The product life cycle describes the stages a new product goes through in the marketplace: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. Product sales growth and profitability differ at each stage, and marketing managers have marketing objectives and marketing mix strategies unique to each stage based on consumer behavior and competitive factors.

In the introductory stage, the need is to establish primary demand, whereas the growth stage requires selective demand strategies. In the maturity stage, the need is to maintain market share; the decline stage necessitates a deletion or harvesting strategy. Some important aspects of product life cycles are their length, the shape of the sales curve, how they vary by product classes and forms, and the rate at which consumers adopt products.

1. Pick a product and let us know where you think it is in the product life cycle.

2. What are some marketing efforts you would choose for this product based on its location in the PLC.

Feel free to choose a product that interests you.