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WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT UNIT 4

The Differences in Growth and Matured Markets

Marketing Management BUS5112

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Like a human life, all the products in our market passes through various life stages;

referred as the product’s life cycle (Schneider, 2018). Some brands have a very short life

while others like cola’s lead a longer life. There are four stages in the product’s lifecycle. The

product starts on low sales on its introductory phase, increases sales and competitors on the

growth stage, reaches peak sale and profits with a stable number of opponents on maturity,

and sales drop on its final decline stage(Schneider, 2018). Cola is in its maturity phase where

the product is undergoing research and development to refine the production process; focus is

on finding improved ways for material procurement and making the product more

environment-friendly (Roberts, Bellafatto, Shumaker, & Marhefka, 2012). The case of phone

apps is entirely different where apps are still in its growing phase due to the vast popularity of

smartphones. There is an increasing number of consumers as well as competitors in this

industry. The characteristics of consumers and competitors are entirely different in both Cola

and app market. Therefore, marketers act differently while pricing, distributing and

advertising the product.

The soft drinks market is in its maturity phase where the sales have leveled off after

reaching the peak (Claessen, 2015). The market is currently saturated due to the increased

number of competitors. In case of the current players in this market, there is a slowdown in

sales growth; the products are sold at a marked down price, at the same time, there is an

increase in advertising and sales promotion, increase in product development(Claessen, 2015).

Product improvements are seen on its packing. Cans are now 50% recycled aluminum which

is usually produced next to beverage production plants, whereas PET plastics contain 25%

recyclable products(Roberts, Bellafatto, Shumaker, & Marhefka, 2012). Due to several

manufacturers, the consumers are demanding. The successful companies continually adapt

according to the changing consumer demands by adjusting product and marketing mixes

(Claessen, 2015). There are various factors which these companies modify to attract more
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customers, like improving the quality, features, designs in packing or even price reduction

(Claessen, 2015).

The case of app market is entirely different. This market is an after effect of the

smartphone revolution. App sales are climbing quickly as new users are exposed to this

sector, later buyers are often following their lead, usually due to a favorable word of

mouth(Claessen, 2015). The competition is quite fierce on this field; a newly introduced

feature is copied or revised by other manufacturers. During this phase, the primary focus of

these companies is to increase the market share(Claessen, 2015). The firm usually focuses

either high market share or high current profits, where they give up maximum profit margins

by spending much money on product improvements(Claessen, 2015). The product updates are

quite frequent with enhanced features and bug fixes, at the same time, the price remains the

same or lowered for market promotion. Cybersecurity is also a significant selling point for

this companies. The customers often switch between various apps due to the promotion and

product awareness organized by the app manufactures.

The strategies followed by marketers on growth and maturity phases are diverse.

Firms use market penetration price during the growth phase, while the primary focus on price

setting is to beat competitors in maturity stage(Claessen, 2015). An even more strong

distribution strategy is followed during the maturity stage. Due to the saturated market in the

maturity phase, the players try to reach the maximum number of customers possible. The

companies try to build product awareness and promote mass marketing in the growth stage,

however, in case of a mature market, the focus is on advertising brand differences and

benefits(Claessen, 2015). The following table illustrates the strategic discrepancies followed

by these companies to price, distribute, and promote the products which are in the growth and

maturity stages.
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Strategies
Growth Maturity
Price Penetrate market Price to beat competitors
Build intense Build more intense
Distribution distribution channels
Build awareness and
interest in the mass Emphasis on brand
Advertising market difference and definite

(Claessen, 2015)

In conclusion, it is critical for companies to understand the differences between this

stages of the product lifecycle, to adjust the marketing strategies to compete in this

competitive market. Proactive management of product lifecycle can help firm can extend the

growth phase and profits, at the same time, can prolong the maturity stage of a product

(Inc.com, 2018).

References:

Schneider, D. (2018, April 18). Product Life Cycle Stages. Retrieved from

https://ninjaoutreach.com/product-life-cycle-stages/

Roberts, B., Bellafatto, A., Shumaker, M., & Marhefka, N. (n.d.). The lifecycle of Coke.

Retrieved from http://php.scripts.psu.edu/users/m/j/mjs6322/project1/lifecycleofcoke.html

Claessens, M. (2015, July 13). Product Life Cycle Strategies and Characteristics. Retrieved

from https://marketing-insider.eu/product-life-cycle-strategies/

Inc.com. (2018). Industry Life Cycle. Retrieved from

https://www.inc.com/encyclopedia/industry-life-cycle.html