Consumer Lab.Mission — Cybersecurity / Consumer Electronics
Creating and Launching a New Consumer Hardware Category
Consumer Lab partnered with Symantec to design and launch Norton's first consumer-facing hardware product, extending the brand from software cybersecurity into home network protection.
Client
Symantec / Norton
Industry
Cybersecurity / Consumer Electronics
Period
2018 (6 months)
Role
Category Strategy & Launch Consultant
Business Domain
- Category Management
- Marketing & Promotions
- Products & Services
Strategic Focus
- Go-to-Market Strategy & Retail Activation
- Category Creation & Portfolio Extension
- Category Growth Alignment
Pillars Activated
- Designing the Customer Experience
- Empowering the Organization
- Optimizing Operations & Execution
- Transforming Products & Services
Strategic Context & Challenge
From software leadership to hardware category creation
Norton was a trusted global leader in digital security, yet entering consumer hardware represented a strategic inflection point.
Launching a secure Wi-Fi router required more than product innovation — it demanded the creation of a new category within Norton's portfolio, with clear positioning, target audiences, and retail storytelling.
The challenge was to translate cybersecurity expertise into a compelling, understandable value proposition at retail, across markets.
Strategy built across the 4 pillars
Using Consumer Lab's 4-pillar framework, the mission aligned customer experience, organization, operations, and innovation into one coherent commercial system.
Customer personas and value drivers were defined to address early adopters and families seeking home network protection. Retail messaging and in-store content were designed to simplify a complex cybersecurity promise into clear, trust-building benefits that supported understanding and conversion at shelf.
A shared category framework aligned global marketing, product, and trade teams around a common positioning, target segments, and launch priorities. This ensured consistency across regions while enabling local markets to activate the category effectively with retail partners.
Trade marketing plans and retail activation toolkits were developed for key US and international retailers. These frameworks supported efficient rollout, retailer engagement, and consistent execution across markets, including launch readiness for CES.
The router was positioned as the first extension of Norton's digital protection into the connected home. POP assets, in-store content, and launch narratives established the foundation for a broader hardware ecosystem, supporting Norton's long-term expansion into connected home security.
Business impact
Successful US launch of Norton's first consumer hardware router
Strong retailer engagement through effective trade marketing and POP assets
Enhanced brand credibility via CES presence and major retail partnerships
Clear strategic foundation for Norton's expansion into connected home security hardware
Establishment of a new, scalable category within Norton's portfolio