Objective 5.02 Explain product

positioning.

Product positioningGetting consumers to think of a product in

a certain way.

Ways to segment a market:DemographicsPsychographicsGeographicsBehavioralHybrid

Demographics Demographic segmentation divides

the market based on personal characteristics such as:

Age (14-20,21-29,30-45,46-56,57-65+, Gender Income ($25-$35K,$36-$46K,$56-$60K,

$65-$70K) Ethnic background (Hispanic, African or

Asian American ) Education (H.S. college, graduate,

doctoral degree) Occupation (Teacher, doctor, coach,

military)

Psychographics Psychographic segmentation divides the

market based on values, attitudes and lifestyles.

Consumers who enjoy professional wrestling might not enjoy the ballet.

Geographics Geographic segmentation

divides a market based on where a person lives.

Consumers living in the Boone area are more likely to attend an event held in that area.

Behavioral Behavioral segmentation divides

the market into groups based on what they are looking for in a product and why they buy the product.

Consumers may be loyal to Jennifer Lopez and go to as many of her concerts as possible.

Hybrid Consumer segments brought

together using several variables. Example: Psychodemographic

segmentation might be based on education and lifestyle.

Example: Consumers with a high level of education tend to play more golf.

Explain product positioning

The consumers’ perception impacts image.

Marketers must understand the consumer’s attitudes and needs affecting their perceptions of the product.

Consumer perceptions are based on experiences. Products should be positioned based on image.

Ex. Mountain Dew sponsors “extreme” sports.

To increase market share, companies may choose to utilize a multi-positioning strategy.

Niche marketing

Targeting an underserved market. Characteristics of a niche market include:Smaller markets.Specific needs.Example: Doritos targeting

skateboarding fanatics.

Multi-position strategy

To increase market share, companies may choose to utilize a multi-positioning strategy. Multi-positioning is positioning the same product differently to a variety of markets. For example: Dell positions computers differently to mature markets than to tween markets.

Mature markets are positioned through the benefits of sending/receiving email and photos from family members.

Tween markets are positioned through gaming and instant messaging.

PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE

Product Life Cycle Strategies

Introduction stage: stimulate consumer interest and create awareness.

Growth stage: stress benefits of a product over its competitor’s products.

Maturity stage: repositioning a product.

Decline stage: greatly reduce marketing or drop product due to poor sales.

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Introduction stageStrategies during this stage should stimulate consumer interest and create awareness.

Example: A company may show more commercials to make its target market aware that the product is now available.

Growth stageGrowth stage. Strategies during

this stage stress benefits of a product over its competitor’s products.

Example: A company may say its brand is a higher quality product than the product its competitors sell.

Maturity StageStrategies during this stage may include

repositioning a product. Choosing a different target market to

position the product. When the existing target market gets tired of a product, choosing a new group of people to market the product will make the product seem new to them.

Decline stage Strategies during this stage may

be to greatly reduce marketing support or drop a product due to poor sales and lack of consumer interest. At some point, consumers do not want a product anymore, therefore it is time to drop the product and find something new.