Product Management Strategies

Product Management is explained as an organisational function within a company dealing with the planning or marketing of product/products at all stages of the product lifecycle (i.e. introduction, growth, maturity and decline),

It includes two major activities :-

Product Planning and Product Marketing; Strategy according to Henry Mitzberg is a plan, “a how”, a means of getting from here to there; whereas Product Strategy is defined as a marketing plan for a product based on the characteristics of the target market, market share objectives, desired product positioning within the market, and profit objectives.

Strategic Plans for a product are based on decisions regarding the four P’s (product, price, place and promotion), financial targets and budgets and tactical plans. The top management of an organisation frames the product strategy to gain a competitive edge by understanding their perspective, mission, vision, values, beliefs, attitude and norms.

For effective Product Strategy the company evaluates its strengths and weaknesses to maximise the opportunities and minimize the threats which can be done by answering the following questions: -

1. What is their total production, financial, marketing, selling, personnel and operational capabilities?

2. How they can fulfill their customers’ expectations?

3. Where is the market?

4. When is the right time for product launch?

5. Why will the buyers prefer my product? By answering the above questions an organisation can determine various techniques for appropriate product positioning, effective branding and packaging and also to reduce wastages, cut expenditures, develop market for new product, select most appropriate distribution channel, upgrade their technologies, decide promotional tools, maximize customer satisfaction to enhance their goodwill which will help in retaining the existing customers as well a getting new ones thus increasing organisation’s productivity as well as profitability.

Thus, Product Strategy is rightly, defined as the element of a firm’s decision-making concerned with developing the most appropriate products for its target market.