Assessing competitive advantage in the natural gas industry

This study used techniques outlined in marketing strategy literature to measure the degree to which sellers in the North American natural gas industry have obtained a competitive advantage. The techniques applied assess competitive advantage and consist of measurements of three elements of competitive advantage: (1) sources of advantage; (2) positional advantages; and (3) performance outcomes.;The most interesting result of the study was the indication that although sellers in the study have been able to achieve competitive advantage through differentiation, this differentiation has not, for the most part, led to a price premium. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).;Sellers identified different sources of advantage, buyers perceived sellers have different positional advantages and sellers achieved differing levels of performance outcomes. Different sources of advantage led to different positional advantages. Different positional advantages led to differing levels of performance outcomes.