COMMERCIALISATION

After the product is tested in the sports market, it leads to the final stage of the new product development process (NPD), i.e. Commercialisation. Beech and Chadwick (2007) suggested the decision to market the product can be based on the results of test marketing and maybe a direct copy of this, or can be amended based on any identified weaknesses. This stage sets several tasks into motion such as ordering production materials and equipment, starting production, building inventories, skipping the product to field distribution points, training the sales force, announcing the new product to the trade, and advertising to new customers (Lamb, Hair and McDaniel, 2011). Also suggested that products like the Dunk Pad would range for a few weeks of preparation as it can use existing equipments for manufacturing. The Dunk Pad could be one of those successful new products to deliver a meaningful and perceivable benefit to a sizable number of people or organisations and are different in some meaningful way from the intended substitutes.

Commercialisation of Sugru

Commercialisation of Sugru

The sports uses of Sugru

Developed by a team of product designers and material scientists, Sugru is a self setting rubber that can be formed by hand, and bonds to almost anything and turns it into a strong and flexible silicone rubber (Sugru, 2014). This product is yet to be launched in a cycle trade in February 2014. This product is set to be worth to cyclists by making it simple to mount lights to lids and GPS units to handlebars. The strength and durability of the product makes it ideal for outdoor sports. The weather, environments, or any external agents have no influence on the functioning of the product. Sugru helps athletes and outdoor types repairing leaking hiking boots, customize Olympic fencing foils, and patch up punctures in camping mats, or gore-tex rain gear, amongst other sporting uses (BikeBiz, 2014).

Commercialisation of the Dunk Pad

The decision to commercialize the Dunk Pad would be based on the results of the test marketing and a direct copy the test marketing process. This will lead to ordering production equipments which would be similar to the shoe sole injection machines (diagram below), which will mould the external material with flexible and durable rubber and ensuring the protection of the internal Load N Launch technology of the Dunk Pad. This would then be used to be customised into various colors and designs for sales purposes such as Jordan theme, Newcastle Eagles theme, autographs of players on the Dunk Pad and mainly depending upon customer choices. The product would have sample designs of various colors attracting both genders. This would then be sent for packaging and distribution points. Distribution would be via online website, retail outlets, and sports events sales. Sample pieces of the product would be sold to various basketball coaching academies, basketball half time events, dunk competitions rewards, etc. The marketing would mainly depend on the methods used for test marketing and would be enhanced with new video commercials launched on social media and methods to ambush market at local street shows. Videos of the dunk stunts that could be performed and details of the instructions to use would be spread from the website to every potential customers by electronic mail, handouts, posters, text messages, and various advertising activities. The sales team would be a set of trusted hardworking employees with the same passion for sport and especially basketball, who would be trained and demonstrated the details of the Dunk Pad and set of sales all over the neighboring areas to start with and then as the word spread, the promotions would advance. 

Sample Demonstration Activity of the Dunk Pad

Sample Demonstration Activity of the Dunk Pad - II

Shoe Sole Injection Molding Machine used for the manufacture of the Dunk Pad

References

• Beech, J. G., & Chadwick, S. (Eds.). (2007). The marketing of sport. Pearson Education
• Lamb, C. W., Hair Jr, J. F., & McDaniel, C. D. (2011). MKTG 5. CengageBrain.com.
• Bike Biz. (2014) January New Product round up. Bikebiz. Web. Accessed on: 7 Feb. 2014 from <https://www.bikebiz.com/news/read/january-new-product-round-up/015896>.
•  Sugru. (2014). Outdoor & Sport. Sugru. Web. Accessed on: 7 Feb. 2014 from <http://sugru.com/great-for/outdoor-and-sport>.