Marketing Strategy Order 795618
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Marketing Strategy Order 795618
Previous studies have shown that being first to the market offers a sustained and significant market-share advantage over the later entrants. However, after achieving the incumbent status, pioneers may get complacent, allowing later entrants to succeed by adopting distinctive marketing strategies. Pioneer firms have better chances for long-term success in leadership and profitability when the market is locked for entry by new entrants (Gómez-Villanueva, & Ramírez-Solís, 2013). It should be noted that new firms sometimes tend to have enough resources and competencies and are large enough to occupy the pioneer position in the present and future.
Companies with pioneer status include Toms Shoes, CVS Health, and Tesla. Of paramount importance to note is that Tesla has achieved great success in electric vehicles and other solar energy products like a home battery. On the other hand, Toms Shoes have ensured that they give back to charity for every purchase done. CVS Health guaranteed that the company products improve people’s health by offering smoking cessation programs. Such strategies have catapulted the companies to very superior positions in the market and are ahead of their competition.
Follower firms find success when there are fewer technological, financial, and legal barriers. When the obstacles are enormous, then the entry proves to be hard for the follower firms. It also needs enough resources that can enable competitive advantage and even overwhelm the resources possessed by other competitors and pioneers (Gómez-Villanueva, & Ramírez-Solís, 2013). Examples of follower firms are Facebook, Apple, and Google. Notably, there existed other popular and large companies that provided social networking sites and search engines that people would commonly turn to before they came in and fought the way to the top. Apple invented the multi-touch smartphones that crushed many other existing companies giving it a competitive advantage in the market. The companies must have implemented strategies that enabled dominance in their segment.
Reference
Gómez-Villanueva, J. E., & Ramírez-Solís, E. R. (2013). Is there a real pioneer’s advantage? Lessons learned after almost thirty years of research—Academy of Strategic Management Journal, 12(2), 31.