Competitive Intelligence: Product Innovation and Promotion

Competitive Intelligence Paper
First Alert

TOC \h \u \z Executive Summary2Product3Place6Promotion10Pricing12References16
Executive Summary
Product innovation and promotion is an important aspect for every organization today. First Alert is considered a dynamically continuous innovation. Thus product is defined as the need-satisfying offering of an organization. The main goal of the company is to target those consumers who have experience with the new technology. This is an additional value to the product and the customer’s overall experience and satisfaction. Over the past few years, the company has come up with various innovations. One of the best known innovation is the “Onelink Safe & Sound Smart Smoke + Carbon Monoxide Alarm and Speaker with Amazon Alexa”.
To improve the experience of their customers the company has come up with various strategies. First the company decided to rebrand its logo so that it would be able to attract more customers. During the celebrations of their 60th anniversary the decided to update its logo to increase sales. By modifying their logo, there are greater possibilities of a quicker acceptance of new products that are marketed under the same name. The company has also come up with new advertising techniques. These strategies will enable the company to reach more customers and satisfy their needs. First Alert had partnered with Lowe. That is on October of 2019 First Alert came up with a campaign with Lowe’s to teach people about fire safety. As for the pricing, First Alert uses odd pricing strategy in marketing and reaching out new customers.
Product
First Alert has been protecting homes and families since 1958 by providing safety products including smoke alarms, carbon monoxide detectors and more. First Alert began with three friends creating a commercial smoke alarm (First Alert). Six decades later they have moved on to creating more high technology smoke alarms. First Alert is known for creating many homes “firsts”. This includes creating the first plastic head fire extinguisher in 1985, first combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarm in 1955, and recently in 2018 the first smoke and carbon monoxide alarm with built-in Amazon Alexa (First Alert). In marketing, the product is related to developing the right “product” for the target market ( p.37). Product is defined as the need-satisfying offering of a firm (p.197). First Alert has developed new products, changed its logo, and rebranded to increase customer sales.
New Product
In 2018, First Alert introduced the “Onelink Safe & Sound Smart Smoke + Carbon Monoxide Alarm and Speaker with Amazon Alexa”. It was the first smoke and carbon monoxide alarm that included an integrated Amazon Alexa as well as a superior home speaker (Cision, 2018). Tom Russo, the vice president of marketing and product development at First Alert states, “...With Alexa built-in, smart protection and a robust home speaker, it will truly become a must-have for many families” (multivu.com). It is apparent the target audience for this new smoke and carbon monoxide alarm are families. The First Alert Onelink include hands-free access to Alexa, music, checking the wea...