*2.3.1. Product life cycle patterns*

Some products follow the idealized S-shaped life cycle as explained above, while others follow some patterns depending on how they are managed in the market by the company. This

are already in the market [6]. In addition, Windley sees product management as the process of designing, building, operating, and maintaining a good or service [9]. From these definitions, it can be clearly seen that product management is all about conceiving, developing, maintaining, and controlling the product sustainably over its life cycle. It deals with deciding on what the product will be and ensuring that it remains like that in the market profitably. Thus, an effective and high performing product management in a nutshell, enables companies to sell

Product Development and Management Strategies http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.80345 21

Similarly, product management can be seen as the act of effective customer life cycle Management. According to Windley, "customer life cycle consists of two phases; customer buying the product and customer using the product," [9]. Here, it is important to add the third stage, which is the decision to discard the product by the same customer. But in product management, companies are always trying to avoid the third stage because it leads to product decline or death in the market. In general, there are two methods of managing a product; the

Perhaps a more comprehensive definition of product lifecycle management is the one offered by Razvan Udroiu who views it as "a business strategy for managing the entire lifecycle of products. This strategy includes the management of conception, design, design validation and simulation, prototyping, manufacturing, quality control, use, maintenance and disposal of products, having integrated people, methods, CAx tools, processes, documentation, and data management solutions" [10]. The import of this definition is that product life cycle management can be seen from two different angles; traditional and modern perspectives. The traditional product life cycle management is very conservative and outdated. There is no innovation and creativity in it but rather a dormant, rigid, and stone-age orientation. Traditional farming system, local textiles, blacksmith, cobblers, and pottery especially in some African countries fall in this category. There is no modification or addition of new features but a

The modern perspectives on the other hand deals with the use of modern technology to produce and manage products overtime. There is creativity, innovation, and frequent modifications here which, in turn, lead to the development of many products variants and even new inventions. The application of computer-aided designs (CAD), robotics, drones, internet facilities, and other digital devices fall into this category. The design, manufacture, use and management of airlines services are examples of modern product life cycle management. To remain competitive and relevant in today's market, a company has to adopt the modern per-

The key focus here is to successfully and proactively manage products throughout their lifetime, by applying the appropriate resources and sales and marketing strategies, depending

The nature and characteristics of the introductory stage have been discussed earlier in this chapter. Therefore, the main challenge in this stage is that when a new product is launched,

what is developed and develop what they can sell.

religious utilization and protection of the past.

spective of product life cycle management.

on which stage a product is in the cycle.

*3.1.1. Strategies in the introductory stage*

**3.1. Product life cycle management strategies**

product life cycle and individual product management strategies.

**Figure 2.** Other product life cycle pattern. Source: [7].

goes to show that product management plays a major role in determining the length of a products life cycle. A product can follow a pattern known as **growth-slump-maturity pattern**. This kind of pattern usually encounters a rapid growth initially but later in the life cycle sales decline with a stabilization at a certain level. One of the examples of such product in Nigeria is the Globacom mobile communication services which experienced a very high sales volume at introduction but slumped down and stabilizes presently.

The **cycle-recycle pattern** depicts a two-phased product life cycle. At the initial phase, a product goes through the ideal stages probably up to decline stage. But after using some strategies to reinvigorate and re-launch the product in the market, it starts another life cycle and depending on how it is managed, it may stay longer or shorter in the market. A good example here is Maclean toothpaste in Nigeria, which went out of the market before it was later reintroduced into the Nigerian market as a new product thus starting a new life cycle entirely.

Another common pattern is called **scalloped pattern**. This is where sales enjoy a succession of growth periods based on the discovery of new product characteristics, uses, or users [7]. Omo and Maggi cube brands in Nigeria show a scalloped life cycle because of the way each of these brands is managed for a long period of time. **Figure 2** illustrates the life cycle patterns.
