seeking market leadership and present a long term sustained challenge to
the current leader.
Strategies available to challengers include:
● Selective targeting: The challenger can target specific competitors. It
may attack smaller (perhaps regional) competitors or firms that are
equivalent in size and resources. Basically, the challenger is looking to
attack weaker competitors – those failing to satisfy the customer in
some way, or those underfinanced or resourced. By picking-off weaker
competitors, challengers enhance their market position.
● Attack the leader: The challenger can directly challenge the dominant
player. This is often a long-term war of attrition and it is unlikely that
market leadership will change overnight. Commonly, direct attacks
sustained over time erode market share gradually.
Market follower
Being in second, third or even further down the rankings within an indus-
try may still be an attractive position. Market followers tend to ‘shadow’
the market leader as opposed to challenge them, unless there is a high
degree of certainty that a challenge will be successful – they follow the
leader. In simple terms, followers duplicate (to greater or lesser degree)
the actions and product offerings of the bigger industry players and avoid
‘rocking the boat’.
Typical strategies are:
● Duplication: The product offering is duplicated in every possible way,
even down to the packaging and promotion. Such strategies are poten-
tially open to legal challenge in the areas of patents and copyright.
● Adaptation: Here we adapt the basic product offering. If we can
improve on the concept, then potential exists to differentiate ourselves.
For example, we may sell the same/similar products but have a repu-
tation for higher levels of customer service.
Market niche
Niche players focus on specific market segments. They are more spe-
cialised in nature and seek to gain competitive advantage by adding value
in some way appropriate to specific target groups.
Focus strategies, adopted by niche players were outlined in section
Focus and commonly involve: geographic, end-user or product line
specialisation.
Product and market strategies
Two fundamentals exist in the battle for market share – the ability to gain
market share and being able to retain existing market share. To achieve
162 Strategic Marketing: Planning and Control
