Understanding the Concept of a Product Line

To give a consumer base more variety, product lines introduce new, related, and additional products to a brand's existing product inventory. Discover the various categories of product lines.

Product lines are groups of related goods that companies offer to diverse target markets; occasionally, product lines function as a brand-new product family. For instance, PepsiCo offers a variety of product families, such as those for Aquafina, Doritos, Gatorade, Quaker Oats, and other brands. Athleticwear companies with multiple product lines, such as footwear, sports gear, workout attire, and swimsuits, are another type of product line. These variations increase the appeal of a single brand and draw in new clients.

Because consumers are more inclined to buy products from brands they are already familiar with, businesses frequently expand their offerings by adding to current product lines. The combination of a company's product lines is referred to as its product mix or product portfolio.

To engage their present client base, brands may offer product lines through updates, new goods, and categories. Customers are more likely to buy new products from a brand they are familiar with. A business with strong brand awareness and a sizable client base will be well-positioned to diversify its product offerings and increase its market share.

A new product introduction requires both market research and a marketing plan. On the day of a new product's release, a company might host an in-person event, get in touch with potential customers personally, or advertise the new product's accessibility on social media. Launches of new products also spark real-time or presale purchases.

For instance, a cosmetics company that currently has a high-end makeup product line (which might include foundation, eyeliner, mascara, and lipstick) sold under one of its well-known brands might introduce a product line with the same name but at a lower price range. Target markets, prices, and product lines can all differ. Product lines are used by businesses to assess trends, which aids in choosing the markets they should focus on.

To attract new customers, businesses expand their product lines by adding new products, a practice known as product-line extension. For instance, consumers who are not interested in purchasing a company's sporting items may be more interested in purchasing its range of energy bars or sports beverages. Companies might expand their product lines to increase their market reach.

In the car sector, product lines are used by businesses in a clear fashion. Automakers are known for producing a variety of car product lines to appeal to as many consumers as possible.

This is why they all produce lines of luxury vehicles, eco-friendly vehicles, and economic vehicles under their well-known brands. Some are targeted at individuals, some at families, and some are promoted to children.

The current product lines of a corporation may be classified into various types:

1. New additions: Brands can distinguish product lines based on how quickly new goods are developed. The structure of product lines can also go through different life cycles to constantly sell updates and related products, just as museums frequently contain a permanent collection in addition to changing displays.

2. Depending on their needs, shoppers may need to browse at various price points. For instance, a department store might sell apparel at different prices to appeal to different market segments, from the sales rack at the rear of the store to the in-season items in the shop window display.

3. Product type: Some products may fall under one brand since they are all related to one another, while others may fall under another. To appeal to specific target markets, a general merchandise store, for instance, might have various product lines in departments like apparel, home products, and food.

A specific good or service that a business produces and advertises to customers is referred to as a product line. A food company may expand a product line by including numerous like or related products (for example, adding the flavor of mesquite BBQ to its current range of potato chips) and so produce a more varied product family. The product family sells a variety of goods using the same brand name that are comparable yet satisfy somewhat different wants or preferences, possibly luring in more and more customers.

If the business expands and begins making pretzels, this would be a completely separate product line that requires distinct ingredients, procedures, and manufacturing experience. It would draw many of the same customers as its potato chip line, as well as some new ones. However, pretzels wouldn't belong to the same product category or family. As a result, the addition of pretzels broadens the company's product mix, commonly known as its product portfolio.

Analyzing the product mix is crucial since it reveals which market segments are experiencing which trends. Thus, businesses may rebrand or reorganize underperforming and unprofitable items, while profitable lines may be rebranded to include creative or risky new members of that product family.

Product mixtures in mature companies are frequently diversified. Larger companies have the infrastructure to support the marketing of a wider offering, and internal product creation and acquisitions over time contribute to the breadth of their product portfolio. A product portfolio might benefit from geographic growth as well, as products can have different levels of popularity in different towns or nations. For instance, Apple, Inc. currently offers a variety of products, such as the wildly popular iPhone devices (within which there are various generations, versions, and sizes, all at various price points), the iOS app store, its line of laptops and desktop computers, software development, a music streaming service, Apple TV, and more.

Product lines enable businesses to connect with locales and socioeconomic groups, sometimes even globally. Companies sometimes introduce product lines under their top-selling brands to appeal to customers from other ethnic or age groups, as is the case in the cosmetics sector. Fast-food chains operating in Asia are examples of how multinational firms, like restaurants, frequently introduce product lines designed expressly for the nations in which they operate.

What Are the Common Product Line Types?

While the specific business sector or industry in which a company works will determine its product lines, marketing and organizational researchers have established four basic types of product lines depending on what is considered necessary to introduce each line to market. These consist of:

1. New to World: A completely new innovation or product, frequently following research and development expenditures. If they succeed, they might be very risky but also very rewarding.

2. New Additions: New additions are product lines that a company has introduced to its line-up but which are not necessarily brand-new to the market. These develop as rivals enter the market.

3. Product Revision: The third category is product revision, which includes upgrades or replacements for current items. An iPhone X and an iPhone 4S are very different products.

4. Repositioning: Repositioning is the process of marketing an existing product to a new target market for a totally different use case.

Filling is the process of introducing more products to a family of product lines to fill any perceived gaps in the possible client base. A clothing business may, for instance, provide larger sizes to accommodate customers with wider frames. The product line would be filled along that dimension if it came in sizes that were suitable for the vast majority of people.

Offering various pricing points for the same product or service might help fill out a product line based on consumer spending preferences and wealth. Car manufacturers often offer the same base model in various trims for a given year, ranging from a basic economy version to a luxurious version fitted out with all the pricy extras. These price ranges will draw a variety of buyers with various spending capacities.

A company will create a product line based on the type of business it is, its area of competence, and its marketing approach. To launch a product line, marketing efforts, research and development, and market testing are all crucial. Unprofitable, unsuccessful product lines ought to be dropped in favor of successful ones.