Three Levels of a Product

• Lesson
• Exercise
• Answer

Here’s a recap before the exercise (below): The CORE product is NOT the tangible, physical product. You can’t touch it. That’s because the core product is the BENEFIT of the product that makes it valuable to you. So with the car example, the benefit is convenience i.e. the ease at which you can go where you like, when you want to. Another core benefit is speed since you can travel around relatively quickly.

Complete the table below by filling in the blank spaces. All companies have a CORE, ACTUAL and AUGMENTED product or service.

The ACTUAL product is the tangible, physical product. You can get some use out of it. Again with the car example, it is the vehicle that you test drive, buy and then collect.

The AUGMENTED product is the non-physical part of the product. It usually consists of lots of added value, for which you may or may not pay a premium. So when you buy a car, part of the augmented product would be the warranty, the customer service support offered by the car’s manufacture, and any after-sales service.