Competition

01.12 Competition

Competition includes all the actual and potential offerings and substitutes that a buyer might consider. Based on the degree of product substitutability, we can identify four levels of competition.

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   Brand competition

A company sees its competitors as other companies offering similar products and services to the same customer at a similar price. For a example :- Volkswagen might see their major competitors as Toyota, Honda and other car manufacturers of medium priced automobiles. It couldn't see itself as competing with Mercedes or with Hyundai. (head to head competitors)

·         Industry competition

A company sees its competitors as all companies making the same product or class of products .in our previous example the Volkswagen company see itself as competing against all other automobile manufacturers.

·         Form competition

A company sees its competitors as all companies manufacturing products that supply the same service or satisfy the same need. Here Volkswagen would see itself competing against not only car manufacturers, but also against manufacturers of motorcycles, bicycles & trucks.

·         Genetic competition

A company sees its competitors as all companies that compete for the same customer dollar/rupee. Volkswagen would see is itself competing with companies that sell major consumer durables, foreign vacations and new homes.