Bringing a new product to market can feel like a rollercoaster of excitement, challenges, and uncertainties. But one thing you DON’T want to encounter is surprises.
Why?
Because in the land of go-to-market strategy, surprises can quickly become nightmares.
A cringe-worthy example of this was the highly anticipated 2016 launch of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7. Both the company and consumers were abuzz about this new smartphone’s cutting-edge features and advanced technology–that is until incidents began emerging post-launch of the devices catching fire or exploding due to battery issues.
Among reports of injuries and property damage, Samsung issued a global recall–an unprecedented move and financial setback for the company. They eventually discontinued the product, resulting in a significant loss of consumer trust and damage to the brand.
If this rollercoaster story has you feeling queasy, read on.
Ideas to Solution has the resources you need, and we understand how to plan and test your product so there are no surprises bringing it to market.
In this article, we’ll take you through what’s needed to create a go-to-market strategy to help you maintain control and ensure a successful and smooth launch for your product.
But first, let’s talk about why surprises can derail even your best-laid plans.
The adverse effects of surprises on product launches
Surprises can negatively affect the go-to-market plans for a product in a variety of ways.
Launch delays are a common disruption and can happen for any number of reasons. Technical glitches or flaws, supply chain interruptions, scope creep, testing and quality assurance, and compliance issues are just a few of many sneaky issues that can derail timelines.
Directly related to launch delays are missed opportunities. Delays and disruptions can wreak havoc, resulting in missed market windows and trends that affect a product’s reception and sales potential.
The mere mention of compliance issues can send product teams into turmoil with the potential for fines and legal issues that can stall a project launch. These and other problems can damage employee morale, affecting their creativity and productivity, which are essential during a product launch.
Increased costs stemming from unforeseen challenges, such as the need for additional resources and budget allocations, can crank up the overall budget for bringing the product to market.
Surprises like negative media attention, product recalls, and tarnished brand image can lead to reputational damage - every company’s nightmare and a problem that can take years to overcome.
Dissatisfied customers may lose trust in the brand and move to a competitor, resulting in a decline in loyalty and customer churn.
Still, feeling queasy?
Hang in there - With the right technologies and resources, your business can rapidly bring its products to market without sacrificing quality. A solid quality testing and documentation plan to reduce surprises is vital to the success of any project.
So, let’s move on to how I2S can help you avoid dreaded bottlenecks and other issues to increase efficiency for a successful launch.
Increasing efficiency for a successful product launch
Efficiency is defined as “skillfulness in avoiding wasted time and effort.” But when launching a product, quality must never be at the mercy of efficiency. At I2S, we believe a successful product launch must incorporate both quality and efficiency. What that looks like will vary depending on the product, but to ensure both, we ascribe to a strategy that can include:
Product testing and documentation planning are essential to a well-structured product development process. I2S requires rigorous testing to ensure that any bugs or flaws in the product design, functionality, or performance are uncovered and rectified. Product issues can increase costs and put investors on edge at any stage, but finding–and resolving them earlier is always better. Clear and comprehensive documentation of the product development process, including specifications, design plans, and test protocols, will help you replicate future improvements and development.
Requirements analysis for compliance and best-fit hardware and software technology.
Requirements analysis ensures the selection of the best-fit technology for a specific application or product. This includes documenting and analyzing the particular needs and constraints of the project to guide technology choices.
In addition, many industries require products to meet specific regulatory and compliance standards. Product testing is essential to identify problems early on to avoid potential legal and regulatory issues post-launch.
Consideration of IoT Solution may not be the first thing that comes to mind, but with a trusted partner like I2S, integrating IoT into your systems can improve product quality and reliability, as well as user satisfaction and operational efficiency. In fact, IoT integration can also bring valuable insights about product use and potential continuous improvements.
Partnering with experts can bring the extensive knowledge and experience necessary to simplify, eliminate bottlenecks, organize, and walk you through everything needed before you launch and beyond.
Why Ideas to Solution?
Ideas to Solution delivers tech-savvy business solutions and partners with the world's leading tech companies to help develop products. Not every company has a dedicated technology team with the deep knowledge we can offer. I2S brings together all the right resources to bring your vision to life and help you succeed.
Here are some of the reasons our clients continue working with us:
We offer fixed-price contracts and a detailed SOW for clarity.
Our detailed quality and documentation plan means no surprises.
I2S is committed to security and trade secret protection, adding another layer of protection by working with go-to-market partners who ensure confidentiality by offering separate project runs and dedicated rooms for high-priority projects as needed.
Engineering skills that span various specialties. Customers can choose the unique discipline needed for their project.
No minimums - use as much or as little support as you need. We can scale to meet your requirements from idea to finished certified project.
As a dedicated, trusted advisor to architect a solution for your project, we have the resources and understand how to plan and test your product so there are no surprises bringing it to market.
Are you ready to IMPROVE processes and PROFITS?
We’d love to hear from you! No industry is too complex to connect. Visit www.ideastosolution.com.
About the Author
Ideas to Solution provides everything you need under ONE roof. We work with the world's leading tech companies to help them develop the solutions and products of tomorrow.
Ideas to Solution brings together competent and creative on-site consultants and core teams to provide all the resources needed to get your product to market under one roof, with a global reach when needed.
No industry is too complex to connect - Ideas to Solution and highly-respected technical partners have an industrial focus for various markets: Consumer, Industrial, Medical, and Clean Tech.
Want to find out more? Visit www.ideastosolution.com
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