Session 15

PRODUCT
DIFFERENTIATION
&
POSITIONING
Aneeel_reddy@yahoo.com 9346022422
Positioning:
Positioning is the act of communicating company’s
offer so that it occupies a distinct and valued place in
the customer’s mind.
Differentiation can be achieved through multiple sources:
 Modi Xerox – collaboration
 L & T – recruits engineers with excellent qualifications
 Eureka Forbes – personal selling to reach customers

Product lends maximum scope for differentiation

Differentiation can be achieved through multiple sources:
 Product Differentiation
 Promotional Differentiation
 Distribution Differentiation
 Price Differentiation
Product lends maximum scope for differentiation:
1. Tangible Product Attributes and Functions
 Ingredients / Formula
 Functional Value
 Additional features
 Packaging
 Design superiority
 Product quality / technology / service / operational efficiency
2. Intangible Characteristics and Emotional Associations
 Enhancing value
 Identifying the buying motives or target customers
 Locating product attributes
 Ingredients / Formula:
 example: Close-Up with gel, Vatika with herbal ingredients

 Functional Value
 Example: Cello tape, videocon compluter controlled fridge, roti chef

 Additional features
 Example: aristocrat suitcase with wheels, dunlop’s olympus tyres

 Packaging
 Example: Frooti in tetrapack, Lesancy soap in a see through-pack

 Design superiority
 Example: Kinetic Honda electronic ignition, automatic gear shifting

 Product quality / technology / service / operational efficiency

 Example: Godrej, Ford excelling through service
2. Intangible Characteristics and Emotional Associations
 Enhancing value
 Identifying the buying motives or target customers
 Locating product attributes
Example: Dinesh Suitings, Raid & Taylor, Ray Ban glasses
Product Positioning
Product Positioning:
 Positioning – The Battle for your Mind say.
 Positioning is what you do to the mind of the prospect.
 Positioning means putting the product in a predetermined orbit.
 Positioning connect product offering with target market.
Product Positioning:
 Consumer’s mind a Geometric Perceptual Space; the
Product/Brand seeks a Locus in the Space Through Positioning
Product Positioning:
 Positioning is not Over at One Stroke; it has to be Monitored and
Adapted.
Product Positioning and Value Proposition:
 Value Proposition is the statement of benefits and satisfaction
that the product is offering.
 Example:
Citibank: For the business traveller. . . .
The most convenient bank

Positioning is not an afterthought:

Avenues for Positioning:
 Positioning against competition, its performance gaps\
 Positioning on the consumer’s expectations and desires.
 Positioning on the plank of quality
 Positioning on the plank of service.
 Postioning on the the product’s conformity with soicetal
demands
Main elements in the Positioning task:
 Relate and link your postion to your differentiation theme.
 Find out the Positioning gaps in the product category and the attributes that can fill
them in the minds of the consumers.
 Analyse your competitors positions and identify the possible position for your
product.
 Evaluate the leader’s postion, that occupies a special postion in the consumers
mind; other brands have to necessarily relate themselves in someway.
 Decide the locus you seek in minds of consumers and the attributes of your offer.
 Relate and link your postioning to your target conusmers
 Communicate effectively to the target market.
 Link your postioning to your value proposition.
 Monitor the postion a.s the product picks up.
Positioning of Complan:

Stage I
 Complan was first launched by Glaxo, UK, durign World War II.
 It was part of the ration for the soldiers.
 Since then, the brand has travelled a long way.
Positioning of Complan:

Stage II
 Glaxo launched Complan for the mass marketi.
 Glaxo positioned it as supplementary nutrtion for adults in
convalescence.
 Brand got the image of sick man’s source of nutrition.
 This positioning di not bring much success.
Positioning of Complan:
Stage III
 Complan found the growing child as the big market segemtn for
health drinks.
 Complan took a new positioning as “A Complete Planned Food
for Children”.
 It was positioned against milk.
 This positioning did not bring the desired success because the
taste was not agreeable to children,
Positioning of Complan:

Stage IV
 Now postioning was against Horlicks.
 Price of Complan was double that of Horlicksa and buyers shied
away.
 Again search for right postioning continued.
Positioning of Complan:

Stage V
 Glaxo gave up the comparative postioning.
 Target user and usage occassion became major consideration
in the new postioning.
 New users segments and new users for the product were
identified.
Positioning of Complan:
Stage V
New positioning
Complan was for
 The child, ‘the problem eater’
 The young executive, too busy to eat
 The grandpa, too ill to eat
 Young housewife, needed extra nourishment for all the strain she takes
and to guard against hidden diet deficiencies.
 In the family everybody had some use for complan.
► Flavors like cardamom and strawburry were added; new packaging.
► Complan finally found a good orbit.