COM3021
Informative Speech Outline
1. Speech Topic: Summary of the Case Study: Amazon.com, Inc.
2. General Purpose: To inform
3. Specific Purpose: At the end of my speech, my listeners will understand the main ideas
presented in the case study: Amazon.com, Inc
4. Thesis: Since its inception, Amazon.com has grown to be among the largest companies in the
United States, and that success came via various strategic moves such as acquisitions and
constant innovation.
Preparation Outline:
Attention grabber: Raise your hand if you have ordered something off of Amazon in the past 6
months that wasn’t a book.
I.
Introduction
A. In 1994, a small online bookstore was founded, with a clear, forward-looking
mission statement: “Our vision is to be the Earth’s most customer centric
company; to build a place where people can come to find and discover anything
they might want to buy online”.
Company’s name was Amazon, and today it is the leading e-retailer in the United
States, with net sales of close to $400 billion in 2020.
Today, I will tell you about the history, and operating principles of this company.
(Transition: Let’s begin with a brief history).
II.
Body
III.
A. Main Idea #1: Historical context: from a bookstore to IPO of over $40 million in
1997 and a set of innovations in early 2000s
1. Founded by Jeff Bezos, it was first a bookstore, but showing early signs of
innovation and differentiation:
a. Offered up to 30% off to customers, beating its competitors on the
cost field
b. Offered technological features such as 1-click shopping, making the
entire experience for customers simple and convenient.
2. Expansion through IPO and acquisitions
a. IPO in 1997, priced at $18 a share, raising $54 million, and went up by
30% by the end of the day.
b. For comparison, Facebook share value went down by 26% another
day, getting a massive attention in the media and financial sector.
Just as 26% dip is significant, a 30% increase is notable, especially
when it happens over a very short period of time.
c. Following the IPO, there were several acquisitions, such as Zappos,
Audible, and Quidsi - which owns companies selling diapers and
soaps.
d. Not all acquisitions were successful, but due to scale, company could
afford few fails such as Fire Phone – a phone that simply didn’t make
it.
(Transition: As company established its position in the markets, it had to further innovate to
stay ahead)
B. Main Idea #2: Introduction of Prime along with other features that came with it
allowed company to grow beyond predictions.
1. Prime was introduced in 2005 – free 2-day shipping, free access to streaming
movies, TV Shows, music, and audiobooks.
a. Introduction of Prime Day – discounts for only Prime members
b. In 2017, Prime Day sales surpassed those of Black Friday and
Cyber Monday on the website
2. After prime, company introduced its first device developed directly by the
company – Kindle, which changed the way people read the books.
(Now that we are familiar with the history and events that lead to the success of
Amazon that we know today, it is worth asking what the next steps for this company
are, and whether it has prospects for survival in the current markets).
C. Main Idea #3: By looking at the current financial prospects, along with knowing
the company’s forward-looking way of operating, we can get a better sense of
the future of this company.
1. During the first 20 years of its existence, Amazon’s stock price provided over
60,000% return.
a. Portion of the company’s success ca be attributed to its forwardlooking strategy, which can be seen in Bezos’ first letter to
shareholders in 1997 where he states his goal of creating the value
for investors over the long term.
2. As everything has two sides of a coin, there is criticism on the constant longterm value outlook and downplaying of short-term prospects, especially with
the current urgent need for raising wages in the immediate term.
(Transition: Which brings us to the conclusions of the discussion on Amazon.com)
IV.
Conclusion
Amazon.com continues to be among the most revenue driving companies in the U.S., with over
150 million Amazon Prime users in the country only. For the reference, the U.S. has a
population of around 330 million, meaning that almost every other person has Prime
membership.
As markets change, and the things that worked in the past don’t work anymore, and new
companies emerge, the future of Amazon remains unknown. Depending on what metrics are
being used, different parties reach different conclusions.
I hope my short speech has informed you more in detail about Amazon.com, Inc, and gave you
some highlights from the company’s inception, as well as operating principles and strategy.