It is used to answer the following questions related to the overall appeal of the product, service or idea as well as the 5 P’s of Marketing (product, promotion/advertising, price, place, and package):

Overall Appeal

• Will my new product sell?
• Is there a market for my service?
• Who will buy my product?
• Will I cannibalize any of my existing products or services or will the business be incremental?
• What features or attributes are the most motivating in the purchase decision process?
• Will this be a planned or impulse purchase?

Product

• What features or attributes should my new product or service have?
• What benefit should it offer?
• Does the manufactured product do what it is supposed to do?
• Does it taste/look/feel/work like the consumer expects it to?
• Is it better/preferred/different from the competitive offering?

Promotion/Advertising

• How can I best communicate the product benefits to potential buyers?
• What type of consumer promotions (on-pack, in-pack, coupons, sweepstakes, BOGOs—buy one get one, instant win, sampling, demos, etc.) will be the most impactful and cost-effective?
• Is my advertising communicating what I want it to? Is it breaking through the clutter?
• Is my advertising memorable? Is it persuasive?

Price

• How much can/should I charge for the product or service?
• Can this product command a premium price?
• Can I raise my price and increase my profit without losing too much business?
• What is the most profitable price?
• What’s the highest/lowest acceptable price?
• What is the optimal price-gap vs. competition?
• How sensitive is the product’s sales to price changes?

Place

• Where does the consumer expect to find my product?
• At what type of store/outlet?
• In what section or aisle of the store?
• Can I get incremental sales or a competitive advantage by shelving in a unique location?
• Will the consumer look for me there?
• Can a brand block really help boost category sales?

Package

• What type of package should I use (i.e., bag, box, pouch, see-through, etc.)?
• Does the package work (i.e., is it easy to open, close, re-seal, pour, carry, store, etc.)?
• Does the package communicate what the product is and the key benefits?
• Does it ‘pop’ from the shelf and get noticed?
• Does it ‘fit’ with the brand image?