Differentiation Strategy Defined:
Product differentiation strategy is an integrated set of action designed to produce or deliver goods or services that customers perceive as being different in ways that are important to them.
It call for you to sell non standardized products to customers with unique needs.
Differentiation refers to your ability to separate yourself and your product or service from that of your competitors. And it is the key to building and maintaining a competitive advantage.
This is the advantage that you and your company have over your competitors in the same marketplace – the unique and special benefits that no one else can give your customer... More
Why Differentiate?
The concept of being unique or different is far more important today than it was ten years ago. The key to successful marketing and competing is differentiation.
Hyper competition is a key feature of the new economy.
What used to be national markets with local companies competing for business has become a global market with everyone competing for everyone's business everywhere.
With the enormous competition markets today are driven by choice - your targeted customers have too many choices, all of which can be fulfilled instantly.
Choosing among multiple options is always based on differences, implicit or explicit, so you ought to differentiate in order to give the customer a reason to chose your product or service.
Thus, "differentiation is one of the most important strategic and tactical activities in which companies must constantly engage. It is not discretionary".
HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE?
One can differentiate one self from other by, " Providing Customers with More Value-Added (MVA)
MVA means that you give the customer more, perhaps far more, than you ever have before. It goes beyond simplifying your customers' interactions with you to delivering solutions to your customers' problems, of which your products and services in their native forms are but small pieces...
You can visualize the principle of MVA as a ladder with your product at the bottom and the solution to your customer's problems at the top.
The more help you provide your customers to fill that gap, the more value you add to them, which, of course, differentiates you from your competitors who are still scrambling around at the bottom of the ladder.
Also, it is to your advantage to control as much of the ladder as you can – customers will be less likely to abandon you in favour of someone else, lower down the ladder, who offers less value. At the same time, your opportunity for margin and profit increase."
Product differentiation strategy is an integrated set of action designed to produce or deliver goods or services that customers perceive as being different in ways that are important to them.
It call for you to sell non standardized products to customers with unique needs.
Differentiation refers to your ability to separate yourself and your product or service from that of your competitors. And it is the key to building and maintaining a competitive advantage.
This is the advantage that you and your company have over your competitors in the same marketplace – the unique and special benefits that no one else can give your customer... More
Why Differentiate?
The concept of being unique or different is far more important today than it was ten years ago. The key to successful marketing and competing is differentiation.
Hyper competition is a key feature of the new economy.
What used to be national markets with local companies competing for business has become a global market with everyone competing for everyone's business everywhere.
With the enormous competition markets today are driven by choice - your targeted customers have too many choices, all of which can be fulfilled instantly.
Choosing among multiple options is always based on differences, implicit or explicit, so you ought to differentiate in order to give the customer a reason to chose your product or service.
Thus, "differentiation is one of the most important strategic and tactical activities in which companies must constantly engage. It is not discretionary".
HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE?
One can differentiate one self from other by, " Providing Customers with More Value-Added (MVA)
MVA means that you give the customer more, perhaps far more, than you ever have before. It goes beyond simplifying your customers' interactions with you to delivering solutions to your customers' problems, of which your products and services in their native forms are but small pieces...
You can visualize the principle of MVA as a ladder with your product at the bottom and the solution to your customer's problems at the top.
The more help you provide your customers to fill that gap, the more value you add to them, which, of course, differentiates you from your competitors who are still scrambling around at the bottom of the ladder.
Also, it is to your advantage to control as much of the ladder as you can – customers will be less likely to abandon you in favour of someone else, lower down the ladder, who offers less value. At the same time, your opportunity for margin and profit increase."