Winning Competitive Edge in the Market through Augmented Product Profiles to Deliver Higher Values & Experiences to the Buyers

In an effort to enjoy competitive advantage in the market for increased sale volumes and values, marketers of products & services (Hotels & eateries in particular), keep upgrading their Product profiles making the ?actual? product to attract the visibility. The Actual product, in fact, steals the show, working as a ?glorifying part? of the Core product. So it takes the role of creating an aura for the Core product, giving the impression that the customer decides to opt the particular product because of the aural part more than the actual core - product, which may also have its own pull factor for some. In product marketing the marketers adopt different strategies to woo the buyers ? delivering higher values or passing on monetary benefits in the form of discounts. While in product marketing there is greater scope for adding product profile features, the same is difficult for restaurants and eateries offering food products. In restaurants and eateries, the food is to a large extent a unique core product, which cannot be upgraded beyond a level. Taste, Hygiene and the Service Quality are the most expected factors. There is one major disadvantage in foods - marketing, as more product - differentiation that is done on the core food to take a winning edge in the market, more they will be away from being called as the original / authentic foods, which acts as a negative factor. So in order to make the product profile look more and more attractive, the features have to be added in the area of actual product of the product profile. Service Scape is the major Guest puller in restaurants and eateries. Service - scape is known as the all - inclusive and the collective non - human features that go to upgrade the over - all product profile. Service - Scape is that part of the product profile (Augmented product profile) which means ?where the food is served?, ?how attractive is the place?, ?how it engages the guests in a pleasurable mood?, ?how they make the guest to long for revisiting the restaurant for having repeat - experiences? that they have had. But building ?engaging and attractive? Service - Scapes naturally involve costs which are not only huge initial investments but also perpetual costs calling for up - keep and maintenance. The paper focuses on the intricate choices that the marketers of products and service providers adopt when it comes to profiling their products (showing higher values, monetary benefits and sometimes making the experiences speak for attracting the buyers/customers/guests). All the acts that the marketers do to woo the customers through various marketing strategies could only be a jugglery ? working on the product profiles ? which happen in the area of actual product & the augmented product.