An Augmented Product: What Is It?
An augmented product is one that its seller has improved with extra features or services to set it apart from similar products that rivals in the market provide. Incorporating extras or intangible advantages beyond the product is known as “product augmentation.”
A few examples of features that are employed to build enhanced products include free delivery and in-home service installation. To promote their products, cosmetics businesses typically provide complimentary makeovers and travel-sized samples.
The Operation of an Augmented Product
Every product has at least three versions, according to marketing experts: the core, the actual, and the enhanced.
Principal Item
There isn’t a tangible item in the fundamental offering. It is the consumer’s advantage over the goods. For instance, a customer can seem more appealing with lipstick, healthier with sneakers, and more effective in communication with a new phone.
Genuine Item
The item for sale is the real thing, complete with its packaging, distinctive branding, and unique design. The actual product and its characteristics must meet customers’ primary expectations for the product. For instance, a car’s features should all work together flawlessly to deliver the main product and add value for the buyer.
Supplementary Product
The enhanced product has extra features and services that differentiate it from competing identical items. The add-ons don’t alter the product, and their effect on production costs could be negligible. Nonetheless, a product that has been enhanced could have a perceived worth that encourages a customer to purchase it. The vendor could demand a higher price because of the extra value.
Illustrations of Enhanced Products
Businesses with the most remarkable ability to produce enhanced items provide customers with an enjoyable shopping experience and have the best opportunity to build a devoted following of recurring clients.
Apple Television
In 2019, Apple Inc. (AAPL) introduced its streaming service for TV shows and movies. The firm developed an augmentation or add-on for anyone buying a smartphone, as indicated below from the company’s website, to enhance declining iPhone sales and raise awareness of the new product.
Rebates and Compliments
A product enhancement includes offering a discount code for a future purchase and a return policy if the consumer is unhappy. An enhanced product is produced when a recipe book is given away free of charge when a kitchen gadget like a crockpot is purchased.
Better enhancement is generally associated with more costly items. Free delivery, a free trial, and in-store financing for furniture purchases all improve the goods being provided. In order to draw consumers, a cable operator vying for new business can provide a more convenient home installation timetable.
Sells Services
Brick-and-mortar stores enhance their whole product line with extras like good customer service and shop ambiance. Other features include a liberal return policy and in-store demos. With every purchase of kitchen materials, a retail company may provide complimentary culinary instruction. For instance, Apple provides education and support on how to operate its goods through its retail stores. Product augmentations include an online support crew and an exciting website that educates clients about a product or service.
Consumers have a plethora of alternatives when contemplating nearly any purchase. A product that has been enhanced has been designed to differentiate itself from similar items or those sold by other vendors.
Conclusion
- Three versions are available for any product: the core, the actual, and the enhanced.
- The enhanced product has extra features and services that set it apart from comparable or identical items other vendors sell.
- Product augmentation enhances the buying experience rather than modifies the product itself.
- A product that has been enhanced can be seen as having more value, which would encourage customers to purchase it and enable the vendor to charge more.
