Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter
What is the value of Bluefin Labs's social listening data to Twitter? Acquired by Twitter in 2013, Bluefin had built a system that gathered millions of online comments in an effort to develop new metrics for TV programs and brand advertising. With data from Twitter and other social sites, expressions, not just impressions, could now be aggregated, measured, and used to calibrate brand performance and to sell media time. A second objective of the case is to understand the implications of social TV viewing, the audience engagement that results when people watch television with a smartphone or tablet in hand, participating in a virtual community of real-time TV watchers.
Swot Analysis of "Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter" written by John Deighton, Leora Kornfeld includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Bluefin Twitter facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Disruptive innovation, Internet, IT, Marketing, Mergers & acquisitions, Networking, Performance measurement, Social responsibility and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, there is backlash against globalization, geopolitical disruptions, increasing commodity prices, technology disruption,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Bluefin Twitter, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Bluefin Twitter 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Bluefin Twitter
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 Bluefin Twitter
Strengths Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Bluefin Twitter in Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter Harvard Business Review case study are -
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Bluefin Twitter to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Bluefin Twitter to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High brand equity
– Bluefin Twitter has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Bluefin Twitter to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Bluefin Twitter 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Bluefin Twitter is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter 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.
Learning organization
- Bluefin Twitter 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 Bluefin Twitter is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Bluefin Twitter in the sector have low bargaining power. Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Bluefin Twitter to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Bluefin Twitter 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Bluefin Twitter is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter 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.
Organizational Resilience of Bluefin Twitter
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Bluefin Twitter does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Training and development
– Bluefin Twitter has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Bluefin Twitter digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Bluefin Twitter 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.
Weaknesses Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter are -
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter that the firm needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department in the case Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Bluefin Twitter is planning to shift buying processes online.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Bluefin Twitter 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Bluefin Twitter, firm in the HBR case study Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter, is just above the industry average. Bluefin Twitter 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, John Deighton, Leora Kornfeld suggests that, Bluefin Twitter 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Bluefin Twitter 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter, in the dynamic environment Bluefin Twitter has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Bluefin Twitter has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Bluefin Twitter is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Bluefin Twitter needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Bluefin Twitter to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Bluefin Twitter is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Bluefin Twitter has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Bluefin Twitter even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Bluefin Twitter 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 - Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter | 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Bluefin Twitter can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Bluefin Twitter 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Bluefin Twitter 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Bluefin Twitter can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Bluefin Twitter 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.
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. Bluefin Twitter 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. Bluefin Twitter 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Bluefin Twitter 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Bluefin Twitter 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, Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Bluefin Twitter 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Bluefin Twitter to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Loyalty marketing
– Bluefin Twitter 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Bluefin Twitter can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Sales & Marketing segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
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. Bluefin Twitter can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Bluefin Twitter 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 Bluefin Twitter to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Threats Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter are -
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 Bluefin Twitter.
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. Bluefin Twitter 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Bluefin Twitter with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Bluefin Twitter is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Bluefin Twitter 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter, Bluefin Twitter 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 .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Bluefin Twitter 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter .
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 Bluefin Twitter business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Bluefin Twitter 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.
Environmental challenges
– Bluefin Twitter 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. Bluefin Twitter can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
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 Bluefin Twitter 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. Bluefin Twitter needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter 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 Bluefin Labs: The Acquisition by Twitter 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 Bluefin Twitter needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.