Significance of ‘Being Different’ for Competitive Advantage

472 Words2 Pages
Competitive strategy is about being different. It means deliberately choosing to perform activities differently or to perform different activities than rivals to deliver a unique mix of value. -Michael Porter, Harvard Business School Introduction The concept of strategy has been borrowed from the military and adapted for use in business. In business, as in the military, strategy bridges the gap between policy and tactics. Together, strategy and tactics bridge the gap between ends and means. Strategy in Military was to win the battle means single winner, which is called zero-sum game. However in business ones excellent performance does not mean another's annihilation. For example: Wal*mart and Target both exists. Both provides value to customers and serve different customer categories. In Indian IT industry, TCS, Infosys, HCL, Tech Mahindra all co-exist. Pepsi Vs Coke is very well known. However some poor performers suffers like Kmart, Satyam etc. According to Michael E. Porter, there are two types of competitive advantages cost advantage and differentiation advantage. An organization that offers the same value to consumers as competitors do, but at a lower cost, is said to possess ‘cost advantage over its competitors’. On the other hand, an organization that offers superior value to customers when compared to its competitors possesses a ‘differentiation advantage over the competitors’. Differentiation Strategy: A differentiation strategy calls for creating a product or service with sufficiently distinctive attributes that it sets business apart from the competition. If differentiation strategy works, business may be able to charge customers a premium for your product or service. However, such a strategy may backfire without sufficient market acceptance. Business also face other risks that can impact company's bottom line. Every company would like to
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