How to penetrate a saturated market
EXECUTIVE TALK <br><br>You only have to walk through a supermarket to realise that most consumer goods shelves are over-crowded. You will find more than 10 types of soft drinks, toothpastes plus ice cream in every flavour and size. Yet no matter how saturated the market is, companies will still l
EXECUTIVE TALK
You only have to walk through a supermarket to realise that most consumer goods shelves are over-crowded. You will find more than 10 types of soft drinks, toothpastes plus ice cream in every flavour and size. Yet no matter how saturated the market is, companies will still launch new products or importers will still import other variants.
In a saturated market, what makes a new product really move?
I believe a saturated market is often where most revenue is. You go to fish where there is more fish!
Any new product has to stand out and to do so, it has to offer a unique value. Just a bit of great packaging is not enough. It has to offer something different and that is communicated through a brand.
An example is the milk market. People would not spend more than one minute picking milk, but now companies add value to the product such as filteration or say that it tastes so good that cows want it back!
This all sums up to offering something unique. Consumers like choice and it is a battle to change their perceptions to choose a different product. A fantastic brand is built on truth about a product.
A brand must offer a real benefit (better taste, solves a problem). If consumers perceive there is a low risk to trying something new, they will try it. But if the new product does not live up to its promise, the consumer is likely to switch back.
The days of mass marketing are over. You cannot appeal to hundreds of millions of consumers. Marketers need to see any market as a collection of niches. Consumers want products they feel are customised the way they want them to be. Having penetrated a market does not mean stopping there. Marketers need to increase sales. A few changes to packaging and advertising sometimes are not enough.
Fatima Alimohamed works with Bidco Uganda and can be reached to answer marketing related issues on ,i>strateam@gmail.com
You only have to walk through a supermarket to realise that most consumer goods shelves are over-crowded. You will find more than 10 types of soft drinks, toothpastes plus ice cream in every flavour and size. Yet no matter how saturated the market is, companies will still launch new products or importers will still import other variants.
In a saturated market, what makes a new product really move?
I believe a saturated market is often where most revenue is. You go to fish where there is more fish!
Any new product has to stand out and to do so, it has to offer a unique value. Just a bit of great packaging is not enough. It has to offer something different and that is communicated through a brand.
An example is the milk market. People would not spend more than one minute picking milk, but now companies add value to the product such as filteration or say that it tastes so good that cows want it back!
This all sums up to offering something unique. Consumers like choice and it is a battle to change their perceptions to choose a different product. A fantastic brand is built on truth about a product.
A brand must offer a real benefit (better taste, solves a problem). If consumers perceive there is a low risk to trying something new, they will try it. But if the new product does not live up to its promise, the consumer is likely to switch back.
The days of mass marketing are over. You cannot appeal to hundreds of millions of consumers. Marketers need to see any market as a collection of niches. Consumers want products they feel are customised the way they want them to be. Having penetrated a market does not mean stopping there. Marketers need to increase sales. A few changes to packaging and advertising sometimes are not enough.
Fatima Alimohamed works with Bidco Uganda and can be reached to answer marketing related issues on ,i>strateam@gmail.com