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Marketing 101: The Great Gasoline Opportunity
The Marketing Doctor Says:
It’s Time To Brand Gasoline (again)!
Everyone’s talking about gas prices… but very few people are talking about gasoline brands. There are some good reasons for this because for years now oil companies have moved away from branding their products. It used to be to buy Exxon (and before that Esso) was “to put a tiger in your tank” and then there was the push of the detergent gasolines that suggested that they would actually clean your car’s engine.
Over time, oil companies decided to back away from this kind of branding. After all, the reasoning went, gasoline is a commodity and for the most part interchangeable. For the consumer, price was the biggest factor as was convenience. There are two good articles on this here and here.
But the Marketing Doctor believes that there is a historic moment for brand differentiation here! The marketplace has changed radically and branding has to change radically. How has the marketplace changed? The nightly news starts with “pain at the pump” stories; the New York Times runs stories about Americans selling their cars and buying motorcycles; magazines talk about people figuring out crazy strategies to save gas (like drafting behind other vehicles on the highway). All of this says one thing: the consumer is paying attention to gasoline and if he or she is paying attention to gasoline, they’re going to pay attention to details about this product that they would have ignored in the past!
Fact is, that a long-term branding strategy like the one most oil companies are employing is fine (i.e., being green and sustainable) but it shouldn’t exclude a short-term strategy that capitalizes on what your target market really wants: gasoline that will save them money!
How do you do this? Well, one way would be to promote the fact that not all gasoline is the same. Of course, the basic commodity is similar but the additives differ and this is where oil companies can brand and market a competitive advantage. For example, detergent gasoline might have fallen on deaf ears just a year or two ago but today if you can tie them to making a car run more efficiently (and thus saving gas and the life of your car) there’ll be a lot of takers.
The higher price point of gasoline supports this kind of branding strategy because when people pay more for anything they are more likely to pay attention to its perceived quality. Bottom line, if Exxon or Shell or whoever has the perceived superior product for a competitive price, the consumer is going to buy it.
My guess is that initiatives like this are already in the works –at least, they ought to be!— and soon we should be seeing a host of new gasoline products and marketing designed to distinguish gasoline brands and build brand loyalties (again)! If not, then one of the greatest moments in history for brand differentiation is being wasted! Stay tuned!
And, remember, it’s always easier when you keep branding in mind!
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