Expanding Total Market Demand

When the total market expands, the dominant firm usually gains the most. If Heinz can convince more people to use ketchup, or to use ketchup with more meals, or to use more ketchup on each occasion, the firm will benefit considerably because it already sells almost two-thirds of the country’s ketchup.

In general, the market leader should look for new customers or more usage from existing customers.

A company can search for new users among three groups:

  1. those who might use it but do not (market-penetration strategy),
  2. those who have never used it (new-market segment strategy), or
  3. those who live elsewhere (geographical-expansion strategy).

Marketers can try to increase the amount, level, or frequency of consumption. They can sometimes boost the amount through packaging or product redesign.

Larger package sizes increase the amount of product consumers use at one time. Consumers use more of impulse products such as soft drinks and snacks when the product is made more available. Ironically, some food firms such as Hershey’s have developed smaller packaging sizes that have actually increased sales volume through more frequent usage.

In general, increasing frequency of consumption requires either

  1. identifying additional opportunities to use the brand in the same basic way or 
  2. identifying completely new and different ways to use the brand.

How to:

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