Paper: Consumer Behaviour REVIEW Positioning: the battle for your mind By Al Ries and Jack Trout

The term positioning comprises three phases: analyze the offer, ascertain what the consumer values and determine the distinguishing features in a competitive environment. This is a book from the early '80s, and is based on thinking from the late '70s.The book has opened and facilitated me with a new approach towards marketing and branding minutes but also created doubts regarding many things as well. Some years have passed since the book was first written and much has changed in the world of marketing since then. Even so the principles explained by the writers remains sound although the examples are in some cases old dated. What makes this book great is that the fundamental problem that the authors approach was designed to overcome was the fact that we live in an increasingly over communicated marketplace. If that was a problem in the 1980s, it is an even bigger one today. With so many firms blasting consumers with selling messages, how an earth do you stand out from the crowd? Ries and Trout suggest that the answer is to position your brand. What this involves is attaching a focused thought to your product that communicates a unique benefit relative to other brands in the same category. In explaining their concept and illustrating it with brilliant examples the book cleverly shows how marketing is a fusion of art and science. It is about creativity rooted in a fact-based understanding of your customers. When you apply the simple rules that govern how to position a brand, like the law of focus, and so on, you will succeed in generating breakthrough ideas that help your own a powerful thought in the minds of your target audience. When 'Positioning: the battle for your mind' was written, advertising was very much the 'killer app' of marketing and the internet didn't exist. Today, advertising is only one of a range of marketing tools and very much plays second fiddle to other levers of customer conversion. The beauty of positioning is that it works across all elements of the marketing mix. Which is why it remains such an important technique today. Although the information was good and gave valuable insights about positioning, it seems to be for large companies with large budgets who can afford to take the inherrent risks. and even some of those lost millions on failed strategies. Ries and Trout have a very fluent and engaging style, as you'd expect from brilliant communicators. This book will whet your

appetite for more of their work. You will enjoy and learn from everything they've written. This, however, remains the most seminal output of their successful association. It can be read in an afternoon, but it will see you through a lifetime's career in marketing. I've made a lot of money thanks to these guys, so the least i could do was thank them through this review. Some main points that really stick out: Your brand isnt what you say it is. Its what your customers say it is. People are inundated with information and attempts at communication. Forcing your way into someones life will almost always not work. Change minds by simplifying your message. If you cant win in your category, create a new one. For a more recent example than the book gives, this is what Tim Ferriss did when he made up lifestyle design. 80% of learning and sensing is done visually, so make your product visually attractive. I dont know if this had a name when Positioning was written, but I recommend researching sensation transference. Ries and Trout argue that the success of a brand is not due to the high level of marketing acumen of the company itself, but rather, it is due that the company was first in the product category.They use the case of Xerox to make this point.Xerox was the first plain-paper copier and was able to sustain its leadership positioning.

For whom: Anyone that has never taken a marketing class should read this book. When Required : As soon as you begin doing any marketing or product development work. But Why to read this: Positioning is a great Marketing 101 explanation of branding, extending, and even devloping a product. What i learned: One of the most effective ways to position a product is to be first. Many people know Charles Lindbergh was the first man to fly across the Atlantic. Who was second? No one knows or really cares, even if the second pilot was better because Charles Lindbergh established a position in the minds of people. Positioning is reaching and filling a vacant spot in the mind of the prospect. You can position nearly anything: company, product, even yourself. To position your product you have to look at the most obvious thing in the mind of the prospect. To position yourself you have to link one concept with yourself, you cant be everything to all people.

The concept of positioning applies to products in the broadest sense. Services, tourist destinations, countries, and even careers can benefit from a well-developed positioning strategy that focuses on a niche that is unoccupied in the mind of the consumer or decision-maker.

Reviewed By: Kuldeep Kumar MBA 2nd year, SBPPSE, AUD, Delhi

Submitted to: Mr. Saurav mittal Faculty,MBA, SBPPSE,AUD, Delhi