Marketing Strategy and Competitive Positioning pdf ebook

Superior products and services
It is still worth saying that having superior products and services on the market – products 
that are, or are believed to be, better in some way (cheaper, better quality, more stylish and 
up to date) than the competitors’ – can be a marketing asset for the company. Unique prod-
ucts or services, until they are imitated, can provide marketing assets, so long as customers 
want them and are prepared to pay for them.
6.4.2 Supply chain assets
Assets based in the supply chain are concerned with the manner in which the product or 
service is conveyed to the customer. They include the distribution network, its control and 
its uniqueness and pockets of strength.
Distribution network
The physical distribution network itself can be a major asset. In the car hire business, for 
example, Hertz owes much of its success to a very wide network of pick-up and drop-off 
centres, especially in the USA. This wide network ensures availability of the required services 
in the right place, increasing convenience of use for Hertz’s customers.
Distribution control
Investments in dominating some or all of the channels for a product can be a powerful asset. 
Mars launched the Mars Ice-Cream Bar as a child’s treat, and then transformed it into an adult 
indulgence – a strategy since imitated by countless competitors. However, while having limited 
success, this product has not lived up to expectations in terms of overall sales growth. The 
Unilever-owned competitor Walls exercises a high degree of control over an important distri-
bution channel: small convenience stores. Indeed, Walls owns the freezers and display cabinets 
in many of these outlets, and does not share them with competitors. The critical marketing 
asset here is distribution channel control. Coca-Cola has a very similar approach with its wide 
distribution of chiller units in retail outlets. These very attractive units do not stock competitor 

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CREATING AND EXPLOITING MARKETING ASSETS
products as a rule, and hence in many locations Coke occupies/‘owns’ retail space that is at a 
premium.