Understanding Market Opportunities

1. 1-1
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
©2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies,
All Rights Reserved
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Understanding
Market
Opportunities
4

2. Discussion Question
1.What’s a market?

3. Discussion Question
2. What’s an industry?

4. Discussion Questions
3. Is the market vs. industry
distinction important?
Why or why not?

6. Discussion Questions
4. Do macroenvironmental trends
matter?
What are their implications?

7. Macro Trend Analysis:
Demographic environment
Sociocultural environment
Economic environment
Regulatory environment
Technological environment
Natural environment

9. Discussion Question
 Let’s identify a trend or two of each
type and consider what businesses
might be affected.

15. Discussion Question
5.What are the key questions a
macro trends analysis should
answer?

16. Discussion Questions
6. Does industry attractiveness
matter? Why or why not?

17. A Tool for Assessing Industry
Attractiveness: Porter’s Five Forces
[Exhibit 4.7]
Rivalry among
existing industry
firms
Threat of substitute
products
Bargaining
power
of buyers
Bargaining
power
of suppliers
Source: Adapted from Michael E. Porter, “Industry Structure and Competitive Strategy: Keys to Profitability,” Financial Analysts Journal, July-August 1980, p. 33.
Threat of new
entrants

19. Discussion Question
7. If you are preparing a marketing
plan, where’s the best place to look
for information about macro trends?

21. Discussion Question
8. What’s the difference between the
macro and the micro level of
analysis?

23. Understanding Markets at the
Micro Level
• Involves looking individually at
customers to understand the
attractiveness of the target segment

24. Understanding Industries at the
Micro Level
• Involves looking at the company
and whether it has a sustainable
competitive advantage

25. The Team Domains
• Opportunities are only as good
as the people who will pursue them