Ch.7-Differentiation & Positioning (Marketing Exam 2)

Competitive Advantage

an advantage over competitors gained by offering consumers greater value, either through lower prices or by providing more benefits that justify higher prices

Positioning Maps

show consumer perceptions of their brands versus competing products on important buying dimensions

Finding the Right Job For Your Product--The Four P's

(1)Promotion: -Guides customers to the right products -Giving companies and marketers a sense of "true north" as they develop and market new and improved versions of products (2)Products: -Avoid offering features or improving on dimensions of performance that are irrelevant to the job (3)Price: -Know whether their offering is over- or underpriced (4)Placement: -Where to put products

Selecting an Overall Positioning Strategy--Value Proposition

the full mix of benefits upon which a brand is positioned

Product Differentiation

the process of distinguishing a product or service from others, to make it more attractive to a particular target market -Quality, performance, conformance -Durability -Reliability -Repairability -Style -Design

People Differentiation

-Competence -Courtesy -Credibility -Reliability -Responsiveness -Communication

Channel Differentiation

-Coverage -Expertise of the channel managers -Performance of the channel in ease of ordering, and service, and personnel

Image Differentiation

-First distinction between Identity and Image - Identity is designed by the company and through its various actions company tries to make it known to the market. -Image is the understanding and view of the market about the company. -An effective image does three things for a product or company. 1. It establishes the product's planned character and value proposition. 2. It distinguishes the product from competing products. 3. It delivers emotional power and stirs the hearts as well as the minds of buyers. The identity of the company or product is communicated to the market by --Symbols --Written and audiovisual media --Atmosphere of the physical place with which customer comes into contact --Events organized or sponsored by the company.

Choosing a Differentiation and Positioning Strategy

-Identifying a set of possible competitive advantages to build a position -Choosing the right competitive advantages -Selecting an overall positioning strategy -Communicating and delivering the chosen position to the market

Choosing a Differentiation and Positioning Strategy (Ways of Differentiation)

-Product Differentiation -Service Differentiation -Channel Differentiation -People Differentiation -Image Differentiation

Finding the Right Job For Your Product

-When customers find that they need to get a job done, they "hire" products or services to do the job -Marketers need to understand the jobs that arise in customers' lives for which their products might be hired -Customers often don't value the differentiation, and competitors find it easy to copy

Choosing the Right Competitive Advantage (Competitive advantage should be...)

Difference to promote should be: -Important -Distinctive -Superior -Communicable -Preemptive -Affordable -Profitable

Service Differentiation

Factors: -Ordering Ease -Delivery -Installation -Customer Training -Customer Consulting -Maintenance and Repair

Value Proposition Table (Price/Benefits)

More=winning Less=losing

Product Position

the way the product is defined by consumers on important attributes--the place the product occupies in consumers' minds relative to competing products -perceptions -impressions -feelings