History of Amazon
Beginning of Amazon:
Amazon was founded on July 5, 1994, as “Cadabra” by a recent graduate of Princeton, Jeff Bezos, in the garage of his rented house in Bellevue, Washington. A month later, Bezos changed the name of Amazon Inc. due to the uncanny similarity of the word “corpse” to Cadabra. Then, about a year later, the Amazon website launched as an online bookseller delivering to all 50 states and 45 countries from a single garage. Amazon experienced losses like many other companies in its first year in business. However, the shift from the third quarter to the fourth quarter (October 1 to December 31) in 1996 is a big sign that the company is ready for success. Amazon’s revenue from $ 4.2 million to $8.5 million. During this period, the loss of each quarter was reduced by $100,000. It is encouraging since they could quadruple their revenue and reduce their losses, although they still faced losses of $2.2 million in the quarter.
Amazon Prime Release
In February 2005, “Amazon Prime,” one of Amazon’s most popular and lucrative programs, launched. Because online shopping is relatively new and some people still find membership costs prohibitive, Amazon Prime has a relatively small user base. It started as an unlimited two-day delivery service for $79 per year. However, in the 2010s, Amazon made significant progress in its subscription service, following a few years of service expansion and minor changes such as adding Prime Video features to subscriptions.
According to information provided by Search Logistics, Amazon’s net sales increased by nearly $29 billion between 2013 and 2021, reaching $31.77 billion in Amazon Prime’s net sales that year. According to Search Logistics (2022), “Amazon’s subscription value has more than doubled since 2017.” When COVID-19 was at its peak, there was an increase in subscribers between 2019 and 2021 of about 28 million, which is the main reason for this. Search Logistics predicts that in the year 2025, there will be approximately 168.3 million people worldwide, based on recent trends. Introducing Amazon Prime as a subscription service did not have the immediate impact Bezos and other Amazon executives had hoped for, but thanks to new growth plans and the idea that As online shopping becomes more common, Amazon Prime has been an enormous success and has built important role in the company’s expansion.
The Future of Amazon
Given Amazon’s current level of success and its continued desire to enter other markets, the only question left is: What is happening on Amazon’s side? Amazon is primarily known for its delivery service, so revamping its delivery system is the most notable improvement it is trying to achieve. Although Amazon offers fast delivery times, depending on the user’s region, they are still working to improve delivery times as technology develops. In addition to this unique feature, Amazon has tested the Amazon Scout, a complete and autonomous electric delivery system. It is still unclear whether any of these plans will be the “next big thing,” but Amazon will continue to test new technologies to improve its delivery system. In addition to expanding its delivery network, Amazon is exploring development opportunities through joint ventures and acquisitions. Although Amazon has used many well-known companies, such as Kohl’s and Best Buy, the recent merger with Grubhub may make them dominate another delivery service: groceries and food. Although this new partnership has yet to make much progress in the two companies, the two most prominent companies in their industry, the relationship between Amazon and Grubhub could change the entire food delivery industry. Food and food products.
For example, Amazon paid only $8.5 billion to acquire the famous media company MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) Studios, best known for the movie “Rocky” and the series “Rain Man,” among others. Working. Amazon plans to develop TV shows and movies based on popular MGM properties, such as “Legally Blonde” and “Robocop,” following the recent acquisition of MGM. Amazon intends to continue to grow as a company through its experiments with sophisticated delivery systems, intelligent business connections, and acquisitions. However, people are still determining what will happen in the future.
Amazon’s Industry Involvement
Amazon is a major competitor in many different industries. The company’s primary revenue stream is online shopping. Still, it offers digital streaming through Prime Video, advertising services, physical retail businesses like cashier-less stores and in-person bookstores, delivery and logistics networks, healthcare initiatives including online pharmacy services and virtual healthcare, and more. Having such an extensive range of things shows Amazon’s commitment to creating innovative concepts and its ongoing search for ways to challenge existing business strategies in various fields. Amazon can become a global leader in various industries, including technology, retail, and others.
How Amazon can successfully adapt to changing trends and thrive in a wide range of industries is critical to the company’s success. Amazon makes significant investments in technology and infrastructure. It enables the corporation to improve its cloud computing services, e-commerce platform, and transportation network. Amazon uses this money to maintain its competitive edge while also encouraging the creation of innovative concepts. Amazon’s primary goal is the user experience, and the business is continually attempting to improve its services through data analysis and client input. Making the consumer the primary emphasis allows Amazon to develop customer loyalty and attract new customers, contributing to the company’s continued growth. Amazon’s expansion into new areas, including smart devices, healthcare, and entertainment, demonstrates the company’s preference for innovation and willingness to take risks. Amazon decreases its risk exposure while strengthening its market position by expanding its company and pursuing new opportunities. Amazon’s success is mainly due to the company’s flexibility, creativity, customer-focused strategy, and willingness to embrace change in a constantly shifting industry.
Market Position Analysis
Today’s fast-paced and growing business landscape prefers a player with as little control and power as Amazon. Amazon has been a disruptor, causing changes in many industries. Hence, people buy differently, consume media, and use cloud services. Given its compelling positions in e-commerce, cloud computing, digital media, and grocery retail, Amazon’s impact is international – consumers and businesses are subject to it. This marketing position analysis will explore the multifaceted stronghold of Amazon in critical sectors (as per the analysis), looking into its market position, strategy, and probable challenges to its unique presence in the contemporary commercial landscape.
E-commerce
Amazon has achieved the position of top dog in the online trading sector. Amazon has captured a significant part of the global online retail market because of its extensive product varieties, competitive pricing, and sound logistics system. Data from recent times indicates that Amazon has a market share of over 40% of e-commerce in the United States. Prime Subscription Service by the company, which ensures fast and free shipments and exclusive content, provides it with a strong position as the leader in e-retail.
Cloud Computing
There is no doubt that Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the only dominant player in the cloud computing market. Serving all the businesses on AWS, Amazon has the advantage of a broader range of infrastructure and platform services. It has a market share of around 32% in the global cloud infrastructure market, a figure markedly more significant than its closest rivals. AWS has become the cloud services provider of choice, given the high reliability, scalability, and extensive service offerings deployed. These are all critical for companies seeking cloud solutions, contributing significantly to Amazon’s overall revenue and profitability.
Digital Media and Entertainment
Amazon has made considerable headway in the digital media and entertainment industry. Amazon Prime Video is up against the extensive movie streaming services like Netflix and Disney, which provide an extensive collection of movies, TV shows, and original productions. Although Amazon Prime Video may have a weaker market share than Netflix, it has achieved a remarkable global presence, primarily geared toward producing high-quality original content. Similarly, Amazon Music and Twitch are the tools that extend Amazon’s hold on the digital entertainment sphere.
Grocery and Retail
When Amazon acquired Whole Foods Market, it was the company’s entry into the grocery industry for the first time. Meanwhile, conventional players like supermarkets control the market, but Amazon has significantly impacted grocery delivery services, among others, through Amazon Fresh and Prime Now. The COVID-19 pandemic sped up customers’ transition to the online delivery of supermarkets, favoring Amazon. Despite its small market share in the grocery industry, it holds the dominant shares in e-commerce and cloud computing.
Amazon stands on the top across the spheres, including the undisputed triumph of e-commerce to cloud computing and an extensive digital media and entertainment presence. Correspondingly, grocery and retail services are prominent. The continuous customer-oriented character, innovativeness, and market penetration have made it a leading global powerhouse.
Amazon’s Impact on Way of Life
Amazon has fundamentally reshaped the way people approach shopping and daily transactions. From changing the convenience of shopping to introducing state-of-the-art entertainment consumption and technology, Amazon has significantly impacted various types of industries worldwide.
Starting with e-commerce, Amazon has cemented itself as the leader in shopping for goods online. As mentioned, the company has revolutionized how people shop, providing a one-stop online marketplace for almost any imaginable product. With Amazon’s online marketplace, consumers no longer need to travel to various stores to search for their desired products. With just a few clicks, this consumer can purchase the product online and have it delivered to their doorstep in less than 24 hours! The convenience of browsing and buying everything from electronics, car parts, books, clothes, and groceries from the comfort of home has become almost routine for most people. Valuable time and effort are saved for the consumer by purchasing products online. Amazon is also known for its commitment to fast and reliable delivery service. The company has set the standard for speedy delivery, which can be tracked on its online platform.
Amazon offers more than online shopping and speed delivery. In recent years, Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Music have become popular entertainment platforms, offering many movies, TV shows, and music. Both Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Music contribute to Amazon’s broader strategy of providing entertainment for its users. Amazon Prime Video has recently entered the live sports streaming market with its partnership with the NFL. Prime Video has secured the rights for Thursday Night Football as part of its digital entertainment trend.
Lastly, Amazon has had a significant impact on the lives of small businesses and business owners. Amazon’s platform provides a marketplace for small businesses to reach a global audience. In contrast, in the past, these businesses were limited to whom they could market and ship their products. Amazon allows these businesses and business owners to list their products on the platform, which substantially helps the businesses market their products to people who are otherwise unreachable.
Competitor Responses to Amazon
Amazon is undoubtedly the market leader in online shopping, as shown by its consistently high sales. Amazon’s sales have continued to increase because of the accessibility of Prime memberships, a vast selection of products, and fast shipping. Walmart and Target have been significant competitors to Amazon, especially in the retail industry. They have been concentrating on developing their e-commerce presence and refining their online buying experience to better compete with Amazon. They have utilized their physical store locations to provide services such as same-day delivery and curbside pickup to better compete with Amazon in online and physical shopping.
Future Projections for Amazon
Amazon is a giant in the ever-growing business landscape, incessantly revolutionizing and intensifying its reach. Embracing an all-inclusive method, Amazon’s Prime ecosystem transcends mere convenience, foreseeing a realm where entertainment, healthcare, and sustainability assemble effortlessly. With a bold foray into healthcare, Amazon innovators’ practicality, productivity, and unwavering commitment to sustainability outline a promising tomorrow. With improvements in AI and a steadfast international expansion, Amazon’s path promises a future where expediency links with integrity, redefining the standards of consumer involvement on a global scale.
Expansion of Prime Ecosystem
Amazon’s Prime Subscription is often a world-recognized symbol of convenience and worth for more customers than can be counted with just a single pair of fingers. A fuel Prime ecosystem for additional benefits than just sluggish shipping is the future. Such integration could relate to all other Amazon services, such as Prime Video, Prime Music, and Prime Gaming. Thus, the customers could get a completed entertainment package (Tarnoff, 2022). On the other hand, the company might offer new, member-specific Prime benefits, such as early shopping privileges, exclusive discounts, and even exclusive events.
Diversification into Healthcare
The fearless Amazon move into healthcare is a game-changer for the consumers who usually get medical supplies from across the country, which is very inconvenient. As seen by its purchase of Pill Pack and a newly launched Amazon Pharmacy, Amazon has already started making its mark in this area. As for the near future, we can expect more variability in our services in the area of healthcare, like remote consultations, health trackers and devices, and even AI diagnostics (Elfström & Tam, 2021). With numerous resources and technical competence, Amazon strives to facilitate the process for consumers, eliminating difficulties and making it more convenient to get medical attention.
Focus on Sustainability
From increasing public awareness of climate change and environmental sustainability concerns to shaping better environmental policies and practices, Amazon recognizes these issues as vital and addresses them. The sustainability campaign will be a central focus of the business, from the operations to the sourcing of products and the offered products. It might include funding renewable energy like solar and wind to power factories’ operations and reduce the company’s carbon footprint (Tarnoff, 2022). Further, Amazon could enforce strategies to eliminate packaging waste, establish recycling, and control its environmental pollution. The middle grounds dictate that in addition to this, Amazon will also give preference to suppliers and third parties that follow the pro-environment set rules and principles.
Advancements in AI and Robotics
With time, Amazon has been extremely wise in a journey of AI and robotics to boost the efficiency of its operation. It will invest entirely in AI and robotics technologies to make its process automatic and provide a better way for customers to experience customers (Tarnoff, 2022). The case could involve employing highly sophisticated warehouse robots to pick, pack, and sort items. Besides, Amazon may consider using drones to deliver orders, which should be much faster and result in greater efficiency. Additionally, to generate a distinctive customer buying experience, Amazon may employ AI tools for customized product recommendations and predictive analytics.
Global Expansion
The commercial giant Amazon’s struggle is more comprehensive than Juto’s, its home market, and Amazon has plans for further and continuous global expansion in other regions and markets. Looking into the future, Amazon will continue to explore the opportunities in these developing markets, particularly in South and Southeast Asia, where the enormous potential for e-commerce growth is evident. It can be achieved by customizing the company services according to local needs and demands and fostering in-ground and logistical facilities for the business.
Amazon Prime Air
Amazon Prime Air is the next project that Amazon is hoping to implement in the future. Prime Air is a drone delivery service operated by Amazon aimed at changing how delivery is viewed. The goal of Prime Air is to use uncrewed air vehicles or drones to deliver packages to customers in a faster, more efficient way. Amazon has been actively testing and developing various drone prototypes for Prime Air. The drones are specifically designed to carry different packages and safely make their way to their end destination. If successful, Amazon Prime Air could set a new delivery standard and influence other companies in the e-commerce business to invest in and implement drone technology for their deliveries.
References
Aćimović, S., Mijušković, V., & Milošević, N. (2020). Logistics aspects of goods home delivery: The case of Amazon company. Marketing, 51(1), 3-11.
Elfström, O., & Tam, H. (2021). ” All eCommerce actors will be slaves under Amazon…”:-A study on how Amazon has affected Swedish eCommerce and its defensive marketing strategies.
Ma, Y. (2023). A Comparative Analysis of Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple #39 Stock Investment Value. Highlights in Business, Economics and Management, pp. 13, 231–235.
Tarnoff, B. (2022). Internet for the People: The Fight for Our Digital Future. Verso Books.
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