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Manufacturing
and Design
In order to reach the decision to produce a product for retail
sale, there are a number of procedures to follow:
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The design brief –
this explains why your product is needed, who it is aimed
at, how it will be used, how it could be manufactured and
what effect it will have on the environment.
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Research – this helps to generate
the ideas. It looks at who may want the product, what makes
existing products successful, how similar products are manufactured,
what materials can be used in making the new product (an analysis
of ingredients) and its packaging. Research also looks at
prospective costs.
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Regulatory specifications – these
are the conditions that a product has to meet. All cosmetic
products (including toothpaste, soap, hair products, deodorants,
etc) have to meet stringent health and safety rules and many
other criteria. When intending to manufacture a new product,
you must consider how you will meet these requirements.
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Mood boards – these are created
in order to come up with a range of design ideas for the product.
They are then compared and final decisions made.
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Prototypes – the preferred design
from the mood board is developed to create a prototype, and
this is then used to make any modifications.
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Design specification - a record of all
research and development is kept to produce a final specification
for the manufacturer to follow.
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Manufacture – the final design
for the product is manufactured and packaged.
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Testing – this is carried out to
make sure that the product works and meets the desired specifications.
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Marketing and Design
Marketing involves finding out what people want and convincing
them they need or want the product. There are three main aspects
of marketing:
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Research – this is
done to find out who the likely customers are and what they
need or want. This can be done in many ways, including large-scale
statistical market research projects (quantitative research),
which can include questionnaires, surveys and street interviews.
There are also more specialised studies (qualitative research),
which may include focus groups, discussions, panel tests and
expert recommendations.
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Product development – the marketing
team brief their ideas for a product to a team of experts
usually including scientists, packaging designers and graphic
designers.
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Communication – this lets the customer
know that the product exists and why they may need or want
it. It includes all forms of communication and might include
advertising in newspapers, magazines, on television, radio,
cinema, and poster, or via mail shots, email or Internet.
The product may also be promoted including special offers
in store, special displays, samples or window displays.
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All advertising must comply with the British Codes of Advertising
and Sales Promotion which set out main principles, the most important
of which is that "All advertising should be legal, decent,
honest and truthful". There is a system of self-regulation
in the UK which is managed by The Advertising Standards Authority
(ASA), an independent body set up by the advertising industry to
oversee the Codes and handle all complaints.
To find out more information about advertising, log on to: www.asa.org.uk
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