How to Differentiate Start-up Technology in Europe
pg.3
By Andrew Lloyd & Jacque Noels
Strategy
The first step in strategy development was to take stock of the Company's strengths and weaknesses versus competitive alternatives:
| Relative Strengths | Relative Weaknesses |
| Brighter image | Lagging behind with color |
| Volume LCD production experience | Management perceived as too "tech-y" |
| Early adopter market penetration (electronic shelving) | Lack of a consumer electronics partner |
This exercise led the Company to conclude that if we emphasized success in the electronic shelving segment, and volume production capability, we could position ourselves as a business-savvy, cost-effective supplier. Moreover, these messages support the development of the zero power category overall by moving perceptions away from the lack of consumer market execution, toward business growth and volume in an early adopting commercial segment.
Our strategy benefited by the Company's timely negotiation of a manufacturing capacity deal with a major Japanese LCD supplier. With that coup in hand, we completed Company messages with focused education to support overall category development. Rather than try to replace traditional paper, at least for the next 20 years, the Company decided to position e-paper as complementary to traditional paper. But we still reinforced positive differentiators of a digital medium over traditional paper (network connection, density, search-ability, reliability, and so on.)
