Utilizing Sun Tzu's Military Treatise in Marketing Strategy: A Case Study of Just Eat Company

This article discusses how Just Eat Company utilizes Sun Tzu's military treatise in their marketing strategy to conquer competition and find customers. It explores the principles of capturing the market without destroying, recognizing the limitation of resources, and winning in the war if the habits build are easy to maintain. The article also highlights the concept of terrain and ground classifications and how it can pave strategic decisions by businesses for the attacking company, the competition, and the market.

MANAGEMENT MARKETING 1
Management Marketing
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Date
City

MANAGEMENT MARKETING 2
Introduction
Sun Tzu was the ancient Chinese military general philosopher that wrote prominent
books such as "The Art of War." He was born in 544 BC. Considering the art of war, the famous
military treatise depicts a philosophy of war for managing conflicts. Little is known about Sun
Tzu, but what is known is that he finished his military treatise around the year 510 BC (Li and
Young, 2017). This treatise included lessons on laying plans, waging war, attack by stratagem,
tactical dispositions, weak points, and healthy, maneuvering, terrain, etc. However, these
techniques are also utilized by Just eat online Company to find clients (Tanner and Raymond,
2015).
There are several ways in which the Sun Tzu works relates with how the Just Eat
Company does. To start with, one of the principle of Sun Tzu was to capture the market without
destroying. This is exactly what Just Eat usually do (Pengcheng, 2015). The company usually
charges each takeaway a joining fee and hence takes a cut of every order that is received. In that
case, it offers great incentives to join but once it hooks a customer it becomes addictive and then
they put their fees higher. That is how it usually outperforms its competitors.
Accordingly, Sun Tzu recognized the limitation of resources. In that case, Just Eat
usually base on that avoid its competitors’ strengths and hence attack their weaknesses. Just Eat
usually minimizes use of resources and maximize while its competitors end up spending a lot
especially in marketing (Pengcheng, 2015). Furthermore, Sun Tzu always believed in winning in
the war if the habits build are easy to maintain. On the other hand, the Just Eat Company usually
wins customers and outsmarts its competitors in the market since it always maintains its way of
operations and promotions to the customers.

MANAGEMENT MARKETING 3
The marketing strategy can also fall into place with Sun Tzu’s military treatise.
Marketing is not war and does not aim to eliminate their competitors (Garcia-Fernandez, Bernal-
Garcia, Fernandez-Gavira and Velez-Colon, 2014). However, marketing does still look to have
an advantageous position beyond their competitors. Sun Tzu's most significant contribution to
marketing strategy is his concept of terrain and ground classifications. Which is also utilized by
Just Eat to win its Competitors in online food industry.
Incorporating this concept into marketing can pave strategic decisions by businesses for
“the attacking company, the competition, and the market” which is usually done by Just Eat
Online Food Company. In that case, the techniques of Sun Tzu are also used in marketing by just
eat company to conquer the competition on the market and find customers Just like the story of
Sun Tzu when he beheaded the head officers in the formation for disobeying orders, there has to
be a set way of tactical dispositions (Pengcheng, 2015). Not necessarily beheading employees,
but a mutual understanding of the importance of the work or what is to be expected and if not
followed through there will be a punishment from the administration.

MANAGEMENT MARKETING 4
References
Garcia-Fernandez, J., Bernal-Garcia, A., Fernandez-Gavira, J. and Velez-Colon, L., 2014.
Analysis of existing literature on the management and marketing of the fitness center industry.
South African Journal for Research in Sport, Physical Education, and Recreation, 36(3), pp.75-
91.
Li, P.P. and Young, M., 2017. How to Approach the Ancient Chinese Wisdom? A Commentary
concerning Sun Tzu's The Art of War. Management and Organization Review, 13(4), pp.913-
920.
Pengcheng, Z., 2015. Power Enterprise Marketing Management Marketing Examiner.
Tanner, J. and Raymond, M., 2015. Principles of marketing. University of Minnesota Libraries
Publishing.