With a well-considered new product development (NPD) strategy, you can avoid wasting time, money and business resources. An NPD strategy will help you organise your product planning and research, capture your customers' views and expectations, and accurately plan and resource your NPD project. Your strategy will also help you avoid:
·
overestimating
and misreading your target market
·
launching a
poorly designed product, or a product that doesn't meet the needs of your
target customers
·
incorrectly pricing
products
·
spending
resources you don't have on higher-than-anticipated development costs
·
exposing your
business to risks and threats from unexpected competition.
There
are several important steps you will need to plan into your NPD strategy.
Define
your product : An accurate description
of the product you are planning will help keep you and your team focused and
avoid NPD pitfalls such as developing too many products at once, or running out
of resources to develop the product.
Identify market
needs: Successful NPD requires a
thorough knowledge of your target market and its needs and wants. A targeted,
strategic and purposeful approach to NPD will ensure your products fit your
market. Ask yourself:
·
What is the
target market for the product I am proposing?
·
What does that
market need?
·
What is the
benefit of my proposed new product?
·
What are the
market's frustrations of existing products of its type?
·
How will the
product fit into the current market?
·
What sets this
product apart from its competition?
Draw existing market
research. You may need to undertake additional research to test your new
product proposal with your customers. For example, you could set up focus
groups or a customer survey.
Establish time
frames: You need to allow adequate time
to develop and implement your new products. Your objectives for developing new
products will inform your time frames and your deadlines for implementation. Be
thoughtful and realistic. Some objectives might overlap but others will be
mutually exclusive.
·
Your objective to
race against your competition will require efficiency from your team.
·
Your aim to
achieve a specific launch date will be influenced by demand for seasonal
products and calendar events.
·
Your aim to be
responsive to your customers' needs and demands will require time for research
to ensure you develop the right products at the right time.
·
Your objective to
stick to business as usual and maintain other schedules will affect the
resources you make available for NPD.
Identify key
issues and approaches: There are many tasks involved in
developing a product that is appropriate for your customers. The nature of your
business and your idea will determine how many of these steps you need to take.
You may be able to skip or duplicate certain stages, or start some of them simultaneously.
Key tasks include:
·
generating and
screening ideas
·
developing and
screening concepts
·
testing concepts
·
analyzing market
and business strategy
·
developing and
market testing products
·
implementing and commercializing
products.