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Introduction

Virgin's first and most obvious distinctive resource is Richard Branson and the 'Virgin People' that make up the organisation. Richard Branson's charismatic style and entrepreneurial flair is an asset that other organisations are unable to replicate, and it is his personality that is synonymous with the Virgin Brand and that makes the company unique. Similarly, the Virgin group attracts 'Virgin People,' who are 'only a certain type.' Together with Branson, the Virgin People form the human capital that is distinctive to Virgin that is impossible for other firms to copy. (Akers, 2002, 655-78)

Virgin has been able to sustain the Virgin identity across multiple businesses in a way that that very few other corporations have, and the pervasiveness of the Virgin brand creates unique brand equity that is difficult for competitors to replicate. (Akers, 2002, 655-78)

Explantion

Corporate Synergies

The corporate strategy of the Virgin Group is to operate like 'a venture capital firm based on the Virgin brand.' This strategy involves non-related diversification at the individual business unit level. Meanwhile, synergies are created from hierarchical relationships and the interaction of the corporate head office with individual business units. By leveraging the Virgin Brand which has established prominence in the minds of consumers, Virgin is able to enter new business areas with a bang and shake up existing orders. The unique Virgin culture also allows Virgin to break into new markets and execute its ventures very effectively. (Akers, 2002, 655-78)

Virgin's corporate strategy is best described in the Virgin Charter - the individual businesses are focused and develop as autonomous enterprises under a single unified brand name. This decentralization of organizational structure and decision making allows an entrepreneurial environment for managers to pursue their businesses effectively, while avoiding the bureaucracy associated with large centralised corporations. At the same time, the individual businesses benefit from the world-wide, inter-industrial reputation of the parent corporation's Virgin brand and are able utilize this brand recognition in their marketing efforts. This benefit of corporate parenting would not be available to them if they were operating under their own subsidiary brands, and is perhaps the greatest source of synergy within the Virgin Group. In this manner, Virgin is able to enjoy the benefits of both smaller entrepreneurial organisations and large conglomerates without the associated problems of bureaucracy and brand conflict that can often feature in diversified corporations. (Akers, 2002, 655-78)

Marketing strategy

Virgin Mobile, Britain's leading virtual network operator, has selected predictive analytics software from SPSS to drive marketing campaign optimization and reduce customer churn.

The software from Chicago-based SPSS enables Virgin Mobile to analyze its customer data and the results of previous direct marketing campaigns to identify appropriate customer segments for new marketing initiatives targeted at the mobile operator's 4 million customers. Virgin Mobile undertakes more than 100 marketing campaigns each year. By identifying the most appropriate customers for each of these, the mobile operator will be able to lower campaign costs, reduce customer churn and increase revenue per user from event-triggered marketing ...