[MUSIC] But at the end of the day, you should be able to create a clear, compelling, and unique value proposition for every one of the target segments that you're going to target. So, what is the value proposition? The value proposition is a fundamental concept in marketing. It is all about communicating benefits. And benefits come in many shapes and form. The best way to think about it is to think in terms of the physical benefits or emotional benefits, but benefits can furthermore be segmented into tangible benefits or concrete benefits or intangibles. Let me give you a couple of examples. Let's take the case of Nespresso. Nespresso has positioned itself as the best experience in espresso coffee. The sourcing of its beans, the quality of the foam, the aroma, and so forth and so on, it clearly has concrete tangible benefits that deliver performance as the best pot coffee or espresso coffee in the market these days. But, not content with this top performance positioning or value proposition of Nespresso, both intangible physical benefits. They have tried to adapt the brand or the product with intangibles, as well. Can you think about how you might give Nespresso? More intangible benefits, in addition to some of the ones I've already stated. Nestle has tried to embed a brand, or the experience of Nespresso, with intangibles, as well. Can you think about how you might have gone about trying to communicate or deliver intangible benefits? They have. For that, they have hired George Clooney. What sort of intangible benefits were they trying to achieve or trying to communicate to their consumers by hiring George Clooney to represent them as their spokesman here in Europe? Obviously, a sense of uniqueness, a sense of premiumness, and a sense of distinctiveness, right? So then the experience of drinking espresso becomes even more compelling. Let's look at another example. Take the case of Volvo, for example. Volvo has particularly positioned itself as in the safety category. Clearly, this is an emotional benefit. No consumer really reads the organization for consumer reports or the tests as to whether a Volvo is or is not the safest car on the road. Certainly, it has won many awards, but there is more tangible benefits that Volvo provide. In particular, they also provide long lasting cars with good service and good road service conditions, right? But, they key proposition and the key value proposition is around emotional, tangible benefits, such as the one of security. But what about products or services that have tried to design a value proposition for delivering emotional, intangible benefits? Can you think of any category of products that actually tried to market themselves this way? There are plenty, here is a prototypical example, fragrances, or perfumes. Take the case of Chanel, in this particular case. Clearly, they tried to appeal to this particular kind of emotional and intangible benefits. Most fragrances and most perfumes try to position themselves using this sort of value proposition. So let me get back to the marketing process. Once you have finally chosen the set of benefits or the package of benefits which differentiates you from the competition and offer a unique and compelling value proposition, and for the specific target, or target segments which to serve, the next step is positioning. Positioning is all about optimizing the four p's of marketing, which is what should the product be, at what price it should be offered, and with what set of services, or after services associated to it, what should be the optimal channel of distribution, and what should be the optimal communication strategy for communicating those benefits. Positioning is the object of the following weeks on this course. Finally, we have come to the end of this first week of the course. I know it has been intense, so let me remind you about what have you already learned. First of all, I gave you a very simple framework for how to tackle complex marketing challenges. We call them the five c's. Next, we have walked through the marketing process. How does marketing go about creating value? We have not gone into the delivering and communicating it yet, which is the objective of next week. Next, we have come to term with the basis for segmentation, and furthermore, we have explored some of the most common research methods used for accomplishing such tasks. And finally, we have defined the key marketing concept of the value proposition, which is critical to be able to target and design the right positioning for the product. I hope you have enjoyed this week. See you next week. [MUSIC]
