29.01.2019 som prezentoval na prezentáciu na tému Obchodná stratégia pre konkurencieschopný eCommerce projekt, na konferencii Reshoper. Moja prezentácia bola menej exaktná a viac vyskladaná zo skúseností a osobného názoru, preto som sa rozhodol na túto tému spraviť rovnomenný blog post.
Keď hovoríme o konkurencieschopnosti , veľa ekonómov ako prvé napadne Porterov model 5 trhových síl. Podľa mojho názoru je skvelý, ale pre internetovú ekonomiku mierne zastaralý. Bol vytvorený v roku 1976 a podľa môjho názoru dosť nadhodnocuje veľkosť firmy a podhodnocuje inovácie. Som fanúšikom názoru, že pre súšastnu ekonomiku sa stáva hlavným determinantom konkurencieschopnosti rýchlosť zavádaznia inovácii. Ak sa pozrieme na 20 najvačších internetových firiem, tak po 20 rokoch je v tejto TOP dvadsiatke len 5 z nich a poradie sa každých 5 rokov rapidne mení. V eCommerce je potrebné ako konkurenciu z dlhodobého hľadiska vnímať obchodné platformy a globálnych hráčov, aj keď v súčastnosti nekonkurujú lokálnym e-shopom. Obe typy týchto firiem sú obrovské a naďalej rastúce, preto je nutné ich zohľadniť pri dlhodobej stratégii. Veľmi sa mi páči myšlienka z knihy “The Innovator’s Dilemma“, ktorá hovorí, že veľké firmy sa dajú poraziť len v oblastiach v ktorých sú slabé. A toto je mojích pár tipov ako identifikovať slabé miesta globálnych eCommerce hráčov alebo obchodných platform .
1. Stratégia založená na komparatívnej výhode a dosiahnuteľnom cieli
Pri stanovovaní cieľa je dôležité vedieť objektívne zhodnotiť, či máme dostatok komparatívnych výhod na dosiahnutie tohto cieľa. Ja keď som začínal s GymBeam, tak som už mal skúsenosti s dosiahnutím 1. miesta na domácom trhu a expanzii v menších kategóriiach ako je športová výživa, ale stále som nemal dostatok skúseností, financií, prístup k ľudskému kapitálu na to, aby som si mohol zvoliť väčšiu kategóriu, ako sú napríklad elektronika alebo SaaS. Takže to pre mňa bola adekvátne veľká výva. Princíp stanovenia si adekvátne veľkej výzvy je vhodné uplatňovať aj v manažmente tímu, čím môžte dostiahnuť dlhodbú motivovanosť, keďže malé vývzy nudia a príliš veľké demotivujú. Pri výbere kategórie som zohľadňoval veľkosť trhu, geografickú polohu, očakávania zákazníkov o rýchlosti dodania produktov z dlhodobého hľadiska a objektívneho posúdenia základnej línie sme sa rozhodli zvoliť kategóriu a trhy, ktoré chceme osloviť. Po 5 rokoch musím povedať, že to bol dobrý krok. Táto kategória je pre nás adekvátnou výzvou.
2. Trend kategórie
Veľa úspešných firiem pochádza z odvetví, ktorým priali makroekonomické trendy. Sú z odvetví, ktoré posledné roky rýchlo rástli alebo relatívne nedávno ani neexistovali. Ak sa pozrieme na TOP10 najvačších firiem, viacero z nich pochádza z odvetví, ktoré pred 30 rokmi neexistovali. Veľa unicorns a startupov to ma ešte kratšie a verím tomu, že čím ďalej, tým viac budú tieto zmený intenzívnejšie.
3. Masová zmena vnímania segmentu trhu a načasovanie
A very good starting position in the business is if you start in a field that is currently, for an irrational reason, not considerably saturated by both competitors and customers, and you expect it to change in the foreseeable future. Based on certain macro circumstances, it was possible to assume that at the beginning of cloud services, they were not used because of distrust, and it was obvious that this would change in the future due to rational grounds. Similarly, regarding the segment of sports nutrition, it was only a matter of time when in our region it will no longer be perceived as a niche for a narrow group of bodybuilders with products for enormous muscle growth but rather a mainstream FMCG products for average people who are committed to a healthy lifestyle. This change did not happen at once but it is rather gradual and can be still observed. As a result, many new customers are attracted to this market every year, which is a great starting point. To my mind, insect-based food will be used widely in the future. The problem with this segment is that it has not yet begun to transform, so we cannot predict the time when change will take place, whether it will be 5 or 100 years. I think, that this change is still too vague; on the other hand, the change of opinion on the segment of sports nutrition has been very easy to identify in our region in 2013, according to the changes in Western Europe and the USA, and I think it is constantly occurring, so it is not finished yet. Similarly, it happened in 2008 with cloud services.
4. Obchodný model D2C
From my point of view, companies can be divided into three types of manufacturers, lifestyle brands and retailers. Based on new technologies, production and brand can be covered significantly cheaper than they used to be, and therefore, I think the margin is shifting to B2C distribution. And it’s not just a margin, but also a “private label products” that are growing overall and where retailers actually make brands. These brands are able work more efficiently because they can work with customer data better and work more flexibly with customer demand.
hybrid business model of manufacturer, brand and retailer
5. Demand planning “before in time”
I believe that one of the areas that it is still possible to win over large companies today, is the area of customer demand forecasting. I have observed that today’s technology as well as big players, predict customer demand less effectively as customer solution can be actually proposed for a particular segment. This is an area where, if the company starts to develop a sophisticated system for its segment, it is possible to secure its position for the future, on the basis of historical data about customers and custom crawling of the Internet.
6. Tech stack
A very fundamental mistake that is typical for some startups is the repetition of procedures and solutions after large companies. Large business companies usually had other business conditions, so their replication not only would not help to achieve the same result but may even make it worse. An area where it is definitely not worth to copy after big companies is the IT infrastructure. I think that with the use of today’s technology a more efficient solution can be provided. Global leaders did not have the technologies that have been made available only in recent years, and it is currently unprofitable to do the system re-engineering. This may be an opportunity to build a more efficient ecosystem.
7. Budovanie “customer equity”
In the best possible way, each company would imagine model subscription, since it is able to secure long-term revenue, cash flow and stability. Unfortunately, in many industries, this is not possible, because of the nature of the product. However, in my opinion, each company should try to approach this model and try to build customer equity and repeated revenues. Modern technology offer an opportunity to order so easily and it can make such sophisticated purchase predictions, so that it is possible to recommend the product at the right time to the customer, and it is very accurate (Target can predict the pregnancy of the customer in 4 months with 89% probability, Amazon sends off 15% of products before ordering). I assume that the most advanced method of segmentation is the multidimensional labeling of products and customers/potential customers with parameters/tags. In the case of quality segmentation, machine learning algorithms, technical solutions and commodity procedures are beginning to be established and the collected results of pre-tested hypotheses with business logic to ensure the flow of new customers and to minimize leave of current clients are valuable. It is a great opportunity for a company to secure its market position.
Building of customer equity, photo from Reshoper, Prague
8. Cenotvorba
I think that global players and marketplaces are main competitors for each companies in the long run. Model marketplaces have many benefits, but they also have one major disadvantage, and that is pricing. I think that a good company can greatly benefit from it, especially in times when technology offers sophisticated data collection methods for correct pricing and methods for an individual pricing for different clients.
9. Zameranie na zákaznícku skúsenosť (CX)
Modern technology can easily provide customers and therefore the company should create the best ratio between CX and margin. Based on this, the the growth of regular clients’ base can be regulated against profit. I believe that good companies can provide an excellent user experience with similar acquisition costs as companies with an average or below average user experience. The customer experience is created by the whole company and the ability to identify what the customer really requires in terms of product and service together with the distribution of this product is vital.
Moreover, company called Foresters quantified the correlation between the growth of company values and the CX index (a quantification of user experience quality). It compared the company’s change of value on the stock market at the 7-year horizon in companies with measured CX index. It was discovered that companies which were measured with high CX grew faster than the average stock market, while companies with low CX index not only did not grow fast enough but also their value dropped in the 7 years. From my perspective, the importance of CX is growing because people always have their mobile devices in their hands with an access to a simple product and service evaluation, recommendation or repeated purchase.
Further with the rise in the standard of living, customers will prefer products and services with high CX rather then affordable ones.
10. Budovanie stroja n zábavu
Everyone who deals with marketing performance is aware that the price of attention is constantly and steadily rising. When we look at very competitive markets and industries to such an extent that most companies, after buying a marketing placement, cannot make enough money to make it profitable for them, and as to other companies, it cuts almost the whole margin. To my mind, one of the ways to deal with this is not to buy attention but to earn it. To earn it through building a system in the company to ensure constant amazement, entertainment, education and attraction of existing and potential clients. Today’s customer is exposed to a great deal of influence and feelings and forgets very quickly. Therefore, it is necessary to constantly remind about your company in the simple and natural way. Frequently, these content marketing methods bring to a bigger business, for instance such as the Michelin Restaurant Guide, in the case of a company that manufactures michalin pneumatics. In many industries, the traditional business model that was worked on for years has changed for a business model where content is more monetized than original business. For example, it is Star Wars or Disney, since they are already earning more money on merchandising than on the original business with broadcasting rights and cinema tickets. I even think that today’s economy is starting to spin the business, based on increased popularity of social media and customer convenience, where some companies start with building up the audience and only then think how to monetize by selling products. This may be an example of Kylie Jenner, who is likely to become the youngest billionaire thanks to being able to monetize her instagram audience through a brand of cosmetics.
Company vision
However, I think that all these strategy tips should not only be top-down but also bottom-up. Since many times company management comes up with a great strategy with which the current team cannot identify and work on. I really like Peter Drucker’s statement, which says: “Culture eats strategy for breakfast” and therefore, I think many great top management strategies have not been fulfilled because the rest of the company has not been able to identify with them. I also believe that after defining the strategy, it is necessary to demonstrate the vision and mission of the company. The company’s vision and mission should be clearly shown to the entire company and afterwards decomposed into smaller units such as annual OKRs, a Roadmap project, or an annual business plan.
Culture eats strategy for breakfast