Forget The ipod mini, I Want An ePod

The announcement of the mini pods disappointed me tremendously. Apple, in my opinion, missed out on a huge opportunity to offer an iPod-like product at a price point fit for general consumption. Instead they offered a smaller, cuter iPod for almost the same price of the existing 10GB iPod. I suspect that in an attempt to stay high end, they positioned themselves against the other high-end flash MP3 players in the market. Maybe it was to maintain the iPod reputation of being the top in class. And I can’t say I disagree with that thinking. What Mr. Jobs failed to communicate clearly was the advantages of the mini iPods to 1, 2, and 3G ones. What many people are griping about seems to be generated by the unknown positioning of Apple. Does Apple want to continue to build incrementally on their 30% market share always maintaining their quality? Or do they want to make the �iPod�, the next �walkman� and put one in the hands of every music listener out there? Sure the mini pods are way smaller, better for exercising with, and still maintains the brilliant design that made the iPod top of class, but it got me thinking whether the mini pod was the right move. I am thinking about something utilizing the existing iPod shell, but with way smaller capacity and way smaller price. Oh yeah, it would have a boatload of targeted features too. Before I talk about the product idea, I want to talk about who Apple would sell this to.

Every good marketer knows who the most profitable demographic is for their product. I firmly believe that Apple’s is the 18-30 year old demographic. I feel that this group represents people who are computer savvy, internet savvy, and willing to pay extra for the “cool” thing. [Note: I tend to frown on the word “cool” but for this article I will let myself off the hook] For the most part, this group represents single professionals who are fresh out of college, and have huge dispensable incomes. And although I think Apple has done a good job marketing to everyone across the board, I think they should do a tad more concentrating on the college student sub-group. Why? Because some of these kids are still living off their parents coin. Because these kids don’t have to worry about paying for room or board. Because these kids are still covered under their parents health plan. And because their school loans haven’t kicked in yet. It’s no wonder why credit card companies target this age group. They are loose with the cash and have a level of financial immaturity that is a goldmine for marketers.

For a product like the iPod, I would bet that most of these kids already have them and those who don’t, would want them but can’t afford them. Wouldn’t it be a huge boon to Apple if they could provide students a reasonable reason to buy an iPod? I think that Apple should move towards offering an educational version of the iPod. Let’s call it the ePod. And it wouldn’t just be an iPod for a discount. This would be a modified iPod with a 1GB hard drive, a more robust calendar, and most importantly, a voice recorder. Now students could record their lectures and save them alongside their music. All for a very palatable price of $99.

Yes, now students home on their thanksgiving break can present their parents with a very reasonable request for Christmas: an ePod. This ePod they could argue will help them concentrate. It could help them remember to do their laundry. <