This document discusses various aspects of positioning services in the market. It defines positioning as the place a product occupies in consumers' minds relative to competing products. It then provides examples of different types of positioning, including by specific attributes, price/quality, use, product class, user, and competitor. The document emphasizes that an effective positioning strategy must establish a simple, consistent message that sets a firm or product apart. It also discusses using positioning maps to analyze competitive strategies.

1. Market Positioning in Services
Deepika Sonawane (68)
Ketakee Pawar (51)
Ameya Walanj (74)
Prashant Panchal ()

3. Positioning
The place a
product occupies
in consumers’
minds relative to
competing
products.

4. Positioning Example
• eBay’s positioning:
No matter what
“it” is, you can find
“it” on eBay!

5. Types of Positioning

6. • Positioning by Specific Product Attribute and
Benefits.
Here the marketer associates a product with an
attribute, a product feature or
a consumer feature.
A common approach is setting the brand apart
from competitors on the basis of the specific
characteristics or benefits offered.
Eg. Ariel – Cleans even the dirtiest- Micro Cleaning
system in the product.

7. • POSITIONING BY PRICE/ QUALITY
The positioning is done based on price and
quality of the product.
Premium products are positioned like this.
Eg. Rolex (high price)
Nirma washing powder (low price)

8. • POSITIONING BY USE OR APPLICATION
specific image or position for a brand is to
associate it with a specific use or application.
Eg. Surf Excel hai na!

9. • POSITIONING BY PRODUCT CLASS
Often the competition for a particular product
comes from outside the product class.
Eg. For CD Players- Cassette Players, MP3
players, even radio are all are possible
competitions.

10. • POSITIONING BY PRODUCT USER
Here the persona of the product is associated
with the User.
Eg. Idea – Abhishek Bachan

11. • POSITIONING BY COMPETITOR
This is similar to positioning by product class,
although in this case the competition is within
the same product category.
Eg. Onida TV – “Neighbour’s Envy, Owners
Pride” .

12. • POSITIONING BY CULTURAL SYMBOLS
the cultural symbols are used to differentiate
the brands. Examples would be Humara
Bajaj, MDH-Degi Mirch, Air India

13. Of Positioning Strategy

14. • Must establish position for firm or product in
minds of target customers
• Position should provide one simple, consistent
message

15. • Position must set firm/product apart from
competitors
• A company cannot be all things to all people -
must focus its efforts

16. Effective Positioning Strategy

17. • What customers do we serve now, and which ones
would we like to target in future?
• What does our firm currently stand for in the minds
of current and potential customers?
• What is value proposition for each of our current
service products, and what market segments is each
one targeted at?

18. • How well do customers in chosen target
segments perceive our service products as
meeting their needs relative to competitors?
• What changes must we make to our offerings
to strengthen our competitive position?

19. Developing an Effective Positioning
Strategy

20. • Positioning links market analysis and competitive
analysis to internal corporate analysis
• Market Analysis
– Focus on overall level and trend of demand and
geographic locations of demand
– Look into size and potential of different market
segments
– Understand customer needs and preferences and
how they perceive the competition

21. • Internal Corporate Analysis
– Identify organization’s resources, limitations, goals, and
values
– Select limited number of target segments to serve
• Competitor Analysis
– Understand competitors’ strengths and weaknesses
– Anticipate responses to potential positioning strategies

22. Using Positioning Maps to Analyze
Competitive Strategy

23. • Great tool to visualize competitive positioning
and map developments of time
• Useful way to represent consumer
perceptions of alternative products graphically
• Also known as perceptual maps (built on
preference maps)
• Information about a product can be obtained
from market data, derived from ratings by
representative consumers or both

24. Positioning Map of Chocolates

25. Positioning Maps Help Managers to
Visualize Strategy
• Positioning maps display relative performance of
competing firms on key attributes
• Research provides inputs to development of
positioning maps - challenge is to ensure that
– Attributes employed in maps are important to target
segments
– Performance of individual firms on each attribute
accurately reflects perceptions of customers in target
segments

26. • Predictions can be made of how positions may
change in light of future developments
• Simple graphic representations are often easier for
managers to grasp than tables of data or paragraphs
of prose
• Charts and maps can facilitate “visual awakening” to
threats and opportunities, suggest alternative
strategic directions

27. Elements of Positioning

28. • The Product:
This is where the consumer decides how
important the product is and what meaning it has
and how he relates it with his need.

29. • The Company
Every product comes from a company and every
company has its own Image.
Better Company profile, Better the perceived
value of the product.
In some cases the brand name overshadows the
name of the company. Eg. Amul – GCMMF (Gujrat
Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation)

30. • The Competition
Product Positioning is done in relation to various
competitive offerings.
Most of the cases a products are compared with
the dominant brand in the same category.
Selecting a slot distinctly different from the
competitors can avoid direct confrontation with
them.

31. • The Consumer
To re-enforce, Positioning is essentially based on
consumer perceptions rather than factual evaluations.
It becomes very important, to examine, what is the
perceived value of the product for the consumer.
To Analyze this, we should be through with Consumer
Behaviour.

32. Positioning Methods

33. Positioning Methods for a product depends
upon the nature of the product.
One Cannot position all the product in a same
way.

34. Impulse Goods
• Products like Chocolates, Soft drinks are
generally purchased without a lot of
deliberation. Here, Availability, Brand
Awareness and Positioning Plays a key role.
Simple slogans like “ Thanda Matlab Coca
Cola”, “Kuch Meetha Ho jaye”, Utterly Butterly
delicious” Works good and gives a strong
brand recall during the purchase.

35. Daily Use Items
• Daily use products like Soaps, Toothpaste,
Shampoos, command a brand loyalty and are
purchased as a habit on a regular basis.
• Here the positioning effort are aimed at
promoting habitual buying of the same brand.
• The Basic aim becomes to influence the habit
of the consumer.

36. Specialty Items
• Specialty Products like shoes, garments this
segment of products involve deliberation as
the consumers look for different combinations
of Styles, Features and Price.
• The Marketer tries to highlight the products
features. Tries to build emotional appeal.

37. Consumer Durables
• Products like Refrigerators, Washing
Machines, Television sets are the products
which are not purchased frequently. The
consumer gathers fair information about the
product before making the purchase decision.
• Marketer tries to win the consumer by
positioning the brand’s superiority over
others. Mainly Known as USP.

38. Industrial Products
• Now a days, Industrial product manufacturers
have also begun to position its products.
• Classification of Industrial Product: categories
of goods and services bought by organizations
for use in production or in the operation of
their business; classes include
installation, accessories, raw materials,
component parts, supplies, and services.
• Marketers mainly stresses on The quality,
Features, Ingredients, productivity, Ease of
Storage, handling, Technology etc to Position
Industrial Products.

39. Changing Competitive Positioning

40. • Positions evolve in response to changing
market structures, technology, competitive
activity, and the nature of firm itself
• Firm may have to make significant change in
existing position
– Revising service characteristics; redefining target
market segments; abandoning certain products;
withdrawing from certain market segments