Products are Complex pom81 Augmentations

Product Lines Groups of associated items, such as those that consumers use together or think of as part of a group of similar products Product Category An assortment of items that the customer sees as reasonable substitutes for one another Product Forms Different approaches to solving customer problems within a category Product Assortments The complete set of all products offered by a firm; also called the product mix Product Issues pom82

Types of Products pom83 SpecialtyShoppingConvenienceUnsought Strong customer preference Will expend considerable effort Customers will spend time comparing alternatives Customer not willing to spend any effort to evaluate prior to the purchase Products customers do not think of buying or do not know about

pom84 Corporate or family brand – The Gap Corporate and product line brands – Kellogg’s Corn Flakes Individual lines – Mr. Clean (Proctor & Gamble) Naming Brands and Product Lines

Product Assortment and Product Line Decisions 10-5 pom85

Product Assortment and Product Line Decisions Breadth Number of product lines; also known as variety Depth Number of categories within a product line 10-6 Category Depth Number of stock keeping units (SKUs) within a category Brand The name, term, design, symbol, or any other features that identify one seller’s good or service as distinct from those of other sellers pom86

What Makes a Brand? Branding Brand name URLs Logos and symbols SlogansCharactersJingles 10-7 pom87 Frito-lay: Doritos Branding

Value of Branding for the Customer and the Marketer Facilitate PurchasingEstablish LoyaltyProtect from CompetitionReduce Marketing CostsAre AssetsImpact Market Value 10-8 pom88

Brand Equity: Brand Loyalty Combined customer attitudes toward a brand Consumers are often less sensitive to price Marketing costs are much lower Firm insulated from the competition 10-9 pom89 BW_using_brand_history384K_Stream.wmv

Brand Extension The use of the same brand name for new products being introduced to the same or new markets pom810

pom8 11 Co-Branding Marketing two or more brands together

pom812 Evaluate the fit between the product class of the core brand and the extension. Evaluate consumer perceptions of the attributes of the core brand and seek out extensions with similar attributes. Refrain from extending the brand name to too many products. Is the brand extension distanced enough from the core brand? Brand Dilution Occurs when a brand extension adversely affects customer perceptions about the attributes the core brand is believed to hold

Brand Repositioning A strategy in which marketers change a brand’s focus to target new markets or realign the brand’s core emphasis with changing market preferences How is this repositioning? pom813