Launching a product is not as simple as creating it and releasing it into the world. Without a solid plan, bringing a product to market can prove impossible. In fact, Harvard research shows that there are over 30,000 new products launched every year, but over 80% of them fail. It’s safe to say that getting a product to market is far from guaranteed.
Innovation is integral to success today. New or re-branded products and services are meant to fill consumer demand or capitalize on an opportunity in the marketplace. When bringing new ideas or products into reality, businesses must consider the New Product Development process. This process was developed on the back of comprehensive research on products that failed and succeeded.
How to Develop a New Product
The process listed here is recognized as the best practice for bringing concepts to the market. Also known as the Stage-Gate innovation process, has eight crucial steps for successful product development. Keep reading below to learn more about these steps and how to utilize them for your business.
Topics: Austin Engineered Solutions™
Romeo, Mich., April 17, 2018 - L&L Products and Austin Hardware& Supply have jointly entered into an agreement for Austin Hardware & Supply to become an official distributor for L&L Products. Austin Hardware & Supply will focus on providing heat cured tapes, composite panel stiffeners, in addition to traditional adhesive and sealant technology. They provide a national network of warehouses, have the ability to provide Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) Services, and can strengthen the customer-vendor relationship by supplying adjacent technology for doors and enclosures.
Topics: Austin Hardware® News
In an economic era of perpetual uncertainty, coupled with consistent increases in shipping costs, it's incredibly vital to exploit as many action plans as possible to lower freight costs. Fortunately, the number of viable strategies to do this may be more abundant than you realize.
Topics: Freight
While it has been around for over a century, within the industrial supply sector, vending technology has been one of the fastest growing markets in about the last half-decade to help improve inventory management.
Topics: Warehouse Management
The internet is replete with examples of how to leverage Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter to improve the sales of your business. However, a popular social media platform which is too often ignored is Instagram.
Granted, working with a format which primarily promotes products and brands using pictures can seem challenging at first, particularly depending on your industry, but when done correctly, a well-curated Instagram page can be a phenomenal brand awareness and sales generation platform.
Topics: Industry News (General)
A CRM is not just “another software installation.” It is a powerful engine that should be the front-facing tool for Management, Inside/Outside Sales staff, Engineering, Marketing, and Customer Service. Focusing on the “front-end” processes and user adoption can and will help with the CRM’s return on investment. It should NOT be used as a micromanagement tool or feel like a “big brother.” When implemented correctly, the system will run smoothly and give a company a competitive edge.
Topics: Industry News (General)
The benefits of marketing automation in the B2B space are impossible to deny nowadays. Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’re sure to have at least heard of it. If you’re serious about taking your business to the next level, marketing automation adoption may just be the best strategic move you could make this year. More than half* of B2B Fortune 500 companies have started using marketing automation. The biggest businesses in the world clearly see the immense gains that can be made by automating their marketing efforts. To understand more, let’s consider the advantages of marketing automation.
Topics: Industry News (General)
The Future of Warehouse Management & Logistics
"Warehouse management and logistics face tremendous challenges due to the consistently growing e-commerce sector. Whereas brick-and-mortar store logistics are subject to general regulations (most notably due to business hours), online retailers experience almost no limits when it comes to time and quantities. This is why warehouse logistics has to be flexible as it pertains to time and the capacity to store a wide range of products. It requires space-saving storage options and most notably adequate manpower to process these orders."
Topics: Warehouse Management
In the past, warehouse operations were highly dependent on dozens of trained employees operating expensive loading and shipping equipment. Compared to the modern era, the 20th-century warehouse industry work was error-prone, relatively expensive, and labor intensive.
What's more, anticipated technological developments in the industry are prone to drastically increase warehouse operation productivity and reduce costs in myriad ways.