Differentiation
DefinitionBrand & Creativity
Differentiation
Being meaningfully different from competitors on something buyers value - the classic strategy of winning by offering what others do not. In marketing science its importance is contested: buyers of a category perceive rival brands as broadly similar, which is why the evidence school prioritises distinctiveness.
Evidence from the library
56% vs 25%For challenger brands differentiation beats distinctiveness, the opposite of the general rulePrincipleDistinctiveness plus relative differentiation (double-D) is achievable; true uniqueness rarely is.Principle62% / 20%Distinctiveness, experience and product factors drive 62% of what makes a brand different - communication only 20%StatThe distinctiveness test for any brand experience: could a competitor have offered this same experience?Principle59% vs 7%The most consistent brands are eight times more likely to build differentiationStat
Source
Marketing Definitions
Michael Porter, Competitive Strategy (1980); critique in Byron Sharp, How Brands Grow (2010)
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