Whole product

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Whole product is the idea that buyers buy more than just the core product. It builds on Kotler’s Five Product Levels, which start with the core benefit and add the expected features, augmented features, and potential future improvements.

Ted Levitt expanded this by showing that customers also value intangible extras like service, branding, and other added attributes that can make the offer more valuable than the physical product alone. Tom Peters later added that there can be a gap between what insiders think and what customers perceive in different industries.

Regis McKenna renamed the concept the “whole product” and defined it as the core product plus everything else needed to give customers a strong reason to buy. Later ideas added ways to reduce risk and boost adoption. Warren Schirtzinger’s Low Risk Recipe groups intangible attributes around the core to lower perceived risk, encouraging new products to catch on. Jose Bermejo adapted these ideas for software, calling it the Brand Development Wheel and showing how to separate what innovators need from what early adopters expect.

In short, the whole product includes the product itself plus the services, branding, and other intangible elements that make it a compelling offer.