Strategic Planning Business & Marketing Coursework (Coursework Sample)

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Sustainable Competitive Advantage
Question 1-describe how firms can achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. What four criteria must resources / capabilities satisfy to become core competencies and why is this important for firms to use these criteria?
Introduction
Sustainable competitive advantage refers to company assets, attributes or abilities that are not easy to copy or exceed, and provides a superior long-term position over business rivals in a competitive business environment (Bansal et al.75). Sustainable competitive advantage is vital for business survival, and it the primary driver of long-term business value. Gaining a competitive advantage takes strategic planning, investment in marketing, and extensive research. Michael E. Porter states, “Competitive advantage fundamentally grows out of value a firm can create for its buyers that exceeds the firm's cost of creating it with the value being what buyers are willing to pay. Excellent value stems from offering lower prices than competitors for equivalent benefits or providing unique benefits that more than offset a higher price.” A competitive advantage allows a firm to generate more sales compared to its market rivals because its goods or services are superior to all of a customer's other choices.