Case Study Description of DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand
More than a decade after its launch, DonorsChoose.org is a successful, well-known and well-regarded charitable organization that supports U.S. public schools. Yet in the years since the organization's inception, the charity environment has changed, leading the organization's chief marketing officer to investigate how to further clarify the brand in a shifting space. The case centres on findings delivered by a branding agency regarding a possible change to the organization's tagline. Faced with a lengthy report on the branding agency's findings, the chief marketing officer needs to decide on the organization's next steps.
Swot Analysis of "DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand" written by Allison Johnson, Emily Chen Bendle includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Donorschoose.org Organization's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing commodity prices, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Donorschoose.org Organization's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Donorschoose.org Organization's 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 DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Donorschoose.org Organization's
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 Donorschoose.org Organization's
Strengths DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Donorschoose.org Organization's in DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Donorschoose.org Organization's has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Donorschoose.org Organization's is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at Donorschoose.org Organization's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Donorschoose.org Organization's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand 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.
High brand equity
– Donorschoose.org Organization's has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Donorschoose.org Organization's to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Strong track record of project management
– Donorschoose.org Organization's is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Donorschoose.org Organization's has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Donorschoose.org Organization's has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Donorschoose.org Organization's in the sector have low bargaining power. DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Donorschoose.org Organization's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Donorschoose.org Organization's 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 Donorschoose.org Organization's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Donorschoose.org Organization's digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Donorschoose.org Organization's 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 Donorschoose.org Organization's
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Donorschoose.org Organization's does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Weaknesses DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand are -
Products dominated business model
– Even though Donorschoose.org Organization's has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Donorschoose.org Organization's has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Donorschoose.org Organization's has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Donorschoose.org Organization's, firm in the HBR case study DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Sales & Marketing strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Need for greater diversity
– Donorschoose.org Organization's has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Donorschoose.org Organization's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Donorschoose.org Organization's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Donorschoose.org Organization's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand HBR case study mentions - Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand 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 Donorschoose.org Organization's 's lucrative customers.
Opportunities DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand | 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 DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Donorschoose.org Organization's can build a diversified supply chain model across various countries in - South East Asia, India, and other parts of the world. This reconfiguration of global supply chain can help, as suggested in case study, DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Donorschoose.org Organization's can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.
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. Donorschoose.org Organization's can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Donorschoose.org Organization's to increase its market reach. Donorschoose.org Organization's will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Loyalty marketing
– Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Donorschoose.org Organization's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Developing new processes and practices
– Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Donorschoose.org Organization's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Donorschoose.org Organization's 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 DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Donorschoose.org Organization's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Donorschoose.org Organization's can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Donorschoose.org Organization's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Donorschoose.org Organization's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Threats DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand are -
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Donorschoose.org Organization's business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Donorschoose.org Organization's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Donorschoose.org Organization's can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand .
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. Donorschoose.org Organization's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Donorschoose.org Organization's high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
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. Donorschoose.org Organization's needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Donorschoose.org Organization's 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Donorschoose.org Organization's is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Donorschoose.org Organization's in the Sales & Marketing industry. The Sales & Marketing industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Donorschoose.org Organization's.
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 Donorschoose.org Organization's in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand 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 DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand 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 DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand 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 DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand 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 DonorsChoose.org: Refining a Successful Brand 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 Donorschoose.org Organization's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.