Marketers must keep an eye on the competitiion while considering positioning elements of their marketing strategy. In other words, the company should not go by the flow of the market i. The next stage is how to communicate the differentiated offerings to the identified niche market segments.
This is possible by selecting the appropriate communication channels that are tailored to connect with their identified target audience when they will be most receptive to these messages.
Say for example, a sports car manufacturer position their products through communication via television advertisements during sports events like formula one.
Positioning will help a firm to stand out in the crowd of sellers. A clear Brand Position enables you to efficiently and effectively communicate and reach your target audience. Clear market positioning makes the brand and its product visible and attractive to the customers. Consumers want easy solutions and options to make purchase decisions. And positioning triggers an emotional response from your target audiences, giving them a quick way to trust you and increase the interest level of customers and increase sales numbers.
In the previous lesson, you were given ideas on differentiation. You have seen there that a company can try to differentiate its product in many different ways. No matter how a company tries to differentiate its product, it will not be considered different if customers do not perceive it differently.
Adopting a policy of differentiating products involves a cost to the company, and it expects to realize such costs by increased sales. But, there is no guarantee that sales will go up unless customers act positively. To act positively, customers look for something in a product claimed by its seller as different.
A company should, therefore, be careful in selecting ways of differentiation and provide for the following criteria in its offer:. Experiences say that several companies could not meet the above criteria in their differentiation. This resulted in the failure of and loss to the firms. To achieve this task, marketers use the positioning.
Positioning may be an attempt to differentiate a marketing offer from competitors. The task of choosing and implementing a positioning strategy involves three steps. The company must first identify a set of possible competitive advantages on which the position will be built and then select the appropriate competitive advantages.
Finally, the company must find a way of effectively communicating and delivering the chosen position to the market. For being successful, the company must choose a positioning strategy that gives it an advantage over competitors.
Competitive advantage can be gained by offering consumers greater value, either through lower prices or by providing more benefits that justify higher prices. But promises only are not enough to build strong positions. When a company positions its product as offering the best quality and service, it must ensure the delivery of promised quality and service. Gaining a competitive advantage by differentiating the offer may not always be possible.
Some companies find many insignificant advantages that are swiftly imitated by competitors. These companies should, therefore, keep identifying new potential advantages, and they introduce them one by one.
These companies do not think that they will have a single major permanent advantage. Rather, they expect to gain many minor ones that can be introduced over some time.
A company can differentiate its offer from competitors based on product, services, personnel, or image. Although some companies offer highly standardized products antibiotics , meaningful differentiation might be possible in some cases. Some products can be highly differentiated, such as apartment furniture. In such a case, the company can offer various standards or optional features not provided by competitors.
Thus, Volvo provides new and better safety features; Delta Airlines offers wider seating and free in-flight telephone use. Products can also be differentiated according to performance. Companies also can differentiate their products by style and design.
Products can be differentiated on attributes such as consistency, durability, reliability, or reparability. Many car lovers buy Jaguar cars even though Jaguar has a poor reliability record. A company can also differentiate the services that are associated with the product. Speedy and careful delivery can provide a competitive advantage. Deluxe, a check supply company, has built an impressive reputation for shipping out replacement checks one day after receiving an order — without being late once in 12 years.
IBM, for example, is known for its quality installation service. It delivers all pieces of purchased equipment to the site at one time rather than sending individual components to sit and wait for others to arrive.
Repair services also can differentiate one company from another. Many automobile buyers will be willing to pay a little more for post-purchase repair services. Companies can differentiate their offers by providing training services to buyers. But it is not enough to know this from an internal perspective — marketers must communicate this to the target audiences.
To do this effectively, they must choose communication channels that are designed to connect with their identified target audiences at times when they will be most receptive to these messages. Consider how automobile manufacturers position their products through communication via television commercials during sporting events, for instance, or how cosmetics manufacturers run full-page, full-color ads in women's magazines.
The final challenge in effective product positioning is conveying the differentiating, value-added aspects of your product or service to your target audience through the communication channels you have selected.
These messages are designed to convey how your product is different and better than competitive offerings, as well as to address the value-added attributes that are important to your audience. Product positioning is at the foundation of any effective marketing plan because it impacts the ultimate purchase decision. Leigh Richards has been a writer since
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