{"id":121,"date":"2015-03-11T20:46:22","date_gmt":"2015-03-12T00:46:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/principlesofmarketingh5p\/chapter\/5-4-positioning-and-repositioning-offerings\/"},"modified":"2023-01-13T11:56:13","modified_gmt":"2023-01-13T16:56:13","slug":"positioning-and-repositioning-offerings","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/principlesofmarketingh5p\/chapter\/positioning-and-repositioning-offerings\/","title":{"raw":"5.4 Positioning and Repositioning Offerings","rendered":"5.4 Positioning and Repositioning Offerings"},"content":{"raw":"
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Learning Objectives<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n

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  1. Explain why positioning is an important element when it comes to targeting consumers.<\/li>\r\n \t
  2. Describe how a product can be positioned and mapped.<\/li>\r\n \t
  3. Explain what repositioning is designed is to do.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

    Why should buyers purchase your offering versus another? If your product faces competition, you will need to think about how to \u201cposition\u201d it in the marketplace relative to competing products. After all you don\u2019t want the product to be just another \u201cface in the crowd\u201d in the minds of consumers. Positioning is how consumers perceive a product relative to the competition. Companies want to have a distinctive image and offering that stands out from the competition in the minds of consumers.<\/p>\r\n

    One way to position your product is to plot customer survey data on a perceptual map. A perceptual map is a two-dimensional graph that visually shows where your product stands, or should stand, relative to your competitors, based on criteria important to buyers. The criteria can involve any number of characteristics\u2014price, quality, level of customer service associated with the product, and so on. An example of a perceptual map is shown in Figure 5.10 \"An Example of a Perceptual Map\". To avoid head-to-head competition with your competitors, you want to position your product somewhere on the map where your competitors aren\u2019t clustered.<\/p>\r\n \r\n\r\n[caption id=\"\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"455\"]\"An Figure 5.10: An Example of a Perceptual Map[\/caption]\r\n

    Many companies use taglines in their advertising to try to position their products in the minds of the buyer\u2014where they want them, of course. A tagline is a catchphrase designed to sum up the essence of a product. You perhaps have heard Wendy\u2019s tagline \u201cIt\u2019s better than fast food.\u201d The tagline is designed to set Wendy\u2019s apart from restaurants like McDonald\u2019s and Burger King\u2014to plant the idea in consumers\u2019 heads that Wendy\u2019s offerings are less \u201cfast foodish,\u201d given the bad rap fast food gets these days.<\/p>\r\n

    Sometimes firms find it advantageous to reposition their products\u2014especially if they want the product to begin appealing to different market segments. Repositioning is an effort to \u201cmove\u201d a product to a different place in the minds of consumers. The i-house, a prefab house built by Clayton Homes, a mobile home manufacturer, is an example. According to the magazine Popular Mechanics<\/em>, the i-house \u201clooks like a house you\u2019d order from IKEA, sounds like something designed by Apple, and consists of amenities\u2014solar panels, tankless water heaters and rainwater collectors\u2014that one would expect to come from an offbeat green company out of California selling to a high-end market\u201d (Schwartz, 2009). A Clayton Homes spokesperson says, \u201cAre we repositioning to go after a new market? I would think we are maintaining our value to our existing market and expanding the market to include other buyers that previously wouldn\u2019t have considered our housing product.[footnote]\u201cClayton \u2018i-house\u2019 Is Giant Leap from Trailer Park,\u201d Knoxvillebiz.com, May 6, 2009, http:\/\/www.knoxnews.com\/news\/2009\/may\/06\/clayton-i-house-giant-leap-trailer-park\/ (accessed September 13, 2021).[\/footnote]\u201d<\/p>\r\n \r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_120\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"500\"]\"5.4.0\" Figure 5.11: The Clayton i-house: \u201cA Giant Leap from the Trailer Park\u201d[\/caption]\r\n

    Recently, Porsche unveiled its new line of Panamera vehicles at a Shanghai car show. The car is a global model, but unlike Porsche\u2019s other cars, it\u2019s longer. Why? Because rich car buyers in China prefer to be driven by chauffeurs (Gapper, 2009). How do you think Porsche is trying to reposition itself for the future?<\/p>\r\n\r\n

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    Key Takeaways<\/h1>\r\n<\/header>\r\n
    \r\n\r\nIf a product faces competition, its producer will need to think about how to \u201cposition\u201d it in the marketplace relative to competing products. Positioning is how consumers view a product relative to the competition. A perceptual map is a two-dimensional graph that visually shows where a product stands, or should stand, relative to its competitors, based on criteria important to buyers. Sometimes firms find it advantageous to reposition their products. Repositioning is an effort to \u201cmove\u201d a product to a different place in the minds of consumers.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n
    \r\n

    Review Questions<\/h1>\r\n<\/header>\r\n
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    1. Why do companies position products?<\/li>\r\n \t
    2. Explain what a tagline is designed to do.<\/li>\r\n \t
    3. Why might an organization reposition a product?<\/li>\r\n \t
    4. Word search [h5p id=\"28\"]<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

      References<\/h2>\r\nGapper, J., \u201cWhy Brands Now Rise in the East,\u201d Financial Times<\/em>, April 23, 2009, 9.\r\n\r\nSchwartz, A., \u201cClayton Homes\u2019 i-house Combines Energy Efficiency and Modular Affordability,\u201d Fast Company<\/em>, May 4, 2009, http:\/\/www.fastcompany.com\/blog\/ariel-schwartz\/sustainability\/clayton-homes-75k-energy-efficient-i-house (accessed December 9, 2009).\r\n

      Media Attributions<\/h3>\r\n