The new product development process usually starts with Idea Generation.
There are 5 phases of product development process in the initial phase of product development where the new and innovative ideas are generated only to go through screening and concept development before reaching the final stage of product introduction in the market.
5 Phases of Product Development Process
As most entrepreneurs and business owners may know, new product development is indeed a significant process that small as well as large enterprises go through for their survival and expansion. The business environment becomes competitive by the day, and everyone has to adopt new strategies and ways to keep up with the market trends. From product conception to product launch in the market, everything comes under the new product development cycle or process. To make the product development process simpler, we have enlisted here the five phases of the product development process a business or individual needs for new product development.
Idea Generation
In this first stage of the new product development process, the businesses will define and clear new and innovative ideas regarding the product. Some of the crucial sources of idea generation come directly or indirectly from business owners, customers, competitors, journals, etc. The ideation sources may vary depending on the business models and hence, the product concept or idea must be well-defined before the beginning of actual product development. The ideas generated during this phase of the product development process will act as an important pillar for the entire product development cycle.
Screening
Once you have the list of ideas generated based on the customer and competitor analysis, you have to go through screening, the second phase of product development. The main purpose of the screening phase is to filter out or churn down the product ideas to the appropriate and viable ones. Also, it will be essential to take opinions from employees, relevant businesses, and of course, customers in order to avoid costly and expensive options. At the end of the screening product development phase, your business will have a few product ideas that are reliable and feasible from the large pool of ideas.
Concept Development
Concept development is considered to be the third stage of the product development process, which involves some research and analysis of potential costs, revenue, and approximate profit to be generated within a specific time period after launching the product. Utilizing the SWOT analysis, the firm will be successful in finding out the strengths, weaknesses, threats, and new opportunities in the global or local market. Defining the market through important market segmentation, the firm will set out to identify the product niche which affects most decisions.
Product Development
During this phase of the product development process, the expert and experienced product developers, designers, and engineers will work on the finalized product design to develop a new product from scratch. The product will be manufactured on precise and detailed information and instruction in such a way that it fulfills all customer needs and requirements. After the analysis of a market-ready product, the business owner will be asked whether to go for large-scale product manufacturing or small-scale production.
Commercialization
The new product development process starts with idea generation and ends with product commercialization or product launching – the last phase of the product development process. In this phase of product development, the business owner or entrepreneur will begin the promotion of products through effective and essential marketing campaigns. Based on the concept development research and data, the location, timing, and potential customers will be defined for the product introduction in the market.