Market Positioning: Common Strategies Used By Marketers
Positioning in marketing refers to a way of creating product, organization or brand image in the minds of customers (Kotler, et al 2010). Different tactics can be employed by marketers of an organization, product or brand to help attract the attention of targeted market in favor of their products, organization or brands. Positioning in marketing is consumer oriented and is aimed at winning the loyalty of customers in any given market. The most common strategies that are used by different marketers in the process of positioning include the pricing of products, products promotion, packaging, advertising, distribution and competition. These strategies are used so as to create impact of a particular product in the minds of customers.
The concept of positioning is necessary for companies, products, and brands so as to be able to compete favorably in the market (Gabbott 2004). The concept of positioning focuses on the benefits of a product, organization or brand to customers. It should be able to show the benefits that an individual will receive when he or she purchased a product from an organization.
The Snack food industry sector
The snack industry is one of the industries with large customer base. The snack food industry is composed of several competing firms that manufacture similar products to customers (Thomadsen 2007). There is a high level of competition in the industry as all the firms compete to acquire significant market share. Since this is a food industry, marketers are coming up with unique brands that will ensure that their company is the favorite for a majority of consumers. This industry requires marketers to come up with appealing products to customers. The industry is characterized with a variety of brands that are differentiated with each other in a number of ways. Different tactics are used in the food industry to help win the loyalty of customers. Some of the tactics that are widely used by a majority of snack companies include price, color, taste, name, location and packaging.
McDonalds
McDonalds is a snack manufacturing company that is located in the United States of America. The company is involved in the manufacturing of different kinds of snacks. Some of the snacks that the company manufactures include chips and cheese products. The company offers different brands of chips and cheese to its customers (MacDonald 2012). The company has employed a number of techniques to help create its products awareness in the mind of customers. There are various ways that MacDonald has used to position its products in the market.
The company offers different brands in the market that help to satisfy various customers’ needs and tastes. World famous fries, apple slices, side salad and fruits and walnuts are some of the unique brands that the company manufactures. The company is also offering products that are tailored towards specific customers in the market. The products are made according to specification of different customers. This helps the company to attract the attention of different customers who are in need of specialized products from the company. Offering of customers tailored products to the market helps improves the loyalty of customers to its products.
The company also uses pricing as a method of positioning its products in the market. The price of the company products is affordable to a majority of its targeted customers. The pricing of the company’s products is also flexible. Some of its products are charged cheaply to cater for low income earners. The pricing of the company products is based on a targeted market and is mainly determined by the product quality and the targeted market level of income (Kotler, et al 2009).
Packaging is another method that the company uses to position its products in the market. The chips and cheese products of the McDonalds is packed in a variety of packaging materials. The packaging of the company’s products is composed of different sizes and shapes. For example, its world famous fries are composed of different packaging that ranges from small sizes to large sizes. This makes it to be suitable to a variety of customers. The packaging materials that the company uses are also appealing and attractive to customers. The packagings in most cases have bright and attractive colors and are designed in a way that makes them unique and appealing to customers.
The method that the company uses to distribute its products also plays an important role in positioning of the company’s products. The mode of distribution that the McDonalds use is flexible and in most cases depends on the customer’s preference. The company deals with its various customers directly hence avoids the use of middle men. This ensures that their services are reliable and of high quality. The company also delivers products to customers who purchased its products in bulk. This helps in maintaining of close relationship with its customers. Most of the shops of MacDonald’s are located in urban areas and spread in several cities across the world.
The company is also engaged in its products promotion as a way of ensuring that the consumers are made aware of its products in the market (Thomadsen 2007). There are various techniques that the company has employed in the promotion of its product. One methods of product promotion that the company has used consistently over the years is product marketing. The marketing department of the company has maintained and carried out products marketing using techniques such as advertising and sales promotion initiatives. The company has also used its website to advertise the different brands of its products. The website contains a list of all of its products and their pricing. All of the company’s important information is also available in the website. The customers can access any information that they need from the company through their website. Their logo is also descriptive and short, this enables its customers to grasp its products name more easily for example one of its product is branded world famous fries. The name sounds nice and appealing to customers.
Bibliography
Gabbott, M. 2004 Introduction to Marketing: A Value Exchange Approach, Pearson Education, Frenchs Forest.
Kotler, P, Brown,L, Burton,S., Deans ,K.,and Armstrong,G.2010, Marketing (8th ed.), Pearson Education Australia, French Forest
Kotler, P, Armstrong, G, Ang,S Leong,S Tan,C and Hon-Ming,O 2009. Principles of Marketing: A global perspective. Prentice Hall, Singapore
MacDonald 2012 the MacDonald website page available on http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/restaurant_locator.html retrieved on September 29, 2012
Thomadsen, R 2007 Product Positioning and Competition: The Role of Location in the Fast Food Industry, Linthicum United States
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