https://www.smartsheet.

com/all-about-new-product-development-process

The future of your company is dependent upon it staying relevant. In this day and
age, that means that new, innovative products must keep pace with the
marketplace. Product development lifecycle times are becoming shorter and
shorter to keep up with customer’s expectations and needs. While perhaps
daunting, a short lifecycle can optimize your company’s strengths by tightening
processes and cutting out extra steps. The following guide is a comprehensive
lesson on product development for both new products and those undergoing a
revamp. We explain what new product development is, as well as the history and
pioneers of product development. Next, we delve into all of the different process
models, including product development lifecycles, and discuss the best practices
for developing your own processes along with some tips from our experts. Finally,
we’ll take a closer look at new product development in marketing.

WHAT IS NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT?

New Product Development (NPD) is the total process that takes a service or a
product from conception to market. New or rebranded products and services are
meant to fill a consumer demand or an opportunity in the marketplace. The steps
in product development include drafting the concept, creating the design,
developing the product or service, and defining the marketing.

A new product opens a whole new market: It can completely replace a current
product, take over an existing product, or simply broaden the market for
something that already exists. Sometimes existing products are introduced to new
markets, repackaged, or marketed differently. New products can improve the use
of a company’s resources, launch a company into a new market or segment of the
market, improve the relationship a company has with its distributors, or increase or
defend a company’s market share.

New products generally differ from a product line extension, which are products
that are slightly different to the company’s existing array of offerings. Examples of
new goods include mass-market microwaves and Keurig one-cup gourmet coffee
machines. In the case of microwaves, a whole new market was born when they
were mass-produced and offered at reasonable household prices. In the case of
the Keurig machine, the gourmet coffee experience previously only found in a
coffee shop was brought into the home. Examples of product line extensions
include the Infiniti automobile line and Diet Coke. For the Infiniti line, Nissan
targeted the premium vehicle market by extending their auto line at a higher price
point. Coca-Cola company used Diet Coke to target the market of soda drinkers
that wanted a lower calorie soda than their regular Coke product. Both of these
products capitalized on pre-existing products that had already garnered brand
loyalty.

WHAT IS FUZZY FRONT END, AND WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT IN PRODUCT

DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES?
Process management is a technique that ensures improvements are introduced
with a consistent, structured set of activities. In your product development
processes, whether for a new or revamped product, your process management
strategies are critical to ensuring that your products will be continuously improved.
These strategies will necessarily include your product development processes,
and ensure that even very complex products make it to market consistently and
improved regularly. The four phases of product development are:

1. Fuzzy Front-End (FFE): FFE, often called the ideation step, is considered one
of the best opportunities for driving innovation in a company. FFE is not frequently
mapped in any formal way, since this is the phase where you pitch all of your
great ideas for solutions to your customer’s problems. FFE is called fuzzy because
it occurs before any formal development starts, in the vague period where little
structure or defined direction exists. Very few products that are originally pitched in
FFE come out of it; however, this stage of pre-development is critical. Successful
completion of pre-development can take you seamlessly into development.
There have been many case studies that examine how FFE is done in different
companies, looking for consistencies and best practices. Some companies have
idea management software or some type of regular way that they generate ideas.
Some companies use integrated product teams (IPTs), a group that is responsible
for defining the product. Volumes have been written about FFE because of its
relative importance in product development, but the FFE process is unique to
each company. However, there are a few consistent activities that occur with
every FFE approach, and provide teams with critical decision points before
moving forward. These include:

 Determining the innovation goal. This preliminary analysis is your opportunity

to figure out what problem you need to solve for your customers before you make a
product. For example, one big failure in the annals of product history is Google Glass.
Google made a device without considering what problems they were solving for their
customers. Therefore, their product was a monumental (and very expensive) failure.
 Figuring out what your customers think about this goal. People will buy a
product or service that solves a problem for them, but the problem itself must be
present. Products that customers don’t need, didn’t ask for, or degrade your brand
loyalty are unsuccessful. For example, in 1985 Coca-Cola Company released New
Coke, a revamp of their classic Coca-Cola beverage formula. This reformulation
changed a 100-year old recipe based upon market taste research. However, once New
Coke was launched, consumer outcry was overwhelming. Within 79 days, the
company replaced New Coke with the original Coca-Cola formula repackaged as
“Classic Coca-Cola.” New Coke is now widely considered the biggest commercial
marketing blunder of all time.
 Reviewing other market segments for possible connections or
technology to get ideas. When thinking about new products, it’s important to
collect data on how people are using the product, how much they will pay, and
whether the price for the benefit is reasonable. During your market research phase,
you should also review the market size and conduct a segmentation analysis.
 Prototyping your ideas. A prototype is a mockup of the proposed product,
intended to verify your design. The extent of the product prototype is dependent upon
your company’s needs. Some companies need a fully-functional model to show how
the product works, while some companies will only require a 3D representation.
Further, you should test your prototype in different use-case scenarios and identify its
points of failure.
 Testing your ideas with your customer base. You should conduct a customer
value assessment to obtain the opinion of a sample of your target market. This
assessment helps to adequately predict the response to the release of your product.
Experts say that early customer involvement cuts down on uncertainty and helps make
product objectives clear product. This is called listening to the voice of the customer
(VoC).
  Planning how to funnel these potential products into your product
development process. Planning is the initial stage of deciding how to develop,
mass produce, and market the new prototype. This is your opportunity to conduct a
technical assessment, and also your source-of-supply assessment.

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Regardless of how your company performs FFE, there are some deliverables you
should expect to create for each product that moves beyond FFE. These include:

 A mission statement

 The market trends

 The customer benefits and acceptance data

 The technical concept

 Product definition and specifications

 Economic analysis of the product

 The development schedule

 Project staffing and the budget

 A business plan

 An economic analysis

Regardless of how innovative they are, all new product ideas must meet certain
criteria for your company. They must:

 Fit your company skill sets.

 Fit the interest of your company.

 Solve a problem for someone.

  Be something that someone will buy.

 Be scaleable.

Use these criteria to whittle down your ideas into manageable new products for
your company and keep innovation in check. Not every “great idea” is appropriate
for every company to develop.

Further, when you are defining your product, there are several questions that you
should ask as early in the process as possible. You can disperse these questions
into your FFE process or put them into a checklist before moving to development.
The intent is to ensure that all of your bases are covered prior to moving forward,
and to ensure that your stakeholders do not surprise you with questions that you
can’t answer. These include:

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 Download Checklist Here
2. Design: Once a product is more than just a notion, the next step in the product
development process is the product design. Some of these activities may have
been started in FFE, but in this step, all of the planning goes into high gear so that
you capture both the high-level design processes and detail-level requirements.
This step is mostly about validating the manufacturing feasibility of the product,
and how you’ll integrate the internal components of the design.
3. Implementation: During this phase of development, you will determine whether
your prototype meets your design and requirements specifications from the
previous steps, and you will also figure out how to deliver the product and provide
support for your customers. At this point, you prepare your facilities that will
manufacture, provide the supplies for, transport, and distribute the product.
4. Fuzzy Back-End (FBE): This stage is sometimes called the “messy” back-end
of innovation. This process is not considered as fun as the innovation process
because in FBE, fun meets the execution processes and you must be disciplined
about the release. This is the true commercialization phase where production and
product launch happen in a structured way. In other words, the FBE is where the
product truly comes to life in the marketplace, executing a company’s strategic
vision.
WHAT IS INNOVATION?
Innovation refers to any time you introduce new products, or even make changes
to old products. From your customer’s perspective, ideas that become solutions to
their problems are innovative. There are many different ways that you can
categorize the different types of new products. Depending on how you break them
down, these may include products that are only new to your company. However,
there are four universally agreed-upon categories for innovation:

1. Breakthrough Products: The type of product that most people immediately think
about when they think about innovation. The product may be new to the company or
the world and may offer a huge improvement in performance, a great reduction in
cost, or a leap in technology. Sometimes these products converge technology so that
several different products come together to create something new. These products
come on strong in the market, then quickly drop to a lower level of performance as
other manufacturers catch up. Many of Apple’s products in Steve Jobs’ era were
considered breakthrough products, such as the iPhone.
 2. Incremental Products: Also known as sustaining products, they often reduce
costs, improve existing product lines, reposition existing products in new markets, or
are an addition to an existing platform. They generally improve the current product
with new generations. Sustaining products are critical in the market because they
usually perform pretty well and extend the life cycle of the breakthrough product
before they taper off. Profitability is maximized in the incremental product because it
generates revenue for future development without incurring huge development costs.
3. Platform Products: These products set the basic architecture for a next-generation
product. They are larger in scope than incremental products. You may use the basic
design of platform products for several products in a family and can satisfy a variety
of markets.
4. Disruptive Products: These products have a longer initial gestation period upon
release, but then have enormous growth. Disruptive innovations are those that offer
simple, low-cost solutions to your customers’ problems. They disrupt market-leading
products by offering low-quality products, then improving the quality until they
capture the mainstream market. For example, when Netflix came out it wasn’t a
disruptor because customers didn't get the immediate gratification of getting their
movies like they could by going to the Blockbuster store. However, as Netflix’s
service improved, shortening the time to deliver movies and eventually streaming
them online, they put Blockbuster stores out of business.
THE HISTORY OF PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES
Product development processes started to evolve when more formalized process
management approaches were applied to product development practices in the
1990’s. Companies such as Ford, AT&T, and General Electric started pioneering
new ways to evolve their product development activities in more efficient ways. At
the same time, many companies also took on Business Process
Reengineering efforts that revamped their manufacturing and business processes.
With the new approach, they found three truths:
1. Projects are completed faster when they have less going on at one time.

2. Relieving bottlenecks is critical to improving time-to-market benefits.

3. Improving processes by decreasing variation and waste allows for more creativity and
better development.
Further, once companies learned that they should take and plan all of their
development projects collectively, they could develop according to strategic
priorities and stop falling behind in deadlines.

From the development of the formalized processes, several membership groups

emerged to share ideas and concepts, and to stay on top of industry research and
trends. Some of the organizations certify professionals and sponsor conferences,
seminars, and coursework. These include:

 Product Development and Management Association (PDMA): This

organization is the certifying body for the New Product Development Professional
(NPDP) certification. As of 2017, they have about 3,000 members in 50 countries, but
only have chapters in the U.S. and Canada. They have been around since 1976, and
focus on the whole set of development activities, from conception to the sunset of
products. They also focus on current research in new product development and partner
with many commercial organizations. Membership costs about $200.
 Association of International Product Marketing & Management
(AIPMM): This organization is the certifying body for the Certified Product Manager,
the Certified Product Marketing Manager, the Agile Certified Product Manager, the
Agile Certified Product Manager Product Owner, the Certified Innovation Leader, and
the Certified Brand Manager. The group also focus on the whole product development
lifecycle. Founded in 1998, they have members in 75 countries, and they comply with
the requirements of ANSI/ISO/IEC 17024:2012, for certifying bodies. Membership
fees range from $125-$175, depending on the products you request.
 The International Society for Professional Innovation Management
(ISPIM): This organization started in Norway in 1973 with the intent of introducing
products and tools for innovation management research. Its 400+ members reside in
70 countries, and the group hosts scientific conferences and produces publications for
the product development industry. Membership fees are between about $100-$200,
depending on your status as a professional or student. ISPIM is not a certifying body.
 Society of Concurrent Product Development (SCPD): This organization bills
itself as an educational society who puts out the latest information on product
development. They are supporters of technology, especially for concurrent product
development (CPD), or concurrent engineering. Their memberships fees range
between free and $75 annually.
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PROCESS MODELS
Your company depends on being able to formalize your innovation process
properly. According to urban legends of new product development, between 70
and 90 percent of new products fail. More conservative, peer-reviewed studies
compiled by the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA)
actually put that failure number between 30 and 49 percent. Even with these lower
failure rates, however, there is still a large amount of money at stake. Therefore, a
process model is critical to saving your company money and time. There are
many different approaches and models for innovation, depending on the needs of
your company. Most process models can be categorized according to their
relative objective within your company. These include those that:
 Describe and evaluate actual practice

 Recommend an ideal process

 Make a system out of development activities

 Simplify development activities

 Are centered around your customers

 Are team-based within your company

The following are the most commonly used models, with varying levels of utility
and success for different companies.

The Scorecard-Markov model: The Markov analysis model is a mathematical

model that deals with the probabilities of things happening. These things are
divided into the past, present, and future. The past isn’t as relevant as the present,
because the present gives us the probability of something happening in the future.
The Markov model is especially helpful in scenarios where there are transitions
from one state to another. In this model, you develop a matrix that represents the
transition states and how likely they are to go from one to another, and apply it to
the Scorecard-Markov model to make new product screening decisions.
Developed to act as a scorecard for new product ideas, the matrix includes your
customers’ needs, the strength of your marketing, your company’s competency,
the compatibility of your manufacturing, and your distribution channels. In other
words, this model is used to whittle down all of your ideas from FFE to ones that
make mathematical sense for your company. It is a formal, evidenced-based
process for the people you report to who want “real data” on why some ideas
make it out of FFE and some do not.
The IDEO Process: This model comes from a design and consulting firm of the
same name, and is set apart because it is the “human-centered design process,”
designing from the perspective of the user. IDEO’s designers make a point to
observe real people in real situations, looking for the Form-Fit-Function (FFF) of
their designs. FFF specifies the interchangeability of parts in a system and
describes the characteristics of parts. Further, if a part is not needed for the fit,
form, or function, it should not be added. This process targets the FFE of
innovation and includes the following steps:
1. Observation

2. Ideation

3. Prototype quickly

4. Get user feedback

5. Refine

6. Implement

The Booz, Allen, and Hamilton (BAH) model: This is one of the earliest and
most well-known models for new product development. It is considered
foundational for all other models developed to the present day in any industry and
is meant to be sequential. Booz, Allen, and Hamilton state that, “For every seven
new product ideas, only one succeeds.” This model does not take into account the
need for speed and flexibility in today’s marketplace product development. The
seven steps of the BAH model are:
1. New product strategy

2. Idea generation

3. Screening and evaluation

4. Business analysis

5. Development
 6. Testing

7. Commercialization

The Stage-Gate model: Also known as the Phase-Gate model, this is a project
management approach that divides up the process of developing new products
into a funnel system. Once each stage of product development is complete, it
passes through a management-approved gate prior to moving onto the next
stage. Sometimes stages are processed simultaneously. In this model, companies
save money by filtering out the bad concepts and ideas through a funnel by the
time the process is complete. In a study in 2010 by the American Productivity &
Quality Center (APQC), the Stage-Gate model was the most popular system for
new product development in the United States - 88 percent of businesses use it.
Originally, Robert G. Cooper developed this eight-step model in the 1980s,
boasting a 30 percent cycle reduction time. Dr. Cooper developed the Stage-Gate
model using benchmarking research, on the premise of determining why some
products succeed and some fail. Benchmarking in the Stage-Gate model is
evaluating your process against other processes or standards of product
innovation in the industry.
The following eight stages were developed to improve the new product’s
marketability and your team’s productivity once you have a product idea. After
each stage is complete, you must decide whether or not to continue.

Stage 1: Generating
Your company has a product idea. The first step counts on your performance of
a SWOT analysis. In a SWOT analysis, also known as a SWOT matrix, you
perform a basic scan of your organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses,
Opportunities, and Threats. Strengths and Weaknesses are internal to your
company, whereas the Opportunities and Threats are external. Things to consider
during your SWOT analysis are the current marketing trends, return on investment
(ROI), and any notable costs such as distribution. This step is where you develop
the roadmap for the product. Many experts advise developing more than one road
map scaled to fit different risk levels.
Stage 2: Screen the Idea
In this step, an objective group or committee reviews criteria that you developed
and decides to either continue or drop a project. This step is done quickly so that
you drop any ideas that do not make the cut. Market potential, competition, ROI,
and realistic production costs should be part of the criteria.

Stage 3: Test the Concept

In this step, you are testing the concept with your customers. This is after the
internal screening step, so the picture itself is more firm. The customers should be
able to display their understanding of the product, and say whether they want or
need it. Their feedback gives your company some marketing ideas and potential
tweaks to the product itself.

Stage 4: Business Case Analysis

In this step, you have a fully formed product; the concept has been reviewed
internally and externally. At this time, you can develop a set of metrics and a
business case. The metrics should include the development time, the value of any
launched products, the sales figures, and other data that shows the utility of your
process. The business case should paint a complete picture of the product, from
the marketing strategy to the expected revenue.

Stage 5: Product Development

This is the step where your product takes flight. You are getting ready for
consumer testing, so the technical team must complete your design. During this
step, you should complete beta versions, settle on manufacturing methods, and
address packaging.

Stage 6: Test Market

In this step, the whole concept is together and pitched to your consumer test
group as the beta test. In this way, you validate your concept. At this time, you
should work out any technical issues with the product.

Stage 7: Commercialization
This is the step that finally takes your product to launch in the marketplace.
Complete final marketing and prices, and give the finalized details to rest of your
company - especially the sales and distribution teams. Set up technical support to
monitor customer’ needs.

Stage 8: Launch!
The launch plan should be comprehensive for maximum impact. At a minimum,
include these seven things in your launch plan:
 1. Market research including who will buy your product

2. A competitive analysis outlining how your product is different and similar to the
competition, why customers may buy elsewhere, and how you will lure them to your
product

3. A marketing strategy and the test of the strategy with your focus group

4. A public relations program

5. A complete product

6. A marketing plan timeline

7. A trained and ready sales team

It is important to understand this model, as many firms still adhere to the traditional
eight-step process. The APQC revamped this eight-step model and consolidated
into a five-step, five-gate model. This also aligns with traditional process mapping.
Stage zero of this consolidated process is your innovation process with all of your
company’s great ideas. Stages one and two could ideally be categorized under
the same screening step. Also, after you launch the product, you should perform a
review of your process. The steps in this consolidated and slightly reworked model
are:

Stage 1: Discover new product ideas

Stage 2: Build your business case
Stage 3: Development
Stage 4: Test
Stage 5: Launch
The following picture illustrates where the stages are in the new model.
Decreasing the number of steps also decreases the number of decision points,
which streamlines your process.

WHAT IS THE PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT LIFECYCLE?

All of the previous processes outlined had aspects of new product development in
them. However, the Product Development Lifecycle (PDLC) encompasses every
phase of a product, from the idea to retirement. You should approach product
planning with an organized, thoughtful process, so that you don’t have poorly
implemented products that are either unnecessary, unwanted, or overly
expensive.

Many different PDLCs have been produced for product and service development,
including separate ones for new software development. However, experts
recommend that your cycle reflects your company’s unique processes and needs.
Some example follow.

You can view PDLC at a high-level, including the four stages of the fuzzy front
end, messy back end, commercialization, and retirement.

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You can also look at PDLC in a quite detailed way, such as the following cycle:

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There are many methodologies that have been incorporated into product
development. Many of these are familiar to business professionals, as they have
roots in Business Process Management concepts. These include:
 Lean Product Development (LPD): Lean product development uses the lean
principles of innovation, shortening development time, and redevelopment cycles, and
employs low development costs, low production cycles, and low production costs to
develop new products. Allen Ward, who wrote Lean Product and Process
Development states that Lean principles increase innovation by a factor of ten, and
increase the introduction of new products by 400 to 500 percent. Lean divides new
product development into what customers wish for, want, and need.
 Design for Six Sigma (DFSS): DFSS is a process management technique that is
related to the traditional Six Sigma (SS) methodology. However, it differs from the
traditional methodology in that DFSS does not focus on improvement of an existing
process or processes, but on preventing process problems at the beginning. DFSS, like
SS, focuses on measurement. Implement DFSS by performing these steps: define,
measure, analyze, design, verify (DMADV). By contrast, the steps in SS are define,
measure, analyze, improve, control (DMAIC).
 Flexible Product Development: This methodology for product development is
counter to many popular development methodologies such as LPD and DFSS. This
method encourages the company to continually make changes, even late into
development, by remaining agile. The techniques used to produce this agility (which
keeps the cost of change low) include modular architectures, experimentation and
using an iterative approach to design, set-based design, and allowing new processes to
develop as the product develops. In Flexible Product Development: Building Agility
for Changing Markets, Preston Smith says that innovation only declines when using
processes like Six Sigma and Lean because they are much too rigid for breakthroughs
to happen.
 Quality Function Deployment (QFD): This methodology is a concurrent
engineering approach where quality is designed into products, not discovered as
missing or present later. Quality is defined as when a product meets the needs of the
customer while providing value. QFD pays special attention to the “voice of the
customer” through interviews, surveys, focus groups, reports, and observation. This
data is then put into a matrix for product planning and designed from their inputs.
QFD includes the whole company in product development, including departments
such as marketing, quality, engineering, and finance, which makes the approach more
balanced and realistic.
  User-Centered Design (UCD): Also known as user-driven development (UDD),
this methodology places usability at the core of each design step. You must validate
each usability assumption in real world testing. The biggest difference between UCD
and everything else is that UCD optimizes how people already do things. There is no
movement toward changing their experience.
 Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and Design for Assembly (DFA): The
manufacturing industry uses both DFM and DFA, and are examples of concurrent
engineering design. DFM designs with the idea that manufacturing is easier to
achieve, while DFA designs intentionally for the ease of assembly. Both have
specified rules to accomplish them.
No discussion of process methodology would be complete without acknowledging
the more recent capabilities that technology has to offer. Virtual product
development (VPD), especially in markets where competition is fierce and the lead
time for new products in necessarily short, is a great alternative to developing
physical prototypes before production. VPD is the production of prototypes in a
digital 2D or 3D setting. You can design, test, stage, and plan the manufacturing of
a product in a digital environment. VPD is now done in almost every industry from
fashion to manufacturing, although it was traditionally used in construction. Aside
from the speed to manufacturing, it allows teams to work remotely, decreasing the
general and administrative costs of personnel, and considerably decreasing the
development cycle time. Before VPD, a 24-hour development cycle was unheard
of. Now, it’s a reality.

HOW TO CREATE A PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

Especially in a tough economy, innovation may be necessary because it makes
companies more competitive. Even though the natural managerial response to an
economic downturn is to reduce spending, it would be ill-advised in development.
Innovation can reposition a company in the marketplace and grow it for the future.
Whether you are looking to improve your current processes or build new ones,
there are some best practices and mistakes to avoid.

Best practices to improve your product development processes:

 Put your customer’s needs and wants first.

 Be readily manufacturable.
 Price fairly, not greedily.

 Consider your profit margins early.

 Your quality should be “high enough.”

 Introduce at the right time.

 Anticipate your competition.

 Use a process management approach.

 Integrate new product development within your company, not as a separate entity.

 Audit your projects.

 Develop databases for your projects, including notes and the processes used.

 Have your engineers use development notebooks.

 Develop a central collection of results.

 Use market research and test market results.

 Develop a project management database.

 Develop technology and marketing databases.

 Create job performance reports on each of your projects.

 Follow up projects with seminars and workshops on any issues encountered.

 Publish in technical journals, at least occasionally, to move industry standards.

 Use cross-functional teams.

 Develop a model of product development for your company.

 Develop metrics for your product development process.

 Record snapshots of your design at major points during the process.

 Be consistent with your naming conventions.

  Where possible, minimize iterations of your products.

 Get team buy-in sooner, rather than later.

Some additional best practices for those companies dispersed in different

countries:

 Involve your overseas subsidiaries in your development process.

 Create cross-national teams for new idea generation.

Many decisions are made and practices are built at the highest levels. Sometimes
we do not realize that our carefully crafted practices can lead to bad decisions in
the future, or down the hierarchy of our company. The following are ways to head
off bad decisions in product development:

When possible, standardize your decision-making criteria.

For many companies, decision-making is based on experience and may be
difficult when you are creating a new development process. However, you should
still give your teams the benefit of knowing what information management needs
to make a decision, and give management the “real” picture that includes risks
and problems without the fear of punitive action. With clear information
requirements, your teams can give management a clear picture.

Make your timelines realistic.

Are your timelines already based upon a launch date? It’s tough when there is
already a deadline before your team understands the customer needs or the
product’s technical challenges. If your timelines are too aggressive, your team
may be forced to put out ideas that are half as good or that don’t really meet your
customer’s needs.
Be willing to take a stand.
Decisiveness is a trait of a good leader. It is absolutely appropriate to want as
much information as possible before you make a decision, but in short
development cycles, it is critical to weed out the additional options quickly so your
team can focus.
Pull down any functional silos.
A cross-functional development team has the advantage of having the perspective
of your full company. It would be frustrating and time wasting if you didn’t consider
downstream stakeholders or missed significant opportunities simply because a
representative from manufacturing or sales was not on your team. Further, with a
cross-functional team, you ensure that your company objectives are cohesive.
Ensure that your product is the best it can be.
Some companies struggle with the idea of pushing back a launch. Remember:
launching a product that is inferior to what you first projected is not better than
pushing your launch back or even cancelling it. Should you find yourself in the
unfortunate position where you have to decide to either push your launch back,
cancel your launch completely, or launch what you have, run a cost-benefit
analysis (CBA). Your CBA should especially take into account those items you
noted on your risk register as possible if you skimp on quality or any step. It is true
that sometimes rushing to market is necessary, even critical to securing your
product’s rightful place. But at the end of the day, you must ask yourself: Is it worth
alienating your customers with a sub-par product?
HOW FAST CAN YOU GET A PRODUCT TO MARKET?
In this guide, we’ve covered the idea that a quality product shouldn’t alienate your
customer base, and that it’s better to have a quality product than a fast-to-market
product. However, what if fast-to-market is the most important criterium for your
business model? And for that matter, do speed and quality have to be mutually
exclusive? For many entrepreneurs, speed is the answer. The shortened
development cycle is critical when you have only a small window to keep your
customer’s attention. To continue to shorten your development cycle, you need a
few things:

 High-functioning management

 Extremely talented creatives

 Excellent distribution channels

 Targeted advertising

 Reactive customer-service

 Expertise in the marketplace

 Customer need
  Capital

If you have all of these things, the time it takes to get to market is only dependent
upon whether your products satisfy your company’s strategic goals. Your core
products will maintain a competitive edge regardless of their quality.

Another way to keep your development cycles short is to work in a parallel

approach, which can work in two ways. In the first option, you have multifunctional
teams working in parallel. In the second, those teams can complete as many
tasks as possible in parallel. This is where your process maps become critical, as
well as senior managers whose support is guaranteed. Some other aspects of fast
parallel product development are:

 Teams that are empowered to make good decisions

 Tasks assigned in parallel

 Path project management

 Assigned managerial champions for every project

 Defined products

 Pre-production testing

EXPERTS WEIGH IN ON PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT.

Our experts have a lot to say about product development. We interviewed two
experts with experience in software and new product development.

According to Sarah Meerschaert, PMP, Research and Development, CenTrak:

“I have been the Project Manager for R&D for three and a half years. I consider
myself a bit like a midwife, helping the development team bring new products into
the world. The newer or how unique a new product is as compared to your current
offerings, the more risks associated with it. Often small improvements over time
can be the safer option. Emerging technologies and emerging markets can open
up opportunities where it is worthwhile to build a new product farther outside the
wheelhouse. Development of something truly new can offer a greater reward, but
also more room for error!

“The world of software is quickly moving and iterative. The world of products
cannot adapt as quickly. That being said, 3D printing and other quick prototyping
innovations have allowed for quicker turnaround times in product development.
With less time needed, more innovation is taking place. However, patent law is no
small boundary and many upstart inventors can find themselves in legal trouble
because of unintentional infringement, or with other companies quickly copying
their ideas before patents are securely in place.

“As development processes improve, I see product development happening

quicker and at a lower cost point for entry. At the same time, I am encouraged by
the collaborative efforts made by development teams, often on open source
products which are created purely for the joy of creation.

“Newbies would be well served by spending time learning about product

development methodologies. It is also important to remember that product
development is a journey of discovery. There is no point at which you will know
less about your final product than at the outset of development; be flexible in your
approach.”
Our expert Dean Geraci, with more than 25 years of product development is the
General Manager at ProMation Engineering, Inc.
He tells us, “The most important aspect of new product development for
newcomers it to follow the steps needed for any new product in a development
pipeline. While called different things, each level needs to be completed before the
next. First is Concept – What is the product and can it be made? Here customer
requirements meet technical details. One might not have all the answers at this
stage, but the essence is that can the product be made that meets market or
customer needs.
“The next stage (they are also called gates – because you need to pass through
to get to the next) is Feasibility. This is probably the most important and takes
considerable thought. Can and how do I make the product at the price point I
need? Market research, component identification, capital requirements, initial
business plan (including marketing) as well as many other aspects need to be
fleshed out in this phase. Development/Qualification is the next phase. Sometimes
these two aspects are combined, but many times are separated, especially if there
is a regulatory need or extensive field testing of the product after making the initial
run of products or first articles.
“The Development phase defines the processes and operating procedures to
make the product efficiently. Qualification is the testing required to ensure that the
developed product meets the market or customer needs. The last phase is
Launch where all the elements come together – business plan, go to market
strategy, pricing, customer/market segmentation, promotion/advertising to name
just a few – to bring the product to market. Skipping any of these steps can lead to
failure of the product or worse: recalls, lost opportunity, retreating from the market.
The key is to fail early and fix the issues at hand before the product is in the
customer's hands.”

WHAT IS PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT IN MARKETING?

Your product development marketing strategy helps you generate interest around
your new or revamped product. Your product marketing strategy incorporates your
new product introduction process (NPI), which comes into effect after completing
the design and testing. This is the stage where manufacturing takes over. In other
words, this is where the prototype goes to full production and into a sale. NPI
takes over where NPD leaves off.
A product marketing strategy should include your customer analysis, product
development, pricing, branding, and sales and distribution plan. The following are
a list of things you should do to be effective in your product marketing:

 Get Your Strategy Ready Early: Your customers should be able to understand
what your product does, how it compares to the competition, and what distinguishes
it. You should be working on your marketing plan before your product leaves the
FFE, and firm it up through development.
 Use Social Media: Your should build your product’s landing page as soon as it is
out of development and vetted by your consumer test groups. Use your site’s available
features to collect even more consumer information for your launch. Continue to keep
your product momentum going by building a Facebook page and opening a Twitter
account for your product.
 Get Internal Buy-in: Everyone in your company should be a cheerleader for the
newest product. Further, anyone in your company can have an idea about its
promotion, so listen to all of them - gems can turn up in the most unexpected places.
 Designate Your Goals and Budget: As your product is making its way, you will
want to designate a team responsible for its launch. Your team can put together a
comprehensive marketing project and budget.
 Develop Your Marketing Materials: It's time to put together your product
marketing support with content, and your advertisement package. Internally, you will
need to determine the product needs for customer support, warranty, and repairs.