Groove’s customer service platform almost died in the introductory stage because they forgot to listen to their customers. They drew people in with a product they assumed would be a hit and pushed forward without taking in customer feedback.
The result? People had a terrible experience using their product.
After turning their attention toward feedback and testing, letting the voice of their customers fuel their content strategy and product development, they took off. Three years later, they were a $5 million business.
Not revisiting your marketing objectives in the growth phase of your product lifecycle is the death knell of many startups.
In this article, you’ll learn how to develop a marketing strategy for the growth stage. We’ll also share how to achieve marketing goals at this stage, using your existing customers and experimentation to increase sales and loyalty.
What is the growth stage of the product life cycle (and why is it important)?
The growth stage is the period of the product life cycle with the sharpest increase in sales thanks to a boost in-market presence. It’s the second of the four product life cycle stages:
- Introduction stage;
- Growth stage;
- Maturity stage;
- Decline stage.
After getting your product to market and working to gain traction (with new insights but little in the way of financial reward), the growth stage accelerates your ascent. Your audience is aware of and has accepted your product.
Generating interest and capturing demand this way comes with several benefits.
- Increased consumer awareness: More people using and talking about your product helps to increase market size and demand, leading to a boost in sales;
- Lower costs: The large outlay of product development and marketing in the introduction stage can start to be clawed back through economies of scale, more efficient routes to market, and new distribution channels;
- Greater profits: The combination of more product sales and reduced costs can see an upturn in profits and margins on products sold.
Increased demand brings challengers looking to benefit from the developing market. It also means you have to contend with no longer being the “new” product and the hype boost that can bring.
For this reason, the growth stage is the best time to innovate: first by introducing new product features or product lines to diminish competitors attempting to copy, then by capitalizing on your standing to position your product as the best choice.
How to identify if you’re moving from the introduction stage to the growth stage
In the introduction phase, the focus is on creating product awareness to motivate your target market to consider you when making a buying decision.
The introductory stage is rarely profitable because of high distribution and promotion expenses but low sales.
You’re expending a lot of resources trying to build awareness and find a foothold in the market, so your customers continue purchasing and spreading the word.
This is why fads tend to rise and fall without ever making it out of the introductory phase: They’ve failed…
![How Strategy Can Build Your Marketing Message – Jay Vics [VIDEO]](https://jeffcassman.biz/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/YOUTUBETHUMB_StrategyJayVics_1-1200x675.jpg)
{{{ data._highlightResult.post_title.value }}} {{{ data._snippetResult[‘content’].value }}} ]]> {{{ data._highlightResult.name.value }}} ]]> 
