The view from here

Challenge

Many brands, products and services in China fail to fully connect with their target market due to the way they are positioned.

Our client, a top-five automobile manufacturer, was evaluating its five year strategy for the booming Chinese market. They asked us to help them understand exactly where their brand was positioned in today’s market and to identify key areas in which they could increase competitiveness.

Process

We identified and created an appropriate mix of research and insight processes aimed at defining design and brand strategy. We used quantitative research, in-depth expert interviews, ethnographic research and anecdotal evidence to gain meaningful results.

We combined both market research and design research methods to define the client’s brand position within defined segments. Comparative brand attributes were the focus of the quantitative market research. The design research enabled us to build user profiles. The ideal brand positioning was determined by examining the results.

CBi conducted studies of Chinese consumers and how their five senses inform their purchasing choice. We used the data to identify key attributes and buying triggers.

Outcome

The results of this project included the identification of a large market segment that our client was not connecting to. We provided insight and strategy to help guide the client to reposition its brand in order to capture this segment, and maintain its hold on any future growth. This resulted in need-to-deliver guidelines for product and brand differentiation, which our client could apply to its innovation, design and marketing processes.