Reaching the Customer Flashcards
State the positioning statement
“Our (product/brand) is (single most important claim), among all (competitive firms) because (single most important supports)”
What is the goal of positioning?
To occupy a clear, distinctive and attractive place, relative to competing products, in the minds of target consumers
What is the significance of the second key to success?
You need to convince the customer that the product provides that unique benefit through consistent marketing strategy: This is significant because your strategy needs to be reflected throughout all aspects of your organization and be consistent in its message
Explain how the value proposition and the positioning statement affect the consistency of a company
They are clear, concise statements of product’s benefits and uniqueness; they act as a glue that keeps decisions consistent and guides the development of the marketing strategy
What is an example of a company that didn’t change their product, but changed their marketing to change the perception?
Baby carrots. They wanted to make carrots an exciting snack, so their changed their packaging and their marketing to look like junk food, which affected their sales, as well as changing their location (both grocery stores and in vending machines at schools)
What are the 4P’s?
Product, price, promotion, place
What is total product concept?
The entire experience the customer has with the product through: branding and packaging (promotion); service and warranty (customer relationship); delivery, credit, atmosphere image/reputation, and location (place); price
What affects the “product” segment of the 4P’s?
Product classification, product life cycle, product adoption curve, product offering (total product concept), branding, and customer relationships
What is an example of a product that was not consistent in its marketing and delivery? How did that effect its sales?
The Toyota Scion: targets young people who want a fun, stylish first car. The car is smaller, colorful, and customizable, and the price matches the market. Its promotion matches relatively well. However, it’s place (distribution) is at the Toyota dealerships: the place does not match its proposition statement because young people do not want to buy their car at the same place their parents buy their “boring” cars. They might feel intimidated walking into a car dealership to buy a car for the first time. Therefore, their sales suffered significantly
How do you know how to market your product to your customers?
You need to know how your customers behave when buying your product: do they spend a lot of time? money? Do they treat it like a convenience good? How would that impact your marketing/distribution?
What are the three components of the “marketing concept”, from which the total product concept is derived?
- Focusing on customer wants, so the organization can distinguish its product(s) from competitive offerings
- Integrating all the organization’s activities, including production, to satisfy these customer wants
- Achieving long-term goals by satisfying customer wants and needs legally, responsible, and ethically
What is the purpose of the marketing (total product) concept?
To have a customer vs. production orientation - to be customer-centric vs. company-centric
Why do we use the 4A’s instead of the 4P’s?
The 4A’s are laid on top of the 4P’s to turn marketing into a much more customer-oriented focus instead of a company-oriented focus
What are the 4A’s?
Acceptability, Affordability, Accessibility, Awareness
What are the two aspects of acceptability? Describe each
- Functional: does it address the jobs customers need done? Does it function in a way that meets customer needs?
- Psychological: do I feel good when I use this product? Does it meet my social/emotional needs?
What are the two aspects of affordability? Describe each
- Economic: can customers afford this product?
2. Psychological: are customers willing to part with this amount of money/time/convenience/effort for this product?
What are the two aspects of accessibility? Describe each
- Availability: is it easily available for customers to purchase?
- Convenience: is it convenient for customers to reach? (eg. can it be shipped to Canada, or only in the states? How far do you have to drive to get it?)
What are the two aspects of awareness? Describe each
- Product knowledge: are customers aware that your product is out there and available for them?
- Brand awareness: can customers recognize your product? Do customers trust your brand?
Define acceptability
The extent to which the firm’s total product offering meets and exceeds customer needs and expectations
Define affordability
The extent to which customers are able and willing to pay the product’s price - monetary and non-monetary
Define accessibility
The extent to which customers are able to readily acquire and use the product
Define awareness
The extend to which customers are informed regarding product characteristics, persuaded to try it, and reminded to repurchase
Why do the 4A’s matter?
They focus on the values that matter most to customer/set of conditions that must be fulfilled. It focuses on why and how vs. what
What are the four roles that customers play?
- Seeker
- Buyer
- Payer
- User
Explain how customers can act as a seeker (connection to awareness)
Customers seek information about your company and about your product. To be successful as a company you need to build out awareness. Customers need to be educated and inspired to act, inspired to move into the next role
Explain how customers can act as a buyer (connection to accessibility)
Once customers are excited about your product, it needs to be conveniently available for them to purchase
Explain how customers can act as a payer (connection to affordability)
The product needs to be affordable for your customers (economically and psychologically)
Explain how customers can act as a user (connection to acceptability)
The product needs to be a product that the customers are going to use and are willing to spend time/money on
What are the 6 guidelines for using the 4A’s?
- Market Value Coverage (MVC) is the goal
- The A’s are multiplicative
- The A’s are additive
- The A’s are dynamic instead of static
- The A’s are integrative and can move in tandem
- Sequencing matters
- You can leverage all resources to increase MVC
Describe the concept of Market Value Coverage
It is a measure of how well the overall marketing strategy succeeds in ensuring that potential customers become actual customers (how many of your potential customers are converted into sales)
Describe how the A’s are multiplicative
Acceptability x affordability x accessibility x awareness: if you ignore any of the A’s, it will be zero and your product will not succeed. You need at least a little bit of all the A’s in order to be successful
Describe how the A’s are additive. Give an example
Even though the A’s are multiplicative, the dimensions are each are additive. Sometimes high levels of one of the components can offset a lower level of another dimension. Eg. High heels: there are more psychological benefits than function benefits, but they are still very successful
Describe how the A’s are dynamic instead of static
You have to revisit the A’s regularly to make sure that you are still meeting consumer needs at their level: you cannot assume that they stay consistent without any monitoring
Describe how the A’s are integrative and can move in tandem
Everyone in the company / on the team needs to work together to help the A’s improve and help your company succeed
Describe how the A’s are sequential
The order of the A’s is important to customers and gaining customers: you need to build awareness, then accessibility, then affordability, then acceptability