What never to differentiate on

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Differentiation and the positioning based on it are the new buzz words of marketing. Differentiate or die as they say. To arrive at this differentiation it is imperative that we realize that doing so is a process and not random brainstorming and choosing the positioning that’s unique. Well, the positioning may be unique but may not appeal to the consumer. As a starter, it is imperative that the following positioning strategies may be avoided:
Differentiation on Quality : Using quality as differentiation is only easy on the marketers brain; the lack of imagination involved in differentiating on quality serves no other purpose. Consumers now take quality as a non negotiable. Everyone is supposed to give good quality products. And the higher the bar you raise for quality the more demanding the consumer will become without necessarily being loyal. Because quality can be easily replicated by competitors unless you have a once in a lifetime leap in product manufacturing


Differentiation on Price: This is another positioning that is so easy to think of. And yet you don’t realize that the only one you are harming is yourself. You are there to create and deliver value to the consumer at a profit. Without the profit you don’t get to exist in the first place. So why do you want to create a situation in which you have to eat into your own profit. The cola wars taught the marketing world an important lesson. Competing on process is self destructive. Plus it can be so easily replicated. Moreover, consumers as it has been found out are not rational decision makers. You ask a consumer in a superstore carrying a trolley around with different brands how much he bought which brand for. For most of them he wouldn’t even remember. Credit card issuers in the country today are one example as people who competed on price and waived annual fees led by bank alfalah. Today they are all trying to find out different ways of bringing back some form of fee to be able to generate revenue. Some consumer banks still differentiate the loans on pricing not realize that the consumer eventually attaches minimal importance to the price while making decision.

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