The Value of Product Testing Essay -- Business Market Research

Based upon 30 years of marketing seek experience, spanningthousands of interrogation projects,I am convinced that output testingis the single most valuable marketingresearch that most companiesever do. The great appraise of intersectiontesting is, perhaps, best illustratedby some of its many uses. It corporation beused to Achieve product transcendence over competitive products. Continuously improve productperformance and customersatisfaction (i.e., to obligateproduct superiority, especially asconsumer tastes evolve overtime). Monitor the capableness threat levelsposed by competitive products tounderstand competitive strengthsand weaknesses. Cost-reduce product formulationsand/or processing methods, whilemaintaining product superiority. Measure the effects of maturation uponproduct quality (shelf-lifestudies). Implicitly measure the effects ofprice, brand name, or packagingupon perceived product performance/quality. Provide guidance to researchand development in creating newp roducts or upgrading existingproducts. Monitor product quality fromdifferent factories, throughdifferent channels of distribution,and from year to year. prognosticate consumer acceptance ofnew products.Companies committed to rigorousproduct testing and persistingproduct improvement mickle, inmost instances, touch productsuperiority over their competitors.Product superiority, in turn, helpsstrengthen brand share, magnifiesthe positive effects of all marketingactivities (advertising, promotion,selling, etc.), and often allows thesuperior product to command apremium price relative to competitors.Most companies, unfortunately,do very myopic product testing.Few companies really u... ...he structureand mechanics of execution leave behindvary greatly from product categoryto product category. For example,computer computer software can be tested,furniture can be tested, store environmentscan be tested, dog foodcan be tested, airline divine service can betested, equipment prototypes ca nbe tested, etc.Competitive receiptsThe ultimate benefit of producttesting is competitive advantage.Product superiority is the surestway to dominate a product categoryor an industry. Companies apply to ongoing product improvementand product testing canachieve product superiority, andachieve a competitive advantage ofgreat strategical significance.Companies that ignore productimprovement and product testing,on the other hand, may wakeup one morning to find themselveson the scepter of extinction from acompetitor who has built a bettermousetrap.