PRODUCT

WHAT IS A PRODUCT? A product is anything that can be offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use, or consumption and that might satisfy a want or need. It includes physical objects, services, persons, places, organizations, and ideas.’

The core product is the core, problem solving benefits that consumers are really buying when they obtain a product or service. It answers the question what is the buyer really buying? The actual product may have as many as five characteristics that combine to deliver core product benefits. They are: a). Quality level. b). Features. c). Design. d). Brand name. e). Packaging. The augmented product includes any additional consumer services and benefits built around the core and actual products. Therefore, a product is more than a simple set of tangible features. Consumers tend to see products as complex bundles of benefits that satisfy their needs. When developing products, marketers must: 1). Identify the core consumer needs that the product will satisfy. 2). Design the actual product and finally 3). Find ways to augment the product in order to create the bundle of benefits that will best satisfy consumer’s desires for an experience.

CAMERA Example: A person goes to market and buys a camera. Core product The customer is buying pleasure, nostalgia, a form of immortality. benefit—a convenient, high-quality way to capture important moments. Tangible product Technical features, quality, SLR, appearance Augmented Product Experience while buying the product (was the salesman cooperative or was he rude?), Experience immediately after buying the product (did the showroom staff explain how to use the camera?), After sales service, Upgradation facility (Can one exchange it for a new model three years later?)

PRODUCT CLASSIFICATION I. Consumer products Consumer products are those products bought by final consumers for personal consumption. 1. Convenience goods 2. Shopping Products 3. Specialty Products 4. Unsought Goods

II. Industrial Products Industrial products are those purchased for further processing or for use in conducting a business. For Example if a consumer buys a lawn mower for use around home, the lawn mower is a consumer product. If the same consumer buys the same lawn mower for use in a landscaping business, the lawn mower is an industrial product.

The three groups of industrial products: Materials and parts include raw materials and manufactured materials and parts. Raw materials consist of farm products (wheat, cotton, livestock, fruits, vegetables) and natural products (fish, lumber, crude petroleum, iron ore). Manufactured materials and parts consist of component materials (iron, yarn, cement, wires) and component parts (small motors, tires, castings). Capital items are industrial products that aid in the buyer's production or operations, including installations and accessory equipment. Installations consist of major purchases such as buildings (factories, offices) and fixed equipment (generators, drill presses, large computer systems, elevators). Accessory equipment includes portable factory equipment and tools (hand tools, lift trucks) and office equipment (fax machines, desks). They have a shorter life than installations and simply aid in the production process. Supplies and services. Supplies include operating supplies (lubricants, coal, paper, pencils) and repair and maintenance items (paint, nails, brooms). Supplies are the convenience products of the industrial field because they are usually purchased with a minimum of effort or comparison. Business services include maintenance and repair services (window cleaning, computer repair) and business advisory services (legal, management consulting, advertising).

III. Organizations, Persons, Places and Ideas

PRODUCT DECISIONS PRODUCT ATTRIBUTES Product Quality: Product quality has two dimensions—level and consistency. In developing a product, the marketer must first choose a quality level that will support the product's position in the target market. Here, product quality means performance quality—the ability of a product to perform its functions beyond quality level, high quality also can mean high levels of quality consistency. Here, product quality means conformance quality—freedom from defects and consistency in delivering a targeted level of performance. All companies should strive for high levels of conformance quality.

Product Features A product can be offered with varying features. A stripped-down model, one without any extras, is the starting point. The company can create higher-level models by adding more features. Features are a competitive tool for differentiating the company's product from competitors' products. Product Design Another way to add customer value is through distinctive product style and design. Design is a larger concept than style. Style simply describes the appearance of a product. Styles can be eye catching or yawn producing. A sensational style may grab attention and produce pleasing aesthetics, but it does not necessarily make the product perform better. Unlike style, design is more than skin deep—it goes to the very heart of a product. Good design contributes to a product's usefulness as well as to its looks.