You must realize that your product or service cannot be all things to all people. Very few items on the market today have universal appeal. Even when dealing in basic commodities like table salt or aspirin, marketing people have gone to all sorts of extremes to create brand awareness and product differentiation. If your product or service is properly positioned, prospective purchasers or users should immediately recognize its unique benefits or advantages and be better able to assess it in comparison to your competition’s offering. Positioning is how you give your product or service brand identification.

Positioning involves analyzing each market segment as defined by your research activities and developing a distinct position for each segment. Ask yourself how you want to appear to that segment, or what you must do for that segment to ensure that it buys your product or service. This will dictate different media and advertising appeals for each segment. For example, you may sell the same product in a range of packages or sizes, or make cosmetic changes in the product, producing private labels or selecting separate distribution channels to reach the various segments. Beer, for example, is sold on tap and in seven-ounce bottles, twelve-ounce cans and bottles, six-packs, twelve-packs, cases, and quart bottles and kegs of several sizes. The beer is the same, but each package size may appeal to a separate market segment and have to be sold with a totally different appeal and through different retail outlets.

Remember that your marketing position can, and should, change to meet the current conditions of the market for your product. The ability of your company to adjust will be enhanced greatly by an up-to-date knowledge of the marketplace gained through continual monitoring. By having good data about your customers, the segments they fit into and the buying motives of those segments, you can select the position that makes the most sense. While there are many possible marketing positions, most would fit into one of the following categories:

Positioning on specific product features

A very common approach, especially for industrial products. If your product or service has some unique features that have obvious value this may be the way to go.

Positioning on benefits

Strongly related to positioning on product features. Generally, this is more effective because you can communicate to your customers about what your product or service can do for them. The features may be nice, but unless customers can be made to understand why the product will benefit them, you may not get the sale.

Positioning for a specific use

Related to benefit positioning. Consider Campbell’s positioning of soups for cooking. An interesting extension is mood positioning: “Have a Coke and a smile.” This works best when you can teach your customers how to use your product or when you use a promotional medium that allows a demonstration.

Positioning for user category

A few examples: “You’ve Come a Long Way Baby,” “The Pepsi Generation” and “Breakfast of Champions.” Be sure you show your product being used by models with whom your customers can identify.

Positioning against another product or a competing business

A strategy that ranges from implicit to explicit comparison. Implicit comparisons can be quite pointed; for example, Avis never mentions Hertz, but the message is clear. Explicit comparisons can take two major forms. The first form makes a comparison with a direct competitor and is aimed at attracting customers from the compared brand, which is usually the category leader. The second type does not attempt to attract the customers of the compared product, but rather uses the comparison as a reference point. Consider, for example, the positioning of the Volkswagen Dasher, which picks up speed faster than a Mercedes and has a bigger trunk than a Rolls Royce. This usually works to the advantage of the smaller business if you can capitalize on the American tradition of cheering for the underdog. You can gain stature by comparing yourself to a larger competitor just as long as your customers remain convinced that you are trying harder.

Product class disassociation

A less common type of positioning. It is particularly effective when used to introduce a new product that differs from traditional products. Lead-free gasoline and tubeless tires were new product classes positioned against older products. Space-age technology may help you here. People have become accustomed to change and new products and are more willing to

experiment than was true ten years ago. Even so, some people are more adventuresome and trusting than others and more apt to try a revolutionary product. The trick is to find out who are the potential brand switchers or experimenters and find out what it would take to get them to try your product or service. The obvious disadvantage of dealing with those who try new products is that they may move on to another brand just as easily. Brand loyalty is great as long as it is to your brand.

Hybrid bases

Incorporates elements from several types of positioning. Given the variety of possible bases for positioning, small business owners should consider the possibility of a hybrid approach. This is particularly true in smaller towns where there aren’t enough customers in any segment to justify the expense of separate marketing approaches.

As you continue to expand your business in the months and years ahead, use the tips presented here. Prepare a budget and review it frequently. Select your items for advertising to help solve consumer problems and then present your advertising message as a form of planned communication to strengthen your market positioning.

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Customers like to deal directly with the owner of a business whenever they can. If you can make an effort to be as visible as you can to your customers, this will help, This doesn’t mean your customers necessarily need to see you at your place of business at all times, but only that maybe you need to maintain a presence at your business. You need to be there often enough that customers actually see you from time to time. Or you communicate with them in other ways such as a newsletter.

This is true for product and service-oriented businesses.

It is particularly critical for customers of service businesses who sometimes select your business and remain loyal to a large degree due to the strength of that owner’s word, working style and reputation.

This also goes for online businesses as well. If your web site visitor can see a picture of you located somewhere on your site, this gives them a warm feeling just by seeing who it is they are going to be doing business with.

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Roughly four months ago, I had a few errands to run. So, with arms full of mail and packages I managed to open the door of my truck so I could hurry and beat the traffic. Out of nowhere this guy steps up and asked if I needed my truck washed, or possibly waxed.

The guy had a clean cut look and was well spoken. I told him that I was leaving, but when I returned – sure thing. I asked how much and he replied, “Oh for a wash and a wax, for you let?s say $50.00″

I thought long and hard about this strange fellow while I was making my rounds and figured that he needed the money pretty bad to do this amount of work for that price, considering what a regular car detailing service cost these days!

When I returned to the office I agreed to let him wash and wax my truck for $50.00. He asked me if I had a water hose, and I gladly pointed towards the side of the building. I noticed he had bucket handy with all the cleaning stuff inside.

While he washed and waxed my truck, I asked him if he does this all the time or just part time. He told me that he does this all the time, because he lost his job at our local textile mill, which closed its doors last year. And that he was searching for a way to obtain the correct setup.

I immediately excused myself and went inside and called my banker to see how much interest it would be on a short term loan, and to see if there was any vans that were repossessed. My banker told me that he did have two that were on a lot across town, but I had to give 5% down in order to finance.

I then went back outside to check on his progress and to ask him if he’d be interested in doing this full time, only if could get all the things to do it with. He replied “sure but how?” “I don’t have any money.”

I explained to him how he could get a low interest loan with 5% down, that I called and found a repossessed van. I expressed further that all he would need to get this going is a van, pressure washer, a water holding tank, cleaning supplies and drive around to businesses around the area. He could wash and wax vehicles while people worked and they never had to come to him. He would go the their place of business and do this.

This guy was so excited to say the least when I explained this in detail. So, I told him what he had to do, who to talk to at my bank, I paid him for his work, then he left.

Four months later, almost to the day that he washed and waxed my truck, here he comes pulling up to the front of our office driving a white van with a logo…

“Stan’s Mobile Cleaning Service”

I was shocked. He stopped by and said that, not only was his business doing great, but he had bought another van, hired a two man crew, and was staying very busy.

I was extremely impressed. The reason he stopped by was to thank me for giving him such encouragement and helping out the way I did. He took me out to lunch, and gave my truck another wash and wax – for free!

He couldn’t stop thanking me for what I did for him. I said that business opportunities are there, all you have to do is learn how to “Grab what’s Yours.”

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