Similar to all things in life, products adhere to a cycle that dictates their relevance in the marketplace. There are a number of stages in a products life cycle dealing with how relevant it is in the marketplace. This life cycle will be broken down into four main things. Those are a limited lifespan, varying high and low points in sales, the increase and decrease of profitable income, and the need for production and marketing.

Whether you are looking for products to sell and make money on eBay with or are looking for a lineup to stock the virtual shelves of your online retail store, understanding the product life cycle is vital to your success.

There are six stages that a product will experience during its life cycle. The first stage is the introduction of the product to the market, which starts with the mass production of the product and its release to the market. Generally, the costs are high, there are very few competitors, a customer demand base is still in formation, and there is virtually no profit as all the means are tied in production and marketing. After this will begin the growth stage, and this is when the product is no longer in an infantile stage but is rather growing in popularity as well as sales. It is at this point that the product increases in its sales and production and as prices drop on the products more people become aware of it and sales continue to increase.

The product, upon reaching the mature stage, will have peaked it in its success and its sales. The costs are lower due to the high volume of production that saturates the market. As competition rises brand names become rather important, but at the end the profits will be substantially lower.

During the fourth stage of saturation and decline, costs become greater than the price and the sales dwindle. Making any profit at this point is difficult and will require top notch marketing strategies to do so.

When the life cycle of a product reaches the fifth and sixth stage, it will typically appear as a variation of the original product so that sales can be made during really competitive times in the marketplace. The product must have a request for deviation that allows alterations to the existing prototype and allowing for a different angle of production and marketing.

The final stage is either evolution or termination. Market identification will define the niche that the product is able to successfully proliferate within. If the demand is obsolete termination of the initial product by developing a similar, but relevant product is advised.

You may be a buyer for the largest retail chain in the world or an individual researching products from eBay drop shippers. Either way,product life cycle is an important concept to consider when choosing product lineups and profit projections. By understanding a products relevance to the marketplace you are able to circumvent termination and reinvent remaining products for a changing world.