Editing Positioning (marketing) (section)

==Perceptual mapping==

{{main|Perceptual mapping}}

To identify suitable positions that a company or brand might occupy in a given market, analysts often turn to techniques such as perceptual mapping or correspondence analysis. Perceptual maps are a diagrammatic representation of consumers' mental perceptions of the relative place various brands occupy within a category. Traditionally perceptual mapping selects two variables that are relevant to consumers (often, but not necessarily, price and quality) and then asks a sample of the market to explain where they would place various brands in terms of the two variables. Results are averaged across all respondents, and results are plotted on a graph to indicate how the ''average'' member of the population views the brand that make up a category and how each of the brands relates to other brands within the same category. While perceptual maps with two dimensions are common, multi-dimensional maps are also used. A key advantage of perceptual mapping is that it can identify gaps in the market which the firm may choose to 'own.' 
 
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Perceptual maps
|- style="background-color: white;"
| [[File:PerceptualMap1.png|center]]
| [[File:Multi-Dimensional Perceptual Map.gif|center|360px]]
| [[File:PerceptualMap2.png|center]]
|-
| ''Simple perceptual map of U.S. motor vehicle category (using two variables)''
| ''Multi-dimensional perceptual map of analgesics category'' 
| ''Perceptual map for hypothetical product category''
|}

===Algorithms used in positioning analysis===

The following statistical procedures have been found to be useful in carrying out positioning analysis:

* [[Cluster analysis]]<ref>Hoffman, D.L. and Franke, G.R., "Correspondence analysis: graphical representation of categorical data in marketing research," ''Journal of Marketing Research'', 23, 1986, pp 213–227</ref> including overlapping clustering<ref>Phipps, A., Carroll, J.D. and Wind, Y.J., "Overlapping Clustering: A New Method for Product Positioning," ''Journal of Marketing Research'', Vol. 18, No. 3 1981, pp. 310-317</ref> 
* [[Correspondence analysis]]<ref>Wena, C.H. and Chen, W.Y., "Using multiple correspondence cluster analysis to map the competitive position of airlines", ''Journal of Air Transport Management'', Vol. 17, No. 5, 2011, pp 302–304</ref>
* [[Conjoint analysis]]<ref>Paul E. Green and   Abba M. Krieger  Conjoint analysis with product-positioning applications Chapter 10 in ''Handbook in Operations Research and Management Science'', Vol. 5 [Marketing],  Eliashberg, J. and Lilien, G.L. (eds),  Elsevier, 1993 https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0927-0507(05)80023-4, pp 467–515</ref>     
* [[Multidimensional scaling]] especially non-metric scaling (NMS)<ref>Moutinho, L., "Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning and Strategic Marketing," Chapter 5 in ''Strategic Management in Tourism'', Moutinho, L. (ed),  CAB International, 2000, pp 121-166</ref>
* [[Multivariate analysis]]<ref>Mazanec, J.A., "Positioning analysis with self-organizing maps: An exploratory study on luxury hotels",   ''The Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly'', Vol. 36, No. 6, 1995, pp 80-95</ref>