Perceptual mapping is a graphics technique used by asset marketers that attempts to visually

display the perceptions oI customers or potential customers. Typically the position oI a product,
product line, brand, or company is displayed relative to their competition.
Perceptual maps can have any number oI dimensions but the most common is two dimensions.
Any more is a challenge to draw and conIusing to interpret; POSE Analysis
|1|
is a new analysis
tool which oIIers an alternative to perceptual mapping by enabling a user to apply multiple
dimensions in a radar graph. The Iirst perceptual map below shows consumer perceptions oI
various automobiles on the two dimensions oI sportiness/conservative and classy/aIIordable.
This sample oI consumers Ielt Porsche was the sportiest and classiest oI the cars in the study (top
right corner). They Ielt Plymouth was most practical and conservative (bottom leIt corner).

Perceptual Map of Competing Products
Cars that are positioned close to each other are seen as similar on the relevant dimensions by the
consumer. For example consumers see Buick, Chrysler, and Oldsmobile as similar. They are
close competitors and Iorm a competitive grouping. A company considering the introduction oI a
new model will look Ior an area on the map Iree Irom competitors. Some perceptual maps use
diIIerent size circles to indicate the sales volume or market share oI the various competing
products.
Displaying consumers` perceptions oI related products is only halI the story. Many perceptual
maps also display consumers` ideal points. These points reIlect ideal combinations oI the two
dimensions as seen by a consumer. The next diagram shows a study oI consumers` ideal points
in the alcohol/spirits product space. Each dot represents one respondent's ideal combination oI
the two dimensions. Areas where there is a cluster oI ideal points (such as A) indicates a market
segment. Areas without ideal points are sometimes reIerred to as demand voids.

Perceptual Map of Ideal Points and Clusters
A company considering introducing a new product will look Ior areas with a high density oI
ideal points. They will also look Ior areas without competitive rivals. This is best done by
placing both the ideal points and the competing products on the same map.
Some maps plot ideal vectors instead oI ideal points. The map below, displays various aspirin
products as seen on the dimensions oI eIIectiveness and gentleness. It also shows two ideal
vectors. The slope oI the ideal vector indicates the preIerred ratio oI the two dimensions by those
consumers within that segment. This study indicates there is one segment that is more concerned
with eIIectiveness than harshness, and another segment that is more interested in gentleness than
strength.

Positioning is all about 'perception'. As perception diIIers Irom person to person, so do the results
oI the positioning map e.g what you perceive as quality, value Ior money, etc, is diIIerent to my
perception. However, there will be similarities.
Products or services are 'mapped' together on a 'positioning map'. This allows them to be
compared and contrasted in relation to each other. This is the main strength oI this tool.
Marketers decide upon a competitive position which enables them to distinguish their own
products Irom the oIIerings oI their competition (hence the term positioning strategy).
%ake a look at the basic 54894332,5 template below

This paper brieIly reviews some oI the literature on service quality and in particular the zone oI
tolerance, the zone oI acceptable or expected outcomes in a service experience. The paper uses
the
zone oI tolerance to explore the relationships between customers` satisIaction with individual
transactions, or service encounters, and their satisIaction with the overall service. Nine
propositions
are provided which identiIy how customers` perceptions oI the quality oI a service can be
inIluenced
and how the thresholds oI the zone oI tolerance can be adjusted during the process oI service
delivery. The paper also considers some oI the design implications oI the propositions
This article attempts to understand the links between customers` dis/satisIaction with a series oI
transactions, or service encounters, and their overall dis/satisIaction with the whole service
experience. The purpose oI the paper is to generate some propositions to help better understand
how customers` perceptions can be managed during the process oI service delivery.
A second use oI the 'zone oI tolerance is its application to pre-performance expectations. It is
widely accepted that pre-perIormance expectations, or comparison standards, may range Irom
'minimum tolerable evaluation oI in-process service performances.