Does the analysis present key information clearly and effectively?

Are the recommendations supported by information from the case and/or internal research?

What components do you feel are most compelling?

What components do you feel could be more fully supported?

Overall, were you convinced the recommendations being made were sound?

CASE ANALYSIS - AMAZON

Vision of Amazon

"To be earth's most customer-centric company; to build a place where people can come to find and discover anything they might want to buy online." (US About Amazon.).

Mission of Amazon

"Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Amazon strives to be Earth's most customer-centric company, Earth's best employer, and Earth's safest place to work. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Career Choice, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, Alexa, Just Walk Out technology, Amazon Studios, and The Climate Pledge are some of the things pioneered by Amazon." (US About Amazon.).

Objectives of Amazon

1. Know the customers-Knowing the customer and being familiar with their behaviour is important for the long-term goals of the organization (Gudat, S., 2022). It leads to healthier bottom lines and spurs a greater deal of seamless business.
2. Maximize data-Since Amazon is an online company, a great deal of data can be collected from the online interactions with stakeholders (Gudat, S., 2022). Data regarding customers, especially big data, can play a large role in determining company success.
3. Focus on customer service-The way in which customers are treated, especially with employees being trained in customer empathy, will go a long way (Gudat, S., 2022). This allows Amazon to retain the customers they attract into its ecosystem.
4. Be innovative-When Amazon invests into its customers, it makes sure that it does so in an innovative manner (Gudat, S., 2022). Investments into new technology and novel features on its website allow it to remain innovative.

Strategies of Amazon

Amazon's business strategy is to be the world's largest retailer. This is a distinction it hopes to steal from Walmart this year (Gudat, S., 2022). The company used to be called the world's largest online retailer but the title of world's largest retailer seems to suffice these days. It is apparent that Amazon's retail strategy has led to a 41% year-after-year growth rate and it has outcompeted several competitors in this regard (Gudat, S., 2022). It climbed to $316 billion in 2020 while Walmart online grew by 10% as compared to the aforementioned 41%. Amazon's strategy would be to compete with Walmart and other competitors using this metric and outpace them in terms of commerce. Amazon's strategies revolve around making investments to satisfy customer needs. Jeff Bezos wrote in a letter to his company a few years ago that the goal of Amazon should be to provide value for everyone the company interacts with (Gudat, S., 2022). The functional strategy is Amazon is more than meeting people's needs and creating a frictionless shopping experience online. It involves pulling people into the Amazon ecosystem and retaining them there. This aforementioned functional strategy involves Amazon Prime, Amazon Apparel, Amazon Go brick-and-mortar stores and grocery shopping options (Gudat, S., 2022).

SWOT Analysis

Strengths (Amazon SWOT 2022: SWOT analysis of Amazon.)	Weaknesses (Amazon SWOT 2022: SWOT analysis of Amazon.)
Holding the position as the world's largest online retailer. Leverages information technology (IT) and eCommerce. It has a great deal of recognition in the markets globally. It has a superior logistics and distribution system.	In the past few years Amazon has spread itself too thin through diversification strategies. It offers free shipping to customers and this is an added cost. Being an online retailer may get in the way of expansion plans. Amazon has a limited brick-and mortar presence.
Opportunities (SWOT Analysis of Amazon.)	Threats (SWOT Analysis of Amazon.)
Rolling out its online paying system will make shopping easier. Products can be rolled out under its own brand. Amazon can expand its operations more globally. Amazon can launch a personalized shopper service.	Since Amazon is an online retailer, there is identity theft and hacking. Its aggressive pricing strategies have led to numerous lawsuits. More agile and nimble online retailers can outcompete Amazon. There are problems with regards to government regulations in a few countries of operations.

Internal Factor Evaluation (IFE) Matrix (David, F. R., & David, M. E., 2020)

Key Internal Factors	Weight	Rating	Weighted Score
Strengths
Amazon has 41% year-after-year growth in terms of Commerce.	1.0	4	4
Amazon had a revenue of $316 billion in 2020.	0.8	4	3.2
Amazon has a great deal of recognition globally in various markets.	0.7	3	2.1
Weaknesses
Amazon primarily does business through its business online.	0.8	2	1.6
Amazon only has 42 brick-and-mortar Amazon GO stores worldwide.	0.9	1	0.9
Amazon offers free shipping its customers and this affects its revenue model.	0.9	1	0.9

External Factor Evaluation (EFE) Matrix (David, F. R., & David, M. E., 2020)

Key Internal Factors	Weight	Rating	Weighted Score
Opportunities
Amazon Pay was launched around the world.	0.7	4	2.8
Amazon can roll out thousands of products under its own brand.	0.5	2	1.0
Amazon can expand its operations globally by 10% by 2023	0.3	1	0.3
Threats
The data of thousands of Amazon customers is stolen through hacking every year.	0.8	4	3.2
Amazon's aggressive pricing strategies have led to dozens of lawsuits.	0.6	2	1.2
Multiple global governments have pointed out that Amazon is not following their regulations.	1.0	4.0	4.0

SPACE MATRIX RECOMMENDATION(David, F. R., & David, M. E., 2020)

1. Expand Amazon's product selection: In order to sustain its competitive advantage, Amazon should expand its product selection.

2. Increase Amazon's global footprint: In order to capture a larger portion of the world's e-commerce market, Amazon should increase its global presence.

3. Increase Amazon's emphasis on customer service: In order to set itself apart from its rivals, Amazon needs intensify its emphasis on customer service.

4. Invest in latest technologies: In order to keep up with its rivals, Amazon should make investments in new technologies.

IE Matrix RECOMMENDATION (David, F. R., & David, M. E., 2020)

1. Expand Amazon's business globally: As the company continues to expand, it is crucial for it to do so abroad.

2. Increase Amazon's emphasis on providing top-notch customer service. Amazon has long been known for its superior customer service.

3. Enhance Amazon's attention to R&D: As a firm that is always innovating, it is crucial for Amazon to increase its attention to R&D.

4. Expand Amazon's marketing initiatives: As the company continues to expand, it is critical that it expand its marketing initiatives in order to attract new consumers.

SPACE MATRIX RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Increase the variety of products Amazon offers: To maintain its competitive advantage, Amazon needs to increase the variety of products it offers (David, F. R., & David, M. E., 2020). Amazon can reach a wider audience and expand its market share by offering a wider variety of goods. Amazon has grown its business by offering a wide variety of products to its customers. Amazon has increased its market share and attracted a wider client base by expanding the products it offers. Amazon can maintain its competitive advantage by continuing to diversify the products it offers.

2. Increase Amazon's global footprint: To capture a larger share of the world's e-commerce market, Amazon needs to increase its global presence. Amazon can reach new client demographics and build its business by entering new markets. Amazon already has a significant footprint in the online retail space in the US (Ratnasingham, P., 2006). However, the worldwide e-commerce market is significantly larger. Amazon's global footprint can expand to reach new markets and expand its customer base.

3. Increase Amazon's Emphasis on Customer Service: To stand out from its competitors, Amazon needs to emphasize customer service. If Amazon's customer support is on point, it can retain existing customers and attract new ones (David, F. R., & David, M. E., 2020). A critical differentiator is the quality of Amazon's customer service. If Amazon puts more emphasis on customer service, Amazon can retain current customers and attract new ones. By offering excellent customer support, Amazon can stand out from its competitors.

4. Invest in new technologies: To stay ahead of competitors, Amazon needs to invest in new technologies. By investing in new technologies, Amazon is able to offer cutting-edge goods and services that attract customers ((David, F. R., & David, M. E., 2020)). Technology is constantly evolving and changing. Amazon must constantly invest in new technologies to stay ahead of its competitors. By investing in new technologies, Amazon is able to offer cutting-edge goods and services that attract customers.

IE MATRIX RECOMMENDATION

1. Expand Amazon's Business Globally: As the company grows, it is critical to expand its reach internationally. This will help in future expansion and growth of the business. International commercial expansion will enable Amazon to enter new markets and gain access to new customers (David, F. R., & David, M. E., 2020). Also, going global will help diversify Amazon's customers and reduce its reliance on a single market.

2. Increase Amazon's emphasis on providing exceptional customer service; This has been known for a long time. However, in order for the business to maintain its high standards as it expands, it is critical that it focus on customer service(Ratnasingham, P., 2006). It is critical for Amazon to maintain high customer service standards as the company expands. This can be achieved by ensuring that customer service is the top priority of the business and investing in employee customer service training.

3. Greater Emphasis on Research and Development at Amazon: As an ever-evolving organization, it is critical for Amazon to place greater emphasis on research and development. It will support the business's continuous development of new and cutting-edge goods and services. Amazon is able to meet customers' needs by investing in research and development and developing new goods and services. Also, spending money on research and development will help Amazon stay one step ahead of its competitors (John, B., 2021).

4. Expand Amazon's Marketing Initiatives: As the company continues to expand, it is critical to expand its marketing initiatives to attract new customers. As Amazon expands its customer base, selling its goods and services into new markets is crucial. To achieve this online marketing, traditional marketing or a mixture of both methods can be used. Additionally, Amazon can use its client base to promote its goods and services to other markets (John, B., 2021).

Rationalization

As Amazon continues its own path to the future of shopping, many stores called Amazon Go have been opened and it actually puts forward a walkout shopping method, where you can purchase as well as walk out simply without checking out or pay in the line(John, B., 2021). It works with a virtual cart where the products added will get automatically updated about the price and the receipt will be sent and money will be charged from the account. It's also important to note that Amazon has been working on personalized shopping programs in every jurisdictions they operates on. Through the use of the recommendation algorithms that power its "Frequently Bought Together" feature in particular, Amazon has made specific steps to maximize the experiences of its consumers (John, B., 2021).

References

Amazon SWOT 2022: SWOT analysis of Amazon. Business Strategy Hub. (2022, March 28). Retrieved November 23, 2022, from https://bstrategyhub.com/swot-analysis-of-amazon-amazon-swot/

David, F. R., & David, M. E. (2020).Strategic management: A competitive advantage approach, concepts and cases(17th ed.). Pearson Education Inc.

Dinodia, V. (n.d.).Business Policy Strategic Analysis & Management of AMAZON.COM.https://www.slideshare.net/vipuldinodia/business-policy-strategic-analysis-management-of-amazoncom

Gudat, S. (2022, August 10). Amazon Business Strategy: 2022 goals, Objectives & Retail Marketing Takeaways. CCG. Retrieved November 23, 2022, from https://www.customer.com/blog/retail-marketing/amazon-business-strategy/

John, B. (2021, May 5).Amazon's Leading Personalized Shopping Experience - Fit Analytics. Fit Analytics Blog.https://blog.fitanalytics.com/amazon-personalized-shopping-experience/

Ratnasingham, P. (2006). A SWOT Analysis for B2C E-Commerce: the Case of Amazon. com. International Journal of Cases on Electronic Commerce (IJCEC), 2(1), 1-22.

SWOT Analysis of Amazon. SWOT analysis of Amazon. (n.d.). Retrieved November 23, 2022, from https://www.managementstudyguide.com/swot-analysis-of-amazon.htm

US About Amazon. (2020, September 18). Who we are: Amazon. US About Amazon. Retrieved November 23, 2022, from https://www.aboutamazon.com/about-us