Launching New Products Services
ENTREPRENEURS: INTRODUCING NEW PRODUCTS & SERVICES
The season is upon us for introducing New Products and New Services. Is your establishment ready for such an introduction???
New Products failure rate ranges from 70% to 90% depending on the industry, as for Services such studies are not available. So launching New Products/Services is quite challenging and a risky endeavor for all companies to undertake.
I am not a fan of sharing stories; however, I will make a short exception to convey my point. In one of my undergraduate classes, a core Marketing course, I was explaining the difference between Products and Services to my students. The challenge was that most of them were not familiar with the concept of Service or did not have a clear understanding of what Service actually was. Well, I made a simple statement that a Product is Tangible and a Service is Intangible, and added that You (the individual) are the Product delivering the Service. It took 45 minutes of discussion for them to accept somewhat the notion that people, professionals, entrepreneurs are the Product who deliver the Service. The separation is important and crucial for the successful delivery of the Service: the Experience or Service (Intangible) is provided by you the Product (Tangible).
What do I mean by “separation”? The Service or Product is like a Gift, you Put it in a Nice Box, Package it, Wrap it with a Nice Bow and when you open it, you expect the Gift to be a pleasant surprise. Products and Services have Features & Benefits, which you need to Promote, Highlight and most importantly Educate your customer about in order to Sell them that Product/Service.
The next logical question to ask is: What Do we Do with “You” the “Product”?
We Package You, the Product providing the Service, promote and communicate clearly your Features/Benefits,
and make sure the Delivery of the Service is a Success.
Too many Professionals/Entrepreneurs neglect that Packaging Concept and wonder why the Client failed to understand their Message, actually they failed at Packaging their Product/Service. You may be the best Chef in your geographic area, however, your style in dealing with staff and clientele lacks finesse, thus destroying the delivery of your Service.
In Luxury items such as perfumes, the cost of Packaging could be as high as 75% of the actual cost of the Product, thus the packaging sells it. Food for thought.
Print Ads are still a powerful advertising tool to pull customers into the store, they sell you the Product, Service and Brand in one picture.
An essential part of launching a new Product/Service is the Ad Campaign, What is Yours for your New Product /Service???
The Entrepreneur is the Actual Product with Features and Benefits that is delivering the Service to their Clientele. The Entrepreneur (Product) is the actual Brand, the Company is simply an extension of the Brand/Entrepreneur, and the Service is the extension of both. If your client does not remember your name, most likely they failed to recognize your value, and associate you the Product with the Brand and excellent Service they received. The Service is Intangible and the challenge for service providers is to transform it into a Tangible entity.
We specialize in such a service.
Product and Service are a couple, a pair, an entity you cannot separate. When staying at a hotel, having a meal at a restaurant, if the Product, which is the actual dinner you are having, is superb and the sever is rude, it is very extremely unlikely that you will ever go back to that restaurant or hotel with the poor server or service. The product they serve has to be at a minimum Good, and the Service memorable and enjoyable, if both are fulfilled you will become a loyal customer and send your friends there as well.
The Service Cannot be separated from the Product, that is why we Train, Train, and Train: Customer Service Training focuses on Training the Product providing the actual Service, the latter is a simple cut and paste processes.
A major misconception of sales people in general is that they sell Products and some Service along with that. These were the sales executives that were laid off from IBM, AT&T, Xerox and the sort in the 1990’s who started their own business and closed shop within a few months. Initially, they were selling the Products of IBM, AT&T, Xerox, etc.—, what they failed to recognize was that they were the Product providing the Service, an extension of the Company and the actual tangible tool delivering both features and benefits. As an Entrepreneur, you are the Product, Service, Brand and Company all in one. Basically, the Product delivering the Service that baffled my students and sales people of above companies who lacked the understanding of their role.
What Are Your Features and Benefits???
Entrepreneurs define and create their Brand, offer Value through their Service, and use the Company as an entity to deliver the above.
How We Can Help You
We specialize in the Service field: Transforming the Intangible into Tangible…
We help business owners in their Packaging Concept: Define their Features, Benefits, Competitive Advantage and make their Service a Tangible Asset.
What is your Service Strategy? Are you Satisfied with the Results?
We Understand Your Needs and Share Your Dreams
Contact Us to increase your Profits and Minimize your Risk