Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising
Firms put enormous intellectual and financial resources into creating differentiated products or services for their consumers. However, in many situations, differentiation may not be a profitable strategy. Spells out the conditions under which it is profitable to differentiate and those when it is not. Consumers learn about alternatives from advertising, and many consumers do not see advertising for all relevant alternatives. As a result, a significant fraction of consumers make decisions with limited information about the available alternatives. The value of creating differentiated products is ambiguous when awareness of products and their characteristics is the key determinant of consumer behavior.
Swot Analysis of "Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising" written by David A. Soberman includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Consumers Alternatives facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Sales and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising casestudy better are - – challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, there is backlash against globalization, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
technology disruption, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Consumers Alternatives, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Consumers Alternatives 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Consumers Alternatives
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 Consumers Alternatives
Strengths Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Consumers Alternatives in Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Consumers Alternatives is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Consumers Alternatives in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Learning organization
- Consumers Alternatives 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 Consumers Alternatives is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Consumers Alternatives 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Consumers Alternatives is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Consumers Alternatives 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 Consumers Alternatives in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Consumers Alternatives to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Consumers Alternatives to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Consumers Alternatives in the sector have low bargaining power. Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Consumers Alternatives to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Consumers Alternatives has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Consumers Alternatives has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Consumers Alternatives 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Consumers Alternatives 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.
Weaknesses Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising are -
High dependence on existing supply chain
– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Consumers Alternatives supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Consumers Alternatives vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising, it seems that the employees of Consumers Alternatives 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Consumers Alternatives products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Consumers Alternatives needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising, is just above the industry average. Consumers Alternatives 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Consumers Alternatives is planning to shift buying processes online.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Consumers Alternatives is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Consumers Alternatives needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Consumers Alternatives 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, Consumers Alternatives is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Need for greater diversity
– Consumers Alternatives 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Consumers Alternatives 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Consumers Alternatives, firm in the HBR case study Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Consumers Alternatives 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.
Opportunities Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising | 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising are -
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. Consumers Alternatives can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Consumers Alternatives 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Consumers Alternatives is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
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 Consumers Alternatives in the consumer business. Now Consumers Alternatives can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Consumers Alternatives 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Consumers Alternatives 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 Consumers Alternatives 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
– Consumers Alternatives 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. Consumers Alternatives can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Consumers Alternatives 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Consumers Alternatives 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, Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Consumers Alternatives can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Consumers Alternatives 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 Consumers Alternatives 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 Consumers Alternatives to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Consumers Alternatives to increase its market reach. Consumers Alternatives 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.
Threats Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising, Consumers Alternatives 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 .
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 Consumers Alternatives.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Consumers Alternatives is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Consumers Alternatives 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Consumers Alternatives has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Consumers Alternatives 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Consumers Alternatives 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Consumers Alternatives 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 Consumers Alternatives business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Consumers Alternatives 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.
Environmental challenges
– Consumers Alternatives 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. Consumers Alternatives can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Consumers Alternatives 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Consumers Alternatives with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising 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 Role of Differentiation in Markets Driven by Advertising 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 Consumers Alternatives needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.