ABSTRACT
This chapter analyzes strategic choice associated with differentiated, focus, and niche based sources of competitive advantage. It focuses on the specification and management of the value chain to achieve these sources of competitive advantage. It describes enterprise strategies that are focused closely on serving segment-specific or niche markets. Business strategy may alternatively be based on the process of product or service differentiation across a range of markets and market segments. The chapter describes the market segmentation will be needed as a key information input in order to relate the needs of users or customers to enterprise decision-making where strategic choice is to be based on the use of the differentiated, focus, or niche strategies. Where an organization's product-market strategy is segment-specific, it will position one or a limited number of products or services on one or a small number of market segments.
