Marketing Strategy and Competitive Positioning pdf ebook

Market segmentation: identifying the most productive bases for dividing a market, iden-
tifying the customers in different segments and developing segment descriptions.
● 
Choice of target markets: evaluating the attractiveness of different market segments, 
parts of segments (niches) or groups of segments, and choosing which should be targets 
for our marketing.
● 
Competitive positioning: identifying the positioning of competitors (in the market and 
in target segments or niches), to develop our own positioning strategy.
● 
Iteration: understanding competitors’ positioning and that the possible positioning 
strategies open to us should influence our thinking about the attractiveness of different 
market segments and the choice of market targets, and may change the way we segment 
our market, leading to revised target choices and positioning approaches.
Figure 7.1 
Competitive positioning and market segmentation
Competitive
positioning
How
customers
perceive
alternatives
Market
segmentation
How
marketers
identify
groups of
customers
Customer
needs
Market
offerings
Market
Figure 7.2 
Stages 
in segmentation 
and positioning
Market segmentation
Choice of target
markets
Competitive
positioning

---

173
PRINCIPLES OF COMPETITIVE POSITIONING
While they are distinct strategy concepts, there are important similarities between posi-
tioning and segmentation. Both start as issues of perception – how customers compare 
and understand alternative market offerings and how marketers understand the customer 
benefits different buyers seek from products and services. But both also are susceptible to 
rigorous research-based analysis. 
We approach these issues in the following way. The role of this chapter is to distinguish 
between positioning and segmentation, and to clarify the underlying concepts and princi-
ples. From this foundation we move to an evaluation in Chapter 8 of the technical aspects 
of developing positioning and segmentation models. The implications for developing mar-
keting strategies are found in Chapter 10 (on creating sustainable competitive advantage 
in target markets) and Chapter 18 (on the integration of positioning and segmentation to 
build robust marketing strategies for the future).
7.1 
Principles of competitive positioning 
Competitive positioning as an issue in developing marketing strategy has been defined in 
the following terms: 
Positioning is the act of designing the company’s offering and image so that they occupy 
a meaningful and distinct competitive position in the target customers’ minds. 
 ( Kotler, 1997 )
The essential principle of competitive positioning is that it is concerned with how cus-
tomers in different parts of the market perceive the competing companies, products/services 
or brands. It is important to bear in mind that positioning may apply to any of these levels: 
● 
companies: for example, in grocery retailing in the United Kingdom the major competi-
tors include Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda, and positioning is based on these identities;
●