Chapter Overview

Research suggests that a business is likely to achieve superior revenue growth, market share, and profitability when there is a good fit between its competitive strategy and the strategic marketing programs of its various product or service offerings.
Business-level competitive strategies can be usefully categorized into

prospector strategies focused on growth via the development of new products and markets,
defender strategies primarily concerned with defending strong positions in established markets through either low prices or offering customers superior value in terms of product quality or service, and
analyzer strategies, which are hybrids of the other two strategies.

The generic competitive strategies described in the previous point apply equally well to services and physical products, single-product start-ups and multidivisional corporations, and global and domestic operations, and they are unlikely to change dramatically due to the rise of e-commerce.
Because the various business-level strategies focus on different objectives and seek to gain a competitive advantage in different ways, marketing may play a different role under each of the strategies, and varying marketing actions may be called for.
The marketing decision-maker’s job is to develop a sound, evidence-based marketing strategy for his or her offering and to make a persuasive case for its support. If that strategy does not fit the objectives or available resources and competencies of the business unit in which the product is housed, top management may choose to move the product to a more amenable unit or require adjustments to the strategy.

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