How to Develop Products - Short Course

Sneak Peek

Self Paced 20-hour course to help you develop products

Businesses sell products. Even charities and public enterprises exist to provide products. 

Products can be tangible or intangible things. They can be goods or services,  for example:
• Something grown on a farm or harvested from nature.
• Something made in a cottage industry – from crafts to clothes.
• A service, such as a holiday package or a restaurant meal
• A cable TV service or a gym membership.

Product development can involve anything that happens between when the idea of a product is conceptualised, through to the point where it is made available to be bought. It is not the making or producing of the product, but it might involve making and testing different options, in order to refine what will be produced for sale.  The development process typically involves taking a concept, then research, followed by product planning, prototyping, pre production then finally release.
This course builds your understanding of the stages you should work through, and various ways of approaching each stage.

THE CONTENTS OF THE COURSE - How to work through this course

LESSON 1 NATURE AND SCOPE OF PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
What type of product is it?
Who is your customer?
The development process
Research and development
Product planning
Prototypes and testing 
Pre-production phase 
Commercial release 
Product lifecycle 
Lesson 1 additional reading
Review what you have been learning

LESSON 2 VIABILITY ASSESSMENT
Product concept analysis 
Supply and demand 
Product validation 
Competitor analysis
Product differentiation 
Lesson 2 additional reading 
Review what you have been learning

LESSON 3 DEFINING THE PRODUCT AND THE PRODUCTION PROCESS
Generating ideas 
Brainstorming 
Product planning 
Production and plant equipment 
Sourcing raw materials and components 
Staffing requirements 
Getting others involved in product planning 
Product planning for lone wolves 
Product roadmap 
Outsourcing 
Lesson 3 additional reading 
Review what you have been learning

LESSON 4 PRODUCT LEARNABILITY
Learnability factors 
Important considerations 
Learnability for the right audience 
Children and learnability 
Evaluating learnability 
Testing learnability 
Review what you have been learning 

LESSON 5 COSTING 
Cost of development 
Cost of packaging design 
Cost of certifications 
Cost of manufacture 
Marketing costs 
Product delivery 
Product pricing 
Pricing strategies 
Review what you have been learning
 
LESSON 6 PRESENTATION AND PACKAGING 
Packaging design 
Packaging supply 
Lesson 6 additional reading 
Review what you have been learning

LESSON 7 TESTING THE PRODUCT
Useability
Reliability
Process of testing
Rapid prototyping 
Ongoing market research 
Lesson 7 additional reading 
Review what you have been learning 

LESSON 8 PRODUCT LIFECYCLE 
Development and introduction 
Growth phase 
Maturity phase 
Decline phase 
Rebirth 
Review what you have been learning

LESSON 9 FUTURE PLANNING AND OTHER CONSIDERATIONS 
Success metrics 
Product evolution 
Predictive product development 
Considerations on product marketing 
Online marketing 
Social media 
Search engine optimisation 
Direct marketing via email 
Advantages and disadvantages of being first to market 
Protecting your product 
Lesson 9 additional reading 
Review what you have been learning 
Final assessment