Brand Positioning

• Is at the heart of the marketing strategy

• “. . . the act of designing the company’s

offer and image so that it occupies a
distinct and valued place in the target
customer’s minds.”
Philip Kotler

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.2

Determining a frame of reference
• What are the ideal points-of-parity and
points-of-difference brand associations
vis-à-vis the competition?
• Marketers need to know:
o Who the target consumer is
o Who the main competitors are
o How the brand is similar to these competitors
o How the brand is different from them

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.3

Target Market
• A market is the set of all actual and potential
buyers who have sufficient interest in, income
for, and access to a product.
• Market segmentation divides the market into
distinct groups of homogeneous consumers who
have similar needs and consumer behavior, and
who thus require similar marketing mixes.
• Market segmentation requires making tradeoffs
between costs and benefits.
Segmentation Bases
• B2C: Fig. 3-1, p 99
• B2B: Fig. 3-2, p 102
• Funnel Model: Fig. 3-3, p
103

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.4

Example of Toothpaste Market
• Four main segments:
[Link]: Seeking flavor and product
appearance
[Link]: Seeking brightness of teeth
[Link]: Seeking decay prevention
[Link]: Seeking low price

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.5

Criteria for Segmentation
• Identifiability: Can we easily identify the segment?
• Size: Is there adequate sales potential in the
segment?
• Accessibility: Are specialized distribution outlets
and communication media available to reach the
segment?
• Responsiveness: How favorably will the segment
respond to a tailored marketing program?

Identifiability,
Size
• Diet Colas: p 100-101: Problem in
Segmentation?
Behavioural • Mobil: p 104-105: Type of Segmentation?
Segmentation

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.6

Nature of Competition
• Deciding to target a certain type of
consumer often defines the nature of
competition
• Do not define competition too narrowly
o Ex: a luxury good with a strong hedonic benefit
like stereo equipment may compete as much
with a vacation as with other durable goods
like furniture

TATA Indica: p 106-

107

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.7

POPs & PODs
• Points-of-parity associations (POPs), on the other
hand, are not necessarily unique to the brand but
may in fact be shared with other brands.
• Points-of-difference (PODs) are attributes or benefits
that consumers strongly associate with a brand,
positively evaluate, and believe that they could not
find to the same extent with a competitive brand.
• Closely Related to Concepts of: USP & SCA

Examples
• Ikea: p 108
• Subaru: p 109
• Nivea: p 109
• Miller Lite: p
110

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.8

Brand Positioning Guidelines

• Two key issues in arriving at the optimal

competitive brand positioning are:
o Defining and communicating the competitive
frame of reference
o Choosing and establishing points-of-parity
and points-of-difference

PDA : p 111

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.9

Defining & Communicating
Competitive Frame of Reference
• Defining a competitive frame of reference
for a brand positioning is to determine
category membership.
• The preferred approach to positioning is to
inform consumers of a brand’s
membership before stating its point of
difference in relationship to other category
members.
• PDA : p 111 Performance & Imagery
• FedEx : p 112- • Exemplars &
113 Descriptors
• BMW: p 112 p 113

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.10

Choosing POP’s & POD’s
• Desirability criteria (consumer
perspective)
o Personally relevant
o Distinctive and superior
o Believable and credible
• Deliverability criteria (firm perspective)
o Feasible
o Profitable
o Pre-emptive, defensible, and difficult to attack

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.11

Attribute and Benefit Trade-offs
• Price and quality
• Convenience and quality
• Taste and low calories
• Efficacy and mildness
• Power and safety
• Ubiquity and prestige
• Comprehensiveness (variety) and
simplicity
• Strength and refinement
- vely Correlated POPs &
PODs

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.12

Strategies to Reconcile Trade-offs
• Establish separate marketing programs
o Head & Shoulders Campaigns : p 116
• Leverage secondary association (e.g., co-brand)
o Intel Inside
o Using a Celebrity: Miller Lite – p 116
• Re-define the relationship from negative to positive
o Apple Computers : Power vs Usage
o Recent Computer Education Ads: Cost vs Quality

• Updating Positioning over Time: Visa & American Express – p 117

o Laddering: Attributes Benefits Values : Examples – p 120
o Reacting: Goodyear vs Michelin – p 120
o Straddling: Miller Lite, BMW, Apple

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.13

Core Brand Associations
• Set of abstract concepts (attributes &
benefits) or phrases that characterize the
five to ten most important dimensions of
the mental map of a brand
• Relate to points-of-parity and points-of-
difference
• Mental map Core brand values Brand mantra

• MTV Mental Map: p 121

• Core Brand Associations: p
122

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.14

Brand Mantras

• An articulation of the “heart and soul” of the

brand
• Similar to “brand essence” or “core brand
promise”
• Short three- to five-word phrases that
capture the irrefutable essence or spirit of
the brand positioning and brand values
• Considerations
o Communicate
o Simplify
o Inspire : Customers & Employees
October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.15
Designing the Brand Mantra
• The term brand functions describes the
nature of the product or service or the
type of experiences or benefits the brand
provides.
• The descriptive modifier further clarifies its
nature.
• The emotional modifier provides another
qualifier—how exactly does the brand
provide benefits, and in what way?

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.16

Designing the Brand Mantra

Emotional Descriptive Brand

Modifier Modifier Functions

Authentic Athletic Performance

Implementations : p 124, 126

Fun Family Entertainment

Fun Folks Food

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.17

Internal Branding

• Members of the organization are properly

aligned with the brand and what it
represents.
• Crucial for service companies

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.18

Brand Audit
• Externally, consumer-focused assessement
• A comprehensive examination of a brand
involving activities to assess the health of
the brand, uncover its sources of equity,
and suggest ways to improve and leverage
that equity
• It includes brand vision, mission, promise,
values, position, personality, and
performance

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.19

Importance of Brand Audits

• Understand sources of brand equity

o Firm perspective
o Consumer perspective
• Set strategic direction for the brand
• Recommend marketing programs to
maximize long-term brand equity

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.20

Brand Audit Steps

• Brand inventory (supply side)

• Brand exploratory (demand side)

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.21

Brand Inventory

• A current comprehensive profile of how all

the products and services sold by a
company are branded and marketed:
o Brand elements
o Supporting marketing programs
o Profile of competitive brands
o POPs and PODs
o Brand mantra

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.22

Brand Inventory (Cont.)

• Suggests the bases for positioning the

brand
• Offers insights to how brand equity may be
better managed
• Assesses consistency in message among
activities, brand extensions, and sub-
brands in order to avoid redundancies,
overlaps, and consumer confusion

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.23

Brand Exploratory
• Provides detailed information as to how
consumers perceive the brand:
o Awareness
o Favorability
o Uniqueness of associations
• Helps identify sources of customer-based
brand equity
• Uncovers knowledge structures for the core
brand as well as its competitors

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.24

 Suggested Brand Audit Outline
• Brand audit objectives, scope, and approach
• Background about the brand (self-analysis)
• Background about the industries
• Consumer analysis (trends, motivation, perceptions,
needs, segmentation, behavior)
• Brand inventory
o Elements, current marketing programs, POPs, PODs
o Branding strategies (extensions, sub-brands, etc.)
o Brand portfolio analysis
o Competitors’ brand inventory
o Strengths and weaknesses

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.25

Brand Audit Outline (Cont.)

• Brand exploratory
o Brand associations
o Brand positioning analysis
o Consumer perceptions analysis (vs. competition)
• Summary of competitor analysis
• SWOT analysis
• Brand equity evaluation
• Strategic brand management recommendations

October 2011 S. Balachandran ... [Link] 3.26