Choose a firm with which you are familiar in your local business community. Is the firm successful in following one (or more) generic strategies? Why or why not? What do you think are some of the challenges it faces in implementing these strategies in an effective manner?

 

Starbucks Marketing strategy

Starbucks is one of the companies that have applied product differentiation strategy and also franchised their business. The company can differentiate its products because it specializes in selling coffee; they also use a sustainable and responsible sourcing policy to differentiate the products from various competitors.  The company has used this to compare with their competitors like McDonald's that have also focused on low costs. The company has maintained its advantages if they keep moving forward with their innovative product mix and their supply chain, especially with a focus on ingredients such as baked goods without high fructose content.  The company has also invested in improving customer experience and building long-term relationships; this is more than offering coffee; the company is using its customer experience to form a strong emotional attachment with the customers (Tintara & Respati, 2020).  The store has a unique design that fosters great and positive customer design. There are also a host of other benefits such as stock options, training, and recognition of customers that have been implemented.  The company was also ranked the 7^th best company to work for and listed in the 50 best places to work in 2018.

The company has also had a differentiation strategy, delivering quality products and services seen to be unique and valued by consumers. The company, therefore, has customer differentiation at its core business.  The differentiation is offered through excellent customer experience; The company has used the strategy to gain a sustained competitive advantage. The company has also used well-designed stores with an excellent customer experience. The store provides a welcoming décor, with friendlier employees when compared to other coffee providers. Using these competitive advantages, the company has dominated the first food industry, and its success can be compared to that of McDonald's (Mooney, 2007). The difficulties showed by Starbucks show how the coffee business is sensitive towards the fast-food market, and it also shows the resilience of the coffee business during an economic recession; despite the recent pandemic, the company has maintained a high margin, and the company remained profitable during the peak Covid-10 period.

On top of market differentiation, the company has also embarked on intensive growth opportunities, and it has therefore employed several strategies for effective growth. Therefore, the company is investing in the expansion of international markets and offering products of high value and high quality (Morais, Pena, Shacket, Sintilus, Ruiz, Rivera & Mujtaba, 2014). Therefore, the company adjusts to the requirements of rapid expansion and the international market conditions. The main method used to access markets is through market penetration. The strategy is important in maximizing markets at the same time, maximizing revenues from the existing markets. The company does this by opening company-owned outlets in different companies; for example, the company is opening more outlets where it has the weakest presence.