- Changes to Augmented Product
- Core product revision
- Line extensions
- New product lines
- Repositionings
- Completely new
There are several stages in the new product development process...not always followed in order:
- Idea Generation (The "fuzzy front end" of the NPD process)
- Ideas for new products can be obtained from customers (employing user innovation), designers, the company's R&D department, competitors, focus groups, employees, salespeople, corporate spies, trade shows, or through a policy of Open Innovation. Ethnographic discovery methods (searching for user patterns and habits) may also be used to get an insight into new product lines or product features.
- Formal idea generation techniques can be used, such as attribute listing, forced relationships, brainstorming, morphological analysis and problem analysis
- Idea Screening
- The object is to eliminate unsound concepts prior to devoting resources to them.
- The screeners must ask at least three questions:
- Will the customer in the target market benefit from the product?
- Is it technically feasible to manufacture the product?
- Will the product be profitable when manufactured and delivered to the customer at the target price?
- Concept Development and Testing
- Develop the marketing and engineering details
- Who is the target market and who is the decision maker in the purchasing process?
- What product features must the product incorporate?
- What benefits will the product provide?
- How will consumers react to the product?
- How will the product be produced most cost effectively?
- Prove feasibility through virtual computer aided rendering, and rapid prototyping
- What will it cost to produce it?
- test the concept by asking a sample of prospective customers what they think of the idea
- Develop the marketing and engineering details
- Business Analysis
- Estimate likely selling price based upon competition and customer feedback
- Estimate sales volume based upon size of market
- Estimate profitability and breakeven point
- Beta Testing and Market Testing
- Produce a physical prototype or mock-up
- Test the product (and its packaging) in typical usage situations
- Conduct focus group customer interviews or introduce at trade show
- Make adjustments where necessary
- Produce an initial run of the product and sell it in a test market area to determine customer acceptance
- Technical Implementation
- New program initiation
- Resource estimation
- Requirement publication
- Engineering operations planning
- Department scheduling
- Supplier collaboration
- Logistics plan
- Resource plan publication
- Program review and monitoring
- Contingencies - what-if planning
- Commercialization (often considered post-NPD)
- Launch the product
- Produce and place advertisements and other promotions
- Fill the distribution pipeline with product
- Critical path analysis is most useful at this stage