Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web
Advocates of the World Wide Web claim it is a great leveler and that participants have a more equal voice. This flatness of the Web creates a major challenge for many businesses: How do you attract visitors and prospective customers to the firm's Web site? The Web site that can attract more visitors, all other things being equal, is more likely to communicate its message to a wider audience or sell its product to more people. Organizations want to build mountains--or "attractors"--in the otherwise flat landscape of Web-based marketing and advertising. This article classifies existing approaches to creating attractors, identifies four basic types of attractors, and predicts that there will be a move toward creating highly interactive attractors as a device for mass customization. The article also addresses the notion of sustainable attractiveness and presents recommendations for designing an attractor.
Authors :: Richard T. Watson, Sigmund Akselsen, Leyland Pitt
Swot Analysis of "Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web" written by Richard T. Watson, Sigmund Akselsen, Leyland Pitt includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Attractors Web facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Internet, IT and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web casestudy better are - – supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , wage bills are increasing, geopolitical disruptions, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, technology disruption, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
increasing transportation and logistics costs, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Attractors Web, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Attractors Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Attractors Web
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 Attractors Web
Strengths Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Attractors Web in Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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
- Attractors Web 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 Attractors Web is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Attractors Web 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 Attractors Web in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Attractors Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Attractors Web is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Attractors Web in the sector have low bargaining power. Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Attractors Web to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Attractors Web 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.
High brand equity
– Attractors Web has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Attractors Web to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Attractors Web to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Attractors Web to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Attractors Web is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Attractors Web has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Attractors Web 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.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Attractors Web digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Attractors Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web HBR case study mentions - Attractors Web 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web, 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Attractors Web 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. Attractors Web 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Richard T. Watson, Sigmund Akselsen, Leyland Pitt suggests that, Attractors Web 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web, is just above the industry average. Attractors Web 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Attractors Web 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Attractors Web is planning to shift buying processes online.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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 Attractors Web has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Attractors Web 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Attractors Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web, in the dynamic environment Attractors Web has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Attractors Web has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web | 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Attractors Web 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Attractors Web can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Manufacturing automation
– Attractors Web 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Attractors Web 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Attractors Web has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Attractors Web to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web case study. Attractors Web can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, 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. Attractors Web can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 Attractors Web 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.
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. Attractors Web 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. Attractors Web 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Attractors Web can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Attractors Web operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Attractors Web 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.
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. Attractors Web can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Attractors Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Attractors Web to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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 Attractors Web in the consumer business. Now Attractors Web can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Threats Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web are -
Increasing wage structure of Attractors Web
– 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 Attractors Web.
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 Attractors Web in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Attractors Web 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. Attractors Web can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Attractors Web with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Attractors Web 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Attractors Web 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. Attractors Web needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Attractors Web 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Attractors Web 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web, Attractors Web 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 .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Attractors Web 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Attractors Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web .
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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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 Attractors: Building Mountains in the Flat Landscape of the World Wide Web 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 Attractors Web needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
