Selecting Points of Parity and Differentiation

Points of parity for a product are those characteristics of a company’s product that are not unique but are rather on par with competing products. Points of differentiation are those areas on which a company’s product outperforms competing products. The company needs to decide which product features and benefits it wants to match with competing products, and those it wants to differentiate from competing products. It is simply not feasible or advisable for a company to differentiate its product on all aspects.

Though points of differentiation provide a company with its competitive edge over the competition, choosing points of parity carefully is also important. Customers should be able to relate the company’s product with a certain product category, so they can understand at a broad level the type of need that the product satisfies. Therefore, some basic characteristics of the product must be similar to other products in its category. If the product fails to meet the basic characteristics that customers expect from all products in the product category, then customers may not consider it for purchase, irrespective of how well the product is differentiated on other characteristics.

In product categories where there are many differentiation options (such as in the software industry), it makes sense to focus on creating sustainable differentiators rather than on blunting the competition’s points of differentiation. Thus, efforts could be better utilized in creating profound points of differentiation. Additionally, differentiation is not always accomplished through product characteristics. It can be created by offering better services or unique packaging, or by implementing more efficient processes that provide a cost advantage.

Let’s try to understand this better with a few examples..

In the past, the ability of major retailers to provide options for customers to purchase products online would have been a point of differentiation. However, as online shopping grows in popularity and more companies develop their e-commerce capabilities to match consumer demand, the ability to facilitate online shopping has become a point of parity among major retailers.

Similarly, Until recent years, free internet connectivity through Wi-Fi was a point of differentiation for some coffee shops; however, as increasingly more consumers have come to expect this service, the ability to be freely connected is quickly becoming a point of parity in the industry.

A company may choose to match a competing product on a point of differentiation, effectively softening that product’s edge. Thus, if the company achieves parity on all the basic characteristics and blunts the competition’s competitive advantage by targeting its point of differentiation, then even a relatively minor point of differentiation can provide the company with a competitive advantage.

To read more articles about sales and marketing, visit http://www.smstudy.com/articles

http://www.smstudy.com/Article/Selecting-Points-of-Parity-and-Differentiation

Innovative Internet-Enabled Business Models

In this digital age, businesses that fail to operate online risk going offline for good.

The growing popularity of smartphones, tablets and digital media provides opportunities for a company not only to use fragmented new-age marketing effectively to promote existing products, but also to come up with innovative business models where product demo, customer acquisition and order fulfillment can take place online.

Innovative business models might include the following:

Online Marketplaces—Several e-commerce companies have created global online marketplaces for selling books, consumer goods and other products. In such business models, customer acquisition is usually initiated through the company’s website. The company coordinates with its multiple suppliers to source products; samples, demos and product reviews are provided on the website; customers make their purchases online; and items are shipped directly to customers.

Here is an example of Online Marketplaces:

• Book publishing and retail businesses, which historically gained much success using traditional business models, have been significantly affected by the advent of online marketplaces such as Amazon, eBay, Alibaba and Flipkart.

Online Services—Online services have significantly impacted many traditional product and service industries by transforming existing business models and creating new ways to conduct business.

Here are examples of Online Services:

• Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and online maps have made physical maps redundant.
• Online learning tools have gained popularity and, at times, can complement or even replace physical classroom training.

Online Networking—The Internet has made the world a smaller place. People can now access their networks at all times. These changes have significantly impacted the way in which people communicate with each other and, in turn, have created new possibilities for innovative business models.

Here is an example of Online Networking:

• Social media channels such as LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, Facebook and Google+ have significantly changed the way in which people communicate with each other.

Business Models Using Smartphones and Tablets—Smartphones and tablets are Internet-enabled devices that allow people to have an ongoing connection to the Internet. Since individuals usually carry their smartphones and tablets with them, mobile apps are becoming increasingly popular. Innovative business models based on the use of mobile devices can disrupt several existing business models—more so in industries that rely on other forms of communications and networking. 

Here are examples of Business Models Using Smartphones and Tablets:

• Social media channels such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn provide mobile apps that enable users to easily share photos and updates or chat with friends.
• Some mobile apps allow users to locate nearby restaurants, read reviews and also post reviews about their experiences.

In terms of business, the popularity of the Internet has fueled the “adapt or die” landscape more than ever. Business models that integrate online marketplaces, online services and online networking, and that allow for compatibility with smartphones and tablets, offer businesses excellent opportunities for sustained success.

http://smstudy.com/Article/Innovative-Internet-Enabled-Business-Models

From Niche to Mass-market: The Tesla Story

Over time, we’ve seen a number of companies that acquire leader status in their product/ service either by slightly improving their product over existing competitor products or by providing the same product at a lower cost either by operational efficiency or loss-leadership. While such strategies might help companies gain leadership status for a while, it will never help them attain truly sustainable leadership.

To attain a truly sustainable brand, companies need to change their competitive landscape and provide their customers with a product which is truly revolutionary and still difficult to replicate. And if you are able to combine that with addressing an environmental need, you’ve really hit a home run. This is why the success of Tesla to establish their name in the automotive industry through their electric vehicles is to be taken note of.

Tesla Motors to the uninitiated is a leading American automotive and energy company involved in design, manufacturing, and sale of luxury electric cars, electric vehicle powertrain components, and battery products. Tesla Motors was incorporated in July 2003 with an aim to commercialize electric vehicles. Let’s look at the factors that helped Tesla grow into their target market.

1. Focused initial launch: Tesla’s initial strategy was to target the early adopters. They started out with the Roadster which was in the premium sports category and target influencers like George Clooney, Leonardo Di Caprio etc. who endorsed the product and the philosophy of it being environmental friendly.
2. Develop Ecosystem: In order to make the electric vehicles viable, Tesla also needed to invest heavily in infrastructure around filling stations. Each electric vehicle like any normal vehicle has a certain mileage when full. For electric vehicles to become the new standard, Tesla needed to replicate the existing ecosystem which they’ve done using the Tesla Superchargers. Not only have they set up a comparative ecosystem, they also provide these stations for free. Superchargers have increased their coverage and already cover most states in the US and countries around Central Europe and crucially, are growing really fast.
3. Focus on Design: Despite the obvious advantages that Tesla provide with their car being environmental friendly and zero cost charging, Tesla has also focused heavily on ensuring that the design of the car is futuristic and user focused. Features within the design like apps to show car’s charge level and other functionality, keychain remotes, large storage space for long journeys, customizability of car give it an edge over even the  regular cars in the market. So just from a design perspective, the cars are attractive to an audience that might not be too concerned over the environmental impact of their car.
4. Amazing drive experience: We’ve already spoken about how the design of the vehicle is really impressive for Tesla, but when it comes to driving, the Tesla literally takes the breath away. These cars are designed with a low center of gravity making them more stable then regular cars. The engine of the car is completely silent thereby enhancing the driving experience of users whereas the acceleration is really quick to cater to a younger audience too.
5. Tesla Energy: Besides their vision around cars, Tesla as a company has ambitions to really promote re-usable modes of electricity and as a part of their ambition, they have extended the use of Solar electricity to other products under their Tesla Energy brand. Tesla recently announced the launch of its Home energy device Powerwall which sold out almost immediately. With such products aimed at the right audience, Tesla should be able to maintain an edge over competitors.

Thus we’ve been able to see how Tesla as a company have not only created a new line of products but have also grown them into mass market usage by developing an ecosystem around them. Any this not only creates a barrier to entry for new players without capital backing but also the ones with deep pockets who will find it tough to compete with the technological superiority that Tesla has created.

For more interesting articles about Sales and Marketing, visit www.SMstudy.com/articles

http://www.smstudy.com/Article/From-Niche-to-Mass-market%3a-The-Tesla-Story

Fragmented New-Age Marketing

In recent times, the media has become increasingly fragmented with several hundred television and radio channels, as well as a large variety of print media, including newspapers, magazines, and trade publications.

Moreover, since the late 1990s, with the increased popularity of the internet and, more recently, smartphones, many options now exist for advertisers to reach a global audience using digital media marketing methods such as mobile phone apps, Google, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, QR codes, gamification, and proximity marketing.

With all of these options, many marketers find it beneficial to use an integrated approach to marketing by leveraging the strengths of various types of media. Companies must evaluate all media in terms of who the target audience is and what media resonates with them best. In many cases, assumptions will need to be made and incorporated into the media-testing framework.

It is a fact that people now spend more time on the internet using smartphones, tablets, or computers than they spend through conventional mass media, such as television, radio, or newspapers. This is especially true for the thirty-year-old and younger market segment. Since Sales and Marketing is most successful when it meets the demands of consumers, this change in consumer preferences is significantly altering the Sales and Marketing landscape for established companies.

Businesses are discovering that conventional mass media marketing has limited effectiveness and some customer segments are not even reachable using these traditional media forms. Fragmented new-age marketing generally supports new, small brands with much smaller budgets targeted directly to customers in a global marketplace. This represents a significant distinction from conventional mass media marketing, where achieving a global reach for a small company may have been prohibitively expensive.

While mass media marketing is less targeted and primarily focused on affecting emotional attitudes about the brand, new-age marketing is data-driven and more focused on driving specific calls to action.

Also, while mass media marketing typically involves interruption, new-age marketing is about engagement. Unlike older media options where Sales and Marketing communications were primarily uni-directional, communications have increasingly become multi-directional.

Although generally a benefit to both producers and consumers, this trend can make brand management challenging for companies if actual or potential customers perceive that a product does not reflect the brand message intended by marketing efforts.

website : smstudy.com

Going Native

Native advertising has been around for a patch now. “Pay-to-play” content began appearing in newspapers (and later over the airwave) as early as the 1910s. Native ads, as noted by the SMstudy® Guide, “blend in with their surroundings” and “are promotional pieces attempting to look like the material to which they are adjacent.”

So, native ads, compared to “regular” ads, feel a lot like editorials, but are in fact ads dressed up to look like legitimate editorial content and all that that denotes, in particular, “free of influence.”

For much of their existence, at least from the news/editorial camp, native ads have been the harbinger of the breach in the ever-threatened levy between editorial and advertising. In addition, they were met with a fair degree of criticism for their deceptive nature. Deceptive because, by its core definition, native advertising is “a form of advertising that matches and blends in with the medium it appears on. Ads use the same form as the content contained in the medium,” according to author Vishveshwar Jatain, and when done well, it should cause no “disruption” in the reader or viewers experience and blend in such a way as to “dupe” them.

Criticism of native advertising has lessened over the years and native ads are, in fact, seeing a rebirth in our current digital landscape. This isn’t the first time native advertising has morphed to fit in with new technologies. At every step, it has adapted, whether it be radio, television and now…the Internet. Darwin would be impressed.

But simply adapting to a new environment doesn’t necessarily account for its renaissance. For this, we need to delve into the huge financial hit the news media took when the public caught on to the idea of “free” online news. While for many of us a great boon, free online news has led to a drastic decline in subscribership. Pile on the abundance of virtual advertising space currently available (compared to the finite space of a newspaper) and we begin to understand the severely limping revenue streams news outlets are wading in. This financial pinch (stranglehold) experienced in the news media landscape led to a shocking reduction in funds for 1. paying journalists and 2. paying for resources so journalists could do their jobs. For a peek into the harsh takedown of news media in the mid-2000s, visit paper cuts, a site that tracked layoffs and buyouts at U.S. newspapers between 2007-2012.

At the same time, we saw the rise of content marketing (related to the decline of news outlet’s ability to provide quality content? Perhaps a topic for another blog). Based on current research and data, we, the people, are overwhelmingly fond of content marketing, but only if it provides relevant, valuable information. We’re fond even when we know it’s an ad!

And even though the concept of deception and the potential breach of the great wall dividing adverts and editorial is still a thorn in the side of ethically-fierce news folk,  native advertising is back in action and is a natural ally of content marketing.

Whatever the reservations of some legacy news outlets to native adverts, some sites don’t suffer the same ethical hemming and hawing. In fact, some have found very innovative ways to pro-actively manage the content marketing that appears on their sites.

Forbes, under the leadership of Lewis Dvorkin, has created a department called BrandVoice (originally AdVoice) to focus on the content needs of its advertisers. Headed by Forbes Media chief revenue officer, Meredith Levien, BrandVoice is a division of Forbes completely separate from the editorial staff. BrandVoice has hired editors, reporters, designers, and so on in order to offer high-quality content to its advertisers. And business is booming. In fact, Levien sites BrandVoice as the main factor for the company’s high revenue in 2012, a five-year best.

Other outlets who have embraced native advertising are Buzzfeed and The Onion, the 34-year-old satirical news outlet. Onion Labs, a division of Onion Inc., offers its top-notch writers to advertisers for content development with the added bonus of extreme hilarity.

From the Onion Labs web page:

“Onion, Inc. has perfected influencing some of the hardest to reach audiences in the world, through intelligent, insightful and often hilarious content.

Through our content services division, Onion Labs, we offer that influence to brands. We've combined the greatest comedy and pop culture writers in the world with some of the most decorated advertising minds in the business.

Onion Labs works with each client to understand the brand's strategic goals, then builds custom content solutions that are distributed through both Onion, Inc. and client channels.”

And as the good word spreads (a recent Pew Research report notes a major uptick in investment, in 2012, ads rose 38.9%, to $1.56 billion following a 56.1% increase in 2011), other outlets are testing the waters as well, including Hearst, Time and Conde Nast.

So, all signs point to content marketing channeled through native advertising as a direction worthy of investigation, at least from a marketing standpoint…however, maybe not the sort of investigation diehard journos would like to see.

For more on sales and marketing, visit smstudy.com.

Branding America and SMstudy - Part One

Presidential candidates want to unite America, make it strong again, give it a future to believe in, balance its budget and pass its dream onto the next generation. Each, in his or her own way, paints a picture of what’s wrong with America, but which of them grasps what is right about America, what its value proposition is to its citizens and to the world? Which one has a real grasp of its brand?

A recent commentary by Merrie Carole Powers in The World Post [1] compared candidate Donald Trump as a brand to America as represented in the Declaration of Independence—arguably the quintessential statement of America the brand.  This got us at SMstudy thinking about America the brand. What does the Declaration tell its citizens and the world about its brand?

A concise definition of branding states that it “is the process of creating a distinct image of a product or range of products in the customer's mind. This image communicates the promise of value the customer will receive from the product or products,” according to the SMstudy® Guide: Marketing Strategy.[2]

So, what distinct image of America comes readily to mind? For many the dominant image is the American Dream. Every presidential candidate mentions the American Dream, and their versions range from the ability to achieve anything through hard work and determination to having a job coupled with raised wages and health for people and their surroundings.[3]

What image springs from the pages of the country’s cry to be itself, to be independent?

In her brand analysis of Trump-the-Brand, Powers used the “unique positioning, clearly defined purpose, truly held values, an authentic personality and a compelling message” elements of a strong brand. Marketing Strategy says that a product’s or service’s value proposition is crucial to its branding. We’ll use several of these to consider Brand America in the Declaration of Independence.[4]

The Declaration’s preamble is well known to many—having had to memorize it at some time during their school days—and it is the place to find the introduction of America’s brand image. In its first sentence the brand begins to take shape unassumingly—almost off-handedly as mere conditions for actions that follow—“it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them…”  The Brand claims for itself “the separate and equal station” “among the powers of the earth” “that the Laws of Nature and Nature’s God” says it has the right to. That’s a strong positioning statement, even if it is not unique for countries.

The Brand has a great purpose: to “assume … the separate and equal station,” that is, to step up and take possession of equality among the nations of the entire world.  It is an ennobling purpose. Kouze and Posner said in their work The Leadership Challengethat one of the best practices among successful leaders was the ability to inspire “an ennobling vision of the future.” People want to follow a leader that can do this. And they want to be identified with a brand that does this, too. Perhaps, this is one brand element that explains why so many people emigrate to America.

In Part Two of “Branding America and SMstudy,” we’ll look at Brand America’s compelling message and alluring value proposition.

(Jim Pruitt, educator and staff writer for VMEdu, Inc. contributed to this article.)

For more informative and thought-provoking articles on sales and marketing, visit http://www.SMstudy.com

http://smstudy.com/Article/Branding-America-and-SMstudy-Part-One