Before you sell a new product or service, you need to know who will buy it.

Many great companies have launched amazing products that have failed because they didn’t understand their target market and potential customers.

Knowing how to approach a new or changing market is critical to the success of any product or service. Understanding the customers and competitors allows you to craft the proper market entry strategy and to create an effective marketing plan.

 

CLIENTS HAVE USED BRIGHTLEAF TO PERFORM MARKET RESEARCH TO:

  • Identify gaps in the market for new product development

  • Determine when and how to enter new or existing markets

  • Discover new applications for existing products

  • Create business plans to attract investors or raise funding

  • Prepare marketing plans and campaigns

  • Assist in creating pricing models to maximize profitability

 

Case Study – Handling Industry Wide Recession

The Situation:

2010 was a difficult year for the client.  They were experiencing significantly lower sales for the second year and were looking to reverse the trend of sinking revenues.  With an 80% market share, the client was the leading manufacturer of parts for the marine industry supplying parts to both manufacturers and boat owners with a strong competency in plastics manufacturing. Their segment of the marine industry experienced its largest contraction in nearly 50 years during 2008 and 2009 with a rebound not expected until 2012.  The contraction was enough to drive many of the weaker players out of the market, but even the strong had to fight for what market demand remained.

The Need:

The client was looking for ways to improve revenue, recover ahead of the predicted sector rebound, and reduce their exposure to the volatility of a single industry by finding new ways to leverage their manufacturing expertise in order to serve new markets.  They sought help in identifying markets with the greatest potential to enter and in finding ways to outperform the competition in order to improve sales. The two strategic goals for the client were risk reduction and growth of revenue and profits.

The Solution:

Brightleaf developed a process for the client to clarify their category choices and evaluate new product opportunities.  The usage of Ansoff modeling was instrumental in developing the plan for strategic growth and risk reduction.  This improved the process to weigh options such as expanding internationally, growing product lines within their industry, and entering new industries altogether.

Tools were also developed to determine where to best focus on the product mix.  Each product candidate was put through a rigorous process of research, screening, and feasibility evaluation in order to minimize the amount of time and effort required to identify the products with the greatest potential. Utilizing the framework developed by Brightleaf provided the client with a means with which to focus decisions and to then compare the available options.

The Outcome:

The client moved forward with the plan and developed several new products to serve industries outside of their core business in marine industry.  They have since reported that their new directions have been successful and that they are now “alive and well and our non-marine business is growing!”