In 2006, Microsoft Zune was launched as a direct competitor to Apple’s iPod. On paper, it was a capable product, with some users even arguing that its interface and features were better than the iPod.
Yet, the product never achieved the same level of recognition.
He was speaking at the Unlocked Mobile & App Growth summit in Singapore in 2025 to an audience of product, growth and UX professionals.
Sancheti illustrates a structural shift in modern markets. As product advantages narrow and innovation cycles accelerate, product marketing and brand positioning increasingly determine which products succeed.
Product Superiority is No Longer a Differentiator
Feature advantages rarely last long enough to guarantee sustained growth. Innovation cycles have shortened, pricing models are quickly matched, and user experience standards converge within months.
In this environment, product excellence has become the baseline rather than the differentiator.
Consumer markets repeatedly demonstrate that product quality alone does not determine success.
“In blind taste tests done on Pepsi versus Coke, most people actually preferred Pepsi,” Sancheti explains. “But Coke is more popular and has much better sales and distribution because they built a compelling story and a clear proposition that landed in front of their user base.”
Strong positioning and distribution create familiarity and trust, often outweighing marginal product differences.
“You need distribution, positioning, and strong storytelling,” he said. “And in the era of AI, all of that distribution and storytelling needs to be unique and personalised so that the message is relevant to each individual user.”
The Changing Growth Equation
The growing importance of positioning is reinforced by rising customer acquisition costs and increasing competition for attention.
The cost of acquisition is rising rapidly. According to Sancheti, “The audience on the internet is not growing at the same rate as marketing spending, which means more competitors are fighting for the same user mindshare.”
In the past two years alone, customer acquisition costs in ecommerce have increased by roughly 40%, forcing companies to become far more efficient in how they position products and distribute content.
Traditional performance marketing tactics alone are increasingly insufficient. Efficiency depends more on positioning strength and distribution clarity.
Can AI-Driven Marketing be a Force Multiplier?
Artificial intelligence (AI) is enabling personalisation at scale and reducing creative fatigue.
“AI helps you reduce creative fatigue and unlock personalisation at scale,” Sancheti said. “You’re not really competing with AI — you’re competing with someone else who is using AI for their benefit.”
Repeated exposure to identical messages often leads to disengagement. Personalised creative variations allow brands to maintain novelty while keeping campaigns relevant to different audiences.
However, he emphasises that AI strengthens marketing only when the fundamentals are already in place.
Despite rapid progress in AI-driven marketing, Sancheti emphasises that companies should begin with small experiments before scaling.
“You can start with basic testing using a few AI-generated creatives and see what works better, and once you build trust in the system, you can start scaling.”
AI improves marketing efficiency, but it does not replace the need for strong positioning and clear messaging.
Final Thought
Across industries, the underlying lesson remains consistent. A strong product is where growth begins, but it is not where success is decided.
“The best product may be where you start,” Sancheti said. “But growth comes from making sure that the product becomes the best-known product.”
To learn more about the event and register, visit Unlocked: Mobile & App Growth Summit Singapore.
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