Product management focuses on product development and brand extension, starting with market research to determine if a new product or modification to an existing product line is feasible. Development culminates in a prototype release, followed by product marketing and release. Feedback is used to review the market for new gaps and the cycle begins again.
Product management is an organizational function in business focused on product development and brand extension. This method typically focuses on the internal aspects of a product’s lifecycle, whereas project marketing works on the external aspects of the product itself. While some parts of product management apply to existing projects, most of these methods are used on new products or to extend the company into new areas.
Product management techniques start long before the development of a product. Managers look at existing markets and find locations where their company is underrepresented or where gaps exist for new products. The feasibility of creating designs to address these issues determines whether the company will modify an existing product line, start a new line, or simply decline to enter that market.
Before the company enters a new or changed operation, product management specialists conduct studies to determine the exact direction of the line. These studies focus on two areas, market feasibility and individual interest. The profitability of the market mainly focuses on similar products currently on the market and attempts to make similar projects that failed in the past. By interrogating these areas, product managers can determine if the market is missing a segment or if the market cannot support the segment.
Individual interest usually revolves around panel groups. A group of people are exposed to the product idea. They evaluate their individual interest in the product, how much they will pay, what the product makes them think about, etc. Between the results of the two areas, companies know whether they should continue with product development and the direction they should go.
The next step in product management is development. This stage is the first step that contains a real product. In this step, teams of people work together to create and develop the new line. This culminates in a prototype, or alpha, release. This release is distributed among testers to get their feedback, which is then used to create a number of updated prototypes.
This is typically when product management and product marketing split. Teaser information regarding the new product is released, wheezing the appetites of the customer base. This is typically only common with new products; line changes rarely generate enough public interest to warrant a full advertising campaign. While it’s unusual for a product to be rejected at this point, it can still happen.
The last stage is the release. The product is placed in stores and large-scale customer feedback begins. While post-release functions like customer support and product extension are important concepts, a typical product management team doesn’t address them. The feedback generated by the project is used to review the market for new gaps and the cycle begins again.
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