Product Lifecycle

What is the product lifecycle?

•      The different stages of a product’s progress in terms of sales.

•      It is plotted on a lifecycle curve.

•      Just before the product reaches the decline stage, the business can use extension strategies so that they can improve sales and increase the life of the business.

Extension Strategies

•      Extension Strategies are used to improve the sales of a product before it enters into the decline stage.

•      They will extend the life of a product.

•      They include: Finding new uses for the product, promoting the product more effectively, increasing the usage of the product, modifying or changing the product (e.g. creating a new version) and finding a new market segment.

Extension Strategies Examples       

•      Advertising – trying to gain a new audience for the product or reminding the existing audience that the product exists.

•      Reducing the price – This will make the product more attractive to customers.

•      Adding value – Adding new features to the product (this is common in tech products such as mobile phones).

•      Explore new markets –Try and launch the product in a country that doesn’t have they product or a similar product.

•      New packaging – Make the packaging better with subtle changes or brightening it up. This can also include repackaging things in a compilation – particularly music.