The concept of a product and its levels, for an electric two-wheeler

Concept of a product

In marketing, a product is anything a firm puts before buyers that can satisfy them: a good, a service, or a mix of the two. NCERT stresses that it means not only the physical product but the benefits it gives the customer and the extended product of after-sales service and spare parts. It is broader than a physical object: it includes services, experiences, persons, places, organisations and ideas. A customer buys a bundle of tangible and intangible benefits: the physical item together with its brand, design, packaging, delivery, warranty and service. Marketers therefore plan products at several levels (the five-level view is Kotler's), each adding customer value. The idea is that a buyer never buys only the physical item: the same vehicle can be a commuting tool for one buyer and a statement of environmental values for another, and each level of the product addresses a different part of that value.

Levels of a product: an electric two-wheeler

1. Core benefit (core customer value). The basic need the buyer is really satisfying. For an electric two-wheeler it is convenient, low-cost and clean personal mobility: getting to college, office or the market quickly and cheaply, without fuel costs or exhaust fumes.
2. Basic (generic) product. The core benefit turned into a basic product: a two-wheeled vehicle with an electric motor, battery, frame, wheels, brakes, seat and lights that can carry one or two people.
3. Expected product. The attributes and conditions buyers normally expect: a reasonable driving range per charge (enough for daily city use), safe brakes, comfortable seating, a charger, road-legal registration, a basic warranty and availability of service.
4. Augmented product. Features and services beyond expectations that differentiate the brand: a connected app showing battery level and location, navigation on the dashboard, fast charging, swappable batteries, an extended battery warranty, free roadside assistance, easy finance, home charger installation, and access to a charging network.
5. Potential product. What the product could become in future: longer range with new battery chemistry, solar-assisted charging, self-balancing or collision-avoidance features, and resale or battery-leasing schemes.

A shorter, three-level view groups the same ideas as the core customer value, the actual product (the basic and expected product with its brand name, styling, quality level and colour options, as seen in the showroom) and the augmented product.

Competition increasingly takes place at the augmented level: most electric two-wheelers offer the basic and expected product, so brands compete on the app, service, warranty and charging support they add.

Conclusion

Viewing an electric two-wheeler at these levels helps the marketer meet the core need, satisfy expected standards and differentiate the brand with augmentations, while planning ahead for the potential product.