Perception is the key to marketing. People purchase things because they believe them to be superior, rather than because they think they are better. Japanese consumers rarely purchase Honda automobiles since, for instance, the company is only known in Japan as a manufacturer of motorcycles. Honda vehicles, however, are among the most popular imported vehicles in the US! The distinction is a matter of perception.
However, a lot of business leaders overlook this crucial fact. In order to meet what it believes are consumer expectations in the face of declining sales, a corporation will spend millions upgrading a product when all it really needs to do is change people’s perceptions.
The instrument you need to achieve this well is marketing, and these tips will show you exactly how to use marketing to make the competition’s strength appear to be a weakness and to create a resolute brand.
- Advertisement -
The marketing success of your product is greatly influenced by how rapidly you can introduce it to the market.
You intend to dominate your market, therefore. You must first put your product in the forefront.
To do this, you must leave a lasting impact on your clients’ thoughts in order to attract the attention your product need to be successful.
However, how do you ensure that your product is first in line?
According to the Law of Leadership, you must make sure that your product is the first of its kind available on the market in order to win the race for market leadership. It’s true that being first to strike often pays off!
Being first can help you become the market leader, but it’s not the only path to success. According to the Law of the Mind, your product must be the first thought that comes to the customer’s mind for it to be truly successful.
A specific brand will always come to mind before any other when a customer thinks about a specific product, and frequently, that product is the market leader.
Initial perceptions are crucial. It’s challenging to change a customer’s mind once she’s made up her mind!
But why is it so difficult to change the mind of a determined customer?
One factor is that brand names frequently tend to be associated with certain products. When referring to a photocopier, Americans frequently use “Xerox,” and if you need a tissue, you might ask a friend for a “Kleenex.” Powerful brand names are a hallmark of market leaders.
It is difficult to erase a powerful brand once it has become ingrained in a customer’s memory. Making a splash with a product early on, when the market is fluid and there are many brands vying for attention, is a better strategy for a company.
Pick the name of your product carefully, focusing on short, memorable words. Let’s take the scenario of selecting a computer. Which brand—Apple or MITS Altair 8800—would you choose?
In conclusion, a key component of an efficient marketing plan is being first to market. However, if you missed that train, don’t lose hope; there are still successful ways to sell your brand and goods.
Turn the market upside down and establish your own product category if you are unable to be the market leader.
Therefore, it will be difficult to change the fact that another brand is the market leader in your product category, whether you manufacture computers or soft drinks.
But this does not imply that you should stop operating. All you have to do is create a brand-new category for your goods.
According to the Law of Category, if you create a new category for your product, you’ll automatically be the first in that category! And as you now see, having an advantage over your competitors by being the first to market with a product in a particular market segment.
Additionally, by creating your own category, you eliminate all competition—at least temporarily.
For instance, Charles Schwab started a brokerage firm in 1971 despite the fact that the market was already crowded with businesses that were similar to his. To counter this, however, Schwab created a new category in 1975: the bargain brokerage.
The outcome? With a clientele that quickly expanded, Schwab rose to the top of the market.
Companies who find themselves in unfavorable second place, just behind the market leader, do have another choice. According to the Law of the Opposite, in order to succeed, you must contrast your business with the market leader and portray the advantages of your rivals as disadvantages.
If the rival has held the top spot for a very long time, you can characterize the business as outdated and conventional. Your business, on the other hand, is cutting-edge, fresh, and innovative.
This was Pepsi’s tactic in an effort to displace Coca-Cola as the market leader. The soft drink business tailored its advertising to appeal to hip, young individuals who, it stands to reason, wouldn’t want to sip the same cola that their great-grandparents and grandparents did.
In fact, it’s not uncommon for one group of clients to favor doing business with the market leader while another group will go to any lengths to avoid it.
Therefore, don’t pretend to be the market leader if you aren’t. Find another set of customers instead!
Increase your brand’s visibility by “owning” a word, but don’t try to steal other people’s words out of jealousy.
Yes, a business can own tangible assets like factories and machinery. Company logos are also their property. However, did you realize that a business can “own” a word as well?
In this sense, a business “owns” a word when a client uses it and quickly links it to that specific business.
For instance, a consumer in the US is likely to think of Heinz when they hear the word “ketchup.” Because of this company’s strong brand, people automatically associate its name with its goods.
The Law of Focus’ core idea is this. You need a memorable, persuasive manner to describe your goods if you want potential buyers to purchase it. Nothing is more effective in marketing than a single term that a buyer can instantly associate with your company.
Therefore, you have established a position in your customers’ minds when your business “owns” a word. Words that clearly communicate a specific, targeted benefit to a buyer are frequently the most effective.
For instance, the Swedish automaker Volvo is almost associated with “safety.”
But not every term is available for use. The Law of Exclusivity, which dictates that you should never utilize phrases already “owned” by another corporation, must be kept in mind if you want to avoid legal trouble.
Utilizing terms currently connected to a different brand is really not in your best interest. However, how could doing so actually harm a business?
It’s true that people can think of your business as a fraud if you utilize other organizations’ phrases. Even if this isn’t the case, it’s quite difficult to take back terms that have already been claimed by another company.
For instance, the “Energizer bunny” was the battery manufacturer’s effort to steal the idea of “long-lasting” from rival Duracell. It was a plush pink rabbit powered by batteries that never ran out of juice.
However, the plan was doomed. No matter how many entertaining bunny television commercials Energizer sponsored, customers continued to link Duracell with the names it already owned.
Less is more in marketing, but there’s a way to keep up with inevitable product expansions.
Customers adore options. This may make it seem obvious to increase your company’s product offering, but doing so could cost you both market influence and money. Yet how?
Marketing success necessitates sacrifice, according to the Law of Sacrifice. Therefore, if you’re a generalist, it would be wiser to decrease rather than increase your product line.
Keep in mind that you can spend less time creating one truly effective product each line of products you provide.
Brands that concentrate on a small number of items gain a greater market profile. The most prosperous businesses in retail, for instance, are those that specialize, such as The Gap, which specializes in casual clothing, and Foot Locker, which offers sports shoes.
Department shops, which sell almost everything, are currently the retailers that are suffering the most!
Limiting your target market is also encouraged by the Law of Sacrifice. Making an effort to please everyone will only damage the reputation of your goods.
Teenagers were the target market for Pepsi’s cola marketing, which was a successful strategy. But later, it changed its tone in an effort to reach a wider audience. Due to the fact that Coca-Cola, its main rival, already had a general message, this tactic was unsuccessful.
But even if you need to divide and expand your product range, there is a way to continue to dominate the market. According to the Law of Division, every product category eventually divides into multiple others. So how can you maintain a good brand presence over time?
Give each new product category a unique brand name in order to remain relevant. This is effective because people choose to purchase various goods or services from various businesses or brands.
For instance, General Motors developed a number of new brands when it diversified its lineup of automobiles, concentrating on various client segments with brands like Chevrolet, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Cadillac. The outcome? In every one of its categories, the business continued to dominate the market.
Three things damage a brand: infallibility; blind arrogance; and making incorrect predictions about the future.
Because success can breed hubris, a successful brand may find itself in a perilous situation. And even the most prosperous companies can fail due to excessive arrogance.
According to the Law of Success, a company’s arrogance can cause it to become blind, which can result in decisions (or a lack of decisions) that damage a strong brand.
For instance, a business can believe that its brand can sell anything if it becomes overconfident in its abilities and its position in the market. As a result, it hastily extends its product portfolio, which damages the brand.
Arrogant corporate bosses are also capable of putting down ideas that differ from their own, which can result in mistakes for the organization.
Midway through the 1970s, Ken Olsen, the company’s creator, was given the chance to concentrate on a brand-new product category: the personal computer. Olsen, overconfident in his company’s position as the industry leader and skeptical of the sales potential for the technology, declined. Thus, as the computer industry developed, DEC lost its competitive advantage.
Another error that can damage a successful brand is believing you can foresee the future.
According to the Law of Unpredictability, marketing plans based on medium- or long-term projections are rarely successful. How can you expect to predict market behavior three years from now when meteorologists can’t even predict the weather three days in advance?
Of course not. Therefore, avoid making costly marketing choices based on forecasts about the market.
The Law of Failure is another crucial marketing principle, and it’s a difficult one for you to accept. According to this rule, mistakes are unavoidable and must be accepted as such.
Numerous businesses have the problem of acting as though they never make mistakes, which prevents them from abandoning failed projects in time to save themselves significant costs.
Risk avoidance is common among managers as well, despite it being a natural and essential component of business. A lucrative opportunity, like entering a new market area as a cutting-edge market leader, could be missed if risk is avoided.
Final thoughts
While having the funds to engage in marketing techniques is necessary, understanding the game rules is even more crucial. Follow the marketing laws to help you create a strategy that will always be successful since successful marketing deals in perceptions rather than items.
Practical suggestions.
Get out of the workplace and think of a new plan.
When considering a strategy adjustment in the future, step back from the graphs and numbers. Take a stroll while wearing the shoes of your target market. To gauge where your business is on the market, ask them which brand comes to mind when they think of your product category. This will enable you to develop a strategy based on factual data rather than just what your ego wants to hear.
