al ives POSITIONING USING PERCEPTya, MAPS A ini ingly crowded ition products in increasing f markets nn Demind the dimensions along which target anna Pee ive products or services in a category, as well as their vig a firm's offering relative to competitive offerings, 74 oe stand the competitive structure of their markets, managers shoulg ask the following questions: = How do our customers (current or potentia brand? ; * Which brands do these customers perceive to b est competitors? *" What product and company ¢ sible for these perceived differe 1) view oy, € Our clos. tributes are most Tespon- Perceptual mapping methods provid proaches to answer these questio. Perceptual maps use graph, mation: (1) The distances between p the minds of customers, such that the s similarly products are perceived; bya line with an arrow) that indi tion, usually to denote product at Special Set of vectors, which sugg! sions that best characte rize how customers differentiate among al- ternatives. Maps usually incorporate straight lines (axes) at right angles to represent dimensions, but these axes also can be rigidly Fotated to aid interpretation, For example, in a two-dimensional map, horizontal and vertical axes often characterize the two dimen- systematic, structured ap- ide the following infor- s indicate similarities in r the distance, the more (2) a vector on the map (shown cates both magnitude and direc- tributes; and (3) the map axes, a est the broad underlying dimen-e same as that between Coo; \d Heineken are perceived as thee set of brands. Moving in an fei i closest pair 01 ieee ihe origin, the vectors show that these beens net arity among men. That is, Budweiser is the ae jar with men, and Old Milwaukee Light is the least pular. Budweiser (and then Beck’s) appears the farthe g the northeast direction. If we drop perpendiculan jines from the Budweiser and Beck's points to the vector denoted “popular with men,” this connection becomes obvious. Similarly, a perpendicular line from Old Milwau- kee Light to the popular with men vector, extended in the southwest direction, clearly demonstrates its lack of popu- larity. Customer perceptions of these beers, according to each of their attributes, can be interpreted in the same manner. Note also that the horizontal axis (east direction) associates most closely with the attributes “premium,” “dining out,” and “special occasions.” In the west direction, the horizon- tal axis is affiliated with the attributes “on a budget” and Full Bodiea M2” EXHIBIT 4. perceptual mop of the beer marke, showing — (among other things) thot ae ‘most populr ber wi oldof beers, such as Beck’s and He y (sub ries that the market may srently than the way brand managers define tito sp is located between the heavy and li sing positions it as a “mid-strength” i ita ns a differentiated position; otherwise, the market rely regards it simply as a “nothing” beer. = Old Milwaukee Light has very little direct competition {as indicated by the lack of other brands near its location, (arch indicates a potential opportunity fora newbeer positioned in this quadrant (if, of course, there is a large enough segment of customers). To be positioned in this quadrant, a beer needs to be pale in color and low priced, Experienced beer drinkers probably do not consider this combination of attributes appealing, but novice beer drinkers may appreciate it. Thus, a new brand targeted toward new beer drinkers could choose a name that clearly communicates these benefits for this segment of consum- ers. = Whether a beer is popular with women does not indicate anything about whether it will be popular with men (be- cause these two attributes are perpendicular). Thus, whereas Beck's and Budweiser are equally popular with men, among women, Beck's is more popular. Despite the potential valuable insights it offers, the map 8 Exhibit 4.1 has a major weakness: It says nothing about the tions that are most attractive to customers. For examples customers prefer heavy premium beers or light budget ives no indication, and without such insights, fi investing in products differentiated along dimens t aligned with increased customer preferences, » preference maps incorporate such infor 1¢ the overall customer value of anyAe MDS methods vary depending 7 , similarities, petceptions re ga as of these data sa to derive the map. ‘the mapping methods employed in a - a wreifcally discuss (1) perceptual maps ee : data, (2) preference maps that rely on prefere one k-orders of brands by customers, stimuli ratin, aa ‘ tomer preferences), and (3) joint-space maps that inclode| oth tions and preferences. We also briefly describe hore corporate price as an attribute within perceptual and joint maps- Mapping Methods in Marketing Perceptual maps Preference maps Joint-space maps (product-space maps) (preference-space maps) _finclvde both perception Siniariy- Atvibute- _Ideal-point Vector Exlernal___ Simple “joint based bosed model model onalysis. rathods methods (unfolding model) perceptual mop With ideokpoint Webi ¥ecbr preference mop preference map Attribute-Based Perceptual Maps Attribute-based methods derive P' tions of competing along ree omers within a selected tar 3 process involves four major