There are some goods which you never forget to buy and there are some products about which you think a hundred times before buying. Similar is the case with your customers and that is why product classification comes into the picture. You should always have a basic idea about the buying behaviour of your customers. For this, classifying products in different categories is the best idea. It not only helps you in getting a general idea about the performance of your products but it also helps you to improve your sales.
What is the Product Classification?
Product Classification in simple terms is classifying your products in four categories namely convenience goods, shopping goods, speciality goods and unsought goods. This classification is totally based on the category of a particular good in comparison with similar products in the market and also on the buying behaviour of the customers. Such classification makes it easy for marketers to implement better marketing strategies for their products.
The Classifications
As it is mentioned above, product classification products are divided into four categories. Let us have a look at those categories in detail:
Convenience Goods
Convenience goods are those goods which people buy for their convenience in day to day routine. A toothpaste, soap, toilet paper, etc. These goods do not cost much and are bought by everyone. As they are easily available and people use them regularly, they do not think much before buying such goods. Most of the time, people get into a habit of buying convenient goods of a particular brand.
For such products, what you need to do is to bring your product in limelight. Many times, the toothpaste or soap in the front row is sold most because people do not think much before buying it. If you are thinking of giving discounts and offers on such products, it will be of no use. These products already cost very less and no one will think of saving a petty amount of money. However, the advertisement can help you a lot in case of these products.
Shopping Goods
Shopping goods are those goods which come to your mind when you hear the words shopping. These will include everything you shop for from a t-shirt to a car or even a house. People do not buy these products as quickly as they buy convenient goods. They have second thoughts about such products.
Let us take the example of a car, if you want to buy a car, you will probably think for a week or maybe more before buying it. You will also conduct research about similar cars of other good companies and compare them. Finally, you might also refer to case studies or discuss with your friends who know automobile before finalizing it.
On the other hand, let us say you want to buy footwear. Obviously, it is a small shopping good and not as expensive as a car. But you will still not be buying it like a convenient good. You will look at all the designs available from different brands, you will consider factors like comfort, size, design and many more before finalizing it.
If you want to do marketing of shopping goods, it is not as easy as convenient goods. You have to advertise them and tell others why your product is better than the similar products launched by other brands. Also, you can consider discounts and sales in case of shopping goods.
Speciality Goods
Speciality goods are goods which are one of its kinds. The best example can be a luxurious car like BMW or iPhone. These products are one of their kind and people do not take much time to compare them as they know that this product is different from the others. Such products do not need much marketing or advertisements if they are already having a good network of customers.
The marketing of these products require only one thing and it is the introduction of new features with new models. Let us take the example of an iPhone. Everyone buys the iPhone because they know it will offer good features but if the iPhone will stop introducing new features in its upcoming models, no one will buy it. Gradually, the obsession with the brand will vanish and people will begin to think about their convenience. They will simply shift to some other brand.
Unsought Products
Unsought products are those products which people buy but out of concern. They are not very excited to buy these products out of interest. The best example can be batteries, fire extinguishers, etc. When you go to a market, you do not b batteries because you like them or they attract you but you only by them when you know that the previous ones might have run out. The marketing of these products is all about reminding the customers of the use of your product. You need to tell them that it is important to buy your product as it will ensure their safety. Adding innovation to unsought products can act as bait to the customers.
Significance of Product Classification
Product classification is very important for marketers as it allows them to organize their products in different categories as mentioned above. As we have already seen that the marketing procedures for each category are different from the other, a single marketing campaign will never be a better option. That is why product classification helps the marketer to do the right marketing for the right product.
It ensures that a toothpaste, a pair of shoes, an iPhone and a battery are marketed in different ways. It is easy to design separate marketing campaigns for the products which have already been classified in an organized manner. This will reduce the stress of the marketer as well.
Product classification also let the marketer know about the performance of all the products in an efficient manner. It also allows marketers to do target marketing. It allows the marketer to identify is a particular category of products is not performing well and improve marketing campaigns.
Final Words
Product classification is very important as all the products are not similar. The buying behaviour of the customers is very different towards different products that is why it becomes important for a marketer to launch different marketing campaigns for different categories for the product. Here comes the role of product classification and makes it important.
