Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
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10. As the moderator, have the focus group participants answer the following questions:
• Question 1: Are any of you familiar with the term wearable computing?
Smartwatch? Have you heard of the Pebble Smartwatch or any other brand before
today? Probe the responses.
• Question 2: Are you wearing a watch now? Why or why not? What do you like
or dislike about wearing a watch? Probe the responses.
• Question 3: Would you consider purchasing a smartwatch? Why or why not?
Probe the responses and have the recorder write the answers on the board.
• Question 4: If you wanted to purchase a smartwatch, what features would you
like it to have or do? Probe the responses. Have the recorder write the answers on
the board.
Typical answers: Various features or apps will be stated. These may include:
Bluetooth/wireless connection to a smartphone or tablet; easy to understand user
• Question 5: Click on the Internet icon to play the Pebble Smartwatch video. [TRT
= 1:32] Would you buy Pebble Smartwatch for $150? Why or why not? Probe the
responses.
• Question 6: How was the interaction among the focus group participants? Did
you think everyone had a chance to share his/her opinions? How could we have
obtained more and better answers?
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
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Typical answers: If the interaction is good, many diverse opinions can lead to
Marketing Lesson. Focus groups are useful in generating new product ideas or
evaluating new product concepts in very early stages of development before a great deal of time,
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-43
ICA 9-2: IN-CLASS ACTIVITY
What Were They Thinking? Analyzing New Product Disasters1
Learning Objectives. To have students study six new product failures and in each case
assess: (1) who the target market was, (2) some likely reasons it failed, and (3) what simple
marketing research might have been done to identify and avert these problems early.
Nature of the Activity. To have students work in teams to identify key reasons for the
failure of six—sometimes outrageous—consumer products and have fun in the process. These
examples and accompanying photos are adapted from Robert M. McMath’s book “What Were
They Thinking?”2
Estimated Class Time and Teaching Suggestions. About 15 minutes, taught in class in
4-person teams.
Materials Needed. Copies for each student of the:
• “Six Consumer Products With Problems” handout.
Steps to Teach this ICA.
2. Pass out copies of the following to students:
3. Six Consumer Products With Problems Handout and leave it on the screen for
students to refer to.
5. Review with students the critical marketing factors that often separate new product
successes and failures discussed in Chapter 10.
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-44
7. Worksheet to Analyze Why Six Consumer Products Failed.
8. Have the student teams spend 5 minutes to complete the handout. Give them the
following instructions:
10. Answers to Worksheet to Analyze Why Six Consumer Products Failed. OPTIONAL:
11. Discuss the following comments made by Robert M. McMath and the subjective
assessments of the co-authors of Marketing:
a. Adam’s Body Smarts. In early 2002, Adams pulled the product off retailer
shelves despite a $70 million market-introduction campaign that involves
c. Wheaties Dunk-A-Balls Cereal. C’mon! A cereal that encourages kids to “shoot
baskets” with it around the kitchen? Introduced in 1994, Mom (and Dad!) didn’t
want their kids playing on the floor with their basketball-shaped cereal.
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-45
d. Garlic Cake. Introduced in 1989, the product was supposed to be served as an
e. Kellogg’s Special K Plus cereal. Launched in the fall of 1999 with a $15 million
campaign, the product’s extra calcium may have been an important point of
f. Dr. Care Toothpaste. Think about this for three seconds: Turning a six-year old
loose in the bathroom with a toothpaste-filled aerosol can— potential Rembrandt
bathroom-wall painters? The vanilla-mint flavor may have been OK, but parents
saw the aerosol can as a “show–stopper.”
12. Conclude this ICA by giving these explanations for frequent product failures:
a. Pressure to increase revenues. Product managers face extreme pressures to
generate increased revenues, often turning to new products for the quick answer.
Marketing Lessons. Introducing successful new products is difficult, but (1) having a
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
SIX CONSUMER PRODUCTS WITH PROBLEMS HANDOUT
A. Body Smarts:
Produced by Adams
(a division of Pfizer).
Nutritional crunch bars and
fruit chews.
B. Surge:
Produced by Coca-Cola.
High caffeine, citrus-flavored
soft drink.
C. Wheaties Dunk-A-Balls:
Produced by General Mills.
Basketball-shaped sweetened
corn and wheat puffs
breakfast cereal.
D. Garlic Cake:
Produced by Gunderson &
Rosario. A hors d’ oeuvre for
cocktail parties.
E. Special K Plus:
Produced by Kellogg’s.
An extension of Special K
cereal with more calcium,
packaged in a recloseable
milk carton-like container.
F. Dr. Care:
Produced by Dairimetrics, Ltd.
A vanilla mint-flavored
toothpaste in an aerosol
container.
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
WORKSHEET TO ANALYZE WHY
SIX CONSUMER PRODUCTS FAILED
PRODUCT
TARGET
MARKET
POSSIBLE
MARKETING
RESEARCH
1
Bad
Pt. of
Diff.
2
Bad
Prod/
Mkt
Def.
3
Too
Small
Mkt
4
Bad
Mkt
Mix
Exec
5
Poor
Prod
Qual
6
Bad
Time
7
Poor
Access
to
Buyers
A. Body
Smarts
Nutrition-
conscious
adults
Consumer
taste tests
B. Surge
18 – 34
year old
males
Paired-
comparison
taste test with
Mountain
Dew
C. Wheaties
Dunk-A-
Balls
Kids
Ask moms
about product
concept
D. Garlic
Cake
Adults
Consumer
education &
taste tests
E. Kellogg’s
Special K
Plus
Health-
conscious
adults
Package
tests on
consumers
and retailers
F. Dr. Care
Tooth-
paste
Families
Ask moms
and dads
about product
concept
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
ANSWERS TO WORKSHEET TO ANALYZE
WHY SIX CONSUMER PRODUCTS FAILED
PRODUCT
TARGET
MARKET
POSSIBLE
MARKETING
RESEARCH
1
Bad
Pt. of
Diff.
2
Bad
Prod/
Mkt
Def.
3
Too
Small
Mkt
4
Bad
Mkt
Mix
Exec
5
Poor
Prod
Qual
6
Bad
Time
7
Poor
Access
to
Buyers
A. Body
Smarts
Nutrition-
conscious
adults
√
√
Consumer
taste tests
B. Surge
18 – 34
year old
males
√
√
√
Paired-
comparison
taste test with
Mountain
Dew
C. Wheaties
Dunk-A-
Balls
Kids
√
√
√
Ask moms
about product
concept
D. Garlic
Cake
Adults
√
√
√
√
Consumer
education &
taste tests
E. Kellogg’s
Special K
Plus
Health-
conscious
adults
√
√
Package
tests on
consumers
and retailers
F. Dr. Care
Tooth-
paste
Families
√
√
√
Ask moms
and dads
about product
concept
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-49
ICA 9-3: IN-CLASS ACTIVITY
Using Method 6–3–5 to Find New-Product Ideas for Magnetic Poetry3
Learning Objectives. To have students (1) participate in Method 6–3–5,4 an idea
generation technique and as a result (2) develop new product ideas for Magnetic Poetry’s
“Little Box of Words” line of products.
Estimated Class Time and Teaching Suggestions. About 15 minutes, taught in class in
4- to 6-person teams.
Materials Needed. Copies for each student of the:
Steps to Teach this ICA.
2. Magnetic Poetry’s Little Box of Words. This product is based on the familiar
3. Give the following mini-lecture on Magnetic Poetry’s “Little Box of Words”:
“The story behind the creation of Magnetic Poetry has taken on the quality of urban
legend, but this one is true, and the man who sneezed it into being is Dave Kapell.
9-50
4. Form students into 4- to 6-person teams. [NOTE: This is the ‘6’ in Method 6–3–5.]
5. Pass out copies of the “Ground Rules for Method 6–3–5” Handout and the “Using
6. Introduce the Method 6–3–5 activity as follows:
8. Using Method 6–3–5 to Find New Product Ideas for Magnetic Poetry’s Little Box of
Words Handout. Tell the student teams they will have 3 minutes (the ‘3’ in Method
6–3–5) to come up with 5 (the ‘5’ in Method 6–3–5) new line and brand extensions
for Magnetic Poetry’s “Little Box of Words” product that the company might bring to
9. After 3 minutes, have each team member pass their ideas on to the team member to
the left, who spends 3 minutes elaborating and improving on the 5 ideas on the paper
10. Ask each team to share 3 of their better ideas with the class and discuss what they
thought of Method 6–3–5 for generating ideas. Did the opportunity to elaborate on
other team members’ ideas help to refine those ideas or generate more new ideas?
6–3–5 may consist of the following:
a. Line extensions:
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-51
b. Brand extensions:
• Poetry Stones™. A kit for making tinted, word-bearing concrete cobblestones
to border gardens or walkways.
WARNING: The Little Box of Words website shows some products that are
provocative and may be offensive to some students and instructors.
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-52
GROUND RULES FOR METHOD 6–3–5
1. Use teams of 6 people each and sit in a circle.
2. In 3 minutes, have each team member come up with
3. After 3 minutes, have each team member pass their ideas
4. After 3 minutes, repeat Step 3 (above) again.*
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-53
USING METHOD 6–3–5 TO FIND NEW PRODUCT IDEAS FOR
MAGNETIC POETRY’S “LITTLE BOX OF…”
IDEA
ORIGINAL
IDEA
FIRST
REWORK
SECOND
REWORK
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
9-54
Exercise 1: New-Product Development Process
Activity Summary: In this click and drag activity, students are provided with the seven stages in
the new-product development process. Students are asked to evaluate the new-product
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: New-product Development
Learning Objective: LO 09-06 Explain the purposes of each step of the new-product
development process.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Apply
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Follow-Up Activity: Instructors could ask students to some up with examples of new-product
Exercise 2: Classifying Consumer Products
Activity Summary: In this click and drag activity, students learn about the differences between
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: Types of Consumer Products
Learning Objective: LO 09-02 Identify the ways in which consumer and business products and
services can be classified.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Apply
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Follow-Up Activity: Instructors could create a larger list of products on the board for products
Exercise 3: Why Products and Services Succeed or Fail
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-55
Activity Summary: In this case analysis, students learn about the importance of a well-defined
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: New-product Development
Learning Objectives: LO 09-04 Explain the significance of “newness” in new products and
services as it relates to the degree of consumer learning involved.
LO 09-05 Describe the factors contributing to the success or failure of a
new product or service.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Apply
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Exercise 4: iSeeit! Video Case: New Product Development
Activity Summary: In this straightforward whiteboard animation video, the new-product
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: New-product Development
Learning Objective: LO 09-06 Explain the purposes of each step of the new-product
development process.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Apply
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Follow-Up Activity: Instructors could ask students to suggest additional complementary
Exercise 5: Defining “New”
Activity Summary: In this click and drag activity, students are introduced to the concept of
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-56
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: New-product Development
Learning Objective: LO 09-04 Explain the significance of “newness” in new products and
services as it relates to the degree of consumer learning involved.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Apply
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Exercise 6: GoPro: Making All of Us Heroes with Exciting New Products
Activity Summary: In this video case, students learn about the importance of new-product
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: New-product Development
Learning Objective: LO 09-06 Explain the purposes of each step of the new-product
development process.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Apply
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Follow-Up Activity: Instructors could ask students to visit a local grocery store and locate 10
new products on the shelf. Ask students to photograph the new product, including any signage
Exercise 7: The Four I’s of Services
Activity Summary: In this click and drag activity, students learn about the four unique elements
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-57
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: Services Marketing
Learning Objective: LO 09-03: Describe four unique elements of services.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Apply
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Exercise 8: LA Galaxy: Where Sports Marketing is a Kick!
Activity Summary: In this 8-minute video case, students are introduced to the challenges of
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: Services Marketing
Learning Objective: LO 09-02 Identify the ways in which consumer and business products and
services can be classified.
LO 09-03: Describe four unique elements of services.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Apply
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Follow-Up Activity: As a follow-up to this activity, instructors can ask students to collect
examples of the marketing tactics used to promote the university’s sports teams on campus and
Application Exercise 9: iSeeit! Video Case: Service Quality
Activity Summary: In this straightforward whiteboard animation video, the tangible and
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: Services Marketing
Learning Objective: LO 09-03: Describe four unique elements of services.
AACSB: Knowledge Application
Blooms: Understand
Difficulty Level: 2 Medium
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
9-58
Follow-Up Activity: Instructors could ask students to perform their own gap analysis for a local
Marketing Analytics Exercise: New Products
Activity Summary: In this analytics activity, students read a mini-case about a small clothing
company offering a children’s clothing delivery subscription service. The owner is debating
Tagging (Topic, Learning Objectives, AACSB, Bloom’s, Difficulty)
Topic: Marketing Analytics
Learning Objective: LO 09-05 Describe the factors contributing to the success or failure of a
new product or service.
AACSB: Analytical Thinking
Blooms: Analyze
Difficulty Level: 3 Hard
Follow-Up Activity: This activity provides an excellent launching point for a discussion about
Standard service sales (units)
Premium service sales (units)
Basic service sales (units)
Price – standard subscription
Price – premium subscription
Price – basic subscription
Sales revenue – standard
Sales revenue – premium
Sales revenue – basic
Firm’s total revenue
Profit – standard
Profit – premium
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services
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Profit – basic
Firm’s total profit
Total industry revenue
Firm’s market share
Chapter 9 – Developing New Products and Services