Information Technology Management Phase 1 DB2 - Essay Example

the article states, the employees spend a lot of time talking to their families, friends, and their specific target market noting market trends and emerging needs. Through these exposures, they are able to design products which are suitable to the lifestyle of their market. It should also be noted that Pottery Barn’s employees are aligned with the company’s goals. They have absorbed a culture of developing nice looking, high quality, and reasonably priced product. When planning to penetrate their market, these strategies can also be pursued by Pottery Barns.

Their employees should also be strategically aligned with the customer value that the company wants to deliver as well as market-driven. The SWU identifies their clients as “post-college singles, newlyweds, and new families.” From these descriptions there is a common need which SWU wants to fulfill—to be able to design, manufacture, and sell products which bring convenience but are priced significantly lower in order to maximize the purchasing power of the market. The key strategy in SWU is cost leadership that is, offering high quality products at a lower cost.

On the other hand, Pottery Barns customer base has branched out from newlyweds, to kids, and even to teens. The company is now looking at the needs of almost the entire market for furniture because of the huge profit and business opportunity. Aside from emphasizing a low-cost strategy, however, Pottery Barn has the strong commitment of providing really high quality products which makes living in this fast paced world more convenient and comfortable. The company draws its strength in the unique and customer-driven designs as well as reasonable pricing scheme for its various products.

Thus, in a sense Pottery Barn is a direct competitor of SWU when it comes to serving post-college singles, newlyweds, and starting families. However, Pottery Barns market is relatively larger than that of SWU. From the conception of a product to its sales in