The University of Lahore

Lahore Business School

Assignment: 2
Strategic Management
Master of Business Administration

Submitted to: Miss Fizza

Submitted by: Maryam Khushbakhat.

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Total marks =10 Section: W

Date: 9th November, 2019 Program: MBA (2 years)

1. Conduct SWOT analysis of the case. Based on your understanding of the company’s
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, answer the following questions:
2. What should be Etsy’s corporate strategy for the future? Explain the significance of your
suggested strategy to the organization.
3. Imagine yourself as a marketing manager of this company, and recommend a business
strategy for the company.

1. Conduct SWOT analysis of the case. Based on your understanding of the company’s
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, answer the following questions.

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SWOT analysis stands for – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Strengths and
Weaknesses are result of Etsy Etsy's internal factors, while opportunities and threats arise from
developments in external environment in which Etsy Etsy's operates. SWOT analysis will help us
in not only getting a better insight into Etsy Etsy's present competitive advantage but also help
us in how things have to evolve to maintain and consolidate the competitive advantage.
Strengths
- Strong Balance Sheet – The financial statement of Etsy Etsy's looks strong and will help the
company going forward.
- Experienced and successful leadership team – Etsy Etsy's management team has been a
success over last decade by successfully predicting trends in the industry.

Weakness
- Low profitability which can hamper new project investment – Even though Etsy Etsy's financial
statement is stable, but going forward Etsy Etsy's 5-7% profitability can lead to shortage of funds
to invest into new projects.
- Etsy Etsy's business model can be easily replicated by competitors – According to Ram
Subramanian, the business model of Etsy Etsy's can be easily replicated by players in the
industry.

Opportunities
- Increase in Consumer Disposable Income – Etsy Etsy's can use the increasing disposable
income to build a new business model where customers start paying progressively for using its
products. According to Ram Subramanian of Etsy: A "B Corp" Start-Up Takes on Amazon case
study, Etsy Etsy's can use this trend to expand in adjacent areas.
- Developments in Artificial Intelligence – Etsy Etsy's can use developments in artificial
intelligence to better predict consumer demand, cater to niche segments, and make better
recommendation engines.

Threats
- Customers are moving toward mobile first environment which can hamper the growth as Etsy
Etsy's still hasn’t got a comprehensive mobile strategy.
- Growing dominance of digital players such as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft etc. can reduce
the maneuvering space for Etsy Etsy's and put upward pressure on marketing budget.

2. What should be Etsy’s corporate strategy for the future? Explain the significance of your
suggested strategy to the organization.

1) Grow sustainable business in wholesaling and manufacturing by marketing the new

Manufacturing area to sellers
a) This strategy is finished when more sellers take advantage of the manufacturing area
And / or the manufacturing area is repurposed for Etsy's use as a company instead of

The sellers
b) The process begins by marketing manufacturing to sellers, getting the proper supplies to
the manufacturers, then marketing the finished product to buyers
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c) Utilization of this service should be reached within one year
2) Continue real world impact on the environment and community by promoting employee
Volunteer efforts and giving campaigns
a) Timeline for completion & measurable goals set by the employees and giving campaign
Partners
3) Nurture marketplace by growing relationships with current customers, conversing with seller
Community, and celebrating sustainable buyers
a) Promote underutilized seller services through marketing and communication with
Current sellers
b) Grow relations and have conversations within six months; celebrate sustainable
Businesses through marketing or compensation within three months
4) Merge with more technology partners to improve other site functions (beyond the search
Bar) by seeking out growing and established tech businesses
a) Focus on local partnerships to Etsy's existing offices or non-local businesses with offers
Of significant improvements
b) Research into other tech expansion opportunities within six months and implement
Beginning of addition or merger based on research within a year
5) Promote cross department teamwork by creating project groups for goals 1-5
a) This project will be complete when the project groups decide and / or if the groups are
Considered effective in implementing, creating or changing strategic goals
6) Lower cost of operations
a) Review: warranty policy, cost of new manufacturing area, costs for travel between
Offices
b) Eliminate: direct mail advertising and limit use of paper in all departments
c) This goal will be considered complete when the operations budget is more manageable
For a company of this size or if sales increase to support operating budget.

3. Imagine yourself as a marketing manager of this company, and recommend a business

strategy for the company.

Etsy broke into the e-commerce world in 2005 as a safe space for people to find authentic and
unique handmade and vintage items, ranging from crocheted blankets to paintings and
woodworks, and for small-scale artisans to find customers. It registered an almost immediate
success, hitting the million-dollar mark and seeing its millionth sale just two short years after it
was established, and it’s just been up from there. The site’s continuous success added to the
fact that by October 2013, it allowed large-scale manufacturers sell on it, making it almost
impossible for small craft makers to draw attention to themselves.
Here are some marketing strategies that are sure to put business out there and give you more
leads and more money.

1. Build a Social Media Presence

One way to draw more attention to your Etsy shop is to be in conversations surrounding your
product constantly. When they trust your opinions, they’re more likely to buy from you.

2. Post Tutorials and Guides

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Content Marketing has become one of the most effective ways to attract consumers to makers.
A cheap and easy way to delve into this is to create how-to posts and buying guides.
Pro tip: Offer to send the content you create to their emails; this way, you get to build your
email marketing list.

3. Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is what makes you more visible to the Google and Etsy search
bots. A quick and easy way to gain this visibility is to incorporate keywords into your profile,
what people search for when looking for a product. Think of words and phrases your customer
is most likely to use when looking for the product or service you offer and incorporate them into
your Etsy profile, product name, and product description. You can find keywords using
the Google Ads Keyword Planner. This gives accurate keywords plus demographics showing how
often they’re used so you can make informed choices.

4. Facebook and Instagram Ads

With over three billion users between both apps, if you’re looking for customers, they’re
probably on one or both of them. Although the cost of advertising on both platforms depends
on some factors, you can advertise for as low as $0.27 CPC (Cost per Click) on Facebook and
$0.20 on Instagram.
Whether or not your ads will be effective will depend on whether you put in the right
factors when choosing your advertising options, so here are a few pro tips:
1. Choose a time for the ads based on when your audience is online
2. Pick an age range closest to your target audience or your regular customers (you don’t
want to advertise to teenagers when your target audience is their parents)
3. When choosing interests for your target audience, pick something as closely related to
your product as possible
4. If only people in a certain area or who speak a particular language would be interested
in your product, make sure to streamline your target to them

5. Host or Sponsor Contests and Giveaways

People like getting free stuff. Exploit this basic human nature by hosting or sponsoring contests
and giveaways.
One way to host a contest is to have people post a picture of your products on their pages,
repost their posts, and have them get their friends and followers to like the reposts and follow
you for a chance to win the products. This gets you traffic, post interactions, and more buyers in
the long run.

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