Question

While it is known that KFC has a lot of rivals in the fast food restaurant business, the company can still be regarded as a successful one. In Oman alone, KFC is available in almost all of the malls around the country. This is mainly due to its products.

1. Illustrate the different product levels using KFC as an example.  

2. Which of the product levels makes KFC different from its competitors like McDonalds or Chicking. Explain your answer.

Answer 1

The Five Product Levels model was developed by Philip Kotler in the 1960s. Kotler’s book, Marketing Management (15th Edition), was voted one of the 50 best business books of all time in the mid-1990s by the Financial Times.

Before Kotler, marketing existed within a silo, the marketing department. Kotler was instrumental in making marketing an organization-wide activity.

The Five Product Levels are :

1. Core Benefit

The core benefit is the fundamental need or wants that the customer satisfies when they buy the product.

For example, the core benefit of a KFC Restaurant is to provide fried Chicken to their customers

2. Generic Product

The generic product is a basic version of the product made up of only those features necessary for it to function.

For Example Product Hot and Crispy Chicken, which is the basic product of KFC

3. Expected Product

The expected product is the set of features that the customers expect when they buy the product.

For example a Hot and Crispy product of KFC should be yummy and crispy whn the customers consume it.

4. Augmented Product

The augmented product refers to any product variations, extra features, or services that help differentiate the product from its competitors.

For example Chicken Chizza, which is exclusively an innovation by KFC and it is highly differentiated product in the market.

5. Potential Product

The potential product includes all augmentations and transformations the product might undergo in the future. In simple language, this means that to continue to surprise and delight customers the product must be augmented.

PRODUCT DIFFERENTIATION OF KFC

KFC also produce other product other than chicken, and they will improving the existing product, example KFC improve their exist product, Kentucky Fried Chicken into varies type of favorite example spicy favor chicken, curry favor chicken and black pepper favor chicken, and KFC also developing new product other than Kentucky Fried chicken like mashed potato, burger and so on, it called as product differentiation, mean that they creation a new product differ from existing products to attract more consumer.

Therefore, the Augmented Product Level makes KFC different from its Competitors.