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Chapter $3$ Productivity, Innovation, and Strategy

$3-4.$ Samantha Green owns and operates Twigs Tree Trimming Service. Samantha graduated from the forestry program of a nearby university and worked for a large landscape design firm, doing tree trimming and removal. After several years at the company, she bought a truck, a stump grinder, and other equipment and opened her own business in Winnipeg.

Although many of her contracts are one$-$time operations $($e$.$g$.,$ removing a tree or a stump$),$ others are recurring ones $($e$.$g$.,$ trimming a tree or group of trees every year or every other year$).$ When business is slow, she calls former clients to remind them of her services and of the need to trim their trees on a regular basis.

Samantha has never heard of Michael Porter or his theories. She operates her business using intuition.

a$.$ Explain how an analysis of the five competitive forces could help Samantha.

b$.$ Do you think Samantha has a competitive strategy? What competitive strategy would seem to make sense for her?

c$.$ How would knowledgerof her competitive strategy help her sales and marketing efforts?

d$.$ Describe, in general terms, the kind of infomation system Samantha needs to support sales and marketing efforts.