1. Describe and explain Madonnas competitive strategy.

Madonnas competitive strategy is the differentiation strategy, which is based on identifying and
understanding strategic customer needs. As we can see, she has been ahead of customer needs
before even they knew they had them. This strategy together with the consistency of her media
presence has kept her successful all of this years. Another defining aspect of her strategy is the
business-savy vision of being the best female artist and constantly expandig her facets. She has
also challenged the musical industry and even innovated.
2. Why has she experienced sustained success?
Madonnas main competitive advantage is the ability to maintain relevancy throughout the years.
She stays ahead of the market, being described by famous American publications as the
smartest business woman in show business, thus being the queen of pop since 1983. One main
advantage for her career has been the fact that she benefitted of the first mover position,
anticipating and creating trends, being a game changer in her industry. A good example to sustain
this affirmation would be the introduction of a sexualized image criticizing the Catholic Church.
Her strategy is based on changing her image to adjust quickly to the market trends and taking
advantage of universal figures (Marilyn Monroe), succeeding to attract new target groups, while
maintaining her loyal fan base. Another factor of her success resides in her strategy to enlarge
her brand through line extension: from singer, to actress, book writer, record company owner
and brand ambassador for brands such as D&G, Gap and Max Factor. Moreover in her pursuit
for popularity and fame she tries to write every trend to her benefit, in order to have recurrent
comebacks in the lime lite. She writes an erotic book, marries the famous director Guy Ritchie,
kisses Britney Spears on stage or becomes an advocate of kabbalah, not necessarily creating a
positive image, but always being present in the media. Another element of her success strategy is
controversy always taking advantage of media broadcasting and exposure of her latest moves.
3. What might threaten the sustainability of her success?
Strengths
Differentiation

Weaknesses
Lack of focus

Chameleon-like ability

Divergent options

Strong personal brand

Conflictual

Associations with well-known brands

(launching

Loyal fans

childrens books at the same time)

Opportunities
New demographics

Not recruiting new fans

Threats
Aging

Retro trend is still alive

Younger and diversified competition

Potential capitalization on her image

Saturated market

Collaboration with young artists

Criticism

Brand expansion

directions
American

in
Life

the

strategy

and

writing