Innovation is key to survival in any industry. It is what keeps a product in the market, what keeps some competitors on their toes and others on top, essentially it is what drives a business forward.
Recently, I was among a number of privileged guests to attend the latest of TNS Research Survey's Breakfast series presentations where speaker Ray Crook, TNS Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa Director for Innovation and New Product Development, addressed the issue.
Out of the blocks Ray hit us with some numbers: $190 billion is spent on the technology sector and $19 billion spent in the consumer sector; 90% of executives have come to the realization that innovation is crucial to building inertia; and over 90% of consumers have unmet needs. Apart from being an eye-opener this also revealed converging points in the market, most notably that executives and consumers have a large overlapping interest which could be mutually beneficial.
However whenever engaged in innovation there are certain risks, least of which is product failure. There is also a large personal risk for the creative team, if an innovation fails this could potentially be career limiting. Thankfully, Crook offered some advice to avoid this. Top of list, an obvious but often overlooked step: do your homework. Find out what the needs of the consumers are, look for future gaps, what are the must have elements for the innovation. Furthermore, he advises a move away from the mass approach strategy to a more focused and targeted approach, when it comes to retail, everyone is not equal; consumers have different wants and needs, different levels of income, different priorities.
Once a consistent need has been determined, a focused approach must be taken and detailed briefs, for strategy and continuity, must be drawn up. It goes without saying that original ideas are very important, but it is just as important to recognize exactly what consumers want, or more accurately what they need. They don't necessarily want something that is unique to the point of alienation, or something that is so far ahead of the competition that it's confusing. It is also important to address the issue of timing, just because you have a ground-breaking product it does not mean the market is ready for it.
When it comes to launch time one of the most important factors is excitement around the product. This can be done at various levels: digital campaigns; traditional advertising; in store promotion; word of mouth. The latter has proven to be very useful, shown to be twice as effective as traditional advertising. Get the word out, it's the only way to move your product.
Innovation is a fascinating industry and is among a small number of universal factors that account for the success of any venture. Therefore, familiarizing oneself with the subject matter is not merely an option but rather a necessity.
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