1. 3.4 The Product/Service Mix March 4 th, 2010

3. Retail businesses we shop at are part of the service sector, even though they sell us a tangible product They do not make the products or add anything to the products they resell We actually pay for the service they provide

4. Example: Old Navy Provides variety and size selection Fitting rooms Return or exchange policies Different payment options Convenient locations Old Navy acts as middleman between consumer and manufacturer

5. What Services Can They Add? Buying large appliances Buying a sweatshirt at Christmas time Buying a laptop Buying a suit Buying a book at Chapters Shopping at Ikea

6. Discussion Think of a specific business – what services can they add to make it better for those who frequent them? Example: Sit down restaurant – kids area

7. What Products Can They Add? Sports venues Movie theatres Universities Salons

8. Activity – In Pairs 1) Name a product that was the leading product in the market until it was surpassed by competition. Why do you think this happened? 2) Make a list of 10 products or services you’ve purchased. Why did you choose them over other alternatives? What was the main competitive advantage?

9. 3.5 The Competitive Market March 8, 2010

10. Competitive Market New products have potential to dislodge existing products. Why? Limit to the number of consumers who use a particular product, or brand. Consists of specific types of products as well as the companies that manufacture these products

11. Competitive Market Market Size: Amount of money consumers spend annually on these specific products Eg. Dragons Den – Underwear Market Market Share: the % one company’s product takes of the total dollars spent by consumers on products within a specific category

12. Competitive Market Market Segment: Categories that marketers break broad segments into Eg. Sports Drinks are a segment of the beverage industry. Gatorade is part of the sports drinks market category.

13. Increasing Market Share Expand the pie? Or take a bigger chunk of the pie? Difficult to expand the pie Medical discoveries cause this to happen

14. Improving Market Share Few companies experience more than a 1-2 point increase or decrease in market share in a year. Small shifts are still important Many factors (eg. Negative publicity or change in tastes) can affect market share