Most business owners know what it means to be in a particular category. For example, if you own a pizzeria, you would likely consider yourself in the food industry. But what does it mean when a company declares itself to be “in its own category?”
In this blog post, we’ll explore what owning your Own Category means and why it could be an advantageous move for your business. We’ll also look at some famous brands that have adopted this strategy. Stay tuned!
What is Own Category?
Own Category is a term that refers to a business that doesn’t fall neatly into a category. For example, the restaurant Chipotle is in its own category. Chipotle doesn’t really compete with other fast food places like McDonald’s and Burger King.
Instead, it caters to a different set of customers looking for organic, healthy, and sustainable foods. Chipotle is a fast-casual restaurant – a new breed that strives to offer healthier fare than traditional fast-food restaurants.
The sales, market position, and brand value of a firm are mainly determined by its ability to demonstrate it’s unique, more efficient, or effective differentiators in the market. To control a category, the ultimate goal is to have consumers confuse a brand name with an entire industry.
Consumer brands including Jacuzzi, Band-Aids, Chapstick, PingPong, Kleenex, Scotch tape, Crock-Pot, Sharpies, and Q-Tips have all experienced this type of thing.
Similar Structure
A similar structure and terminology used to describe their market segment is in place and has been for years for most B2B mid-market enterprises today. That’s why so many businesses employ pre-existing vocabularies and definitions when describing their goods.
It is, in fact, a viable alternative at times when a company is attempting to convey the benefits of its products and services, and it means that the company is trying to create a new segment of the market.
This type of claim is intended to make the customer believe that there is no significant overlap between this new product or service and other existing ones. Companies generally refer to their products as being in their Category when they feel there is no direct competitor in the same market or when they want to differentiate themselves from competing brands.
There are several ways companies can set themselves apart and claim their products are in their Category. One way is by creating a unique value proposition and differentiating through unique features, exceptional quality, a unique design, or other features that are not.
Own Category: An Advantage?
Being in your Category isn’t always an advantage. Just because you aren’t competing with other brands within your industry doesn’t necessarily mean you are free from competition. Remember, consumers don’t care about industry categories and categories can be very fluid over time.
For example, many people consider Amazon to be in its category. But we can argue that Amazon is not in its Category because it competes with other e-commerce sites like eBay and Alibaba. If a consumer is looking to buy something online, they’re not necessarily going to care if they go to Amazon or one of these other websites. They’re just going to look for what they need and then buy it from the first website that can deliver it quickly and at the lowest price possible.
Another interesting example is Apple’s iPhone. Apple considers its iPhone to be in its Category because it competes with different products than other smartphones. The iPhone competes with smartphones running Google’s Android operating system, and it also competes with basic cellphones like Blackberry devices and flip phones.