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Factors Affecting New Product Forecasting Accuracy in New Firms
Author(s) -
Gartner William B.,
Thomas Robert J.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
journal of product innovation management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.646
H-Index - 144
eISSN - 1540-5885
pISSN - 0737-6782
DOI - 10.1111/1540-5885.1010035
Subject(s) - volatility (finance) , product (mathematics) , marketing , antecedent (behavioral psychology) , new product development , business , industrial organization , econometrics , computer science , economics , mathematics , psychology , developmental psychology , geometry
This study identifies factors that seem to influence a new firm's ability to accurately forecast new product sales. William Gartner and Robert Thomas present a conceptual model and develop hypotheses that specify antecedent factors prior to new product launch, such as the founder's expertise and the marketing research methods used, as well as environmental factors occurring after product launch, such as competitive factors and market volatility, that influence new product forecasting accuracy. The hypotheses were tested with data collected from a survey of 113 new U.S. software firms. Some tentative guidelines for improving sales forecast accuracy among new firms are offered. Directions for future research are discussed.