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Product Life Cycle

Product is one of the most important of the four Ps! Many people do not realize how much can be done with the product—either the individual product, or the product line or grouping.

Product is anything offered to a customer for acquisition or consumption that may satisfy a need or a want.

Changing the product can change many things about the customer offer. Part of the product is the packaging—how it is presented to the customer. Another product factor is the amount or size, the colour, the features, and even how these various features are presented. This all has an effect on the marketing, which changes the customer offer.

Think about the last time you were at the grocery store or some other large department store. Think about all the different product choices you would have had if you wanted to buy something as simple as soap or shampoo. Various features of these basic products were offered in a myriad of different sizes, shapes, colours, and forms. It is truly amazing what marketers do with product these days.

A business can use a number of strategies to manage its products at an individual level or across a product line. Products are often grouped into two broad groups—consumer products and business products. The different types of consumer products are as follows:

• Convenience products are inexpensive items that are typically 
  purchased on a frequent basis. Some examples of convenience 
  products are fast food, cold drinks, and milk.

• Shopping products are typically mid- to high-priced items that the consumer will usually comparison shop for prior to purchasing. Some examples of shopping products are clothing, televisions, and so on.

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• Specialty products are products that are not purchased on a regular 
  basis. Consumers may do extensive research prior to purchasing these products. Some examples of specialty products are jewelry, automobiles, and so on.

•  Unsought products are products that the consumer has awareness of but 

 may not normally think about purchasing. Some examples of unsought 
 products are life insurance and home-owner or apartment insurance.

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Product quality is a major determining factor in the buying decisions of many consumers. Product quality raises the ability of the product to fulfill the need and/or want of the consumer. It can include things such as reliability, durability, ease of operation, and other attributes.
​Packaging of products refers to all the activities of designing and producing the container or other wrapping for the product. It can include both primary packaging (for example, the tube that holds the toothpaste) and secondary packaging (the box the toothpaste comes in). There can also be shipping packaging.

Packaging has many features that affect the desirability of the product to the consumer.

• labelling and promotion, including branding
• storage
• safety
• protection of the product (e.g., egg cartons)
• deliverability (e.g., easy-pour jugs)
• security (e.g., childproof lids)

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