What is Strategy?

A real strategy is a set of choices that define what the firm is going to do and what it's not going to do. Many so-called strategies are actually goals, and others may be a couple of the firm's priorities, but they do not form a coherent strategy when considered in conjunction.

37signals (now Basecamp) has been doing well because they have been careful not to grow too fast. If they had expanded, they would have had to deal with more people and more bureaucracy, which would have made it harder to get things done.

Jason Frie...

There are two types of strategic choices: 

1) Business-level strategies help a company become more successful in a specific market or industry. 

2) Corporate-level strategies help a company become more successful by operating in multiple markets or in...

1) Cost leadership: The goal of reducing costs is to offer competitive prices and to make more money. High volume, low-profit margin.

2) Differentiation: Creating different products for different groups of people makes your company different from others. Th...

Differentiation strategy is when a company creates unique products that are different from their competitors. This makes customers more likely to accept higher prices, which means the company makes more money.

Bajaj Auto chose a differentiation strategy as ...

Defensive strategies are tools that help companies protect themselves from attacks by a competitor.

A market leader has to only defend the position by simply raising the bar. 

Example: Coca-Cola is the market leader, so it just has to raise the bar to stay ahead.

An offensive strategy is when a business takes certain steps against the market leader to get ahead and become more competitive.

A market challenger has to adopt an offensive strategy by doing the opposite of the leader.

Example: Bajaj Auto couldn't ...

Brand-washing is a marketing strategy that makes a company's products and services more appealing to consumers by making them seem more connected to the customer.

Example: the smacking sound we hear when unscrewing certain jars and containers has been patented.

1) Plan: Start with a goal in mind, and design a plan tailored to help you achieve it.

2) Ploy: Figure out what tactics you can use to deal with competitors or others in your company.

3) Pattern: See if you can identify any patterns i...

1. What is our winning aspiration?
2. Where will we play?
3. How will we win?
4. What capabilities must we have in place to win?
5. What management systems are required to support our choices?

1) Build the products you want to own.

2) Don't apologize for charging what you're worth.

3) Cut the clutter.

4) You can't be everything to everyone.

5) Control your distribution.

6) Create a feeling, not a product.

7) Account for all aspects of your product.

1. Blue Ocean Strategy
2. Michael Porter's Generic Competitive Strategies
3. Differentiation Strategy
4. Defensive Strategy
5. Offensive Strategy
6. Flanking Strategy

A Blue Ocean Strategy is when you don't compete with others in the same market, but in a new market where there are no competitors. This was developed by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne. The idea is that it's better to create new customers than to compete with ex...

Flanking strategy is when a company attacks from the side.

In some markets, there are leaders and also someone who is the opposite of the leader. In this case, companies can use a flanking strategy.

Companies think that if they make a better product, consumers will buy it. B...