Keys To New Product Success
Creating new products is challenging for any business and the pressure for success is very real. So how can you predict if a new product will be successful?
The most obvious factors influencing whether a product will be successful include:
price,
status value,
packaging,
need fulfillment,
quality,
uniqueness.
However, exactly how these elements apply in a given situation can be difficult to determine.
Perceived Benefit
Perhaps the single most important point to analyze is the benefit to potential buyers. People will buy a product only if it provides them with a perceived benefit.
This analysis is not as easy as it may sound. Many new product ideas are based on the erroneous assumption that a new feature alone is a sufficient benefit. This is far from true, particularly if competing products are already adequately satisfying the need. The new item must be perceived as supplying a benefit not obtainable elsewhere.
Be especially aware of the potential buyer’s point of view. Sometimes a new product will be built around an exciting technological advance. It may be truly revolutionary from an engineer’s viewpoint, but meaningless to ordinary people. Unless the technical brilliance translates into convenience, lower price, or some other benefit that is important to potential buyers, the chances of success are slim.
Subtle Factors That Influence New Product Success
And then there are the less obvious factors. For example, there may be resistance due to some detail that can cloud a potential buyer’s perception and, in turn, acceptance. For instance, this could be a choice of the product’s name which could be perceived by some to be a derogatory term.
Additionally, if the use of the new product would require extensive instructions or drastic changes in behaviour, sometimes buyer resistance can be overcome by associating the product with something familiar. However, success may require special educational and promotional strategies.
If the product’s use involves behaviour that is contrary to an ingrained value, special problems arise. To have a successful product under such circumstances, it must somehow be made to seem consistent with users’ preexisting values. For example, if the new product speeds up a process that was perceived to be critical to the value of quality craftsmanship, it must be made clear that the product serves to enhance the quality of work of the craftsman.
These sorts of subtle considerations are the ones that often get overlooked in the evaluation process.
Talk to us for help with reducing the risks
One of the best ways of assessing potential snags is to brainstorm not whether the product will fail, but all the different reasons why it could.
The Brand Pilots can help you look objectively at each of those possibilities and evaluate ways of reducing the risks. Get in touch today.