| Measure |
Details |
| $ Price differentiation |
Evaluate the customers' potential for finding a bargain relative to the competition—high performance and ease of use at a good value. A very high rating means:
- Value is good relative to the competition
- Price or payment terms are matched to the customer
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| Availability to the customer |
Evaluate how well the channel matches the customers' buying behavior. This means meeting deadlines competitors can't touch. A very high rating means:
- Product is available when the customer wants it
- There are few middlemen who don't add value
- Buying, installing, and using are intrinsically enjoyable
- Expert advice is available to simplify the buying process
- Solution is tailored to the customer
- Product is sold with way the customer wants to buy
|
| Packaging differentiation |
Evaluate how well the customers can see the value of the product and its differentiation from the competition. A very high rating means:
- The invisible is visible so customers can see the differentiation
- The product sells itself in the communication medium used
- A range of sizes, colors, and visual aspects match the range of customer tastes and intellectual styles
- Look and style is consistent with cultural norms
|
| Performance |
Evaluate for how well the product does what it is designed to do. How do your customers measure performance and how does the product measure up? A very high rating means:
- Very good performance in terms of the customers' cognitive perception and measurable features
- Tools are available to help the customer track its performance
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| Ease of use |
Evaluate the delight the customer will take in learning about the product and its ease of use. This requires matching the "impedance" of the product to our human senses and capabilities; customers try to assess sensory and learning matches while buying. A very high rating means:
- Learning and use are obvious and intuitive
- User interface is intrinsically rewarding
- Accommodates different cognitive styles
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| Assurances |
Assurances inspire confidence in the product and company. The goal is to relieve the customers' fears. Typically, they include looking foolish to peers, paying too much, and rapid obsolescence. The more exclusive the assurances, the higher the market share. A very high rating means:
- There are ways to address customers' voiced and unvoiced fears
- Good promises are followed by good execution
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| Life cycle costs |
Lower cost of ownership serves as a differentiator, especially if it is identified for the customer. A very high rating means:
- The cost of ownership is made evident to the customer
- There is a clear measure of the life-cycle cost relative to the competition
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| Social sanctions |
Social sanctions are measures of who influences your customers' buying decisions. For new products, it is important to win the support of respected early adopters and to develop a community for them. It is also important to be sensitive to the cultural norms of customer groups. A very high rating means:
- It appeals to early adopters
- It leverages off the social sanctions of the customers
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