First Entrepreneurship Network - How to do product planning?

Opinions on the Product Planning Section

Market positioning means finding market gaps in the target market, then filling them and discovering advantageous market positions. In a manner similar to basketball positioning, secure your own advantageous position while blocking the competitors' place in the market, thus making it difficult for competitors to leverage their advantages in the market competition, leaving them at a disadvantage.

Product strategy planning refers to enterprises dynamically planning their market development strategies so that their products or their composition adapt to market demands. Its content focuses on improving old products, eliminating old products, exploring new uses for products, and developing new products.

Improving Old Products

Based on consumption status and actual usage analysis, improvements can be made to old products using the following general methods:

1. Function change: functionality, design.

2. Quality change: materials, quality.

3. Style change: color, size, packaging, form.

4. Changes in socio-ecological factors.

Exploring New Uses for Old Products

1. Exploring new uses for old products: After motorcycles replaced bicycles as transport power, bicycles reappeared in the market as "fitness equipment."

2. Increasing users: From families sharing a single bottle of shampoo, there is now a specific "Happy Shampoo" targeted towards young girls.

3. Encouraging consumers to use more (or frequently): The milk powder industry alliance advertises with "A glass of milk every morning and evening keeps you healthy forever," aiming to increase consumption.

4. Developing the implied significance of consumer products.

Eliminating Old Products

According to market feedback and corporate strategy, there are two ways to eliminate old products.

1. Planned obsolescence:

Product technological innovation (INNOVATION) brings about product obsolescence. Some tricks can be added in terms of product style, shape, color, or design to appeal to desires such as "showing off wealth" or "liking new things," systematically phasing out old products and introducing new ones to stimulate sales. This can be divided into four categories:

a. Functional obsolescence: Due to innovations in production technology, new products perform better than before, such as frost-free refrigerators replacing traditional ones.

b. Delayed obsolescence: Considering the inventory of existing products and that market demand still exists, the launch of new products is delayed, and they are introduced appropriately based on reactions to stimulate market potential.

c. Physical performance obsolescence: At the time of product design, the lifespan has been calculated to ensure natural wear and tear by the end of its life, prompting repurchase actions.

d. Fashionable obsolescence: Using psychological factors, trends are created, leading to purchases driven by the desire to follow fashion. Once the trend passes, even if the product is still in perfect condition and functional, it may be discarded due to being "out of fashion."