What is that due to which we run the business and what is the motivation behind the business, if you are thinking money then you are wrong, money is the one of the reason but the most important factor who runs the business id Product.
Product plays an important role in the success of the business and it is only the product who gives us name and makes you a brand in the market and helps in getting the more customers and more sales and which leads to more revenue.
What is Product?
What is Product, what do you think is it easy to define or easy to explain. Let’s see how we will be able to explain it.
Good, services and idea which can be offered in the market to fulfill the needs and wants of the customers, is a product. If go deep in to define what is product then
“Anything that can be offered to a market for attention, acquisition, consumption that may be able to fulfill a need or a want, it includes objects, services, persons, ideas.” This definition was give by none other than Philip Kotler.
Developing the right product for the right market is very important, product development involves lots of study and research and to develop a good or acceptable product by the market is very important and plays an important role for the success of the organization.
A product can be tangible or intangible, let’s see what is tangible or intangible products are
- · Tangible Products
Any product which we can see, touch and feel is a tangible product, most of the tie companies develop tangible products only as before buying customers will be able to see it and touch it and then decide to buy or not to buy. Building, real estate, vehicles, equipment, inventory, all such products which we can touch is considered as a tangible product.
- · Intangible Products
Any product which we can’t see and touch but only we can use it is an intangible product, mostly services comes in under this kind of product and if the product is intangible its very hard to decide the price of it. Idea is the best example of intangible product and any software are the best example of intangible products.
Product is easy to define and easy to characterize however difficult to develop and more difficult to decide the price of that product.
Product Life Cycle
Like human, product also has a life which ends someday. Product life cycle is process which starts from the introduction of the product and goes to various levels and end on the decline of the product from the market, this happens with each and every product. Some product stays for the longer time in the market until they get the stiff competition from any other product but no matter how long they will be in t he market one day that comes to an end. Let’s take a look at the various levels of the products.
- · Introduction
A product is developed and launched or introduce in the market this is a very first stage of the product life cycle. Companies invert most of time and money in product awareness and branding. Price also decides in this stage as per the market location and the per the overall market scenario, promotion is a one of the important part of this stage.
In this stage companies get the idea about how market is responding to the product and they get the little idea about the success or the failure of the produce, price is always high as there is no or less competition. The main object of this stage is to build the demand of the product and distribute the product effectively.
- · Growth
This is a second stage in product life cycle where the product is in high demand and customers and market giving the expected response to the product which leads to the higher sales and higher revenue as well.
In this stage companies spend a lot on branding, marketing and promotion to beat the competition out of the market. Company always wanted to increase the demand of the product in this stage so that they can get the edge and face no competition in a very early stage.
- · Maturity
This is a third stage of the product life cycle and at this stage the demand and the sales of the product comes to saturation point which means demand and sales started to coming down, price of the product also get affected due to the same product was launched by the competitors.
Just to keep the market share of the product company do small research and make the changes in the product and try to sustain in the market due to high competition, they add or remove few features as per the market need. Maturity stage is the indication that market and customer need something new.
- · Decline
This is a last stage of the product life cycle and in this stage products demand and sales is down significantly. This stages shows the change in behavior of the market and the customers regarding the product due to various reasons such as high price, other options with new features, in this stage if the company want to stay in the market they have to make the changes in the product.
After all the success and growth the product faced it time to get retire until the changes in the product is accepted by the market and the customers or still there is a little demand of the product.
In all the four stages of product life cycle there are few factors which is always there such as product, pricing, distribution and promotion.
This product life cycle helps the companies to build the more effective strategy for the new product so that they can sustain in the market for a long time, some product stay in the market for a very long time due to less competition or high demand and there are some product whose life cycle end very quickly.
Product Life cycle also helps the marketing professional to decide when we have to increase the marketing and promotion and also tell us when we have to reduces or I increase the prices and at when it appropriates to make the changes as per the demand of the market.
Conclusion
Product plays an important role in the success of the company, how we develop the product and how we do marketing is very important factor.
The various stages of product help us in making the future product effectively so that we can keep the demand and sales on the higher side.
Develop the product and set the price effectively and rock the market for a very long time.
