The tag "new and improved" is ubiquitous, but what does it actually mean? To be sure, the company sponsoring the tagline knows it's new, but how do they know it's improved? Chances are it's not. What you are experiencing is an advertising ploy called "repositioning." The product has indeed been changed, but that change cold be as meaningless as a new color additive.

Though it could be argued that repositioning is an unethical practice, it is a common practice and indeed it is typically very lucrative. Though a tool of the savvy marketing executive, repositioning is an essential tool for any executive in any sector of the market. Often a company, a policy, or a product must be repositioned to make it appropriately appealing to the public, the press, or the politicians.

Repositioning is the profitable result of an arduous process known in marketing as "product development." It begins with the first phase of development known as the Fuzzy Front End. This "fuzzy" process entails brainstorming sessions, focus groups, and consumer feedback. This involves gathering massive amounts of feedback: what would it take for the typical consumer to buy or believe XYZ?

Now we enter the time-intensive screening process. All the gathered ideas as further scrutinized to make sure they are economically sound. Whether or not an idea is appealing, if it adversely affects the bottom line. The best practice for the screening process seems to involve screening any possible changes against the company's overall marketing strategy, profitability, and sales.

Once the concept has been agreed upon, and cross-reference with the budget, it is time for the development and testing phase. All the new physical details of the new idea will be made tangible. This involves the creation of a scoring matrix that will keep track of all the developmental expenditures. The matrix points that yield the highest scores in terms of benefit-cost ratios are considered the most sound.

After the concept is created, it is time for the controlled release to test the market response to the "new and improved" product. This is where an executive education specializing in marketplace trends will be of the most use. The selling price of the product must be set in order to yield the most profit while the beta test is injected into the marketplace. From the idea generators to the engineers to the marketing team, everyone must understand the product development cycle. A well-trained executive with the ambition to do so will certainly thrive in this environment.