EnTech: Apple Watch sales started with a bang, tailed off into a whimper, shopping tracking firm says

Apple Watch sales started with a bang, tailed off into a whimper, shopping tracking firm says

projection_of_apple_watches_ordered_per_day_in_the_us_watches_chartbuilder-3
Slice Intelligence, which monitors purchase receipts in the email inboxes of a panel of two million online shoppers, has published a chart showing that the majority of Apple Watch orders were placed on the first day of pre-orders, and have since fallen to far smaller numbers than some analysts have predicted.
Quartz tech editor Dan Frommer notes that while the company’s data shows that almost 1.5 million U.S. orders were placed on day one (up from its initial estimate of one million), subsequent orders have typically been running at under 30,000 per day â€" compared to the 100,000 per day globally needed to meet some predictions … 
It could even be said that Apple Watch sales fell dramatically after the first hour, a separate chart posted by the company on its own website showing that 800,000 orders â€" more than half of the first day’s total â€" were placed within an hour of online presales opening.
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KGI significantly lowered its own sales forecast a couple of days ago, cutting its estimates by 20-30% to 5-6 million units in the third quarter. Slice did not reveal model breakdowns, but our own unscientific poll of more than 17,000 readers showed the Sport in Space Gray to be the most popular model, accounting for 40% of sales, followed by the Apple Watch in silver, the Sport in silver and the Apple Watch in Space Black.
There are, though, a number of things to note here. First, Slice’s data represents U.S. sales only, while the watch is on sale in eight other countries: the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong and Japan.
Second, as Frommer notes, Apple appears to have sold more than two million Apple Watches in one country in less than a month, compared to several months to sell as many iPhones and more than two years to sell two million units of the product that changed Apple’s fortunes: the iPod. This is a successful product launch by any standard.
Also likely significant is the fact that you can’t yet walk into an Apple retail store and buy a watch. While the type of tech enthusiasts who were waiting impatiently for Apple to release the watch may have been happy to order online, sight unseen, that isn’t going to be true of most ordinary people. And this product, more than any other that Apple has ever made, has been targeted at the mass market, with coverage in fashion magazines and product placement with celebrities.
But Apple, more than most companies, sees its performance judged not by any rational measure of success, but by comparison with sometimes hyped expectations. Don’t be surprised to read a few ‘Apple is doomed’ posts based on these numbers …
Apple Watch shipments remain slow one month after preorders began, bands partially to blame?
Apple Watch shipments remain slow one month after preorders began, bands partially to blame?
1.7M US Apple Watch orders to date, 22% of them shipped â€
1.7M US Apple Watch orders to date, 22% of them shipped â€" Slice Intelligence

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7 Responses to “Apple Watch sales started with a bang, tailed off into a whimper, shopping tracking firm says”

  1. GadgetBen says: It’s not really doomed is it. No official figures announced yet and this data is a third party guide based on Day 1 sales of the watch going on sale in the U.S only.
    The big test will be the shop launch, the experience of those people who aren’t Apple fans who just pop into the store, try it on and want to buy it.
    At the moment, those people are walking away feeling frustrated and annoyed with Apple, as it appears to them a bit imperious and pretentious rather than cool and exclusive. Maybe even buying a FitBit, or, (god forbid I say this) a Microsoft band!
    Like
  2. Daniel Swanson says: This is a ridiculous piece of non-news. The combination of long delivery times for those who ordered sight-unseen combined with the promise of in-store availability in the not-too-distant future is obviously causing people to wait. This doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot of pent-up demand.
    Liked by 2 people
  3. weissblut says: Slice intelligence has 2 million users to monitor, not the entire globe of possible buyers â€" and if the data shown are correct, 75% of their customers bought an Apple Watch.
    I’d say, not bad.
    Liked by 1 person
  4. rnc says: “Don’t be surprised to read a few ‘Apple is doomed’ posts based on these numbers…”
    There are only 3 certainties in life: death, taxes and Apple is doomed.
    Liked by 2 people
  5. Brian Kieffer (@bckieffer) says: It’s hard to sell something to somebody when they haven’t seen it, and it won’t ship for two months. As soon as they’re in stores, they’re going to fly off the shelves.
    Like
  6. lkrupp215 says: Only articles about Apple’s impending doom get any traction or comments so…
    Like
  7. PhilBoogie says: 87.1% of all statistics are made up.
    Like

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