QUESTIONS TO ASK IN NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT The new product development (NPD) process plays a pivotal role as the primary driver of corporate organic growth—yet executives frequently get it wrong, jeopardizing investments of time and money. To safeguard your NPD investment, ask key critical questions and incorporate the following research tools across each phase of the NPD process to set your new product up for a successful launch.
WHY IS THE NPD PROCESS SO CRUCIAL?
+130%
$15 MILLION
40%
In the consumer packaged goods industry, companies with a robust stage-gated NPD process in place average 130% more new product revenue than their counterparts who lack a rigorous NPD approach.
Average cost of launching a new product
QUESTIONS TO ASK
NPD PHASE
What is the health of our current market?
TOOLS TO USE
PRELIMINARY Market Evaluation
What other markets are attractive for our products?
Analyze markets and spot unmet purchaser needs, industry trends, and competitor movements to ensure you target the most promising segments
How do our products fare against the competition?
What are unmet buyers’ needs in our product category? What do our employees wish we would offer?
PHASE 1 Idea Generation Brainstorm potential ideas, offerings, and concepts that ignite purchaser interest
What new/different/enhanced offerings could we sell?
PHASE 2 Concept Testing
How well do potential purchasers understand the concept?
What options do purchasers want?
Screen product concepts to assess feasibility, including ROI, production costs, buyer affordability, and market potential to determine if the product is a worthwhile investment
PHASE 3 Product Refinement
How much are purchasers willing to pay?
Develop and improve concepts into fully functional products that your purchasers want and need
Can we profitably produce this product?
Which purchaser segments will buy this product first?
PHASE 4 Market Warming
What packaging do purchasers find the most compelling?
Potential buyers provide feedback on the product, its look and feel, and its packaging to understand the product’s key selling points
What is the best way to advertise this new product? Are we highlighting the product’s strengths and key selling points? Which additional purchaser segments would buy this product?
Are there complimentary products we should add to our pipeline?
## New and Adjacent Market Evaluation ## Competitor Monitoring ## Industry Trend Briefing
## Product Portfolio Review ## Category Need Study ## Market Drivers Analysis ## Attitude and Usage Studies ## Exploratory Product Research
Which are the most promising concepts?
What else can we do to support the product?
of all new products fail in the first year
PHASE 5 Product Launch Fully-vetted products can proceed to full commercialization to see how buyers interact with the product
PHASE 6 Product Review Review product performance to identify areas for improvement to build meaningful products that buyers crave
## Voice of Customer ## Prospective Purchaser Segmentation ## Concept Screening Survey ## Focus Groups
## Feature/Concept Conjoint Analysis ## Pricing Optimization
## Product Message Testing ## Focus Groups
## Campaign Effectiveness Testing ## Social Media Analysis ## Advertising Spend Analysis
## Customer Satisfaction Surveys ## Win/Loss Analysis
For more solutions to the most common NPD challenges, check out our research brief,
Mind the Gap: Critical Pitfalls of the New Product Development Process.
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