New product development is. Development of a new product on the example of LLC "Sweet Life". Access to the market

In today's world, in the face of ever-changing demands, requirements, and serious competition, one cannot rely on existing products. Companies must work tirelessly to create new products and services.

Under new products refers to original products, improvements and modifications to existing products, and new brands that the company develops through its own research and development department.

Innovation is always a risk. Once on the market, the product lives its own special commodity life. In marketing, this is called the product life cycle (LCT). Different products have different life cycles. It can last from a few days to decades.

New products continue to fail on a massive scale. One study found that new consumer piece goods fail 80% of the time. Another study showed that although 13,000 new products are introduced to the market every year, after 5 years only 40% of them will remain. And 30% of new manufacturing products fail at the launch stage. Why is this happening? Although the idea of ​​creating a new product could be good, there was no suitable market. Perhaps the technology and design of the product was not developed so carefully. Sometimes the reason lies in the overpriced, poorly organized advertising work, in the wrong positioning in the market. After all, the process of developing a new product costs much more than it was planned. And competitors strike unexpectedly.

Because of the sheer number of failures associated with developing a new product, companies have to learn how to achieve a positive result. First, you need to identify successful new products and find what they have in common. According to research, the success of a new product depends on the combination of its unique characteristics: high quality, new distinctive features and higher customer value. Another success factor is a well-thought-out product concept. With its help, the company carefully determines and evaluates the target market, product requirements and its advantages before starting work on a new product. Support for the innovation process by the management and constant investment in it, a well-established mechanism for creating a new product are also success factors. In order for a novelty product to generate income, it is necessary to study the needs of consumers, its competitors, and the sales market. It is necessary to develop only those products that are in demand. Thus, we can conclude. The solution lies in the careful planning of each new project and the establishment of a regular process of finding and implementing ideas.

The stages of developing a new product are presented in Scheme No. 1.

The creation of a new product has various stages, each of which requires the enterprise to have appropriate strategies and tactics for market behavior. The creation of a new product begins long before its birth with idea generation. The flow of ideas must be great. This allows you to select several promising proposals. There are many ways to organize the flow of ideas to create new products. The role of marketing at this stage is to accompany the process of creating a product from an idea to its implementation in a product. To do this, with the help of marketing, it is studied whether the consumer needs this product, what a potential consumer is, what market one can count on. Most new ideas originate within the company itself: these are individual proposals from researchers, engineers, workers, designers. These may be projects put forward by the research and development department of the company. Other companies are developing effective programs that encourage staff to look for new ideas.

The company receives a lot of ideas for creating new products by communicating with its consumers. Conducting a variety of research allows you to find out the needs and wishes of customers. Companies can learn a lot just by observing and interacting with customers. In addition, consumers themselves create novelties. And companies make a profit by finding such products and bringing them to market.

Competitive analysis is of great importance. Advertising helps with this. It introduces a new product, you can buy it, decompose it into its components and observe whether this product sells well. Then you can decide whether to take it into service.

Sources of ideas are industry magazines, seminars, exhibitions, research laboratories, various advertising agencies. Distributors, suppliers and resellers play an important role and, being in close proximity to the end-user market, have become useful sources of information about customer needs. Suppliers can talk about promising technologies that can be used to create new products.

The search for ideas for creating a new product should not go chaotically, and in order to avoid problems, management must implement a management system that will correctly regulate the entire process, organize analysis and evaluation. For an idea flow system to work effectively, the following is required:

creation of a commission to evaluate the proposals received, which includes marketers, technologists, representatives of the research department, financiers, manufacturers, and marketers.

so that everyone can offer their idea, a free telephone number is set;

develop special incentive schemes for the most resourceful;

to encourage all those interested in the successful operation of the company (employees, suppliers, distributors, dealers).

This system will increase the efficiency of the company as a whole, because. the spirit of innovation will be formed, the flow of successful ideas will increase. All this leads to a stable operation of the company.

Selection of ideas- this is the stage of creating new products, which identifies and weeds out unsuitable ideas in the early stages. The cost of creating a new product increases rapidly from stage to stage, so it is necessary to reject unsuitable proposals as early as possible and identify the most promising ones.

In many companies, ideas are presented on standard forms. The application includes the name of the project, description of the target market, competitive situation, product prices, etc.

The next stage is that the selected idea turns into product concept. The idea, concept and image of the product are different concepts and should not be confused. A product idea is a general description of a product. Product image is the perception of buyers about a real or potential product. A product concept is an idea developed and formulated from the point of view of the characteristics of the product that are significant to the buyer.

Most companies prefer to proof-of-concept a product before launching it into production. Concept testing is the verification of its impact on target user groups, which are introduced to a verbal description or prototypes.

Wording marketing strategies consists of three parts:

describes the target market, expected sales volume, market share and profit margin for the first few years of production;

the preliminary price, distribution channels, marketing budget for the first year are indicated;

the values ​​of sales volumes and profit margins in the first few years of the sale of goods are given, as well as a description of the strategy of individual elements of the marketing mix.

The next step in the development of a new product is economic analysis. With its help, we determine the indicators of sales volumes, market share and profits from the sale of a new product, and also find out whether they will correspond to the marketing strategy planned in the project. In the case of a satisfactory result, the construction of the first test specimens begins.

Prototyping- this is the process of creating the first prototypes based on the concept of a product, during which it becomes clear whether the ideas embodied in the concept are feasible in practice. Finished prototypes are tested in laboratory and field conditions. The purpose of the test is to ensure that the product operates safely and reliably.

Prototypes that successfully pass the quality and reliability test and tests with the participation of buyers move to the stage trial marketing where the product and marketing program are tested under market-like conditions. Trial marketing provides the marketer with the opportunity to try out a product's marketing mix before funding a full-scale market launch. It allows a company to test a product and marketing program - positioning, advertising, distribution strategy, pricing, branding, packaging and financing in real market conditions.

Manufacturing companies can choose from three test marketing options - standard, controlled or simulated.

Based on test marketing, sales are projected nationwide.

The final stage of development is commercialization. This is the introduction of a new product to the market, which requires significant costs. It is necessary to build or rent production facilities, and require significant investment in advertising and sales promotion.

A company introducing a new product to the market must first of all choose the right moment for this. Then it is necessary to determine where the new product will go on sale - in one place, in the region, on the national or international market. Not all companies have the courage, capital and ability to launch a new product directly on the national or international market. Usually a market development schedule is developed. In particular, small companies can gradually develop certain attractive cities and regions. Larger companies, however, can quickly enter several regions or the entire national market at once.

Companies that have been operating in the international market for a long time practice progressive development of the global market. However, companies of international scope are increasingly undertaking an offensive on the market by means of an intensive global assault.

Source: Evgeny Popov
"Marketing in Russia and abroad"

The development of a new product is one of the most important areas of marketing activity. At the same time, the schemes for the development of new products published in the economic literature do not contain the most complete elements of modern marketing tools, which reduces their practical and methodological significance.

The purpose of this work is to describe the general methodological foundations for the development of a new product based on the use of modern marketing approaches based on the author's management consulting experience.

General scheme of product development

Currently published schemes for developing new products typically include the following steps: idea generation, idea selection, product concept development, marketing strategy development, manufacturing capability analysis, actual product development, market testing, and commercial implementation. This sequence of stages is of a fairly general integrated nature, and does not contain a detailed discussion of a number of significant blocks of the enterprise's marketing activities, such as elements of product marketing development, including the shape, color and material of the product, assessment of the market adequacy of the product and its competitiveness, as well as forecasting the sale of goods and development of the commodity policy of the enterprise.

A more detailed study of these blocks of marketing activities is presented in the work, however, the methodological approaches given in this study are fragmented and are convenient when used only for specific blocks of the general scheme for the development of new products. Therefore, the last work does not contain a general integrated scheme for the development of a new product as a whole.

Apparently, the general complete scheme of product development should begin with the launch of a new product in the production program of the enterprise - innovation, which includes the search for ideas for new products, their selection and economic analysis, as well as the development of the product concept (Fig. 1).

Important stages of product development should be the creation of product design, including its shape, color and material; development of appropriate packaging and creation of a modern trademark. Serious importance should be attached to ensuring the quality of the product and assessing its competitiveness.

Evgeny Vasilyevich Popov, Doctor of Phys.-Math. in Economics, Professor of Economics, Head of the Department of International Business and Marketing, Ural Institute of Economics, Management and Law (Yekaterinburg)

The next steps after providing all the necessary procedures for creating a product should be an assessment of its market adequacy, understood as the compliance of this product with market requirements, as well as an assessment of the product by the company, that is, identifying the compliance of the economic parameters of this product with the production and financial goals of the enterprise.

Search for new product ideas

The main components of the process of finding ideas for new products are the analysis of the sources of ideas and the application of creative methods for obtaining ideas.

There are three main sources of ideas for creating new products.

The second source is company, those. first of all, all employees of the company who are interested in the production of a more modern and, accordingly, more profitable product, and secondly, employees of the research departments of the enterprise, designed to develop new products. The development of new products is only rarely possible without intensive research. Large enterprises have significant advantages in this area. Thus, competition is limited, since the entry of new enterprises into the market is more difficult. In order to survive in these conditions, medium-sized firms can cooperate to conduct joint research.

The third source for generating ideas is independent firms who can also be recruited to come up with ideas for new products. The reports of institutes involved in the study of goods are essential. At exhibitions and fairs, domestic and foreign competitive products can be analyzed, and the analysis of patents and research results in related fields should also be involved.

If the analysis of the sources of ideas does not give the desired results, then you can use creative methods for generating ideas for new products, which include: morphological and problematic methods of analysis, brainstorming and synectic approach.

synectic the approach is to gradually alienate the original problem by building analogies with other areas of life. After multistage analogies, a quick return to the original problem is made.

The generated ideas should be evaluated and the most optimal ones selected for the company's activities. This stage is called idea selection.

Selection of new product ideas

The purpose of idea preselection is to isolate unsuitable solutions as early as possible. It is not products that are evaluated, but ideas in their more or less rudimentary form. Pre-screening can mean testing ideas against firm requirements, which can include peer review, evaluation matrix, and multi-criteria evaluation. To do this, they use their own specialists of the enterprise. The evaluation criteria depend on the nature of the enterprise.

Expert review is carried out primarily on such indicators as expected sales volume, production growth, achievable degree of penetration, compliance of the product with the distribution channels used or planned. It is necessary to find out what advantages the product has in relation to competitors, whether there are legal or moral problems. Experts must assess how feasible the idea is from a financial and technical point of view and how it corresponds to the goals and image of the enterprise.

Evaluation matrix is constructed as follows. The most important areas of activity of the enterprise (for example, production, finance, research, marketing) are identified, they are assigned a numerical value that reflects their relative weight and role in the success of the enterprise. The idea receives a series of scores (for example, from 0.1 to 1), each of which expresses how well the idea meets the requirements of a particular department. Multiplying the coefficients by departments and adding the results gives the final assessment of the usefulness of the idea for the enterprise.

At multi-criteria assessment criteria are first approved and weighted according to their role in the selection process. It then assesses how well the ideas fulfill the set conditions using a simple rating scale. The result is calculated by summing the products of the evaluation criteria by their weight coefficients. The scoring of a particular idea allows you to draw any conclusions only in comparison with the scoring (indices) of other ideas or in the presence of an index rating scale.

Economic analysis of product ideas

An economic analysis of ideas can be carried out in the following steps.

1) Cost Forecast related to product development, market entry and sales

The forecast is associated with a certain risk, since for analysis it is necessary to know the situation on the market, the time and area of ​​the sale of the product, and the attitude of consumers to the product.

2) Estimation of sales volume(turnover, revenue)

The quality of the forecast depends on how accurately it will be possible to estimate the growth of the market, the achievable market share, the price, which in turn depends on the costs.

3) Profit Forecast

If we know for a certain period of time the income and expenses, or the receipt of funds and payments, then investment calculation methods can be used to forecast profits. In any case, it is necessary to consider several periods, because, as the product life cycle model shows, the first periods can be completely atypical in terms of profit.

4) Accounting for uncertainty

For each situation, it is recommended to develop optimistic, average and pessimistic forecasts. Another possibility to account for uncertainty is to adjust the target values ​​in such a way that they are assigned coefficients expressing their degree of confidence.

Development of the product concept

The development phase of the product concept is closely related to the method of functional cost analysis. The method evaluates the elements of the product only on the basis of costs, without taking into account other criteria. Elements that do not significantly affect the quality of the product must be eliminated or changed.

The product concept is studied in the following areas:

What functions should a certain element of the product perform?

What support functions does it perform?

What costs are associated with it?

Are the functions performed by the product element really necessary?

Can this function be performed by another, cheaper element, and what savings can be obtained?

Product design development

The quality of the product is formed both by the functional features of this product, the development of which is the prerogative of designers and technologists, and by the external design, in the development of which the marketer must take an obligatory part. The most important means used in product development and embodying the appearance of the product: the shape, color and material of the product.

Product shape associated with both basic and additional qualities. Of the additional qualities, the most important is aesthetics product. Physiological theory states that the image that is comfortable to the eye and covered by a small number of movements is the most aesthetic. Forms should consist of simple, consistent, as symmetrical lines and elements as possible.

The perception of form is influenced by the individuality and taste of the perceiver, traditions(familiar forms are perceived better), as well as environment(in an environment appropriate to their function, products produce the best aesthetic effect). There is also a strong influence fashion.

Color is the simplest and cheapest means of product variation. The palette of colors and shades is boundless. There are about 2800 names of colors in the world, and in total there are more than 7.5 million different colors and shades. The choice of color is determined by the material and a number of other factors.

Colors render mental action calm or excite. They express sadness or joy, make the product light or heavy in perception, affect the image of the distance to the object.

Colors can play a role social symbol. For example, black is the official color of government officials and religious figures (black cars, suits, cassocks, etc.). White is the color of newlyweds and artists, etc.

Sometimes there is legal restriction about the color of the product (for example, signal colors or the color of a police car). Certain color combinations are protected from competitors by patents.

When choosing a color, you need to consider the requirements corporate culture, as many firms adhere to a certain combination of colors.

Product material also greatly affects the perception of the product. Some materials evoke sympathy, others, on the contrary, repel.

Designing the appearance of a product should be an ongoing task of the marketing department. The next important element of product development is its packaging.

Packaging and brand development

Creation of packaging- this is a part of product planning, during which the company studies, develops and manufactures its packaging, including the container itself, in which the product is placed, the label and inserts.

Let us single out the key factors in the creation of packages that should be taken into account when making decisions in this direction.

1) Package design should influence the image that the company is looking for for its products. Color, shape, materials - all this affects the perception of consumers about the company and its products. Plainer packaging creates an image of lower quality for generic brands.

2) Standardization packaging increases global recognition. For this reason, Pepsi-Cola and Coca-Cola use the same packaging in all parts of the world.

3) Packaging cost must of course be taken into account. The relative cost of packaging can reach up to 40% of the retail price, depending on the purpose and degree of packaging.

4) Modern materials stimulate demand. A firm can choose from a range of packaging materials: cardboard, plastic, metal, glass, cellophane, etc. Compromises are sometimes necessary. For example, cellophane allows products to be displayed, but it tears very easily; cardboard is relatively cheap but difficult to open. In addition, you need to determine how innovative the packaging should be.

5) The firm must then choose size, color and shape. When choosing sizes, you need to consider the period of storage, convenience, tradition and competition. The place, content and size must also be specified. labels, as well as how it should stand out. The name of the company and the brand of the product should be indicated on it.

6) Multiple packaging combines two or more units of goods. These can be the same products (eg razor blades, sodas) or combinations of different items (eg first aid kit). The purpose of such packaging is to increase consumption, to get consumers to buy a set of things or try out new products (for example, a new product packaged with a well-known and bought old one). Separately packed portions of a product can create a competitive advantage. However, this can be costly.

7) Finally, the company must ensure that the packaging design is consistent with marketing plan enterprises.

An important part of product planning is branding, a procedure that a firm follows in researching, developing and realizing its goals.

Trademark is a name, mark or symbol that identifies the seller's products and services. By using or creating well-known trademarks, companies can usually gain publicity, distribution, and higher prices.

Brands are important for the following reasons:

Facilitates product identification;

It is guaranteed that a product or service has a certain quality;

Increasing the responsibility of the company for products;

Instead of comparing prices, the buyer compares brands;

The prestige of products grows with the growth of public recognition of the brand;

A distinctive product image is created with market segmentation;

A trademark can be used to launch a new product.

After developing a product brand, a product quality assurance system should be formed.

Ensuring the quality of goods and assessing competitiveness

Formation quality systems goods in the enterprise can be based on three areas of management: quality assurance, quality management and quality improvement.

Quality assurance, in accordance with the ISO-9000 standard, can be defined as a set of planned and systematic activities that create the necessary conditions for the implementation of each stage of the product life cycle so that the product meets certain quality requirements.

Quality management is the management of technological processes, the identification of various kinds of inconsistencies in products, production or the quality system itself and the elimination of not only the identified inconsistencies, but also the causes of their occurrence.

Quality improvement is a constant management activity of an enterprise aimed at improving the technical level of products, the quality of their manufacture, improving the elements of production and the quality system of the enterprise itself.

The quality system of an enterprise should also take into account competitiveness assessment manufactured products. The competitiveness of a product is the ability to compete on an equal footing with similar products on the market and bring sufficient profit to its manufacturer. A detailed scheme for assessing the competitiveness of a product is presented in the work.

Assessment of the market adequacy of the product

The economic success of an enterprise directly depends on how its products meet certain needs. Therefore, the conformity of the product to market requirements can be determined based directly on economic indicators. Sales volume, profit, coverage of fixed costs can serve as indicators.

However, in most cases, it is not possible to evaluate a product by economic indicators, for example:

When the decision to innovate is made before there is any evidence of market response;

Economic performance is influenced by many side factors;

Identification of the market adequacy of the product is important for its improvement and modification.

In such cases, it is important to find out how the product (product) or production program meets the requirements of the market and consumers. In what follows, we will call it the marketability of the product.

To assess the market adequacy of a product, various approaches can be applied:

A) field marketing research to find out the activation of the needs and preferences of consumers when buying certain goods;

b) laboratory marketing research that determines the possibility of assessing the emotional impact of the product on consumers;

V) analytical modeling, which provides the identification of an assessment of the subjective quality of the goods;

G) multidimensional computer modeling, which provides comparative assessments of different products according to a variety of characteristics.

Field marketing research of the market adequacy of the product is based on the study of the conformity of the product to the needs of buyers in natural conditions at different stages of specification of needs.

A more versatile and objective assessment of the market adequacy of a product can be carried out with the help of laboratory marketing research that registers the emotional impact of products on consumers.

The most well-known analytical models of the market adequacy of goods are the Rosenberg model and the ideal point model.

The Rosenberg model assumes that consumers evaluate products in terms of suitability to meet their needs. In its original form, the subjective suitability of a product according to this model was evaluated as the sum of subjective assessments of the suitability of a given product to satisfy various motivations. However, the motivations that are important to a product are often difficult to determine. The statements of the interviewees do not give an indication of which characteristics of the product should be changed.

Therefore, in the modified Rosenberg model, the value of individual motives is determined indirectly, through specific product characteristics, as shown in the model formula:

n
W j = å X k . Y jk , (1)
k = 1

where W j - assessment of the market adequacy of the j-th product;
X k - weight coefficient of the k-th characteristic;
Y jk - assessment of the k-th characteristic of the j-th product.

By collecting data on many products in this way, you can get:

General product ratings that can serve as indicators of consumer preferences;

Information about how consumers perceive individual products;

Information about the importance of various characteristics for the overall assessment.

Note that different product requirements provide ideal preconditions for market segmentation. The model presented above is based on the assumption that each characteristic is desirable and simultaneously, the higher the score, the better. Criticism of this point led to the creation of so-called ideal point models.

Ideal point model takes into account the introduction of an additional component - the ideal value of the characteristics of the product. The formula expression of the model, in this case, is:

n
W j = å X k (Y jk - Z k) r , (2)
k = 1

where Z k is the ideal value of the k-th characteristic;
r = 1 for a permanent good;
r = 2 for a product of diminishing value (at the last stages of its life cycle);
W j , X k , Y jk - parameters described in relation (1).

The product should be preferred to another if its distance from the ideal point is less. The advantages of the method are obvious, it gives an idea of ​​the ideal product, from the point of view of consumers.

Multivariate models are based on the following assumptions:

There are many goods, each of which can be described through a certain number of attributes;

Each attribute can be represented as an axis passing through the mental space of perception;

These axes form a space whose dimension is equal to the number of attributes;

You can get consumers' judgments about how pronounced this or that attribute is for this or that product;

Based on the judgments of consumers, it is possible to determine the place of the product in the space described above.

With the help of statistical methods it is often possible to reduce the number of axes without much loss of information and to reveal the main factors influencing the perception of a product. The position of the product can then be determined in terms of these central characteristics. Finally, we may be interested in the position of goods in relation to each other, from which we can infer similarity, substitutability and intensity of competition.

The construction of the space of perception of consumers consists in determining the goods that form a specific market. To do this, you can use the services of experts or ask consumers which brands or products they consider when making purchase decisions.

Thus, the reasonable and correct application of advanced marketing methods allows the formation and production of competitive, market-adequate goods that ensure the receipt of appropriate high profits by commodity producers.

• Economy

Keywords:

1 -1

New product development - creation of original products, improved versions or modifications of existing products that consumers perceive as new.

To successfully bring a new product to the market, it is necessary to organizationally adapt the company to work with new products. New product development teams must carefully consider each stage of the development of new products. The main stages of this process are shown in fig. 2.1.

Rice. 2.1. The main stages of the development of a novelty product

Formation of ideas . The development of a new product begins with the search for ideas for new products. These searches should be carried out systematically, and not from case to case. Otherwise, the firm may find dozens of ideas, but most of them will not fit in terms of the specifics of its activities.

Ideation is the systematic search for new product ideas.

By creating a clear strategy for new product development, top management can prevent these situations from occurring. It should determine which products and which markets to focus on. Management must articulate what exactly the firm is trying to achieve with new products: increase in cash income, dominance in a certain market share, or some other goals. It must state clearly how efforts should be divided between creating original products, modifying existing products, and imitating competitors' products.

The basis for the search for ideas for a product are internal and external sources of ideas in relation to the enterprise.

TO external sources of product ideas include: trading enterprises; buyers and consumers; competitors; fairs and exhibitions; various publications; research institutes; suppliers; goods of other branches of production; advertising agencies; economic associations, ministries and other state institutions.

To internal sources of product ideas include: marketing research departments and all their subdivisions; departments of technical and prospective development; patent departments; Production Department; department of international cooperation; product preparation department; permanent and temporary groups of employees to search for and generate ideas.

To search for ideas about a new product, market research methods and creative search techniques are used, which is based on the study of creativity, intelligence of people and well-known specialists.

Distinguish logical-systematic and intuitive-creative methods.

The basic principle of logical-systematic methods is the decomposition of the system into parts and the creation of a new combination of individual solutions. The most famous logical-systematic methods are the following: the technique of the questionnaire of the properties and characteristics of the product; method of forced relations; morphological method.

Technique of the questionnaire of properties and characteristics of the goods used to find creative ideas to improve the product. All properties, characteristics and features of the product are summarized and set out in writing. The creation of a new idea is carried out by changing or replacing one or more features and then combining them into a new combination of properties.

Method of forced relations (combinations) similar to the feature questionnaire technique and is based on a combination of features of the available products. It consists in a deliberate generalization of knowledge about subjects that were not originally included in one group. For example, from the analysis of the properties of such goods as a desk, a typewriter and a table lamp, the following ideas can be found: to build a typewriter into the desk top; convert the surface of the table to install a filing cabinet; replace the table lamp with a lamp on movable hinges, etc.

Morphological method is based on the principles of structural analysis. All the most important parameters and components of the product are studied separately and in combination of their possible combinations. By comparing alternative combinations of parameters and components, the most advantageous option from the point of view of the enterprise is selected.

Intuitive and creative methods are based on the principle of a holistic consideration of the problem. The most famous among them are brainstorming and synectics.

brainstorming method is based on free association and creative reasoning of the participants in a group discussion on a particular idea and ways to implement it. During the discussion, associations and opinions are exchanged, followed by an evaluation of the results. The discussion group usually consists of 5-15 people, and the duration of the meeting varies from 15 to 30 minutes. The topics of the problems are reported immediately before the meeting, criticism in any form is prohibited. Evaluation of ideas is carried out within three to five days after the meeting.

Synectics has shown itself to be a fairly effective method of searching for new ideas, based on the principle of systematic alienation from the original problem. Alienation is achieved by using analogies from other areas of life. The discussion of the idea takes place at a meeting lasting 90-120 minutes, in which 5-7 people participate. Preliminary training of participants in the synectics method is carried out.

The well-known Delphi method also belongs to the intuitive-creative methods. Delphi method- this is setting a set of tasks for specially selected experts, identifying their opinions and processing the collective opinion of experts, summarizing their individual assessments with the necessary degree of reliability and reliability.

Selection of ideas . The goal of ideation activity is to generate as many ideas as possible. The goal of the next steps is to reduce this number. The first step on this path is the selection of ideas.

The selection of ideas involves the screening out of unsuitable ideas in the process of developing a novel product. The goal of selection is to identify and weed out unsuitable ideas as early as possible. The process of selecting ideas includes two stages: 1) verification of compliance with the principles, requirements of the company; 2) checking the chance of an idea in market conditions by testing.

The following criteria can be used to test ideas: the size and potential of the market; the competitive situation; the feasibility of the idea in research and development; the feasibility of the idea in the field of production, its financial and marketing support.

In most firms, specialists must present ideas for new products in writing on standard forms, which are then submitted to the commission on new products for consideration. Such an application contains a description of the product, the target market and competitors, and rough estimates are made regarding the size of the market, the price of the product, the duration and cost of developing the novelty, production costs and profit margins.

Even when the idea seems to be good, the question arises: is it suitable for a particular firm, i.e. does it align well with its goals, policies and resources? Many firms have developed special systems for evaluating and selecting ideas.

Checklists and rating scales are used as the main assessment methods. Checklists allow you to determine in what volume the goods will be required or not required at all. Answers to the questions of the checklist are given reasonably, if necessary, appropriate research is carried out. Below is the structure of the checklist for assessing the risk factor in the innovation process. The checklist shows what types of risks may occur. The use of a checklist helps to establish in advance the opportunities for risk prevention.

The structure of the checklist of risk factors in the innovation process:

– target risk group;

- enterprise risk;

– market risk;

– technological risk;

– development risk;

– cost risk;

– time risk;

- financial risk;

- marketing risk;

- the risk of cooperation;

- the risk of profitability;

– decision risk;

– calculation risk;

- residual risk.

The rating scale method allows you to evaluate an idea by weighing the importance of its main factors. The following scale is used as importance weights: 0, +1, +2 and –1, –2. Using this method, the assessment can be carried out in tabular form or in the form of a graphic image (Table 2.3).

Table 2.3

Rating scale method

Evaluation factors	Evaluation scale
1. Factors in product development Experience in developing related products Contribution to the development of other ideas Superiority over competitors Imitation protection
2. Factors in the supply of future production Fame of new markets, factors of production Leverage existing supplier relationships Number of competitive suppliers Supplier Capabilities in a Crisis Price stability in the markets of productive forces
3. Factors in the field of production of goods Opportunity to attract existing workforce Probability of the impact of the production technology of goods on the environment (noise, dust, humidity, etc.) Accident risk Difficulties in converting existing technology Possibility of adapting existing installations to Product Processing Redundant installation options Possibility of repair of installations
4. Factors in the field of marketing of goods Using Existing Sales Organizations Purchasing power of consumers Export option

The rating scale method allows you to assess how the analyzed factors contribute to the embodiment of this idea in a product that will be of interest to buyers. Each factor receives a series of scores that show how the idea meets the necessary requirements. For each factor, the sum of points is determined, on the basis of which the idea is evaluated for a single factor or a combination of factors considered. Thus, the evaluation scale method allows, with a certain probability, to carry out a numerical evaluation of the idea of ​​a new product.

Concept development and verification . At this stage, the remaining ideas after the selection turn into product ideas. It is important to make a clear distinction between the idea, design and image of the product.

Product Idea- This is a general idea of ​​a possible product that the firm could, in its opinion, offer to the market.

Intention goods - a well-developed version of the idea, expressed in terms that are meaningful to the consumer.

Image goods- a specific idea that consumers have about a real or potential product.

We will comment on the process of developing a product idea with an example. Suppose an automaker has figured out a way to build an electric car that can travel 75 miles an hour and travel 150 miles before recharging. The manufacturer estimates that the operating costs of an electric car will be about half that of a conventional car.

This is the idea of ​​the product. However, consumers of product ideas do not buy. They buy the idea of ​​the product. The job of the marketer is to work the idea through a series of alternative designs, evaluate their comparative attractiveness, and select the best one.

Among the product ideas of an electric car, there may be different options:

1) an inexpensive mini car designed to be used as a second family car for shopping trips to nearby shops. This is a car ideal for loading shopping and transporting children, a car that is easy to get into;

2) an electric car of medium size and average cost, playing the role of a universal family car;

3) a small-sized sports car of the middle class of value, designed for young people;

4) an inexpensive mini car designed for the conscious consumer who is interested in a vehicle with low fuel costs and a low degree of environmental pollution.

When deciding which of the design options is the most promising and meets the interests of consumers, the product design is checked.

Design check- testing the idea of ​​the product on the target group of consumers, who are asked to express their thoughts about this idea, in order to use the answers obtained in deciding on the degree of consumer attractiveness of the novelty.

Here are the results of the design.

Consumers are offered the following description of the concept: “Economical mini-class walking electric car for four people. Great for shopping trips and visiting friends. Costs to operate half the price of similar cars with a gasoline engine. It develops a speed of up to 75 km per hour and travels 150 km before the next recharging. The price is 6000 rubles.”

Consumers are asked to express their views on this design in the form of answers to the following questions:

1. Do you understand the concept of an electric car?

2. What are the clear benefits of an electric car over a conventional car?

3. Do you think the statements about the electric car are true?

4. Can an electric car meet your immediate need?

5. In your opinion, how could the various features of an electric vehicle be improved?

6. Who will be involved in making a possible purchase decision? Who will use the electric car?

7. What do you think the price of an electric car should be?

8. Would you prefer an electric car to a regular car? For what purpose?

9. Would you buy an electric car?

Answer options: definitely yes; probably; probably not; definitely not.

Consumer responses will help the firm determine which design option has the most appeal. Let's assume that the last question about the intention to make a purchase, 10% of consumers answered "definitely yes" and another 5% - "probably". The firm correlates these figures with the corresponding total number of representatives of a particular target group and calculates the sales volume. But in this case, the calculated values ​​will be purely indicative, since people do not always put their expressed intentions into practice.

Development of a marketing strategy . Let's assume that this idea achieved the best results in the course of the survey. Now we have to develop a preliminary marketing strategy for entering the market with a specific electric vehicle.

Development of a marketing strategy - creation of a preliminary marketing strategy based on the approved product concept.

The marketing strategy statement is divided into three parts. The first describes the size, structure and behavior of the target market, the proposed positioning of the product, as well as indicators of sales volume, market share and profit over the next few years. Here's what it might look like.

The target market consists of households in need of a second car for shopping trips and visiting friends. The vehicle will be positioned as more economical to buy and run, and more walkable in nature, than vehicles currently on the market. The company plans to sell 500 thousand cars during the first year, with a total loss of no more than 30 million rubles. During the second year, it is planned to sell 700,000 cars, reaching the planned profit of 50 million rubles.

The second part of the marketing strategy statement provides an overview of the estimated price of the product, the general approach to its distribution and the estimate of marketing costs during the first year.

The electric vehicle will be offered in three different body colors and with optional air conditioning and powertrain systems. Its retail price will be 6 thousand dollars. with a 15% discount off the list price for dealers. Dealers who sell more than 10 cars during a month receive an additional 5% discount for each car sold during a particular month. Advertising budget in the amount of 60 million rubles. distributed equally between national and local advertising. In advertising, emphasis should be placed on the economy and recreational nature of the car. Appropriations of 1 million rubles are envisaged. to conduct market research during the first year to find out who buys the car and what is the level of customer satisfaction.

The third part of the marketing strategy statement contains long-term goals in terms of sales and profits, as well as a long-term strategic approach to the formation of the marketing mix.

As a result, the company expects to capture 6% of the entire car market and achieve a net return on invested capital of 15%. To achieve this, the quality of the product will be maintained at a high level from the very beginning, and further improved over time through technical research. With a favorable competitive environment in the second and third years, the price of the goods will be increased. The size of the total appropriation for advertising will increase annually by about 10%. The amount of annual appropriations for marketing research, starting from the second year, will be reduced to 600 thousand rubles.

The algorithm for such an assessment is shown in Fig. 2.2.

Rice. 2.2. An algorithm for assessing market opportunities in terms of the goals and resources of an organization (firm)

Analysis of production and marketing opportunities . Having decided on the product intent and marketing strategy, management can begin to assess the business viability of the proposal. To do this, it is necessary to analyze the costs associated with developing a product, bringing it to the market and selling it, as well as assessing the profit and risk associated with the production of a new product. If the results of the analysis are satisfactory, you can proceed to the stage of direct product development.

The analysis of production and marketing opportunities involves the analysis of targeted sales targets, costs and profits in order to determine whether the product idea and marketing strategy are consistent with the goals of the company.

For economic analysis, the break-even analysis method is used, which allows you to set the break-even point (X), which characterizes the minimum volume of output at which sales income is equal to production costs (Fig. 2.3).

Rice. 2.3. Break even

The break-even point is determined by the formula:

where Ipos is the sum of fixed costs for the entire volume of production;

Iper - specific variable costs;

P is the unit price of the new product.

This ratio also allows you to determine the maximum amount of costs and the minimum selling price of goods at a given break-even point.

Product development . If the idea of ​​the product has successfully passed the stage of analysis of the possibilities of production and marketing, the R & D stage begins, during which the idea should turn into a real product. Until now, we have been talking about descriptions, drawings or approximate layouts. During the product development stage, it is determined whether or not the product idea can be turned into a product that is both technically and commercially viable. A new product must meet the technical requirements of the consumer and meet the requirements of the market.

Product development– turning a product idea into a real product in the expectation that consumers will perceive the prototype as the embodiment of all the main features set out in the description of the product idea, as a product that is safe and reliable in operation, and also in order to make sure that it can be produced within the planned budget costs.

The R&D department creates one or more physical embodiments of a product idea in order to obtain a model or prototype that meets the following criteria: 1) it is perceived by consumers as carrying all the basic properties set out in the description of the product idea, 2) it is safe and reliable to work under normal use under normal conditions, 3) its cost does not go beyond the planned estimated production costs. Often, inter-functional groups (company representatives, designers, marketers) are organized to develop a product, which creates an open interaction of specialists and speeds up the solution of the problem.

For a marketer, the primary task is to ensure the success of the product in the market, i.e. the creation of such a set of its properties that would not only reflect its purpose, but would also make it more attractive in comparison with a competitor product. In this regard, it is advisable to consider the process of developing a new product as a combination of two stages: the formation of technical parameters and the formation of market parameters (Fig. 2.4).

Rice. 2.4. New product development stages

Formation technical parameters It is associated with endowing the new product with such functional properties that will satisfy the identified desires (needs) of the buyer. The technical parameters are developed by the R&D team and the marketing team. Establishing the possibility of translating the idea of ​​a product into a product that is profitable from a technical point of view, developers must translate into this product the market characteristics of the future product. The task of marketers in this case is to provide developers with information about the necessary properties of the product and the signs by which consumers will judge the presence of these properties.

Formation market parameters is carried out through the development of product design, its shape, color, weight, packaging, name and brand.

Shape, color, quality are factors that can influence the decision to buy a product. The first impression of a product is related to its appearance, it is formed long before its quality and functional properties are assessed. Appearance acts as a motive, an incentive to purchase a product, a force that forms a circle of potential buyers of a particular product. This reaction is typical not only for consumer goods, but also for goods for industrial purposes.

Along with this, an important role in the sale of goods is played by its design and quality. The color and type of material from which the product is made also determine the possibilities and options for differences, features of a particular product. The form helps to recognize the product and evoke certain associations with the buyer.

A successful prototype can take days, weeks, months, and even years to complete. It must embody all the necessary functional characteristics, as well as have all the calculated psychological characteristics.

An electric car, for example, should give consumers the impression of a well-made and safe car. Management needs to figure out exactly how consumers decide whether a car is well made. Some, for example, have a habit of slamming the door and listening to how it “sounds”. If a slamming door “sounds shabby,” the consumer thinks the car is poorly made.

When the prototypes are ready, they need to be tested. To ensure the safety and efficiency of the machine, functional testing of prototypes is carried out both in laboratories and in field conditions. A new car should start well, its tires should not fall off, it should not tip over when cornering. In consumer testing, customers are asked to test drive a car and evaluate the car as a whole and its individual properties.

Market Tests . If the car has successfully passed the functional tests and tests on consumers, the company produces a small batch of cars for testing in market conditions. During this stage, the product and marketing program are tested in a more realistic environment to identify consumer and dealer perspectives on machine handling, usage patterns and resale issues, as well as to determine the size of the market.

Market Tests – The novelty development stage during which the product and marketing strategy are tested in a real-world environment to gain insights from consumers and dealers on how the product is used and used, resale issues, and to determine the size of the market.

Test methods, or, as they say, testing, vary depending on the type of product. A firm testing consumer packaged goods will likely want to get estimates of when and how often consumers purchase their products. Based on these estimated data, an overall sales forecast can be made.

Testing can be carried out according to the following criteria: venue (market, laboratory, home); object (product, price, name, brand); persons involved in testing (buyer, expert); duration (short, long time); volume (one product, batch of goods); number of products tested (single-valued, comparative).

Consumer attitudes towards products are tested using three methods: simple rating, paired comparison and rating scale.

Simple rating method based on identifying consumer preferences for a new product. The consumer is offered several options for a new product, to which he must express his attitude, from the most preferred to the least preferred. Being simple, this method does not allow one to estimate the degree of preference and is not applicable to a large number of objects.

Paired comparison method assumes that the consumer is presented with options for new products in pairs. From each pair of goods, he must choose one product that he considers the most preferable. This method makes it easier for the consumer, since he is offered only two options for testing, which makes it easier to identify similarities and differences between them.

Scale method It is used when it is necessary to test a large number of new products for the same purpose. For this, a system of scales is used, in which each score means a certain level of evaluation by the consumer of a new product (for example, the product is very good, good, satisfactory).

This method allows not only to establish a rating in consumer preferences, but also to quantify it.

Market conditions are characterized by a more definite state of external and internal environmental factors of the product. So, the product already has a specific form and purpose, the price of the product has been determined, packaging issues have been resolved, appropriate advertising has been carried out, sales agents have been notified about the product.

In market conditions, the amount of testing depends on the amount of money invested in a new product and the time allocated for testing. Thus, completely new products are known to be characterized by high costs for their development and a high degree of risk when bringing them to the market. Therefore, such products must be thoroughly tested, especially since the relative costs of testing them will be small in relation to the total cost of the project to develop and introduce these products to the market. In general, the economic evaluation of the effectiveness of testing compares the cost of testing with the cost of a new product project and takes into account the time available to the company to test the product.

It should be borne in mind that in market conditions, not only the product itself is checked, but also the readiness, sufficiency of the developed marketing mix, i.e. all marketing activities that ensure the effective promotion and sale of a new product.

Testing can cover the product as a whole or its main parameters (features, functions, packaging, price, etc.). The main purpose of testing is to obtain information about the attitude of buyers to the tested product.

Market tests can be in the nature of control and standard testing.

Market Testing(managed trial marketing) is carried out in specially created departments of stores, where various methods of selling a new product are tested for a fee. Previously, the testing company determines the number and geographical location of stores, and then controls the placement of goods on the trading floor, prices, and selected methods of promoting the goods. As a result of control testing, it is established what influence the listed factors can have on the demand for a new product.

Standard market testing involves the placement of a new product in a real market environment, i.e. under conditions of full scale implementation. At the same time, they identify the places of sale of goods, carry out a set of marketing activities, analyze the activities of stores, explore the opinions of consumers, intermediaries, suppliers, and analyze the attitude of competitive firms to a new product. The results of such testing are used to forecast sales on a regional and national scale, as well as to identify problems related to the production and marketing of a new product.

Testing depends on the type and purpose of the product. When testing consumer goods, the company should pay attention primarily to the perception of the product, the number of trial and repeated purchases, their frequency.

When testing goods for industrial purposes, the following parameters are first checked: functional qualities, reliability; the level of operating costs; compliance of the design of the goods with the technology of the production process; installation location; the need for additional training of personnel who will serve this product; the amount of costs for staff training, etc.

Deployment of commercial production . Market testing provides management with sufficient information to make a final decision about whether to launch a new product. If a firm goes into commercial production, it will face large expenses.

Deployment of commercial production – entering the market with a new product.

When entering the market with a new product, the firm must decide: 1) when, 2) where, 3) to whom, and 4) how to offer it.

1. The first decision should be made about the timeliness of the release of new items to the market. If the electric car will undermine the sales of other models of the company, it is probably better to postpone its release. If further improvements can be made to the design of the electric vehicle, the firm may prefer to enter the market with it next year. The firm is also likely to be willing to wait when the economy is stagnating.

2. Next, the firm must decide whether to launch the product on the market in one locality or one region, in several regions, nationally or internationally. Not all firms have the confidence, means and opportunities to immediately enter the national market with new products. They usually set a timeline for successive market penetration. In particular, small firms choose an attractive city for themselves and conduct a blitz campaign to enter its market. Then, in the same way, the markets of other cities are mastered one by one. Large firms release a novelty first to the markets of one region, then another. Firms with nationwide distribution networks, such as automobile corporations, often release their new models directly to the national market.

3. In the group of consistently mastered markets, the firm must choose the most profitable and focus its main sales promotion efforts on them. At the same time, it is likely that, using the data from testing the novelty in market conditions, the company has already compiled for itself the profiles of the most important market segments. Ideally, the primary consumer product market segments should have four characteristics: 1) be composed of early adopters, 2) these early adopters should be active consumers, 3) they should be opinion leaders and speak favorably about the product, 4) they should be accessible to coverage at low cost.

4. The firm must develop an action plan to bring the novelty to market in a consistent manner. The launch of goods on the market can be carried out gradually or in the form of blitz campaigns. The latter method is more acceptable for small companies. The presence of a developed distribution network and international distribution channels in a company can allow the product to be launched immediately on the national and international markets, taking into account their characteristics.

To streamline and coordinate the work of bringing the product to the market, planning of all activities should be carried out. It is necessary to draw up estimates for the various elements of the marketing mix and other activities. For example, the launch of an electric car on the market may be preceded by a propaganda campaign, which is carried out immediately after the car enters the showrooms. At the same time, souvenirs can be offered to attract as many visitors to the showrooms as possible. For each new market, the firm must develop a separate marketing plan.

First of all, it is necessary to conduct marketing research of manufactured brands of goods. First of all, you should highlight:

• 1. Measuring the attitude of consumers to a particular brand of goods. First of all, you should study the degree of brand awareness of the product. This area of ​​marketing research is aimed at identifying the degree of awareness by consumers of the existence of a product of a certain brand. Fame establishes a link between a brand and the product category to which it belongs. Information about the level of familiarity is usually obtained by asking consumers about the brands of the product known to them within the studied product class. The information provided by the analysis of collected brand awareness data for a particular category can be used to:
  • * determining the proportion of potential buyers who name a certain brand of goods (or company) as the first brand (company);
  • * definitions on the basis of the first named brands of goods of the main goods of competitors;
  • * determining the level of memorability of brands and company names; some brands and company names are hard to remember, although they are easily recognizable;
  • * comparing the relationship between brand awareness and market share for each brand with average ratios for that market, as some brands realize their fame better than others;
  • * measuring the distance between individual brands (companies) on the fame scale, if it is of an interval nature;
  • * identifying markets with the least known brand (company).
• 2. The next step in researching the brands of individual products is to study the opinions of consumers about these products. We are talking here about finding out how the product under study meets the requirements of the market and consumers, i.e. on the evaluation of the market adequacy of the goods. These studies can be developed in the directions of obtaining the following information:
  • * about the needs that the studied product satisfies;
  • * on the requirements of users for products and the level of service, reflected, in particular, in the ranking of service quality indicators;
  • * about the motivations that should be implemented when buying a product;
  • * about the sources of information that determines the choice of purchase (exhibitions, fairs, technical press, advice from individuals, advertising, etc.);
  • * assessment of brands of individual goods according to their characteristics (attributes).
• 3. Determining which groups (segments) of consumers and how often buy the studied goods (determining the degree of loyalty to a particular product). It also examines the effect of product satisfaction on brand loyalty.

It is very important to divide all consumers of certain products into categories according to the degree of their loyalty to these products. These categories are then desirably subdivided into a number of sub-groups depending on the amount of consumption (eg regular and heavy coffee drinkers and occasional coffee drinkers). The data of such studies make it possible to more clearly outline the circle of potential consumers and develop a program to expand the circle of loyal consumers.

Marketing researches of manufactured brands of goods are carried out by studying the opinions of consumers, employees of the distribution network and service departments, in the study of the competitiveness of individual goods. Then conduct marketing research in the development of new products.

There are three main approaches to the definition of the concept of “new product”:

• 1. Proceeds from the time criterion: any newly manufactured product is referred to as new. The criterion of novelty in this case is not the qualitative originality of the product, but the time of its development and production.
• 2. Based on the requirement to highlight the criterion for distinguishing a new product from its analogues and prototypes. As such a criterion, it is proposed to use the principle of generating and / or satisfying a previously unknown need with goods. A new product is also called any progressive change that distinguishes a product from previously known ones. These changes may affect raw materials, materials, designs, technologies, external design, and more.
• 3. It is based on the following premise: it is necessary to proceed not from a single criterion, but from a certain combination of them, characterizing certain aspects of the novelty of the product. In this case, for example, four levels of product novelty can be distinguished:

New product development -- developing original products, improving products and upgrading them, creating new brands of products through the organization's own R&D. Usually, the process of developing a new product is divided into several stages: idea generation, selection (selection) of ideas, development of a new product concept, its verification, development of a marketing strategy, analysis of business prospects, development of the product itself, test marketing and commercial production. For the effective implementation of work at these stages, it is necessary to conduct appropriate marketing research at some of them.

Generation of ideas - it is a systematically organized search for new product ideas. There are many ways to organize a constant stream of ideas. The main components of the process of finding ideas for new products are the analysis of the sources of ideas and the application of creative methods for obtaining ideas.

There are three main sources of ideas for creating new products.

• 1. The most important is the market, and the impulses can come from both consumers and competitors. Customer wishes, complaints, typical reasons for repairs provide important information for product improvement. Consumer organizations are constantly demanding from enterprises to improve products and point out the opportunities in this area.
• 2. The second source is the enterprise itself, i.e. first of all, all employees of the company who are interested in the production of more modern and, accordingly, more profitable goods, and secondly, employees of the research departments of the enterprise, who are called upon to develop new products. The development of new products is only rarely possible without intensive research. Large enterprises have significant advantages in this area. Thus, competition is limited, since the entry of new enterprises into the market is more difficult. In order to survive in these conditions, medium-sized firms can cooperate to conduct joint research.
• 3. A third source for generating ideas is independent firms, which can also be recruited to come up with ideas for new products. The reports of institutes involved in the study of goods are essential. At exhibitions and fairs, domestic and foreign competitive products can be analyzed, and the analysis of patents and research results in related fields should also be involved.

The purpose of the selection of ideas is to identify suitable proposals and discard unsuitable proposals as early as possible. It is not products that are evaluated, but ideas in their more or less rudimentary form. Pre-screening can mean testing ideas against firm requirements, which can include peer review, evaluation matrix, and multi-criteria evaluation. To do this, they use their own specialists of the enterprise. The evaluation criteria depend on the nature of the enterprise.

Expert evaluation is carried out primarily on such indicators as the expected sales volume, production growth, achievable degree of penetration, compliance of the product with the used or planned distribution channels. It is necessary to find out what advantages the product has in relation to competitors, whether there are legal or moral problems. Experts must assess how feasible the idea is from a financial and technical point of view and how it corresponds to the goals and image of the enterprise.

The evaluation matrix is ​​constructed as follows. The most important areas of activity of the enterprise (for example, production, finance, research, marketing) are identified, they are assigned a numerical value that reflects their relative weight and role in the success of the enterprise. The idea receives a series of scores (for example, from 0.1 to 1), each of which expresses how well the idea meets the requirements of a particular department. Multiplying the coefficients by departments and adding the results gives the final assessment of the usefulness of the idea for the enterprise.

In a multi-criteria assessment, criteria are first approved and weighted according to their role in the selection process. It then assesses how well the ideas fulfill the set conditions using a simple rating scale. The result is calculated by summing the products of the evaluation criteria by their weight coefficients. The scoring of a particular idea allows you to draw any conclusions only in comparison with the scoring (indices) of other ideas or in the presence of an index rating scale.

When developing the concept of a new product, i.e. determining in which specific product the selected idea materializes, it is determined with which other products it will compete, and the positioning of the new product is carried out. The results of marketing research should be widely used. The development phase of the product concept is closely related to the method of functional cost analysis. The method evaluates the elements of the product only on the basis of costs, without taking into account other criteria. Elements that do not significantly affect the quality of the product must be eliminated or changed.

The product concept is studied in the following areas:

What functions should a certain element of the product perform?

What support functions does it perform?

What costs are associated with it?

Are the functions performed by the product element really necessary?

Can this function be performed by another, cheaper element, and what savings can be obtained?

Additionally, recommendations are given on the choice of strategies in the context of individual elements of the marketing mix; for this, the results of marketing research in the field of pricing, distribution channels, and product promotion can be used.

Business prospects analysis -- evaluation for the new product of the estimated values ​​of sales, costs and profits for their compliance with the objectives of the organization. In other words, we are talking about assessing the attractiveness for the organization of a particular new product. Since in the case under consideration we are talking about predominantly predictive estimates, forecasting methods are widely used. An economic analysis of ideas can be carried out in the following steps.

1) Forecast costs associated with product development, market entry and sale

The forecast is associated with a certain risk, since for analysis it is necessary to know the situation on the market, the time and area of ​​the sale of the product, and the attitude of consumers to the product.

2) Estimation of sales volume (turnover, revenue)

The quality of the forecast depends on how accurately it will be possible to estimate the growth of the market, the achievable market share, the price, which in turn depends on the costs.

3) Profit Forecast

If we know for a certain period of time the income and expenses or the receipt of funds and payments, then investment calculation methods can be used to forecast profits. In any case, it is necessary to consider several periods, because, as the product life cycle model shows, the first periods can be completely atypical in terms of profit.

4) Accounting for uncertainty

For each situation, it is recommended to develop optimistic averages and pessimistic forecasts. Another possibility to account for uncertainty is to adjust the target values ​​in such a way that they are assigned coefficients expressing their degree of confidence.

If the project has successfully passed the business test, it proceeds to the stage of creating a prototype - the first prototypes; prototyping is carried out by the technology or research departments. It should be remembered that from this point on, the high cost of the development process increases. At this stage, it will become clear whether the idea is feasible in practice.

One of the final stages of creating a new product is test marketing or market testing. Trial marketing is the testing of a product and marketing program under real market conditions. The purpose of trial marketing is to evaluate the product and its marketing program (price, advertising, brand, packaging, service, etc.) before the start of a full-scale implementation of the product and find out how consumers and intermediaries will react to all this. The results of test marketing can be used to predict sales and profits. In trial marketing of consumer products, the following methods are used: standard market testing; control testing of the market; market simulation testing.

Standard market testing -- market testing, in which a new product is placed under conditions similar to those of a full-scale product release. Find specific outlets for the product where the organization's marketers conduct a complete marketing program, analyze store operations, conduct consumer, distributor, and other opinion surveys to determine the degree to which the product meets consumer needs. The purpose of routine testing is to use the results obtained to predict national sales and identify problems associated with the production and marketing of a given product.

Market Testing -- this is the creation of special panels of stores that agree for a fee to try different methods of selling a product. The organization that carries out control testing of the market, in accordance with its plans, determines the number and geographical location of stores, controls the location of the product on the trading floor, prices, and the chosen methods of promoting the product.

Analysis of the obtained results makes it possible to determine their impact on demand.

Market simulation testing -- testing the product under conditions that simulate real conditions, for example, the purchase by consumers selected by the organization for the limited money allocated to them of goods, among which there is a new product, in a regular store or in a laboratory store of this organization. In this case, consumers are presented with samples of advertising and other methods of promoting various products, including the product being tested.

In trial marketing of production and technical purposes, product samples are transferred for a limited time for testing to potential customers. In addition, the product can be tested at exhibitions and demonstrations organized by trade, distributors and dealers.

From these data it follows that the developers of new products should first of all study the demographic, psychological, economic and other characteristics of super innovators and innovators first of all, since they are the ones who respond to new products in the first place. It is usually extremely difficult to do this, since the same people can behave differently with respect to different products, either being, say, innovators or conservatives.

Obviously, the success of new product development is greatly influenced by the external business environment, which also needs to be investigated.

The development of new and modernization of existing products should be carried out with the thought of meeting the needs of the consumer
In the West, there is a concept about the process of developing new products. Even after a detailed analysis of new developments, between 50% and 67% of new products in the West fail the survival test. They say this: "If a similar percentage of output at the enterprise went into marriage, you would go bankrupt."

Development of the concept of a new product- this is a system that orients the manufacturer's basic ideas about the product being created, its market opportunities (needs, properties, life cycle, external factors that determine success and failure). Fundamental principles of the new product development concept:
- the consumer is in charge: feedback from the consumer should be used to develop ideas and test new product concepts;
- spans the entire organization. The product must be created with the participation of all departments of the enterprise
- financial study: careful financial analysis is required to verify profitability forecasts for a new product
- modifying an existing product requires less analysis than launching a new one.

The higher the novelty of the product, the more carefully it is necessary to approach its analysis.
There are three main approaches to the definition of a new product:

1. Any newly released product is referred to as new, i.e. the criterion of its novelty is the time of development and production.
2. The approach is based on highlighting the differences between a new product and its analogues and prototypes. As such a criterion, it is proposed to use the principle of "appearance" and satisfaction of previously unknown needs.
3. It consists in the fact that it is necessary to use not one criterion, but a combination of them.

At the same time, several types of novelty can be distinguished:

1. Changing the external design while maintaining the existing consumer properties.
2. Partial changes in consumer properties, due to the improvement of the main technological characteristics.
3. Fundamental change in consumer properties.
4. The appearance of a product that has no analogues.

Based on a study of 700 firms and 3,000 new industrial and consumer products, the following classification was developed:

1. World novelty goods (brand new) - the share of sales of the total of all new goods - 10%
2. New brands of goods - 20%
3. Expansion of the existing range of goods - 26%
4. Product improvement - 26%
5. Positioning change - 7%
6. New products (due to price) - 11%.

There are innovations with technological and marketing dominance.

The first change the physical properties of the product, at the production level (the use of a new component, a new material, the creation of a fundamentally new product, component, material, or a new physical state).

Marketing-dominated innovations mainly relate to sales and communication options (a new type of advertising, new means of payment, a new way of selling). Often these innovations require more creative imagination than funding.
New product development Western practice: market orientation

Ukrainian approach: production orientation

Stages of developing a new product, their characteristics

1. Formulation of the idea

The development of a new product begins with the search for ideas for a new product. Searches must be systematic, management must also determine which markets, which products to focus on, what exactly the company is trying to achieve with a new product: large amounts of cash, market dominance, etc. The goal is to generate as many ideas as possible.

2. Idea selection

The second stage is the initial assessment. The purpose of the stage is to reduce the number of ideas, as early as possible to identify and weed out unsuitable ideas.

3. Concept development and verification

The selected ideas need to be turned into product ideas, worked through the idea to the stage of a series of alternative ideas, assessed their comparative attractiveness to choose the best one.

4. Development of a marketing strategy

Now it is necessary to develop a preliminary marketing strategy for entering the market with a specific product. The strategy statement consists of 3 parts:

1. description of the size, structure, and behavior of the target segment, the intended positioning of the product., indicators of sales volume, market share, profit for several years.
2. general information about the proposed price, the approach to its distribution, the estimated income for marketing during the first year.
3. long-term goals in terms of sales and profits, a long-term strategic approach to the formation of the marketing mix.
4. Analysis of the possibilities of production capacities

Evaluation of the business attractiveness of the proposal, analysis of the planned sales targets, costs, profits - whether they correspond to the goals of the company.

5. Product development

If the idea has successfully passed the analysis stage, the R&D stage can begin, during which the idea should turn into a real product. At this stage, the answer will be given whether the idea of ​​​​the product lends itself to being embodied in a product that is cost-effective from both a technological and a commercial point of view. One or more physical embodiments of the product concept are created

6. Testing in market conditions

Now you need to test the sample, and if it is successful, then
7 – Debugging commercial production run into production.
Key success factors for new products:

1. Product superiority, i.e. the presence of properties that contribute to a better perception by consumers.
2. Marketing know-how, i.e. a better understanding of the market.
3. Technological know-how.

J.-J. Lambin identified 15 success rules for new products.