Product Lifecycle Marketing: What Matters Most at Every Stage
The classic graph for the product lifecycle is a sales curve that progresses through stages:
- a sharp rise from the x-axis as a product transitions from Introduction to the Growth phase;
- a sustained, rounded peak in Maturity;
- and a gradual Decline that portends its withdrawal from the market.
Each stage of the product lifecycle has implications for marketing. But an MBA-friendly curve rarely translates to reality. The goal of product lifecycle marketing is not to match the curve but to outline what may work best now and plan for the future.