Conjoint Analysis : A Perfect Link Between Marketing and Product Design Functions – A Review

New products that deliver added consumer value contribute significantly to the success of companies. In the numerous studies of new product performance over the years, consensus has developed that understanding consumer needs is of paramount strategic value, especially in the early stages of the product development process. During these early stages, the product has not yet been specified and the aim is to search for novel product ideas from a marketing and technological perspective. Industrial designers are increasingly challenged by the interdisciplinary nature, increasing complexity and time pressure in today’s design projects. Understanding the product’s environment, the user and incorporating all design aspects accurately places a great burden on the designer. The constant risk that the negligence of certain design aspects may result in inferior products, urges the need to use a systematic tool that would support the designer in creating useful, usable and satisfying products and also to assimilate and synthesize the Marketing function’s VOC (Voice Of Customer) information. Traditional marketing thought and practice largely views new product development (NPD) as an internal firm-based activity in which customers are relatively passive buyers and user. This paradigm creates a ‘gap’ between the Marketing and Product Design functions. Conjoint Analysis technique, is an ideal tool, to bridge this ‘divide’ and help, develop customer focused, successful products