Marketing for Design Engineers:
Key Concepts
Mary Caravella, School of Business
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
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What is marketing?
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
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What is marketing?
Creating, communicating and
delivering VALUE to customers,
and managing relationships with
those customers to benefit the
organization and its stakeholders
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
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Customer relationships are built on
interactions with mutual value…
Marketers
(with skills and
resources)

Interactions
Customers
(with problems and
goals)
Three key types of interactions tracked by marketers:

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(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
Transactions (purchases)
Visits (“engagement”)
Votes (“social influence”) Influence/enable other transactions
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We develop customer value propositions to
facilitate transactions
Customer Value Proposition: The specific bundles we propose
to help customers solve a problem or achieve a goal, including the
benefits we claim they will receive and the costs we ask them to pay
Brand
Associations
Customer
Value
Service
Experiences
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
Price
Product
Attributes
Transaction Costs
Benefit Claims
Cost Claims
Search
Learning
Negotiation
Disposal
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Two key questions we will focus on
1.
2.
Will what we design create value for
customers?
How will customers find us?
Eric Ries (2011) The Lean Startup, Crown Business
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
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“People don’t want
¼” drill bits,
they want ¼” holes”
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Two drills on Amazon…
$118.05
Black & Decker SSL20SB 20-Volt
MAX Smart Select Lithium Ion
Drill/Driver with extra battery
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
$179.99
DEWALT DCD760KL 18-Volt 1/2-Inch
Cordless Compact Lithium-Ion
Drill/Driver Kit (includes second
battery)
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Two drills on Amazon…
$118.05

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SmartSelect Clutch; Choose
your project icon and drill
automatically adjusts power and
speed for optimal results
Gear indicator; 2-speeds
indicates high or low setting
20-volt MAX Lithium batteries
deliver extended run-time
High torque motor delivers
175-Inch-pounds
Ergonomic design for improved
comfort and control
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
$179.99

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Lightweight design (4.0 lbs) minimizes
user fatigue
Dual speed range 0-500/0-1700 rpm
delivers optimal performance
LED worklight provides increased
visibility in confined spaces
Compact track saw batteries
(DC9181) are compatible with the
existing system of DEWALT 18v
power tools produced since 1996
Compact size (8.2-inch) allows users
to fit into tight spaces;
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Two different brands
for two different targeted markets
with different problems to be solved or
goals to be achieved
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Three DIMENSIONS of customer needs
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Functional
Social
Psychological
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Why does he choose specific products/services?
Because they help me
• Do something (Functional)
• Express myself with
others (Social)
• Experience something
enjoyable (Psychological)
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Why does he choose specific products/services?
I need…
•A drill I can use for
everything
•Assurance I am buying a
reliable product
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Why does he choose specific products/services?
Because they help me
•Improve my business
(Functional)
•Market my business (Social)
•Avoid risks (Psychological)
(and I’m a person too!)
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Why does he choose specific products/services?
I need…
•Tools I can use all day
• Rugged
• Compatible power
supplies
•Tools that show I’m a
professional (and make me
feel like one)
• Distinctive styling
consistent with me
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Your product is a tool to
help customers create
value for themselves.
The more you understand
customers and what they
value the more likely you
will create value
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
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Functional value: helps solve a
problem or achieve a goal

Social value: connects with or
distinguishes from others; expresses
something about self to others

Psychological value: interesting,
enjoyable, anxiety-reducing, satisfying
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The sensors found in smart phones and
Nintendo Wii controllers have migrated
into Black & Decker’s cordless 4v MAX
Gyro, billed as the world’s first motionactivated screwdriver. Tilt it right by a
mere quarter of an inch and it screws
clockwise to tighten; left, and it turns
counterclockwise—all thanks to an
internal gyroscope that senses wrist
motions, which are measured by a small
microprocessor that turns those
movements into changes in the drill’s
speed and direction
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Now that we better
understand WHY
people choose what
they do,
we turn to HOW they
do it
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HOW does he choose?
LIFE
SEARCH
SOLVE
DMP
(decision making process)
How a customers
moves through a
decision
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1.Creating Customer Value
Life gives rise to problems and goals
LIFE
SEARCH
SOLVE
• What’s
going on
in my life?
• What
triggers
this need?
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We search for and evaluate solutions
LIFE
SEARCH
• What’s
going on
in my life?
• What
triggers
this need?
• What do I already
know about how to
address this need?
• Who should I ask?
• Where else should I
look?
• What is important to
consider?
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SOLVE
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We choose, and evaluate our choice
LIFE
SEARCH
SOLVE
• What’s
going on
in my life?
• What
triggers
this need?
• What do I already
know about how to
address this need?
• Who should I ask?
• Where else should I
look?
• What is important to
consider?
• How satisfied am I
with the
product/service?
• How satisfied was
I with the
purchase process?
• Do I get the
support I need?
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1: Target Segment Description
Implications
Need characteristics affect the DMP…
LIFE
SEARCH
Need Importance
Drives effort to get
started AND
increases effort
spent searching
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SOLVE
Need Frequency
Decreases effort
spent searching
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So they affect your marketing challenge
FREQUENCY
IMPORTANCE
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
HI
LO
LO
HI
Getting him started
(“I know why… how?”)
Switching to you
(“Why are you better than
your competition?”)
Getting him started
(“Why bother?”)
Switching to you
(“Why should I change my
routine?”)
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We’re opening a deli, we’d like Sam to find us
“I need lunch”
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What is Sam’s “decision journey” (DMP)?
Sam likes to get outside of
work during his 30 minute
lunch break. He usually walks
with a few of his coworkers
to one of the nearby fast
food places, but lately has
been packing lunches– he’d
like to eat healthier, but
doesn’t want to make his
friends change their lunch
routine.
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Identify key decision criteria

When Sam chooses a place to eat for lunch…
 What is non-negotiable? (“must haves”)


What other things does he consider?
(potential “differentiators”)
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Can get in and out in 30 minutes
Healthy food
Friends can get food they like too
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Develop competitive decision matrix
Criteria
McDonalds
Subway
Our Healthy
Deli
Fries
Subs
Wraps
None
Small selection
2/3 selection
Full selection
Limited
selection*
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
8 minutes away
15 minutes
away
8 minutes away
0 minutes
away
$5.00/meal
$5.00 core
menu
$6.00 core
menu
$4.00/meal +
pre time
Differentiators
Tasty, familiar food
my friends like
Healthy food
Less than 10 min
away
Must haves
Within 30 minutes
Pricing < $8.00
/meal
Very useful for determining and
communicating competitive situation and
product development priorities
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
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Decision criteria affect your POSITIONING

How you distinguish yourself from competitors in your
customer’s mind

Positioning Statement
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(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
For (our target segment), our ( product/brand
)
is (ONE important and most differentiating decision criterion)
among all (competing ways of solving targeted problem)
because ( single most important “supporting evidence” )
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Some direction..
1.
Will what we design create value for customers?

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2.
Work to understand all the dimensions of customer value:
functional, social and psychological, that customers evaluate against
costs
Understand which product attributes are must haves and which are
differentiators
Use brands to signal (and deliver) intangible benefits
How will customers find us?
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(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
Work to understand the customer decision journey (DMP)
Understand what is most likely to trigger a search, where they are
most likely to search and what causes them to stop searching
Use brands to create mental shortcuts related to your positioning
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Reach out if I can help

mcaravella@business.uconn.edu
(c) 2012 Mary Caravella
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