Everett Rogers popularized the Diffusion of Innovation theory in 1962. He describes that diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the participants in a social system. He categorizes the adopters into five components: innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, and laggards. Using the example of Apple's Apple Watch , below I will explain the Apple Watch through the Diffusion of Innovation theory:
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| Rogers's Diffusion of innovation Theory |
Innovators:
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| The Apple Watch |
In early
2015, Apple introduced a new product called the Apple Watch. The Apple Watch allows you to receive and send messages, answer phone calls, check your heart rate, and so much more. It's essentially an iPhone on your wrist, just a tiny version. With the Apple Watch, you're able to pick one of the many colors of the device as well as change the color and design of the band that wraps around your sleeve. Apple is one of the largest technology firms in the world and is always introducing new inventions and improving their products.
Early Adopters:
The early adopters of the Apple Watch consisted of celebrities and influencers who began wearing the watch and started to
popularize the Apple Watch among society. These people are usually highly respected and become advertisements for Apple. In this category, there are also people who have to have the newest product that Apple releases.
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| Jennifer Aniston wearing the Apple Watch |
Early Majority:
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| Increase in Apple Watches |
We usually see the younger generation in this category. For the Apple Watches, the younger generation rushed to get their hands on this new product as most already owned Apple products and are loyal to the company, and now they see their favorite celebrities and influencers having one of the newest top-selling products, which makes these people feel like they "have" to have this product or else they will not fit in with society. The younger generation is easily influenced. In 2015, this was the "coolest" product for the longest time and started out with
8.3 million sales. The chart to the right shows the increase in sales over the years.
Late Majority:
Individuals in this category are usually
skeptical about the products, which hints why they are not part of the early majority in rushing to get this product. As one who owns an Apple Watch, I was in this category. One of the reasons I didn't rush into getting the product is because I wondered why someone would need this if it's almost the same as an iPhone. For example, I do almost everything I can do on my phone such as check my fitness activity, text, call, etc. I thought if I bought the watch, it would only be used a few times and be a waste of my money. After getting my watch, it's become a daily part of my routine to always have it on because it's great to check the time if my phone is not near me, to check my heart rate, and to send a quick message without having to pull out your phone. Also, some people tend to wait for the price to go down on a newer product before buying it. When the Apple Watch was first released, it cost $399, but now you can easily find it for less.
Laggards:
This category consists of people who are
traditionalists and the very last to get an innovation. Usually, this category is made up of the older generation. Since Apple's main target is the younger generation, it makes sense why the older generation would be the last to buy the product or not buy at all because they did not grow up and were surrounded by technology constantly, so why would they care to buy the Apple Watch? Laggards bought the Apple Watch because they either needed it eventually or caved and bought it.
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| Apple Logo |
Since 2015, Apple has released multiple series of the Apple Watch such as the Apple Watch SE, Series 9, and Ultra 2. The Apple Watch continues to increase in sales each year, which shows how successful this innovation was.
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