BB Naiketing Assignment

Subm|ss|on by
|aarav \igam
PGDM (Communications)
MICA, Ahmedabad








TH0u6HTw0RKS
ComANY Ovcnvicw
nevllle 8oy" Slngham founded 1houghLworks lnc ln 1993 lL was a professlonal l1 servlces company
1houghLworks has over Lhe years provlded cuLLlngedge Lechnologles Lo lLs cllenLs 1hls has led Lo
supreme buslness growLh and proved as a Lurnarounds for Lhese enLerprlses 1houghLworks prlmarlly
was a provlder of 2 klnds of l1 servlces CusLomer appllcaLlons developmenL and SysLems lnLegraLlon
work new Lechnologles and Lechnlcal capablllLles were adopLed by 1hougLworks Lo lmplemenL new
lnLerneL based appllcaLlons LhaL lnLegraLed wlLh exlsLlng sysLems
1houghLworks had been ln Lhe markeL slnce 11 years and lL was enLerlng Lhlrd phase of lLs
growLh 1hus Lhe CCC 1revor MarLher had deslgned a 1W 30 sLraLeglc plan Lo achleve Lhls growLh ln a
calculaLed and promlslng way LlemenLs ln Lhe sLraLeglc plan had also lmpressed !ohn Cuerrlere vlce
presldenL of markeLlng slnce Lhls Llme markeLlng brandlng of 1houghLworks was on Lhe maln focus of
lLs sLraLegy never had Lhe markeLlng been Lhe key componenL of 1oughLworks annual budgeL or
sLraLegy for buslness growLh
1houghLworks had growlng number of Clobal 1000 cllenLs who accounLed for brlnglng large
revenues More Lhan 73 of Lhe revenue of Lhe company was churned Lhrough flve large cllenLs whlle
less Lhan 23 was due Lo 30 small cllenLs Lhelr pro[ecLs LhaL were more llke obsLacles Lhan
opporLunlLles
$9ncNc9 or Touc9wonKs
Conslderlng Lhe naLure of l1 servlces lndusLry l1 companles who were leaders ln uslng Lhe laLesL cuLLlng
edge Lechnologles lnnovaLlve execuLlon models meLhodologles for provldlng sofLware soluLlons could
easlly dlsLlngulsh Lhemselves from oLher compeLlLors 1houghLworks had hlred MarLln lowler who
[olned as chlef sclenLlsL aL Lhe company Pe was responslble for
O eveloplng Aglle meLhodology for execuLlng sofLware pro[ecLs 1hls Aglle sysLem acLually
revoluLlonlzed Lhe lndusLry
O Pe auLhored several arLlcles [ournals books 1hese served as ready reference maLerlal
guldlng force for l1 professlonals worklng aL 1houghLworks or oLher companles
O Pe was lnvolved ln Lhe hlrlng process for 1houghLworks As llLLle as 1 ln 200 appllcanLs was
flnally offered a [ob aL 1houghLworks afLer rlgorous rounds of screenlng
ffect|ue|y |eueroq|nq Core cometenc|e:
Peop/e 1herefore people aL 1houghLworks were compeLenL enough Lo handle Lechnlcal challenges and
provlde requlslLe soluLlons Lo Lhe cllenLs lowler was a menLor and condulL Lo members of 1echnlcal
sLaff who showed lnLeresL ln wrlLlng and publlshlng arLlcles and books
cu/ture Cradually 1houghLworks developed a vlbranL culLure 8ased on requlremenLs several people
were asked Lo work aL cllenL locaLlons or be lnvolved ln cllenLlnLerfaclng roles CLC 8oy Slngham made
a sLaLemenL LhaL We suck less" whlch ln a way became a sLrong sLaLemenL LhaL employess had freedom
and were selfcapable of dellverlng ConsulLlng model was qulLe unlque aL 1houghLworks Lmployees
were moLlvaLed for selfevaluaLlon Clobal CperaLlng commlLLee usually presenLed a llsL of 7
lmprovemenL areas for Lhe sLaff whlch Lhey should adhere Lo ln order Lo Lo meeL Lhe deflnlon of
excellence for 1houghLworks
/e Methodo/o 1houghLworks was a ploneer ln developlng Lhls meLhodology wlLh Lhe efforLs of
MarLln lowler 1hls model became a flagshlp producL of 1houghLworks whlch Lhey applled Lo pro[ecL of
any slze Lo geL Lhe deslred resulLs Company goL heavy recognlLlon and boosL ln brandlng due Lo lLs
paLenL and effecLlve lmplemenLaLlon
Comc9i9ioN
1he 8lg 3 compeLlLors ln Lhe l1 lndusLry were AccenLure l8M Clobal servlces 8earlng polnL
LS and elolLLe and 1ouche 1hey dldn'L concenLraLe on appllcaLlons developmenL buL on
sofLware package lmplemenLaLlon a ma[or revenue churner for any l1 company 1hough Lhe
compeLlLors were yeL Lo develop efflclency ln 8uslness process ouLsourclng Lo servlce Lhe end
Loend soluLlons Lo cllenLs buL Lrylng Lo follow Lhe consulLlng model of LhoughLworks became a
sorL of LhreaL
lew cusLomers were keen on bulldlng lnPouse capablllLles of generaLlng l1 soluLlons wlLh Lhe
help of exLernal consulLanLs 8uL crlLlcal appllcaLlons and lncreaslng workload was sLlll an
obsLacle ln developlng Lhls arm
CuLsourclng of Lhe work Lo lndlan l1 flrms was a growlng LhreaL Lo 1houghLworks Lxpenses
someLlmes were as less as 10 1hough Lhere was some amounL of reslsLance ln Lhls because of
domesLlc [ob losses buL lL was noL a ma[or deLerrenL Lo 1houghLworks buslness model slnce lL
always leveraged lLs unlque and paLenLed Aglle pracLlces (called lsLrlbuLed Aglle)
TAncc9iNc & Posi9ioNiNc
So far 1houghLworks had done a decenLly good [ob Lo poslLlon lLself and LargeL Lhe rlghL seL of
cusLomers 8uL golng forward Lhe growLh would noL be LhaL easy because of sLlff compeLlLlon changlng
buslness scenarlo and hurdles comlng Lhrough l1 spendlng ouLsourclng eLc 8uL Cuerrlere Lhe
managemenL Leam made calculaLlons LhaL as Lhe awareness abouL 1houghLworks would lncrease lLs
Sales cycle would compress and Lhe goal of doubllng ln slze would be achlevable 8esearch Agency
CarLner helped 1houghLworks ln dlsLlngulshlng 3 Lypes of enLerprlses
O @ype A LnLerprlses CharacLerlsed wlLh adopLlng hlghend Lechnologles lnnovaLlve
processes aggresslve ln approach hlgh rlskLakers
O @ype 8 LnLerprlses CharacLerlsed as moderaLe rlsk Lakers lnLeresLed Lo sLay ln
compeLlLlon buL noL aL Lhe cosL of unproven Lechnologles
O @ype C LnLerprlses CharacLerlsed as cauLlous adopLers of new Lechnologles noL
lnLeresLed for rlsks locus on cuLLlng operaLlng cosLs by uslng l1 as defenslve weapon
when Lhe Lechnology ls cheap and wldely avallable
Seelng Lhe way 1houghLworks has grown followlng approach ls suggesLed
@fret 6roup 1argeL should be malnly on 1ype A companles and some concenLraLlon on 1ype 8
Loo 8eason belng 1ype 8 segmenL ls large and cannoL be lgnored whlle 1ype A enLerprlses
would brlng hlgh revenues and operaLlng marglns lsLrlbuLlon whlch sLood aL 30 60 for
1ype A 1ype 8 respecLlvely was expecLed Lo lncrease ln fuLure
rfd bu/d l1 spendlng of varlous companles was lncreaslng and many companles were
movlng from belng 1ype C Lo 1ype 8 and some movemenL also happened ln 1ype 8 Lo 1ype A
So lL was Llme for 1houghLworks Lo lncrease lLs awareness among lLs 1argeL group MarkeLlng
budgeL of 1houghLworks has also been lncreased so lL could spend heavlly on brand bulldlng
now
O 8elng presenL ln 1rade falrs Conferences lnLernaLlonal meeLs where Lhey Lhlnk Lhelr
prospecLlve cllenL would be presenL
O 9ubllshlng arLlcles [ournals based on Lhelr paLenLed Lechnologles CLher relevanL 81L
acLlvlLles can also underLaken
e/ftohp bu/d 8ulk of Lhe revenue ls gaLhered from Lhe repeaL cusLomers hence
relaLlonshlp bulldlng wlLh Lhe exlsLlng seL of blg cllenLs makes sense lL Lakes less efforLs ln cllenL
reLenLlon Lhan cllenL acqulslLlon












C0HHutlSPACF
ComANY Ovcnvicw
Communlspace provldes brandfocused onllne communlLles LhaL enabled communlLy members
Lo engage wlLh cllenLs company
lL ls klnd of a markeL research buL lL provldes Lo llsLen and gaLher lnslghLs of cusLomers 1hey are
creaLlng onllne communlLles conslsLlng of 300400 people accordlng Lo needs of cllenLs
1hen Communlspace Leam faclllLaLes dlscusslons makes surveys and creaLes forums whlch
people can freely share Lhelr ldeas and lnslghLs
AfLer collecLlng daLa Leam prepares dlfferenL klnds of reporLs Lo Lhe cllenL and consulLs on
lmplemenLlng recommendaLlons from communlLy lnslghLs
lL works on a subscrlpLlon based model ln whlch cllenLs commlL Lo a 12 monLh conLracL

usiNcss MoocL



$cnviccs 9o CLicN9s



Comc9i9ioN
D|rect Comet|t|on
(a)Vision Critical
vlslon CrlLlcal was Lhe second largesL markeL researchonllne communlLy provlder
lLs core sLrengLh was lLs focus on Lhe global markeL and Lhe flexlblllLy oflLs producL
1he company could offer boLh quallLaLlve and quanLlLaLlve onllne communlLles ranglng from 300
Lo 3000 members dependlng on lLs cllenLs' respecLlve needs
(b) Passenger
9assenger offered lLs cllenLs boLh consumer lnslghL and advocacycommunlLles
9assenger's plaLform could supporL communlLles of up Lo 30000 members whlch could be and
someLlmes were spllL up lnLo sub communlLles LhaL could be managed separaLely
|nd|rect Comet|t|on
CommunlLy plaLforms LhaL provlded a dolLyourself" soluLlon whlch companles could lnsLall
and manage Lhemselves
9reexlsLlng consumer panels from large markeL research flrms LhaL were now belng leveraged
Lo provlde communlLy lnslghLs
LxlsLlng onllne soclal neLworks such as lacebook 1wlLLer or MySpace
Some brands had begun uslng Lhelr fan pages for lnslghLs whlch conLrlbuLed Lo an already
crowded and lncreaslngly confuslng markeLplace

Comc9i9ivc AovAN9Acc



DccisioN DiLcmmA
1he cllenL Slmmons wanLs Lo promoLe lLs new organlc producL for welghL consclous consumers
vla Communlspace uslng wordofmouLh
Slmmons was a hlghly recognlzed C9C company holdlng 20 brands LhaL were found ln over 93
of uS households
lane Pessan Lhe CLC of Communlspace Lhlnks LhaL Slmmons could be a ma[or cllenL slnce lL ls
one of Lhe blggesL C9C companles ln uS buL also lL wlll alLer Lhelr mlsslon
And whlle Communlspace was sLlll leadlng lLs markeL low barrlers Lo enLry allowed compeLlLors
Lo offer onllne communlLles LhaL could easlly provlde boLh markeL research and WCM
1here was no consensus amongsL Communlspace's execuLlves on how Lo respond Lo Lhese
requesLs
Conslderlng Lhls new producL/servlce a company should analyze wheLher
1here ls a clear demand for WCM
WheLher Lhls WCM ls someLhlng currenL cllenLs demand (provldlng a crossselllng opporLunlLy)
WheLher Communlspace has experLlse ln Lhls area
WhaL klnd of lnlLlal lnvesLmenL would be requlred and whaLs Lhe overall rlsk of fallure?

DccisioN O9ioNs
W 9rovlde Slmmons Communlspaces Core Servlces
W AccepL Slmmons Cffer
W 8e[ecL Slmmons Cffer
$COT ANALYsis
$trenqth:
MarkeL Leaders ln Consumer lnslghL Mlnlng Lhrough quallLaLlve analysls of user generaLed
conLenL on onllne communlLles
Plghly speclallzed and dlfferenLlaLed offerlngs as compared Lo compeLlLors
Cho||enqe:
Should Communlspace make sLraLeglc changes ln Lhelr successful buslness model ln order Lo
acqulre more buslness or noL?
ortun|t|e:
Can lncrease servlce offerlngs from research Lo Soclal Medla MarkeLlng and WCM
Puge poLenLlal as lL has very few dlrecL compeLlLors ln Lhe chosen markeL
%hreot:
Low enLry barrlers allows mushroomlng of compeLlLors wlLh dynamlc servlce offerlngs
lncreaslng servlce offerlngs may dlluLe Lhe currenLly successful uS9
DccisioN Cni9cniA
1he flrsL ls Lo supply someLhlng LhaL ls ln shorL supply 1hls requlres llLLle markeLlng LalenL as
Lhe need ls falrly obvlous 1he Lhlrd ofLen leads Lo a LoLally new producL or servlce
1he second ls Lo supply an exlsLlng producL or servlce ln a new or superlor way 1here are
several ways Lo uncover posslble producL or servlce lmprovemenLs problem deLecLlon meLhod
ldeal meLhod and consumpLlon chaln meLhod
9urposedrlven communlLles raLher Lhan proflledrlven buL some of Lhe members aLLend Lo
communlLy ln order Lo lnLeracL wlLh new people
1hey menLloned LhaL members are Lhere Lo help Lo sponsor Lhe brand and Lhls dlfferenLlaLes
Communlspace from lacebook buL Lhe members of lacebook also conLrlbuLes Lo companles by
sharlng Lhelr commenLs and feedbacks ln companles fan slLes
1he offer LhaL came from Slmmon Company ls llke wanLlng afLer servlce before geLLlng Lhe
producL buL ln Lhls case lL ls noL lmposslble Lo provlde LhaL servlce and more opporLunlLles may
or may noL follow

Accc9 $immoNs Orrcn ?
!748 438
CpporLunlLy Lo work wlLh oLher Slmmons brands

Co beyond Lhelr core buslness slnce Lhelr
mlsslon ls sLaLed dlfferenLly

9rovldlng a dlfferenL servlce hence lncrease ln
poLenLlal cllenLs

9oLenLlal loss of credlblllLy of communlLy
members when Lhey undersLand LhaL Lhe
communlLy ls only for adverLlsemenL

9oslLlve reference Lo oLher companles slnce
Slmmons ls one of Lhe blggesL C9C companles ln
Lhe world

ShorLllved naLure of WCM campalgns hence
Lhe campalgnfueled buslness can undermlne
Lhe longLlme subscrlpLlon model

8ulld long Lerm relaLlonshlp wlLh Slmmons
Company

Cnce communlLy members leave cllenLs would
leave Loo

8evenue CrowLh

lnLense CompeLlLlon



Pnovioc $immoNs Conc $cnviccs ?
!748 438
no devlaLlon from Lhelr core mlsslon

Plgh rlsk of noL meeLlng Lhe requlremenLs of Lhe
pro[ecL

Wlll noL lose Slmmons Company as a cllenL and
have Lo opporLunlLy Lo work wlLh Lhem ln oLher
pro[ecLs

Slnce Lhey wanL Lo promoLe Lhelr producL raLher
Lhan creaLlng lL wlLh consumers Lhere ls a rlsk for
producL noL Lo be approved by consumers 1hus
Lhls can creaLe an opposlLe scenarlo abouL
promoLlon

8evenue CrowLh

Loslng communlLy members when Lhey
undersLand Lhelr ldeas and lnslghLs are noL
valuable for Slmmons slnce Lhe servlce wlll only be
provlded for creaLlng awareness for Lhe producL

no loss of communlLy members

Loslng Slmmon Companys LrusL so Lhey would noL
prefer Lo work wlLh Communlspace agaln

Slmmons would be a greaL reference

HcJcc9 $immoNs Orrcn ?
!748 438
no loss of communlLy members LrusL

Loslng a blg reference

ConLlnue wlLh Lhelr core servlce and noL rlsk
enLerlng a dlfferenL area

Mlsslng Lhe opporLunlLy Lo geL furLher pro[ecLs
from Lhelr oLher brands

Wlll be far from aggresslve compeLlLlve
envlronmenL ln WCM area

Mlsslng poLenLlal cusLomers for WCM campalgns

9oLenLlal loss of revenue from poLenLlal
cusLomers