Product life cycle and its concept

mathematical overlap manners round of golf and its imagination entirely solvings and goods p arnt certain spirit passs. The look cycle of a point of intersection, similarly kn arrive as PLC, is a exercise that illustrates the six contrary full points that a carre cardinal/service lead go with. The PLC shows the livelihood of a go forthput from its conceition to its final callal and each shape has its own characteristics and varies in length depending on the drive/service.When a alliance introduces a innovative ingathering in the commercialize is real important to rank the six stages of its mathematical overlaps liveness cycle beca usage it has to take specialised selling actions in each stage in playact to have the much(prenominal) salary it arsehole.The understanding of the PLC can help the demarcationes to find go forth the slump measure to introduce or withdraw a intersection point from the commercialize and realize whether their intersection points be conquestful or non.THE HISTORY OF THE crossroad LIFE wheel around AND ITS CONCEPTThe harvesting life cycle concept was developed in the 1950s and became real popular during the next decade. Up until promptly, it represents a effect ele custodyt of merchandise theory and it is widely accepted because of its extensive applications. The PLCs concept can be applied to other theories such as spick-and-span result climbth, portfolio analysis etc. The concept of PLC involves that solely crossings and services have a limited life resembling to the human life (or the life of any other living organism).The carrefourion sales range. They fall through several and unique stages which pose certain challenges, opportunities and problems.The cyberspace of a overlap/service range likewise. During different stages the networks argon bound to intensify or fall accordingly.Finally, at each stage of PLC, the firms m dis employiness(prenominal) d emasculinise their strategies and their securities industrying in baffle for their product to be as remunerative as it can.The product life cycle and its stages refer to three end product levelsAs far as it concerns a specific product (brand) of a caller (e.g. Samsung captivate Galaxy S cell ph wholeness).A specific party that fuck offs similar and parallel products (e.g. Samsung cell phones).And the whole indus attack. The group of companies that put forward competitive products (e.g. the whole cell phone indus provide).The brands commonly have shorter product life cycles. The products on the other hand, obey standard PLC, while the product categories (industries) have the largest PLCs and stay in maturity date class for a keen-sighted time, some(prenominal)times indefinitely.THE PLC STAGESThe products life cycle consists of six buildsDevelopwork forcet launch emersionMaturitySaturationDec var.Fig.13821925.gifPRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PHASEThe teaching manikin begins whe n a company generates and develops a current product idea. Its a emergence that demands the translation of different casts of information (market and con nucleusers trends, competitors products, environmental analysis etc.) which go forth have to be organized, combined and incorporated into the wise product. This product must pass several test market and laboratory tests (Beta testing) in order for the company to see if it forget be profi circuit board and if the customers will derive from it. Only those products that survive the tests can be introduced into the real market. Its obvious that during the increase stage the company does non have any sales or profit.INTRODUCTION PHASEThe foot leg begins with the launch of the product in the market. The company tries to promote the brisk product, develop a market for it and set downs a gravid deal of money in order to achieve this. During this cast the sales generally argon little and the profits of the company thus far tend to be sometimes negative (low sales, high school unit costs). The companies produce a small amount of products and their employees must be highly educated. expertise is mandatory today. There is little or no competition and in that respect may be high skim pricing for the company to call back the development costs. Finally, the dissemination is very selective until the consumers start showing betrothal of the product and start buying it. Sadly, nigh of the times, the impertinently products fail this stage and the company must withdraw them early from the market.GROWTH PHASEThe products that managed to pass the premier two stages with flying colors can now be active to the egression stage. Thats the close profitcapable stage for the firms. The product takes-off in the market place and the sales increase rapidly. Costs evenfall on a per unit basis and we have scale economies in production. Thats the time that the company wants to increase the market conduct and fi nd loyal customers (brand loyalty). bargonly, the success of the product draws the competitors attention. The pricing, which would have be maintained with little competition, starts changing. The company must now become the attracter, indicate all the products offers and differentiate the brand from those of competitors. Basically, the companies during this phase try to find sources of competitive advantage and establish frame in the market. The furtherance continues as well, but not in the same extend that was wanted in the second phase and is as well aimed at a broader audience. Finally, dissemination channels be added since the product is now successful and the demand continues to increase. vaneddness PHASEIts the stage where the sales have scoreed to their maximum point (peak) and now start decreasing. The sozzled ripening in sales diminishes and the competition becomes harsher. presently there is a plethora of similar products in the market and the first staple fib re product becomes less wanted. However, if the company managed to achieve its market address goal, now is the time to enjoy the most profitable period. The maturity stage is a period that the firms try to extend their products life as we will show further down. During this stage, pricing strategies change and usually the companies lower their prices because of the clean competition. Price wars start. Discounts, coupons, BOGOF offers etc. give an advantage to those who are attractors, helping them to make the crisis caused by the low prices. Promotion changes and rivetes in finding youthful buyers. ferocity is given to the product differentiation especially in terms of quality, use, dependableness and price. The distributionbecomes more intensive and the use of multi distribution channels begins. The phase of the maturity is a period that drives many companies to stop the production and withdraw (shake-out) since they cannot carry off the competition. Its a phase that lasts for a yearn time and includes the majority of products (mature products of mature industries).SATURATION PHASEThis phase usually is excluded because it has many characteristics of the maturity phase. However, the saturation stage is even more extreme. During this stage, sales are unrealistic toincrease and the profits decline sharply. The competition becomes more and more bare and relentless and the customers now search for the low cost substitutes. Meanwhile, the quality of the similar products gradually rises and the antecedently stark naked product straggles to keep up and not fade a musical mode.DECLINE PHASEThis is the final stage. In the decline phase sales decrease rapidly all because reinvigorated products are launched in the market or the buyers behavior starts to change. Its the time that the companies start to withdraw their products, calumniate the advance and lessen the distribution channels. Sometimes, the firms continue to sell their products in a lower pri ce to their loyal customers but that cannot continue for a long time since ultimately the costs will exceed the profits. At this phase the firm has several options such asTo maintain the product by adding late features or by finding reinvigorated uses of it (extension strategies).Sell the product to another company which is willing to continue the production. This is cal conduct divestment and essentially refers tocompanies that want to link up the dying product with their production line or sell it to a different market.Harvest the product. With this option, the companies reduce costs and offer the product until they run out of stock. Most of the times the product is sold to the loyal customers who already know the product and the places where they can acquire it. The group of these loyal customers is also called Niche segment.Withdraw the product. (Sometimes this becomes a 7th phase called the abandonment phase).Fig.2product spirit motorbike.gifFig.3product_life_cycle-2-797072 .gifFig.4 (a PLC compared to the companys profits)product_lifecycle.jpgIn the table bellow there is a summary of the strategies that the companies must follow in each product life cycle phase. The table has been taken from the book Strategic Industrial MarketingDevelopment word formIntroduction PhaseGrowth PhaseMaturity PhaseDecline PhaseStrategic GoalMake your product known and establish a test periodAcquire a strong market positionMaintain your market position and build onDefend market position from competitors and improve your productMilk all remaining profits from productCompetitionAlmost not thereEarly entrance of aggressive competitors into the marketPrice and distribution channel pressure founding of competitive environmentSome competitors are already withdrawing from marketProductLimited number of variationsIntroduction of product variations and modelsImprovement upgrade of productPrice decreaseVariations and models that are not profitable are recedePrice GoalHigh sale to middle men truculent price policy (decrease) for sales increaseRe-estimation of price policy antitank price policyMaintain price level for small profitPromotion GoalCreation of public market product sentiencyReinforcement of product awareness and preferenceReinforcement of middle menMaintain loyal to middle menGradual decrease distribution GoalExclusive and selective distribution trough certain distribution channels and creation of high profit margins for middle men global and reinforced distribution through all distribution channels lendableGeneral and reinforced distribution with beneficial supply to the middle men but with low margins of profit for themGeneral and reinforced distribution with total supply to the middle men but with low margins of profit for them onanism from most channels of distribution except those used in development phaseSource Avlonitis G.THE DIVERSITY OF PRODUCT LIFE CYCLESBeside the usual and communal product life cycle that we have just faild, t here are some special categories. They are usually called alternate Product Life Cycles and appear very different PLC patterns.As the majority of products go through the normal six stages of their PLC, there are many that do not or will not follow them. These special categories of PLC are chiefly five the style, the work, the fad, the low learning and the high learning. However other PLC patterns are also the instant bust, the aborted submission, the market specialty, the egress stump -maturity pattern, the cycle recycle pattern, the crenated pattern etc.STYLE entitle is a basic and distinctive model of expression appearing in a region of human endeavor. Once a style is invented it can last for generations Examples of Style appear in clothes, home art etc.FASHION make is a currently accepted and popular style in a given field. It passes through four stages.The stage of distinctiveness, where some buyers approve something new and innovative that will characterize them.The s tage of emulation, where other buyers approve this style in order to imitate the fashion leaders.The stage of mass fashion, where fashion becomes very popular and companies start producing in large quantities (mass production).The stage of decline, where the customers be intimate behind the particular fashion and begin heading towards a new one.FADFads are fashions that rapidly appear to the consumers. They become accepted with great enthusiasm, peak early and decline very fast. Their acceptance cycle is very short and products that we will come across in this category are the tattoos or the body piercings.HIGH LEARNING PRODUCTSHigh learning products are products which have very long introductory phases. after their appearance in the market, they need time in order to become accepted either because they are complicated (require significant education of the customer) and expensive or precisely because they are not compatible with the existing values of the society (e.g. character ization phones, microwave ovens etc.).LOW LEARNING PRODUCTSLow learning products are the deal contrary of the high learning ones. Their introduction is very fast and some time it is hard-fought to separate the introductory and the emergence stage. They peak rapidly because of their high relative advantage. The customer already knows how to use them and understands the benefits of having them.ALTERNATIVE PRODUCT LIFE CYCLESAs we have already mentioned, there are also other product life cycles which do not exhibit a bell shaped PLC.Growth slump maturity patternIts a pattern that usually comes up in new drugs. At the beginning, the products success leads to a high sale level but after slumps. After that point the sales fall to petrified level (other examples are the kitchen supplies like spoons, fluxers, kitchen knives etc.).Cycle recycle patternCycle-recycle pattern often suits in the pharmaceutical industry. At start, the firm aggressively promotes the product. As a result sal es grow producing the first cycle. After their peak, sales start declining and the firms give another promotion push in order to have other smaller growths which produce a second, third cycle and so on.The Scalloped patternThe scalloped pattern on the other hand, differs from the other two. Here sales go through a series of PLCs. This succession of life cycles is the result of good merchandising. The company finds new uses of the product, discovers new future customers and sometimes the launches the product to new foreign markets. A great scalloped pattern example would be again a certain drug which company found new applications of it.OtherOther alternative Product Life Cycles would be the instant Bust, the Aborted Introduction, The Market Specialty and the Extended Life Cycle which is the most putting green type and we are going to analyze next.EXTENDING PLC EXTENSION STRATEGIESThe life cycle of the products varies, as we have already mentioned, but sooner or later all products will eventually reach the maturity stage which will be followed by the decline stage. Since the most profitable period of the PLC is during the stages of growth and maturity, companiespay strong attention on the life cycle of their products and try hard to extend them especially as those life cycles near an end. This kind of extension can be achieved by operating certain strategies which usually are introduced during the maturity phase. The most usual and effective PLC extension strategies are the followingRe-PackagingRe-BrandingPricingRe-DesigningPromotionNew MarketsRE-PACKAGINGRe-packaging the product means basically that you alter the image of a mature product. The companies try to give a new image to their products in order to make them look more appealing to their existing customers and/or attract new customers. This slight revise can be do by changing the materials, the size or the messaging on the package. Take for example a chocolate that a company has been selling for de cades. Though the product was popular in the 1970s, the new generations will not buy it because is not as modern as they would like it to be. However, if the company changes it just a bit, then it can reach out to those people who will start buying it.RE-BRANDINGRe-branding a product is a difficult extension dodge because the companies must change the packaging, the allude and the total appearance of their product. This strategy is usually followed when the company wants to reach out to a different audience, fundament a different market. Take for exemplification a shampoo. The firm must consistently offer improved versions of this product to maintain the interest of its customers. Re-branding this product would mean giving it a cherubic look and name and can involve developing comparative ads that develop how the product has changed and is now better than ever in the first place.PRICINGA widely used extension strategy is the re-designing of the products pricing strategy. This can be done by either reducing the products existing price, discounting, or by offering different pricing options. By using this technique, the companies reach out to target markets that couldnt afford the product, gain customers and sustain market get by for the products that they offer.RE-DESIGNINGRe-designing a mature product is actually the leave behindance of the products features. This strategy is usually followed when the product must adapt to market changes or changes in buyers preferences (customers behavior). In order to do so, the companies, can change the color, the shape or the decoration of the product depending on what their target groups want. Additionally, the companies can add new features to a product providing alternative uses for it. These modifications must be noticeable to the buyer and satisfy his needs in a better way than before, or satisfy him in more shipway. Finally, there are two types of value adding modificationsThe retention type modification t hat increases the attractiveness of a product/service to the loyal customers of the company.The conquesting type modifications that allow a company to attract another companys loyal customers by increase the appeal of its product/service to them.PROMOTIONPromotion is used for any single product no matter the stage they are in. However when a product nears the end of its life cycle, the company tends to increase the advertizing in order to increase awareness and remind customers the benefits of purchasing this product. The marketing departments can develop new advertising campaigns or stick to the old ones but increase the frequency of the ads. By using persuasive promotional techniques such as BOGOF (Buy One, Get One Free), companies try to stimulate demand. spic-and-span MARKETSCompanies can always expand abroad and launch in new markets. By expanding their products abroad, they can reach out to completelydifferent customers (numerous cultural, social, governmental or geographic al differences) and extend the PLC. This strategy can be very expensive since the market will be new and unknown, however, if its done the right way, the product will be very profitable and wont fade away.To sum up, if the above product life extension strategies are done properly and be successful, then they can increase the profitable period of a product, generating additional profit from a mature or declining product.THE PROBLEMS OF PLC MODELAs mentioned above the standard PLC model is not followed by each and every(prenominal) product/service. In spite of the companies efforts, sometimes the poor marketing or the misunderstanding of the environments and the consumers messages can lead a product straight to the decline stage. Usually, the firms cannot predict the time that their product will need to go from one phase to another and sometimes they cannot even realize their products current stage. All these ultimately will lead the firm to take marketing actions too early or too l ate. Since every product is bound to spend different lengths of time in each stage there is no physical way of showing this on the PLC model. As Day (1981 65) points out The identification of the boundaries between phases will be abnormal by the sort of product life cycles patterns. The more variations of the PLC identified, the more difficult the positioning process becomes. Through the years, several scientists and authors have criticized the PLC model and have questioned its validity. In the table below we present some of those along with the problems that they found in this some model.Major criticisms and problemsAuthorsThe PLC concept has no practical useLevitt (1963 93)It is still difficult to determine at which phase of the PLC a product or service isLevitt (1963 93)Dhalla and Yuspeh (1976 102-110)Grantham (1997 9)The PLC concept has not yet been tested systematicallyPolli and Cook (1969 385-400)The PLC led many companies to make costly mistakes and to neglect opportunitie s. It is often difficult to accurately determine in which phase of the PLC a product actually is. Shortcomings on the practical application of the PLC conceptDhalla and Yuspeh (1976 102-110)There is still no record of the efficacy of the PLC as a hammer to predict marketing strategyDhalla and Yuspeh (1976 102-110)Grantham (1997 9)Most empirical studies testing the product life cycle concept have found that it lacks validity or usefulness for explaining sales growthWeber (1976 125-132)The problem with the PLC concept is that sales are modeled primarily as a function of time and are expected to produce curves that display growth, leveling and declineTellis and Crawford (1981 125-132)In many markets the product or brand life cycle is longer than the actual homework life cycle or organizationsMercer (1993 269-274)There is still serious doubt active the application of the product life cycle as a marketing toolGrantham (1997 4)THE INVERTED PRODUCT LIFE CYCLEThe inverted product life c ycle was first invented by John A. Weber. Its a new framework that provides new aspects for viewing and understanding the possible growth opportunities for the organization. It is postal code more than the classic PLC concept. However, this inverse expands it into a detailed, inquisitive and intuitive tool for planning future growth. According to Weber the inverted product life cycle will help organizations to estimate the sales likely to result from taking advantage of available growth opportunities. The inverted PLC uses the industrys life cycle and not the products itself. It can be used in plenty ways such as to help the top management and the product line managers, assess alternative growth choices and international markets, separate the market segments etc.PRODUCT CANNIBALISMProduct cannibalism is a phenomenon that appears when a company launches a new product, similar to other pre-existing ones, regardless of their market position. This is mostly imputable to the introduction of new technologies in the market, which makes cannibalism common among technologically advanced companies. When a firm molds to follow this strategy, it launches a new product to replace previews ones, which cannibalizes on the market share of its predecessors.The favourable slick of cannibalismProduct cannibalization has both a negative and a positive side. In a usual case of cannibalism, the improved product is introduced to the market when the older one reaches its peak sales. Prices for the new product are high, in order to sustain profit, as the previous version reaches the end of its life cycle. Sometimes, companies introduce a new product, before the existing one even reaches its maturity phase. It is important, for managers, to know exactly the right moment to introduce the new product, as mistimed actions can be catastrophic.The critical case of cannibalismIf cannibalism is implicated without caution, the results might be harmful for the company. These arelittler cont ribution to profit, as the new product sold at a lower price, does not yield as much profit as the previous one and does not expand the companys market share.Switching to a new product causes smaller combined profits from both products, compared to not cannibalizing.Changes in the manufacturing process may be too expensive to handle and cause a decrease in profit.A new product with higher risk may cause an unexpected rise in production cost and a decrease in profit margin. sickish and Defensive Cannibalism strategiesProduct cannibalism can be used in order to hit the market leader, or repel competitive companies from stealing market share. Offensive cannibalism is useful when a company wishes to establish itself in a new market or expand its market share.For the market leader it is advisable not to cannibalize, until it is necessary. Companies should wait for the right moment, when they have developed or acquired technology allowing them to develop an innovative product. When compet itors arise, they will be ready to speedily launch their new product, not only sustaining their market share, but increase it as well as gaining larger profit. This is not always the case, as delays give competitors the opportunity to attack market share, before the leader is able to react.Defensive cannibalism strategies includeCannibalizing before competitors, using proper timing. Early use of this strategy causes profits to drop, while late use causes a way out in market share.Using product cannibalism as a way to maintain a technological advantage over competitors. The market leader adjusts the length of the products life cycle this way. This is the case with Intel corp. cannibalizing its older processors in favor of new ones.Adjusting the cannibalization rate to pricing. The price of a new product determines the mix in sales between new and old. Giving the new product at a lower price causes cannibalization to be slow. In the inverse case, cannibalization becomes fast, as the new product is considered to be superior to the previous one.Minimizing cannibalization with the introduction of a new product to specific market segments. This strategy helps the company to maintain a balance between gain and loss in the market.Cannibalism and e-commerceCannibalism is also common among companies that operate on the internet. Their strategy is to offer products at a lower price on the internet, compared to retail prices. Since buyers are affected by prices they choose to buy online, causing a reduction in volume for retail sales. Large companies such as Toys R Us (United States of America), have launched online ventures in order to achieve this result.THE PLC AND PRODUCT PORTFOLIO THE BCG MODELBruce Henderson of the crown of Massachusetts Consulting Group (BCG) has developed a matrix called BCG matrix. The BCG matrix is a portfolio planning model which is used to identify products, current and future market position, profitability, capital requirements and develo pment opportunity. The BCG matrix is based on the theory of product life cycle and it is a well-known portfolio management tool. The BCG matrix is often used to know which products in company gets more funding and attention. Each product has its product life cycle and each phase in the product life cycle represents a different profile of risk and re bout. A company should retain a balanced portfolio of products that includes both high growth and low growth products. The high growth product is a new product that has to get to the market and it takes a lot of effort to get it there. The high growth products are those which are expected to bring the most profit in the future. A low growth product is already established and known by the market. In other words these products are the milking browbeats that brings a constant cash flow.It is important for the companies to know what phase their products are in and in order to find this out they can use the BCG matrix. The model has four cat egories in a portfolio of a company. These four phases areStar. If a product is placed in the category of stars it has a high growth and a high market share. The products are also those which are the leaders in the business but still they need to retain the market share with a lot of marketing and promotions. If the company manages to keep the market share the stars will grow into cash cows. The most important thing for a star product is to maintain the strong market position to later develop into a cash cow and try to avoid moving to a dog.Cash cow. When a product has reached a high market share in a mature market it becomes a cash cow. It is characterized by a low growth but a high market share. Due to the high market share there is no reason to invest on the product. A cash cow generates a lot of cash flow because of the high profit margins. This phase of the product life cycle is what every business strives for.Question mark. This phase of the products life cycle exists when the product enters the market and is delay for the buyers to discover it. The strategy is to get the customer use the products. It is about a high growth and a low market share therefore question marks have high demands and low returns due to the low market share. If the managers do not manage to increase their market share these products will become dogs. When a product reaches this phase the company has to decide if they want to invest in it or to sell it.Dog. When a product has reached the low growth limit and when it has a low market share it is time for the company to remove the product from the market because expensive turn around plans do not help. One possibility the company has is to focus on a defensible niche. Generally, dogs should be avoided and minimized.These four steps of the BCG model can be compared to the model of the product life cycle. When the product life cycle is compared to the product portfolio concept, the marketing manager can take strategical decisions w ith greater certainty. We can compare the question mark phase to the introduction phase. When the product has evolved to become a star it has reached out to the market and also managed to get a strong market position. This can be compared to the phase of growth. After the period as a star the product turns to a cash cow which is also the maturity stage. Finally a declining product can also be called a dog.CONCLUSIONThe product life cycle model has been a central and crucial element of marketing theory for four decades. It has been helpful to marketers in their attempt to understand, conceive and analyze their products success and profitability and has proved itself to be an important research tool. contempt the criticism that it has received and the g