If we have learned anything from the 2008 Olympic Games it is that winners and losers are only separated by 1/100th of a second. On the track and in the water champions are winning the day by margins previously immeasurable.

The same applies to business. The consumer choice between your product and that of your competitor can come down to one seemingly insignificant factor that puts the consumer perception over the 50:50 decision point.

What makes a product great is never just one fantastic feature – take the iPhone for example. Heralded as the first in ubiquitous computing, it’s issues with corruption, extremely slow back up processes and weak 3G network performance has failed to impress a large number of consumers.

The total product perception is a culmination of many, many components including product design, function, ease of use, service support and value for money. Within each of these areas, there is often a large number of contributing factors. You aim as a product developer and marketer is not to strive for perfection in every element [the cost of doing so often makes the price of the product exceed the market affordability], but to exceed the tipping point at which a consumer will select a competitor product over yours.

Each product dimensions must be defined, and monitored for customer feedback and satisfaction.

With significantly reduced product lead times and market value lifecycles, manufacturing the ‘perfect product’ is no longer profitable. Fortunately, it doesn’t take the perfect product – it just takes the ability to measure and monitor that your product is perceived as slightly better than the competition.