In a recent survey to some of the top manufacturers’ rep firms in the foodservice industry, we asked them what product launch mistakes they see in the field, and here are five that were mentioned over and over again — most of which happen before the marketing communications activities even kick in.

In the B2B foodservice space, many manufacturers leverage industry trade shows to launch new products. And although the timing is great, all the ‘new’, ‘innovative’ and ‘must-see’ products can start to look alike after a while. That is, unless your launch looks very different.

As much as we wish the whole if-you-build-it-they-will-come philosophy would work for something like a new product launch, that approach only seems to work in Kevin Costner movies. (I can’t deny, though, it was a darn good movie.)