Total Product Concept/Augmented Product/Three Levels of a Product

The three levels of product introduced by Philip Kotler are Core (Simply looks at what people set out to buy and what benefits the producer would like their product to offer buyers), Actual (design a product that will persuade people to purchase your product) and Augmented (additional non-tangible benefit that a product can offer). One of the products, which have products in all three levels, is body wash. The core product is body wash. The actual products are Dove, Old Spice, etc. Dove differentiates itself from others by offering body wash with moisturizer and skin care. One non-tangible benefit of body wash is the customer will feel refreshing after they use body wash at shower. In an effort to get a better understanding of the augmented product, I found an article called Five Product Levels (Kotler). In addition to the core and augmented product, the article also explains generic, expected and potential product.

1. Core product: Basic product and the focus is on the purpose for which the product is intended.
2. Generic product: all the qualities of the product.
3. Expected product: all aspects the consumer expects to get when they purchase a product.
4. Augmented product: all additional factors which sets the product apart from that of the competition.
5. Potential product: augmentations and transformations that the product may undergo in the future.