L’AVANTAGE COMPETITIF 

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 

 

Activity 1 

Document 1 iPad 

Source : http://www.apple.com/ipad/

Nature : extrait du site internet d’Apple  

 

Surf on the internet to discover Apple products (choose the English presentation). 

 

Name some of the products sold by Apple: 

Macbook 

iPod nano, iPod classic, iPod touch,  

iMac, 

iPad… 

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

 

Activity 2 

 

Source : YOU TUBE : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_zI21XEo0Q

Nature : video (itnnews) ‐ Durée : 1:39  

APPLE iPAD IS “AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE» 

 

1 –Who is presenting the iPad? Explain

Steve Job is presenting the iPad.

Steve Job is the creator of Apple.

2 – List the adjectives used to describe the iPad.

- beautiful - magical - revolutionary - amazing - wonderful - extraordinary - incredible - great - the best - far better - unbelievable - most advanced

3 - What do you think about the choice of keywords?

The keywords are EXTREMELY strong. Steve Job wants to convince the consumers about the innovative product. It is a revolutionary product.

4 – Describe the iPad in your own words.

It is a new product, with a new technology, a new design. Nothing else does exist on the market. 

iPad allows you to surf on the web, email, to take photos and video. 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………... 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………... 

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

 

Activity 3 

TOYOTA GREEN TECHNOLOGY

Toyota has invested in hybrid vehicles* and is now a leader in the automotive industry. Toyota possesses a competitive advantage through the value of its green image.

*A hybrid vehicle is a vehicle that combines two or more power sources to move the vehicle: electric and petrol for example

2010 Toyota Prius Source : Wikimedia commons images

Toyota: How the Hybrid Race Went to the Swift

“Toyota not only has higher profits than any other automaker but also enjoys the best reputation for producing clean-running, fuel-efficient vehicles. Its gas-electric hybrid Prius is a public relations juggernaut… As Toyota prepares to motor past Ford as the world’s second largest carmaker, it has become a textbook case on how a green reputation delivers a competitive edge…”

Business Week 07-05 http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_05/b4019006.htm?

1) Introduce the organization and the products mentioned in the article.

Toyota is a very big company. It is a famous car producer around the world.

Toyota created a new car using a green technology: a hybrid vehicle.

This is an innovation. Toyota has a competitive advantage with this product.

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

2) To succeed in the automotive industry what did the company invest in?

Toyota  invested  in  green  technology.  So  Toyota  shows  everyone  that  the  company  works  to protect the environment. 

3) Explain the role of technology in competitive advantages.

Technology may deliver a competitive advantage. 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...... 

4) Using what you know and the examples below, identify the different sources of competitive advantage:

- technology - product - cost

LED

RYAN AIR

IPAD

BIO PRODUCTS

technology

cost

product

product

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

Activity 4 

APPLE PRODUCTS

1) Match the pictures with the right text. 

 2) Find the year when each product was launched on the market. 

 3) What can we conclude about Apple and innovation. 

  

iPhone 

  Year: 2008 Product:  3Source : Wikimedia commons images. 

iPod  

  

Year: 2001 Product:  1Source : Wikimedia commons images. 

iPad  

 Year: 2010 Product:  2Source : Wikimedia commons images. 

iTunes  

  

Year: 2001 Product: 4 Source : Wikimedia commons images. 

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

Product 1 gives you from 2 GB to160GB of storage capacity, good for up to 40,000 songs, 200 hours of video, 25,000 photos, or any combination. And you get up to 36 hours of battery life, so you can keep on rocking for a long, long time.

Product 2 gives you the best way to experience the web, email, photos, and video with just the touch of a finger. All on a big, multi-touch screen.

Product 3 is more than just a phone. It combines three devices in one: a revolutionary mobile phone, a widescreen iPod, and a breakthrough Internet device. All that and more makes it the best phone you’ll ever use.

Product 4 is a free application for your Mac or PC. It organizes and plays your digital music and video on your computer. It syncs all your media with your iPod, iPhone, and Apple TV. Allowing you to store IPod touch, iPhone, and Apple TV on your computer, it has everything that you need to be entertained.

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

 

Activity 5 

 

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE AROUND THE WORLD

The goal of many companies around the world is to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.

Surf on the internet and fill-in the chart below.

Nationality

Sector of activity

Innovation

BMW

German

Automotive industry

Technology:

electronic accelerator skid control system

SAMSUNG

Korean

Electronic

3D technology TV

APPLE

American

Computer, Mobile Phone

iPad

RYAN AIR

Irish

Airline

Low cost

COCA COLA

American

Soft drink

Sugar and caffeine free drinks

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

Activity 6 

 

Apple iPad sells 300,000 on debut

Apple says it sold more than 300,000 of its latest product, the iPad tablet computer, on its launch day in the US.

The figures for Saturday included pre-orders of the device, as well as sales at Apple stores across the country.

The iPad is not yet available in other countries, but will be on sale in parts of Europe, Canada and Australia by the end of April.

It is retailing in the US at $499 to $829 (£328 to £545). European prices have not yet been announced.

Apple said that iPad users had downloaded more than one million applications from its app store and more than 250,000 electronic books.

The first generation model has wi-fi but not 3G connectivity.

Apple chief executive Steve Jobs said in a statement that the touchscreen device was "going to be a game changer".

Queues for the new iPad's launch day were considerably smaller than the crowds which gathered for the iPhone's debut in July 2007, according to reports.

On the iPhone's launch weekend in the US, it was reported that up to 525,000 phones had been sold.

Source : From BBC NEWS (2010/04/05)

1) Present the organization Apple is an international American company. You may buy Apple products all around the world. Apple creates always new products: iPod, iPhone, Mac… Each product is known and bought in the world. Right now, everyone wants to possess the latest iPhone or iPad.

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

2) Who is Apple’s Chief executive?

 Steve Job.  

3) Compare the number of iPhones and iPads sold on arrival on the market.

Explain.

Queries for the iPad were smaller: 525.000 phones had been sold on arriving on the market but only 300.000 iPad. Maybe it is because of the crisis, the price or the new technology that did not convince the consumers. 

4) Can you name some of Apple’s competitors? - LG - Acer - Samsung - Dell

5) Using the information in the text and your knowledge, explain Apple’s success.

Apple always innovates and creates new products.

6) Define what a competitive advantage is. A competitive advantage exists when a firm has a product or a service that is perceived better than that of its competitors’. …………………………………………………………………………………………………... …………………………………………………………………………………………………... …………………………………………………………………………………………………...

7) Name an author who wrote books about competitive advantage.

Michael PORTER

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

Activity 7 

 

A produire par les élèves : 

 

1 – fiche auteur 

Titre : Michael Porter 

Source : les élèves recherchent sur internet des informations sur l’auteur 

Nature : réaliser une fiche auteur 

 

2 – annonce radio à réaliser sur le lancement d’un nouveau produit 

 

3 – affiche publicitaire à réaliser sur le lancement d’un nouveau produit 

 

Ci‐après travaux d’élèves. 

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

 

Who was Michael Porter?  

Michael E. Porter is a leading authority on competitive strategy, the competitiveness and economic development of nations, states, and regions, and the application of competitive principles to social problems such as health care, the environment, and corporate responsibility.

Professor Porter is generally recognized as the father of the modern strategy field, as has been identified in a variety of rankings and surveys as the world’s most influential thinker on management and competitiveness.

 

Your vision decreases and you need to keep contact? 

Don’t worry, thanks to this mobile, you’ll feel like a teenager. 

 

 

 

  

 

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011

Activity 8 

 

Explain what a competitive advantage is. 

 

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 

 

A competitive advantage exists when a company has a product or a service that  is perceived better than that of its competitors. 

The  firm needs  to know  the market and understand who his competitors are before developing a competitive advantage. 

A competitive advantage does not  last very  long however some companies are engaged  in a never ending search to find ways to beat their competitors 

To make  sure  it  stays ahead of  its  competitors,  the  firm will  innovate,  improve quality and  try  to maintain its costs 

Competitive advantage – Support professeur Mme Groux – Emilangues - 2011