BUS 3500 February 24

Chapter 9 - Product Concepts - DEFINED: a product is defined as everything, both favorable and unfavorable, that a person receives in an exchange. CLASSIFIED: The types of products range from business or industrial products (used to manufacture other goods/services, or re-sell to other customers), to consumer products (personal wants), convenience products (inexpensive, little shopping effort), shopping products (which require comparison shopping) - to speciality products which require extensive search behavior and substitutions are not acceptable - and to what is called an "unsought" product - things not actively sought but needed eventually - such as insurance or burial plots. AND FURTHER DEFINING: The chapter went into defining product items in categories including product lines, product mix (in width and depth), talked about product modification, planned obsolescence and product line extension. I was most interested in the sections on branding and packaging - strategies for domestic vs. international marketing of a product. As a marketing/pr person, I like to consider the potential impact of persuasive labeling - using the package to help sell the product. I designed a package for a seafood salad product when I worked in Denver and the considerations of packaging shape, design, graphics, color, all came into play. Had I read this chapter prior to that I could have done a better job at it.