Marketing is war

We talk about the ideas of Jack Trout and Al Rice from the book "Marketing Wars."
At one time, she turned the ideas about marketing, becoming a classic in business literature.


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What is the book "Marketing Wars"?

As the name suggests, this book is about war. Since the marketing strategy, according to the authors, this is the art of war. Not with the consumer, of course - with competitors. No wonder the book is preceded by the dedication of Karl von Clausewitz, a retired Prussian general and author of the famous work "On War". In the dedication, Trout and Rice call him one of the greatest marketing strategists.

Each idea of ​​the book is supported by a quote from von Clausewitz - about methods of conducting combat, building troops, offensive and defensive operations, and most importantly - about strategy and tactics, without which there are no battles. On the example of large companies competing with each other for markets, you can see the strategy and tactics in action.

So, how does military deal with marketing? Consider the basic ideas of "Marketing Wars".

Idea No. 1. Free enterprise is war, and marketing is a military strategy.

To capture and hold your part of the market, you need to win in a battle with competitors. Once marketing was engaged in the study of demand. The studies determined the needs of potential buyers, compared them with the production capabilities of the company - and, if the needs were relatively consistent with the capabilities, the product production process was launched. All this, according to Trout, is fundamentally wrong.

Need to focus on competitors. Do not copy their actions or products, but look for vulnerabilities and beat them. The consumer is the territory that needs to be seized and held. The competitor is the enemy. Marketing is a battle strategy, the art of winning, or at least not losing, taking a defensive position.

Idea number 2. The one who has more troops wins

Clausewitz formulates this idea as a principle of power. The history almost does not know examples when the large army would be broken by small.

According to the authors, the Allied forces won the Second World War, crushing the enemy with a number. There were four allied soldiers on two German soldiers, eight on four soldiers, and no leadership talent would have done this math.

The same principle works in the battle of competitors. Large market share, more employees, a lot of points of sale, more opportunities to pay for an advertising campaign - all these are huge advantages.

Many companies rely on "the best people", "the best product", that is, on quality, not on quantity. They are looking for and hiring the best specialists, counting on a personnel advantage. However, the quality, according to the authors, is of great importance, but not decisive. Paraphrasing Suvorov "Fighting is not a number, but a skill," we can say that the guarantee of victory is a skill plus a number.

This does not mean that smaller companies should give up and leave the market. They should have their own military strategy. They need to stand, taking a strong defensive position, and from there look out for the weak spot of the enemy.

Idea number 3. Defensive position - a good way not to lose the battle.

Military strategists believe that it is necessary to have about three times more strength at the site of an attack to break through the defense than the enemy, otherwise the attack does not make sense at all. This idea is illustrated by the example of General Motors. A leader in the automotive market, General Motors wins because it does not lose. Its position is strong, market role dominates. All that is required is to protect what has been achieved. Do not just resist the plans of the enemy, and build your own strategy.

As for the attackers, they should be aware of the optimal alignment of forces during an attack. There are many examples of how frivolous attacks ended in complete defeat. In the world of marketing, according to the authors, RCA Corporation, which was originally engaged in broadcasting, then television and the production of television sets, including color ones, suddenly decided to switch to computers and compete with IBM. She ceased to exist in 1986. General Electric, which absorbed RCA, did the same thing, but it was also unsuccessful. In vain forces and resources were spent. Manufacturers of office equipment Ekhon and Lanier tried to compete with the same IBM in office automation, and also lost. Including because it is difficult to conduct an unexpected attack when the enemy is on the defensive.

Idea No. 4. Only the leader can afford a defensive war.

As an example, the authors cite all the same IBM. By capturing the market, it firmly holds the defense with an unusual strategy — it attacks itself. What does it mean? That she constantly updates products and services, making each next product better than the previous one. Another example is the firm Gillette, which produces razors. When a competitor attacked her — Wilkinson Sword, which first released a blade that was soldered into a plastic machine at the right angle for a better shave, Gillette responded with the first two-blade razor. Consumers preferred double blades, discarding machines with single blades, including those produced by the same Gillette. This is an attack on themselves, which has borne fruit - the competitor has not captured this market share. Gillette donated quick and short-term profits, but kept the lead.

Another principle of a defensive war is to always leave a reserve, not throwing all forces at restraining competitors. In this case, the company will always have room for maneuver. For example, the Budweiser beer producing company Anheuser-Busch doesn’t manifest itself until sales go down. As soon as this happens, it conducts a wide advertising campaign, and sales grow again. This saves money and forms a reserve "for a rainy day", in case a competitor goes on the attack.

Idea No. 5. Military strategy depends on the position of the firm on the market.

According to the authors, each company can choose a marketing strategy depending on its strength (captured market share). Defense is best for the leader, for his closest competitors - the offensive. The weakest must choose a guerrilla war strategy.

We have already considered defense, we will move on to other methods of warfare.

Offensive strategy. It would seem pointless to attack the impregnable fortress - the market giant. Nevertheless, competitors do it anyway, and for those who are only a step or two behind the leader, this is especially tempting.

Do they have a chance of success?

There is - provided competent military strategy. First, you need to carefully monitor the leader, identifying his strengths. It is in this power that the vulnerable place can be hidden. It is necessary to observe and decide exactly how to reduce its market share.

The next stage is to identify a weak spot in the leader’s defense. No matter how strong the opponent is, there is always a gap in his armor, his Achilles heel. So, for example, Hertz, the leading car rental company, is vulnerable precisely because of its popularity - the client cannot always rent a car on time. Avis, a smaller competitor, used this weakness by choosing the slogan “Rent it from Avis. Our line is shorter. ” A similar example, according to the authors, is General Motors, in which good sales create a vulnerable spot on service platforms, the only segment where American Motors has bypassed it.

To find such a weak spot with the leader and hit him with all the available resources, the authors call “attacking with a narrow front”. This principle was often used during the Second World War.

Flank war. At the beginning of the book, the authors cite as an example the famous battle of Alexander the Great. His opponent, the Persian king Darius, put the cavalry and the elephants ahead. Alexander attacked the right flank, forcing the Persians to attack from the left, and in the meantime let the cavalry bypass both flanks, which helped to win the battle. In relation to marketing, the flank maneuver provides for action on a no-man's territory, that is, the creation of a fundamentally new product. In any case, it should look like this in the eyes of the buyer - thanks to the elements of novelty. In other words, it is a search for new segments or niches in the market. As an example, the authors cite Miller Lite beer. When it first appeared, the light beer market did not exist yet. Miller opened a new segment and successfully entrenched itself on it, beating competitors. For competitors, this was a complete surprise. Success Miller cemented reinforced investment in advertising.

There are different types of flank attacks in marketing: low price (cheap Savin copiers competing with Xerox), high price (Joy perfume, “the most expensive in the world), small size (Volksvagen cars), distribution system (selling Timex watches in pharmacies ) and similar actions to spite competitors.

Guerrilla war. Even small companies can lead a guerrilla war for the market. The main thing is that they occupy a small segment of the market. Larger competitors find it difficult to turn around on a tiny battlefield. An example of successful guerrilla warfare is, according to the authors, the Rolls-Royce company, which sells cars more expensive than 100 thousand dollars. It has few competitors in this small market. The company knows this and does not seek to expand its range by releasing cheap models in order, for example, to lure customers from other manufacturers to themselves. Rolls-Royce can not be a cheap machine.

A company that chooses a partisan strategy must be mobile, fast and have a very small staff so that at any time they can get together, get up and start everything all over again in any other place.

Idea No. 6. The ultimate goal of military strategy is to achieve tactical results.

It is impossible to separate strategy from tactics. The soldier becomes a general through participation in real battles, learning the tactics of a real battle. The authors cite the example of Napoleon, who became an artilleryman when cavalry was in fashion, and infantry was used in the attacks. He studied the possibility of heavy artillery in battles and subsequently brilliantly used in battles.

In the business world, according to the authors, artillery and tanks are advertising. Along with it, infantry can be used (direct sales), but it is advertising that wins the decisive battle if you know how to use it. A small company should be especially careful about “using artillery” - an advertising strategy.

Idea No. 7. A true combat general should lead the war.

The trouble of modern business, according to the authors, is in the absence of “marketing generals”. Too many theorists, people hesitant, by all means avoiding responsibility, unable to make a decision in time. They have not been tempered in battle, and their excellent education does not bring in practice anything but a good position.

A real marketing general must be flexible - be able to adjust the strategy to the situation, and not in isolation from it. Decisive - having listened to all and having weighed everything, he concentrates and, taking responsibility for himself, makes a decision. He should learn the rules of combat in practice, and not act blindly. And, of course, among other things, he will need luck.

Final comments

Despite the fact that the book “Marketing Wars” was written 30 years ago, modern marketers and executives will also find in it a lot of practical advice, since the principles of the ancient art of war do not change with time.

She will make many theorists and inexperienced businessmen think and act differently. At the same time, of course, you should understand that this book is not a practical guide for marketing - the authors talk about the general principles of marketing strategy and tactics, illustrating ideas with stories about the successes and failures of well-known companies.

The advantages of the book, in addition to a good language and consistency of presentation, include vivid practical examples of the war of famous brands: Coca-Cola and Pepsico, McDonald's and Burger King, IBM and Apple, and many others.

There are no significant shortcomings, although some readers are slightly repelled by the excessive peremptory presentation. Occasionally, the authors are too free to handle historical events. Many ideas of the strategy and tactics of marketing wars are universal, but still it is worth remembering that it was written for American, not Russian business, the principles of which do not always coincide. By the way, there is a publication of this book, adapted for the domestic reader - with cases of Russian companies.

Since its first edition in 1986, the book has been regularly reprinted, indicating a continuing interest in the topic of marketing wars by readers. If your business or area of ​​interest is marketing, then this book is definitely worth reading.

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