The Web’s Anatomy (2)

Without spending too much time on the description of the concept, let’s quickly define the constituents of the generic web presented in the figure. The firm, of course, is the provider of products and services targeting at fulfilling the customer’s requirement. Competitors include those entities that provide a substitute offering, such as a product or service that provides the customer with the same or similar experience and utility as the firm’s offering. Suppliers are vendors that provide the inputs that in their aggregate make up the firm’s products/services. Service providers are those parties that fulfill critical activities that lie outside the firm’s core competencies. Retailers and resellers act as the distributors of the firm’s products/services to the customer, whereas complementors provide a separate offer that can be used in combination with the firm’s products. Affinity groups—for example friends, family, and coworkers—influence the pre- and postpurchase process because they have some usually noneconomic link or affiliation with the customer. Finally, independent authorities, such as the media, governments, or other information providers, also participate in the Value Web even though they normally have no vested interest in the final transaction.

Figure 5.1 illustrates a rough, generic model of what a retail industry, customer-centric Value Web might look like. However, the Value Web framework lends itself to analyzing a given business environment from multiple angles. Instead of limiting ourselves to applying the framework to the macroeconomic level that considers entities external to the firm for which the analysis is performed, we could apply the structure to some of the firm’s internal, operations-related processes.

A Value Web for a theme park operation, for example, would still place the customer experience at the center of the web. The constituents of the web, however, could be the following entities or activities: transportation to the location, overnight lodging, the admissions process, the park’s rides and shows, merchandising, food and beverage services, guest services, off-site activities, and others. As you can see, the concept is the same, but this example is taking the approach to a different level. Both approaches have the same goals in mind: to understand the market space and to identify strategic opportunities to profitably create or enhance the customer experience.

Before we jump into the exercise of actually constructing a Value Web following a step-by-step approach, let’s quickly review the reasons for doing so.

Taken From : Enterprise Guide to Gaining Business Value from Mobile Technologies

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