The PDMA Handbook of New Product Development

13.8. Summary

This chapter has summarized the key techniques associated with analyzing the relevant markets for a new product development effort and has introduced the concept of market segmentation as a means to establish a coherent set of requirements. As we have reviewed, high-performing new product organizations are using these tools to ensure that they are targeting the most valuable areas of opportunity and that their efforts have the highest possible probability of commercial success. As customers expect value propositions that increasingly match their priorities and as competitors battle to be the first to meet those demands, effective customer focus will continue to grow in strategic importance. The qualitative and quantitative techniques summarized in this article represent the initial tool kit for building these capabilities.