Marketing Strategy (Marketing Master VU) - Lectures, Articles & Clips Summary

Marketing Strategy summary

Table of contents
1. Lecture 1: Basics – What is marketing strategy?..........................................2

2. Lecture 2: Basics – What is marketing strategy? Part 2.................................3

3. Lecture 3: Deepdive - How to craft a killer business case presentation.........6

4. Week 2 – Clip 1: The playing field................................................................7

5. Week 2 – Clip 2: The playing field (Part 2)....................................................9

6. Article: Steiner et al. (2016) – Platform adoption in system markets...........13

7. Lecture 4: The playing field.......................................................................15

8. Week 2: Clip: How Netflix uses machine learning to recommend content.....19

9. Week 3: Clip 1 & 2: Price leadership..........................................................20

10. Week 3: Clip 1 & 2: Quality leadership.....................................................24

11. Week 3: Clip: Basics Hybrid Strategies.....................................................26

12. Week 3: Clip 1, 2 & 3: Basics Time leadership...........................................28

13. Week 3: Clip: The value proposition.........................................................31

14. Article: Ritson et al. (2024) – Distinctiveness versus differentiation..........33

15. Article: Hamilton & Chernev (2013) – Low prices are just the beginning.....34

16. Article: Hingston & Noseworthy (2018) – Why customers don’t see the
benefits….................................................................................................... 35

17. Article: Siebert et al (2020) – Loyalty loops versus involvement spirals.....37

18. Lecture 5: The behavior of the players.....................................................39

19. Week 5: Clip 1, 2 & 3 – Basics ethics........................................................41

20. Article: Sandel et al. (2013) – Market reasoning as moral reasoning..........43

21. Article: Finch et al. Marketing and compromising for sustainability...........44

22. Lecture 6: Ethics in marketing.................................................................45

23. Week 6: Clip – Basics the rules of the game..............................................47

24. Week 6: Dynamic strategy adaption........................................................48

25. Lecture 7: Dynamic strategy adaptation..................................................50

26. Article: McGrath (2013) – Transient advantage.........................................51




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, 1. Lecture 1: Basics – What is marketing strategy?
Marketing = management of competitive advantage.
The goal of marketing strategy is to create, sustain and defend the
advantage.

1.1 What are goals?
Goals can be set on different organizational levels
1. Corporate goals: Overall management objectives (e.g., overall
growth rate).
2. SBU goals: SBU objectives (e.g., start-up 5 new countries).
3. Functional goals: Marketing action objectives (e.g., product price).

1.2 What is strategy?
Definition: a flexible, long-term plan that connects goals (desired future)
with actions (concrete steps).
 Strategy gives direction on how to reach goals under changing
conditions.

1. Corporate strategies: focus on fundamental decisions that influence
the firm as whole.
- Synergy between SBUs
- Selection of markets (and brand identities) and
- Enabling & cultivating a market-oriented culture.
2. SBU strategies: seek to gain competitive advantage in an SBU.
- Business strategies must be in line with the corporate strategies.
3. Functional strategies: fundamental decisions in areas such as
pricing, promotion, distribution, product, procurement, finance,
sales, production etc.

 Core logic:
- Goals = what we want to achieve.
- Actions = what we do.
- Strategy = the bridge between them.




Figure 1 - Strategy as the connection between goals and actions.



1.3 Actions/Tactics

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, - Tangible, short-term tasks that can be precisely monitored and
evaluated.




Figure 2 – Strategies, goals and actions can be implemented on three levels




2. Lecture 2: Basics – What is marketing strategy? Part 2
2.1 Strategy + Marketing = Marketing strategy
 Strategic marketing decisions = long-term, directional (e.g.
positioning, target markets).
 Operational marketing decisions = short-term actions (e.g. pricing,
campaigns).
 Two possible meanings:
- Narrow definition: leading the marketing function.
- Broad definition: customer-oriented corporate management.

2.2 What is marketing?
 Marketing ≠ only creativity, sales or “selling things people don’t
need.”
 It’s a customer-oriented management mindset across the whole
company.
 Functional view: marketing = a single department.
 Cross-functional view: every function contributes to customer value.
 Key thinkers:
- Drucker (1973): “Business success is decided by the customer.”
- Kotler (1977): Market orientation = consumer focus + integration
+ efficiency.

Transition from “marketing as a function”  “marketing as company-wide
customer focus.”




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, Figure 3 - Marketing as market-oriented leadership



Shows how marketing involves all departments in delivering value.




Figure 4 - Cross-functional vs functional view



2.3 Marketing = management of competitive advantage (CA)
 Core idea: Marketing manages the creation and defense of
competitive advantage (CA).
 Balance between Customer - Company – Competitor (the market
triangle).
 A competitive advantage exists when customers perceive higher
value from the company than from competitors.
 Perceived value = benefits – costs

Relationship between customer, company and competitor; CA in the
center where company value > competitor value.




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