HO2 - Lecture 5: Product Lifecycles Flashcards
What are the different phases in a product life cycle?
- Introduction
- Growth
- Maturity
- Decline
Why are sales initially slow?
- Wait for price drop
2. Wait for reviews to see what others think
Describe the introduction phase.
Once product has launched - intro. started.
Describe the growth phase.
Customer convinced of product - start to purchase - sales rapidly accelerate.
Describe the maturity phase (3).
- After while: product has been accepted in marketplace & no. of ppl buying levels off.
- Less spent promotions here - company should have recouped its development costs.
- No. of new customers to which sales may be made: depends on how many new customers are entering marketplace.
Describe the decline phase (2).
- Time goes on - other products launched (by same company/ competition).
- New entrants to market: lost as they turn to other products.
Name 5 products with a very long cycle.
- Steel sections
- Nails/ screws/ bolts
- A4 paper
- Heinz baked beans
- Brennan’s bread
Name 5 products with a very short cycle.
- Electronics
- Christmas toys
- Clothes
- Music singles
- “Lemon” flavoured kitkats
What affects the lifecycle of product? (6)
- Fashion
- Technology
- Special offers/promotions
- Economic climate
- Expectations
- Competition
Describe the portfolio of products at different stages of their lifecycles.
- Organisations: aware of lifecycles of their products - try and predict them early on in product dev.
- Timing of each new product coming to market - important - company needs to do this to maintain continuous presence in market place.
- Maintains market share.
- Aim to have at least one product in each phase at any one time: to keep sales and profit level.
* know figure 5.2
Discuss link between lifecycle estimation and operations planning on shopfloor.
What influence does lifecycle have on design and development process?
During which stage(s) of lifecycle might have you consider stockpiling finished product?
Explain why?
