2. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to our
faculty Dr.Ruchi Sharma(Faculty,Marketing,IMM-delhi) who
gave us the golden opportunity to do this wonderful project on
the topic “UN-MET NEED” which also helped me in doing a lot
of research and innovative that helped in understand the
subject and its’ details for further assistance
3. OBJECTIVE
The objective of this project was to identify the Unmet Needs of
the consumers through lot of research n surveys. With the
identified unmet needs, selecting the most feasible one and
developing it into a unique and creative idea for the Product
Development was the main objective of the project. Also
delineating the STP for the product and choosing strategies to
develop the new product in the market.
4. METHODS OR TOOLS
The method used for this projectwas a research process based on
two phases
1) Secondary Research
2) Primary Research
The note pad, pen, pencil etc were used for collecting the primary
data and the use of internetand various other articles from
newspapers and magazines were taken into consideration for
collecting the secondary data,
5. THE UNMET NEED
Every morning we wake up and get ready for some work or going to
offices or colleges. Most of the time people are in a hurry, as times passes
so quickly while getting ready for our work. Brushing our teeth, going
washroom, taking a shower, wearing proper clothes and eating our
breakfast is something we guys are used to. But what if apart from these
regular activities we have to do some extra work too. It’s actually annoying
if any extra work is loaded on our shoulder in morning hours. And guys
have to face this problem. But what’s the problem? It’s shaving regularly or
in alternate days.
During my research for unmet needs I came up with a problem that many
boys and men faces that is the problem of shaving. The task of shaving is a
lengthy task as we have to follow certain steps
Applying the gel or shaving cream on cheeks
Massaging it on the skin through the shaving brush
Then finally using the razor for shaving
Lastly, applying the lotion after the complete shave
These steps are actually a tedious and time consuming task. The problem
was identified from my own experience and various other men and boys to
whom I contacted for this project.
So there was some sort of unmet need regarding the process of shaving.
People were not properly satisfied with the process and there was a room
of a new product and idea related to this product.
6. INTRODUCTION
Once the problem was identified or the unmet need was familiar to me the
next step was to generate an idea for filling the gap of the unmet need. The
product here should be the one that saves times of the people while
shaving and make the whole process of shaving simplified.
So after a proper research and thinking for long about the creative idea, I
came up with a product that could actually solve these problems in a
desiring way. So the development of a new product called The ‘SMART
SHAVER’was introduced. It is a product that smartly shaves your beard
without any complications. Gone are the days where we had to devote so
many times and bear the risk of cutting while shaving. This new product
simplifies the concept of shaving and brings it to elementary level from the
professional.
It’s basically a tissue or napkin sort of thing, shaped totally to cover your
beard containing the depilatory also known as chemicals for hair removal
cream to shave the beard. One just need to pick the napkin and remove the
paper from it and stick to the cheeks properly for 5 minutes. After 5
minutes remove the napkin and wash the face gently and then nothing.
Yes it’s as simple as this; the process of shaving beard is now brought to
the level of kid and at the same time saving your valuable time with the
help of Smart Shaver. Also the fact of ruining your face from some scars or
cuts is diminished because of this product. Every morning simply apply
the product to your cheeks and continue doing other works for getting
ready. It is like a process that won’t even be counted as a process because
while shaving one can easily do the other works and the traditional way of
devoting at least 10 minutes to shaving is gone. Time being one of the
major reasons and secondly the convenience is the USP of the product.
7. SUMMARY
The product is a blend of two safe products i.e. a soft napkin and a hair
remover creamer. The hair remover is the main formula for shaving the
beard. It is also known as depilatory. The term depilatory refers to any
method of removing hair. Applying hair remover in a skin becomes a very
sensitive matter and for launching this product the major problem is
regarding the safety of the skin. The skin of the face is very sensitive and
people would resist applying the product in their face due to safety
reasons. Hair removers are not made for the face and are not powerful to
remove the hair of beards as they are too strong.
Keratin is a protein in our body that holds the hair of our body. The
chemicals used in the Smart Saver are basically focused to reduce the hold
of keratin so that the hair can be removed easily. The basic chemical used
in the hair remover cream is sodium thioglycolate, strontium sulfide and
calcium thioglycolate. Butsimply using these chemicals won’t help in
launching the product.
We need a proper marketing strategies and various research to launch the
product successfully. The strategies and process of launching the product is
explained in details further.
8. NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
It is a process which is designed to develop, test and consider the viability
of products which are new to the market in order to ensure the growth or
survival of the organization.
Stages in the New Product Development Process
Idea Generation
The first stage is about generating the idea for the new product that will
cover the unmet need in the market. The idea generated was to make the
task of shaving easy. With various research and studies I could come up
with an idea that could simplify the task of shaving and also save the time.
The main approach for finding the ideas was to do the SWOT analysis and
also observing the needs that lack in market.
Concept Development and testing
Once the idea was developed the next step was to elaborate the idea in a
proper concept. A concept is an elaborated version of product idea
expressed in meaningful consumer terms. The idea of simplifying the task
of shaving now needs to be formed in a concept. So the concept of blending
the tissue and hair remover cream for shaving purpose was formed. The
process of shaving was to simplify by simply introducing a product in a
form of tissue or napkin that could be applied to beard area and simply by
removing it after few minutes the shaving is complete.
9. Business analysis
The analysis of the product about its business is very important. By
business analysis we mean estimating the price, its sale volume and profit
margin, the competition available and so on. The policy of the company
should also be considered and the resources available. We wanted to
launch the product to mass people as an innovative product. The resources
required and the companies policies regarding profit and sales were all
identified in this stage.
Test marketing
This is one of the crucial stages in new product development process. The
product being a sensitive one need a proper testing before a fully fledged
commercial launch in the market. People will generally resist applying a
product to face which is totally new. The idea of applying the hair removal
cream in face needs a lot of persuasion and more importantly the proof that
it won’t harm the skin. So here the idea is not only to test the product for its
success but before that testing the result of the product in skin is more
important. For that we started with Alpha Testing.
We tested the product within the organization only. Different employees
were called and a patch of the product was applied in their skin to check
it’s after effect. Once we gained the confidence that the product is up to the
mark quality and would not harm the skin until some rare cases where the
skin is too sensitive, we decided to test the product with customers. For
that we applied the method of Controlled Testing.
Under this we went to various store and asked the store managers to
display our product and in return agreed on a fee payable to them. Few
stores were selected on the same basis and the product was tested in a
small scale.
10. Commercialization
This is the final step of New Product Process. Commercialization involves
implementing a total marketing plan and full production. After the
successful testing of the product in the selected market, the product was
finally launched in the product. Under this stage all the activities required
to launch a product like
advertisement and promotions
final price
distribution channel
packaging and labeling
In short the proper marketing mix is required for the smooth flow of
product in the market. Also deciding the STP for the product is necessary
to launch the product in the proper market.
11. PRODUCT STP
The product is named Smart Shaver for delineating the point of shaving
smartly. Being an innovative and sensitive product a proper segmentation,
targeting and positioning of the product is required. The STP process
demonstrates the links between an overall market and how a company
chooses to compete in that market. It is sometimes referred to as a process,
with segmentation being conducted first, then the selection of one or more
target markets and then finally the implementation of positioning. The goal
of the STP process is to guide the organization to the development and
implementation of an appropriate marketing mix, as highlighted in the
following diagram.
12. SEGMENTATION
The process of splitting a market into smaller groups with similar product
needs or identifiable characteristics, for the purpose of selecting
appropriate target markets is called segmentation.
Smart Shaver need to cover the mass audience as said earlier but under this
mass audience also a proper segment of market is required to control its
operation and marketing. For our innovative product Smart Shaver we
have thought of segmenting it under the important bases of segmentation
to make it easy for the firm to market the product.
GeographicSegmentation
Under this the market is segmented under the criteria of location or areas
where the prospects customers are. The sensitive nature of our product
compelled us to first market in urban areas. People there are more literate
so it will be easy to make them understand about the product and gain
acceptability.
DemographicSegmentation
Age: 18 -35
Gender : male
Both the segmentation is very obvious as the product require a certain age
when the beard start growing and a product related to shaving is useful
only for men. Although female could also be targeted, as in past we have
seen many women buying the beauty care and shaving products for their
men. Butnow the trend has changed as the recent report by neilsen
showed that around 80% of men purchase their beauty and personal
products on their own.
13. TARGETING
Once the market is segmented, it is necessary to target the right person
under the segment. The segmentation is basically homogeneous in nature
or characteristics inside but heterogeneous otherwise. Targeting is done
with the intention of heavily focusing on the right group of customers
under the segment selected. Segmenting is broad while targeting narrows
the concept to make the work of marketing easy.
Now under the segment decided, we selected the target group of working
professionals. Our main target was the job working people or
businessmen’s for whom time value the most. Also the youthsas they are
more open to innovative products With Smart Shaver they can easily save
their time and such group will favour the product because time value is
very important to them. We also targeted the innovatorsand early
adoptersfor our product. Such people are fond of new technologies and
favour the product. Under the personality we targeted the sophisticated
and smart people as changing habit in a stylish way are favoured easily
with person bearing such personality.
The Smart Shaver was to be targeted in urban areas or metro citieswhere
people are open to new ideas and are not very rigid in changing their
habits. Also the literacy rate is also high in such areas and our product first
needs approval by educated people only as they can easily understand the
advantages and side effects from Smart Shaver.
14. POSITIONING
Positioning means building a image of the product vis a vis competitors
image. Being a new and innovative product we want to create a new and
innovative position of our product in the minds of the customer. Many
people believe positioning as a simple advertising strategy but in reality
positioning means building an image of the product that the manufacturer
wants. We Smart Shaver’s didn’t want just to position our product as
something that is smart and stylish because it is a feature and very much
visible by the consumers so why waste our money and resources by
building an image which can be perceived by people by the product itself
only. Positioning the product in terms of its feature is something very
boring we thought. Being creative marketers we wanted something
creative in terms of positioning also. We wanted an image which is not yet
achieved by any other firms.
So we came with the idea of positioning ourselves as a transparent firm.
Transparency was the image that we wanted to build for our product. We
wanted that the customer should know everything about the
manufacturing of the Smart Shaver and the ingredients used. Being a
sensitive product many people would hesitate buying Smart Shaver but the
strategy of Transparency may help in solving this problem to a great
extent. Transparency basically depicts about being open about the process
of developing the product and not hiding things with its customer. Being
transparent we would like to mention the following chemicals used by us
to aware the customer in depth about the product.
Thioglycolate Salts and Sulfides
These are known as the active ingredients in hair removal products. There
are products that commonly have potassium thioglycolate for their hair
removal functions.
15. Diluents
These are known as compounds that help the skin be protected from
irritation. It is also found to be compatible with other compounds that can
be found in the hair removal cream.
Sodium Hydroxide
This is also found in the formulation, which is a very strong chemical that
is also termed as caustic soda and lye. Removing the beard hair is not so
easy so strong chemical is required to loosen the keratin which holds the
hair. It may cause irritation and burns in the skin but the other chemicals
used in our product will solve this problem.
Calcium Hydroxide
It is added to help weaken the bond of the hair. This is necessary to help
you scrape off the hair from your skin easily as it emerges from its follicle.
In short it is used to reduce the power of a protein called keratin.
Emollients
These are known for reducing the harshness of the compounds found in
the hair removal cream. It is said that most of these are oils, esters, and
silicones. They are known for giving you skin-repair agents whenever your
skin is actually irritated by the products you use.
Fragrances
Most of the hair removal products are said to be having unpleasant odor.
As a response, manufacturers made it possible to give fragrances to their
products. For creams and lotions for hair removal, emulsifiers are also
added.
Napkins
Hygienic soft napkins will be used for our product but strong enough to
pull out the beard easily. Unlike other harmful chemicals used in the
manufacturing of tissue, we will only use the tested paper suitable to the
skins.
16. MARKETING MIX
The marketing mix deals with the four P’s
Product
Price
Place
Promotion
PRODUCT
The product is Smart Shaver. It is named so to cover its basic feature of
shaving smartly. The product is invented to simplify the concept of
shaving being followed till now. The main focus or aim is to solve the
following problems related to shaving:
Complicated or annoying shaving method.
Time consuming.
Requirement of various products to shave.
Risk of cut due to razor.
The product will also be launched in different shapes to fulfill the
requirements of various shaving styles. A team of saloon designer will
design the various shapes of the tissue to provide unique style in shaving.
Also a free small patch sort of tissue will be provided with every purchase
to test the product suitability with the individual purchasing it. The few
highlights of the product are:
Productname: SmartShaver
Product tagline : Smart people don’t do things differently but do it
smartly
17. Producttype: Personal and beauty care
Productrange : Innovative product
Productprice : Nominal to High
Productsize : the size would be to cover the whole beard area
Producttarget : men aged 18 and above
Productdestination: Urban
Productcolor : light blue color packaging mixed with white color.
Product appearance:the appearance of the product would be done in sync
to the packaging i.e. the tissue would be in white colour and the removable
sticker would be blue in colour.
It is a rough sketch of how the product will look. The stick particle basically
denotes the depilatory cream applied to the napkin for removing the beard
from the skin.
18. PRICE
Being a new and innovative product, Smart Shaver has an edge over its
competitor. Butstill the normal cost for shaving is considered by the
research team and accordingly a price acceptable by the target audience is
decided. Our researcher concludes that the average cost of shaving in a
saloon is around Rs 50-80. Sothe cost should is kept within this range only.
Usually people go to saloon because they don’t know how to shave or
sometimes find it expensive to collect all the accessories required for
shaving. Our product will available in pack of 5 napkins and 10 napkins.
The cost of 5 napkins is kept Rs 199 and the pack of 10 as 349. The strategy
of psychology pricingis used by us to make the customer feel the product
cheaper. As we want to target the product in metro cities and job working
peoples so we don’t want it to be very cheap also because that would
depict the product as a low quality product.
PLACE
The 3rd P i.e. the place deals with the availability of the product in the
market and selecting a proper distribution channel. Being a daily use
product or of a frequently used product we would select an intensive
distribution channel for the product. We would like to see the product in
every stores to increase its availability and visibility. The product is a part
of FMCG sector so it requires intensive distribution channel to reach the
end user. Personalselling would also be applied to sell the product
directly to the customers. It will benefit about creating awareness amongst
the customers. Expertagents will be hired to distribute the product to
various stores and also educating them about the benefits of the product so
they can sell it easily. Online store will be launched to educate the
customers about the usage of the product and accepting the orders online.
19. Online being a smart way of shopping will help in the distribution and
sale of the product as Smart Shaver also deals with doing things smartly.
EDI and otherITC technologies will also be use for effective distribution
of the product to cover all the selected areas.
PROMOTION
The concept of massmarketingwill be implemented for promoting the
product to mass audience. The idea of transparencywill be used in all ads
to promote the product. Advertisementsin T.V. and use of print media to
promote the Smart Shaver in various fashion magazines will be done.
Men’s health magazine will be in priority list to advertise on. Various
campaignsin malls and office or college areas will be done to make people
try the product and win free goodies. At the early stage a pack of tissue
with after shave lotions applied to it will be provided as free so that the
customers can smartly apply the tissue in the cheeks after using Smart
Shaver. This free tissue will be provided as the substitute of the after shave
lotion. Free sample of the product would also be distributed to selected
audience for promotion. The concept of AIDA model will be used to
promote the product effectively.
Attention: firstly the customers will be made aware about the basic usage
of the product and its features. The emphasis would be on its benefits and
the way it works.
Interest: once the awareness about the product is made then the interest
level for the product will be generated. People will be persuaded to buy the
product and various strategies for developing the interest is done
Desire: after the interest level the desire for buying the product is to be
created. It is very important to convert the interest into desire level for
wanting the product.
20. Action: it denotes the action i.e. simply buying the product. After the
desire is created it is important to convert it into some action. It may be
visiting the online store, enquiring about the product or simply buying the
product.
The attractive packagingand labeling will be applied as a promotional
tool for the product. The packaging as said earlier would be in white and
blue colour to make it look simple and attractive. A proper label indicating
the product is properly testedand won’t harm the skin would be attached.
Though few people having sensitive skin may face problem and that too
would be specified in packaging. The testified label would help in
building the confidence towards the product and people would buy the
product without having doubt about its side effect.
21. REPORT ON MARKET SHARE OF
RAZORS IN INDIA
The latest report by Reportlinker.com - Market Focus: Trends and
Developments in the Male Toiletries Sector in India - has identified that
despite changes in the current market landscape, the male toiletries market
in India is growing steadily in both value and volume terms.
The report identifies key market issues such as rising disposable income
and the increasingly complex grooming routines of Indian men as key
drivers behind recent market changes. The researchers behind the report
predict that pre-shave and post-shave cosmetics products will increase and
take market share from the aftershaves and colognes category. According
to the report, Indian consumers are seeking products that meet specific
requirements caused by their life stage. For example, young consumers are
looking for single pack razors and shaving gels/foams, while older
consumers look for traditional pre-shave creams from established brands.
A change in gender behaviour has led Indian men to seek greater
grooming comfort while shaving at a low price. Meanwhile, it finds that
companies are targeting value for money conscious consumers with
cheaper variants of their products. Although these categories are growing
rapidly in local currency terms, exchange rate fluctuations have led to a
more variable growth in US dollar terms.
Another key point highlighted in the report is India's young population,
with a little over half of the country's population under 30 years old. This,
the report says, presents an opportunity for marketers to target this group
with new and innovative launches. Along the same lines, social media (e.g.
Facebook) is set to play a key role in the future growth of the sector, driven
by younger consumers. Gillette is currently the leading brand among all
the categories of male toiletries in India.
22. The report also presents key market figures in relation to packaging. The
disposable razors and blades category accounted for over 98.5% of the total
number of packs used in the Indian male toiletries sector in 2012, driving
significant demand of rigid plastic blister packs, paper and board
wrappers, and flexible packaging bags/sachets.
It predicts that the increasing use of pre- and post- shave cosmetics will
drive demand of bottle, aerosol, and tube pack types; these are forecast to
grow at a CAGR of over 4% between 2012 and 2017. Post-shave cosmetics
will record the highest CAGR of all categories, at 16.5% between 2012 and
2017. Moreover, packaging will see increasing use of stylish designs in
closures and colours, as these packs seek to stand out in convenience store
aisles, which are the most preferred destination for buying male toiletries
products in the country. On the other hand, the report predicts a decline in
the use of paper and board.
ANALYSIS FROM THE REPORT
It is very much obvious from the report that the market of shaving and
razors are rapidly increasing in India. In fact most of the youths are
demanding more innovation in this sector. Gillette has hugely covered the
market of Shaving in India. The level of competition is very low as Gillette
is the single top player in India. The rise in the consumption level of Razors
and shaving creams depicts the rise in CAGR which is a positive sign for
our product Smart Shaver. The research report also guided us to target
youths for the product or in other word focusing more on youths as they
demand more of innovative products. The report clearly indicates that
there is a requirement of some innovation regarding the process of shaving.
The rise in the market of shaving industry reduces the risk and also
eliminates the level of uncertainty in the market.
23. SWOT ANALYSIS
STRENGTHS
Innovative product
Simplified the concept of shaving
Intensive distribution channel
Transparency positioning idea
WEAKNESS
Sensitive to skin product
People may resist accepting hair
remover in face.
Expensive than previous shaving
methods
A complete new product to launch may
face difficulties.
OPPORTUNITIES
Rise in the industry
Consumer demanding more innovative
product.
Presence of no player in the market
related to the Smart Shaver
THREATS
Huge competitor like Gillette in the
market.
Rare cases of skin problem may lead in
dampening brand image.
Price sensitive market
