**1.2. Product features**

**3.** Developing the marketing mix program that consists of taking decision on product, price,

The above process is what is usually referred to as the marketing management process which adopts the marketing concept philosophy. This is built on the notion of finding out the needs and wants of the customers before developing the products to satisfy the identified needs and wants. This goes to show that products are developed to solve any identified customers' prob-

Product is one of the four elements of the marketing mix; the other three being price, place and promotion, which are all geared towards serving and satisfying the target market. Companies fix the product's price, promote and distribute it to the target market. Therefore, a product is the basic element of marketing mix. The word "Product" has several meanings, but it is generally a bundle of satisfaction that customers purchase or patronize in order to solve a problem. In our day-to-day life, we use many goods, such as soap, biro, book, ball, etc.; as well as services like banking transport, healthcare, or legal services. The term product has been defined differently by various authors and authorities in the field. For example, Harry [1] defines a product as the sum of the physical and psychological satisfactions the buyer receives when he makes a purchase. It is thus a tangible and/or intangible attribute that is offered to the market for sales. Other definitions of a

**i.** "A product is anything that can be offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use, or consumption that might satisfy a want or need: it includes physical objects, services,

**iii.** "A product consists of the intrinsic features, extrinsic characteristics, and its intangibles

Thus, from the above definitions, a product can be described as anything that is capable of providing solution to a customer's perceived problem whether it is physical or psychological. Therefore, any product that fails to provide the needed solution to a customer is a not a good product. To this end, when a student buys a biro to write test but it fails to write smoothly, it is not a good product; or when you pay for a healthcare service but get poor service in return. So, to a consumer, the product is anything, which satisfies his needs and wants while to a marketer, the product is a bundle of attributes that can bring returns through satisfaction of customers. It is also pertinent to note that in marketing, the concept of a product covers goods, services, ideas, people, places, and organizations except

**ii.** "Product is a bundle of utilities that satisfy the customer's needs and wants, [3]."

place (distribution), and promotion.

12 Product Lifecycle Management - Terminology and Applications

lems and not the other way round.

**1.1. Definition of Product**

product include:

associations [1]".

otherwise specified.

**4.** Implementation of the marketing plan and program. **5.** Control and evaluation of the marketing program.

personalities, organizations, and ideas [2]."

To understand the concept of a product well, it is pertinent to consider the issue of product features. These features help to give a vivid description of a product and what a buyer is really buying in a given product. The important features of product are:
