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Setting Product Strategy

Marketing Management
A South Asian Perspective, 13th ed
 Chapter Questions

• What are the characteristics of products and

how do marketers classify products?
• How can companies differentiate products?
• How can a company build and manage its
product mix and product lines?
• How can companies combine products to
create strong co-brands or ingredient brands?
• How can companies use packaging as
marketing tools?

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 What is a Product?

A product is anything that can be

offered to a market to satisfy a want or
need, including physical goods,
services, experiences, events, persons,
places, properties, organizations,
information, and ideas.

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 Five Product Levels

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 Consumer Goods Classification

Convenience Shopping

Specialty Unsought

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 Industrial Goods Classification

Materials and parts

Supplies/
Capital items
business services

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 Product Differentiation
• Product form
• Features
• Customization
• Performance
• Conformance
• Durability
• Reliability
• Repairability
• Style

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 Design Differentiation

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 Service Differentiation

• Ordering ease
• Delivery
• Installation
• Customer training
• Customer consulting
• Maintenance and repair
• Returns

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 Ginger Hotels
has carved a
profitable
niche through
its innovative
service
configuration

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Developing products for rural markets
• Products should be designed keeping in mind
the rural conditions
• Packaging is one of the key drivers of success
in rural areas
Issue of transfer and storage: Rugged packing
The issue of affordability: small-unit packs
• Brand elements should be decided keeping in
mind rural consumers

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 Product Systems and Mixes

• Product system
• Product mix or
product assortment
• Depth
• Length
• Width
• Consistency

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 Product Line Analysis

Core product Staples

(hi sales volume, (low sales volume,
hi promotion, no promotion,
low margin higher margin
e.g basic laptop) e.g. faster CPUs)

Specialties Convenience
(lower sales volume, higher Items
promotion, might generate
(hi volume, less promotion,
income for services e.g.
higher margin
moviemaking equipment )
e.g. software)
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 Product Item Contributions to a
Product Line’s Total Sales and
Profits

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 Line Stretching

Down-Market
Down-Market Stretch
Stretch

Up-Market
Up-Market Stretch
Stretch

Two-Way
Two-Way Stretch
Stretch

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 Line Filling

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 Pruning

Pruning weak
brands can
strengthen the
remaining brands in
the line

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 Co-branding

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 Ingredient Branding

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 What is the Fifth P?

Packaging, sometimes called the

fifth P, is all the activities of
designing and producing the
container for a product.

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