree nurseries in the Midwest. We don’t spend one dollar on advertising, with the exception of exhibiting at a few industry trade shows, and we are sold out every year! We also increase our production capacity every year, but still can’t keep up with the demand! So I applaud Apple for the wise use of their advertising dollars to areas that are; 1. “Relatively” new produts (remember the Mac is over 20 now, the iPod is 4?) 2. Products that are more consumer-driven and more “disposable” (how many have lost their iPod compared to their G5 tower?) 3. Apple is also spending ad money to expand a market that is much less mature and has greater room for growth than your typical PC.
I think Apple is doing the right thing – keep it up Steve, I enjoy watching my stock go up!
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I’ll say it again – its a truly big mystery why Apple has never had an on-going advertising campaign for its OS and hardware products. When they have advertised their computer products on TV they are most often rather juvenile.
Why not an ongoing, level-headed advertising philosophy, aimed at level-headed consumers who, (especially by now), are ready for something different than Windows. Just from a consumer standpoint people want to try something different, they want to know what their choices are; even if Windows is working OK for them, they want to know that there are alternatives when they’re ready to make a change.
I think the Switcher ads were more negative than positive. For the most part they used people who came across as airheads, in many cases.
I think they were trying to appeal to the “creative” people, but truly creative people are highly focused disciplined people who often come across more as type A personalities.
I have never seen any “airhead’ type artists who actually produced anything that could be classified as creative. Different, maybe, but rarely if ever better.
They have to wiat until they switch to Intel. They did have some big wig working on a big campain for the Mac but it was cancelled after the Intel anouncment. I think we will see a big difference in January.
I don’t think that they are intentionally not advertising because they can’t keep up with demand. That is silly.
However, my thought is that they are first trying to build a solid reputation as a company. Not a computer company, but as a company. They have succeeded, and they’ve stocked the coffers. They’ve also advertised in magazines. Like a previous poster said, magazine ads can tell much more of the story than a 30-second ad.
So, they are priming their position, and hopefully will begin mass marketing the Mac after the Intel Macs come out. No reason to jump out early and mess up. Advertise, then switch to Intel? Why not make the switch, then hit the big ad campaign?
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. I don’t care about iPods; I care about Macs. If Apple is becoming the next Sony, I’ll pass. iPods do nothing more than play music, videos and both invented long ago, were far more revolutionary than the iPod. The iPod is a step up from the Walkman. It’s a fad. The Mac is NOT a fad. Spending all that money on iPod advertising makes money sense, but the Mac is moving further into obscurity with miniscule climbs in marketshare. Go to the Apple store, and the front window is nothing but iPods. I’m tired of it. Get those freaking Intel processors in the Macs and start advertising!!!!
This is the thing that I have been harping on for years. Apple needs to heavily advertise on TV. Now everyone reads the papers, not everyone reads the magazines, but almost everyone watches TV. I see all kinds about Dell, HP and Gateway computers on TV all the time. Not one single Mac ad.
Sure there were one or two ads for the G5, but they didn’t tell why anyone should buy a G5, why it was better, et el.
Even jerks like Billy Gates and Mikey Dell know that ads sell computers and OSs.
Why oh why doesn’t Steve Jobs get it? TV ads drive sales, Steve!
The only ads for Macs or PowerMacs I see are in print and they are artsy-fartsy ads that don’t tell much at all.
People need to know why they should buy a PowerBook instead of a low quality Gateway laptop.
Andy does have a good point though. I hope that this crummy situation turns around with the introduction of Intel chips in Apple’s computer line up.
People often ask me “If they (Macs) are so good, why aren’t they advertised on TV?
Steve, wake up, buddy!
I’d say Apple spent a HUGE amount in advertising for the Macs by opening up Apple Stores all over the place. Can’t go wrong with the billboard that is the sign to your store!
I’d say Apple spent a HUGE amount in advertising for the Macs by opening up Apple Stores all over the place. Can’t go wrong with the billboard that is the sign to your store!
I’d say Apple spent a HUGE amount in advertising for the Macs by opening up Apple Stores all over the place. Can’t go wrong with the billboard that is the sign to your store!
I’d say Apple spent a HUGE amount in advertising for the Macs by opening up Apple Stores all over the place. Can’t go wrong with the billboard that is the sign to your store!
it makes sense….. why advertise something that is going to drastically change in the next year or so (with the Intel switch). No point in educating customers about the ‘old ways’, and then having to spend hundreds of millions again to re-educate them about how things have changed…..
Hey, Creative spent $100 million+. Apple spent $287 million, which includes some retail store expenses (like grand opening stuff). Which company got their money’s worth?
Creative, may you RIP soon.
Is apple going to hit 70 this is driving me nuts
The most curious thing about the ongoing Mac vs. PC argument is that PC fans think Apple is so successful because of their “brilliant marketing” (i.e. hype), but many Mac fans think the worst thing about Apple is their lack of marketing.
My take: You can’t discount Apple’s awareness that being the relatively obscure alternative to Windows PC’s is part of the Mac’s appeal to the target market. What do you think the “Think Different” campaign was all about? That is absolutely *not* the message you give if you are trying to be the majority platform.
Think about it: how many times have you been browsing at a store (for shoes or whatever) and the salesperson says “That is our most popular style,” or something to that effect? They’re trying to appeal to the average person’s desire to conform. If you’re like me (and, I would guess, most Mac users), that statement is more of a deterrent that an enticement to buy that product.
And that is of course exactly why many people choose Windows: it’s what everybody else uses.