How do small brands position their products under the shadow of big brands?

Before starting the article, I would like to talk to you about the difference between market positioning and product positioning . Many people may not understand these two and think that they are the same concept and confuse the two, but this is not the case. Market positioning refers to an enterprise's choice of target user market or target users, while product positioning refers to what kind of products an enterprise uses to meet the needs of the target user market or target users. Generally speaking, the former is a choice of the market, and the latter is a constraint on the product.

Why do we need product positioning?

From the initial idea to production, a product is born. If the product has been transformed from 0 to 1 at this point, then the remaining process from 1 to more must be achieved through operations. But if the operators themselves don’t understand their products, how can they take their products from 1 to 100? Therefore, we need to do a good job of product positioning and understand the product's functions, advantages, scenarios, experience features, etc. Only by knowing these can we formulate an operation plan and operate more effectively.

Product positioning is a very important part of product operation. It can be said that it determines the success or failure of the operation. So how to do a good job in product positioning? Here are a few methods.

Focus on one core function

After completing market positioning and target market selection, detailed specifications for the product should be made based on the demand characteristics of potential target users in order to make the product meet market demand and be more competitive.

The functions of any type of product are not single. For example, beverages, different brands, and different models of the same brand have certain differences in functions, such as anti-fatigue, digestion aid, hydration, and prevention of internal heat. Therefore, when positioning product functions, companies should focus on one main function. Let’s take Wanglaoji as an example to see how to promote the main functions of a product.

Wanglaoji has made its brand popular with the public with the slogan “If you are afraid of getting a sore throat, drink Wanglaoji”. Its success certainly does not lie in a slogan, but in the product function positioning of "preventing heat stroke" and creating a new product category. So how to find such functional positioning - focusing on different user groups.

I. Regional Division

Based on regional differences, we differentiate the habits of users in each region and make corresponding product positioning adjustments based on the user habits in major markets. The survey found that southerners generally have the habit of drinking herbal tea, so herbal tea is a necessity in the minds of southerners; northerners are different. Northerners do not have the habit of drinking herbal tea, but the survey found that northerners like to eat hot pot. Therefore, Wanglaoji positioned its core function as "preventing getting angry", which greatly promoted sales in the northern market.

Second, the age of consumers

Wanglaoji segments the population according to different age groups and interests to understand the consumption purposes of people of different ages.

Children and adolescents: clearing away heat and detoxifying;

Office workers (middle-aged): relieve stress and refresh the mind;

Elderly people: Prevent getting angry.

3. Consumer mentality

The survey found that "preventing getting angry" is the real motivation for most consumers to buy Wanglaoji. Based on this feature, Wanglaoji’s advertising slogan “If you are afraid of getting a sore throat, drink Wanglaoji” has been deeply rooted in people’s minds, and a concept has been formed in the minds of consumers: Wanglaoji has the function of preventing people from getting a sore throat.

Recognize your strengths and weaknesses and start from your competitors’ weaknesses

Operators should first clarify the attributes of their own products, analyze the products, deeply explore the special value of the products, and understand the advantages of the products. Identify the position of competitors in the market and find entry points. By analyzing competitors' market share, we can find out their strengths and weaknesses in different drama markets. Start with your competitor's weaknesses to avoid hitting stones with eggs.

Pulse is the undisputed king among sports functional drinks. An analysis of the market share of strong beverage brands such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Wahaha shows that they have a very high market share in common leisure drinks and table drinks, but there is a gap in the sports functional beverage market . Pulse positioned itself as a sports functional drink that "replenishes energy", successfully avoiding strong drinks such as Coca-Cola and Pepsi, and gaining a place in the market with the slogan "Come back to Pulse at any time".

Clarify product scenario positioning

When users categorize meals, they usually do not consider the product’s other forms or functional uses, but rather consider the product’s usage scenarios in life. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the user usage scenarios and understand the scenarios in which users will use your product. For example, the usage scenario of Douyin must be when users are free to kill time, which may be on the subway, at home, in the bathroom, etc.; the usage scenario of Baidu search is when there is a problem or there is something that needs to be known.

As the currently popular "Internet celebrity liquor", Jiang Xiaobai has redefined the product with its unique scene positioning. The film makes full use of the scene in which urban youths gather together and drink to vent their anxiety and loneliness in their eagerness to move up.

Focus on market segments and seek breakthroughs in a single area

As society develops, our cultural and economic center is rapidly shifting from a few big hits at the head of the demand curve to a large number of niche products and markets at the tail. When users have more choices, they will start to turn to products they really like. Therefore, every niche market will have its business, and with the development and progress of society, the size of the niche market will show exponential growth.

When it comes to the word "sale", the first thing that comes to everyone's mind is definitely Vipshop. Its main business is the online sale of discounted branded goods. By deepening its presence in this niche market, Vipshop achieved over 300 million registered users and annual revenue of 26.1 billion in 2018. The secret of Vipshop's success lies in recognizing the situation, choosing a niche market under the monopoly of the two comprehensive e-commerce giants Taobao and JD.com, and seeking a single breakthrough. Apart from this, there is still one thing worth noting about Vipshop, which is that it only provides one service to the entire important market - special sales.

This is an undifferentiated operating strategy, which means offering only one product to serve the entire market. This strategy does not consider the particularities of the sub-segments, but only the commonalities.

Using a non-differentiated operational strategy can effectively strengthen the brand image. Vipshop provides users with "special sale" products, creating a new e-commerce model and making the concept of "discounts + genuine products" imprinted in the minds of users.

Allow users to perceive the value of the product in their first experience

Nestlé coffee originated in 1930, and it took seven years from the idea to its development. Just to find a way to brew coffee with just water while keeping the original flavor. Nestle coffee was first launched in Switzerland on April 1, 1938. Once launched, it immediately received widespread acclaim from users and gradually occupied most of the beverage market. Nestlé's success is largely due to the mellow aroma that users experience when they first taste it.

If we call user groups with common characteristics roles, then different roles will have different experience processes, and different user experience journey maps will need to be drawn. When experiencing a product, you can choose a role to describe the user experience journey map.

People's memory of product experience is often composed of two factors: peak value and terminal value, whether it feels good or bad. Therefore, in the user role journey map, when the user first comes into contact with the product, if the user can get a very comfortable feeling, this will become a peak point for the user, which can leave the user with a good experience.

Author: Muzi Li

Source: PR Home