Product life cycle

Definition-Product life cycle is a business technique that

attempts to list the stages in the lifespan of
commercial/consumer products
Characteristics
a) limited life
b) Product sales pass through distinct stages
c) Profits changes
d) Different strategies in each life cycle stage
e) Products require different marketing,
financial, manufacturing, purchasing, and human
resource strategies in each life cycle stages.



Donald Clifford in 1965,
-Collection of information about the products behavior
-Analysis of competitor short-term strategies
- Analysis of number of competitors in respect of
market share.
- Collection of information of the life cycle of similar
products
- Estimation of sales volume for 3 5 years from
product launch.
- Estimation of the total costs compared to the total
sales for 3 5 years after product launch
Style, Fashion, and Fad Life Cycles
Introductory Stage
High failure rates
Little competition
Frequent product modification
Limited distribution
High marketing and production
costs
Negative profits
Promotion focuses on awareness
and information
Intensive personal selling to
channels
Full-Scale Launch
of New Products
Increasing rate of sales
Entrance of competitors
Market consolidation
Initial healthy profits
Promotion emphasizes brand ads
Goal is wider distribution
Prices normally fall
Development costs are recovered
Offered in more
sizes,
flavors, options
Growth stage
Declining sales growth
Saturated markets
Extending product line
Stylistic product changes
Heavy promotions to dealers and consumers
Marginal competitors drop out
Prices and profits fall
Niche marketers emerge
Many consumer
products are in
Maturity Stage
Maturity Stage
Long-run drop in sales
Large inventories of
unsold items
Elimination of all nonessential
marketing expenses
Rate of decline depends on
change in tastes or
adoption of substitute products
Decline Stage
Copyright 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia
Pty Ltd
PPTs t/a Marketing: The Core by Kerin et al
Slides prepared by Andrew Hughes,
Australian National University
How stages of the product life cycle relate to a firms marketing
objectives and marketing mix actions
10 - 8
Copyright 2008 McGraw-Hill Australia
Pty Ltd
PPTs t/a Marketing: The Core by Kerin et al
Slides prepared by Andrew Hughes,
Australian National University
Managing The Product Life Cycle
An important task for a firm is to manage its
products through the successive stages of
their life cycles.
Marketers rely on three ways to manage a
product through its life cycle:
modifying the product.
modifying the market.
repositioning the product.
10 - 23






Product design and evaluation
Successful product design involves learning from other designs which have features similar to the
ones you want in your product.
You also need to be able to evaluate the quality of your product and to understand how to
maintain quality throughout the design and manufacturing stage.
Approaching design
It is important that you, the designer, are able to identify the features of a product that make it
either a success or failure.
The first stage of design of a new product involves studying other products with similar or desirable
features, through identification, analysis and evaluation.
This process helps the designer in a number of ways:
It avoids copying other designers' work (this is called plagiarism).
It identifies features or aspects of existing products which could be improved - such as by reducing
the cost, adding extra features, making it easier or more comfortable to use or making it look more
attractive to certain groups.
It can identify technologies or ideas which could be transferred or applied to a new function or
area.

Evaluating design
Sucessful designs: Apple iPod and Dyson vacuum cleaner
What makes a design successful? How do you judge a design? There are a wide range
ofmethods and strategies for analysing and evaluating designs. The two methods that follow are easy-to-
remember acronyms:
F.A.C.E. value
Function - What does it do and how does it work?
Aesthetics - Is it attractive, why and what makes it so?
Construction - What is it made from, how and why?
Economics - How much does it cost and is this good value for money?
C.A.F.E.Q.U.E.
Cost - How much does it cost and is it good value for money?
Aesthetics - Is it attractive, why and what makes it so?
Function - What does it do and how does it work?
Ergonomics - How easy or comfortable is it to use?
Quality - How well is it built, what materials are used?
User - Who is it for and is it appropriate?
Environment - What effect do the product's manufacture, use and disposal have?
A product's unique characteristics and features are called the product specification. You need to be able to identify
these and compare them with the specification of other similar products. This will help you to evaluate how
successful a product's design has been.

Quality control
Quality control or QC is a way of controlling a manufacturing system. It is accomplished by a series of checks and inspections throughout the design
and making of the product to ensure it is being made to specification and to the required standard. The results of the quality control checks are then
fedback into the system to rectify any shortcomings. Quality control is also sometimes known as quality assurance or QA.
The criteria you might use for checking the quality of a circuit board are listed below.
Neatness of soldering
Top view - circular shape around leg.
Side view - 'volcano' shape.
Appearance - bright and shiny.
Accuracy of soldering
Solder located evenly around component leg.
Solder on the pad not along the track.
No solder 'stains' or 'dribble' on the printed circuit board (PCB).
Circuit performance
The circuit works the way it was intended.
The circuit functions consistently over time.
The circuit works whilst being shaken.
Product assembly
The PCB, parts, and components are secure.
There is no overlap of assembled parts.
The circuit works even when shaken.
Quality of finish
It is a marketable product (ie you might buy it).
It is an attractive product.
It is well made.
As a systems and control designer you need to be able to devise and apply test procedures to check the quality of your work, as well as identify
critical stages of the manufacture for quality checks.