marketing strategy of Microsoft
- 1. Made By: Rahat Gupta Marketing strategy of Microsoft
- 2. Introduction: Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational software corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services related to computing. The company was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen on April 4, 1975. Microsoft Corporation, incorporated on September 22, 1993, their mission is to enable people and businesses throughout the world to realize their full potential by creating technology that transforms the way people work, play, and communicate.
- 3. Product & Services 1.) Windows & Windows Live Division: This division develops and markets PC operating systems, related software and online services, and PC hardware products. This collection of software, hardware, and services is designed to empower individuals, companies, and organizations and simplify everyday tasks 2.) Server and Tools: This division develops and markets server software, software developer tools, services, and solutions that are designed to make information technology professionals and developers and their systems more productive and efficient 3.) Online Services Division: This division develops and markets information and content designed to help people simplify tasks and make more informed decisions online, and help advertisers connect with audiences. OSD offerings include Bing, MSN, adCenter, and advertiser tools.
- 4. Product & Services (Contd.) 4.) Entertainment and Devices Division: This division develops and markets products and services designed to entertain and connect people. The Xbox 360 entertainment platform, including Kinect, is designed to provide a unique variety of entertainment choices through the use of our devices, content, and online services. Skype and Windows phone are also developed under this segment. 5.) Microsoft Business Division: This division offerings consist of the Microsoft Office system (comprising mainly Office, Office 365, SharePoint, Exchange, and Lync) and Microsoft Dynamics business solutions, which may be delivered either on premise or as a cloud-based service. 4
- 6. PESTLE • political intervention in new deals • Anti trust law Political • Fluctuation and Unpredictable behaviour of foreign currency • Tax and Import/Export barriers • Microsoft affecting Investors in US after 4th Quarter results (30th June 2013) Economic • Accessibility of technology to different capable people (Disabled people, poor people) • Empowering Youth • Donating software to nonprofits worldwide • Realizing potential with new skills in students Social 6
- 7. PESTLE (Contd.) • Fostering Innovation • Microsoft put 13 - 14% of their revenue in Research & Development • Infrastructure Technological • Intellectual Property Rights • Employee working hours, and Employement enrichment • Laws on business regulation (Against Monopoly and forced competitor acquisitions) Legal • Saving Energy & Green IT • Carbon Neutral • Cloud Computing • Requesting all Customer to recycle their product after using Environmental 7
- 8. SWOT Strenghts 1. Brand loyalty 2. Brand reputation 3. Easy to use software 4. Strong distribution channels 5. Acquisition of Skype Weakness 1.) Poor acquisitions and investments 2.)Criticism over security flaws 3.) Mature PC markets 4.) Slow to innovate Oportunities 1.) Cloud based services 2.) Mobile advertising 3.) Mobile device industry 4.) Growth through acquisitions Threats 1.) Intense competition in software products 2.) Changing consumer needs and habits 3.) Open source projects 4.) Potential lawsuits 8
- 10. Recommendations 1. Divestiture At a minimum, Microsoft's Windows operating system monopoly should be split off into a separate company from the application and Internet divisions. This would end the inherent opportunities for abuse of one company competing in application markets while controlling the "field" of competition as well. It may also prove necessary to separate Microsoft's application and Internet divisions. 2. The mobile market The mobile space could be one of the biggest issues facing Microsoft. The company's Windows Mobile platform is still toiling away in a market that's being dominated by innovative, touch-screen platforms, like Apple's iOS and Google's Android operating system. Microsoft plans to release Windows Phone 7 later this year to compete with those providers, but it's debatable just how viable the company's platform will be. By being late to the new mobile market, and forgetting what consumers really wanted, Microsoft has some serious explaining to do when it finally delivers Windows Phone 7.10 www.eweek.com
- 11. Recommendations 3. Tablets tablets at his company's Worldwide Partners Conference, it's quickly becoming clear that Microsoft doesn't have a tablet strategy in place that can even come close to rivalling Apple's iPad. Part of the fault for that can be attributed to HP, which originally planned to offer a Windows-based HP Slate but recently announced that its tablet will run WebOS instead. Some might believe that HP's decision to go with WebOS has more to do with its recent acquisition of Palm. But it might also tell the market that Windows isn't as ready for tablets as Microsoft wants everyone to believe. After all, HP would have gone with the best platform it could. It may be saying that the best platform isn't Windows. 4. Security Security continues to be one space where Microsoft misses the mark both in the consumer market and the enterprise. With each Patch Tuesday, the company is forced to deliver several updates to protect Windows users from potential harm. It has even been forced to patch Office, Internet Explorer and other software products. That's not a good thing. And it hurts its chances of fully appealing to consumers and enterprise customers that are deeply concerned with losing important data. Security means the difference between success and failure in today's marketplace. And so far, Microsoft isn't doing well enough.
- 12. Recommendations 5. Innovation Innovation has always been a problem for Microsoft. Although Windows was an extremely innovative product when it first launched, Microsoft has failed to deliver anything that even comes close to matching the innovation its competitors have developed since. As much as the company wants to be considered a major player in the tech space, it will not achieve that if it continues to deliver iterative updates to products that customers don't want. Innovation reigns supreme in today's tech market. And it's on Microsoft to start innovating to meet those demands.