PRODUCT

AND

BRAND MANAGEMENT

GROUP MEMBERS
Awais Majeed y Saif-ur-Rehman y Saad Imran Khan y Ahsan Raza y Khawar Hussain
y

BT-08-27 BT-08-59 BT-08-53 BT-08-76 BT-08-44

MUHAMMAD A.M
27

What is a product?
A product is any offering by a company to a market that serves to satisfy customer needs and wants. y It can be an object, service, idea,etc.
y

New Product Development

Most new product development is an improvement on existing products y Less than 10% of new products are totally new concepts.
y

Success rate of new products

The success rate of new products is very low less than 5%. You have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince. y Product obsolescence is rapid with improvements in technology
y

Product Development Stages

Business analysis
The most customer appealing offer is not always the most profitable to make y Estimate on costs, sales volumes, pricing and profit levels are made to find out the optimal price volume mix. y Breakeven and paybacks. y Discounted cash flow projections.
y

Market testing
Test markets y Test periods y What information to gather? y What action to take?
y

Commercialization
When? (Timing) y Where? (Which geographical markets) y To whom? (Target markets) y How? (Introductory Marketing strategy)
y

COMMONDO

(RETIRED)

59

Product Levels
Customer value hierarchy:y Core benefit y Basic product y Expected product y Augmented product y Potential product

Customer Delight
When you exceed customer expectations. y Delighted customers are those where you anticipate their needs, provide solutions to them before they ask and where you are observing to see if new and/or additional expectations are about ready to be required.
y

Product Hierarchy
Need y Product family y Product class y Product Line y Product type y Brand y Item
y

Product classification
Durable y Non durable y Services
y

1.

2. 3.

Consumer goods classification

Convenience goods y Shopping goods y Specialty goods y Unsought goods
y

Industrial goods classification

Materials and Parts - raw materials - manufactured materials and parts y Capital items y Supplies and business services
y

SAAADDDUUU
53

Product Mix
y y y y y

The assortment of products that a company offers to a market Width how many different product lines? Length the number of items in the product mix Depth The no. of variants offered in a product line Consistency how closely the product lines are related in usage

Product Line decisions

y y y

Product rationalization Market rationalization Product line length too long when profits increase by dropping a product in the line too short when profits increase by adding products to the product line Line pruning capacity restrictions to decide

Brand
A name becomes a brand when consumers associate it with a set of tangible and intangible benefits that they obtain from the product or service y It is the sellers promise to deliver the same bundle of benefits/services consistently to buyers
y

Brand Equity

Levels of meaning
Attributes y Benefits y Values y Culture y Personality y Users
y

Brand Power
Customer will change brands for price reasons. y Customer is satisfied. No reason to change. y Customer is satisfied and would take pains to get the brand. y Customer values the brand and sees it as a friend. y Customer is devoted to the brand.
y

Brand Equity Competitive Advantages

Reduced marketing costs y Trade leverage y Can charge a higher price y Can easily launch brand extensions y Can take some price competition
y

Managing Brand Equity

Brand Equity needs to be nourished and replenished. We must not flog the brand for equity to be diluted or dissipated. y Store brands.
y

SAEEENNN
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Advantages of branding
y y y y y y

Easy for the seller to track down problems and process orders Provide legal protection of unique product features Branding gives an opportunity to attract loyal and profitable set of customers It helps to give a product category at different segments, having separate bundle of benefits It helps build corporate image It minimises harm to company reputation if the brand fails

Brand parity
y

Consumers buy from a set of acceptable/ preferred brands

Umbrella Brand
Products from different categories under one brand y Dangerous to the brand if the principal brand fails y Sometimes the company name is prefixed to the brand. In such cases the company name gives it legitimacy. The product name individualizes it.
y

Naming the Brand

Product benefits y Product qualities y Easy to pronounce y Should be distinctive y Should not have poor meanings in other languages and countries
y

KKHHAAWWAARR
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Brand strategy
y y y y y

Line extension existing brand name extended to new sizes in the existing product category Brand extension brand name extended to new product categories Multibrands new brands in the same product category New brands new product in a different product category Cobrands brands bearing two or more well known brand names

Brand Repositioning
y

This may be required after a few years to face new competition and changing customer preferences.

Packaging
Includes the activities of designing and producing the container for a product y Packaging is done at three levels - primary - secondary - shipping
y

Packaging as a marketing tool

Self service y Consumer affluence y Company and brand image y innovation
y

Designing packaging
y y y y y y y y

Packaging concepts Technical specifications Engineering tests Visual tests Dealer tests Consumer tests Packaging innovations Environmental considerations

Labels
Identification y Grade classification y Description of product y Manufacturer identity y Date of manufacturer, batch no. y Instructions for use y Promotion
y

Labels as a marketing tool

y

Labels need to change with time or packaging changes to give it a contemporary and fresh look

Conclusion
Product management is an organizational lifecycle function within a company dealing with the planning, forecasting, or marketing of a product or products at all stages of the product lifecycle. y Brand management is the application of marketing techniques to a specific product, product line, or brand.
y