Mastering Strategic Positioning for Business Success
Strategic Positioning
The Apple Example
For years, Apple has been the gold standard in strategic positioning. How did it achieve this? By carving out a niche as the premium option in the technology world without sacrificing functionality. Other companies have followed suit, and now Apple holds 19% of the worldwide mobile phone market, followed by Samsung with 18% and Xiaomi with 13%. (For positioning, there must be differentiation.)
While many factors fuel Apple’s success, one of the most important is the company’s focus on simplicity. This, together with its advanced technology, is what sets Apple apart.
What Is Strategic Positioning?
Strategic positioning is the process of differentiating your business from the competition. It is about finding a way to make your company stand out in the minds of consumers so that they think of you first when they need specific products or services. Differentiating only by price is not strategic positioning. For it to be a strategic positioning process, differentiation is necessary.
How to Achieve Differentiation
We can achieve differentiation in many different ways:
- Adding more value or functionality
- Being the best at managing costs
- Having the most innovative products
It is important to remember that whatever approach you take to differentiate your business, it needs to be sustainable in the long term.
5 Key Areas for Strategic Positioning in Exports
When deciding on our strategic positioning, especially if we are exporting goods or services, we need to take into account five important areas:
Customer Profiles
How well do you understand your customer profile in each market where you compete? Are you making the most of your understanding of the local culture and way of thinking? For example, consider the unique market for “job exit” services in Japan.
Market Pricing and Value Proposition
We need to consider what parts of our value proposition can be changed to make the products more appealing to a specific market. For instance, in China, enabling consumers to pay through WeChat (the Chinese equivalent of WhatsApp) is crucial, even for brands like McDonald’s. Another thing to consider is the impact of foreign exchange (FX) fluctuations on our profit and loss account. In this case, we could arrange FX insurance to avoid a sudden fluctuation eroding our margins.
Routes to Market
We need to ensure we comply with all applicable export documentation and regulations, such as export licenses, entry limitations, or current tariffs. Do we need special containers or packaging materials? Will transportation costs make our pricing uncompetitive?
Capacity to Support Demand
We must be careful to ensure that we can sustain a sudden increase in demand. It is also crucial to make sure that we can continue to serve both our domestic and foreign clients effectively during such a surge.
Other Considerations
Do we require a local presence or representation in the foreign market? If our product or service requires professional support, can this be provided digitally? Will after-sale services be required, and can they be handled remotely?