How to write a Marketing Case Study Analysis

You must first understand the case study before writing a business case study analysis. Before you begin the steps below, carefully read the business case and take notes. It may be necessary to read the case several times in order to fully comprehend the issues confronting the group, company, or industry.

As you read, try to identify key issues, key players, and the most important facts. Once you're comfortable with the information, write your report using the step-by-step instructions below (geared toward a single-company analysis). To write about an industry, simply adapt the steps outlined here to cover the entire segment.

Step1: Investigate the company's history and growth

The past of a company can have a significant impact on its current and future state. Begin by researching the company's origins, critical incidents, structure, and growth. Make a timeline of events, issues, and accomplishments. This timeline will be useful in the next step.

Step2: Identify strengths and weaknesses

Using the information you gathered in step one, continue by examining and making a list of the value creation functions of the company. For example, the company may be weak in product development but strong in marketing. Make a list of problems that have occurred and note the effects they have had on the company. You should also list areas where the company has excelled. Note the effects of these incidents as well.

You're essentially conducting a partial SWOT analysis to get a better understanding of the company's strengths and weaknesses. A SWOT analysis involves documenting things like internal strengths (S) and weaknesses (W) and external opportunities (O) and threats (T).

Step3: Examine the external environment

The third step entails identifying external opportunities and threats for the company. The second part of the SWOT analysis (the O and the T) comes into play here. Particularly noteworthy are industry competition, bargaining power, and the threat of substitute products. Expansion into new markets or new technology is two examples of opportunities. Increasing competition and higher interest rates are two examples of threats.

Step4: Analyze your findings

Create an evaluation for this section of your case study analysis using the information from steps 2 and 3. Compare the company's internal strengths and weaknesses to external threats and opportunities. Determine whether the company is in a strong competitive position and whether it can sustain its current pace.

Step5: Identify a Corporate-level strategy

Identify and evaluate a company's mission, goals, and actions toward those goals to determine its corporate-level strategy. Examine the company's business line, subsidiaries, and acquisitions. You should also discuss the benefits and drawbacks of the company's strategy to determine whether a change will benefit the company in the short or long term. ​

Step6: Identify Business level- strategy

Your case study analysis has thus far identified the company's corporate-level strategy. To conduct a thorough analysis, you must first identify the company's business-level strategy. (Note: If it is a single business, rather than multiple companies under one umbrella, and not an industry-wide review, the corporate strategy and business-level strategy are the same.) You must identify and analyze each company's competitive strategy, marketing strategy, costs, and overall focus for this section.

Step7: Analyze Implementations

This section requires you to identify and analyze the company's structure and control systems for implementing its business strategies. Examine organizational change, levels of hierarchy, employee rewards, conflicts, and other issues relevant to the company under consideration.

Step8: Make recommendations

Your recommendations for the company should be included in the final section of your case study analysis. Every recommendation you make should be based on and supported by your analysis' context. Never share your hunches or make unfounded recommendations.

You should also ensure that the solutions you propose are feasible. If the solutions are unable to be implemented due to some constraint, they are not realistic enough to make the final cut.

Finally, think about some of the alternatives you considered and rejected. Make a list of the reasons why these solutions were rejected.

​Step9: Review

When you've finished writing, go over your analysis. Examine your work to ensure that every step has been completed. Look for grammatical errors, poor sentence structure, and other areas where you can improve. It should be concise, precise, and professional.