Prioritization of Business Strategies and Marketing Resources Using the Analytic Network Process (ANP) Approach

Today, with the growing competition in domestic and international markets, the ability of agribusiness companies to survive and to grow depends on choosing and implementing a sustainable business strategy. However, this task actually is not as easy as it seems, because it is important to consider various criteria and interrelations between them for choosing the best business strategy. Additionally, matching business strategy with organizational resources is essential for gaining a competitive advantage. Using the ANP model, the purpose of the current study was to select the most suitable business strategy for one of the largest saffron companies in Iran. The results revealed that differentiation strategy had the highest priority with 39% of the influence. Another finding was that managerial capabilities among organizational resources were relatively more important in choosing a business strategy. According to the findings of the study, it is suggested that agribusiness firm managers pay special attention to three important elements, namely, improving the financial condition, knowing the needs of customers, and creation of new innovative products or services, to implement a differentiation strategy.