Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image
In recent years, the Indian shampoo market had been growing at an exponential rate, with several categories and brands of personal care products showing significant growth. Like consumers in several emerging markets, Indians had begun to place a heightened degree of importance on physical appearance, perhaps as an outcome of Westernization and exposure to media. Traditionally, Indians were known to use herbs to nurture and enhance their hair. Now, however, Indian consumers were caught between the propositions of "synthetic" hair-care brands versus the "natural benefits of the herbal" brands, despite the fact that some degree of processing was required for both types. Amid this dichotomous culture of hair-care products, how could the Himalaya brand establish itself as a differentiated herbal offering? S. Ramesh Kumar is affiliated with Indian Institute of Management and S. Venkatesh is affiliated with Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.
Swot Analysis of "Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image" written by S. Ramesh Kumar, S. Venkatesh includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Hair Himalaya facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Emerging markets, Market research and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image casestudy better are - – increasing energy prices, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing transportation and logistics costs,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Hair Himalaya, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Hair Himalaya 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 Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Hair Himalaya
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 Hair Himalaya
Strengths Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Hair Himalaya in Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image Harvard Business Review case study are -
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Hair Himalaya in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Innovation driven organization
– Hair Himalaya is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Hair Himalaya is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Hair Himalaya 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 Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Hair Himalaya in the sector have low bargaining power. Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Hair Himalaya to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Strong track record of project management
– Hair Himalaya is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
High brand equity
– Hair Himalaya has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Hair Himalaya to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Learning organization
- Hair Himalaya 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 Hair Himalaya is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Hair Himalaya 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Hair Himalaya 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.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Hair Himalaya 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 Hair Himalaya in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image are -
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image, it seems that the employees of Hair Himalaya 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, Hair Himalaya 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 harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Hair Himalaya is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Hair Himalaya, firm in the HBR case study Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Hair Himalaya is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Hair Himalaya needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Hair Himalaya to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Hair Himalaya 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image, in the dynamic environment Hair Himalaya has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Hair Himalaya has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Hair Himalaya has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image, is just above the industry average. Hair Himalaya needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Need for greater diversity
– Hair Himalaya 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Hair Himalaya products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Hair Himalaya needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image | 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 Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image are -
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 Hair Himalaya 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Hair Himalaya can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Hair Himalaya operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Hair Himalaya to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Hair Himalaya to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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. Hair Himalaya 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. Hair Himalaya 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Hair Himalaya 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 Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Hair Himalaya to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Hair Himalaya can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.
Buying journey improvements
– Hair Himalaya can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Hair Himalaya 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, Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– Hair Himalaya 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. Hair Himalaya can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Hair Himalaya in the consumer business. Now Hair Himalaya can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Hair Himalaya 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Hair Himalaya 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.
Threats Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Hair Himalaya 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Hair Himalaya needs to prepare for regulatory challenges as consumer protection groups and other pressure groups are vigorously advocating for more regulations on big business - to reduce inequality, to create a level playing field, to product data privacy and consumer privacy, to reduce the influence of big money on democratic institutions, etc. This can lead to significant changes in the Sales & Marketing industry regulations.
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 Hair Himalaya.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Hair Himalaya is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Hair Himalaya has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Hair Himalaya 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.
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Hair Himalaya will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Hair Himalaya 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.
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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Hair Himalaya 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.
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 Hair Himalaya business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Hair Himalaya with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Hair Himalaya needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image 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 Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image 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 Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image 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 Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image 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 Himalaya Shampoo: Building a Differentiated Brand Image 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 Hair Himalaya needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
