Page 123 - DMGT408DMGT203_Marketing Management

Marketing Management/Essentials of Marketing

Notes human and civil rights, pollution control, product information, wages, and benefits,
women’s opportunities, and energy conservation; but it scored really badly on issues of
corporate governance, relationships with shareholders, responsiveness to complaints of
customer and franchises, accuracy of promotional claims, communication, and reaction to
criticism.
Critics claim that had Roddick not dismissed and ridiculed the need for marketing for so
long, The Body Shop could have certainly avoided future problems that it faced. But by
2000, it was paying the price for not having devoted sufficient resources to new product
development, to innovation, to refreshing its product ranges, and to moving the business
forward. It seems that heroes can change the rulebook when the tide is flowing with them,
but adopting the disciplines of marketing allows companies to anticipate and react when
the tide begins to turn against them.
N.B: The Body Shop was sold to L’Orcal, the world’s largest cosmetics manufacturer, in
March 2006, for £ 656 million. Dame Anita Roddick gained personally to the tune of £130
million. Since British and French companies have very divergent views on strategy and
day-to-day management, it remains to be seen how successful the union will ultimately
turn out to be. For The Body Shop, it’s yet another chapter in its struggle to remain
relevant in a changing world.
Questions
1. Analyse the significant issues in the case. Was Anita right in ridiculing the marketing?
2. How has Anita Roddick positioned The Body Shop and maintained its identity with
social and environmental causes as a unique positioning approach?
Source: Marketing Management-Text and Cases, SHH Kazmi, Excel Books.

5.5 Differentiation

Differentiation is the process of creating a different and distinguished offering by a company
through a number of available tools, which adds meaningful value to the offering.

5.5.1 Criteria for Differentiation

All products can be differentiated to some extent, but not all brand differences are meaningful or
worthwhile for which it should satisfy one or more of the following criteria:

1. Important
2. Distinctive
3. Superior
4. Preemptive
5. Affordable
6. Profitable

Example: Many companies have introduced differentiation that failed one or more of
these criteria. For example, Steve Jobs of Apple Computers developed a unique desktop called
the Next which failed in the market as it was neither affordable nor important for the consumers.
Similarly, Maruti’s VERSA is an example of a differentiated product which did not witness
success as ALTO did. Sony is a good example of a highly innovative company that constantly
comes up with new developments such as Walkman, Discman, etc.

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