2025

MARKETING AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES

BUS 430

PhD. Nguyen Thi Mai Anh

UNIT 1

INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING

1.1 Competitive advantages

1.2 Introduction to marketing
Marketing, marketing process
Core marketing concepts
Marketing management orientations
Marketing mix
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1.1 COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE - CA

▪ CA-A firm's ability to outperform competitors

by delivering superior value to customers.

Importance of Competitive Advantage

▪ Leads to long-term profitability and market

leadership
▪ Differentiates a company from competitors
▪ Improves customer loyalty and brand strength

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TYPES OF CA

▪ Cost Leadership: Lower costs, higher

efficiency (e.g., Walmart, Ryanair)
▪ Differentiation: Unique products/services
(e.g., Apple, Tesla)
▪ Focus/Niche Strategy: Targeting specific
markets (e.g., Rolex, Rolls-Royce)

SOURCES OF COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

▪ Innovation (e.g., Tesla’s battery technology).

▪ Brand Strength (e.g., Coca-Cola)
▪ Customer Experience (e.g., Amazon Prime)
▪ Operational Excellence (e.g., McDonald's).

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SUSTAINABLE VS. TEMPORARY COMPETITIVE
ADVANTAGE
▪ Sustainable CA: Hard to replicate (e.g.,
patents, brand reputation)
▪ Temporary CA: Short-term gains (e.g., pricing
discounts, viral marketing)

How Marketing Drives Sustainable Competitive

Advantage
▪ Marketing builds strong brands that stand the test of
time.
▪ Personalization & digital strategies enhance
customer loyalty.
▪ Innovative campaigns differentiate businesses in
crowded markets.
▪ Data-driven marketing ensures continuous
adaptation for long-term success.

▪ Sustainable CA = Great Products + Strategic

Marketing
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Marketing and CA

▪ Competitive advantage is essential for long-

term success.
▪ Marketing plays a crucial role in maintaining a
sustainable CA.
▪ Companies must continuously adapt to
changing market trends.

1.2 INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING

▪ What is marketing
▪ Core marketing concepts
▪ Marketing Management Concepts
▪ Marketing mix

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1.2.1 WHAT IS MARKETING?

▪ Selling?
▪ Advertising?
▪ Sales promotion?
▪ Market research?
▪ PR?

BIAS OF MARKETING

MARKETING

Marketing is the process by which companies engage

customers, build strong customer relationships,
and create customer value to capture value from
customers in return, including:
• Attracting new customers by promising superior value
• Retaining and growing current customers by
consistently delivering value and satisfaction
(Philip Kotler and Gary Armstrong, 2020)

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Examples of effective marketing strategies
Marketing
Amazon Facebook Starbucks
Component

• Unlimited digital
• Personal • Premium beverage
product selection
networking experience
• Advanced
Creating Value infrastructure • Third-place social
recommendation
from pain • Content sharing environment
technology
point technology • Ethical and
• Seamless digital-
• Social connection sustainable
physical
platform sourcing
integration

Technological Experiential lifestyle

Unique Social connectivity and
convenience and and personalized
Differentiators global networking
ecosystem service

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MARKETING PROCESS

Figure 1.1 The Marketing Process: Creating and Capturing Customer Value

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MARKETING PROCESS
Success: Apple's Failure: Google Glass
Marketing Process • Skipped comprehensive
• Extensive consumer market research
research • Ignored consumer
• Deep understanding of privacy concerns
user experience • Poorly defined target
• Meticulous market segment
segmentation • Premature product
• Innovative positioning launch
• Result: Cult-like brand • Result: Market rejection
loyalty
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1.2.2 CORE MARKETING CONCEPTS

▪ Need; want; demand

▪ Good, service
▪ Customer value
▪ Customer satisfaction
▪ Exchange
▪ Market

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KEY CONCEPTS
▪ NEEDS: Are states of ▪ WANTS: The form taken by a
human need as shaped by
felt deprivation culture and individual
personality
▪ Foods; safety, status,
▪ Shaped by one’s society
beloging, affection… ▪ Described in term of
▪ Basic part of human objects that will satisfy
needs
being ▪ Fries, rice, car, …
▪ DEMAND: Human wants that are backed by purchasing power
▪ Specific things will be purchased by human beings
▪ People will demand products that provide them most value
and satisfaction
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NEEDS, WANTS, DEMANDS

The way people
communicate their needs
(shaped by culture, social
group, psychology)
DEMANDS

WANTS
A state of felt
deprivation Backed by buying
power
NEEDS

*Needs as desire for solutions vs.

Wants as means or tools through which you reach solutions
Companies conduct consumer research, analyze mountains of customer data,
and observe customers, to learn about and understand customer needs, wants,
and demands.

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 NEEDS, WANTS AND DEMAND

Needs
Felt of depriviation
Products &
services
Wants Desire

Resources (Income,
Time…)
Demand

Buying decision

KEY CONCEPTS
❖ PRODUCTS & SERVICES: Products is
anything that is offered to the market for
sale or consumption
• Products: Cars, shoes, restaurant…
• Goods: books, pens...
• Services: Tax preparation, Hotel

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GOODS >< SERVICES
Rice
⚫ Drinks
Shoes
⚫ Cosmetic
⚫ Cars
⚫ Fast food
⚫
⚫ Intangible

Tangible
⚫
Fast food ⚫
Advertising ⚫
Airline ⚫
Investment ⚫
Tangibility level management Consulting⚫
of goods & services
Education

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PRODUCT, GOOD, SERVICE

▪ Products
▪ Anything offered in the market for sale
▪ Either a service or a manufactured good produced by a firm
▪ To many people, product mean good
▪ Goods
▪ Physical objects or devices that provide benefits for customers through ownership
or use
▪ Customers can touch, see, smell, feel before purchase
▪ Service
▪ Customers usually derive value from services without obtaining permanent
ownership of any substantial tangible elements.
▪ Customers can not touch, see, smell, feel before purchase
▪ It does not lead to any additional physical ownership
▪ Market offer:

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MARKET OFFER & MARKETING ENTITIES
▪ Market offer
▪ Combination of goods and services offered to
a market to satisfy a need
▪ Marketing entities
▪ Goods Services Experiences
▪ Events Persons Places
▪ Properties Organization Information
▪ Ideas

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CUSTOMER VALUES

The differences
between the values Customer gain/benefits (Monetary/non
monetary)

the customer gains Customer cost (money,

time, effort)
Customer
value
from owing and
using a product and
the costs of
obtaining the
product
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CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Expectation
- Past experience
- Information

Satisfaction
Dis-satisfaction

Perceived
Performance

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EXCHANGE AND RELATIONSHIP

EXCHANGE RELATIONSHIP

Marketing consists of
The act of obtaining actions taken to create,
a desired object from maintain, and grow
someone by offering desirable exchange
relationships with target
something in return. audiences involving a
product, service, idea, or
other object

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MARKET
▪ The set of all actual and
potential buyers of a product
or services
▪ The size of market depends
on the number of people who
exhibit the need, have
resources to engage in
exchange, and are willing to
exchange their resources for
what they want

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TYPES OF MARKET

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 1.2.3 MARKETING MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

▪ Production concept
▪ Product concept
▪ Selling concept
▪ Marketing concept
▪ Societal Marketing
concept
A management team meeting discusses future operational plans to push sales
targets. A debate ensues between the production, R&D, and marketing directors
about market research benefits and costs.

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DIFFERING PERSPECTIVES ON MARKET

RESEARCH
Marketing R&D Production
“Market research is expensive, “We just need to focus on “We have a history of showing
but it would be much more R&D to create the best good results, so why do we
costly to invest in R&D and product. Customers will need to do market research
you cannot sell it in the recognize the quality now?”
market.” difference and come to us.” “I just don't believe in it. Who
The marketing team believes are the customers anyway? I
that understanding customer think the customers don't
needs is crucial for product even know what they what
innovation and market they want.”
success. “We need to reduce cost of
the product, then customer
will come to find us.”

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 MARKETING MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

PRODUCTION

- Consumers will favor products that are

available and highly affordable;
- Therefore, the organization should focus on
improving production and distribution
efficiency
- The oldest orientations
- Product’s cost is too high and improved
productivity is needed to bring it down
- Demand > Supply.
- Production – the most important – Engineers

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MARKETING MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

PRODUCT

- Consumers will favor products that offer the

most quality, performance, and innovative
features;
- Therefore, the organization should devote
its energy to making continuous product
improvements

- R&D – the most important

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 MARKETING MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

SELLING

- Consumers will not buy enough of the

firm’s products unless the firm
undertakes a large-scale selling and
promotion effort
- Selling – most important
- Unsought products

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MARKETING MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

MARKETING

- Understand customer’s needs and deliver

satisfaction beeter than competitors

- Focus: Target market; Customer orientation and

marketing coordination
- KFC, Vinamilk…

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SELLING >< MARKETING

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MARKETING MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS

SOCIETAL MARKETING

- Deliver value to customers in a way that maintains

or improves both the consumer’s and society’s well-
being

- GE, Big C…

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ACTIVITY

What are the potential risks of each

approach?

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WHAT DO YOU THINK?

▪ Peter Drucker once said that “The aim of

marketing is to make aggressive selling and
promotions unnecessary.” Do you agree with
this statement…..and why?
A. Strongly disagree
B. Disagree
C. Neutral
D. Agree
E. Strongly agree

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1.2.4 MARKETING MIX

▪ Goods ▪ Services
▪ Product ▪ People
▪ Price + ▪ Process
▪ Place ▪ Physical Evidence
▪ Promotion

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