The theory and practice of marketing activity notes several approaches to the process of developing a new product. ETC. Dixon looks at the traditional approach that many American firms follow versus the Japanese approach. Within the traditional approach, the process of developing a new product involves the following sequence of stages:

• 1) market analysis;
• 2) characteristics of the product;
• 3) development;
• 4) technical part;
• 5) determining the costs of purchases from suppliers;
• 6) costs;
• 7) production;
• 8) periodic cost reduction.

If the costs are too high, it returns to the development stage. According to Dixon, costs are taken into account too late in this model.

The decision-making process when developing a new product is as follows.

Generation of ideas: The company's management determines the target markets, the goals of producing a new product, and the distribution of the company's efforts between the development of original products, modification of existing ones, and copying. Managers' actions are aimed at coordinating and stimulating the search for ideas within the company and in the outside world.

Selection of ideas, the goal of which is to weed out unsuccessful proposals as early as possible. The decision is made on the basis of identifying the compliance of the idea for a given product with the goals and strategy of the company and its available resources.

Product concept development and testing. At this stage, decisions are made about the product idea as a general idea about it, the product concept as a developed version of the idea, expressed in a form that is meaningful to the consumer, the product image as a specific idea received by the consumer about an actual or potential product.

Marketing strategy development. The marketing plan includes a description of the volume and structure of the target market, consumer behavior, expected product positioning, sales volume indicators, market share and planned profit, planned price of the product, principles of its distribution, estimated marketing costs for the first year; indicators of sales volumes and profits for the future, a long-term approach to the formation of a marketing mix.

Analysis of production and sales opportunities. Based on an assessment of the business attractiveness of the proposal, a decision is made on the advisability of moving to the next stage.

Product development. Decisions are made to conduct technical tests, test consumer attitudes towards the product, develop a brand, and develop packaging.

Tests under market conditions. Management decisions relate to the deployment of pilot production and preparation for an advertising campaign. If the sales level of a new product does not meet the company's expectations, then a decision is made to return to the product development stage or abandon it.

Deployment of commercial production. Management decisions concern the purchase of equipment and the deployment of large-scale production and distribution of a new product. If sales do not meet expectations and forecasts, decisions may be made to modify the product or marketing program, or to discontinue the product.

When positioning a new product, Japanese companies often take price into account along with other product characteristics. Then the rate of return is established and direct target costs are calculated, which, together with the characteristics of the so-called quality deployment function, determine the process of parallel design. After this, the cost reduction factor comes into force.

The approach of Japanese firms to the process of developing a new product:

• 1) market analysis;
• 2) characteristics of the product;
• 3) the planned selling price minus the desired profit;
• 4) determination of target costs;
• 5) development, technical part, determination of procurement costs from suppliers;
• 6) production;
• 7) constant reduction of costs.

P. Doyle believes that the process of developing a new product can include different stages depending on the industry in which the company operates. Thus, in a pharmaceutical company the stage of clinical trials and registration of new drugs is especially important, and in companies that produce industrial products, as a rule, there is no need for trial marketing. In many organizations, the development process may undergo structural changes aimed at speeding up the process. Despite this, the process of developing a new product is presented as follows:

• ? the stage of corporate strategy and innovation, when the areas of activity of the organization, its intentions, range of opportunities and directions of development are determined;
• ? stage of birth of ideas;
• ? the exploratory stage, when the strategic viability of ideas is determined as a result of market research and analysis;
• ? the proof-of-concept stage, which involves researching the target audience and identifying a market advantage;
• ? the business analysis stage, when the commercial potential of the idea is determined based on cost and sales analysis;
• ? the stage of brand development, during which a marketing complex is developed based on testing the product, packaging, name, advertising, and price research;
• ? the implementation stage, based on the results of which a decision is made to continue or not work in this innovative direction;
• ? stages of trial market and introduction to the national market;
• ? control stage, which can take the form of a retail audit, a consumer panel, or a survey of consumer opinions.

To speed up the process, these stages are carried out in parallel. Some innovative companies use a skip-stage system.

Let us consider in more detail all stages of the process, taking as a basis the model of G. Assel.

First stage- identifying opportunities for selling new products. One of the main marketing opportunities of an organization is due to the presence of unmet consumer needs. Other sources of an organization's marketing opportunities come from competitive weaknesses, new technologies, and changes in laws and regulations.

Second stage- formulating goals for selling a new product. The most common goals include sales volume, market share, return on investment, and payback period. Sales goals appear both in monetary terms and in physical units. The market share indicator captures the expected results for a new product in comparison with competing products. These goals may be modest if the new product is being offered to an established market. Thus, PepsiCo, having offered a certain new product, pursued the goal of gaining 2% of the market in the first year of sales. In new markets, these goals may be more significant. P&G planned to gain a significant share of the fairly new liquid soap market by introducing a new product. The market share goal may be driven by certain competitors. General Motors entered the market with the Saturn with the goal of capturing market share of the small car market from Japanese firms. Its plans included reducing the market share of Japanese manufacturers, which was 26%, and increasing its own share to 33% through a new car model.

Third stage- developing new product ideas and testing them. It consists, in turn, of three stages: generating ideas, testing ideas and formulating ideas in the form of a concept for a new product. Numerous studies show that organizations attach great importance to these stages in an effort to improve their effectiveness.

P. Doyle identifies the development of the concept as an independent stage. It is important to distinguish between the idea of ​​a product and the concept of its positioning. A product idea is a new good or functional service. The concept of positioning relates to the selection of target market and value proposition. A product idea can have many positioning concepts.

The main criteria for filtering ideas are usually considered to be the following:

• ? sales costs;
• ? probability of technical success;
• ? expected profitability;
• ? size of the potential market;
• ? development time;
• ? market trends;
• ? compatibility with goals;
• ? commercial know-how;
• ? technological know-how;
• ? expected market share;
• ? availability of a patent;
• ? potential risk;
• ? necessary investments.

In 1993, a new project evaluation grid called the NovTov model was developed. The model has been tested in many markets in Europe and North America. It includes 30 questions addressed to various experts who evaluate the project on a 10-point scale, while the degree of confidence in their assessment is indicated on a 10-point scale. The resulting project profile is compared with the profiles of hundreds of other projects already entered into the database. The model gives the probability of success and analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of the project.

Fourth stage- product development, if the concept test has yielded positive results. At this stage, the physical characteristics of the product are determined based on the transformation of consumer preferences. The main difficulty of this stage lies in the need for coordination between the R&D departments, which concentrate their attention on the development of high-quality, well-designed products with perfect engineering, and the marketing service, which concentrates its attention on the problem of satisfying customer needs, on the conformity of products to customer specifications. Thus, the Philips company released a microwave oven that could be placed on the dining table and which was supposed to highlight the contrast with old-fashioned food utensils. However, consumers associated the product with a nuclear power plant, which few people wanted to see on the dinner table.

Fifth stage- product testing, first presentation of the product to consumers. An important indicator of the correct direction of the new product development process is the coincidence of the results of product testing and its concept. During this stage, consumers are asked: “If the product were on the market, would you buy it?” There is the following test to check the degree of market readiness of certain parameters or characteristics of a new product, distribution channel, advertising method (readiness of the consumer to evaluate positively).

A decisive factor in the strategic development of an enterprise in the 21st century. economists believe development and production of new products that can attract the attention of buyers. Therefore, competing firms strive to provide the consumer with, if not a new, then at least an updated product. Thus, each manufacturer needs to include the development of new products in its development program. Moreover, the program must take into account the natural withdrawal of the product from the consumer market (its “mortality”) and provide for the development of a replacement product. It is very important to anticipate (or better yet, shape) the future needs of the buyer. To do this, it is necessary to ensure the intensification of research and development work, allocating enough funds for R&D so that the period between the emergence of an idea for a new product and the sale of its trial batch is minimized as much as possible.

There are eight stages of new product development:

• idea generation;
• idea evaluation;
• verification of the proposed concept;
• economic analysis;
• new product development;
• test marketing;
• product refinement;
• deployment of commercial production of the product.

Generation of ideas - constant systematic search for opportunities

to create a new product. Sources of new ideas can include employees, firms, sales channels, competing enterprises, government, etc. Among the sources of ideas, those that allow us to find out the needs and desires of the consumer himself stand out. This is how ideas for creating easy-to-open cans, roll-on deodorants or window cleaning brushes arose.

The second group of sources of new ideas is applied and fundamental research. Basic research is not intended, of course, for applied purposes, but the process of searching for new knowledge can give rise to ideas about a new product.

Chemist Roy Plackett's search for a new refrigerant led to the production of white paraffin flakes of a similar substance - chemically stable and resistant to heat. Later, experiments with this substance by the French engineer Marc Gregoire made it possible to create the Tefal brand, widely known today.

The goal of applied research is precisely to use special scientific methods (“brainstorming”, which involves, on the basis of morphological analysis, opening discussions within a small circle of specialists that stimulate the emergence of a range of new ideas; analysis of a manufactured product; specialized consumer surveys; the Delphi method ; scenario method and other forecasting methods) to initiate new ideas. To successfully generate new ideas, a company needs specialists who have a broad vision and are able to accumulate suggestions expressed not only by specialists from various fields, but also from ordinary customers, even if these ideas are perceived as unusual at first glance.

In this regard, it is appropriate to refer to the experience of Japanese companies, which, while encouraging active employees (especially from the sales department), invite employees to actively put forward new ideas.

Of course, new ideas, including already patented ones, can be bought. The advantages of this method include saving time and minimizing risks, the disadvantages are the need for significant investments (know-how is always an expensive pleasure) and, most importantly, dependence on other people's innovative developments. At the stage of generating ideas, in addition to identifying the source, methods for creating them are determined.

Concentrated Search

Danone- a famous French brand, famous throughout the world thanks to its unique, tasty and healthy dairy and fermented milk products. In addition to dairy nutrition, the company Danone is engaged in several other areas of production activity - mineral waters and baby food.

Danone follows its own pace of renewal. While giant concerns such as Unilever, distribute their new products in the markets according to the watering can principle, the French concentrate entirely on specific products. In most cases, new ideas originate in the research center. Twice a week, marketing managers and consumer product development specialists gather in the comfort of the kitchen and try out new products. First of all, they want to know what the customer expects from the dairy dish of the future. In the second stage, developers check whether they can implement a promising idea. In the laboratories of the center Vitapole Today, more than 3,000 strains of yoghurt bacteria are stored, the principle of action of which has been studied to the smallest detail (Spanish entrepreneur Isaac Carasso (Isaac Carasso), who founded Danone in 1919, already then selling yogurt as a medicinal product). If researchers get down to business, these strains can be used as a basis.

In addition, the company does not release a new product to the market without guaranteeing its effectiveness through clinical trials.

Supervisor Danone Ribu trusts his employees. He sees himself more as a generator of impulses and ideas than as a strict director. Managers Danone have a high degree of independence. They are focused on independently developing ideas and implementing them (if possible) in their own department. Endless safety meetings with higher rank levels are excluded.

Next stage - evaluation of ideas. After products that are potentially interesting to the company have been identified, they are filtered. To do this, they mainly use a standardized filter of requirements for new products, which indicates all the characteristics of the new product that will be most significant for the company. The filtering process consists of comparing new ideas according to specified parameters. The list includes both general, marketing groups of characteristics, and production ones. Within these groups, the product is rated from 1 - great idea - to 10 - very bad idea. Based on the fact that each product characteristic will have a different impact on the level of success, you need to find out the significance of all characteristics.

At the filtering stage, it is necessary to determine whether it will be possible to obtain a patent for a new product. A patent gives the inventor exclusive rights to sell the product for 17 years (for drugs - 14 years). Plans for a working model of a new product are sent to the Federal Service for Intellectual Property, Patents and Trademarks (Rospatent); after filing a patent application, information about the new product becomes publicly available. The owner of a patent can sell the invention or claim royalties from it.

During proof of concept At an early stage of development, the potential buyer is presented with the planned product, the potential consumer/market's attitude toward it is measured, and his need to purchase the new product is determined. This allows, without significant costs, to check the enthusiasm of possible buyers expressing their attitude towards the new product (an image of the new product, written information about it or an oral description is presented) until its costly and time-consuming development begins.

It is necessary to find out the answers to the following questions.

• Is the proposed idea easy to understand?
• Are there clear advantages of this product over existing products?
• Do you trust the information about the product offered?
• Are you ready to purchase this new product?
• Have you ever decided to replace your existing model with a new one?
• Will the new product be able to meet your real needs?
• What can you suggest to improve the performance of the new product?

At the stage of economic analysis of the ideas that remained after filtering, they are expected to be more detailed. An analysis of demand forecasts, costs, planned capital investments and possible profits is necessary. At this stage, ineffective options should be eliminated.

At the stage product development The product idea is translated into physical form, and the basic marketing strategy is determined. The product itself, its packaging, brand are developed, its position in the market is determined, the attitude towards the product and its possible use by the consumer are checked in detail. At the same time, the choice of the type of materials and their consumable qualities, the production method is carried out; the cost of the product and the production time per unit of production are established; the level of utilization of the company's production capacity, possible sizes, colors, as well as the period required to transition from product development to its commercial production are determined.

When designing packaging, the material, size and color options are selected, the functions of the packaging are determined (reliability during transportation and storage of goods, advertising component), and expected costs.

To develop a trademark means, first of all, to give it a name (come up with a new one or use an existing one), determine its exclusivity, as well as protect both the found image and the trademark as a whole.

Determining the position of a new product means choosing a market segment, comparing a new product with competing and other offerings of the company. To check the attitude towards a new product and the possibility of its use, it is necessary to find out the perceptions of buyers and the degree of their satisfaction with the new product.

There are a number of requirements for the image of a new product. Buyers should perceive it as the bearer of those significant properties that are listed in the description of the design. The sample must be safe; it must work reliably when used under normal conditions; the cost of a new product cannot be higher than the planned estimated production costs.

To ensure the reliability of the new product, i.e. quality, which at the present stage is extremely important to ensure the competitiveness of a new product, at all stages of experimental work, as well as when releasing a trial batch under the most severe operating conditions, comprehensive tests of the finished product are carried out.

At the test marketing stage, which precedes the launch of a new product into mass production, the new product is tested using market test. Individual consumer goods must go through this stage. Testing of industrial products is also necessary, but it is not always possible to carry out for a number of reasons, including due to significant costs. Methods for testing the consumer market for new products are already quite well known: a new product is demonstrated at exhibitions and fairs (in 2009, 90 enterprises took part in the Omsk Brand exhibition, and 30 organizations took part in the Innovation of the Year exhibition); a new product is presented at a traveling exhibition; Questionnaires are distributed to test individual products; new industrial products (machine tools, automatic lines, tractors and other agricultural machines) are provided for free use on condition that the client submits a test log.

The timing of testing depends on speed and timing. If the environment turns out to be competitive, then they try to reduce the testing time. If the product is seasonal, then the moment of testing is more important than its speed (there is no point in demonstrating a summer sundress in October).

Choosing a testing location also involves determining the cities where the new product will be presented.

Example

It is interesting, for example, the choice of place to demonstrate to the general public a unique robotic suit developed by French and American scientists that allows paralyzed people to move independently - the 2014 Brazilian Football Championship. At the opening of the championship, a child with paralyzed legs made the first kick on the ball.

Within the city, the manufacturer also determines the markets where trial sales of the new product will be carried out. In Omsk, for example, many local producers of deli meats and dairy products choose the Triumph supermarket as such a platform, and the Sibkolbasy company presents its new products in the Lenta hypermarket. The purpose of trial sales is to obtain operational commercial information. Therefore, when organizing a trial sale, you need to clearly set the main condition - extremely accurate and specific answers to a number of questions: time, place, duration of sales, what information will be received and how the results can be applied.

Test marketing is used, for example, Levy Strauss And McDonald's. The inspection period varies from two months to two years. They depend on a number of reasons: how much the manufacturer managed to get ahead of competing firms; degree of complexity of the proposed tests; the pace of secondary purchases of new items and the attitude of the manufacturer and the level of secrecy. Based on the share of secondary purchases, their frequency, the lack of product and its marketing, the manufacturer, through testing, tries to determine the possibilities of selling a new product after the initial enthusiasm has subsided. Goods in constant demand are checked mainly throughout the year.

Before carrying out test marketing, the company needs to determine exactly what needs to be found out based on the goals of the manufacturer developing the new product (consumers, sales, pace of purchases, level of enthusiasm of dealers, strengths and weaknesses of distribution and sales in general, the impact of the new product on other products of the company, the reaction of competing companies, the level of effectiveness of the proposed marketing strategy, the position of the new product in the consumer market).

The firm also needs to decide how to use the audit results. Some manufacturing companies consider test marketing as a way to gain customer recognition and begin widespread sales of a new product in all intended regional markets. Other companies use test marketing to determine what needs to be changed about a new product and what marketing plans are needed to promote it. And finally, some manufacturers, after inspection, will refuse to produce a new product as not meeting their expectations.

However, the success of trial marketing does not always clearly determine the further activities of the manufacturer, who sometimes prefers to ignore it altogether, making plans to promote new products. This may be due to factors such as the significant costs of conducting trial marketing; the inability to predict the results of a new product entering the market throughout the country based on data from one or two localities used as test markets; obtaining information from competing companies; a fairly long period before the full-scale introduction of a new product. It is also necessary to take into account the impact on test results of external factors (competition, economics) and the possibility for competing companies that have not conducted tests, taking into account the results of test marketing organized by the manufacturer of a new product, to catch up with this manufacturer by the time the new product is ready for large-scale implementation.

The product refinement stage is needed in order to, using the data obtained during the test, change the characteristics of the product that turned out to be unsuccessful, which will make it possible to better adapt the product to the selected market manufacturer. The questions being resolved are whether the name of the new product is appropriate, whether the new product is sufficiently distinguished from the mass of similar ones. Perhaps some transformation of packaging and changes can be made to the appearance of the product. At this stage, the most effective mass communication channels for advertising a new product are selected.

If the results of trial sales are low, company managers must organize additional research and development work, as a result of which the shortcomings of the new product are identified, and the product itself is modernized and improved.

If the test marketing was successful, then the company's management received a sufficient amount of information to make a temporary decision on the advisability of launching the release of a new product. It should be noted that when commercially producing a new product, significant costs are expected: it is necessary to build or rent a production complex; conduct promotions and stimulate sales of new products.

Among the factors that must be analyzed at the stage deployment of commercial production,- production capabilities of the company, speed of recognition of a new product by consumers, speed of its recognition by distribution channels, intensity of distribution, promotion of new products, prices, level of competition, time to achieve profitability of a new product, cost of commercial sales.

Sometimes ineffective previous company promotions can provoke resistance from consumers and distribution channels. The company faced these problems Texas Instruments in the commercial personal computer market after it left the home computer market.

Reducing the time to develop a new product allows a company to quickly enter the market with a new product, ahead of competing companies. This will allow the company, having discovered an unoccupied sector of the consumer market, to obtain a significant economic effect if the new product is in demand. However, by shortening the development period of a new product, it is possible to increase labor costs. Therefore, before making a final decision, the management of the manufacturing company needs to take into account all possible factors and carefully monitor the quality of all stages of the development of a new product.

To develop a new product, it is advisable to form target groups of several employees who will (as they move from an idea to serial production of a new product) additionally involve individual specialists and various functional departments of the company. A senior specialist with good organizational skills should be involved in the leadership of such a group. It is also recommended to introduce a specialist into the group who is able to critically perceive other people's ideas. To prevent the group from withdrawing into itself, it is recommended (with a time shift) to assign it to simultaneously develop several projects. This maneuver forces you to look for contacts with other specialists, which allows you to broaden the horizons of the members of such a creative group.

• Kalinina A. This is how Tefal appeared. URL: http://zoom.cnews.ru/publication/item/11560.
• Focus strategy. Danone's competitive strategy. Based on materials from the Danone electronic resource. URL: http://www.danone.ru. See also: Masterov A. G. Workshop on strategic management. Volgograd: Litagent "BIBKOM", 2012.
• The 2014 FIFA World Cup will be opened by a child in a robot costume // Komsomolskaya Pravda. 2014. May 29. URL: http://www.kp.rU/daily/26237.4/3119380/.

New product development – creating original products, improved versions, or modifications of existing products that consumers perceive as new.

To successfully introduce a new product to the market, it is necessary to organizationally adapt the company to work with new products. Teams of specialists developing new products must carefully work through each stage of creating new products. The main stages of this process are presented in Fig. 2.1.

Rice. 2.1. The main stages of developing a new product

Formation of ideas . The development of a new product begins with the search for ideas for a new product. These searches should be carried out systematically, and not occasionally. Otherwise, the company may find dozens of ideas, but most of them will not be suitable from the point of view of the specifics of its activities.

Idea generation is a systematic search for ideas for new products.

By creating a clear strategy for new product development, senior management can prevent situations like this from occurring. It must determine which products and markets to focus on. Management must formulate what exactly the company is trying to achieve with the help of new products: increasing cash income, dominant position within a certain market share, or some other goals. It must clearly state how efforts should be distributed between creating original products, modifying existing products, and imitating competitors' products.

The basis for searching for ideas for a product are sources of ideas internal and external to the enterprise.

TO external sources of product ideas include: trading enterprises; buyers and consumers; competitors; fairs and exhibitions; various publications; research institutes; suppliers; goods from other industries; advertising agencies; economic associations, ministries and other government institutions.

To internal sources of product ideas include: marketing research departments and all their divisions; technical and future development departments; patent departments; Production Department; Department of International Cooperation; product preparation department; permanent and temporary groups of employees to search and generate ideas.

To search for ideas about a new product, market research methods and creative search techniques are used, which are based on research into the creative potential, intelligence of people and famous specialists.

Distinguish logical-systematic and intuitive-creative methods.

The basic principle of logical-systematic methods is the decomposition of the system into parts and the creation of a new combination of individual solutions. The most well-known logical-systematic methods are the following: the technique of taking a questionnaire on the properties and characteristics of a product; forced relationship method; morphological method.

Technique for questionnaire of product properties and characteristics used to find creative ideas to improve a product. All properties, characteristics and characteristics of the product are summarized and presented in writing. The creation of a new idea is carried out by changing or replacing one or more features and then combining them in the form of a new combination of properties.

Method of forced relations (combinations) is similar to the property questionnaire technique and is based on a combination of properties of available products. It consists of a deliberate generalization of knowledge about subjects that were not originally included in one group. For example, from analyzing the properties of such products as a desk, a typewriter and a table lamp, the following ideas can be found: build a typewriter into the desk top; transform the table surface to install filing cabinets; replace the table lamp with a lamp on movable hinges, etc.

Morphological method is based on the principles of structural analysis. All the most important parameters and components of the product are examined separately and in combination of their possible combinations. By comparing alternative combinations of parameters and components, the most profitable option from the enterprise's point of view is selected.

Intuitive and creative methods are based on the principle of a holistic consideration of the problem. The most famous among them are brainstorming and synectics.

Brainstorming method is based on free association and creative reasoning of participants in a group discussion on a particular idea and ways to implement it. During the discussion, associations and opinions are exchanged, followed by an assessment of the results. The discussion group usually consists of 5-15 people, and the duration of the meeting ranges from 15 to 30 minutes. The topic of problems is communicated immediately before the meeting; criticism of any kind is prohibited. Ideas are evaluated within three to five days after the meeting.

Synectics has proven to be a fairly effective method of searching for new ideas, based on the principle of systematic alienation from the original problem. Alienation is achieved by using analogies from other areas of life. The idea is discussed at a meeting lasting 90-120 minutes, in which 5-7 people participate. Participants are given preliminary training in the synectics method.

The well-known Delphi method also belongs to the intuitive and creative methods. Delphi method- this is setting a set of tasks for specially selected experts, identifying their opinions and processing the collective opinion of experts, summarizing their individual assessments with the necessary degree of reliability and validity.

Selection of ideas . The goal of ideation activities is to generate as many ideas as possible. The goal of subsequent stages is to reduce this number. The first step on this path is the selection of ideas.

Idea selection involves eliminating unsuitable ideas during the development of a new product. The purpose of selection is to identify and weed out unsuitable ideas as early as possible. The process of selecting ideas includes two stages: 1) checking compliance with the principles and requirements of the company; 2) checking the chance of an idea in market conditions through testing.

To test ideas, the following criteria can be used: market size and potential; competition situation; feasibility of the idea during research and development; feasibility of the idea in the field of production, its financial and marketing support.

In most companies, specialists must present ideas for new products in writing on standard forms, which are then submitted to the commission for consideration of new products. Such an application contains a description of the product, the target market and competitors, and makes rough estimates regarding the size of the market, the price of the product, the duration and cost of work to create a new product, production costs and profit margins.

Even when an idea seems good, the question arises: is it suitable for a particular company, i.e. Is it well aligned with its goals, strategic objectives and resources? Many firms have developed special systems for evaluating and selecting ideas.

Checklists and rating scales are used as the main assessment methods. Checklists allow you to determine in what volume a product will be required or not required at all. Answers to the checklist questions are given reasonably; if necessary, appropriate research is carried out. Below is the structure of a checklist for assessing risk factors in the innovation process. The checklist shows what types of risks may exist. Using a checklist helps to identify risk prevention opportunities in advance.

Structure of the checklist of risk factors in the innovation process:

– target risk group;

– enterprise risk;

– market risk;

– technological risk;

– development risk;

– cost risk;

– time risk;

– financial risk;

– sales risk;

– risk of cooperation;

– profitability risk;

– decision-making risk;

– calculation risk;

– residual risk.

The rating scale method allows you to evaluate an idea by weighing the importance of its main factors. The following scale is used as importance scales: 0, +1, +2 and –1, –2. Using this method, the assessment can be carried out in tabular form or in the form of a graphical representation (Table 2.3).

Table 2.3

Rating scale method

The rating scale method allows you to assess how much the analyzed factors contribute to the embodiment of a given idea into a product that will be of interest to buyers. Each factor receives a series of scores that show how well the idea meets the required requirements. For each factor, a sum of points is determined, on the basis of which the idea is assessed for a separate factor or a set of factors considered. Thus, the rating scale method allows, with a certain probability, to carry out a numerical assessment of the idea of ​​a new product.

Concept development and testing . At this stage, the remaining ideas after selection are turned into product ideas. It is important to make a clear distinction between the idea, design and image of the product.

Product idea- it is a general idea of ​​the possible product that the firm could, in its opinion, offer to the market.

Concept goods - a developed version of the idea, expressed in terms that are meaningful to the consumer.

Image goods- a specific idea that consumers have about an actual or potential product.

We will comment on the process of developing a product concept using an example. Let's say a car manufacturer has found a way to create an electric car that can travel at a speed of 75 km per hour and travel 150 km before recharging. The manufacturer estimates that the operating costs of an electric vehicle will be about half that of a conventional car.

This is the product idea. However, consumers of product ideas do not buy. They buy the intent of the product. The marketer's task is to develop an idea through a series of alternative designs, evaluate their comparative attractiveness, and select the best one.

Among the product ideas for an electric vehicle, there may be different options:

1) an inexpensive mini-car designed for use as a second family car for the housewife's shopping trips to nearby stores. This is a car that is ideal for loading shopping and transporting children, a car that is easy to get into;

2) an electric car of medium size and average cost, playing the role of a universal family car;

3) a small-sized, mid-priced sports car, designed for young people;

4) an inexpensive mini-car designed for a conscious consumer who is interested in a means of transportation with low fuel costs and a low degree of environmental pollution.

When deciding which design option is most promising and meets the interests of consumers, the design of the product is checked.

Checking the design– testing the product concept on a target group of consumers who are asked to express their thoughts about this concept, with the aim of using the answers received when deciding on the degree of consumer attractiveness of the new product.

Here are the results of developing the plan.

Consumers are offered the following description of the concept: “An economical mini-class electric recreational vehicle for four people. Great for shopping trips and visiting friends. Costs half as much to operate as similar cars with a gasoline engine. It reaches speeds of up to 75 km per hour and travels 150 km before the next recharge. Price 6000 rub.”

Consumers are asked to provide their views on this concept by answering the following questions:

1. Do you understand the concept of an electric car?

2. What are the clear advantages of an electric car over a conventional car?

3. Do you think the claims made about the electric car are reliable?

4. Will an electric car satisfy a pressing need of yours?

5. How do you think various features of an electric car could be improved?

6. Who will be involved in the eventual purchasing decision? Who will use an electric car?

7. What do you think the price of an electric car should be?

8. Would you prefer an electric car to a regular car? For what purpose?

9. Would you buy an electric car?

Possible answers: definitely yes; probably; probably not; definitely not.

Consumer responses will help the firm determine which design option is most attractive. Let's say that to the last question about purchase intention, 10% of consumers answered “definitely yes” and another 5% answered “probably.” The company correlates these figures with the corresponding total number of representatives of a particular target group and calculates sales volume. But in this case, the calculated values ​​will be purely indicative, since people do not always implement their expressed intentions.

Marketing strategy development . Let's assume that this plan achieved the best results in the survey. Now we need to develop a preliminary marketing strategy to enter the market with a specific electric vehicle.

Marketing strategy development - creating a preliminary marketing strategy based on the approved product concept.

The marketing strategy statement consists of three parts. The first describes the size, structure and behavior of the target market, the expected positioning of the product, as well as sales volume, market share and profit indicators for the next few years. Here's what it might look like.

The target market consists of households that need a second car for shopping trips and visiting friends. The car will be positioned as a more economical vehicle to buy and operate, as well as a more walkable vehicle than cars currently available on the market. The company plans to sell 500 thousand cars during the first year with a total loss of no more than 30 million rubles. During the second year, it is planned to sell 700 thousand cars with a planned profit of 50 million rubles.

The second part of the marketing strategy statement provides general information about the expected price of the product, the general approach to its distribution and the estimate of marketing costs for the first year.

The electric vehicle will be offered in three different body colors and with optional air conditioning and powertrain systems. Its retail price will be 6 thousand dollars. with dealers receiving a 15% discount from the list price. Dealers who sell more than 10 cars during a month are given an additional 5% discount for each car sold during a particular month. Advertising budget of 60 million rubles. distributed equally between national and local advertising. Advertising should focus on the efficiency and recreational nature of the car. Provisions are made for 1 million rubles. to conduct market research during the first year to find out who is buying the car and what the level of customer satisfaction is.

The third part of the marketing strategy statement contains long-term goals for sales and profit indicators, as well as a long-term strategic approach to the formation of the marketing mix.

As a result, the company expects to capture 6% of the entire automobile market and achieve a net return on invested capital of 15%. To achieve this, product quality will be maintained at a high level from the very beginning and further improved over time through technical research. If the competitive environment is favorable, the price of the product will be increased in the second and third years. The total advertising budget will increase annually by approximately 10%. The amount of annual allocations for marketing research, starting from the second year, will be reduced to 600 thousand rubles.

The algorithm for such an assessment is shown in Fig. 2.2.

Rice. 2.2. Algorithm for assessing market opportunities from the point of view of the goals and resources of the organization (firm)

Analysis of production and sales opportunities . Having decided on the product concept and marketing strategy, management can begin to evaluate the business attractiveness of the offering. To do this, it is necessary to analyze the costs associated with developing a product, introducing it to the market and selling it, as well as assessing the profit and risk associated with the production of a new product. If the results of the analysis are satisfactory, you can proceed to the stage of direct product development.

Manufacturing and marketing capability analysis involves analyzing target sales, cost, and profit targets to determine whether the product concept and marketing strategy are aligned with the firm's objectives.

For economic analysis, the break-even analysis method is used, which allows you to set the break-even point (X), which characterizes the minimum volume of output at which sales income is equal to production costs (Fig. 2.3).

Rice. 2.3. Break even

The break-even point is determined by the formula:

where Ipos is the sum of fixed costs for the entire production volume;

Iper – specific variable costs;

P is the unit price of the new product.

This relationship also allows us to determine the maximum amount of costs and the minimum selling price of the product at a given break-even point.

Product development . If the product concept has successfully passed the stage of analyzing the possibilities of production and sales, the R&D stage begins, during which the concept must turn into a real product. So far we have been talking about descriptions, drawings or approximate models. At the product development stage, it is determined whether or not the product idea can be translated into a product that is profitable from both a technical and commercial point of view. The new product must meet the technical requirements of the consumer and meet market requirements.

Product development– transformation of a product concept into a real product in the expectation that consumers will perceive the prototype as the embodiment of all the main properties set out in the description of the product concept, as a product that is safe and reliable in operation, and also in order to ensure the possibility of its production within the planned budget costs

The research and development department creates one or more physical embodiments of the product concept to obtain a model or prototype that satisfies the following criteria: 1) consumers perceive it as having all the basic properties set forth in the description of the product concept, 2) it is safe and reliable under normal conditions use under normal conditions, 3) its cost does not exceed the planned estimated production costs. Often, inter-functional groups (company representatives, designers, marketers) are organized to develop a product, which creates open interaction between specialists and speeds up the solution of the problem.

For a marketer, the primary task is to ensure the success of the product in the market, i.e. creating such a set of its properties that would not only reflect its purpose, but would also make it more attractive in comparison with a competing product. In this regard, it is advisable to consider the process of developing a new product as a combination of two stages: the formation of technical parameters and the formation of market parameters (Fig. 2.4).

Rice. 2.4. Stages of new product development

Formation technical parameters is associated with endowing a new product with such functional properties that will satisfy the identified desires (needs) of the buyer. The development of technical parameters is carried out by an R&D group and a group of marketing specialists. Establishing the possibility of translating a product idea into a product that is cost-effective from a technical point of view, developers must translate into this product the market characteristics of the future product. The task of marketers in this case is to provide developers with information about the necessary properties of the product and the signs by which consumers will judge the presence of these properties.

Formation market parameters carried out through the development of product design, its shape, color, weight, packaging, name and brand.

Shape, color, quality are factors that can influence the decision to purchase a product. The first impression of a product is related to its appearance; it is formed long before assessing its quality and functional properties. Appearance acts as a motive, an incentive to purchase a product, a force that forms a circle of potential buyers of a particular product. This reaction is typical not only for consumer goods, but also for industrial and technical goods.

Along with this, its design and quality play an important role in the sale of a product. The color and type of material from which the product is made also determine the possibilities and options for differences and features of a particular product. The shape helps to recognize the product and evoke certain associations among the buyer.

It can take days, weeks, months, or even years to create a successful prototype. It must embody all the necessary functional characteristics, as well as possess all the calculated psychological characteristics.

An electric car, for example, should impress consumers as a well-made and safe car. Management needs to figure out how consumers decide whether a car is well made. Some, for example, have the habit of slamming the door and listening to how it “sounds.” If a door slamming “sounds undignified,” the consumer thinks the car is poorly made.

Once the prototypes are ready, they need to be tested. To ensure the safety and efficiency of the machine, functional tests of prototypes are carried out both in laboratories and in field conditions. A new car should start well, its tires should not fall off, and it should not tip over when cornering. In consumer testing, customers are asked to test drive a vehicle and evaluate the vehicle as a whole and its individual features.

Tests under market conditions . If the car has successfully passed functional tests and consumer testing, the company produces a small batch of cars for testing under market conditions. At this stage, the product and marketing program are tested in a more realistic environment to determine consumer and dealer views of the vehicle's handling, use, and resale issues, and to determine the size of the market.

Tests under market conditions – the stage of development of a new product, during which the product and marketing strategy are tested in real-world use in order to find out the views of consumers and dealers on the features of operation and use of the product, the problems of its resale, as well as to determine the size of the market.

Testing methods, or, as they say, testing, vary depending on the type of product. A firm testing consumer packaged goods will likely want to obtain approximate data on when and how often consumers purchase its products. Based on these estimates, it will be possible to create an overall sales forecast.

Testing can be carried out according to the following criteria: location (market, laboratory, home); object (product, price, name, brand); persons involved in testing (buyer, expert); duration (short, long time); volume (one product, batch of goods); number of products tested (unambiguous, comparative).

Consumer attitudes toward products are tested using three methods: simple ratings, paired comparisons, and rating scales.

Simple rating method based on identifying consumer preferences for a new product. The consumer is offered several options for a new product, to which he must express his attitude, from the most preferred to the least preferred. Being simple, this method does not allow assessing the degree of preference and is not applicable to a large number of objects.

Paired comparison method assumes that the consumer is presented with options for new products in pairs. From each pair of goods, he must choose one product that he considers most preferable. This method makes it easier for the consumer, since he is offered options of only two products for testing, which makes it easier to identify similarities and differences between them.

Scale method used when it is necessary to test a large number of new products for the same purpose. To do this, they use a system of scales in which each point means a certain level of consumer assessment of a new product (for example, the product is very good, good, satisfactory).

This method allows not only to establish a rating in consumer preferences, but also to quantify it.

Market conditions are characterized by a more definite state of external and internal environmental factors of the product. Thus, the product already has a specific form and purpose, the price of the product has been determined, packaging issues have been resolved, appropriate advertising has been carried out, and sales agents have been notified about the product.

In market conditions, the volume of testing depends on the amount of money invested in a new product and the time allocated for testing. Thus, completely new products, as is known, are characterized by high costs for their development and a high degree of risk when introducing them to the market. Therefore, such products must be thoroughly tested, especially since the relative costs of testing them will be small in relation to the total cost of the project to develop and introduce these products to the market. In general, when economically assessing the effectiveness of testing, the costs of testing are compared with the cost of the project for a new product and the time that the company has to test the product is taken into account.

It should be borne in mind that in market conditions, not only the product itself is checked, but also the readiness and sufficiency of the developed marketing complex, i.e. all marketing activities that ensure effective promotion and sale of new products.

Testing can cover the product as a whole or its main parameters (properties, functions, packaging, price, etc.). The main purpose of testing is to obtain information about the attitude of buyers towards the product being tested.

Market tests can be in the nature of control and standard testing.

Market benchmark testing(managed trial marketing) is carried out in specially created departments of stores, where various methods of selling a new product are tested for a fee. Previously, the testing company determines the number and geographical location of stores, and then controls the placement of goods on the sales floor, prices, and the chosen methods of promoting the goods. As a result of control testing, it is established what influence the listed factors can have on the demand for a new product.

Standard market testing involves placing a new product in a real market environment, i.e. in conditions of its full-scale implementation. At the same time, they identify places where the goods are sold, carry out a set of marketing activities, analyze the activities of stores, study the opinions of consumers, intermediaries, suppliers, and analyze the attitude of competitive firms towards the new product. The results of such testing are used to forecast sales volumes on a regional and national scale, as well as to identify problems related to the production and marketing of a new product.

Testing depends on the type and purpose of the product. When testing consumer goods, a company must pay attention primarily to the perception of the product, the number of trial and repeat purchases, and their frequency.

When testing goods for industrial and technical purposes, the following parameters are first checked: functional qualities, reliability; level of operating costs; compliance of the product design with the production process technology; installation location; the need for additional training of personnel who will service this product; the amount of costs for personnel training, etc.

Deployment of commercial production . Tests under market conditions provide management with a sufficient amount of information to make a final decision on the advisability of releasing a new product. If a company begins to launch commercial production, it will face large expenses.

Deployment of commercial production – entering the market with a new product.

When entering the market with a new product, a company must decide: 1) when, 2) where, 3) to whom and 4) how to offer it.

1. The first thing to decide is the timeliness of releasing a new product to the market. If an electric car undermines the sales of other models of the company, apparently, it is better to postpone its release. If further improvements can be made to the design of the electric car, the company may choose to enter the market with it next year. A firm may also want to wait when the economy is sluggish.

2. Next, the firm must decide whether to market the product in one locality or region, in several regions, nationally, or internationally. Not all companies have the confidence, means and capabilities to immediately enter the national market with new products. They usually set a timeline for sequential market development. In particular, small firms choose an attractive city and conduct a blitz campaign to enter its market. Then, in the same way, the markets of other cities are developed one after another. Large companies release a new product first to the markets of one region, then another. Firms with nationwide distribution networks, such as automobile corporations, often release their new models directly into the national market.

3. In a group of successively developed markets, the company must select the most profitable ones and concentrate its main sales promotion efforts on them. At the same time, it is likely that, using data from testing the new product in market conditions, the company has already compiled profiles of the most important market segments. Ideally, the top market segments for a consumer product should have four characteristics: 1) consist of early adopters, 2) these early adopters should be active consumers, 3) they should be opinion leaders and speak favorably about the product, 4) they should be accessible to coverage at low cost.

4. The company must develop an action plan for the consistent introduction of new products to the markets. The introduction of a product to the market can be carried out gradually or in the form of blitz campaigns. The latter method is more acceptable for small companies. The company’s developed distribution network and international sales channels can allow the product to be introduced directly to national and international markets, taking into account their characteristics.

To streamline and coordinate work on bringing a product to the market, planning of all activities must be carried out. It is necessary to prepare estimates for the various elements of the marketing mix and other activities. Thus, the launch of an electric vehicle on the market may be preceded by a propaganda campaign, which is carried out immediately after the car arrives in showrooms. At the same time, souvenirs can be offered to attract as many visitors as possible to the showrooms. For each new market, the company must develop a separate marketing plan.

Given the rapid changes in tastes, technology and competition, a firm cannot rely solely on existing products. The consumer wants and expects new and improved products. And competitors will make every effort to provide it with these new products. Therefore, each firm must have its own new product development program. A company can acquire new products in two ways: 1) through acquisition from outside, i.e. having bought the entire company, patent or license for the production of someone else’s goods, 2) thanks to one’s own efforts, i.e. creating a research and development department. Currently published schemes for the development of new products, as a rule, include several stages (Fig. 1).

Rice. 1.

The main stages of the new product development process:

• 1. Formation of ideas. The development of a new product begins with the search for ideas for a new product. These searches should be carried out systematically, and not occasionally. It is necessary to create a clear strategy for developing new products. Management must determine which products and markets to focus on. It should formulate what exactly the company is trying to achieve with the help of new products: the receipt of large amounts of cash, a dominant position within a certain market share, or some other goals. It must clearly state how efforts should be distributed between creating original products, modifying existing products, and imitating competitors' products. There are many sources of ideas for creating new products. The most logical place to start when looking for such ideas is consumers. Their needs and demands can be monitored through client surveys, group discussions, incoming letters and complaints. Scientists are another source of ideas, as they may invent or discover new materials or properties that will lead to original or improved versions of existing products. In addition, the company needs to monitor competitors' products, identifying among them the most attractive to buyers. Another good source of ideas is the company's sales staff and dealers, who are in daily contact with customers. Other sources of ideas include inventors, patent attorneys, university and commercial laboratories, industrial consultants, management consultants, advertising agencies, market research firms, professional associations and trade publications.
• 2. Selection of ideas. The goal of idea generation activities is to generate as many ideas as possible. The goal of subsequent stages is to reduce this number. The first step on this path is the selection of ideas. The purpose of selection is to identify and weed out unsuitable ideas as early as possible. In most companies, specialists must present ideas for new products in writing on standard forms, which are then submitted to the commission for consideration of new products. Such an application contains a description of the product, the target market and competitors, and makes rough estimates regarding the size of the market, the price of the product, the duration and cost of work to create a new product, the cost of its production and the rate of profit. Even when an idea seems good, the question arises: is it suitable for a particular company - does it fit well with its goals, strategic objectives and resources? Many firms have developed special systems for evaluating and selecting ideas.
• 3. Development of the plan and its verification. Now the ideas that survived the selection must be turned into product plans. It is important to make a clear distinction between the idea, design and image of the product. A product idea is a general idea of ​​a possible product that a firm could, in its opinion, offer to the market. The concept of a product is a developed version of an idea, expressed in terms that are meaningful to the consumer. Product image is a specific idea that consumers have about an actual or potential product. The marketer's task is to develop an idea to the stage of a number of alternative plans, evaluate their comparative attractiveness and select the best one. Verification of a plan involves testing it on a relevant group of target consumers, who are presented with well-developed versions of all plans. Consumer responses will help the company determine which design option has the greatest appeal.
• 4. Development of a marketing strategy. The marketing strategy statement consists of three parts. The first part describes the size, structure and behavior of the target market, the expected positioning of the product, as well as sales volume, market share and profit indicators for the next few years. The second part of the marketing strategy statement provides general information about the expected price of the product, the general approach to its distribution and the estimate of marketing costs for the first year. The third part of the marketing strategy statement contains long-term goals for sales and profit indicators, as well as a long-term strategic approach to the formation of the marketing mix.
• 5. Analysis of production and sales opportunities. Having decided on the product concept and marketing strategy, management can begin to evaluate the business attractiveness of the offering. To do this, it is necessary to analyze the planned benchmarks for sales, costs and profits to ensure that they correspond to the goals of the company. If the results of the analysis are satisfactory, you can proceed to the stage of direct product development.
• 6. Product development. If the product concept has successfully passed the stage of analyzing the possibilities of production and sales, the R&D stage begins, during which the concept must turn into a real product. Until now we have been talking about descriptions, drawings or very approximate layouts. At this stage, the answer will be given whether the product idea can be translated into a product that is profitable from both a technical and commercial point of view. The R&D department creates one or more physical embodiments of a product concept in hopes of producing a prototype that satisfies the following criteria: 1) consumers perceive it as having all the essential properties outlined in the product concept description, 2) it is safe and reliable in normal use. under normal conditions, 3) its cost does not exceed the planned estimated production costs. When the prototypes are ready, they need to be tested.
• 7. Tests under market conditions. At this stage, the product and marketing program are tested in an environment closer to real-life use. Market testing methods vary depending on the type of product. A firm testing consumer packaged goods will likely want to obtain approximate data on when and how often consumers purchase its products. Based on these estimates, it will be possible to create an overall sales forecast. The firm hopes valuations will be strong. However, it often turns out that many consumers who have tried a product do not make a repeat purchase, thereby expressing some dissatisfaction with it. It may happen that a repeat purchase, made once, is then almost never repeated. Or, high product valuation may be accompanied by low purchase frequency (as is the case with many frozen specialty foods) because consumers decide to use the product only on special occasions.
• 8. Deployment of commercial production. Tests under market conditions provide management with a sufficient amount of information to make a final decision on the advisability of releasing a new product. When entering the market with a new product, a company must decide when, where, to whom and how to offer it.

WHEN. The first step is to decide on the timeliness of releasing a new product to the market. If an electric car undermines sales of the company's other models, it may be better to postpone its release. A firm may also want to wait when the economy is sluggish.

WHERE. A firm must decide whether to market a product in one locality or region, in several regions, nationally, or internationally. Not all companies have the confidence, means and capabilities to immediately enter the national market with new products. They usually set a timeline for sequential market development. In particular, small firms choose an attractive city and conduct a blitz campaign to enter its market. Then, in the same way, the markets of other cities are developed one after another. Large companies release a new product first to the markets of one region, then another. Firms with nationwide distribution networks, such as automobile corporations, often release their new models directly into the national market.

TO WHOM. In a group of successively developed markets, the company must select the most profitable ones and focus its main sales promotion efforts on them. At the same time, it is likely that, using data from testing the new product in market conditions, the company has already compiled profiles of the most important market segments.

HOW. The company must develop an action plan for the consistent introduction of new products to the markets. It is necessary to prepare estimates for the various elements of the marketing mix and other activities. Thus, the launch of an electric car on the market can be preceded by a propaganda campaign, which is carried out immediately after the car arrives in showrooms, and at the same time souvenirs can be offered to attract as many visitors as possible to the showrooms. For each new market, the company must develop a separate marketing plan.

No matter how a business idea is born, in order for it to turn into a finished product or service, it must be developed and analyzed.

New product development - This is the development of a unique product, its improvement and modernization, the creation of new types of products through scientific research by the enterprise. The new product development process consists of six stages (Figure 10.2).

At the first stage an initial assessment of proposals for the release of new products and the provision of new services is carried out in order to select the most interesting ones that deserve more careful study. The criteria for selecting business ideas should take into account not only the strengths, but also the weaknesses of the new enterprise, as well as its financial potential. The first stage is characterized by the generation and selection of ideas.

Generation of ideas is a regular search for ideas about new products and services. The search for new ideas is carried out on the basis

Stage I. The birth of a business idea

Stage II. Concept development

Stage III. Market research

Stage IV. Direct product development

Stage V. Trial entry into the market

products

Stage VI. Commercialization of innovation and bringing it to market

Rice. 10.2.

analysis of internal sources of the enterprise, research of the opinions of consumers, competitors, suppliers and distributors, consulting organizations, participation in exhibitions and study of publications of printed publications.

Selection of ideas - analysis of proposed ideas for a new product in order to eliminate those that are unpromising or completely unpromising at an early stage of development. As a result, the most successful ideas for a new product that the company can offer to the consumer are selected.

Second phase- concept development, when a business idea is refined taking into account the real needs of potential consumers. At this stage, the first version of a business plan is drawn up, which describes the main characteristics of the product and the proposed strategy for its implementation, the opinion of potential buyers is studied and their opinion regarding the concept of the new product is taken into account.

As a rule, in the future, concept development is transformed into a product concept, which is tested on the target group to determine the degree of its attractiveness.

If the concept is approved, then the third stage begins - market research. At this stage, a marketing strategy is developed and the attractiveness of the new business is analyzed.

Development of a marketing strategy represents the definition of a marketing strategy for entering the market with a new product. The marketing strategy includes a description of the size, structure and nature of the target market, positioning of the new product, assessment of sales volume, market share, price, profit, and selection of distribution channels. Of course, in most cases such forecast estimates are very approximate, but the use of even rough estimates is better than their complete absence. To obtain the necessary information for developing a marketing strategy, surveys are conducted with consumers, employees of trade organizations and individual experts.

Business Analysis involves evaluating projected sales, costs, and profits for a new product against the overall goals and capabilities of the enterprise. In other words, we are talking about assessing the attractiveness of a new product for an enterprise.

Fourth stage - direct product development - involves the transformation of a new product concept into a tangible product. The main goal of this stage is to determine that the product idea can be developed into a working prototype.

At this stage, all technological and economic issues related to the release of a new product are resolved. Creating a prototype is necessary to debug the production process and test the finished product, show it to customers and find out their opinion about the competitiveness of this product.

At the fifth stage it is carried out trial launch of products on the market. During this period, activities included in the test marketing complex are actively carried out. When trial marketing new products, specialists use the following methods.

Standard market testing - market testing, in which a new product is placed under conditions similar to those of a full-scale product release. The purpose of standard testing is to use the results to predict sales and identify problems associated with the production and marketing of a given product.

Market benchmark testing - This is the creation of special panels of stores that agree, for a fee, to try out various methods of selling a product. The company carrying out market control testing determines the number and location of stores, controls the location of the product on the sales floor, prices and methods of promoting the product.

Market simulation testing - This is a test of a product under conditions that simulate real conditions, for example, the purchase by consumers selected by an organization with limited money allocated to them of goods, among which there is a new product, in a regular store or in a laboratory store of this organization. In this case, consumers are presented with samples of advertising and other methods of product promotion aimed at various products, including the product being tested.

The main stage of the new product development stage is the last sixth stage - commercialization of innovation and bringing it to market. Subsequently, each product develops its own life cycle, which includes the stages of introduction, growth of demand, market saturation (maturity) and decline in demand. At the last stage - a decline in demand - the entrepreneur needs to think about releasing a new product or modifying an existing one.

At this stage of new product development, the manufacturer must choose the most correct time to enter the market, the sequence and volume of activities in different markets, the most effective methods of distribution and promotion of the product, and develop a detailed operational plan for marketing activities.

In parallel with the process of creating a new product or service, as well as with the development of a business plan, the creation of a new enterprise is carried out. Typically, the development of registration documents is carried out at the second stage (concept development), and registration and the beginning of its work - at the fifth stage (trial market entry).