Basic Product Positioning Strategies

During my brand management stint in the early 90′s, positioning was a marketing buzz word. Everytime I would meet a fellow marketer during those days, question like “What’s your product positioning?” usually would be part of the conversation. Jack Trout and Al Ries were the first marketing gurus who popularized positioning at least during my time.  It was also where I initially learned the basic concept of product positioning. They described it as the basic position in the consumer’s mind occupied by a brand. It is connected to the concept of “target market.” That is, a brand’s positioning defines the target audience.

But how is positioning used? According to Jerry Thomas of Decision Analyst, the positioning possibilities that exist for any given brand or service are almost infinite. Some commonly used positioning strategies are:

- Positioning against a broader market. For example, positioning a bicycle brand as a substitute for the automobile, rather than as a substitute for other brands of bicycles.
- Positioning against a price segment of the market. One example would be positioning a car brand against luxury imported cars.
- Positioning against a usage segment of the market. For example, positioning a brand of cooking oil as the very best brand of oil for frying chicken.
- Positioning against a psychographic segment of the market. For example, positioning Volvo as the best car for drivers who are primarily concerned about safety.
- Positioning against a channel of distribution, a season of the year, a particular type of weather, a human fear, etc.

Again, positioning possibilities are almost limitless for any given brand and can be defined in many different ways. The correct positioning of a brand is basic and fundamental to its success. An incorrect or positioning can doom a brand to underperformance or failure. So, how does one arrive at an optimal positioning for a given brand? The search for an optimal positioning begins in the mind of the consumer, and that’s when we must turn to marketing research for help.

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