Model of the marketing process

Product design is an activity to create and realise products in the market (Tukker & Tischner 2006, Meinders & Meuffels 2001). The commercialization of environmental values demands the adoption of a whole new production life cycle, innovative product development and marketing. The term design marketing management has joined the ongoing discussion first in green marketing and later in sustainable marketing. These approaches are called the model of ecodesign. The purpose of ecodesign is to demonstrate the product’s design for environment (DfE). Design marketing brings together different actors, for example, scientists, engineers, marketing managers, industrial designers and other specialists (Lewis et al. 2001).

For example, Cooper (1994), Keoleian and Menerey (1994) as well as Pujari and Wright (1999:109-125) have written about new product development processes in green marketing.

From an innovative process, it is expected that the ecoproductization is based on using the cooperation network, promoting eco-effective solutions, and solutions that are made with help of information and logistics. In strategy, all the decisions are adapted logically to every strategic level in SMEs (Noci & Verganti 1999).

Figure 15. Four-stage model of ecodesign innovation (Brezet 1997 in the article of Lofthouse 2003).

The innovation model has been used in many articles in which the relationship between innovations and time is described (Brezet 1997 in the article of Lofthouse 2003, Meinders &

Meuffels 2001). The perspective of time in the model has remained the same, but the levels that serve as points of comparison have different content. In the example of figure 18, the time used for improving the eco-efficiency of an industrial scale product is presented.

An innovativeness design process diagram (figure 16), a model of the time used for a products innovation (figure 15) and a model of the responsibility between different

development process and tools (table 4) can be applied to the time needed for sustainable value-based productization. As a conclusion, it should be noted that a small entrepreneur must be realistic when considering time and other resources needed for ecoproductization.

The product creation process has been described as a cyclic process of development and focusing that is based on the decision making in different stages (figure 15). During the product creation process, the requirements of the product must be categorized, linked, imagined and clarified.

Figure 16. Product Creation Process, PCP (Meinders & Meuffels 2001).

Creative thinking and the capability for making decisions are needed for developing an ecodesign for the ecoproduct. For the capability of making decisions, one has to know the innovations that are born both in the ecodesign process and linked in ecoproductization. The process of the new product development is actually just in its initial stages and at this point it might take years to develop an idea into a product. Design in six process steps and suggestions for tools to use in each of the steps (table 4) are used. (Tukker & Tischner 2006:100-101).

The goal of innovative processing is to find the best or some of the best ecoproduct alternatives and find the best practice e.g. productization method for implementing the alternative. The ecodesign process scheme and tools build a connection between product innovation and environmental arguments. Here opens up the opportunity for SMEs to collaborate with various stakeholders.

For two decades, the notion of environmental friendliness has been used to justify the good characteristics of the ecoproduct. For example, according to Coddington (1993), in the development of the concept of an environmentally friendly product, one should pay attention to

following elements: The elements that belong to the concept, for example, an environmentally friendly product to broaden product variety by renewing old or offering an entirely new product. The elements that belong to production are, for example, the compatibility of the environmentally friendly product with present or available production capacity and with the principles of sustainable development. The elements belonging to a strategy, for example, analysing competing offers, positioning the environmentally friendly product, improving product label recognition and developing marketing strategies. Even though these elements can be analysed separately, they are strongly bound to each other. The product innovations of an SME show the entire working environment for the enterprise from business strategy planning to the development of a single product.

Considering the development process of ecoproductization, it brings out the ways of thinking environmentally friendly in the business. Baumann et al. (2002) have divided the

Phase in product design process Tools

1. Planning, product, project specification

Define the problem. Describe as clearly as possible the service unit/functional unit of the new product. Plan the project steps, budget, time-frame, etc. Analyse a reference product if appro-priate, set priorities, formulate rough product specifications.

life cycle analyses (LCA), material in-put per service unit (MIPS) or analy-ses of coalition for environment and development (CED) and checklist for environmental strengths/weaknesses analysis.

2. Concept design

Search for environmentally friendly solutions. How can cus-tomer demands and product specifications be fulfilled with the lowest environmental impact? Select best ideas. Formulate more detailed product specifications.

Detail the solutions selected. Integrate all environmentally rel-evant aspects into whole product life cycle and the previously defined product specification together with normal design criteria.

design guides and handbooks, check-lists, rules of thumb, LIDS wheel, environmental quality, cost assess-ment tools.

4. Testing/final evaluation before market launch

Test prototypes and concepts. Evaluate if all criteria, including environmental ones, have been met. Change design if neces-sary.

normal testing tools, environmental strengths/weaknesses analysis (see phase 1).

5. Market launch

Production and marketing of final product. Prior to market launch, communication and marketing aspects are developed to include environmental aspects.

green communication tools, eco-labelling.

6. Product review/process review

Review success of product on the market. Give feedback on the redesign processes of product of design of similar new prod-ucts. Review success of planning method and tools; change and adapt as appropriate.

marketing tools, checklists and spi-der diagrams as controlling tools.

Table 4. Ecodesign process scheme and tools (Tischner et al. 2000, Tukker & Tischner 2006:101)

product development into four different levels. These levels represent both the relationships of different actors in the enterprise’s internal product development, in addition to the relationships of the enterprise with different actors outside the enterprise (figure 14).

Developing ecoproductization is a process inside the internal process of the enterprise, where different actors of the product chain have different roles related to one other. For example, producing, consuming, recycling or disposing a product has different demands from the environmentally friendly product. The same way is also used in development outside of the enterprises how the roles of actors outside the enterprise are perceived. As an example, the relationship between media, politics or technological development and product development can be mentioned. It is good for the entirety, if during the ecoproductization developing process the contextual wholeness of ecoproductization has been discussed, developed and solved from different perspectives in the enterprise. This also improves the marketing planning for the product.