Sambal Mabo Brand Inventory — Week III Part 2
To know and learn deeper about Sambal Mabo’s brand, I have done brand audit of the brand by using Point of Difference (POD) and Brand Positioning method. We are going to learn more in this part about the result of my analysis and show my recommendation about what Sambal Mabo should do for their next move.
First thing first, let’s get to know a little about the other brands (a.k.a competitors) we are going to use as a part of our analysis. There are 3 chili sauce business that Sambal Mabo claimed to see as their competitors. The first one is Sambal Kota Hoedjan. Just like its name, Sambal Kota Hoedjan is Bogor based food business specialized in chili sauce. The second competitor is Sambal Bawang Bu Rudy, a chili sauce business who also acts as a pioneer of sambal bawang itself and based at Surabaya. The last but not least is Eatsambel whose also online chili sauce business based at Jakarta that is still newly established.
POINT OF DIFFERENCE (POD)
~ Sambal Kota Hoedjan
Parity : Interactive social media content and marketing activities, promotional offers, price range of product
Differences : Sambal Kota Hoedjan has offline platform (restaurant) and offer broader variant of menu (not only food complementary such as chili sauce). More active social media activities and keep on updating new contents to remind consumers of their brand. Despite all of that, their main marketing activities are done through offline means. For Sambal Mabo, they offer more ease in order by offering more platform to place order in online marketplace.
Why people buy Sambal Kota Hoedjan? Sambal Kota Hoedjan introduced their main product through their secondary products (people get to know their chili sauce by visiting their restaurant), they offer an offline direct experience to their customers.
~ Sambal Bawang Bu Rudy
Parity : Same kind of speciality item which is sambal bawang.
Differences : Sambal Bawang Bu Rudy offer much less variants but mainly focus on one speciality variant only. Accessible on various offline stores, especially in Surabaya. Their price is also cheaper. But they offer less content, also do less in marketing activities. But due to the benefit by entering the market category first, they are recognized as original product without needing much marketing activities. For Sambal Mabo, they are more active in marketing activities especially online and as for product-wise, they are more guaranteed in packaging and quality.
Why people buy Sambal Bawang Bu Rudy? Because they are recognized as a brand that represents Surabaya and seen as the best choice of souvenir for people who visit Surabaya.
~ Eatsambel
Parity : Overall similar online selling system and range of price
Differences : Despite similar type of approach in marketing activities, the approach of Eatsambel is in a more intense level. From the start, they bought premium features in online marketplace which enable them to get prioritized in online marketplace’s recommendation. For collaboration with influencers, they collaborated with more well-known influencers for endorsement. They provided higher initial capital from the start which make them grow in rapid speed. For Sambal Mabo, they offer more variants and more practical in packaging.
Why people buy Eatsambel? The main reason is due to the curiosity since the products keep on getting recommended to the consumers and the good reviews from the influencers.
Brand Positioning
~ Sambal Mabo
Key Customer Benefits : Fresh and high quality ingredients with safe and practical packaging. Flavor guaranteed and satisfying volume, as well as broader choices of products which are adjustable to consumers’ preference.
Brand Positioning Statement : High quality and freshly made chili sauce packed with practicality.
~ Sambal Kota Hoedjan
Key Customer Benefits : Broader variant and type of menu (not only food complementary items) and providing direct experience offline
Brand Positioning Statement : Interactive Bogor’s chili sauce producer representative.
~ Sambal Bawang Bu Rudy
Key Customer Benefits : Available and accessible at offline stores, experience “the taste of Surabaya”
Brand Positioning Statement : Represent Surabaya’s identity with the original taste of chili sauce
~ Eatsambel
Key Customer Benefits : Following the trends (feeling involved), flavor guaranteed
Brand Positioning Statement : Trendy and up-to-date chili sauce to satisfy your taste buds
Result Summary
From the Point of Difference analysis, we are going to talk about what brand value and lack that Sambal Mabo have. Sambal Mabo strongly highlights the practical packaging and freshness compared to the other brands. Rather than offering accessibility, availability, and connectivity with consumers, they offer more on the side of the product quality. Sambal Mabo also does a great job with their product innovation, they focus on the food complementary while still continuously developing new kind of products, therefore their focus in products are still in track. But unfortunately, it seems like Sambal Mabo is lacking in interactive activities with consumers. Despite choosing online marketing strategy, they don’t put “enough” effort to keep in tact with their consumers and not very consistent with their post and upload in social media.
From Brand Positioning analysis, we get to know in what kind of position Sambal Mabo is at. They target on people who seek for practicality but still delicious food items. But Sambal Mabo’s identity is still lacking because their target is too general. For example, other brands like Sambal Bawang Bu Rudy and Sambal Kota Hoedjan set their identity to represent the cities they originated at, and as for Eatsambel they set their target to trend followers and dominate online platform. Sambal Mabo though has an upper hand when it comes to their products considering the product attributes they offer.
Recommendation
My recommendation for Sambal Mabo for their next move regarding their brand development for now is mainly on how Sambal Mabo need to focus themselves in one marketing activity they consider to have more potential. For example, social media, seeing how Sambal Mabo is online based chili sauce business, they are still lacking in the activities and doesn’t involve the consumers too much. Being more active in uploading their content will help them stay in tack with consumers and give constant reminder to consumers about their brand. They should also do marketing activities that involve the consumers in their content such as providing games, giveaway activities, and contents which are relatable to their consumers’ point of view to show their concern and friendliness as a brand.
Despite highlighting on practical packaging, they don’t show that off too much to the consumers. Showing off more of how beneficial their packaging can be will do, for example creating short skit about how their products can come in handy in any situation. Sambal Mabo can also increases its offline activities by doing consignment with local stores and participating in events and celebration activities. For example, joing food bazaar and providing their products as gifts in special event such as ward meeting, reunion, etc.
They need to know by offering practical packaging, what kind of target market they want to look for. Is it office worker? Is it university student? By knowing who they want to target more, they can research and find more information on what method they should do to reach their target and to be more relatable to them. They also can introduce their brand in a more appealing and fun ways such as story telling and doing campaign, providing interesting offers to make others participate in the activities they arranged.
