Kellogs Perceptual Positioning

Kelloggs

Name

Institution

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The above perceptual positioning map displays how customers perceived the different brands present in the cereal industry. The brand names Frosted Flakes, and Rice Krispies represent the Kellogg Company (Kotler, 2011). The competitors to Kellogg in the map include General Mills, Ralcorp, and PepsiCo. Cheerios and Fiber one brands fall under General Mills, whereas Shredded Wheat and Post Raisin Bran are brands from Ralcorp. PepsiCo on the other and is represented by Quaker oatmeal and Cap n Crunch brands. As such, the map depicts the perceptions of the customers towards the different products offered by the various cereal companies. Consumers’ perception are usually determined by the consumers’ attitudes, beliefs, previous experiences and behavior intentions towards the product. Such perceptions always influence the buyers’ decision making during the purchasing process. Positioning encompasses both the physical attributes of the product and the utility offered by the brand. In this case, the map focuses on the characteristics of the product taste and its nutritional benefit as well. The taste attribute is represented on the horizontal axis whereas the nutritional benefits attributes are represented on the vertical axis. The scale in both axes runs from 1 to 10. A brand with worse tasting scores one whereas a brand with a good tasting scores 10.Likewise, a brand with a poor nutritional benefits scores one whereas that with a high nutritional benefits scores 10. Therefore, the map attempts to illustrate how the customers perceived the Kelloggs brand in relation to the other competing brand in the market.

From the map, it is evident that Kellogg faces stiff competition from the other brands in terms of nutritional value and taste. Though a strong brand, accusations of false health claims in advertisements made its rankings dwindle in the market in terms of the nutrition. As such most the customers’ perception regarding the nutritional status dropped. The FTC, therefore, barred Kellogg from making any health benefits claims of their product unless backed by scientific evidence. However, marketing strategies such as market segmentation have enabled the company to survive in the competitive market. For instance the introduction of special “K” cereal product, nutritious cereal for women who want to lose weight (Tybout & Calder, 2010).

The positioning illustration was based on the perception of the target market on the different cereal brands in the market. The positioning was first determined by determining how the target market makes purchasing decisions regarding their taste preference and their nutritional value requirements. Most of the decisions the buyers make are based on the scale of preference, due to the existence of diverse brands in the market. The most appealing brand in terms of taste and nutritional value was hence considered, and each of the brands was given a score accordingly. The brand ranking, therefore, depended on the ability of the product to meet the consumers’ utility regarding the product taste and nutritional value in the market. As such, each of the brands in the market is awarded a score according to the customer’s perception.

In addition, the target market buying criteria was considered during positioning. According to findings, most consumers make purchases based on the enlisted attributes during the purchase process. The buying criteria were enlisted in order of priority. The information on the consumers buying criteria was derived by searching for data from both primary and secondary sources such as through the use of market research tools, for instance, surveys and secondary sources such as market research articles. After that, analysis of the different attributes used to make purchases was made for each of the brands. The information for scoring the graph was supplemented by coupling the findings with information from the secondary sources. Therefore, the scoring was based on a market research study in the cereal industry. Subsequently, the values were plotted along the x and y-axis according to the brands respective score.