Strategic Marketing Management : American Technology Company

Describe about the Strategic Marketing Management for American Technology Company.

Market Positioning

GoPro, an American technology company was found in the year 2002 by Nick Woodman (Walker 2015). The company produces eponymous action cameras for which it has gained recognition worldwide. According to the case study, GoPro launched itself in the market using niche marketing strategy.  A niche marketing strategy can be defined as the marketing strategy in which the products appeal a specific market subgroup (Walker 2015). Originally, when the company was launched, it targeted a specifically receptive market for women, amateurs and professional sportsmen. The founder of GoPro, Woodman is passionate about surfing (Walker 2015). He came up with an idea of a wrist strap in the existing camera that would allow him to click pictures of himself and his friends while surfing (Mac 2013). The market positioning of the company has shifted from a manufacturer of a camera to selling high-definition personal camera (Walker 2015). As the camera is light weighted, malleable and durable, it serves as a perfect fit for the sportsmen. The high definition camera allows capturing the perfect wave and the quick reactions that are difficult to capture (Henneberg, Gruber and Naudé 2013). Therefore, GoPro positioned itself for the sportsmen who endure surfing, sky diving and other adventurous sports. GoPro not only click pictures, but captures the moments and exciting experience of the sportsmen (Revella 2015).

GoPro made a successful launch using niche marketing strategy. The products suit the personal needs of the consumers. Not only sports, GoPro has gained acceptance among amateurs due to its excellent photo and video capabilities. The camera is affordable and there a range of accessories offered along with it (Walker 2015). GoPro has leveraged the target market and helped people capturing life’s precious moments (Dobni, Klassen and Sands 2016). Moreover, according to the case study, the price offering ranged from $200 to $400 which gave the company a strong competitive edge against Canon, Nikon, Panasonic and Olympus (Walker 2015). It was observed that other competitor brands did not offer such a price in their product lines. They did not appear in price parity. GoPro also formed a popular market among the women as it is convenient to carry. The camera also allows capturing a variety of different angles that enhance user experience. Using such tactics, GoPro made a large group of loyal customer base (Walker 2015). The features offered by them were not found in the other competitive camera brands. Niche marketing not only saved money spent on marketing, but personalizing features helped them become a market leader in the market of cameras globally (Henneberg, Gruber and Naudé 2013). However, GoPro mainly positioned itself in the sports market. GoPro is ideal for the young males and females who have a love for adventure. They are also social media fans as the features of the camera allow the consumers to share content through engagement (Patler 2016).

GoPro Market Characteristics

The companies shall not survive if the market is not efficiently segmented and targeted. Market segmentation enables the companies to divide the market into sub-groups which have similar interests, needs or interests. The market can be divided demographically, geographically, behaviourally and psychograph (Walker 2015). Based on these market segments, an organization chooses the focus which shall be targeted through marketing strategies. In case of GoPro, the target customer groups are the people aged 16-35 based on demographics. Further, the young females and males are also segmented. The people belonging to the income level $30000-$50000 are also the target consumers (Walker 2015). These young males are graduated or employed. Based on geographic segmentation, the GoPro market has consumers belonging to the urban areas. Based on psychograph, the consumers are young active males and females who enjoy adventure sports and activities. The founder, Woodman states that GoPro is a life camera that captures people’s precious moments. On the basis of usage segmentation, the consumers who have high usage rate and use cameras for getting involved in social media and other activities are also targeted. Based on lifestyle segmentation, the consumers have a social lifestyle. The consumers love to share their experiences (Walker 2015). This is one of the major reasons of GoPro’s success (Hassan and Craft 2012).

Evidently, GoPro understands its audience and tries to connect with them at a more personal level that makes it different from any other camera company (Walker 2015). GoPro is ideal for the young males and females who have a love for adventure. The GoPro products are highly adaptable, attainable and affordable that makes a loyal customer base (Walker 2015). It is analyzed that GoPro customers are passionate for the product. The consumers have a passion towards sports and like to capture their life experiences (Walker 2015). They are also social media fans as the features of the camera allow the consumers to share content through engagement. The customers are story-tellers as the camera allows in creating meaningful connections that goes beyond the ordinary and makes the content unique and unforgettable (Hassan and Craft 2012).

Competitive Market Positioning

The importance of competitive advantage cannot be understated or overstated. Competitive advantage helps in appealing the market segment to buy from GoPro and not the other competitors who belong to the same industry (Davcik and Sharma 2016). According to the given case study, GoPro focuses on niche marketing approach aimed at women, professional sportsmen and amateurs (Walker 2015). With the passage of time, GoPro developed a social network hub in the sports market using digital marketing. A few competitors are Nikon, Canon and Olympus. The legendary start-up created a new market and launched itself as the king. Woodman’s passion for surfing helped him create a product that makes it the king in the camera market. The company has gained a huge market share which was difficult for Canon, Nikon or Olympus to catch up (Walker 2015). The strategy can be termed sustainable as the company not only manufactures camera, but redefines itself as an immersive sports company. It is the mission of the company to change people’s lives in the upcoming years by growing the sports market (Henneberg, Gruber and Naudé 2013).

The advantage of the product is that GoPro’s cameras can be mounted on almost everything. This gives the consumers an advantage over other brands such as Nikon, Canon or Olympus. Additionally, the social media platform allows the users to share their experiences through blogs or videos with a sense of engagement (Walker 2015). The company continues to improve quality of the cameras which makes it the largest selling high-definition personal camera globally. The quality, adaptability and flexibility of the high definition cameras add to the features and advantages (Walker 2015). Additionally, GoPro makes innovation of new products that are durable, water-proof and shock resistant that makes it sustainable (Hassan and Craft 2012).

Therefore, GoPro is the most versatile camera that helps people in capturing meaningful and exciting moments making it memorable for a lifetime. The view of looking at the products as more than cameras makes it sustainable strategy for the company over other competitors like Nikon, Canon and Olympus (Henneberg, Gruber and Naudé 2013). The company continues to improve quality of the cameras which makes it the largest selling high-definition personal camera globally. However, there is a scope for creating a better experience. The company may not only aspire to be known as a sports brand, but also the best company of solo travellers who might have to ask other people to click pictures (Minton et al. 2012).

References

Davcik, Nebojsa S. and Piyush Sharma. 2016. "Marketing Resources, Performance, And Competitive Advantage: A Review And Future Research Directions". Journal Of Business Research 69 (12): 5547-5552. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2016.04.169.

Dobni, C. Brooke, Mark Klassen, and Drummond Sands. 2016. "Getting To Clarity: New Ways To Think About Strategy". Journal Of Business Strategy 37 (5): 12-21. doi:10.1108/jbs-08-2015-0084.

Hassan, Salah S. and Stephen Craft. 2012. "Examining World Market Segmentation And Brand Positioning Strategies". Journal Of Consumer Marketing 29 (5): 344-356. doi:10.1108/07363761211247460.

Henneberg, Stephan C., Thorsten Gruber, and Peter Naudé. 2013. "Services Networks: Concept And Research Agenda". Industrial Marketing Management 42 (1): 3-8. doi:10.1016/j.indmarman.2012.11.013.

Mac, Ryan. 2013. "Five Startup Lessons From Gopro Founder And Billionaire Nick Woodman".Forbes.Com. http://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanmac/2013/03/13/five-startup-lessons-from-gopro-founder-and-billionaire-nick-woodman/#6fcd08a27e96.

Minton, Elizabeth, Christopher Lee, Ulrich Orth, Chung-Hyun Kim, and Lynn Kahle. 2012. "Sustainable Marketing And Social Media". Journal Of Advertising 41 (4): 69-84. doi:10.1080/00913367.2012.10672458.

Patler, Louis. 2016. Make Your Own Waves: The Surfer's Rules For Innovators And Entrepreneurs. NY: Blackwell.

Revella, Adele. 2015. Buyer Personas: How To Gain Insight Into Your Customer's Expectations, Align Your Marketing Strategies, And Win More Business. Somerset: Wiley.

Walker, Orville C. 2015. Marketing Strategy: A Decision-Based Approach. 3rd ed. Australia: McGraw-Hill Education.

 

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