Situation
The definition of the situation and its description is fully done through three stages. This is done through the help of the marketing manager, Cruiser Thorr, for the Thorr motor cycles. The situation exists in three different stages and the manager handles all the three stages. Since the manager could not do the entire task, alone he had to get support of his three co-workers. The situation is therefore carried out in three segments, that is the situation itself, my decision and proposed advice. The simulation aspect was to show the extent to which differentiation and positioning related.
While differentiation is the design of a product to make it, unique and different from that of the others in the same industry, positioning are the strategies employed to introduce the same product in the market place so that it is in the position to realize the firm adequate sales volume. Our product Cruiser Thorr is unique in a variety of ways, the design makes it acceptable by people with a unique lifestyle and the price is quite affordable. The positioning of the product in the market puts it at the top to be adopted by people of a high class in the society.
The position granted to the motor cycle could not be shaken by even repositioning of the same product. This was given a test when other aspects of repositioning were provided, i.e. injecting more finances; this only made the product more stable in the market. Situation 1 demanded that completely different information be scrutinized to aid in deciding on a new marketing plan for the motor cycle. This was suggested from Cruiser Thorr since its sales were drastically going down given the old designs and, hence, and older target market, therefore, new strategy to market the product was warranted. This was done by integrating identified four elements of the perceptual map to determine whether the Thorr motor cycles were up to the competition, it was yet to face. When the engines of the motor cycle and those for the competitors were compared, it was significant that Thorr’s design was more superior. The prices were reviewed concurrently, and it was realized that Thorr motor cycles were cheaper and affordable as compared to the rest.
The recommended solutions that Thorr cycles adjust the prices to fit the younger generation and modify the design were appropriate; this is because the products would be promoted rapidly. The market share as compared to that of the competitors would be busted from the current 40%. The sales for the previous periods were also recorded to have collapsed and this was attributed to the adjustments in population elements, which were realized and handled appropriately. Since the company needed to incorporate the younger generation into its market based, they got obliged restructure some of their marketing strategies to enable them penetrate the new market (Pessoa & Weerd 2003).
Therefore, the responsible individuals had to get down and know what the market was in need of, the considerations to deliver and form the perceptual maps for simulation. This could only happen in phases where stage 1 involved forming the attributes to be part of the model. Stage 2, a marketing plan, is formed after the assessment of the feasibility. Stages 3, the regulations to guide the plans, are stipulated and important adjustments, made such as those for cost effectiveness. The results for this are obvious, that is increased sales, market share bust, and general company growth.
Relationship between differentiation and positioning
In modern day business, it is vital that businesses constantly put a check in their products so that they are able to give better services to their clients. A successful strategy of the previous year may not be the same in the current year. The two fundamental strategies to promote sales is either differentiation of the products or positioning. These strategies are important since they enable a company attain competitive advantage (Myers 2006).
Product differentiation is an act where products’ attributes are brought together. The attributes may be either the prices or even the quality of such products. The aim is to enable the clients give a different view to the product, hence, increase in the desire to consume the product. For our case, which is a company that deals in motor cycle manufacturing, a modification can be made on the shape and design to make the bike appealing to a group like the youth in the society. The design should be in a way that the other competitors in the industry cannot copy, hence, competitive advantage (Pessoa & Weerd 2003).
Product positioning, on the other hand, is the way in which you present the product or the service once it has reached the market. Product positioning normally follows immediately after differentiation, after the design in our case, the producers can market the product as it is always available in unlimited supply and that it does not have any defects. Thus, our product is positioned on the basis that it is of high quality and that it is in availability all the time. For the sake of positioning, the producer should always stress on the given aspects.
Product differentiation and positioning are, hence, related since they always follow one another in a sequence. This is in a way that once you have successfully differentiated your products from those of the competitors so that you attain customer preference the immediate action is then to position the product in the market. Imagination is the basis of successful differentiation and positioning (Myers 2006). The repositioning of the product in the simulation is as was expected since it has successfully busted the sales of the Thorr motorbike.
Product Life Circle
The product life cycle is a procedural step that takes place in four phases: the introduction, growth, maturity and decline phases. Product marketing is normally geared to increase sales, with respect to this. The PLC supports marketing depending on the stage that the product has reached in terms of its development. The growth phase is highly recommended since it is the phase that is normally characterized with increase in sales which is supported by the increased demand of the item. At the stage, all the other logistics have been taken care of, hence, promotion activities should be increased rapidly to compensate the increased demand. It is at the same stage where competition from the other firms is witnessed and this triggers the adjustment in the 4p’s for marketing the product (Myers 2006).
In the simulation of our product, the PLC has assisted in employing recommended strategies that ensure increased sales and, at the same time, facilitating competitive advantage. The company manufacturing Thorr motor cycles, hence, has remained the leading suppliers of the bikes since it holds the position of a high-class motor bike.
References
Myers, J. H. (2006). Segmentation and positioning for strategic marketing decisions. Chicago: American Marketing Association.
Pessoa, L., & Weerd, P. (2003). Filling-in from perceptual completion to cortical reorganization. Oxford: Oxford University Press.