B.C.G. analysis is a technique used in brand marketing, product management, and strategic management to help a company decide what products to add to its product portfolio. It involves rating products according to their relative market share and market growth rate. The products are then plotted on a two dimensional map. Products with high market share but low growth are referred to as "cash cows". Products with high market share and high growth are referred to as "stars". Products with low market share in a low growth market are referred to as "dogs" and should usually be managed for value, that is as much money should be harvested from those products with low or no investments. Products with low market share but high market growth are referred to as "question marks" or "problem children". It is crucial for those products or brands to improve their market share before the market growth is consumed by the competition. The technique can also be applied to a portfolio of companies.

Although the BCG Matrix is not used as often as it was in past years, one big advantage of the matrix is its ability to provide a comprehensive snapshot of the positions of a company's various business concerns. Furthermore, an important benefit of the BCG Matrix is that is draws attention to the cash flow, investment characteristics, and needs of an organization's business units, helping organizations to maintain a balanced portfolio.

Unfortunately, the BCG Matrix, like all analytical techniques, also has some important limitations. It has been criticized for being too simplistic in its use of growth rate and market share. Market growth rate is only one variable in market attractiveness and market share is only one variable in a business's competitive position. Furthermore, viewing every business as a star, cash flow, dog, or question mark is not always realistic. A four-cell matrix is too simple because strategic competitive positions are more complicated than "high" and "low".

Another disadvantage of using the BCG Matrix is that it is often difficult for a company to sufficiently divide its business units or product lines. Consequently, it is difficult to determine market share for the various units of concern.

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