Product Life Cycle All products pass through a product life cycle of four stages: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. Throughout these different stages, marketers have to work extremely hard to innovate and change their marketing strategies. Once a product has been developed and tested, it goes to market. There it may pass through a product life cycle of four stages: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. This cycle is a theoretical model of what happens to sales and profits for a product class over time. However, not all individual products follow the life cycle, and particular brands may act differently. Nonetheless, the product life cycle may provide some basis for anticipating future market developments and for planning marketing strategies. Different stages in the product life cycle call for different marketing strategies. Read the statements. Write the correct marketing mix element and life cycle stage within the chart.
Introduction Stage Maturity Stage
Gatorade Product
Rusk Price
Merck Place
Listerine Promotion
Crest
Domino's
Sony
Airwalk

The gilbert instrument corporation is considering replacing the wood steamer it currently uses to shape guitar sides. the steamer has 6 years of remaining life. if kept,the steamer will have depreciaiton expenses of $650 for five years and $325 for the sixthyear. its current book value is $3,575, and it can be sold on an internet auction site for$4,150 at this time. if the old steamer is not replaced, it can be sold for $800 at the endof its useful life. gilbert is considering purchasing the side steamer 3000, a higher-end steamer, whichcosts $12,000 and has an estimated useful life of 6 years with an estimated salvage value of$1,500. this steamer falls into the macrs 5-year class, so the applicable depreciationrates are 20.00%, 32.00%, 19.20%, 11.52%, 11.52%, and 5.76%. the new steamer is fasterand allows for an output expansion, so sales would rise by $2,000 per year; the newmachine's much greater efficiency would reduce operating expenses by $1,900 per year.to support the greater sales, the new machine would require that inventories increase by$2,900, but accounts payable would simultaneously increase by $700. gilbert's marginalfederal-plus-state tax rate is 40%, and its wacc is 15%.a. should it replace the old steamer? b. npv of replace = $2,083.51