Product life cycle (PLC) Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Product life cycle (PLC) - Assignment Example Introduction Stage Pepsi Next is a beverage drink manufactured by Pepsi. Pepsi introduced it into the United States market in 2012, and therefore, it is at the introduction stage. Ever since, Pepsi has introduced the product to the international market. The company had a strong launch for the product. This shows it commitment to making the product globally recognizable. Its target market includes lapse cola drinkers. According to Pilger,†the company had lost a significant number of cola drinkers to competitors and the main aim of Pepsi Next was to win them back† (54). The company used â€Å"drink it to believe it† tag line in launching the product. The philosophy has worked well for the company. In terms of promotion mix, the company applied television adverts, direct mail, digital marketing, and heavy free trials. The product is at the introduction stage because of the high cost per a new customer acquired. The high cost is associated with the marketing costs, for example, the heavy free trials. The company offered free samples for the product including the over 800 Wal-Mart stores. Although the company’s top leadership believes that the product has performed beyond expectation, it has registered low sales. For example, because of a strong launch and promotional activities, the product had acquired a market share of 1 percent. However, the market share has declined to 0.6 percent because of low repeat sales. However, the management is convinced that the product would perform better in future. Growth stage Coke Zero is a soft drink manufactured by Coca-Cola. The company launched the product in 2006. It is at the growth stage in the product life cycle. Since the product was introduced into the market, it has been registering increasing sales. It has contributed a lot to the company’s profitability. For example, within the two years of the introduction into the UK market, the product sales reached ?75 million. Hays states that â⠂¬Å"the drink has been launched in over 70 countries and is experiencing growth in over 80 percent of its new markets† (98). The target market for the product is young men and women who are concerned about their sugar intake. After the product was introduced into the market, Pepsi sugar free drinks experienced decreased demand within the first two years. Diet Pepsi and Pepsi Max, for example registered a demand of 129 million liters for the seven months after the product was launched. This was a decline compared to the demand of 138 million liters registered within the same period the previous year. Coke zero currently is registering increasing profit and an average cost per customer. This is because there are no costly promotional activities going on as the product is already established. Maturity Stage Sprite manufactured by Coca-cola is at maturity stage. The soft drink has been in existence since 1961. The product is at the sales peak, which cannot grow further. Baldwin st ates â€Å"Sprite has a low cost per customer (32)†. One reason behind this is the fact that the product is already globally recognizable and there are no costly promotional methods used in marketing it. There are as well high profits associated with the product now. Additionally, Sprite does not face a stiff competition as it was facing during the growth stage. Decline stage Diet Dr. Pepper, on the other hand is a soft drink that was introduced in 1963. After it was introduced, the product enjoyed increased support from its target