Strong Competitive Position Research Articles

At Aldus, globalization wasn't an afterthought

At Aldus, entering foreign markets was not a strategy pursued after its products had been successfully marketed in the U.S. Aldus President Paul Brainerd set out from the beginning to build products that could be quickly adapted to local markets. With a strong competitive position in the European Community, the Seattle-based computer software producer now looks to the Pacific Rim.

Entry order, market share, and competitive advantage: A study of their relationships in new corporate ventures

This research explored the extent to which entry order (the decision to enter a market early as a “pioneer,” or to wait and follow) determines not only market share, but other competitive factors such as position and promotion that late entrants might hope to employ to overcome a pioneer's advantages. The study analyzed data on 119 nonservice new corporate ventures (consumer and industrial) from the Profit Impact of Marketing Strategy (PIMS) research data base, STR4. Based on a review of the strategic management and marketing literatures, three hypotheses on the effects of entry order were generated and subsequently tested. The first hypothesis states that pioneers achieve higher market shares than followers. Since, a priori, the market share for the pioneer has to be larger than the market share split among later entrants, the issue is the rate at which the early entrant's market share will decrease as additional businesses enter, what we term the “degree of lateness effect.” Later entrants have the choice of being an early follower, that is entering the industry soon after the pioneers, or waiting until the industry matures (late entrants). A high degree of lateness effect would indicate that early followers would gain higher market shares than late entrants. An analysis of the data indicated that pioneers have significantly higher market shares than followers and that little degree of lateness effect existed between early and late entrants. The second hypothesis states that pioneers will achieve differentiation advantages (in such areas as product and service quality, promotion, and technological positioning) greater than followers. There is considerable theoretical and empirical evidence that pioneers are able to generate competitive advantages through name recognition, image leadership, the establishment of technical standards which make switching to other products difficult, and superior consumer information advantages due to market lead times. An analysis of the data indicated that pioneers have significant competitive advantages in product/service quality and technology over followers. The one area where pioneers did not have a competitive advantage over followers was in advertising and promotion. The third hypothesis states that followers will achieve cost advantages greater than pioneers. While learning curve theory suggests that pioneers will enjoy cost/price advantages, contrasting arguments can be made that followers can enjoy lower costs by “coattailing” on the pioneer's efforts to educate consumers, develop a dominant design, and create an infrastructure to span the gap from raw material suppliers to finished good deliveries. We suggest that because pioneers are likely to have attained differentiation advantages, followers will have only one alternative left: compete on the basis of price and become the lowest-cost producer. An analysis of the data indicates that while followers do appear to have lower prices than pioneers, followers do not have significantly lower cost structures. This result implies a lower level of profitability for a follower strategy. Overall, the results of this study advance the notion that new corporate ventures should enter as pioneers, rather than as followers. Pioneers had higher market shares and stronger competitive positions (higher quality, more differentiated products, and better service) than followers. Followers appear to have few successful competitive options available outside of promotion for gaining market share.

The competitive position of Canadian copper supply

The author examines the proposition that the Canadian copper industry has reached a mature, less competitive, stage of growth. Employing a break-even-cost approach, he compares the Canadian industry to those of other copper-producing nations in terms of cost competitiveness and prospects for new entrants. He finds little evidence to support the proposition, and concludes that Canada's copper industry will continue to maintain its strong competitive position during the 1980s.

Paper industry group encourages innovation

The paper industry has a strong competitive position in world trade and it's aiming to keep what edge it may have. That at least was one of the incentives behind the establishment of a Committee on Innovation, a group organized two years ago by the trustees of the Institute of Paper Chemistry, Appleton, Wis., which now has issued its guidelines for future innovators. The committee, under the direction of Alfred H. Nissan, former vice president and corporate research director of Westvaco Corp., announced its recommendations last month at the annual meeting of paper industry executives held at the Institute of Paper Chemistry. The committee defines innovation as a new product or process that is profitably introduced into the marketplace with significant and beneficial impacts on the business that introduced it. It has been shown conclusively, according to the committee, that most innovations issue from recognition of a market need or opportunity. Innovations spawned by a ...

La localisation de l'aviculture et de l'élevage du porc: le cas de la Bretagne

The location of poultry-farms pig-breeding in Brittany is rather unexpected as this region is far from consumption areas and grows little grain. Such pre-eminence is due to the human background which responded favourably to impulsions from agri-business firms. This early and extended orientation enabled pig and poultry farmers to lower their costs. This strong competitive position should reinforce itself except if foreign competition were to greatly increase.

Reproductive Success of Two Eucalyptus Hybrid Populations. II. Comparison of Predispersal Seed Parameters

The reproductive success of E. melanophloia × E. crebra and E. populnea × E. crebra hybrid populations is examined in terms of seed output. Predispersal seed losses and outputs from fruits and trees of hybrids and species in mixed- and single-species stands are presented. The contribution of the hybrid population to the total eucalypt seed output is considered by including in the estimates the numbers of hybrid and species trees per unit area of ecotone. Losses of E. melanophloia × E. crebra hybrid seeds through abortion, insect predation and fungal infection are significantly greater than losses of parent seeds and seeds of the other hybrid, and average 70% overall compared with 22% for each parent. If losses through bud maturation failure are included, 93% of the hybrid potential is lost. Hybrid outputs of 7 × 103 whole seeds per tree and 22 × 104 per ha of ecotone are respectively 1.5%, and 0.3% of the total seed output of the three taxa. Overall losses in the E. populnea × E. crebra hybrid system are much lower and less important to survival. The effect on seed number is dependent upon seed potential per fruit. E. populnea is the least affected (9% loss, very high potential), E. crebra the worst (21%, very low) and the hybrids are intermediate and in a relatively strong competitive position (20%, intermediate). Hybrid outputs of 145 × 103 seeds per tree and 23 × 103 per ha are respectively 21% and 17% of the total output. The significance of these results is discussed in relation to the reliance of eucalypts upon a high seed output strategy for survival and to the hybridization success of the two systems.

Changing marketing opportunities in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union

The changes in the business environment of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union indicate that U.S. firms must adjust their perceptions of socialist markets if they are to compete successfully with Western European and Japanese firms. Consensus among the managers of socialist enterprises agree that U.S. firms fail in these markets because they have made little effort to understand the general business environment and the market dynamics that are characteristic of countries in Eastern Europe and the Soviet union. The purpose of this article is to identify and discuss the key elements of the techniques needed to penetrate socialist markets. Sufficient understanding of these factors should produce a strong competitive position for the U.S. firms that are actively pursuing these marketing opportunities.

Pengaruh Online Travel Agent terhadap Pemesanan Kamar di Hyatt Regency Yogyakarta

The development of increasingly sophisticated and rapid technology has made people's lifestyles to change, one of the most striking things is the tendency to do activities in cyberspace, such as purchasing tickets online. Online hotel ticket purchases can be made through the E-Commerce site on the hotel's official website or through third party websites. E-Commerce is known as an Online Travel Agent, with the existence of an Online Travel Agent, prospective guests have a very diverse choice of hotels according to their wants and needs. Prospective guests can directly book hotel rooms and change their bookings easily. The aim of the author is to examine changes in guest behavior, especially guests who previously directly booked a room directly to the hotel, switch to using an Online Travel Agent and find out what promotional strategies hotels should do to increase the number of room bookings through Online Travel Agents. Promotion strategy analysis using SWOT analysis such as SWOT Matrix, IFAS, EFAS, Cartesian Diagram, Internal and External Matrix. The results of the analysis of internal factors and external factors show that the Hyatt Regency Yogyakarta hotel has a strong market competitive position in competition with other five star hotels. This shows that the hotel must continue to make efforts to improve product quality, facilities and services as well as maximize product sales.

Use of Trading Stamps by the Small Retailer

What can trading stamps do for the small retailer? A survey of Indianapolis merchants—stamp users, ex-users, and nonusers—shows that those in strong competitive positions, who adopted stamps soon after they were introduced in the market, and promoted them aggressively had best results.