Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search
Rob Griffin, senior vice president and U.S. director of search for Media Contacts, a communications consulting firm, is faced with the task of optimizing search engine marketing (SEM) for Air France. At the time of the case, SEM had become an advertising phenomenon, with North American advertisers spending $9.4 billion in the SEM channel, up 62% from 2005. Moving forward, Griffin wants to ensure that the team keeps its leading edge and delivers the results Air France requires for optimal Internet sales growth. The case centers upon Air France's and Media Contacts' efforts to find the ideal SEM campaign to provide an optimal amount of ticket sales in response to advertising dollars spent. This optimal search marketing campaign is based on choosing effective allocation of ad dollars across the various search engines, as well as selecting appropriate keywords and bid strategies for placement on the search result page for Internet users. In determining the optimal strategy, the case presents background information on the airline industry as well as the Internet search options available at the time, including Google, Microsoft MSN, Yahoo!, and Kayak. Additionally, background information is provided on SEM and its associated costs and means of measuring the successfulness of each marketing effort. The case illustrates how one must first determine the key performance indicators for the project to guide analysis and enable comparison of various SEM campaigns. Cost per click and probability to produce a sale differ among publishers. Therefore, using a portfolio application model's quadrant positions can be used to determine optimal publisher strategies. Additionally, pivot tables help illustrate campaigns and strategies that have historically been most successful in meeting Air France's target Internet sales. Multiple recommendations on how Media Contacts can assist Air France in improving its SEM strategy can be derived from the data provided.
Authors :: Mark Jeffery, Lisa Egli, Andy Gieraltowski, Jessica Lambert
Swot Analysis of "Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search" written by Mark Jeffery, Lisa Egli, Andy Gieraltowski, Jessica Lambert includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Sem Search facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, International business, Internet and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, technology disruption, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing energy prices, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, wage bills are increasing,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Sem Search, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Sem Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Sem Search
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 Sem Search
Strengths Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Sem Search in Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Sem Search is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Diverse revenue streams
– Sem Search is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Sem Search 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 Sem Search in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Sem Search digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Sem Search 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Sem Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Training and development
– Sem Search has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Sem Search is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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
– Sem Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of Sem Search
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Sem Search does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Sem Search 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.
Weaknesses Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search are -
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Sem Search is planning to shift buying processes online.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Sem Search, firm in the HBR case study Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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 Sem Search has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search, it seems that the employees of Sem Search 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, Sem Search 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Sem Search products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Sem Search needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Sem Search is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Sem Search needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Sem Search to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Sem Search 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search, is just above the industry average. Sem Search 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Sem Search 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Sem Search 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.
Opportunities Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search | 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Sem Search is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Sem Search 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Sem Search 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Sem Search 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Sem Search 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, Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search, 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
– Sem Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Sem Search 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, Sem Search 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.
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. Sem Search can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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. Sem Search can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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. Sem Search 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. Sem Search 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Sem Search 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 Sem Search to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Sem Search can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Sem Search operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Sem Search to increase its market reach. Sem Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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 Sem Search.
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. Sem Search 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Sem Search is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Sem Search 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Sem Search 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Sem Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search .
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search, Sem Search 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 wage structure of Sem Search
– 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 Sem Search.
Regulatory challenges
– Sem Search 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.
Environmental challenges
– Sem Search 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. Sem Search can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Sem Search 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Sales & Marketing field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Sem Search can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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 Air France Internet Marketing: Optimizing Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and Kayak Sponsored Search 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 Sem Search needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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