UNIVERSITI TENAGA NASIONAL

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINGEERING

MEMB322 - MECHANICAL DESIGN PROCESS

MACBOOK PCDL MODEL COMPARISON WITH OTHER COMPATITOR

COMPANIES

SECTION : 03

GROUP : 07

GROUP MEMBER : 1) SHATISH NAIDU ME099469

2) KEOK YONG CHENG ME0101525

3) SHAHRUL AZIRAH BINTI SAAD ME096740

4) NIMMAL A/L GUNASEKARAN ME099467

5) RAYAN HASSAN ME099469

LECTURER : MR CHUA YAW LONG

1
TABLE OF CONTENT

No Content Page Number

1.0 Abstract 4

2.0 Introduction to Apple Macbook 5-9

3.0 PCDL Model of Macbook

3.1 Positioning the Brand (P) 10 – 12

• 3.1.1 Features
• 3.1.2 Operational

3.2 Communicating the Brand (C) 13 – 15

• 3.2.1 Advertising Campaigns
• 3.2.2 Celebrities and Social Media
• 3.2.3 Events

3.3 Delivering the Brand Performance (D) 16 – 18

• 3.3.1 Product Performance
• 3.3.2 Service Performance
• 3.3.3 Customer Care
• 3.3.4 Customer Satisfaction

3.4 Leveraging the Brand Equity (L)

19 - 23
• 3.4.1 Line Extension
• 3.4.2 Brand Extension
• 3.4.3 Co-Branding
• 3.4.4 Social Integration

4.0 Introduction of Comparison Product

4.1 Introduction of Acer Laptop 24 – 25

4.2 Introduction of Asus Laptop 26 – 28

4.3 Introduction of Hewlett-Packard Laptop 29 - 30

5.0 PCDL Model Comparison Table

5.1 Positioning the Brand 31 – 38

5.2 Communicating the Brand 36 – 39

2
 5.3 Delivering the Brand Performance 40 – 42

5.4 Leveraging Brand Equity 43 - 46

6.0 Discussion 47 - 49

7.0 Conclusion 50 - 51

8.0 Reference 52 - 54

9.0 Appendix 55 - 58

3
1.0 ABSTRACT

Students who are undergoing their mechanical degree course at UNITEN are required to

take the subject mechanical design process (MEMB322) in order to fulfil the required credit hours

for the course. Students taking this subject were randomly divided into groups of 5 or 6 and were

given this assignment to be done. We were given the task to conduct a research on one particular

product in the market and discuss how the mentioned product sustains itself in the market by using

PCDL model. We also had to use the PCDL model to conduct another case study comparing three

different brands.

Our team which consists of five members decided to focus on laptops after discussing

between us. The main company that was chosen was Apple. While, the other the three companies

that we chose for comparison were HP, Asus and Acer. The work was divided equally among the

group members in order to speed up the work and also work efficiently.

4
2.0 INTRODUCTION OF APPLE MACBOOK

Apple Inc. uses the Apple brand to compete across several highly competitive

markets. Apple's brand has evolved as it has expanded its range of products and

services. Originally starting in the late 1970s with desktop computers and then laptops in the

1990s, it took over 20 years before the company expanded into its first major new product area

with the launch of the iPod in 2001, followed by iPhone in 2007, iPad in 2010, then Apple Pay

and Apple Watch in 2014. [1]

The MacBook is a brand of notebook computers manufactured from May 2006 to

February 2012, and relaunched in 2015.The name Apple previously used for its laptop computers

before all the way back to 1991, was PowerBook. The very first PowerBook doesn't share much

in common with today's MacBook, except for it being made by Apple: it looks old-fashioned

today, but it was actually much smaller, lighter and cheaper than the Apple laptops that came

before it.

Figure 1.1: The very first PowerBook that came out back in 1991

5
 PowerBooks went on to become hugely successful for Apple, and many different

versions and designs were released during the 15 years that the brand name was used. The final

one (and the MacBook's immediate predecessor) was the PowerBook G4 - first released in 2001,

it looks very much like a MacBook forerunner, and introduced the svelte, compact style

associated with today's Apple laptops. Titanium eventually gave way to aluminium as the

primary material used. PowerBook images licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons.

THE ORIGINAL MACBOOKS (2006-2011)

The MacBook then arrived into the world on 16 May, 2006 and could be picked up in both

black or white. In a dramatic move - for those who get excited about CPUs anyway - Apple

switched to Intel processors to improve performance and reduce heat, and that gave the company

the freedom to produce a design significantly more modern-looking than anything which had gone

before it. This first MacBook placed the foundations for the laptop business that Apple has today.

Figure 1.2: Original white and black MacBook color that was introduced in 2006

6
 For a brief period in 2008, the MacBook was the best-selling laptop of any brand in the

United States, which shows what a success it's been - particularly in the consumer and education

markets. Down the years there have been three main design iterations: a polycarbonate and

fiberglass combination, an aluminum unibody (aping the MacBook Pro) and a polycarbonate

unibody. The original MacBook was discontinued in July 2011 as the MacBook Air had effectively

replaced it, but it would return in style.

THE MACBOOK PRO (2006-TODAY)

Figure 1.3: MacBook Pro has a slicker edge and a more modern look

The Pro version of the MacBook actually got out of the gates earlier in 2006, in January.

The second Apple machine to 'go Intel' after the iMac, the original MacBook Pro gave users a

choice of a 1.83GHz or 2.0GHz CPU, bleeding edge specifications for the time - a 15-inch model

appeared first, followed by a 17-inch version, and both editions of the MacBook Pro were updated

later in the same year.

7
 Since 2006 the MacBook Pro has gone from strength to strength (just head into any coffee

shop or startup company office for evidence). Along the way, the stylish aluminium unibody

design has been introduced, the 17-inch model has been swapped for a 13-inch one, the Retina

display has arrived on the scene, and optical drives have gone the way of floppy disks and CRT

monitors.

THE MACBOOK AIR (2008-TODAY)

The MacBook Air was something of a sensation when Steve Jobs introduced it and slid it

into an envelope on stage in 2008 (yes, it really is that old). Originally a premium option in Apple's

range, as prices dropped it came to replace the MacBook as a cheaper alternative to the MacBook

Pro. In recent years it's become Apple's best-selling computer, offering a winning combination of

portability, power and price that helped kick off the ultrabook trend in Windows laptops too.

The original 13.3-inch model was later joined by an 11.6-inch one and down the years the

MacBook Air has become even thinner and even more powerful - though it remains Apple's entry-

level laptop price-wise. The early 2015 editions upped the specs of the MacBook Air again, though

the screen display resolution and size hasn't changed since late in 2010 - the Air is badly in need

of a Retina upgrade, which could be on the cards soon.

8
 Figure 1.4: MacBook Air which is thinner and more expensive

And we come back full circle to Apple's new MacBook - the return of the MacBook - which

was introduced in March 2015. It's thinner, more expensive and a touch less powerful in terms of

raw specifications than the MacBook Air, which gives potential buyers a lot of factors to weigh

up. Most reviews of the new laptop have praised its design and feel while lamenting the

performance of the low-powered components inside (components necessary to get a laptop this

thin and light of course).

In years to come the brand new MacBook will be seen as a trend-setter, but right now it's

a bit of an awkward compromise between portability and performance. That said, it does continue

the MacBook tradition stretching back to 2006 and could form the basis of another ten years of

MacBook dominance on the laptop scene. Exactly what Apple will do with the Air and Pro remains

to be seen. [2]

9
3.0 PCDL MODEL COMPARISON TABLE

3.1 POSITIONING THE BRAND (P)

3.1.1 Features

Photos is rapidly becoming one of the most used apps on our Macs, and in High Sierra it

looks we’ll be spending even more time with it. A slew of new features await us in the new OS,

including better organization, looped Live Photos, and new Memories categories. It’ll also be

easier to identify who’s in your photos with more accurate People identification and cross-device

syncing for albums.

The stunning 12-inch Retina display on MacBook is truly something to look at. With over

3 million pixels and edge-to-edge glass, every image leaps-off the screen in rich and vibrant detail.

To deliver the gorgeous Retina experience, Apple designed the pixels to create a larger aperture.

This lets more light pass through, allowing more energy-efficient LED backlighting, yet achieve

the same vivid brightness.

MacOS features powerful core technologies engineered for the most important functions

of a Mac. The Apple File System manages all the data on Mac, bringing a new level of security

and responsiveness to flash-based systems. High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) introduces a

new standard for video compression, making movie files up to 40 percent smaller and 4K

streaming video faster. [3]

10
 The Metal 2 powers the graphics behind every pixel, making every gaming experience

more visually magnificent and fun. That means, it supports for virtual reality lets developers create

immersive worlds.

When Metal was introduced in El Capitan, it brought a slew of under-the-hood changes to

make games and graphics sing, and now it’s ready to deliver the next generation, appropriately

called Metal 2. The new technology will open up games to a whole new world of power, with a

new API and powerful tools for developers. Metal 2 will bring 10 times the draw call throughput

that Metal delivered, enabling graphics that are far more robust while adding external GPU support

for hard-core gamers. [4]

3.1.2 Tangible Attributes

The products created provide a premium user experience through innovative features and

design considerations. The extensive but controlled product portfolio of Apple creates a uniform

and unique product usability and consumer experience. The sleek metal-based aesthetics of a

MacBook also signals a sense of uniformity when used alongside the iPhone. The user interface

of these consumer electronic devices also employs the same functional and design principles

centred on simplicity thereby creating a strong sense of familiarity. [5]

3.1.3 Intangible Attributes

Apple’s premium pricing is also part of the marketing strategy. This high price point or

premium pricing strategy has helped the company promote and maintain a satisfactory perception

11
among its loyal buyers. After all, there are consumers who believe that expensive products enjoy

an exceptional reputation or represent exceptional quality and distinction. Thus, Apple products

are positioned as superior over their competitors through this pricing strategy.

It is also important to consider the fact that luxury has a psychological connection with

premium pricing. Unquestionably, Apple products are luxury goods because of their high price

points and consumers of luxury good are willing to pay extra in order to maintain a sense of

indulgence or a status symbol. [5]

12
3.2 COMMUNICATING THE BRAND (C)

Apple marketing communications mix explains the company’s stance towards individual

elements of the marketing communication mix such as print and media advertising, sales

promotions, events and experiences, public relations, direct marketing and personal selling. The

main aim behind Apple marketing communications mix is to communicate the marketing message

of the brand to the target customer segment through elements listed above. Apple is effective in

using elements of the marketing communication mix in an integrated manner to ensure the

consistency of the marketing message. [6]

3.2.1 Advertising campaign

Apple Inc. has had many notable advertisements since the 1980s. The "1984" Super Bowl

commercial introduced the original Macintosh mimicking imagery from George Orwell's 1984.

The 1990s Think Different campaign linked Apple to famous social figures such as John Lennon

and Mahatma Gandhi, while also introducing "Think Different" as a new slogan for the company.

Other popular advertising campaigns include the 2000s "iPod People", the 2002 Switch campaign,

and most recently the Get a Mac campaign which ran from 2006-2009. [7]

13
 Figure 3.1: Mahatma Gandhi on Apple ‘Think Different’ campaign billboard

3.2.2 Celebrities and social media

In adweek.com article of Apple's new iPhone spots with Zooey Deschanel and Samuel L.

Jackson, the columnist said the company doesn't often use celebrities. Technically, that's true—

the vast majority of its ads are celeb-free. However, Apple isn't averse to tapping the brand equity

of actors, musicians, etc., for its commercials. This includes Kevin Costner, who was all but

unknown in 1983, and Ellen Feiss, a regular teenager who of course became a sensation because

of her "Switchers" advertisement. [8]

14
3.2.3 Event

Apple announced at WWDC 2017 that the company will start to phase out support for 32-

bit software in macOS. In January 2018, new apps submitted by developers to the App Store must

be 64-bit apps. Also, all apps and app updates must be 64-bit by June 2018. Eventually, 32-bit

support will no longer exist in macOS, probably in a version after High Sierra.

That’s important for developers to note, but it’s also important for users. If you have old

software you like to use and never update, it’s possible they are 32-bit apps and they won’t work

in a future version of macOS. Now’s the time to update those apps and get used to them or find

alternatives. [9]

15
3.3 DELIVERING THE BRAND PERFORMANCE (D)

3.3.1 Product Performance:

Security. Yes, that old chestnut. For years now, Mac users have paraded the apparent

invulnerability of their systems in the faces of PC using friends. Macs are continually shown to

suffer less attacks than Windows-based PCs, and by quite a margin. Things are definitely changing

though, with internet-based attacks on the rise, and hackers are becoming increasingly

sophisticated in their approaches. For the time being the Mac is still the safest platform. [10]

3.3.2 Customer Care:

There is no argument that a Mac is an electronic product, and it needs to justify its princely

sum to the paying customer. Thankfully the Mac has spent more than a decade at the top of

customer satisfaction surveys, which is no mean feat when you consider that Apple products are

expensive items that promise much to the prospective buyer. The fact that Apple delivers the good,

is probably the most compelling argument of all that shows that most people who purchase Macs

have few, if any, regrets.

Apple products, the companies own Apple Care program is best suited as Apple uses its

own proprietary hardware for its products. Apple has a quiet good customer service support system

16
as their own Apple Care program is best suited as Apple uses its own proprietary hardware for its

products. [11]

Not only you got to talk to any of Apple support members by phone, chat, or email, u can even set

up a repair. Other than that, if a customer having a problem, they can either browse thru another user

similar problem on the page where the Apple Support Community members have already answered.

[11]

3.3.3 Customer Satisfaction:

Not only focusing on phone call, email or chat to resolve problems, Apple Inc has definitely

goes above customer expectation with videos that are designed to make their experience shine. Their

own YouTube channel is live, with also new How-to and tips & tricks content weekly to answer most

asked questions. [11]

Figure 3.4: Live YouTube Videos as a way to give great experience to the customers

17
 Moreover, Apple has various exchange and repair extension programs that support the customer

satisfaction such as MacBook Pro Repair Extension Program for Video Issues, Keyboard Service

Program for MacBook and MacBook Pro, 13-inch MacBook Pro (non Touch Bar) Battery

Replacement Program and many more.

18
3.4 LEVERAGING THE BRAND EQUITY (L)

Leveraging brand is linking the brand to some other entity that creates a new set of

associations from the brand to the entity as well as affect existing brand associations. Companies

employ different strategies in leveraging their brands namely through line extensions, brand

extensions, ingredient branding and co-branding, etc. [12]

Apple’s genuine asset is the ecosystem that it creates with the combination of technology

and proprietary operating systems and marketplaces. They leverage this mixture to create the

unique psychological image in the minds of the consumers that covers both the brand and the

need. Customers now demand for an iPhone, not a smartphone, and for a Macbook, not just a

laptop, even though the technology behind the two is not that different. It’s the status, the

experience and separate service offering that allows Apple to create more value through its

strong branding.

They have created this psychological bridge in the minds of their customers between their

offering (iPads, iPhones, Macbooks, iPods, Appstore etc.) and the need it fulfils which is also the

need to be connected and enjoy a vast selection of digital entertainment tools and, essentially, have

a better life. Apple’s products deliver a consistent above the market user experience across all their

devices, which combines the mental connection with every new product consumers buy and with

every new service they use. [13]

19
3.4.1 Line extension:

After Apple was founded in April 1976, the company did not rest alone with not only

designing and manufacturing computers. Apple expanded its product portfolio and successfully

emerged as an innovative and influential multinational technology company. [5]

The introduction of iPod in 2001 and the online music and app store iTunes have

transformed the music industry through the promotion of digital music. These two products created

and supported the growing ecosystem for selling and purchasing music via the Internet. The

company was also instrumental for piloting in the era of smartphones and tablet computers with

the release of iPhone in 2007 and iPad in 2010.

Today, product strategy is at the core of the marketing strategy of Apple. Furthermore, it

has become the competitive advantage of the company and its flagship products to include the

MacBook, iPod, iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch,. [5]

3.4.2 Brand extension:

Other than personal computer products, there are lines of brand extension that were created

by Apple to become the competitive advantage of company including iTunes, their own apps,

Apple Watch, and Apple Pay.

20
3.4.3 Co-Branding:

In 2006, Nike and Apple Team Up to Launch Nike+iPod. The first product developed

through this partnership is the Nike+iPod Sport Kit, a wireless system that allows Nike+ footwear to

talk with your iPod nano to connect you to the ultimate personal running and workout experience. [14]

In 2014, Apple and IBM first partnered on the MobileFirst enterprise. Under terms of the

agreement, IBM handles hardware leasing, device management, security, analytics, mobile

integration and on-site repairs, while Apple aids in software development and customer support

through AppleCare. Later, Apple and IBM announced an expansion to their existing partnership

that will allow customers to roll out advanced in-app machine learning capabilities through Apple's

Core ML and IBM's Watson technology. Integrating Watson tech into iOS is a fairly

straightforward workflow. [15]

Latest cooperation, MasterCard and Apple Pay because both companies understand that

cashless transactions are where our society is headed. MasterCard became the first credit card

company to support Apple Pay. This gave Apple an ample customer base to work with while it

tweaked its service and gave MasterCard a brand new functionality that was exclusive to their

customers. Apple has since teamed up with other major credit card companies to expand their user

base. [16]

21
3.4.4 Social Integration:

In the era of social media, when brands are furiously trying to create content, promote it,

and then breathlessly check for likes and shares, the world’s most valuable company has never put

out a Facebook post. It’s never tweeted either.

Apple isn’t a conventional company by any means, but to realize how different it is from

its competitors, one merely has to look at its social media pages. Apple doesn’t completely avoid

social media. It has accounts on the major social networks. Its Facebook page, for instance, has

over 7 million likes. But where other brands’ feeds would be full of information about their

products, Apple’s is completely empty.

Figure 3.5: Image shows Apple Facebook page, has over 7 million likes.
But it is completely empty

22
 Apple has a Twitter account too, and over a million people follow it. But they might as

well be following a ghost because Apple has never tweeted.

Figure 3.6: Image shows empty Tweeter timeline of Apple account

Apple’s Instagram account is recently created, has nearly a million followers, but only

shares pictures of images shot on iPhones. It’s shared only 20 pictures so far. [17]

23
4.0 INTRODUCTION OF OTHER COMPARISON PRODUCTS

4.1 Introduction to Acer Laptop

Acer Inc. is a Taiwanese multinational hardware and electronics corporation, specializing

in advanced electronics technology, headquartered in Xizhi, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Acer's

products include desktop PCs, laptop PCs (clamshells, 2-in-1s, convertibles and Chromebooks),

tablets, servers, storage devices, virtual reality devices, displays, smartphones and peripherals.

Acer also sells gaming PCs and accessories under its Predator brand. In 2015, Acer was the sixth-

largest personal computer vendor in the world. [18]

Acer was founded by Stan Shih Chen Jung and his friends in 1976 with an initial investment

of $25,000. They named the company ’Multitech International’ and started by designing hand-

held electronic games and later went on to distribute semi-conductors which they had imported for

lower costs from developing countries. In 1981, the company was given the name ‘Acer Inc.’ Their

first successful product was the ‘Microprofessor’ which went on to provide them with revenue for

their future projects. Next, they started manufacturing PC’s which they supplied to companies

which they sold under their well-established brands. Acer was the first Taiwanese computer

company that went on to sell its product directly. This was only possible because of investing their

profits into Research and Development. Thus in 1986 it was able to develop the world’s first

Chinese language computer which came with an Intel 386 processor. [19]

24
 Figure 4.1: Stan Shih Chen Jung

In 2003, Acer Inc. signed a sponsorship agreement with Scuderia Ferrari. In 2006 the

company formerly Official Supplier became Official Sponsor to Scuderia Ferrari. This sponsorship

has led to the creation of Ferrari branded product series: notebooks, netbooks and a smartphone.

[20] In 2007, Acer Inc. sets the trend in product with new Aspire Gemstone-design consumer

notebooks. Acer becomes the No.2 notebook vendor worldwide (Gartner,2007). In 2008, Acer Inc.

had launches the new Aspire Gemstone Blue notebooks, the first to feature full HD widescreen

18.4” and 16” LCDs, Blue-Ray Disc drive, and latest generation Dolby Surround sound. After all,

Acer Inc. also enters the high-end gaming market at the same time. Acer ranks No.2 for notebooks

worldwide. [20]

Figure 4.2: Acer logo

25
4.2 Introduction to ASUS Laptops

Figure 4.3: Asus logo

Asus is is a Taiwan-based, multinational computer hardware and consumer electronics

company that was established in April 1989. [21] It was founded in Taipei in 1981, by T.H.

Tung, Ted Hsu, Wayne Hsieh and M.T. Liao. The current chairman of Asus, Jonney Shih wasn’t

part of the founding team, but he was involved in this project since day 1. All four of the founding

members worked at Acer as hardware engineers under Jonney Shih, since he was in charge of

Acer’s R&D department. All five of them decided to star their own small company thus, they

elected Mr.Jonney Shih to lead the team.

However, Jonney had to stay at Asus as the then-chairman and ceo of Acer, Stan shih

convinced him to stay and help Acer since Acer wasn’t in a good shape. Still, Jonney ended up

supporting the team of engineers by providing 60 percent of their startup funding. The team of

four engineers did manage to make a massive breakthrough even without Jonney’s guidance as

during their second year, they beat their local rivals and launched an Intel 486 motherboard around

the same time as IBM.

26
 Compared to IBM, ASUS managed to achieve this without getting a preview of Intel’s

chip. It was such a huge feat as around this time, as Taiwan had yet to establish a leading position

in the computer-hardware business and Intel would only supply new processors to established

companies like IBM first. Taiwanese companies would have to wait for around six months before

receiving their prototypes. Asus created such a huge impression on Intel, that Intel started giving

ASUS early access to its upcoming CPUs, and ASUS would later manufacture motherboards for

the likes of Dell, HP and Sony.

Around the year 1992, Asus was in crisis as the company was suffering from quality issues

and the loss of second generation engineers. Observing this, Jonney decided it’s time he joined the

team and get back Asus on track. Since, Acer was in good health, Jonney was allowed to join Asus.

Once rejoining, Joneey instantly started working on the company’s talent pool which was not easy

at all since it was just a small company. He had to call graduates from his alma mater, the National

Taiwan University personally in order to convince them to join Asus. Most of them was touched

after their conversation with Jonney and they ended up joining Asus. [22] Since then, Asus has

never looked back and soared to greater heights.

Figure 4.4: Image of Asus Laptop

27
 Asus laptops are well renowned around the world for their performance and unique design.

They started off with a simple laptop when they entered the market. But over the years, they have

made such progress that currently they offer laptops tailor made for specific purposes such as

gaming, work, design or just casual use. Among their popular laptop series are Zenbook series,

gaming series, Vivobook series and many more.

Every year they keep improving their laptops by adding extra features and also improving

the design and internal parts. In terms of gaming laptops, they are very popular among the gaming

community as Asus gaming laptops are extremely powerful and can run the even the best games

under extreme graphic settings. Moreover, the prices of the laptops are not very expensive and

reasonable depending on the laptop specifications compared to other brands in the market.

28
4.3 Introduction Hewlett-Packard laptop

HP Pavilion is a line of personal computers produced by Hewlett-Packard and introduced

in 1995. The name is applied to both desktops and laptops for the Home and Home Office product

range. The Pavilion mainly competes against computers such as Acer's Aspire, Dell's Inspiron and

XPS, Lenovo's Idea Pad and Toshiba's Satellite. When HP merged with Compaq in 2002, it took

over Compaq's existing naming rights agreement. As a result, HP sold both HP and Compaq-

branded machines until 2013.

HP as a company always rise to challenges when it comes to IT-related issues, this is

manifested in so many ways, the company offers one of the tech world's most comprehensive

portfolios of hardware, software, and services. The products range from personal computers,

servers, and sophisticated storage devices, variety of printers and series of networking equipments.

Asides this, the service unit of HP still offers series of IT and business outsourcing,

software application development, IT consulting, and other IT-related services. The company has

produces series of software such as carrier-grade communications applications, information

management business intelligence and enterprise IT management among others. The coverage of

her business is covered in consumers, business, government agencies and educational organization

and such has been spread to more than 170 countries of the world. HP as a company believes so

much in working towards achieving her set objectives and that has been the corporate values shared

by all the employee within the organization.

29
 HP company has been maintaining a lead in Information Technology (IT) which is

evidenced as contained in the following discussions. To start with, it is revealed from the analyst

firm's report that HP recorded a tremendous increase in the infrastructure support services revenue

from $7.889 billion to $8.028 billion between 2002 and 2003. This accounts for over 6% of the

world infrastructure support service market. This marks the second year of the company (HP)

leading the IT industry in support service revenue. [23]

Figure 4.5: Image of HP Pavilion Laptop with multiple colors

30
5.0 PCDL MODEL COMPARISON TABLE

5.1 Positioning the Brand

Company PCDL Model Comparison

Apple Macbook HP Pavilions Asus Laptops Acer Laptop

Features 1) The stunning 12-inch 1) Intel Core i7 chip 1) Offers laptops equipped 1) Acer's laptops often

Retina display on certainly gives the with the latest intel succeed with subtlety

MacBook Spectre an extra spring chipsets and graphic and solid construction,

in its step cards. [25] and its gaming rigs

2) Apple designed the wowed us with some of

pixels to create a 2) HP claims users can 2) Efficient cooling systems their daring choices

larger aperture. This achieve a battery life of which keeps the laptops

lets more light pass 9 hours and 45 minutes cool even under extreme 2) Acer laptops are worth

through, allowing [24] usage. the money with the latest

more energy-efficient equipment.

LED backlighting

31
 3) High Efficiency

Video Coding

(HEVC) introduces a

new standard for

video compression,

making movie files up

to 40 percent smaller

and 4K streaming

video faster [3]

Tangible 1) An Intel dual core - 1) Good looking products 1) sophisticated look 1) For home and work

Attribute Core i5 processor [26] to satisfy customer’s laptop have the simple

need. 2) look so fashionable and good design, and it’s

2) A very thin but strong matching the current very thin and light,

aluminum case trend suitable.

32
 3) ROG Zephyrus, with its 2) For the gaming laptop, it

3) Good looking slim, brushed-aluminum has the fashionable and

products to satisfy chassis and the Active solid design.

Aerodynamics System,
customer needs
which reveals a hidden

rear exhaust panel when

the laptop is open [27]

Intangible 1) Strong brand name, 1) Fast growing brand 1) A stronghold among 1) Strong brand name,

Attribute patents, copyrights, name, strong copyrights laptop brands and has an patents, copyrights, and

and good reputation and good reputation excellent reputation good reputation

worldwide. worldwide. worldwide.

2) Uniqueness, integrity,

design and

performance,

represent today's

33
 'prestige' for these

high-end consumers

Product 1) Mac’s invulnerability 1) HP produces lines of 1) Widely range in functions 1) Acer laptops have

Function security systems. For printers, scanners, as they have specific specific laptops for

the time being the digital cameras, laptops for work, gaming home, work, design and

Mac is still the safest calculators, PDAs, and also designers gaming.

platform. servers, workstation

computers, and 2) Their gaming laptops 2) The laptops have the

computers for home and under the republic of friendly user interface

small-business use. [28] gamers (ROG) is very which installed windows

popular among the and some additional

gaming community [29] software that’s make

user easy to handle the

laptop.

34
Benefits 1) Easy to use and 1) Make IT management 1) The laptops are highly 1) The laptops have the

deliver a complete easy and deliver a easier to use with friendly better and simple look.

workstation complete workstation interface 2) Easy to use and easy to

experience. experience. [30] 2) Generally, very light thus, carry.

making it easier to carry

around

Operational 1) Does not have 1) Product diversification 1) Due to the 3 different 1) Everyone in the

specific target and is to suit all kinds of categories of laptops each worldwide at any age

addressed to everyone backgrounds of suited for different needs, range.

at any age range. consumers. Asus laptops are used

worldwide and can be

used by anyone without

any hassle.

35
5.2 Communicating Brand Message

Company PCDL Model Comparison

Apple Macbook HP Pavilions Asus Laptops Acer Laptop

Advertising 1) The "1984" Super 1) Localization 1) “Transform Everyday” 1) “Keep Asking”

Campaign Bowl commercial advertisement 'Moving which was held in 2014 Campaign.

introduced the 'True to the Original'. promoted the ASUS

original Macintosh Transformer Book 2) “Life is busy, Acer

mimicking imagery 2) Internet campaigns - Family of Products makes it easy”

from George Orwell's mainly traditional Through a New

1984 banner ads for products Microsite, Charity

Donations and

2) The 1990s “Think Activations in San

Different” campaign Francisco, Washington

linked Apple to DC and Chicago

famous social figures

36
 such as John Lennon 2) In order to promote their

and Mahatma Gandhi, latest gaming laptops,

while also introducing Asus usually teams up

"Think Different" as a with newly released

new slogan for the games by providing the

company game and laptops as a

complete package. [31]

3) Other popular

advertising

campaigns include the

2000s "iPod People",

the 2002 Switch

campaign, and most

recently the Get a

Mac campaign which

ran from 2006-2009

37
Theme 1) Think different (1995 N/A 1) Insearch of Incredible 1) Empowering technology

– 2000)

2) Switch (2001 –

present)

Consumers 1) Teenagers, College 1) Teenagers, College and 1) Worldwide users ranging 1) Worldwide users

and University University Students, from kids to senior ranging from kids to

Students, Business Business People, citizens. senior citizens.

People, Young Young Children and

Children and Kids, Kids.

Adults.

Celebrities 1) The company doesn't 1) Deepika Padukone 1) Zhao Liying 1) DJ Tiesto

often use celebrities. The

vast majority of its ads are 2) Gal Gadot [32]

celeb-free. [8]

Event 1) Apple Worldwide 1) Hp global partner 1) “MWC 2018” 1) “Acer Day”

Developers conference 2018 [28]

38
 Conferences

(WWDC) which is

held annually in

California

2) MacWorld Expo

39
5.3 Delivering The Brand Performance

Company PCDL Model Comparison

Apple Macbook HP Pavilions Asus Laptops Acer Laptop

Product 1) MacBook was built for 1) Built-in Workstation 1) Equipped with the latest 1) Equipped with the large

performance virtually silent guru, you will spend processors for strong and colorful FHD

performance. more time doing and performance without any screen.

less time lagging and sufficient

2) Its processor runs on troubleshooting. storage space as well as 2) The whole body for the

just 5 watts of power, high amounts of RAM. laptop has the subtlety

which generates less 2) HP RGS is the ideal and solid construction.

heat and eliminates the tool to collaborate with 2) Very high battery life and And materials are very

need for a fan to cool a dispersed team of also excellent screen strong and light.

the computer. creatives or remotely display.

access your visual FX,

video editing,

40
 animation, and

broadcasting

applications. [33]

Customer 1) Apple Care program 1) Hp provides full time 1) Asus provides customer 1) Asus provides customer

care 2) Communicate to any support on their online service to their customers service to their

of Apple support website. via their contact us customers via their

members by phone, 2) Provide search engine feature in Asus Support contact us feature.

chat, or email, u can for product or serial website and also their

even set up a repair number. [30] number which is

3) Allows user to browse provided under the option

problems that is similar call us. [34]

to theirs to find

answers on the Apple

Support Community

area.

41
Customer 1) Mac has spent more 1) Encourage Face-to- 1) Asus have their very own 1) Acer have the customer

satisfaction than a decade at the Face Dealings online survey form under survey form in their

top of customer their website which is in website in order to

satisfaction surveys 2) Have a Clearly-Defined order to further the further understand the

Customer Service understand the customer’s needs and

2) Apple has various Policy customer’s needs and improve their service.

exchange and repair improve their service.

extension programs 2) In 2009, Acer score 61%

3) Be Friendly and
that support the 2) As for the year 2018, rank high in customer
Approachable
customer satisfaction records show that they do satisfaction [36]

[11] have a high customer

satisfaction indeed. They

have a web score of 45/60

and phone score of 34/40.

[35]

42
5.4 Leveraging the Brand Equity

Company PCDL Model Comparison

Apple Macbook HP Pavilions Asus Laptops Acer Laptop

Line 1) Apple deviced that N/A 1) Asus zenbooks, Asus 1) For Home: Spin, Switch,

Extension include the MacBook, VivoBooks, Asus FZ, ZX Aspire, Nitro, Acer

iPod, iPhone, iPad, series and Asus 2 in 1 pc Chromebook, Aspire V

Mac Mini series which combines Nitro, Aspire E, Aspire

laptops with tablet. F, Aspire R, Aspire S,

Acer One, and Switch

2) Asus routers, Asus One

graphic cards, Asus

mobile device and Asus 2) For Work: Swift, Acer

dekstops Chromebook, Travel

. Mate P, and Travel Mate

43
 3) For Gaming: Predator

15, Predator 17, Predator

17 X, Nitro 5, Predator

21 X, Predator Helios

300, Predator Triton 700,

and Aspire V Nitro

Brand 1) Apple own apps, 1) Intel partnered Hewlett- 1) Asus Zen Watch 3 1) Acer desktop, Acer

Extension iTunes, Apple Watch, Packard for future (W1503Q) servers, Acer projector,

and Apple Pay product. Acer Tablets, Acer

smartphones, Acer

monitors, Acer visual &

mixed reality and Acer

smart camera

44
Social 1) YouTube, Facebook, 1) Twitter, Facebook, 1) Facebook, Twitter, 1) Facebook, Twitter,

Integration Twitter, Instagram Instagram, Official Instagram and their Instagram and their

and their official site. websites. official site. official site.

2) However, the world’s

most valuable

company has never

put out a Facebook

post. It’s never

tweeted either.

Co- 1) Apple+Nike 1) HP with JetIntelligence 1) Asus and Google for 1) Acer and Ferrari special

Branding For Original HP Toner Nexus 7 tablet [38] edition notebook

2) MasterCard and [37]

Apple Pay

45
3) GE, CISCO, IBM,

SAP, Deloitte

46
6.0 DISCUSSION

From the report, we done the research on these four laptops brand which are MacBook,

HP, Asus and Acer. And we know that every brand has its own strength and weakness. Moreover,

these four laptops brand are followed the PCDL model for building their brand in the market.

From the positioning the brand, all the four laptops brand have their own features and

different apart from each other. Like feature of Apple Macbook main in display screen, feature of

HP Pavilions main in processor and battery life, feature of Asus Laptop main in chipsets and

cooling systems, and feature of Acer Laptop main in the design construction and selling price.

After that, in the tangible attributes, all the brands have their own design but all the brands also

have the similar part which are using the light and strong material. From here we know that the

weight of the laptop also the part that contributes customers need. For intangible attributes, we

know that Apple Macbook has the stronger brand name and good reputation in the market

compared to the three other laptops brand. Another than that, we also know that all the brands have

their own copyright and patents of their design. From the product function, all the brands are

different with each other. Benefits of all the brands are almost the same. The laptops do not have

any specific target and is addressed to everyone at any age range.

From the communicating the brand message, every brand has their advertising campaigns.

For Apple Macbook, the 1990s “Thick Different” campaign linked Apple to famous social figures

such as John Lennon and Mahatma Gandhi, while also introducing “Thick Different” as a new

slogan for the company. And for other brands that have “Moving True to the Original” from HP,

47
“Transform Everyday” from Asus, and “Life is busy, Acer makes it easy” from Acer. Consumers

for all the laptops brand are the same, worldwide users ranging from kids to senior citizens also

can purchases laptop and use it. In the additional, Apple Macbook doesn’t often use celebrities

than other brands, and other brands have famously known celebrities that promote their brand.

Like DJ Tiesto is a famously known celebrities that promote Acer brand. From the event we know

that all the brands have organized event to market their products and brand to people.

From the delivering the brand performance, the four brands have their product performance

to attract their customers. Example like Apple Macbook, MacBook was built for virtually silent

performance and its processor runs on just 5 watts of power, which generates less heat and

eliminates the need for a fan to cool the computer. For the customer care, all the brands are

providing customer support on their own websites but the Apple has the better customer care

services, it is because of Apple developed an Apple Care program. For the customer satisfaction,

every brand also doing their customer survey frequently, and the Mac has spent more than a decade

at the top of customer satisfaction survey.

For leveraging the brand, the first is line extension, from the comparison table we know

that the HP does not has any line extension. By the way, the Apple MacBook, Asus Laptops and

Acer Laptops has the line extension for their laptops, like Acer, it has the line extension for home,

for work and for gaming. For the brand extension, every brand also has their brand extension, like

Apple, it has Apple own apps, iTunes Apple Watch, and Apple Pay. This will increase the customer

interest to their product. After that, the four brands also have their social integration, such as

48
YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and their official websites. It’s help for customer to get the latest

news from their favorite brands. Lastly, Co-Branding also very important for promote their brands,

like Asus and Google for Nexus 7 Tablet.

49
7.0 CONCLUSION

As a conclusion, the result obtains throughout the research brand of laptop using PCDL

table. The main company for the research is MacBook apple and other three company was HP,

ASUS and ACER. The PCDL demonstrate examines and looking at the organization viably in

light of the fact that every one of the organization has their own particular qualities and

characteristic. The four stages suggested in PCDL model namely, positioning the brand,

communicating the brand message, delivering the brand performance, and leveraging the brand

equity.

Throughout the PLCD table, we can conclude that MacBook not only best laptop in this

technology industry while Acer, Asus and Hp also has their own characteristic and unique

technique to positioning their brand to be known worldwide such as apple company company

expanded into its first major new product area with the launch of the iPod in 2001, HP pavilion

slim has a curvy body design, while Acer take on a more serious workload and conquer larger

tasks with a stronger CPU, and finally Asus has latest and efficient cooling system.

Promoting and advertisement that is innovatively executed encourages the brand to break

the messiness and construct solid effect in the objective market. The organizations have their

own topics, big names and shows to speak to their image to draw in more clients.

50
 Consumer loyalty was the most vital thing for the organizations to left great impressions

in the outlook of the clients by conveying their image guarantees. In that case, MacBook took the

top slot in the JD Power customer satisfaction survey for the ninth consecutive time while Asus

succeed with subtlety and solid construction, and its gaming rigs wowed us with some of their

daring choices. Moreover, Asus won third from last place in last year's Tech Support Showdown

and HP respond to Messages Promptly & Keep Your Clients Informed all the time.

As a conclusion, we learned and understand the marketing skills used by some company

to promote their brand in the market for customer use. The task have gave the gathering a

superior understanding in the matter of what's in store and definitely enhanced the information to

deliver a superior discoveries for the last venture in upcoming research.

51
8.0 REFERENCE

[1] [Online]. Available: http://www.marketingminds.com.au/apple_branding_strategy.html.

[2] D. NIELD, "T3.com," 03 SEPTEMBER 2015. [Online]. Available: https://www.t3.com/features/a-

brief-history-of-the-apple-macbook.

[3] Macbook, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.apple.com/my/macbook/.

[4] M. S. Roman Loyola, "macworld.com," 11 april 2018. [Online]. Available:

https://www.macworld.com/article/3199825/macs/macos-high-sierra-features-specs-pricing-
faq.html.

[5] N. Yeung, 26 January 2017. [Online]. Available: http://www.versiondaily.com/the-marketing-

strategy-of-apple-a-concise-analysis/.

[6] J. Dudovskiy, "research-methodology. net," 19 January 2018. [Online]. Available: https://research-

methodology.net/apple-marketing-strategy-4/).

[7] Wikipedia, 10 June 2018. [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Inc._advertising.

[8] T. Nudd, 23 April 2012. [Online]. Available: https://www.adweek.com/creativity/34-apple-

commercials-starring-celebrities-139792/.

[9] J. Clover, 6 June 2017. [Online]. Available: https://www.macrumors.com/2017/06/06/apple-to-

phase-out-32-bit-mac-apps/.

[10] K. Haslam, 20 April 2017. [Online]. Available: https://www.macworld.co.uk/feature/mac/mac-vs-

pc-3493363/.

[11] support, "apple support," 2018. [Online]. Available: https://support.apple.com/en-my.

[12] C. Anzalone, "Line Extension vs. Brand Extension," 2018. [Online]. Available:
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/line-extension-vs-brand-extension-36797.html.

[13] T. Capilnean, 24 June 2014. [Online]. Available: http://tituscapilnean.com/how-to-brand-offerings-

and-leverage-the-brand-a-lesson-from-apple/.

[14] Newsroom, "Newsroom," 23 may 2006. [Online]. Available:

https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2006/05/23Nike-and-Apple-Team-Up-to-Launch-Nike-iPod/.

52
[15] A. Staff, "apple insider," 19 March 2018. [Online]. Available:
https://appleinsider.com/articles/18/03/20/apple-ibm-partnership-expands-with-new-machine-
learning-integrations.

[16] M. Williams, "co-branding," 7 July 2016. [Online]. Available: http://altitudebranding.com/tag/co-

branding/.

[17] O. Team, "OFFICECHAI," 11 September 2017. [Online]. Available:

https://officechai.com/stories/apple-social-media-strategy/#sthash.GFAa4qC5.dpbs.

[18] wikipedia, "wikipedia," 16 June 2018. [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_Inc..

[19] s. story, "success story," 2018. [Online]. Available: https://successstory.com/companies/acer-inc.

[20] a. group, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.acer-group.com/ag/en/TW/content/history.

[21] asus, "about asus," 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.asus.com/About_ASUS/Company-

Introduction/.

[22] R. Lai, 16 August 2015. [Online]. Available: https://www.engadget.com/2015/08/16/asus-

chairman-jonney-shih-interview/.

[23] ukessays, "HP Introduction," 23 MARCH 2015. [Online]. Available:

https://www.ukessays.com/essays/commerce/introduction-of-hp-company-commerce-essay.php.

[24] wiki, "hp," 22 may 2018. [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hewlett-Packard.

[25] thererge, 10 11 2017. [Online]. Available:

https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2017/11/10/16632808/asus-8th-generation-intel-
processors.

[26] macbook, "macbook specs," 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.apple.com/lae/macbook-

pro/specs/.

[27] laptopmag, 20 April 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/asus-brand-

rating.

[28] wiki, "hp," 22 may 2018. [Online]. Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hewlett-Packard.

[29] asus, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.asus.com/Laptops/Gaming-Series-Products/.

[30] hp, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www8.hp.com/my/en/workstations/benefits.html.

[31] "asus," 30 MAY 2014. [Online]. Available: https://www.asus.com/us/News/yE2pDkMpDJcQesrG.

[32] "socialamosa," 6 June 2018. [Online]. Available: Available:

https://www.socialsamosa.com/2018/06/asus-gal-gadot/.

53
[33] hp, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.hp.com/us/en/workstations/performance-
advisor.html.

[34] asus, 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.asus.com/my/support/callus. [Accessed 21 6 2018].

[35] "laptopmag," 16 March 2018. [Online]. Available: https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/asus-tech-

support.

[36] T. Holwerda, "osnew," 19 February 2009. [Online]. Available:

http://www.osnews.com/story/21007/Apple_ASUS_Acer_Rank_High_in_Customer_Satisfaction/.

[37] ukessay.com, 23 march 2015. [Online]. Available: uke-inc-business-essay.php?vref=1.

54
9.0 APPENDIX

Date of Task
Task Description 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27
Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun

1 Assignment Given

2 First meeting

Research on brand
3
and study PCDL model
Second meeting
4
and task allocation
Research on 3 other
5 companies
and study PCDL model
Discussion on research
6 results,
and Conclusion
Compilation, cross reading,
7
and correction
Third meeting and
8
final compilation

9 Printing and Submission

Planned
Actual

Appendix 1: Gantt Chart

55
Abstract NIMMAL

Introduction to mackbook RAYAN

Positioning the brand mackbook RAYAN

Communicating the brand message Mackbook RAYAN

Delivering the massage – mackbook SHAHRUL AZIRAH

Leveraging the brand equity – mackbook SHAHRUL AZIRAH

Introduction to comparison company NIMMAL , SHATISH , CHENG

ASUS NIMMAL

ACER CHENG

HP SHATISH

PCDL comparison table SHAHRUL AZIRAH

Positioning the brand NIMMAL , SHATISH , CHENG

Communicating to brand massage NIMMAL , SHATISH , CHENG

Delivering the brand message NIMMAL , SHATISH , CHENG

Leveraging the brand equity NIMMAL , SHATISH , CHENG

Discussion CHENG

Conclusion SHATISH

REFERENCE SHAHRUL AZIRAH

Compiling SHAHRUL AZIRAH

Appendices – Gantt Chart, RAN CHENG

Appendix 2: Task Allocation Table

56
No Project Requirement Method of Compliance
1 Discussion for Assignment Team meetings

2 Able to understand PCDL Model
3 Choosing four brands or companies
4 Search four brands or companies PCDL
Model
Studying the PCDL guideline among team
members
Discuss with team members and voting for
best companies
Search data of brands or companies using
internet

Appendix 3: Requirement and Needs Statement Table

RANS_v1

No Project Requirement Method of Compliance

1 Discussion for Assignment Team meetings

2 Able to understand PCDL Model
3 Choosing four brands or companies
4 Search four brands or companies PCDL
Model
5 Comparing four brands or companies PCDL
Model
6 Proofreading and Editing
Studying the PCDL guideline among team
members
Discuss with team members and voting for
best companies
Search data of brands or companies using
internet
Comparing all the brands or companies in
Comparison PCDL Table
Compilation, cross reading and correcton

Appendix 4: Requirement and Needs Statement Table

RANS_v2

57
 PROJECT MANAGER
SHATISH

FINANCE TECHNICAL OPERATING ADMINISTRATION

MANAGER MANAGER MANAGER
AZIRAH
NIMMAL CHENG RYAN

Appendix 5: Organization Chart

58