Glossary
Chapter 8: Product DecisionsJump to a chapter's terms: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24
- Accessory equipment
- Tools and equipment used in production or office activities that do not become part of the final physical product. p. 252
- Actual product
- A composite of the features and capabilities offered in a product, quality and durability, design and product styling, packaging and brand name. p. 253
- Augmented product
- Support aspects of a product, including customer service, warranty, delivery and credit, personnel, installation and after sales support. p. 253
- Component parts
- Parts that become a part of the physical product and are either finished items ready for assembly or products that need little processing before assembly. p. 252
- Consumable supplies
- Supplies that facilitate production and operations but do not become part of the finished product. p. 253
- Consumer products
- Items purchased to satisfy personal or family needs. p. 249
- Convenience products
- Inexpensive, frequently purchased and rapidly consumed items that demand only minimal purchasing effort. p. 250
- Core product
- The level of a product that provides the perceived or real core benefit or service. p. 253
- Decline stage
- The last stage of a product's life cycle, during which sales fall rapidly. p. 260
- Depth (of product mix)
- The number of different products offered in each product line. p. 256
- Differential advantage
- An attribute of a product or service highly desired by targeted customers and not currently offered by rival companies or products. p. 262
- Good
- A tangible physical entity. p. 249
- Growth stage
- The stage at which a product's sales rise rapidly and profits reach a peak, before levelling off into maturity. p. 258
- Guarantee
- An agreement specifying what the producer or supplier will do if the product malfunctions. p. 261
- Ideas
- Concepts, philosophies, images or issues that provide the psychological stimulus to solve problems or adjust to the environment. p. 249
- Industrial or business-to-business products
- Items bought for use in a company's operations or to make other products. p. 249
- Industrial services
- The intangible products that many businesses use in their operations, including financial, legal, marketing research, computer programming and operation, caretaking and printing services. p. 253
- Introduction stage
- A product's first appearance in the marketplace, before any sales or profits have been made. p. 257
- Major equipment
- Large tools and machines used for production purposes. p. 252
- Maturity stage
- The stage during which a product's sales curve peaks and starts to decline, and profits continue to decline. p. 259
- MRO items
- Consumable supplies in the sub-categories of maintenance, repair and operating (or overhaul) supplies. p. 253
- Process materials
- Materials used directly in the production of other products, but not readily identifiable. p. 253
- Product
- Everything, both favourable and unfavourable, tangible and intangible, received in an exchange of an idea, service or good. p. 249
- Product item
- A specific version of a product that can be designated as a distinct offering among a business's products. p. 255
- Product life cycle
- The four major stages for products: introduction, growth, maturity and decline. p. 256
- Product line
- A group of closely related product items that are considered a unit because of marketing, technical or end use considerations. p. 255
- Product mix
- The composite group of products that a company makes available to customers. p. 255
- Quality
- The core product's ability to achieve the basic functional requirements expected of it. p. 260
- Raw materials
- The basic materials that become part of physical products. p. 252
- Service
- The application of human and mechanical efforts to people or objects in order to provide intangible benefits to customers. p. 249
- Shopping products
- Items chosen more carefully than convenience products; consumers will expend consider-able effort in planning and purchasing these items. p. 250
- Speciality products
- Items that possess one or more unique characteristics; consumers of speciality products plan their purchases and will expend considerable effort to obtain them. p. 251
- Unsought products
- Items that are purchased when a sudden problem arises or when aggressive selling is used to obtain a sale that otherwise would not take place. p. 252
- Width (of product mix)
- The number of product lines a company offers. p. 256