Gaga's and Sherbetter New Product Development Process

New Product Development Process

With regard to consumer appeal, compare and contrast the GaGa's brand with the Sherbetter name of the product. To be successful in any business, you have to be able to differentiate your business from the competitor’s (Lamb et al, 2014).  When calling their product Sherbetter, it really didn’t have that much appeal.  As Jim wife stated, “their product didn’t fall under ice-cream but Sherbert neither (Lamb et al., 2014).  Fortunately, when Jim and his wife initially started the business, they branded it with the GaGa Trademark which sounds and whole lot better.  GaGa was Jim’s Grandmother and this is where he originally got the recipe from.  So, it makes better sense to go by GaGa than Sherbert and it has more appeal.  You always want to do something for your product that helps it to be as successful as it possibly can be. Jim wife is right; you do not want to try to be something that you are not.  Creating the best name for your product is very important because it does create a trademark that can last with your product forever.  GaGa is creative and has meaning.  Even over time the name has developed as Lady GaGa is a popular artist that shares the name in a way.  Adored celebrities can help to boost the sales of your product in many ways whether it’s know to them or not.

Why did Jim King and his wife choose the GaGa's brand over the use of Sherbetter as the brand of the product? Jim King and his wife choose the GaGa’s brand over the use of Sherbetter because it just was better.  It sounded better and it better related to the product.  GaGa’s brand better related to the whole creation and invention of the product.  Jim King took his grandmother’s recipe that went by the name GaGa and sold it.  It started off successfully and took flight.  Anywhere or anything that helps your creativity begin do not leave it behind.  It’s that first thought or the road in the beginning that leads you to success.  Part of being successful is the fight to withstand anything and to stand out in a positive way.  As a business owner, you want your product to leave lasting impressions that will make the consumer be willing to purchase the product again.  Part of being grand is to have a grand or a name that consumers will remember.  Jim and his wife chose the name that was smart, full of meaning and unique which was the best choice for their product and business (Lamb et al.,2014).  Having a good product and name is part of the retailing mix (Lam et al.,2014).

On GaGa’s website at GaGagourmet .com, it offers an ice cream called Key-Lime with tastes like the flavor of Lime.  The product features a bright green color which compliments the name of the product.  It has the GaGa Trademark on the the top of the top and on the jar of continents visible to anyone whom happens to see the product.  It has the name of the ice-cream under the trademark.  The majority of the jar is white.   The benefits are the fact that it is presumed better than regular ice-cream.  Let GaGa trademark explain it, “this ice-cream is started with grandmother’s homemade recipe and includes fresh lime zest, all natural key lime juice and a hint of whipped cream”.  It is the most silky smooth, luxurious frozen treat that you could every try” (Lamb et al.,2014).  GaGa gourmet ice-cream chose features that would attract their consumers.  They used bright colors that compliments each of their products and has that unique taste.  See, along with a products unique taste, it should have a unique name and a unique look.  If you were shopping in the grocery store, you would probably pay attention to more fancy brighter colors than duller ones.  GaGa’s retailing mix works for their business.  “Retailing mix is a combination of the six P’s, Product, Place, Promotion, Price, Presentation and Personnel- to sell goods and services to the ultimate consumer” (Lamb et al.,2014).

1. What type of consumer product is the Sherbetter bar?

a. Shopping Product

b. Convenience Product

c. Specialty Product

d. Unsought Product

ANSWER:  The Sherbetter bar would fall under specialty product.  First, it is a trademarked product so that mean no one else can sell this product but GaGa.  It has a unique flavor and recipe that separates this product form the rest of the products in its market.  Specialty products are more appealing and well distinguished which attracts consumers (Lamb et al., 2014).   For instance, you will not see this product with a Kroger’s name brand on it.  There wouldn’t be an absolute substitute for this particular product.  It name is special and its trademark is very special, as well.  The flavor and the recipe cannot be mimicked.  The demand supply of this product and more help to make this a special product. Also, the fact that consumers go out looking for this product let you know that it is a specialty product.

2. When GaGa’s developed Sherbetter Bars, what type of new product was that?

a. Repositioned product

b. Improvement on an existing product

c. Addition to an existing product line

d. New product line

ANSWER: When GaGa’s developed Sherbetter Bars, this was a new product line.  As Jim and his wife discussed, “there is always fear of introducing a new product because you are afraid of clannism, thinking that the new product will overtake the older ones” (Lamb et al., 2014).  They just had ice-cream until he invented the bars.  So the bars are a whole different ball game and would fall under slightly different categories.  You can tell that it is a new product because it is something that they created and had not distributed before.  Any time something different is created from the original formula and look, it is most likely a new product.  Sometimes it could be an old product being revised but in this case it would be a new product line.

 

 

3. Performing which of the following steps in the new-product development process would have helped Jim King realize that the novelty bars and the pints of Sherbetter would not be shelved together?

a. Business Analysis

b. Development

c. Test Marketing

d. Commercialization

ANSWER:  A Business Analysis is beneficial to any business especially in the process of introducing a new product line.  “Business analysis is the second stage of the screening process where the preliminary figures for demand, cost, and sales and profitability are calculated” (Lamb et al., 2014).  Also, a common question that fall in the business analysis stage would be “what new facilities would be needed if any?” (Lamb et al.,2014).  Jim’s wife stated herself, “they should Have taken more time to research every aspect and detail” (Lamb et al.,2014).  Whatever idea or plan that a business comes up with should always be thoroughly researched.  When you research, you know what to expect and what odds you are up against.

 

 

 

4.  At which stage of the new product development process should GaGa’s have conducted its extensive focus groups and any research it needed before putting GaGa’s Sherbetter on the shelves?

a. Idea Generation

b. Development

c. Idea Screening

d. Business Analysis

ANSWER:  The Business Analysis stage is the stage that GaGa’s should have conducted its extensive focus groups and research.  “New product ideas that survive the initial screening process move to the Business Analysis Stage where figures for demand, costs, sales and profitability are calculated” (Lamb et al.,2014).  During this process, researching where the bars would be in their distribution would fall in this category.  You can never know too much about your product, even avenues or possibilities for it.  You would want to research and learn as much as possible about it’s positive and negative outcomes.  Knowing your marketing and distribution field is a plus in business.  Not having complete information leads to problems and loop holes which could be prevented by knowing as much as you can about your product and product market.

5. In what stage of the new product development process should GaGa's have introduced Sherbetter and the companies marketing program into the market to gauge consumer reactions?

a. Test Marketing

b. Target Marketing

c. Business Analysis

d. Commercialization

ANSWER: “Test marketing is the limited introduction of a product and a marketing program to determine the actions of potential customers in a market situation” (Lamb et al.,2014).  “Test marketing allows management to evaluate alternative strategies and to assess how well the various aspects of the marketing mix fit together” (Lamb et al.,2014).  So, this would be the stage of the new- product development process where they could seek consumer’s reactions which is important.  Consumer reactions are important because you basically got to provide the consumer’s wants and needs.  If the consumers are not interested in your new product line, then it very well may not be successful.  All business should take all necessary steps to maintaining profit for their products.

6. In what stage of the product life cycle is Sherbetter?

a.   Introduction

b.   Growth

c.   Maturity

d.   Decline

ANSWER:  Sherbetter would be in the decline stage as this is the stage of death (Lamb et al.,2014).  If it is no longer the business name, then it has met its death.  Jim and his wife no longer use that name foe their product.  They use their trademark name GaGa.  Basically, Sherbetter is a thing of the past.  “There are four stages to a products life cycle which would be the introductory stage, the growth stage, the maturity stage and the decline stage” (Lamb et al., 2014).  “The PLC is a biological metaphor that traces the stages of a products acceptance from its introductory (birth) to its decline (death)” (Lamb et al.,2014).  Goodbye Sherbetter and hello GaGa.

References

Lamb, C. W., Hair, J. F., & McDaniel, C. (2014). MKTG7. Mason, OH: Cengage.

http://www.gagagourmet.com/