What Is an Intensive Growth Strategy?
Intensive growth strategies are business plans designed to improve the business performance of a company, bringing the highest gains with the least amount of effort and risk. They include strategies for market penetration, product development and market development.
Strategies for market penetration are one of the core elements of any intensive growth plan. Businesses look for ways of adding extra appeal to their existing products. This might be by offering value packs, such as selling a 6-pack set of socks instead of one, or offering a different use for a product. Product development is another approach commonly used in intensive growth strategies. It involves creating new products for the target market. Developing a new process carries with more risk but offers greater rewards if successful.
An alternative approach to a growth plan is to integrate the existing company with other businesses. For instance, companies may increase their business performance by buying competing companies that offer great potential. Acquiring companies allows the parent company to grow quickly. Another approach used by businesses is buying suppliers to better control their supply chain. Companies can also buy distributor companies. This not only allows them to position their products better in the market, but also allows them to stifle the growth of their competition.