A new positioning topology

Abstract

When Merle Crawford set out to document the actual positioning practices of firms selling products and services in consumer and industrial markets, he had in mind the development of a straightforward typological description. He didn't expect to turn up a surprising new strategy category. What he found was that in addition to using product attributes as devices for differentiating their products from competitors', businesses frequently use one of several approaches that are substitutes for attribute positioning. He calls the new category “surrogate” positioning. Dr. Crawford says that surrogates permit a seller to communicate product attributes without having to describe them, and at the same time permit the description to be tailor-made to each individual who reads the advertisement.