Texts . Завдання 4. Прочитайте та перекладіть тексти.

Text 1: PRODUCT IMPORTANCE

The problem of adopting products to markets is a continuous one. There must be a constant monitoring of consumer wants and needs because consumers change over the time and seek variety in their choices.

Nowhere is the problem of consumer choice more keenly felt than in the fast - food business. Researchers also monitor grocery stores shelves and cookbooks for new ideas. Product development then, is a key activity in any modern business.

Text 2: WHAT IS A PRODUCT?

From a marketing viewpoint a product is not just the physical good or service. A product consists of all the tangibles and intangibles that consumers evaluate when deciding whether or not to buy something. Thus a product is a washing machine, car, or bottle of beer, but the product also consists of:

• the price

• the package

• the store surroundings

• the image created by advertising

• the guarantee

• the reputation of the producer

• the brand name

• the service

• the buyers' past experience

When people buy a product, they evaluate all these things and compare products in all these dimensions.

Text 3: DIFFERENT PRODUCT VIEWS

Most people tend to think of products as tangible goods that can be seen and felt. They also tend to view products as what producers make in a factory.

What is the product of an automobile manufacturer? It could be good mileage (compact cars), luxury (full-size Cadillacs), sportiness (convertibles) speed, or safety or some combination of these features. Still the product isn't what the manufacturer puts into the car; the product is the perception of these features by consumers. In conclusion, we can say the following about the products:

• There often is a difference between the product as viewed from the perspective of the seller and as viewed by the buyer.

Successful sellers design their products based on the needs of the buyer those needs are determined through marketing research.

• A buyer evaluates a product by comparing many dimensions, including price, quality, convenience, safety and satisfaction in use.

• A product is what a person perceives it be.

Text 4: THE PRODUCT MIX

A product mix is the combination of products offered by a manufacturer. In the case of automobile manufacturers, the product mix consists of everything from automobiles to mini vans, small trucks, large tractor trailers, and, tanks.

A product line is group of products that are physically similar or are intended for a similar market. In automobiles, one company’s product line for passenger cars may include large luxury cars, midsize cars, compact cars, mini vans, and station wagons. They are all part of the product line.

Manufacturers must decide what product mix is best. The mix may include both goods and services to spread the risk among several industries. Product line decisions are also important. Carrying too many different products can be inefficient. Carrying too few products in the line may also be a poor strategy because you may attract more customers with a full line of products than a reduced line.For example, a store that sells a full line of appliances is more attractive to shoppers than a store that carries just a couple of models.

 

 

Text 5 MARKETING DIFFERENT CLASSES OF CONSUMER GOODS

Several attempts have been made to classify goods and services. One of the more traditional classifications has three general categories: convenience goods and services, shopping goods and services, and special goods and services. These classifications are based on consumer shopping habits and preferences:

• Convenience goods and services are products that the consumer wants to purchase frequently and with a minimum of effort (for example, candy, snacks, banking). Location is very important for marketers of convenience goods and services. Brand awareness and image also are important. Shopping goods and services are those products that the consumer buys only after comparing value, quality, and price from a variety of sellers. Shopping goods and services are sold largely through shopping centres where consumers can "shop around." Because consumers carefully compare such products, marketers can emphasize price differences, quality differences, or some combination of the two. Specialty goods and services are products that have a special attraction to consumers who are willing to go out of their way to obtain them.

Examples include goods such as expensive fur coats, jewellery, and cars and services provided by medical specialists or business consultants. These products are often marketed through the classified section of the telephone book or by word of mouth.

The marketing task varies depending on the kind of product; that is, convenience goods are marketed differently from special goods, and so forth. The best way to promote convenience goods is to make them readily available. Price or quality are the best appeals for shopping goods, and special goods rely heavily on word of mouth.

Whether or not a good or service falls into a particular class depends on the individual consumer. What is a shopping good for one consumer (for example, coffee) could be a special good for another consumer (for example, imported coffee). Some people shop around comparing different dry cleaners, so dry cleaning is a shopping service for them. Others go to the closest store, making it a convenience service.

Text 6: MARKETING INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS

The industrial market is larger than you may thinkbecause industrial goods may be sold several times before reaching the consumer, market. For example, sand may be sold to a glass maker to make auto glass. The glass is then sold to an auto manufacturer who puts the glass in the car.

There are two major classes of industrial goods. Capital goods are products that cost a lot of money and last a long time, such as factories and machinery. Expense items are less costly and are used up more quickly, such as cleaning fluids and light bulbs. From the auto glass example, you may have noticed other classifications that could be used for industrial goods-products used in factories, utilities, mines, institutions (for examples hospitals, schools), government agencies, and wholesale and retail outlets:

1 Raw materials are goods such as sand and coal.

2 Component parts are goods such as engines, tires and windshields.

• Accessory equipment includes typewriters and copy machines.

3 Installations are factories and similar large facilities.

4 Supplies include cleaning fluid and pencils.

• Services include consulting, accounting, and cleaning.

There are many careers in industrial marketing for college students because such goods and services are sold by sales representatives more than advertising (as most consumer goods are sold). This means a big demand for salespeople to sell everything from huge installations to supplies. Because industrial buyers buy in huge volume, comparatively speaking, the chance to make large commissions is very good.

Text 7: PACKAGING CHANGES THE PRODUCT

Many years ago people had problems whit table salt, because it would stick together and form lumps whenever the weather was humid or damp. The Morton Salt Company solved the problem by designing a package that kept the salt dry in all kinds of weather. Thus the slogan, "When it rains, it pours". Packaging made Morton's salt more desirable than competing products, and it is the still best known salt in the United States.

 

Text 8: THE GROWING IMPORTANCE OF PACKAGING

Packaging has always been an important aspect of the product offer, but today it is carrying more of the promotional burden. Many goods that were once sold by salespersons are now being sold in self-service outlets, and the package has been given more sales responsibility. As such the package must do the following: (1) it must attract the buyer's attention; (2) it must explain the benefits of the good inside; (3) it must provide information on warranties, warnings, and other consumer matters; and (4) it must give some indication of price, value, and uses.

Text 9: DIFFERENT PACKAGING FUNCTIONS

One major function of packaging is to attract the attention of the buyer. To do this a package needs visibility. Visibility is achieved through the creative use of colour, shape, texture design, and size. Using these cues, one can easily identify most of the popular consumer products.

Another function of packaging is to give consumers added convenience for their money. You are already familiar with the convenience that packaging has given products through the use of handy spray pumps, easy open cans, squeezable ketchup bottles, clear plastic wraps, and so forth. In the future we may expect to see more packaging innovations that will enable us to keep meat and milk without refrigeration, to serve instant gourmet meals from speedy microwave ovens and to keep fresh vegetables for months. Recently, Campbell introduced a salad with a shelf life of 28 days.

Another function of packaging is to protect the goods from environmental factors such as rain and sun. Packaging must also protect against breakage, damage, and harm from animals.

Packaging helps the middleman by grouping goods into easy managed sizes. It may be designed, for instance, so that the shipping carton becomes a display rack. Packaging also helps retailers to price items, store them on their shelves, and process the item through their checkout counter. The new universal product codes (UPCs) that were developed for supermarket items and other retail goods may enable the retailer to reduce checkout time, reduce errors, and increase inventory control and the information flow from retailer to producer.

To summarize the functions of packaging we have discussed so far, remember that packaging (1) adds visibility, (2) adds convenience, (3) protects the goods from damage, and (4) keeps the goods in manageable, controllable sizes. We also mentioned that packaging benefits middlemen as wall as consumers. Branding, like packaging, changes the product by changing consumer perceptions. The name Del Monte on a label makes the product different than one with the label peaches. We shall discuss such issues below.

Text 10: BRANDING

A brand is a name, symbol, or design (or a combination of them) that identifies the goods or services of one seller or group of sellers and distinguishes them from those of competitors. The term brand is sufficiently comprehensive to include practically all means of identification a product except perhaps the package and its shape. A brand name is that part of the brand consisting of a word, letter, or group of words or letters comprising a name that differentiates the goods or services of a seller from those of competitors. Brand names you may be familiar with include Sony, Del Monte, and so on. Such brand names give products a distinction that tends to make them attractive to consumers.

A trademark is a brand that has been given legal protection. It includes the brand name and pictorial design.

To measure the importance of brand in our society, you might try the following experiment. Find a group of beer drinkers who say they greatly prefer one brand of beer and dislikeanother brand. Pour the brand they do not like into an empty bottle of the favored brand and serve it to them. Ask them how they like it. Most will say it tastes great, because the name the bottle has a direct effect on the perceived taste. If they believe they are drinking their favourite beer, other brands will probably taste good to them. People's perceptions of a product's taste, value, and attractiveness are determined by preconceived notions that are partially maintained by branding. That is, if people expect something to be goods, it usually is perceived as good. And if they expect something to be bad, it usually is perceived to be bad.

People are often impressed by certain brand names, eve though they say they know there is no difference between brands a given product category.

Text 11: BRAND CATEGORIES

Several categories of brands are familiar to you. National brand names are the brand names of national manufacturers. They include well-known names such as Xerox, Polaroid, Kodak, Sony, and Chevrolet.

Private brands are names given to products by distributors or retailers. Well-known names include Kenmore and Diehard (Sears). These brands are also known as "house" brands or "distributor

brands.

What many manufactures fear is having their brand names become generic names. A generic name is the name for a product category. Did you know that aspirin and linoleum were once brand names? So were nylon, escalator, kerosene and zipper. All of those names became so popular, so identified with the product, that they lost their brand status and became generic (the name of the product class). The producers then had to come up with new names. The original Aspirin, for example, became Bayer aspirin. Some companies that are working hard to protect their brand names today include Xerox (don't say "Xerox if, say "Copy if) and Styrofoam.

Some products are popular today because they don't have brand names. They are called generic products because they are called by the name of the product class. There are generic tissues, generic cigarettes, generic peaches, and so forth. All it says on the label of the can is "Peaches", no brand name. These products sell for less because they do not have to support heavy advertising and promotion budgets. Do you buy generic toothpaste? Generic mouthwash? Why or why not?

 

Text 12: BRAND IMAGES

You might try an experiment for yourself. Buy an attractive butinexpensive tie and put it in a very attractive box from an exclusive store. Then buy a similar tie from the exclusive store and put it in a box from an inexpensive discount store. Tell your friends that you can't decide which tie is better and ask them to choose. If past experience is any guide, most will choose the inexpensive tie in the more expensive box. Again, laboratory experiments support these suggestions. The concept that explains such behaviour is that people often cannot determine the value of products by physical inspection they therefore turn to other indicators of quality such as labels packaging, brand names, and price. A higher-priced, expensively packages item is usually perceived as better regardless of its actual physical qualities.

Text 13: PRODUCT MANAGEMENT

A product manager co-ordinates all marketing efforts for a particular product (product line) or brand. The concept of product management originated over 50 years ago and over 25 years managers have come to occupy important positions in many firms. An Association of National Advertisers survey of members found that 85% of the companies producing packages goods, 34% of the companies producing other consumer goods, and 55% of manufactures of industrial goods had a product-management system. Product management may offer a truly challenging career, if you are interested.

Product managers have direct responsibility for one brand one product line, including all the elements of the marketing mix: product, price, promotion and place. It's like being a president of one-product business. One reason companies have created this position is to have greater control over new product development and product promotion.

Text 14: THE NEW PRODUCT-DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

Product development consists of several stages:

2. Generating new product ideas

3. Screening

4. Development

5. Testing

6. Commercialization (bringing the product to the market).

Think, for example, of the potential of two-way cable TV, large I screen TV sets, home computers, video disks, word processors, and other innovations. Where do these ideas come from? How are they tested? What is the life span for an innovation?

Figure 1-9. Where new product ideas come from:

Consumer products (based on a survey of 79 new products)	%
Analysis of the competition	38
Company sources other than research and development	31.6
Consumer research	17.7
Research and development	13.9
Consumer suggestions	12.7
Published information	11.4
Supplier suggestions	3.8

 

Industrial products (based on a survey of 152 new products)	%
Company sources other than research and development	36.2
Analysis of the competition	27
Research and development	24.3
Product users	15.8
Supplier suggestions	12.8
Product users research	10.5
Published information	7.9

Text 15 GENERATING NEW PRODUCT IDEAS

Note that 38% of the new product ideas for consumer goods come from analyzing competitors. This was true of 27% of new industrial products.

Notice that more than a third of all new product ideas for industrial products come from users, user research, or supplier suggestions.

Text 16: PRODUCT SCREENING AND ANALYSIS

Product screening is designed to reduce the number of ideas being worked on at one time. Criteria needed for screening include whether the product fits in well with present products, profit potential, marketability and personnel requirements. Each of these factors may be assigned a weight and total scores computed.

Product analysis is done after product screening. It is largely a matter of making cost estimates and sales forecasts to get a feeling for profitability

Text 17: PRODUCT DEVELOPING AND TESTING

If a product passes the screening and analysis phase, the firm begins to develop it further. A product idea can be developed into many different product concepts (alternative product offerings based on the same product idea, that have different meanings and values to consumers).

Concept testing involves taking a product sample or product idea to consumers to test their reactions. Do they see the benefits of this new product? How frequently would they buy it? At what price? What features do they like and dislike? What changes would they make?

Text 18: PRODUCT STRATEGY AND THE PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE

Once a product has been developed, tested and placed on the market it goes through a life cycle consisting of five stages: introduction, growth, maturity, saturation, and decline. The product life cycle is a theoretical model of what happens to a product class (for example, all freeze-dried coffees) over time. Not all products follow the life cycle, and particular brands may act differently. For example, while frozen foods as a generic class may go through the entire cycle, one brand may never get beyond the introduction stage. None the less the product life cycle provides a basis for anticipating future market developments and for plij marketing strategies accordingly. Note, for example, how Arm and Hammer baking soda gets a new image every few years to generate new sales. One year it is positioned as a deodorant for refrigerators and the next as a substitute for harsh chemicals in swimming pools. Knowing what stage in the cycle a product is in helps marketing managers to decide when such strategic changes are needed.

We can see how the product life cycle works by looking at the introduction of instant coffee. When it was introduced, most people did not like it as well as "regular coffee", and it took several years to gain general acceptance (introduction stage). At one point, though instant coffee grew rapidly in popularity, and many brands introduced (stage of rapid growth). After a while, people became attached to one brand, sales leveled off (stage of maturity and saturation). Sales went into a slight decline when freeze-dried coffees were introduced (stage of decline). At present, freeze-dried coffee at the maturity stage. Perhaps you can think through the product life cycle of products such as hot cereals, frozen orange juice mechanical watches, and mechanical watches, and mechanical calculators.

The importance of the product life cycle to marketers is this: different stages in the product life cycle call for different strategies.

Different stages in the product life cycle call for different pricing Strategies. We shall discuss pricing a key management decision in duct design next.

5. C comprehension questions. Завдання 5. Підготуйте письмові відповіді на питання:

1.What is a product?

2.Name the three classes of consumer goods and give examples of each. Can you do the same for industrial goods?

3.Are consumer goods and services marketed differently than industrial goods and services?

4.What are the functions of the packaging?

5.What are the categories of the brand names?

6.How do product managers find new product ideas?

7.What is a products development process?

8.What are the stages of the product life cycle?

6. Discussion questions. Завдання 6. Підготуйте коротку інформаціюб використовуючи запитання як план:

f. What is the product of a restaurant? Is it the food? Think about it.

g. Most soft drinks are in the mature or decline stage of the product life cycle. Does that explain why Coke introduced new Coke? What other new soft drinks have been introduced in the last years? Have you reached rapid growth?

h. What steps would you recommend for manufacturers to make the product better? Why?

7. G roup activities. Завдання 7. Підготуйтесь до бесіди, використайте задану ситуацію:

1. Discuss how packaging has changed the attractiveness of the following products:

a. Beer

b. Mustard

c. Salt

d. Soda (pop)

2. List at least seven sources of new product ideas and put them in the order you think is most important. Explain, why you chose that order.