Strategic Analysis (SWOT and Five Forces) of Amazon Inc The WritePass Journal

Strategic Analysis (SWOT and Five Forces) of Amazon Inc 1.0 Introduction Strategic Analysis (SWOT and Five Forces) of Amazon Inc 1.0 Introduction2.0 Unique Market Position3.0 Micro environment analysis using Porter’s five forces.4.0 Amazon SWOT Analysis5.0 Strategic Direction6.0 Strategic position-Differentiation or cost leadership7.0Â  ConclusionReferences and BibliographyRelated 1.0 Introduction Amazon.com provides a wide catalogue of products and services to different consumer groups. Below is the detailed analysis of Amazon’s resources, capabilities, distinctiveness and networks. 2.0 Unique Market Position According to Motoko and Stone (2010) Amazon has the distinctive position of being the largest online book seller and e book seller in the United States. Its catalogue has a wide range of products and services for its customers (Amazon.com). It must be noted that this is not a unique offering if compared to its rivals like e-bay, Barnes and Noble, Waterstones and WH Smith. Its distinctiveness comes from two things: Unique position compared to rivals Success of Kindle e reader Amazon possesses a first mover advantage as it has access to vital resources plus ability to develop networks that is very difficult to replicate (Grant 2008). Amazon has a strong brand presence because of its continuous innovation and twenty month head start over its competition. Over a period of time it has acquired vital customer behaviour information, easy demand pattern forecasting and industry standards others have to compete with (Mellahi and Johnson 2000). An added advantage is psychological switching costs because of its early lead. Amazon’s wholesale model is another feature of its uniqueness. Due to this it is able to set consumer prices as Amazon makes wholesale purchases. Competition is suppressed and new entrants face a hard time because of its heavy discounted prices. The Kindle e reader has made a huge presence in the market because of its light weight and soothing continuous readability handling. According to Stross (2010) Kindle lets you do reading perfectly. However competing e readers are providing coloured screens and multitasking features too. A perceptual map highlighting Amazon’s Kindle is shown below: In this figure if we see Amazon’s kindle is placed in the third quadrant which is specialist and black and white screen. 3.0 Micro environment analysis using Porter’s five forces. This has already been discussed in the first question. However bargaining power of buyers and suppliers is not discussed. Bargaining Power of Buyers Bargaining power of buyers is really high as there are many ways to buy books and cd’s online provided the options of Barnes and Nobles website and Apple’s i tunes. But Amazon has a high customer loyalty as it attracts customers by offering low prices (Chaffey 2009). Bargaining Power of Suppliers Amazon has a very favourable relationship with publishers because of the wholesale model it uses allowing it to set the price for the consumer. Some time back when Amazon was not buying directly from main distributors. They wanted to sell the products below market price as Sony and Panasonic didn’t do direct selling. However Amazon had a unique position and advantage as it came up with its own distribution centres. 4.0 Amazon SWOT Analysis Major strength for Amazon is its first mover advantage, access to resources, capabilities, networks that allow them to suppress the competition. This strength feeds into its greater market share and bargaining power with its publishers plus a wholesale model lot leading to high sales volumes. Weakness of Amazon is its very little bricks and mortar presence in comparison to its competitors. Thus, buyer is not able to have a first-hand experience of the product until purchased (Bossman 2010). This can have an effect on the sales of Kindle online as buyers may have some concerns. The proprietary format followed for e books is also a weakness as there is a demand for more choice and scope from customers. Below is a diagrammatic representation of SWOT analysis. 5.0 Strategic Direction With regards to Amazon’s Kindle its strategic direction should be market penetration through more advertising and marketing programs and better price options. Market penetration leads to a high market share and profitability in an identified market (Jobber and Fahy 2006). Amazon can move into the empty quadrant in the figure 1 by providing a coloured screen. This product development approach will make it more competitive in the dynamic market. 6.0 Strategic position-Differentiation or cost leadership Amazon has its strategic position over Kindle by differentiating it and positioning it as a best for reading product in the market. If the market demands Amazon can move into the first quadrant of the perceptual map by conducting more research. This will manoeuvre Amazon in a position that is distinctive, advantageous and in line with consumer needs (Doyle and Stern 2006). Amazon’s market leading position offers resource capability for cost leadership which further complements its price leadership strategy. 7.0Â  Conclusion It is evident that Amazon occupies a unique position in the market. Amazon currently is focussing on being a market leader in providing a product that is best for reading although acknowledging the craze for colour screen and multipurpose features offered by competitors. Based on its strengths it can focus on market penetration with innovative products and add ons like colour screen plus multipurpose functions. Combining this with its price leading strategy will lead to more growth and profits. References and Bibliography Motoko R and Stone B., 2010. Amazon threatens publishers as Apple looms. The New York Times. Grant R., 2008. Contemporary strategy analysis, Blackwell publishing Mellahi, K and Johnson, M., 2000. Does it pay to be a first mover in ecommerce? The case of Amazon.com. Management Decision [online] Vol.38, Issue 7. , p445, 8p .Available through: Business source complete database. [Accessed 11 March 2011]. Stross R., 2010. The Specialist vs. the Multi-tasker. The New York Times Dave Chaffey. (2009). Amazon.com case study. Available: davechaffey.com/E-commerce-Internet-marketing-case-studies/Amazon-case-study.[ accessed 12th March 2011]. Bossman J., 2010b. Barnes and Noble planning big push to increase Nook sales. The New York Times Jobber D and Fahy J., 2006. Foundations of Marketing.2nd Edn McGraw-Hill, London. Doyle P and Stern P., 2006. Marketing Management and Strategy.4th Edn. Pearson Education ltd, Harlow

History of Western Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

History of Western Art - Essay Example This piece was made in 1656, and exhibits some similarities to â€Å"The Arnolfini Marriage.† Velasquez uses refined technicalities, and combines them with profound representations, in order to create a court picture. The first similarity that can be made of these two works of art is in their content. They have human subjects as the main characters, but also incorporate dogs in them. The intended audience for both works is supposedly human. In Las Meninas, the mirror in the background reveals two people. They seem to be approaching Margarita (La Infanta), and her maids of honour. In Arnolfini Wedding, the portrait is a visual record of an event that takes place inside the confines of a palace. The audience in this case, is also reflected in the convex mirror placed on the wall behind Arnolfini and his bride. The three people reflected in the mirror are thought to be the audience to the event. In this portrait, there is a dog that is at the feet of the bride. The styles of the two portraits are also closely related. The body expressions used by the subjects are illustrative of the message being passed. In Las Meninas, the maid attending to Margarita is leaning towards her, indicating servitude. The other maid of honour behind Margarita is in a curtsy stance, to welcome the approaching party. The persons approaching this group as seen from the reflection in the mirror seem to be Margarita’s parents. In the Arnolfini Wedding, the bride has her hand in the palm of the groom. This is taken to be a symbol of her giving herself to him. The lighting in the portraits is from natural sources. In Las Meninas, light comes in through the door that appears to be close to an opening letting in sunlight. There also seems to be a light source towards the direction that margarita has turned her head. In Arnolfini Wedding, natural light come in through the open window. There are minimal facial expressions in both portraits. Natural colours are used in the portraits with various shades black and white featuring most in Las Meninas. In Arnolfini Wedding, blue, green and a deep shade of red break this monotony. The main context in both portraits appears to be family. In Las Meninas, there is Margarita who is being served by her maids of honour. From the mirror, her parents are seen seemingly approaching the group. This is why Margaritas head is tilted towards the direction that other subjects in the portrait are looking. The royal family in this case is present in the room. The setting represents how a child of the royal family is attended to. In Arnolfini Wedding, the first step to setting up a family is taking place. This wedding is performed in the privacy of a chamber, and is witnessed by very few people. Having become married, the couple can start their family, as the bride seems to be pregnant. The elegantly dressed persons in the portrait are symbolic of the royal families in the renaissance period. Part Two Humanism in art refers to a cul tural movement that was characteristic of 14th to 16th century art. The focus of works in this period was on humans. This is what set it apart from the earlier centuries that were dominated by Christianity. Humanism offered a different perspective to life. Humanism was a movement that praised humans for their achievements rather than owing it all to divine grace (Gardner, Kleiner and Mamiya). The subjects of painting in this period shifted from religious symbols, to humans and

Social Media on the Internet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Social Media on the Internet - Essay Example One of the most notable features of social media is that it has grown exponentially across the world within a very short duration compared to other business and communication tools in human history. To illustrate this phenomenon, Lee (2010) points out that while it took 13 years for television to attract over 50 million viewers and 38 years for radio to attract about 50 million listeners, it took 4 years only for internet to attract 50 million participants. He further points out that it took social media platform, Facebook, one and a half years to attract the same number of participants. There has been raging debate on whether the availability and use of social media on the internet is useful to businesses in regard to providing them with new and different useful information. This paper will discuss how the availability and use of social media on the internet really provide businesses with new and different useful information. Historically, technology has been injected and adopted in to the society as well as the business world and it has often required that there be a radical shift in business and cultural processes and practices (Lincoln, 2009). Social media is one such kind of technology in the business world. Unlike other types of technologies, social media technology greatly reflects the social behavior of people. Social media is also unique in the sense that it allows anybody to produce media content and deliver it by interactive communication. Qualman (2010) notes that the available statistics show that social media has established itself as the media of choice around the world over the last 4 years, with over a quarter of the world population using one type of social media or another. The growth of social media has been so tremendous such that social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter have grown rapidly and have gradually relegated other forms of advertising such as print advertisements, and threatened them with extinction (Nair, 2011 ). The popularity of the use of social media on the internet can be attributed to four reasons. To start with, users can get the latest information on virtually anything they want. Secondly, it satisfies the desires of the users of expressing themselves. Users are also able to see how individuals and groups that they are interested in are doing therefore getting more satisfaction. Finally, it helps people to escape from their day-to-day routine by providing alternative ways of using time (Lee, 2010). The fact that social media has experienced exponential growth over the years cannot be disputed. However, there has been debate on whether the availability and use of social media on the internet really provides businesses with new and different useful information. The response to this question has been two-fold: on one side, there are those who believe that it does provide businesses with new and different useful information, while on the other side there are those who believe that it does not (Nair, 2011). While the later side has its reasons for taking that position, there is a greater consensus among those engaged in this debate that, indeed, the availability and use of social media on the internet provides businesses with new and different useful information (Hinchcliffe et al., 2012). So, how does the use of social

Is metaphor necessary in technical writing Essay

Is metaphor necessary in technical writing - Essay Example This is because humans are trying to do everything they can to control nature. Man cannot put up with indifferences that nature provide thus he is trying to press nature through science to do according to his will. Science that is required to manipulate nature is too much high and requires a lot of resourcefulness. It is unfortunate that what people think of science is not science but practical science; people often confuse the thought of science and what science can do (Laibichler & Chew, 2003). The constituent part that can speed up this is by the build up of a huge and an incredible credible machine that can only be controlled and interpreted by the physicists alone. The major question is that whether people will be able and are willing to bear the cost of these machines and whether they are willing to leave nature on the hands of physicists. This is because physicists use mysterious and secretive language that can only be interpreted by them and they are only going to be part of the complications of nature. People hope that physicist can come up with advanced and more simplified formulae that will be able to solve the world’s differences. It is at this point that people hope for a final formula that will explain the trends of nature thus make people understand God thinking (Baake, 2003). Suggestions and ideas of this kind from a prominent person are deemed as foolish and misleading. This is because they mislead people to think that the world has a meaning. Such characters mislead people by suggesting that the world has meaning because there is progress in our daily activities. Progress helps people to get closer to something and finally to uncover knowledge, just like the mathematical formulae tries to get close to infinity but it has never gotten there. The world has no meaning because somebody or something would have emerged and asked why there is something instead of nothing (Banville, 2011). Things and situations are perceived

Threats and opportunities from site :: essays research papers

Threats to sustainability Imitation or substitution Market entry Powerful buyers and suppliers Unpredictable changes in external environment Factors beyond a firm's control (bad luck) Limitations of the RBV Presented as static concept - however, many firms need to be able to cope with turbulent environments Suggests that managers may have limited ability to create sustained competitive advantages (empirical support by "perpetually failing firms" - firms that consistently earn normal or below-normal returns Difficult to test empirically - data problem (at the level of the unit of analysis, Le., resources and capabilities) What is the appropriate level of analysis? How deeply does one have to look? Principles of capabilities-based competition Goal : Build difficult-to-imitate organizational capabilities that distinguish a company from its competitors Principles : o The building blocks of strategy are business processes o The transformation of processes into valuable strategic capabilities is a key to success o Capabilities are created by making strategic investments in support infrastructure o CEO must be responsible, because competing on capabilities involves cross-functionality Some lessons learned from the capabilities perspective A capability begins and ends with the customer (or supplier) The longer and more complex the string of business processes, the harder it is to transform into a capability or to duplicate or imitate Outsourcing can be dangerous A strategy for growth : Transfer essential business processes to New geographic areas (e.g., Wal-Mart) or to New businesses (e.g., Honda) There is a difference between capabilities and core competencies Core competencies Coordinate diverse production skills and integrate multiple streams of technology Are communication, involvement, and a deep commitment to working across organizational boundaries Do not diminish with use, but are enhanced as they are applied and shared Are the glue that binds existing businesses Are difficult to imitate, especially if they are a complex harmonization of individual technologies and production skills Are corporate resources and may be reallocated by corporate management Tests to identify core competence : Does it provide access to a wide variety of markets ? Does it make a significant contribution to the perceived customer benefits of the end product? Is it difficult for competitors to imitate? Dynamic capabilities Definition : Ability to integrate, build and reconfigure internal and external processes and competencies to address a rapidly changing environment; ability to maintain and adapt the capabilities that are the basis of competitive advantage Hypothesis : Competitive advantage of a firm lies with its processes Roles of organizational and managerial processes :

Introduction to Criminal Justice Essay

The federal criminal justice system comprise of federal courts, corrections, and law enforcement agencies. The United States Attorneys is the primary agency taking charge of cases involving the U. S. government as a party and in collecting debt owed to the federal government. The federal judiciary has a Supreme Court, appellate courts, and trial or district courts. Federal law enforcement agencies derive their authority from the U. S. Constitution and federal laws while the state law enforcement obtains authority from the state constitution and legislations. The difference in source of authority, which determines jurisdiction and role, determines whether a criminal case is a federal or state matter. Federal Criminal Justice System The criminal justice system in America today comprise of courts, corrections and law enforcement operating at the local, state and federal level (Samaha, 2006). These tiers of decision-making operate independently according to the scope of their jurisdictions. The discussion focuses on the federal level relative to the local and state levels. The U. S.  Department of Justice comprises the primary criminal investigative and law enforcement agency at the federal level. The Office of the United States Attorneys, which falls under the U. S. Department of Justice, comprise the principal litigators assigned to judicial districts, within which each Unite States Attorney exercise the role as the chief federal law enforcement officer for the United States. The United States Attorneys Office mainly prosecutes cases involving the United States as a party and collect debt owed to the U. S. ederal government as provided by Title 28, Section 547 of the U. S. Code. (United States Attorneys, 2009) The federal judiciary or court system emerged from Article III of U. S. Constitution. This has three tiers of decision-making. At the top is the U. S. Supreme Court comprised of the Chief Justice and eight associate justices handling cases involving important constitutional or federal questions of law that originated in the state or the feder al courts. In the middle is the appellate court, made-up of 94 judicial districts pooled into 12 regional circuits. The U. S. Court of Appeals in every circuit handles appealed cases coming from the district courts or federal administrative agencies as well as handles appeals of special cases. At the lower level is the trial court comprised of the district courts, with criminal and civil jurisdiction. The Court of International Trade and the U. S. Court of Federal Claims are special trial courts. (Samaha, 2006; â€Å"Understanding the federal courts,† 2009) Federal law enforcement agencies derive their authority from the U. S.  Constitution. Article 1, Section 8 provides the power of Congress to enact laws needed in executing governmental powers. The constitutional powers of Congress accords federal law enforcement agencies with the authority to operate. Whenever, Congress enacts a statute, it designates the federal agency responsible for enforcement of this law. The provisions of the enacted laws assigned for enforcement to federal agencies indicate the limit and scope of the authority of the federal agencies. (May et al. , 2008) The difference in the role of federal agents and state or local law enforcement officers lies in the jurisdiction and scope of authority. A federal agent has a wider jurisdiction but with a narrower scope of authority determined by federal statutes. Federal law emanates from the constitution that empowers the U. S. Congress to enact laws at the federal level. State or local law enforcement officers have narrower jurisdiction limited only to the boundaries of the state or locality but with broader scope of authority covering the enforcement of all laws applicable to the state or locality. State/local laws come from the state legislatures obtaining authority from the state constitution. (May et al. , 2008) Investigation or prosecution of a crime is a federal matter when the criminal act or issue are covered by federal law or the U. S. Constitution, the U. S. government is a party, special cases within the authority of the federal law justice system, and other cases within federal question jurisdiction. A crime is under state jurisdiction in cases violating the criminal laws of the state. The state holds broad jurisdiction of various cases but with the exception of those falling under the exclusive statutory jurisdiction of the federal courts. (May et al. , 2008) It makes sense to have dual criminal statutes in the federal and state systems covering the same offense. In case of common jurisdiction over an offense, such as discrimination in employment, the parties can opt to file in case in federal or state courts. There are also ways of distinguishing jurisdiction such as the diversity jurisdiction of the federal courts in cases involving residents of two different states over a controversy amounting to more than $75,000 dollars. (May et al. , 2008) The federal criminal justice system operates independently from state and local criminal justice by having its constitutional and federal statute determined jurisdiction. However, it has links with local and state criminal justice in hearing appeals of cases originating from the state courts on grounds of pertinent issues of law.

The Origin Of Life Intelligent Design Vs. Materialistic...

Marquel Gray Prof. Heather Clark 7/22/13 Eng.111-60A The origin of life: Intelligent Design vs. materialistic naturalism The origin of life has been questioned by men for thousands of years. Scientist have studied the universe extensively and developed various theories to answer questions related to the origin of life. Questions like, how did life begin? Is the universe the result of chaotic chance or intelligent design? How did life on earth come to be? These are some of the many questions scientist work hard to solve, but what does their research tell them? Let’s start with the well-recognized theory of evolution. Evolution, a theory made famous by Charles Darwin; is the process in which an organism changes over time via adaptation, mutation and gene isolation. According to an article by evolutionary biologist Richard Lenski (2012), â€Å"There exists no other scientific explanation that can account for all the patterns in nature, only non-scientific explanations that require a miraculous force, like a creator.† Looking at the millions of fossils dated to be thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions and billions of years old; this theory seems solid. According to an article, by bio technician Brian Thomas (2011), a discrepancy about a time period known as the Cambrian explosion; dated to be about 800 million years ago, has been around as early as Charles Darwin. In this article he presents the evidence that an abundance of species said not to appear until