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Consumer Behavior
The article by Perner titled ‘The Marketing Mix: Product’, talks about the marketing mix of a product. The article begins by defining three forms in which products come in, namely convenience goods, shopping goods and specialty goods. Convenience goods are goods which consumers put minimal shopping efforts in. Shopping goods are the opposite of convenience goods and are those which consumers invest a great deal of effort and time in. The third form of consumer goods is specialty goods, which are the types of goods in which only a small segment of the consumer base are interested in. Depending on the product, which includes services, the marketing decisions are made. The article also discusses how to develop a new product and the stages involved in the process. The product life cycle is also discussed in the article and it highlights the introduction stage, the growth of the product, the maturity stage and the decline stage of the product (Perner, 2011).
Diffusion of innovation is also discussed in the article. It is described as the process in which new products, ideas or practices spread into the market among the people. The process of adoption of innovations is also discussed beginning with the process of introduction t, saturation and then expiration. Additionally, the process of cumulative adoption is discussed in the paper and is represented graphically by an S-shaped curve. Different types of innovation and the forces that work for and against it are also discussed in the article. A few examples of adoption of innovations are also highlighted. Factors that influence the speed of innovation are also discussed at length in the article some of them being modernity, homophily, opinion leadership and physical distance. Brands, co-branding, and branding are also discussed in the article. The article concludes by discussing the product-service continuum.
I chose the article due to the topic it discussed. I believe that in my marketing class, one of the most important things to understand is consumer behavior and more specifically the branch of consumer behavior that deals with product marketing. This is because products, which include both tangible products and services, are the core reason why businesses thrive. Without understanding the best practices to follow to market one’s products, the returns or the sales that one shall make shall not be the maximum possible therefore the income shall be minimal. Moreover, without understanding the consumer behavior in terms of marketing a business may invest a lot in marketing but use the wrong procedure. This therefore leads to overuse of resources that do not bring returns, rather losses. Therefore, I believe that understanding a product, in terms of marketing it in relation to capturing the most consumers possible, is the most important venture of any business (Lantos, 2010).
For any business, it is also crucial to have the knowledge of the product life cycle. This is because for one to survive in the market, depending on the product that one deals in, one needs to be aware of how long the product shall take to mature, reach saturation and then get to the decline stage. This is for the purpose of planning and laying down strategies on the introduction of new products or formulating new strategies that shall lengthen the life of the product in the market. The new product development knowledge is also important to me as after college, I plan to become self employed and become an entrepreneur. I shall need knowledge on how a product develops, as I shall be establishing a new product in the information technology industry. I shall need to know the stages a product goes through in its introduction and the strategies required to make it survive in the market long enough for it to become a strong product and to become a respected brand. As it will be a new product, the knowledge of how the diffusion of innovation works and how new innovations are adopted over time shall be crucial to me. I shall need to understand my product, where it fits in the market, which people to target as my customers and several other factors that are highlighted in the article.
The article has added vast knowledge in me as an aspiring entrepreneur and as a marketing student. Through it, I have learnt the three main types of goods and their differences. Convenience goods have a low priority on the consumer’s shopping list or budget and to market them, they need to have brand names that are well known. This is to attract the customers and to increase sales of one’s product. There are often many products of the same kind that serve the same purpose therefore the brand name is what influences the consumer in choosing one brand over the other. Shopping goods are mainly necessities and are high up on the priority scale of the consumer’s budget. This means that they are bought regularly, as they are necessary. This also means that the strategies employed to market them are different from those employed to market other product types (Perner, 2011). This is to ensure that the product captures a large consumer base. Specialty goods capture the interest of a few people in the market therefore to deal with them, one needs to identify a specific market. These products are like industrial goods that are unique to different professions or fields like engineering.
I also learnt about the product line and the product mix. A product line is the different products that a firm deals in or holds. For instance, a company like Apple deals in computers, software, phones and other products. This is their product line. On the other hand, the product mix is the combined product lines that the firm holds. For instance, Apple Inc., which deals with computers, makes different computers for the normal consumer, for the government, and for industrial use.
The product mix can further be classified as narrow or deep. A narrow product mix is in the case where a company deals in only one product but produces it to a vast number of uses. A wide product mix on the other hand refers to where a company like Apple makes a vast assortment of goods related to each other. Depth in the product line is a term used to define the extent of variety offered within a single product line. I was also able to learn that there are very many differences in products, especially in terms of quality. Some products may be more superior in quality than others. Some products differ in style though they are of the same nature. Products can also be differentiated in terms of which ones offer the best service after sale. For instance, very few car companies offer tow services anywhere like Volvo does. New product development was another area I learnt about that was very crucial to my marketing class and to my future venture. The stages of the development of a new product start from the development strategy of the product.
The strategy a firm chooses to put in place for the new product will differ depending on the type of product and the type of firm. Some firms have holders of their stock preferring not to have a high risk and minimize new innovations. On the other hand some firms are bound by their nature to develop new innovations frequently as other developers work around their patents and develop the products at cheaper costs. The next step is the generation of ideas. This stage involves the laying of strategies as to which new product the firm can come up with. A vast number of ideas are welcomed from employees, customers, investors and consultants and the firm only invests in the ideas that seem most plausible. The evaluation and screening stage follows where the firm, after a critical analysis, eliminates the products that prove not to be feasible (Lantos, 2010).
A business analysis then follows. Here, the firm exposes the ideas to rigorous analysis and consideration of key aspects of the market like the risks, the market size, the profit projections and the competitive response is done. If the aspects prove to be promising, a research of the market is done. The development stage then follows, which is where the product is designed and a plan of the manufacturing facilities is done. The market testing stage then follows. Most firms approach this stage by testing the product in a certain region before launching a nationwide or worldwide campaign. If the product performs well in the pilot region it is employed gradually to a greater geographic area while exercising different prices to test the market. This reduces the risk of the company to run losses as the demand of the product shall build itself up gradually. The commercialization of the product is usually the last stage of the new product development and it is where the product gets market consent for fully fledged production on a large scale. A national and possibly worldwide marketing campaign is set up by the firm along with a distribution effort.
I also learnt about the product life cycle. This describes the life of the product after the commercialization stage has been completed and the product hits the market.
The Product Life Cycle. Retrieved from <http://www.consumerpsychologist.com/intro_Product.html>
When the product is introduced, it is usually expensive and there is little knowledge about it in the market. Therefore, the sales are limited. The products then reach the growth phase and the sales increase drastically. At this stage many more firms enter the market with similar products. The product then reaches a maturity stage where there is very little growth. Other products also enter a further decline stage which is usually due to the product being replaced by a better or more advanced version of the product. The product life cycle is directly related to the diffusion of innovation phenomenon. Firms are advised to develop new marketing strategies or modify the ones in place in order to lengthen the product life cycle and ensure that as much profit is earned from the venture as possible.
Works Cited
Perner, Lars. The Marketing Mix: Product. USC Marshall, 2011.
Lantos, Geoffrey Paul. Consumer Behavior in Action: Real-Life Applications for Marketing Managers. New York: M.E. Sharpe, 2010. Print.
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