What’s Apple Inc. (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook Hoping To Accomplish With This?

Over the past week, we have talked about how Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is performing thus far in 2013. While every product offered by Cupertino is important to the future of the company, there is no denying the fact that the iPhone is its flagship device. This is what put Apple on the map, and we should expect that consumers will always use sales of the device as a barometer for how well the company is performing.

With all this in mind, it appears that Apple CEO Tim Cook is looking to make some changes in the way that iPhones are sold and marketed to consumers. With these changes, he is hoping to fight off mounting competition while also leading a larger number of consumers to other products such as the iPad and Mac computers.

9to5Mac recently took a closer look at what is going on, and here is what you need to know:

“Cook reportedly spoke to Apple’s Retail Store Leaders for approximately three hours. During this time, Cook expressed satisfaction with the way Macs and iPads have been selling via Apple Stores, so he placed those two products on a figurative “back-burner” during his talk, according to two sources. One out of every four Macs sold across the globe are bought from an Apple Retail Store, Cook praised, but the Apple CEO noted his dissatisfaction that approximately 80% of all iPhones are not purchased from an Apple Store.”

As you can see, the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone does not sell well in Apple Stores. Instead, the majority of consumers turn to their wireless carrier or another outlet, such as a third party seller, as a means of buying this device.

If Apple is going to improve on this in the future, it will need to change its approach to how the device is sold and marketed. Obviously, this starts at the store level.

At this point, there is one big question: what type of changes can Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) make to improve this number? The same story goes on to add the following information:

“In order to boost iPhone sales direct from Apple’s brick-and-mortar chain, Cook said Apple is developing new incentives for both customers buying iPhones and the Apple Stores selling the phones. People familiar with Apple’s thinking say that Apple’s new Back to School promotion, which offers a $50 gift card to students purchasing an iPhone, is one of the first elements of this new strategy.”

This makes good sense, and it will be interesting to see how programs like these are received in the months to come.

This is an Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) story worth keeping an eye on, so we will be sure to update you as soon as new information is made available.