SWOT ANALYSIS Amazon.com, Inc is the world’s largest online retailer. It started as an online bookstore, but soon diversified, selling DVDs, video, MP3 downloads, electronics, furniture, food, toys and other commodities. On the September 2011, Amazon introduced the Kindle Fire tablet computer to compete Apple, Google, and Samsung in the consumer electronics field. In addition, Amazon is also major provider of cloud-computing service. -------Wikipedia Strength | Weakness | 1 Cheaper product price2 Easier for vertical comparison3 Considerate service on consumers | 1 Faulty shipping problem2 Lacking interaction with customers3 Limited information about products | Opportunity | Weakness | 1 Development of cloud computing 2 Exploit the potential of new markets 3 Long-term growth anticipation | 1Policy conflict with Global management2 Fierce competitive markets3 Declining consumer buying desire | Strengths Cheaper product price Compare with practical store, Amazon, which just provide a virtual business stage online, can save more costs, especially rentals and advertisement fees.
The company’s vision statement points to broader sales purpose, “As digital and online sales accelerate, Barnes & Noble remains well positioned to gain a significant share of these exciting new markets.” This vision takes B&N away from its core competency of bookselling. B&N must return to bookselling as its first goal, and ensure alignment at every level of the corporation. Bookselling must be stated first in all communications. The B&N of today traces its roots to a single bookstore. The sales of physical books and eBooks will give the company its greatest competitive advantage in the years to come.
 Replace existing legacy software because of Y2K date-related problems.  Main goal is to improve and streamline internal business processes to meet the demands of their suppliers.  Establish a single companywide supply chain strategy across all divisions.  Use new supply chain efficiencies to help increase gross margin.  Save $75-80 million by the end of 2002 through corporate restructuring and the closing of order distribution sites.
He had a vision on being the biggest company in the world. Believing the Amazon was the world’s largest river, he would decide Amazon.com was a befitting choice. (Wikipedia) Amazon.com would be started as primarily an internet based on-line book store selling its first book on-line in 1995. The entire operation began with a few people packaging and shipping boxes out of a two car garage. (Kayla Webley July 16, 2010 ) would write the company’s business in a car on a road trip from New York City.
It is the world largest online retailer. Today it is known as a hub for online shopping. It is also considered as the important software developer or “information systems” company with a little pick, pack and ship services. Bezos understood that only Internet could give consumers the handiness of browsing and surfing a collection of millions of books in distinct single session. (Amazon, 2012) 1.0.1 Mission Statement The mission statement of Amazon is, “to become the world's greatest consumer oriented corporation; to form a place where individuals can visit to get and discover whatever they want to purchase online”.
Assumptions about the way people shopped- notably that they bought everything from the same store - were shattered. What became clear was a more complex picture of modern-day retail habits and the Clubcard, with its offer of personalized incentives to persuade people to fill these troubling gaps in their shopping baskets, proved both an eye-opener and a massive money-spinner.14 Consumer data has helped shape the products they offer, Tesco have a better understanding of consumer segments and shopping profiles which has helped them to market themselves and form relationships with customers and build loyalty in customers and target particular groups with their marketing. This level of sophistication has made sure that Tesco remain the leaders within the market.15
He saw that more than half of Sainsbury’s 240 million pound (₤) annual marketing budget went to Nectar and said: “Nectar represents a significant investment for Sainsbury’s, and I can’t help but feel that if we put the investment into more staff in our stores we’d see a better return. I was part of the senior management team that turned around the ASDA supermarket chain before it was sold to Wal-Mart, and the changes we made at ASDA were all about price and value for money. ASDA didn’t have a loyalty program.” He continued: But I do understand the value of knowing more about what our customers are doing dayto-day and this is part of the value we get from Nectar. We use the Nectar data on our customers to help us determine which stock to carry in which stores. The Nectar data also allows us to do much better and more targeted marketing to our customers.
It quickly ran away from the pack with its copyrighted PageRank search algorithm which returns superior search results for Web users. It also has developed extensive online advertising services for businesses of all sizes. Google provides value to the user by using an inexpensive, flexible infrastructure to speed up Web searches and provide its users with a vast array of Web-based services and software tools. Microsoft: Its business model originally focused on the desktop computer running the Windows operating system and Office desktop productivity applications. The company and its products are staples for businesses and consumers looking to improve their productivity with computer-based tasks.
Now, Amazon.com offers not only books but also music, video, furniture, clothing and even jewelry. 36 categories products are provided by Amazon.com now. Amazon.com reaches its diverse goals through acquiring other kinds of companies. And E-commerce helps Amazon reduce cost and become larger and larger. Since Amazon.com’s infrastructure is so powerful that most of its capacity is still not used, Amazon.com takes advantage of this capacity to provide other types of services.
It was one of the first retailers to use a 24 x 7 toll-free telephone number and the Internet for direct sales to consumers. A decade ago, 1-800-Flowers was a business waiting eagerly for the Internet to take off. Today, the company has an e-commerce platform that can grow along with its business. For the delivery of smiles, 1-800-FLOWERS implemented more scalable, centralized e-commerce platform to support its rapid business growth. Also the company fills its orders in two ways: through a network of florists and through drop shipments.