At last the product is ready to go. It has survived the development process and it is now on the way to commercial success. How can it be guided to that marketing success? It is the purpose of the lifecycle marketing plan to answer this question. Such a complete marketing program will, of course, involve additional decisions about distribution, promotion, and pricing.
Review
- New product strategies begin by putting "new" on a continuum.
- There are both internal and external sources for acquiring new products.
- The new product development process includes the following steps:
- generate new product ideas
- screen ideas
- perform a business analysis
- technical and marketing development
- manufacturing planning
- marketing planning
- test marketing
- commercialization
The Wall Street Journal (wsj.com)
In practice
Organizations must introduce new products and manage existing products successfully to remain competitive in today's marketplace. Products are planned, and the product strategy aims to ensure
that product objectives are achieved.
Unprecedented advancements in technology render shorter product life cycles. As a result, product plans must provide competitive distinctiveness.
The Interactive Journal examines product development for large and small organizations in Marketplace. Under the Marketplace heading, click on Small Business. This section
provides articles targeted toward small and emerging businesses.
Special reports on small and emerging businesses can be found in the Breakaway section, also under Small Business.
Here you will find more in-depth analysis about small business. The Interactive Journal also sponsors several online discussions. Click on one of the links to join an online discussion.
Return to the Marketplace home page and click on the Business Focus link on the
left menu. This link directs you to articles discussing general business developments taking place in various companies.
Return to the Front Section and select Starting a Business under Resources in
the left menu. This link sends you to the Startup Journal, a site designed to provide new business with a variety of tools. Navigate the bar at the top of the site for information about
franchising, financing, and running a business.
Additional
sites
Check out for www.adweek.com industry articles about advertising and brand development. The Brandweek link on the site provides weekly excerpts of
headlines from the print edition.
Advertising Age is another resource for information about product strategies. Check out www.adage.com.
Business Week magazine's Web site www.businessweek.com is a comprehensive site. Daily briefings cover a wide range of topics.
Deliverable
Use the Interactive Journal and Additional Sites listed here to find three articles about product development. Read each article and compare the strategies employed by the companies profiled.
Why are the products successful, or why did they fail? Write a one-page brief supporting your conclusions.
Questions
- How do organizations identify product objectives when developing a product strategy? Why are these objectives important?
- What impact do market trends have on new product development? How do organizations decide whether to introduce a new product or extend an existing product line?
- How does the media react to new products like Apple's iMac? What about product failures like Coca-Cola's New Coke? Use the Interactive Journal to find articles about these companies and products.
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