This assignment requires students to analyze the market position of a selected company's business unit by assessing its value proposition, competitive advantage, and product portfolio. Students must conduct an interview with a manager to understand the business unit's market position and product offerings. Then, students will analyze the target customer, customer needs, product differentiation, main competitors, and source of competitive advantage. Finally, students will create a matrix comparing how well the product and competitors satisfy customer needs.

1. Assignment 3: Market Position Analysis
Throughout this course, you will conduct a strategy audit for a
selected company. Begin this assignment by selecting an
organization for your course project activities.
In this module, you will assess the product portfolio of your
selected business unit by analyzing the value proposition,
market position, and competitive advantage of its products and
services.
Part I: Interview
To gain an understanding of your selected business unit’s
market position, value proposition, and competitive advantage,
conduct at least
one
interview with a mid-level or senior manager.
Use the interview to solicit the manager’s perception of his or
her business unit’s product portfolio. Be sure to discuss the
points of analysis listed below in Part II of this assignment.
Part II: Analysis
Based on the information gathered from the interview, analyze
the product portfolio of your selected business unit. In your
analysis, identify the business unit of your company and the
product(s) and service(s) on which you will focus.
Make sure to include the following points in your analysis:
Describe the target customer for the product/service in terms of
relevant characteristics that impact the marketing strategy,
including location (how it should be reached) and buying habits.
Identify each customer segment’s specific wants and needs.
Explain why they buy your company’s product or service, or a
competing product or service.
Justify how well your product/service satisfies customer wants
and needs. Identify any wants and needs that are not met by
your product/service.
Analyze the position of your product/service in relation to the
competition. Identify the main competitors. Explain how your

2. product differs in terms of features, function, quality, price,
availability, brand image, and the like. Explain why this
differentiation is important to your customers.
Describe the source of competitive advantage for your product.
Evaluate how sustainable is this source of advantage.
Assess the long-term sustainability of the source of
differentiation and competitive advantage.
Include appropriate information from the interview in support
of your answer.
Part III: Matrix
In comparing your product/service to that of the competition,
construct a simple matrix in the following way:
List the key customer wants or needs on the left-hand vertical
axis.
List the competing products on the top horizontal axis, starting
with your product/service on the left.
For each customer want or need, indicate how well each
competing product satisfies the need using a scale of 0–2.
0 = need not met
1 = need partially met
2 = need fully met
This is a simple but effective visual mechanism for comparing
the relative position of multiple offerings from competing
sources.
Write a 3-page paper in Word format and attach the matrix as an
appendix. Apply APA standards to citation of sources. Use the
following file naming convention:
LastnameFirstInitial_M1_A3.doc. For example, if your name is
John Smith, your document will be named SmithJ_M1_A3.doc.
By
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
, deliver your assignment to the
M1: Assignment 3 Dropbox
.
Assignment 3 Grading Criteria

3. Assignment Component
Proficient
Maximum Points
Describe the target customer for the product/service in terms of
relevant characteristics that impact the marketing strategy,
including location (how reached), buying habits.
Target customer is clearly and accurately identified. Description
includes all relevant characteristics that impact the marketing
strategy, including (but not limited to) location and buying
habits.
12
Identify each customer segment’s specific wants and needs.
Explain why they buy your company’s product or service, or a
competing product or service.
Each customer segment’s wants and needs are identified,
specific, and appropriate.
Explanation as to why customer buys product/service is clear,
complete, and provides specific detail to support ideas.
12
Justify how well your product/service satisfy customer wants
and needs. Identify any wants and needs that not met by your
product / service.
Justification of how well product/service satisfies customer
wants and needs is clear, complete, and provides sound
examples that support stance.
Any wants and needs not met by the product/service are
identified and evaluated.
20
Analyze your product’s position in relation to the competition.
Identify the main competitors. Explain how your product differs
in terms features, function, quality, price, availability, brand
image, etc. Explain why this differentiation is important to your
customers.
Analysis of product in relation to competition is clear,
complete, and detailed. Where the product resides in the market
as a whole is clear and accurate. Main competitors are

4. specified.
Explanation of how product differs from competition is clear
and complete. It includes discussion of features, function,
quality, price, availability, brand image, and the like.
Explanation of why differentiation is important to customers is
clear and supports the justification as to customers’ wants and
needs.
20
Describe the source of competitive advantage for your product.
Evaluate how sustainable is this source of advantage.
Source of competitive advantage for product is clearly and
completely described with details to highlight specific ideas.
Evaluation of sustainability of source of advantage is clear and
grounded in appropriate examples.
12
Include information from appropriate interviews.
Information from interviews is woven into the assignment and
used as support throughout.
8
Write using ethical scholarship and proper grammar and
mechanics.
Writing is clear, concise, and in an organized manner;
demonstrates ethical scholarship in accurate representation and
attribution of sources; and displays accurate spelling, grammar,
and punctuation.
8
Academic Writing
Write in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrate
ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of
sources (i.e. APA); and display accurate spelling, grammar, and
punctuation.
Wrote in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrated
ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of
sources; and displayed accurate spelling, grammar, and
punctuation.
8