7 Types of Business Strategy You Need to Know
Are you looking for ways to grow your business and achieve your goals? If so, you need a clear and effective business strategy. A business strategy is a plan that outlines how you will use your resources, capabilities, and competitive advantages to achieve your desired outcomes. A business strategy can help you:
- Define your vision, mission, and values
- Identify your target market and customer needs
- Analyze your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
- Choose the best products or services to offer
- Determine your pricing, distribution, and promotion strategies
- Set your short-term and long-term objectives and measures
- Align your actions and decisions with your purpose and goals
But not all business strategies are the same. Depending on your situation, you may need to adopt different types of business strategy to succeed. In this article, we will explain what are the 7 types of business strategy and how to use them effectively.
1.Cost Leadership Strategy
A cost leadership strategy is a type of business strategy that focuses on offering the lowest prices in the market. By reducing your costs and increasing your efficiency, you can gain a competitive edge over your rivals who charge higher prices. A cost leadership strategy can help you:
- Attract price-sensitive customers who value low prices over other features
- Increase your market share and sales volume
- Achieve economies of scale and lower your unit costs
- Discourage new entrants and potential competitors from entering the market
However, a cost leadership strategy also has some drawbacks. For example, you may:
- Sacrifice quality, innovation, and customer service to cut costs
- Face price wars and margin erosion from competitors who match or undercut your prices
- Lose customer loyalty and differentiation if customers perceive your products or services as commodities
Some examples of companies that use a cost leadership strategy are Walmart, IKEA, and Ryanair.
2.Differentiation Strategy
A differentiation strategy is a type of business strategy that focuses on offering unique products or services that stand out from the crowd. By creating value for your customers through distinctive features, benefits, or experiences, you can charge premium prices and increase your profitability. A differentiation strategy can help you:
- Attract customers who value quality, innovation, and customer service over low prices
- Build customer loyalty and brand equity
- Reduce price sensitivity and increase customer willingness to pay
- Create entry barriers and competitive advantages that are hard to imitate
However, a differentiation strategy also has some challenges. For example, you may:
- Incur higher costs and risks to develop and maintain your unique offerings
- Fail to meet customer expectations or preferences if you misjudge the market
- Face competition from niche players or substitutes that offer similar or better value
Some examples of companies that use a differentiation strategy are Apple, Starbucks, and Rolex.
3.Focus Strategy
A focus strategy is a type of business strategy that concentrates on serving a specific segment of the market. By targeting a narrow group of customers with specific needs, preferences, or characteristics, you can tailor your products or services to meet their demands. A focus strategy can help you:
- Establish a strong position and reputation in your niche market
- Build customer loyalty and trust
- Avoid direct competition with larger or more established players
- Exploit opportunities that are overlooked or ignored by others
However, a focus strategy also has some limitations. For example, you may:
- Face difficulties in expanding or diversifying your market
- Lose customers if their needs or preferences change over time
- Face competition from other niche players or larger players who enter your segment
Some examples of companies that use a focus strategy are Lululemon, Whole Foods Market, and Ferrari.
4.Growth Strategy
A growth strategy is a type of business strategy that aims to increase the size and scope of your business. By expanding your customer base, product portfolio, geographic reach, or market share, you can increase your revenue and profitability. A growth strategy can help you:
- Capture new opportunities and markets
- Increase your economies of scale and scope
- Enhance your brand awareness and reputation
- Achieve synergies and efficiencies through integration or collaboration
However, a growth strategy also has some risks. For example, you may:
- Overstretch your resources and capabilities
- Lose focus on your core competencies and customers
- Face resistance or backlash from regulators, competitors, or stakeholders
- Encounter cultural or operational challenges when entering new markets or acquiring new businesses
Some examples of companies that use a growth strategy are Amazon, Netflix, and Coca-Cola.
5.Diversification Strategy
A diversification strategy is a type of business strategy that involves entering new markets or industries that are different from your core business. By offering new products or services to new customers or segments, you can reduce your dependence on one market or industry and increase your sources of income. A diversification strategy can help you:
- Reduce the impact of market fluctuations, seasonality, or cyclicality
- Leverage your existing resources, capabilities, or brand
- Explore new opportunities and innovations
- Enhance your competitive position and bargaining power
However, a diversification strategy also has some challenges. For example, you may:
- Lose focus on your core business and customers
- Face difficulties in managing multiple businesses or markets
- Fail to achieve synergies or economies of scope
- Face competition from more experienced or specialized players
Some examples of companies that use a diversification strategy are Virgin, Disney, and Samsung.
6.Innovation Strategy
An innovation strategy is a type of business strategy that focuses on creating new or improved products, services, processes, or business models. By offering novel or superior solutions to customer problems or needs, you can gain a competitive advantage and create value for your customers and stakeholders. An innovation strategy can help you:
- Meet or anticipate customer needs or preferences
- Enhance your differentiation and uniqueness
- Increase your efficiency and productivity
- Create entry barriers and sustainable advantages
However, an innovation strategy also has some drawbacks. For example, you may:
- Incur high costs and risks to develop and launch new or improved offerings
- Face difficulties in protecting your intellectual property or innovations
- Fail to achieve market acceptance or adoption
- Face competition from imitators or disruptors
Some examples of companies that use an innovation strategy are Tesla, Spotify, and Airbnb.
7.International Strategy
An international strategy is a type of business strategy that involves expanding your business beyond your domestic market and entering foreign markets. By offering your products or services to customers in different countries or regions, you can increase your customer base and revenue potential. An international strategy can help you:
- Access new markets and customers
- Exploit cost advantages or resources in different locations
- Diversify your risk and exposure
- Learn from best practices and experiences in different markets
However, an international strategy also has some challenges. For example, you may:
- Face cultural, legal, political, or economic differences or barriers
- Encounter difficulties in managing multiple markets or operations
- Face competition from local or global players
- Lose control or coordination over your activities or partners
Some examples of companies that use an international strategy are McDonald’s, Nike, and Starbucks.
As you can see, there are many types of business strategy that you can use to grow your business and achieve your goals. Depending on your situation, you may need to adopt one or more of these strategies to succeed. However, before you choose a business strategy, you should:
- Conduct a thorough analysis of your internal and external environment
- Define your vision, mission, values, and goals
- Evaluate the pros and cons of each strategy option
- Choose the strategy that best fits your purpose and capabilities
- Implement the strategy with clear actions and measures
- Monitor the results and make adjustments as needed
By following these steps, you can develop and execute a successful business strategy for your business.
Types of Business Strategy and Global Demand
One of the most important aspects of running a successful business is having a clear and effective strategy. A business strategy is a framework that helps define an organization’s vision, objectives, and tactical decision-making processes. Yet, identifying these essential elements can be challenging. For an organization’s strategy to succeed, its leaders must understand its identity in the marketplace and how to create value for customers.
There are many types of business strategies that companies can use to achieve their goals and gain a competitive advantage. Some of the common types are:
Corporate strategy: This refers to the overall direction and scope of the organization, such as what markets to enter, what products to offer, and how to allocate resources. A corporate strategy also defines the mission, vision, and values of the organization.
Competitive strategy: This refers to how the organization positions itself in relation to its competitors and customers, such as what unique features or benefits it offers, how it sets its prices, and how it differentiates itself from others. A competitive strategy also determines the target market and customer segments of the organization.
Functional strategy: This refers to how the organization manages its specific functions or departments, such as marketing, finance, operations, human resources, and research and development. A functional strategy supports the competitive strategy by ensuring that each function performs its tasks efficiently and effectively.
Operating strategy: This refers to how the organization executes its daily activities and processes, such as how it manages its supply chain, quality control, customer service, and innovation. An operating strategy supports the functional strategy by ensuring that each process is aligned with the function’s objectives.
The type of business strategy that a company chooses depends on various factors, such as its industry, size, resources, capabilities, goals, and environment. However, regardless of the type of strategy, a company should always consider the global demand for its products or services. Global demand refers to the level of interest and need for a product or service across different countries and regions. Understanding global demand can help a company identify new opportunities, expand its market share, increase its revenue, and reduce its risks.
To assess global demand, a company should conduct market research and analysis to determine the size, growth, trends, drivers, barriers, and preferences of potential customers in different markets. A company should also monitor the competitive landscape and the political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal factors that may affect its operations in different markets. Based on this information, a company can decide whether to pursue a global strategy or a local strategy.
A global strategy is a type of business strategy that involves standardizing products or services across different markets to achieve economies of scale and scope. A global strategy can help a company lower its costs, increase its efficiency, enhance its brand image, and leverage its core competencies. However, a global strategy also entails some challenges, such as adapting to local preferences, regulations, cultures, and languages; managing complex logistics and distribution networks; and facing intense competition from local or regional players.
A local strategy is a type of business strategy that involves customizing products or services to suit the needs and preferences of different markets. A local strategy can help a company increase its customer satisfaction, loyalty, differentiation, and market penetration. However, a local strategy also entails some challenges,
such as increasing costs; reducing efficiency; diluting brand image; and losing core competencies.
Therefore, choosing the right type of business strategy requires a careful balance between standardization and customization; between global integration and local responsiveness; between cost leadership and differentiation. A company should evaluate its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) in each market and select the most appropriate type of business strategy that can create value for customers and achieve sustainable competitive advantage.
References:
http://www.eatonprogram.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Strategy-and-the-Internet.pdf
http://www.cs.cornell.edu/home/kleinber/networks-book/networks-book-ch17.pdf
https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/business-strategies-types
https://www.become.co/blog/types-of-business-level-strategies/
https://incorporated.zone/types-of-business-strategy/
https://thebusinessprofessor.com/business-management-amp-operations-strategy-entrepreneurship-amp-innovation/types-of-business-strategy
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/types-of-business-strategy
https://www.business-to-you.com/what-is-business-strategy/
