The Product Planning
THE PRODUCT PLANNING
1. Introduction. Broadly defined, a product is anything that can be offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use, or consumption that might satisfy a want or need. Products also include services, events, persons, places, organizations, ideas, or mixes of these entities. Services are products that consist of activities, benefits, or satisfacti8ons offered for sale that are essentially intangible, such as banking, hotel, tax preparation, and home repair services.
2. Major Classifications of Products and Services. Products and services fall into two broad classes based on the types of consumers that use them:-
a. Consumer Products. Those bought by final consumers are usually classified according to consumer shopping habits (convenience products, shopping products specially products
b. Industrial Products. Purchased for further processing or for use in conducting a business include materials and parts, capital items, and supplies and services.
c. Other marketable entities such as organization, persons, places, and ideas can also be though of as products.
3. Developing New-product Ideas. Companies find and develop new-product ideas from a variety of sources: -
a. Internal Sources. Many new-product ideas stem from internal sources. Companies conduct formal research and development, pick the brains of their employees, and brainstorm at executive meetings.
b. External Sources. Other ideas come from external sources. By conducting surveys and focus groups and analyzing customer questions and complaints, companies can generate new-product ideas that will meet specific consumer needs.
c. Competitor’s Analysis. Companies track competitors offerings and inspect new products, dismantling them, analyzing their performance, and deciding whether to introduce a similar or improved product.
d. Distributor/Suppliers Information. Distributors and suppliers are close to the market and can pass along information about consumer problems...