Perceptual Maps
Tammy DeHaai
MKT/421
May 12, 2013
Norb Gray

Perceptual Maps
Abstract
Perceptual maps are visual representations of what the customer thinks of a brand and so it is with this paper with each phase in the simulation the situation, my recommended solutions, why, and my results will be given. The relationship between differentiation and positioning of products or services will be given as well as whether or not the repositioning of the product in the simulation was what I had expected and why or why not. The effect of the product life cycle on marketing will be given and what effect the product life cycle had on the product in the simulation. In the first phase the situation is choosing the right parameters that are relevant to the motorcycle industry and that will reflect the highest potential for CruiserThorr. The four fundamental parameters I chose were product design/styling, price, safety, and service offerings. My results were that I only chose two of the four fundamental parameters. Lifestyle image and quality engineering were the two I should have chosen instead of product design/styling and price. Lifestyle image and quality engineering are important for CruiserThorr’s perceptual map. I could have done better. Marketing strategy is the next phase and the situation was to either reposition CruiserThorr or launch a new motorcycle. I chose to reposition CruiserThorr, provide financing options, increase services, maintain price, place with dealers and distributors, promote parties for CruiserThorr owners, offer insurance and protection plans, provide giveaway merchandise, training to dealers, club membership, customization options, and financial services. My result was that I made a good move by not decreasing the price and not increasing the styling. If I would have decreased the price, it could have cost the company in the long run. Not sure what could have happened if I would have increased the styling maybe could have caused customers to lose interest and shop elsewhere. The third phase was to analyze market research data and create a perceptual map for CruiserThorr. What this involved was taking the number up or down for price, lifestyle change, service offerings, and quality engineering. The key to not doing too little or too much was keeping it with the lines of the competitors, but yet took it a little above to where it wasn’t too much. I got good results for this phase as I correctly interpreted the research data and arrived at CruiserThorr’s parameter values. This is a good thing that I was able to interpret their values. It was a little hard to know whether to go to a negative number or a positive and how high or low. With CruiserThorr’s competitor’s values listed as well it made it a little easier to interpret CruiserThorr’s parameter values. A company should always go above and beyond its competitors, but not to the point where it loses the customer’s attention or the business loses out. The one thing I had trouble with was putting the values outside of the competitors and then this made my result a negative one and so I then kept the lines within the competitors, but on a couple I went a little over and it was then that I was able to interpret CruiserThorr’s parameter values. The relationship between differentiation and positioning go hand in hand because differentiation is how CruiserThorr differentiates their product from others. A way that CruiserThorr could differentiate their motorcycle from competitors would be to have some unique on their bike such as a hide-away seat. They could make a second seat for a rider and make it to where it can be hidden away until it is needed. They could make the seat into a storage place; this makes it convenient for the driver of the motorcycle in two ways, to have storage for a road trip and to have a seat for a rider. Positioning is the way CruiserThorr positions themselves in the market due to the quality and good product they are