Introduction
For any company, it is essential to establish its target markets and implement effective practices to develop and maintain a competitive advantage. According to Schroeder and Goldstein (2020), businesses need to ensure that their products or services offer value to customers. This objective cannot be achieved only by ensuring effective operating performance. Instead, it is critical to research target markets and develop a comprehensive strategy that can lead a firm to success. This essay aims to describe and discuss the target markets of Amazon and Uber, as well as explain how they established a competitive advantage in their marketplace.
Discussion
Amazon primarily focuses on online shopping communities, and all company processes are tailored to enhance customer experience. Its target markets include a wide range of customers from all over the world, including young people, students, employees in various industries, and families (Pereira et al., 2022). The company considers low- and middle-income audiences by providing various products for sale. In this regard, Amazon helps the user to find information and products that enhance their quality of life or provide a new experience. This unique customer value is available when buying not only books but also shoes, children’s goods, furniture, and electronics (Pereira et al., 2022). In the process of diversifying, Amazon acquired other online stores that specialized in certain product categories.
While brick-and-mortar competitors saw the Internet as a tool that could help them sell what they were already selling, Amazon created information channels to transfer experience. This type of competitive advantage is characterized by several features. Namely, the more consumers Amazon has, the more informative its reviews and ratings become (Pereira et al., 2022). In turn, this tendency contributes to customer loyalty and increases revenue.
Another company, Uber, focuses on such target markets as young adults as well as businesses that require driving services from one point to another. As a rule, such audiences do not own a car and live in urban areas (Schroeder & Goldstein, 2020). In other words, taxi customers are people aged between 20 and 45 who lead a dynamic lifestyle, have an above-average or average income, love to travel, and value independence and comfort.
In this regard, Uber expanded the market with a new and effective solution to the problem of travel in places where the classic taxi did provide a satisfying solution for customers as it was expensive and slow. The company’s competitive advantage is a result of its effective strategy aiming to satisfy the market need for safe and affordable taxi rides (Pereira et al., 2022). Uber is a global service available in almost every big city in Europe and the United States that functions in the same way everywhere. Furthermore, Uber offers a rating system that allows clients to leave feedback and improve the level of the company’s service. Finally, the company is characterized by convenient payment methods, which include both cash and credit cards. A combination of these factors provides the company with a competitive advantage and customer loyalty.
Conclusion
To conclude, both Amazon and Uber are among the leading companies in the respective marketplace due to their ability to evaluate the target audience and implement a comprehensive strategy to meet customers’ needs. These companies show that it is possible to start in a niche and develop into a large network of buyers and sellers. Therefore, progressive and dynamic businesses are characterized by a competitive advantage that allows them to meet the target market’s needs effectively.
References
Pereira, C. S., Veloso, B., Durão, N., & Moreira, F. (2022). The influence of technological innovations on international business strategy before and during COVID-19 pandemic. Procedia computer science, 196, 44-51.
Schroeder, R. G., & Goldstein, S. M. (2020). Operations management in the supply chain: Decisions and Cases (8th ed.). McGraw-Hill.