Brand Positioning · Frame of reference · Component
The comparison set
What they would actually do instead, including doing nothing — the set the brand is genuinely judged against.
The deliverable
What it is
Comparison sets drawn from the industry describe the peer group. Comparison sets drawn from customers describe the decision, and they include options the organisation would not consider competitors at all.
Doing nothing belongs in the set. It is the most common outcome of most considerations and the one least often analysed.
One level in
What it is made of
Each element is a constituent part of the component. Follow one to see the attributes it carries.
The alternatives
Everything the customer would consider instead.
3 attributes: Alternative · Alternative type · Frequency
LearnThe loss analysis
Where the brand actually loses, and to what.
3 attributes: Lost to · Reason · Share of losses
LearnThe inaction case
Why a customer would reasonably do nothing.
3 attributes: Reason to stay · Switching cost · Who carries the risk
Learn
Loss data is held by sales and rarely read by brand. It is the most reliable description of the real comparison set.
The other components in frame of reference
The category
What the customer files the brand under, in their words — which is frequently broader and less flattering than the industry definition.
LearnThe entry points
The situations that bring the category to mind at all — because a brand not retrieved at the moment of need is not in the consideration set.
Learn