What does Time to Market (TTM) mean?

Time to market (TTM) is the period of time from the idea and development to the market launch of a product or service. The time-to-market (product development time) is at the beginning of the product life cycle and includes all phases of the product development process. A short TTM can offer a competitive advantage, as the respective product can be placed on the market first.

How can you reduce the time to market?

  • Agile project management Agile methods such as Scrum or Kanban enable companies to speed up their development processes by taking small, iterative steps and reacting quickly to changes.

  • Collaboration Close collaboration between different departments, teams and suppliers can improve communication and increase efficiency, helping to bring products to market faster.

  • Automation Automation of processes such as development, testing or delivery can reduce development time and thus shorten TTM.

  • Prototyping Rapid prototyping and testing of products can identify and address weaknesses early, before the product goes into production.

  • Technological solutions New technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning or cloud computing can accelerate product development and thus shorten TTM.

  • Shortened approval processes Long approval processes can slow down TTM. Companies can try to shorten these processes by improving collaboration with regulators and other involved entities.

What are the advantages of a short time to market?

  • Competitive advantage A fast TTM can enable a company to bring products or services to market faster than the competition.

  • Increased revenue Faster time to market can generate revenue more quickly from the sale of the products or services.

  • Cost savings A fast TTM can also lead to cost savings, as the company needs less time and resources for product development and can react faster to changes in the market.

You will find further explanations of terms in our glossary