Chapter 7 Flashcards
Positioning
The place that a firm, product or brand occupies in consumers’ minds relative to competing products
Planning a positioning strategy
-Marketers need to plan unique positions to gain maximum advantage in selected target markets
-Design marketing mixes to establish and support planned positions
-Plan positions that distinguish products from competing brands
-‘It all comes together with a Castle’
Nature of positioning
Positioning assumes that consumers compare products based on important features
Effective positioning:
-assessing the positions occupied by competing products
-identify the important dimensions underlying the positions
-choosing a position where the firm’s marketing efforts will have the greatest impact
The consequences of failing to select a position
-position with head-on competition
-position with little customer demand
-position with no distinctive features
-non-existent position
Differentiation Criteria
A differentiating variable must meet 4 criteria:
-desirable by consumers
-sustainable over the long-term
-marketed at a price consumers are willingto pay
-profitable
Classifying industries according to competitive advantage
Fragmented
Specialised
Stalemate
Volume
Types of differentiation
-Product differentiation:
-Services accompanying the product
Personnel differentiation
Image differentiation
Product differentiation
Features
Performance
quality improvement
quality maintenance
quality adulteration
Durability
Reliability
Reparability
Style
Reseller brands (‘own brand’)
Product range
Service differentiation
delivery
installation
customer training
consulting service
repairs
miscellaneous services
Personnel differentiation
6 characteristics of trained personnel:
competence
courtesy
credibility
reliability
responsiveness
communication
Image differentiation
Deliver emotional power that appeals to the hearts and minds of buyers
elements:
Symbols
Written and audio or visual media
Events
Atmosphere
Bases for positioning
Attribute
Benefit
Price and quality
Use or application
Product user
Product class
Competitor
Origin
Technology
Process of positioning new product or brand
- Establish what product attributes are important to consumers
- Establish how competing brands are perceived by consumers
- Combine consumer preference map and product/brand positioning map.
Use a positioning map to graphically display the location of products in consumers’ minds - Decide whether to position close to or away from competitors
If the firm decides to go for a gap it must meet three conditions:
-Manufacture products with desired attributes
-Market at the price the market is willing to pay
-Gap must have a sufficient number of consumers
Positioning close to competitors:
-volume of demand is known
expensive
– requires substantial marketing resources
Positioning away from competitors:
-limited direct competition
-uncertain if there is sufficient demand
Repositioning
- Originally not positioned correctly
- Competitors positioned products nearby
- Inadequate demand due to changes in customer tastes and preferences
- Changes in the macro environment
- New opportunities arise due to research and technology
factors to consider before repositioning
-Ability to manufacture the desired product
-Ability to market at desired price
-Cost of repositioning
-Income potential of the product in the new position
