Definitions

brand managers manage specific products, often taking over the jobs formerly handled by an advertising manager--sometimes called product managers.

concept testing getting reactions from customers about how well a new product idea fits their needs.

Consumer Product Safety Act a 1972 law that set up the Consumer Product Safety Commission to encourage more awareness of safety in product design and better quality control.

fad an idea that is fashionable only to certain groups who are enthusiastic about it--but these groups are so fickle that a fad is even more short-lived than a regular fashion.

fashion currently accepted or popular style.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) federal government agency that polices antimonopoly laws.

market introduction a stage of the product life cycle when sales are low as a new idea is first introduced to a market.

market growth a stage of the product life cycle when industry sales grow fast--but industry profits rise and then start falling.

market maturity a stage of the product life cycle when industry sales level off--and competition gets tougher.

new product a product that is new in any way for the company concerned.

product liability the legal obligation of sellers to pay damages to individuals who are injured by defective or unsafe products.

product life cycle the stages a new product idea goes through from beginning to end.

product managers manage specific products, often taking over the jobs formerly handled by an advertising manager--sometimes called brand managers.

sales decline a stage of the product life cycle when new products replace the old.