Over the past 20 years indicator for companies seeking strategy was a competitive advantage. Achieving a competitive advantage should provide the company more profitable. Sought to answer the question, what are the sources of this advantage and how to ensure its durability. The answers were different. Initially, attention directed to the position occupied by the company in the sector and ways of building and maintenance (Porter, 1980). It was argued that gaining a competitive advantage in the sector by achieving leadership in terms of cost or distinguish the product in the eyes of customers allows the company to achieve greater value than that which competitors perform, giving rise to above-average profitability. It was pointed out that in order to gain a competitive advantage is to provide customers greater value than that offered by competitors (Porter, 1985). Maintaining the competitive advantage gained needs to be achieved in the position was based on the investments in creating the resources and skills for current and potential competitors, barriers to entry and / or barriers to mobility in the sector. Currently the leading example, the cost required to invest in large-scale production, efficient technologies, vertical integration, while the award of the product is built based on the product brand, the links in the distribution channels, quality resulting from the unique technologies and knowledge of the specific needs and expectations of buyers.
A concept that appears in the model of competitive advantage and the concept of management by value is the value for the customer. This concept has not been precisely defined, however. From reflections on the model of competitive advantage is that a customer value is the difference between the client received benefits and costs (price), you must pay to acquire the product. It is also noted that competitive advantage can only get these companies that their customers are able to supply products through which the buyer can achieve added value. A more detailed discussion of customer value can be found in the modern theory of consumer behaviour, which draws extensively on the achievements of consumer psychology and marketing theory, in particular the so-called Relationship marketing. Without going into this place in the broad literature studies on this category, you can output these disciplines in defining customer value summarized as follows (DunnHumby, 2009, 56-62).
The value for the customer is not a simple difference between the assessment of the benefits associated with the product, carried out by the customer and the price we must pay for the product. Customers pay attention more because of a reduction in price than the proportional increase in benefits. The value for the customer is therefore a benefit included in the offered product (service) to the cost of obtaining them, which include not only price, but other financial and non-load that responsibility. Important for its determination are not objective features of the product but the way they are perceived by customers (perceived value). The value of the product include: the value of the functional, emotional, ...