Home Depot is the leader in the home improvement industry. Our comprehensive report reflects Home Depot position in the market and our recommendation on its future growth. In our study, we looked at these factors:

 

Core competencies:

    Distribution and logistics

    Service delivery processes

    Competitive expansion

    DIY experience

 

Core resources:

    Personnel

    Company size

         Name recognition

    Financial strength

 

Customer value factors:

    Service quality

    Quality of products

    Selection and availability

    Getting around the store

 

We have concluded that Home Depot should focus on the following core competencies because they provide the most sustainable advantage and customer value contribution:

    Service delivery processes

    DIY experience

 

The home improvement industry is an established market with high entrance barriers. However, the market consists of many established home improvement companies – some of them are Home Depot competitors. Home Depot has maintained its competitive advantage within the industry and has been aware of new innovations and trends.

 

Focusing on the following two core competencies, we recommend:  

 

    To improve service delivery processes

 

The area where Home Depot can improve and differentiate the most is in its customer service- related processes. Current customer perception in that there is little differentiation in customer service among the major retailers. This is a great opportunity for Home Depot to differentiate itself from its competitors through a higher level of customer service.

 

    DIY experience

One other area where Home Depot needs improvement is in getting around the store. Home Depot received low scores on this customer value factor, which had a negative impact on its core competency scores. This difficulty navigating Home Depot stores detracted from the customers’ DIY experience and should be corrected immediately.

 

    Brand Loyalty

 

Home Depot is known for low prices, a variety of products and customer service.  People expect to find what they need to fix something in their homes or to make home improvements.  Although they provide customer service it could be strengthened.

 

Strategy – Improve customer service by improving personnel.  If Home Depot improves its customer service, it would already help to increase its popularity within the general public.  People want to know that they will get help, if they need it.

 

    Awareness

 

Home Depot should continue to send flyers to the homes in the areas where the stores are located.  This reminds people that Home Depot provides a variety of products at low prices.  The flyers are also useful to remind customers of products that they need on a seasonal basis.

 

    Associations

 

Home Depot’s logo is the orange box with its name in it.  No other Home improvement company has a logo like it.  People see the logo every often now, because it has stores all over the country.  People associate the orange apron with friendliness and service.

 

    Perceived Quality

 

The simple logo along with its message, makes it very easy for the people to remember that Home Depot has good quality products at low prices.

 

    Other Proprietary Brand Assets:

 

The personnel in the stores wear orange aprons, giving the store a sense of friendliness and approachability.

The huge warehouses of Home Depot let people know that they have a large selection of products. 

Home Depot also offers “how-to” classes on things like tiling, wood flooring, etc.  This provides customers with knowledge on how to do things.

 

We have concluded that Home Depot should focus on the following core resources because it contributes significantly to the core competence value and cost:

    Personnel

 

Home Depot should improve customer service by improving its personnel quality. This can be done by improving the personnel selection process to find the right people for customer service positions. It should also consider instituting personality tests in order to match suitable personality types with customer service positions.

 

Home Depot should maintain its core resource advantages:

    Company size

Home Depot should continue to expand at the same or greater percentage rate than its competitors in order to maintain company size advantage.

    Name recognition

Home Depot should continue to use extensive national and local media advertising campaigns in order to out-promote the competition.

 

    Financial strength 

The company should maintain this core resource because it give Home Depot greater advantage in growing.

 

Back to Table of Contents