What is a Product?

This text reviews product classifications. The categorization is related to the consumer effort in shopping for the product.

Introduction

  • What is a product, and how is it classified?

The goal of marketing research is to create products that are desired by the target market(s) chosen as strategic markets in line with the organization's goals. In marketing, a product (a good, service, or idea), along with its perceived attributes and benefits, creates value for the customer. Attributes can be tangible or intangible. Among the tangible attributes are packaging and warranties as illustrated in (Figure). Intangible attributes are symbolic, such as brand image. Intangible attributes can include things like image as well as the depth of the relationship between a service provider and a customer. People make decisions about which products to buy after considering both tangible and intangible attributes of a product. For example, when a consumer buys a pair of jeans, he or she considers price, brand, store image, and style before making the purchase. These factors are all part of the marketing mix.

Tangible and Intangible Attributes of a Product Create Value


At the center of a circle is the product. Within the circle reads as follows. Type of material, metal, plastic, cloth; size, shape, smell. There are concentric circles surrounding the product, and there are orbs attached to the circles. These are labeled as follows. Image of retail store; warranty; color; packaging; instructions; image of brand; attachments; and service after sale.



Source: Rice University, https://openstax.org/books/introduction-business/pages/11-6-what-is-a-product
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