Tag Archives: product positioning

by | Monday, March 16, 2015 · 9:39 am

Top Cars in 2015

Cars

The automotive industry is notoriously tough. Each manufacturer competes for not only sales, but also for rankings by organizations such as J.D. Powers, Car & Driver, and Edmund. Among the most popular ranking report on vehicles is the one done by independent testing organization, Consumer Reports.

To compile the report, the team at Consumer Reports test drives and evaluates multiple attributes of 270 different vehicles. To be a top tier pick, the cars must score well in road tests, crash tests, and have better predicted reliability.

This year’s winners by category include:

  • Best overall: Tesla Model S
  • Compact car: Subaru Impreza
  • Midsize car: Subaru Legacy
  • Large car: Chevrolet Impala
  • Green car: Toyota Prius
  • Luxury car: Audi A6
  • Sport Sedan: Buick Regal
  • Small SUV: Subaru Forester
  • Midsize SUV: Toyota Highlander
  • Minivan: Honda OdysseyDid your vehicle make the list?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Show Consumer Reports’ Web site: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/index.htm
  2. Show the video of car rankings: http://youtu.be/g_RkhbF2CVg
  3. Discuss how companies can use the report in their marketing.
  4. What should companies that didn’t make the top list do to promote their vehicles?
  5. Review key aspects of developing a product positioning map, including determining the axis labels for positioning.
  6. Divide students into teams and have each team develop a positioning map for a category of automobiles.

Source: Consumer Reports

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by | Friday, February 21, 2014 · 3:42 am

Competition for Online Razor Business

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Dollar Shave Club has carved out a nice market niche with its funny videos, low cost products, and strong brand recognition. The company has done quite well, building from zero to a multi-million dollar company. In one year, it has gone from advertising only via viral videos to an estimated $10 million brand advertising campaign on ESPN’s Rose Bowl. But Dollar Shave Club is no longer the only game in town online for razor sales.

Enter a new upstart: 800Razors. The company has an exclusive e-commerce deal for razors featuring Schick blades and projects it can capture 10% of the market in the next 10 years. While its current revenue is estimated at $1 million, there is definitely a market worth fighting for: annual sales are more than $1.8 billion in offline sales of razor cartridges. (Gillette controls 81% of the U.S. razor cartridge business; Schick has 17%.)

Which shave do you prefer? Compare the two companies and decide which approach and product line will win.

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Review key aspects of developing a product positioning map, including determining the axis labels for positioning.
  2. Review 800razors products and Web site (www.800razors.com).  Compare this with Dollar Shave Club (www.dollarshaveclub.com).
  3. What other products and companies are competitors? Place those on the positioning map.
  4. Divide students into teams and have each team develop a positioning map for this product.
  5. Have each team draw their map on the board.
  6. Debrief exercise.

Source:  Ad Age Daily, 1/6/14

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