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Basics of Marketing - Kotler Philip

Development of goods

If the idea of ​​the product has successfully overcome the stage of analysis of production and marketing opportunities, the stage of R & D begins, during which the idea must turn into a real product. Until now, it was a question of descriptions, drawings or very approximate mock-ups. At this stage, the answer will be given whether the idea of ​​the product can be embodied in a product that is profitable both from a technical and a commercial point of view.

The research and development department creates one or several variants of the physical embodiment of the product design in the hope of obtaining a prototype satisfying the following criteria: 1) consumers perceive it as a carrier of all the basic properties set forth in the description of the design of the goods; 2) it is safe and reliable for normal use in Ordinary conditions, 3) its cost does not go beyond the planned estimated costs of production.

The creation of a successful prototype can take days, weeks, months and even years. He must embody all the necessary functional characteristics, as well as possess all the calculated psychological characteristics. An electric car, for example, should impress consumers with a soundly made and safe car. The management needs to find out exactly how consumers are deciding whether the car is well made. Some, for example, have a habit of swinging the door and hearing how it "sounds". If the slamming door "sounds unserious", the consumer believes that the machine is done poorly.

When prototypes are ready, they must be tested. To ensure the safety and efficiency of the machine, functional tests of prototypes are carried out in laboratories and in operational conditions. The new car should be well wound up, it should not fall off the tires, it should not tip over during corners. During customer tests, customers are asked to make a test drive on a car and evaluate the car as a whole and its individual properties. (On the real example of development and testing of goods described in box 22.)

Box 22. Experience in the development and testing of goods by the Brunswick Corporation

After the Second World War the corporation "Brunswick", the leading firm for the production of equipment for bowling alleys and billiard halls, began searching for new spheres of commodity production for itself. The company wanted to use its experience in the production of large wooden things. Eventually the company chose the market of school furniture.

To identify the needs of the market, the Brunswick Corporation interviewed 300 educators. Many of them expressed their dissatisfaction with the heavy standard furniture of typical classrooms. The firm decided to create an assortment of light portable school furniture. Such classroom equipment should facilitate the conduct of classes of both large (unified) and small groups of students and ensure the possibility of using educational television.

The first stage in the development of new items was the creation of sketches. Teachers and other school workers were asked to express their opinion on these sketches. Some teachers thought that the chairs were too fragile, others had a question about the orthopedic properties of these chairs. Taking into account the comments made, the sketches were reworked, after which the company produced manually a set of prototypes for testing in its own office premises.

Based on the test results, one prototype was finally selected and a limited number of chairs were made for further testing. They were handed over to teachers and schoolchildren to observe the nature of the use and the ability of the chairs to resist the various forms of unintended treatment. The children were put in a room and photographed as they treated the chairs in the presence of teachers and unattended. In addition, several exemplary classrooms were created, fully equipped with furniture "Brunswick". In these classes, observations were made of the peculiarities of using chairs and demonstrated furniture to teachers.

When the company was convinced that its furniture meets the needs of the school and is able to withstand the vicissitudes of unintended use, the assortment of chairs was presented at the annual meeting of the National Association of Education. Before the end of the congress, the company sold the entire volume of output planned for release in the first year.

However, the development and testing of goods on this did not end. As the reports on the results of operation in real conditions were received, the firm made changes in the design of the chair so that it could withstand unforeseen forms of use. For example, in California among high school students there was a craze to tear off the armrest, which fastened the chair to the desk. The design was changed to prevent this possibility from continuing.

There were other tips on improving the design. Many proposals have been introduced to reduce costs in the production process. The tree gave way to another structural material - fiberglass, and the price of chairs fell from 18 to 5 dollars apiece.