Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing
This case focuses on Cisco Systems' innovative probe-and-learn approach to using social media to launch its ASR 1000 Series Edge Router. The company had decided to eschew traditional print and TV media in marketing the new product and had decided instead to focus its efforts entirely on digital marketing and social media to attract the attention of its target market. The case discusses Cisco's bold plan to launch the ASR 1000 Series "virtually, visually, and virally" and the digital tactics employed by the Cisco Systems marketing team to accomplish this ambitious goal. Business marketers normally adopt a more serious and traditional approach to marketing its products but in this case Cisco had decided to buck that trend by exploring digital tools and social gaming avenues which its target client - the technical community - were increasingly frequenting. Cisco's challenge lay in whether this new approach and resultant value proposition would resonate with its technical audience and give the ASR 1000 Router the kind of publicity it needed to have. The case is set at a time when social media was burgeoning as a promising way to engage consumers more deeply with brands and products, but marketers were still experimenting with the tools and tactics of social media for marketing.
Swot Analysis of "Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing" written by Mohanbir Sawhney includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Asr 1000 facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Marketing, Networking, Product development, Social platforms and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing casestudy better are - – technology disruption, wage bills are increasing, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing transportation and logistics costs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing commodity prices,
there is backlash against globalization, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Asr 1000, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Asr 1000 operates in.
According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Asr 1000
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Sales & Marketing field.
4. Making a Sales & Marketing topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Asr 1000
Strengths Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Asr 1000 in Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Asr 1000 has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Asr 1000 has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Asr 1000 are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Asr 1000 in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Asr 1000 digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Asr 1000 has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Organizational Resilience of Asr 1000
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Asr 1000 does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Asr 1000 is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Asr 1000 in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Asr 1000 in the sector have low bargaining power. Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Asr 1000 to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High brand equity
– Asr 1000 has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Asr 1000 to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Diverse revenue streams
– Asr 1000 is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Asr 1000 to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Asr 1000 to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing are -
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Asr 1000 is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Mohanbir Sawhney suggests that, Asr 1000 is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Asr 1000 has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Asr 1000 's lucrative customers.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Asr 1000 is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Asr 1000 needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Asr 1000 to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing, in the dynamic environment Asr 1000 has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Asr 1000 has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing, it seems that the employees of Asr 1000 don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Asr 1000 needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing HBR case study mentions - Asr 1000 takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Asr 1000 has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Lack of clear differentiation of Asr 1000 products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Asr 1000 needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Asr 1000 can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Asr 1000 operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Sales & Marketing industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Asr 1000 can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Asr 1000 can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Asr 1000 to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Loyalty marketing
– Asr 1000 has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Asr 1000 has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Asr 1000 to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Asr 1000 in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Sales & Marketing segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Asr 1000 can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Sales & Marketing segment.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Sales & Marketing industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Asr 1000 can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Developing new processes and practices
– Asr 1000 can develop new processes and procedures in Sales & Marketing industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Asr 1000 to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Asr 1000 is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Asr 1000 has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Asr 1000 to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing case study. Asr 1000 can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Asr 1000 can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing are -
Environmental challenges
– Asr 1000 needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Asr 1000 can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Increasing wage structure of Asr 1000
– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of Asr 1000.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Asr 1000 can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Asr 1000 in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
High level of anxiety and lack of motivation
– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Asr 1000 needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Sales & Marketing field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Asr 1000 can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Asr 1000 has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Asr 1000 needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Sales & Marketing sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Asr 1000 with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Asr 1000 demand
– There is a high probability of declining consumer confidence, given – high inflammation rate, rise of gig economy, lower job stability, increasing cost of living, higher interest rates, and aging demography. All the factors contribute to people saving higher rate of their income, resulting in lower consumer demand in the industry and other sectors.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Asr 1000 is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing, Asr 1000 may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Sales & Marketing .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants.
We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –
First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.
Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.
Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of Cisco Systems: Launching the ASR 1000 Series Router Using Social Media Marketing is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Asr 1000 needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.