Growing up in the late 1990s, I remember watching movies like Commando, Titanic on a videocassette. This period was frustrating because you have to look for cleaning devices to clean your video player when the motion starts to skip.

Then after a period, CD and DVD were introduced, this led to the decline of video cassettes, but right now, CDs and DVDs are rarely available, we now have video streaming platforms like Netflix, youtube, and so on.

The above is a perfect example of a Product Life Cycle (PLC) in action.

Videocassette, CD, and DVD have all declined while the video streaming platforms are in their growth stage. No one ever wants their product to become obsolete and reach the end of its product life cycle. So it is important to understand what stage your product is in so you can make better marketing and business decisions.

In this article, you will learn and understand

What product life cycle is.
stages of the product life cycle.
why you should know what stage your product is.

What is product life cycle?

Product life cycle is a process in which a product goes through from when it is first introduced into the market until it declines or is removed from the market.

As a marketer, it is important to understand how your tactics and strategies depend on the stage your product is in its life cycle, the way to market a new product is different from the way you will market a well-established and matured product. To market a new product, most of the marketing campaign will focus on awareness while for an existing product it will be more about maintaining awareness.

What are the stages of the product life cycle?

There are typically five stages a product goes through in its life cycle

Development stage
Introduction stage
Growth stage
Maturity stage
Decline Stage

Development stage

The development phase of a product life cycle is the research phase for the product. This is the time to develop prototypes, test the effectiveness of the product, and develop a strategy for the product launch.

The duration of the stage is dependent on the complexity, novelty, and degree of competition of the product. For a brand-new product, the development phase is difficult, because the first pioneer of a product is generally not as successful as subsequent iterations.

Introduction stage

The introduction stage of a product life cycle is when the product is launched into the market for the first time. This is when the marketing team begins to create awareness of the product and reach out to potential customers. Usually, when the product is launched, the sales and demand volume is low.

Generally, this stage focuses on advertising and marketing activities. The company is committed to testing distribution channels and trying to present products to potential customers.

At this stage, the company may and may not be making any profit

Growth stage

In the growth period, consumers/users have accepted the products in the market, and have started to buy and use the product. This means that demand and profits are growing and are expected to grow rapidly at a steady rate.

The growth period is the stage when the product market expands and competition begins to develop. Potential competitors will see your success and want to join.

At this stage, the marketing team is focused on establishing a brand presence so consumers choose them over developing competitors

Maturity stage

The maturity period is the period when sales begin to stabilize from the period of rapid growth. This is the stage where the company starts to improve efficiency and learns from the mistakes made during the introduction and growth stages. Marketing activities usually focus on differentiation rather than awareness. This means that product features can be improved, prices can be reduced, and distribution becomes more intensive.

At the maturity stage, the product has entered the most profitable stage. Production costs have fallen and sales have increased.

Saturation Stage

In the product saturation stage, product sales will neither increase nor decline because competitors have begun to grab part of the market share. At this point, most consumers/users use the product, but there are also many competing products.

At this point, the marketing team is focused on making the product become a preferred brand to avoid entering a decline.

Decline Stage

If your product does not become the preferred brand in the market, it will generally experience a decline. In the event of increased competition, sales will decline, which is hard to beat.

Also, new trends will emerge over time, just like the videocassette and CD example I mentioned earlier. If a company is in this stage, it will stop production, sell its company, or innovate and iterate its products in some way.

Inclusion, keep in mind your product life cycle whether you are developing a new product or working with a mature and well-established brand, knowing your product life cycle stages can help guide your marketing activities. Each stage will determine how you introduce your product to your audience, how to position your brand in the market, and how you decide to move on after the recession phase. Considering the life cycle of the product, you can invest in better marketing activities to obtain a higher return on investment

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