Product development

Abstract

In Chapter 2, the first stages of developing the consumer-product relationship were considered. These were market research, identifying potential markets, idea evaluation, concept development and setting goals and objectives.In order to progress from the concept development phase, the next requirement in developing a consumer–product relationship is to consider the nature of a food and beverage product. Within this phase, questions need to be addressed, and decisions made, in order to turn a consumer focus (the abstract concept that consumers purchase) into an operational focus. Customers may view a food and beverage product as a quick snack, a night out, a celebration, an indulgent extravagance or an absolute necessity. The nature of the occasion and the expectations from the meal experience is varied. What is one customer’s dining out is another’s eating out. The concepts are what customers purchase, but the food and beverage product, as an amalgamation of the tangible and intangible elements, is what operators construct and provide in order to satisfy the customer requirements. The marketing focus towards food and beverage service delivery tends to identify the product as: a central consumer concept known as the core concept; a surrounding layer of tangible features, and an outer layer of augmentation (see Section 1.3, p. 19 on product augmentation). Placing this framework on a food and beverage product might show that the core product is, for example, a wedding celebration, the tangible product is a full wedding banquet, and the augmented product includes the opportunity to pay by instalments. It is helpful to apply this type of product framework to the development of concepts. This is where frameworks such as the meal experience can be useful.