BMW
Strengths
BMW is a well-known company with a high status branding that has a very high recognition factor. The company has been strengths in both research and development and design as well as in marketing. For example when it comes to marketing it was a BMW advertisement that was the first e-advertisement that made it to Campaigns 'Pick of the Week' (Doman). However, in a long-term purchase such
as these, there is a need for more substance than just marketing, otherwise the life of
the company would be relatively short due to the nature of the purchase. It is in these
longer-term systems and strategies that we can see many of the strengths of BMW, we
can consider these by starting with the market position of the company.
BMW as well as Mercedes' and a few other companies have managed too
successfully attain a market position where they have a focus on a narrow range of
exclusive cars. These can be seen as aimed at the market place that is not also sensitive
to price, and as such we must argue that the market positioning may be seen as a
strength as there will not be such a reaction if the economic conditions change. The
customers that are in the target group are happy to pay a premium price for what
they perceive as a premium product (Thompson).
This may not be so true of the subsidiary companies that have had different
problems, such as the ill-fated Rover group. However, the core product has remained
strong (Thompson). This may be seen as diversification, and some of the
diversification may also be seen as a strength, for example the purchase of Rolls Royce
where there is a similar ...