The impact of product and marketing innovation on market share in apricots

ABSTRACT Production refers to the process in which enterprises utilize human and material resources to create goods and services that meet consumer needs. Marketing encompasses the stages of introducing a product to the target audience, determining its positioning and message, and promoting it through diverse communication channels. In an increasingly competitive and rapidly changing global economic environment, integrating innovation into both product and marketing processes has become essential for enterprises to sustain their competitive advantage. Innovation enables firms to enhance competitiveness, shorten production and marketing processes, reduce costs, improve existing products, or develop new ones. Successful innovation requires accurately identifying problems, adopting an interdisciplinary approach, and ensuring that the resulting development generates added value for the product, the enterprise, and the regional economy. In this context, Malatya apricot—an agricultural product with a geographical indication and strongly associated with the region—has recently faced competitive pressure due to changing climate conditions and the expansion of apricot cultivation to alternative regions. Existing research indicates that although various product ideas have been developed using Malatya apricot and apricot kernels, most of these attempts have remained at the invention stage and have failed to achieve commercialization or sustainable marketing success. The aim of this study is to determine why innovation has not been achieved in product development and marketing related to apricot, or, if innovation has been achieved, why it has not progressed beyond the invention stage to gain recognition and generate added value. In addition, the study investigates how innovation practices might influence market share and identifies the sources of errors or deficiencies within current processes. The study examines innovation, R&D, the history of apricot cultivation, and past attempts at innovation that failed to be commercialized through literature review and field data. The data of the research were collected via questionnaires administered to apricot factories located in the Malatya Organized Industrial Zone, Malatya Apricot Commodity Exchange, Malatya Apricot Research Institute employees, producers at Malatya Şire Market, and apricot wholesalers. The collected data were analyzed using the SPSS software. Evaluations were made based on the analysis results, and solution-oriented suggestions were presented in the conclusion section. Keywords: R&D, invention, innovation, innovation in production, product innovation, innovation in apricot, marketing innovation