Know-How Exchange : Advertising/PR

Positioning a new brand is a big deal. It's not something we can do in a few short responses here. It requires an in-depth understanding of the market, your primary target audience, perceptions of other brands in the market, etc.

You need to hire someone who has experience with positioning major brands, invest in up-front market research, and do this right, if you want to deliver a truly meaningful result.

Positioning a major new brand is something most marketers only get to do once or twice in a career -- if that. You don't want to take the chance that inexperience with positioning will compromise the success of the whole project.

Find someone who has been around this track several times before, and let them guide you on this journey. (The experience you're looking for is in Positioning, not necessarily in the automotive industry.)

Dear abdul,

I agree with Phil and Michael. But here's the thing. POSITIONING
the make and model of the car is one part of the task but it's not everything and it's certainly not positioning the brand.

Why?

Because although positioning is important, from what you've said of your product and its not being considered any kind of premium product, it sounds as if your CONDITIONING element is going to be another thing altogether, and a tough one at that.

You position the car (which is not the same thing as positioning the brand) but you'll need to condition (or recondition it if what you say about your product is true) people's thinking ABOUT the car and what the car can do, or can't do, or now does, looks, feels, or handles differently BEFORE you fret about the brand.

It's only once those elements of conditioning are in place (via them becoming anchored in long term, associative memory) that your new notion of the brand will begin to emerge. And for this, again,
I agree with Michael: you need heavy hitting support.

Only then will you begin to create new brand awareness.

It sounds to me as if you have masses of work to do to rewire people's thinking about your product and this is NOT something you will do swiftly.

Here in the USA there are two makes of car (that I will not name) that were perceived as crap ten years ago that, despite significant design, build, quality, and safety improvements are still considered crap now. And this was ten years ago!

Unless you're entering a totally new market with a totally new product, positioning (or re-positioning) an existing brand name with one, currently accepted list of values in order to replace that image with a new set of impressions that would have people believe that there have been significant changes is a bitch of an uphill struggle.

My best advice to you is to read the last paragraph of Michael's advice again, then regroup.

I hope this helps.

Gary Bloomer
Wilmington, DE, USA

Thank you all for your valuable insights.

Sorry for not being clear. Let me elaborate it further. The perception with regards to the current products of this manufacturer in the market is Cheap, not very reliable but innovative. The brand competes solely on tangible dimensions like quality and price i.e., low quality low price.

But this new product "car" from this manufacturer seems have overcome these issues. I can say it is the best among its class.

The issue is how to gain trust and change the negative perseption in the market atlest with this new product.

I believe this is the only chance i.e., at the time of launch to position it the way you want it to be for the rest of its life.

I view is we should penetrate the market by positioning it high, price it high, cater to niche, B+ audience. Gradually as the product gets established, lower the prices to reach out to masses for volume sales.

Am i right saying that the above strategy may help overcome the 'cheap', unreliable' and 'lack of quality' issues.

Thank you all once again for your valuable time and expert views.

Abdul

Thank you Phil, Michael and Gary for sharing your valuable thoughts.

Take Care.