Several years ago, Hanes went tagless. Gone were the itchiness of tags, the inconvenience of cutting them off, and the embarrassment of having them stick out of Hanes underwear. Management at Hanes made this move partly because they found tags to be annoying to customers. Management also removed the tags to differentiate the product from that of the competition.
At first glance, underwear seems to be a straightforward product. Although I’m sure Hanes management and that of other underwear companies would disagree with me, underwear does not appear to have much opportunity for differentiation from its competition. Different fabrics, designs, and colors are offered for customers who want fashion, but these are a niche market. The next time you walk past the underwear section in a store, notice what is heavily stocked. It’s the most comfortable, basic underwear styles.
How does a company differentiate such a basic product? Management must find out what matters to customers. What annoys them about the product? What would they like that they can’t find? Why do they buy one product instead of another? In differentiating a product, little things make a big difference. Something as seemingly insignificant as a tag can be important.
In Hanes’s case, management pinpointed tags as annoying, itchy, and unnecessary to customers. Getting rid of tags offered customers more comfort. Thus, Hanes underwear went tagless. In order to have this change contribute to Hanes positioning in customers’ minds, management is airing commercials with long-time spokesperson Michael Jordan. Keeping the continuity of Michael promoting the tagless differentiation is wise marketing.
Although Hanes made the change to tagless several years ago, management still feels it is an important differentiation. That is why I saw this commercial recently. Management not only identified the differentiation, they are maintaining top of the mind awareness about it by airing commercials at peak purchasing times of the year.
You can apply this process to your business by answering these questions. What differentiates your business from the competition? Discover your business’s difference and keep it at the top of your customers’ minds.
This week's marketing trivia challenge is Name the differentiation of a business or a product from its competition. E-mail me your answer.
At first glance, underwear seems to be a straightforward product. Although I’m sure Hanes management and that of other underwear companies would disagree with me, underwear does not appear to have much opportunity for differentiation from its competition. Different fabrics, designs, and colors are offered for customers who want fashion, but these are a niche market. The next time you walk past the underwear section in a store, notice what is heavily stocked. It’s the most comfortable, basic underwear styles.
How does a company differentiate such a basic product? Management must find out what matters to customers. What annoys them about the product? What would they like that they can’t find? Why do they buy one product instead of another? In differentiating a product, little things make a big difference. Something as seemingly insignificant as a tag can be important.
In Hanes’s case, management pinpointed tags as annoying, itchy, and unnecessary to customers. Getting rid of tags offered customers more comfort. Thus, Hanes underwear went tagless. In order to have this change contribute to Hanes positioning in customers’ minds, management is airing commercials with long-time spokesperson Michael Jordan. Keeping the continuity of Michael promoting the tagless differentiation is wise marketing.
Although Hanes made the change to tagless several years ago, management still feels it is an important differentiation. That is why I saw this commercial recently. Management not only identified the differentiation, they are maintaining top of the mind awareness about it by airing commercials at peak purchasing times of the year.
You can apply this process to your business by answering these questions. What differentiates your business from the competition? Discover your business’s difference and keep it at the top of your customers’ minds.
This week's marketing trivia challenge is Name the differentiation of a business or a product from its competition. E-mail me your answer.
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