...Strategy Recommendation Project Final James Bellew Capella University MBA6004 Section 01, Jan-Feb 2014 U06a1 Instructor – Dr. Rebecca Snarski Due: February 16, 2014 Table of Contents Introduction……………………………………………………………………………… 3 Brief explanation of Project………………………………………………………..... 3 Who is Amazon……………………………………………………………………… 3 Why did I choose Amazon…………………………………………………………... 3 Amazon's Channel Design including its use of the Web………………………………... 3-4 Web Beginnings……………………………………………………………………... 4 Today………………………………………………………………………………… 4 Amazon’s future including key strengths and weaknesses……………………………… 4 Amazon’s Vision and the changing Web…………………………………………… 4-5 Key Strengths and Weaknesses……………………………………………………… 5-6 Opportunity and Threats…………………………………………………………….. 6 SWOT Analysis…………….…………………………………………………………… 7-9 Amazon’s Ethical Challenges…………………………………………………………… 9 Changing Web Ethics……………………………………………………………….. 9 Ethical challenges for Amazon……………………………………………………… 9 Strategy Recommendations for Amazon………………………………………………... 9-10 References……………………………………………………………………………….. 11 Introduction Amazon is one on the world’s undisputed leaders in web-based commerce. Although they were not the first company to capitalize on using the World Wide Web for commerce, they certainly raised it to an art form. When you think of shopping on the web, you think of Amazon. Amazon perfected this channel and continues to innovate as the technology and access to web grows. Amazon...
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...Kindle DX Marketing Strategy Analysis Launching any product requires a lot of planning and forethought. Without a proper plan, it becomes difficult to design the most appropriate marketing strategy than can lead the way towards success. The 4 P’s We must analyze the 4 P’s i.e. the product, price, place and promotion. In the case of Kindle DX launch, the type of product is relatively new in the market. For this unique kind of product, which seems to be an advanced version of book, it might take time before the target market can realize the importance of the product to them. To cross this stage, promotion of the product is necessary. The product is an enhancement over its predecessors in terms of its screen size which changes it target market more towards college students, who can interpret this device as ebook reader. Promotion The company is using the below the line marketing strategy. One aspect of this strategy is the word-of-mouth method, which involves the promotion undertaken by the buyers of product themselves. The company firmly believes that this method can bring more success than other methods. However, relying to the large extent on just one method exposes the company to risks of negative publicity because unsatisfied buyers can spread negative information about the product. The company virtually has no control over this method of marketing unless they supplement it with above the line advertising such as internet advertising and through select print...
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...Amazon’s strategies The online retail line of business includes those products sold by Amazon as a traditional retailer, most commonly as a low-cost retailer. Amazon claims to have "Earth's Biggest Selection" of products available through its family of websites, sold at the lowest cost at a small profit. The company started as an online book seller, rapidly expanding into music and movies, and ultimately into electronics and household goods. But Amazon doesn't stock everything that is sold through its website. Another part of its retail strategy is to serve as the channel for other retailers to sell their products and taking a cut of every purchase. Amazon maintains its status as a destination website, but does not have to maintain inventory on slower-selling products. This strategy has made Amazon a leading long-tail retailer, expanding its available selection without a corresponding increase in overhead costs. Extending this long tail retail model further, Amazon introduced the sale of used products through its seller marketplace. Originally developed to compete with eBay, the seller marketplace provides another retail revenue stream for the company without the need to stock products in its warehouses. Advertising and shipping are handled exclusively by sellers, with Amazon taking a cut of every sale simply for providing the channel. Amazon's internet services cannot easily be discussed as a standalone line of business because it is deeply intertwined with both its retail...
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...Abstract The purpose of this report is to analyse the strategic position of Amazon and determine any competitive advantages held by the company. Beginning with a discussion of Amazon’s industry and review on the political, economic, social, and technological environments in which the company operates, the report than narrows to focus on Michael Porter’s Five Forces: threat of new competition, threat of substitutes, bargaining power of customers, bargaining power of suppliers and intensity of competitive rivalry. The report continues with a thorough SWOT analysis of the company and follows on to the analysis of the company’s internal environment. Resource base view together with value chain analysis has been chosen to analyse Amazon’s internal environment. Introduction Company Overview Jeffrey Bezos started Amazon in 1994, after identifying that Internet usage was growing at a rate of 2,300 per cent per year (Emerland, 2002). Working from a 400-square foot office in Seattle, Jeffrey launched Amazon in July 1995. By the end of 1996, Amazon has posted sales of over $16 million and served about 180,000 customer accounts, which made it one of the most successful Web retailers in the world (Galante, 1997). Amazon has continued to expand its customer base, and sales revenues have increased every year. The firm’s revenues increased from $16 million in 1996 to $41.1 billion in 2011 (Bloomberg, 2012). Today, Amazon offers perhaps the broadest range of products worldwide. External...
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...I have been looking at some of the work of Rob Grant to analyse resources and capabilities, mainly examining work in and around Resource Based Theory of Competitive Advantage and implications for Strategy Formulation. So hopefully have covered some differing aspects to use for Amazon. Strategic Planning Processes. I believe an effect method for Amazon to undertake such an analysis would be to examine: • Value Chain • Resources Based View • Financial Analysis Use of a Value Chain Analysis for Amazon Amazon have developed a value chain analysis of its’ own to internal asses how it can operationally best add value and maintain a competitive advantage. They have used the value chain model from Michael Porter's book, "Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance." [pic](Source: Bua Consulting) Example of a Strategic Plan Model - Amazon Internal Analysis, Strategic Planning Tools, Strategic Planning Models Primary Activities and Support Activities Primary activities are those needed to produce a product or services for the end customers. These activities typically include: • Inbound Logistics: receiving goods from suppliers, and storing and moving those good • Operations: Manufacturing or assembling the product • Outbound Logistics: Sending the goods to wholesalers, retailers or directly to the end customer • Marketing and Sales: Marketing involves understanding customer needs, communicating those needs...
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...Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc is an American electronic commerce and cloud computing company with headquarters in Seattle, Washington. It is the largest Internet-based retailer in the world by total sales and market capitalization. Some of the key strategies of this organisation is as follows: Cost leadership Amazon leverages economies of scale and economies of learning to make products available at cheaper price. Amazon’s huge bargaining power over its suppliers and it excellent distribution reduces its cost of operation which makes it possible for Amazon to reduce the price of products Differentiation Technologies such 1-click, Recommendations, Wish list differentiates amazon from rest of the competitors, these features make it easy for...
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...Amazon Europe Strategy In 2003, Amazon Europe was faced with the challenge of restructuring it's distribution network in order to meet growth demands. After five years of operations through three independently run organizations in the UK, Germany, and France, the company recognized the need to adapt it's business structure and positioning in the markets. Although many areas of the supply chain had already been optimized, there was significant room for further improvement. The European markets were expanding rapidly, and it was certain that the current structure would not be sufficient, even in the near future. Amazon's objective in Europe The original goal, set in 2002 at the US headquarters, was for Amazon Europe to "catch up" with the US operations by 2007. In order to reach the objective, three key measures were considered for implementation: expand the product offering (similar to the US range); realize new Marketplace activities (Amazon's platform for additional business sectors); introduce Amazon in additional European markets. In considering one or more of the above options, the company was also faced with the task of determining the level of centralization for its activities. Depending on the specific construction of the network, there would be potential to bundle tasks which were being performed individually in each of the existing markets. The key would be to find the balance between utilizing synergies for efficiency and keeping sufficient flexibility...
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...A SWOT analysis is an essential evaluation that every company should consider utilizing. It reviews phases and elements of a company with the purpose of showing what aspects are working well and which ones need to be improved. By applying the SWOT analysis to Netflix, I have concluded that their strengths are, the easy stream and the accessibility that the service offers to its customers. Subscribers can enjoy their favorite shows and movies in the comfort of their home, on the go, during their lunch break and even on their mobile devices or computers. Another strength that Netflix has is their affordable monthly subscription that ranges between $7.99 and $11.99 per month which includes unlimited movies and TV shows. The additional benefits of a membership depend upon how much you want to pay each month. With the improved development of internet speed, more customers are preferring to watch their movies and TV shows online thus decreasing the usage of DVDs. This is considered a weakness of Netflix, because the company decided to separate their services into two categories: the streaming Netflix and DVD.com, a Netflix company which offers physical DVDs that are delivered by mail. The DVD by mail operations have decreased considerably in recent years and the decline of memberships is expected to continue in the future. On the other hand, a big advantage Netflix has compared to other similar services, is the growth of International markets. Netflix is present in more than 200 countries...
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...7p’s for Amazon Price – Amazon has lowered its prices of items due to more completion with other e-tailers such as eBay. Products – Amazon allows customers to buy products that are cheaper. The customers would place an order and amazon orders it straight from the local warehouse, this then means the delivery speed is quicker and the customer gets the product a lot quicker. This lowers storage cost and allows businesses to provide a larger range of products instead of having a slow delivery speed and a small amount of products stored, this makes them have a large variety of products. Place – Amazon can access the international markets by being on the internet, they can set up multi – language Amazon can access the international markets by being on the internet, they can set up multi – language website to target specific markets, also there isn’t much cost as a store isn’t needed since it is directly from the manufacturers. Promotions – Amazon allows customers their products according to what they want. Also social media has now become more popular that means that this has become a main way of communication so people chose it as a main form of buying things, this promotes the business because it’s quick, easy and simple to use. It’s a lot more cost effective and is a lot effective for people who don’t have enough time to shop. People - For customers, it can save lots of time and this means they can order what they want and chose from a bigger variety of things instead of...
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...The Languagelessness of Immigrants Ivy Dr. S. Xie English 239.03 Nov 21, 2012 People are in the fortunate position of choosing where in the world you would like to live. However, most immigrants facing removal proceedings are frequently hamstrung by language and cultural barriers. Both Kingston’s Woman Warrior and Suki Kim’s The Interpreter illustrate languagelessness of Chinese and Korean immigrants across American states, which are rejection by failing assimilation into American mainstream, loneliness and isolation from other people, and sense of identity crisis. Rejection by failing assimilation into American mainstream For the first generation born in America, it is especially difficult to reconcile the heavy-handed and often restrictive traditions of the emigrants with the relative freedom of life in America. In Women Warrior, Kingston draws a sharp contrast between her fantasy about Fa Mu Lan, the Chinese traditional woman warrior, and the defining moments of her real "American life." Fa Mu Lan had her village's grievances tattooed on her back; Kingston has Chinese stories practically drilled into her brain and is labeled with racial epithets. Her personal struggle and vengeance lie in making sense of the stories through writing, in depicting through words the struggles of growing up Chinese-American. There is an important difference, though, Fa Mu Lan could achieve her vengeance and then return home, but Kingston's vengeance seems to be a never-ending struggle...
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...Wonder Woman was more than a lasso slinging, bullet dodging super hero; she is an American feminist’s icon. Wonder Woman was introduced to Americans during World War II, by William Moulton Marston, a Harvard trained psychologist and lawyer. She represented nationhood at a time when our nation was at war. She was the daughter of Queen Hippolyte ruler of an all-woman race of Amazons living on Paradise Island, somewhere located in the Bermuda Triangle. She was named Princess Diana, after the Romanized version of the Greek Goddess Artemis (Emad, 2006). Since the inception of Wonder Woman, her origin has changed twice. Originally she earned her power and title she embodied for decades when she won a power competition amongst the other Amazonian women. In the second version of her origin she did not win her powers but instead was given them to her by the Gods themselves. Wonder Woman was much more than a comic book super hero. According to historian Lori Landay, “Wonder Woman operated in wartime popular culture as a metaphor for the movement in femininity out of the garden and into the war” (p. 11). She contained her super human powers from the public and lived a dual life, nurse and super hero. This reinforced the perception that women need to hide the power and strength allowing men to remain the dominate species. By the late 1990’s, Wonder Woman’s image changed and began to align with the times. She bared a more determined look, her body was toned and she donned a more “ready...
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...CIVIL AND SOCIAL USES OF DRONES Name Course Title Instructor’s name Date Introduction A drone is a remote proscribed pilotless airplane as well as a projectile. A broader definition of this is an unmanned plane as well as a ship that can steer itself separately, without individual control or past the line of prospect. Consequently, this paper will attempt to explain on the civil along with the social uses of drones. There are growing numbers of in-flight drone platforms, comprising of the very energetic do it yourself society. The machines are getting to be more vigorous, with the potential to sustain heavier payloads for extensive flight periods. As with the increasing interest as well as the potential for these tools to tackle novel areas of requests, it is important to address on the civil uses of drones. Thus, among this uses they do comprise of the agricultural sector. Basing on various researches conducted by the “Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International” the news suggested that. The agricultural use of drones could involve 70% of the market. The explanation pointed out for this comprised of the desire to monitor crops strictly so as to enhance...
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...Technische Universität Berlin Fakultät VIII: Wirtschaft und Management Institut für Technologie und Management Fachgebiet Strategische Unternehmensführung Prof. Dr. Michael Mirow Seminar Paper on Strategies to Achieve Market Leadership: The Example of Amazon (Summer term 2005) presented by: Sören Preibusch, 215995 Matthias Fleckenstein, 215274 Kottbusser Damm 24 Magistratsweg 21 10967 Berlin 13593 Berlin Berlin, May 17, 2005 Table of Contents I Table of Contents Table of Contents ............................................................................................ I Table of Abbreviations.................................................................................... II Table of Figures............................................................................................. III Table of Tables..............................................................................................IV 1 Introduction.................................................................................................. 1 2 Market Leadership as a Strategic Goal in Electronic Commerce ................ 1 2.1 Value Chains and Actors in EC............................................................. 1 2.2 Principles for Success in Electronic Commerce.................................... 3 2.3 Porter’s Branch Structure Analysis applied to EC Markets ................... 4 2.4 Context Factors and Value Creation Potentials in EC Markets ...
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... it is very important to consider and review the stock price analysis. Here, the stock price analysis of the organizations Amazon and Ebay shall be carried out. In relation to the stock price analysis, the analysis of the stock prices shall be reviewed from January 1, 2010, 2011 and 2012 and in addition to this, the stock price analysis for the organization shall also be considered regarding the stock price of the organization since the date of its incorporation. The graph showing the changes in the stock prices of the organizations is provided below (Yahoo Finance, 2014). The chart given above shows the changes in the stock prices for Ebayfrom January 1,2010, January 1,2011 and January 1,2012. These charts show the information that, the organization has been in a position to enhance its stock prices since the date of incorportation. So although the stock price has increased since being incorporated, it hasn’t been a substantial increase amount. Based on this chart, it can be said that, the stock price of the Ebay has definitely grown since the date of its incorporation till the present date, but the growth has been small yet. Though, the increase has not been a significant change, the organization has made sure that, it carries out its activities in the most appropriate manner without any kind of problem or issue for it. In relation to the Amazon, the stock prices shall be analyzed as well.. At the time of incorporation stock prices of the organization initially sold...
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...Activity Generic e-business sell-side strategies For each of the six generic sell-side strategies, identify a good example of a company that has successfully adopted that strategy and identify examples of each strategy that have failed. Generic e-business sell-side strategies Chaffey (2009) Chapter 5, Activity 5.3 lists six generic strategies, originally coined by IDC Research. 1) Attack e-tailing. As Chaffey describes this is an aggressive competitive approach that involves frequent comparison with competitors’ prices and then matching or bettering them. The more people use price comparison sites such as ShopSmart (www.shopsmart.com) the more is it important that companies ensure their price positioning is favourable. Good examples include shopping sites such as Buy.com (www.buy.com) and Evenbetter.com (www.evenbetter.com). In those stores people can now find the prices of all comparable items in a category but also guarantee that they will beat the lowest price of any competing product. These sites have implemented real- time adjustments in prices with small increments based on price policy algorithms that are simply not possible in traditional retailing. An other example might be Lowestfare.com which is a leading provider of discount travel products and services for the leisure travel market or Sunelec.com has the lowest prices in the industry Solar & Wind Energy Distributors, Dealers, & Wholesalers. 2) Defend e-tailing This is a strategic approach...
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