Targeting, Positioning and Branding

In the last Marketing group sessions, we went through targeting and the segmentation of target markets; which is the process of defining and subdividing a large homogenous market into clearly identifiable segments having similar needs and wants.

We talked about the aspects of target market, for example who they are, what they are, what they do e.c.t. From this we picked out aspects of the target market and the communications used; we produced posters in groups to display these from selecting images and pictures from magazine articles and newspapers. We worked with Hilton Hotels for this session; their target markets were the professional business individual and the slightly older generation for luxury weekend getaways. So we decided to split the poster into two sections of these target markets and we put the marketing communications that overlapped in the centre. On the business individual side we had images of smart looking businessmen in suits and an image of a boy showing his muscles implicating strength and the strength and success that these business people feel inside. In the centre we had an image of a map and various locations, showing that there is a wide variety of Hotels all over the country, whether for weekend getaways or business individuals. On the right hand side we had images of good quality wine and food implicating an extremely high standard and quality of food.

If we were to do this exercise for our brand Nike then we would have chosen images that portray sports quality. For example athletes, showing sportsmen and women doing a variety of sports, from basketball to running, to golf ect. Seeing as one of the unique ways Nike differentiates themselves from its competitors is the science and technology that goes into the development and production of their footwear, we would have include technical images. We may have included quotes of success and achievement, which is associated with Nike footwear, particularly with the help of high achieving sponsors.  

In the Marketing group session that we had today we learnt about positioning and branding. We look at how companies use product differentiation to position themselves in markets and the combination of name, term, sign, symbol and design to brand themselves with the primary function to identify themselves over and above other competitors.

We looked at ways that Nike differentiates themselves from their competitors and came up with the main point that because Nike is so heavily focused on the technological and scientific side to their footwear they are immediately differentiated. This research and development they go through to come up with quality footwear design is just amazing and there is not a close competitor that we can think of that does this. From this we produced perceptual maps of the industry and close competitors of Nike, looking at the performance, technology, fashion and leisure of products. With this information we can identify possible competitive advantages and selecting overall positioning strategies. We are also able to identify any gaps in the market, however we must see if this is an opportunity or whether there is a reason why there is a gap in the market.

We are now at the final stages of our Nike infographic; we are going to draw up our own perceptual map of the footwear market and place other competing brands where we perceive it to be. This will be slightly different for everyone; it depends on their own perceptions. We are going to gather all our information and make sure that we have all the references and evidence to back up our points. The next stage would be to display it all and produce our final Nike infographic.

Kirstin Ledson and Chelsea Lane

5th March 2013- 7.00pm