How many of you have heard of Michael Porter?
He’s an academic who specialised in management and economic theory. Don’t worry, we’ll keep this light.
Porter did a lot of work on competitive advantage.
He said that there are only two viable long term sources of competitive advantage.
You can be low cost. So, cheaper than your competition. Think Amazon.
Or you can be differentiated. So, better than your competition or unique. Think Apple.
He said that over the long run, no business can find sustained success in the middle ground. In the middle ground you are neither cheaper nor different. You will lose to those who are.
So, where to go? You could aim to be cheaper. But this is hard. Only one brand can be the cheapest.
You could aim to be differentiated. It’s also hard. But many brands can be differentiated. In their own way.
This means that for most brands there is only one option.
Be different or be dead.
Why are we talking about this? Walk around most grocery stores in the UK and you will walk through a sea of sameness.
You see it in the promotions being run. Most are price discounts. Most are loyalty card prices (e.g. Clubcard, Nectar.) You run the promotion this week. Your competitor runs it next week. Just moving money around.
You see it in the proliferation of branded bays. Often multiple branded bays in an aisle. You’ve got one. Your competitor has one right next to you. Which kind of defeats the object.
You see it in secondary displays. Most of them follow the same rules – cardboard, rectangular, big price discount flash. Things that should be impossible to miss become too easy to miss.
Brands are spending a LOT of money to do what everyone else is doing.
If you’re not cheaper. If you’re not differentiated. You’ve got a problem.
To win you need to be different. Do different things. Things that your competitors aren’t doing.
So, how can you do this?
Messaging. This is about saying something that is important. Something that matters to most shoppers when making a choice. Saying something differentiated. Something that ONLY YOU can say. For instance, in laundry it could be about superior cleaning performance. P&G brands are masters at telling shoppers why they are worth paying for. They use ‘magic numbers’ like “5x longer,” “2x more stain removal” to dramatise. Saying something only they can say. Saying it in a way that only they can say.
So, ask yourself… is your messaging differentiated enough?
Design. This is about being distinctive. Having a visual identity that is ownable. That makes you instantly recognisable. Bonne Maman are a great example. Their packs are instantly recognisable in whichever category they operate. So is their communication. In store AND out of store. It’s consistent across touchpoints. It’s consistent over time.
So, ask yourself… is your design differentiated enough?
Display Units. This is about visual disruption. Using differentiated shapes, colours and materials. Think the tic tac travel display shaped like a tic tac pack with tic tac faces popping out of the top. Think Campofrio’s die cut displays for their Snack’In brand. Think Corona’s wooden display units.
Most displays are in secondary locations. This means you don’t just need to stand out from your direct competitors. You need to stand out from everyone else. The store (or online page) is a battle for shopper attention. You need to win it.
So, ask yourself… are your display units differentiated enough?
Promotions & Activation. This is about moving away from the standard price discounts. Still giving shoppers value but doing so in a differentiated way. Think Coke’s “share a Coke” or Diet Coke’s “find the purple can.”
It could be about differentiated promotion mechanics. Think Sainsbury’s “Fruit & Veg” challenge. It stretches across fresh, frozen, tinned and dried fruit. It incentivises people to buy more. To eat healthier. Why couldn’t other food types do this? Why couldn’t brands with strong portfolios do this? Promotions are about incentivising shoppers. But the incentive doesn’t have to be the same old price discount.
Again, it’s about doing something ONLY YOU can do. Think Innocent’s “Big Knit.” They have been running this for 23 years. TWENTY. THREE. YEARS. When you have something that works keep doing it. Shoppers get bored a lot slower than we do.
So, ask yourself… are your promotions and activation differentiated enough?
The safer thing to do is to fit in. To do what everyone else is doing.
The riskier thing to do is stand out. To do what nobody else is doing.
Fortune favours the brave. Be different or be dead.
Feel free to forward. Have a great weekend. Speak to you in a fortnight.