Product concept development, use concept research and thinking tools
Concept development: The seedbed of advertising & product strategy.
Concept development is the process used for a wide range of product, branding, and advertising efforts:
- Creating new products and improving old products,
- Identifying new markets and fresh opportunities,
- Developing brand positions and platforms,
- Advertising themes, appeals, and core platforms.
At its core, concept development is the process of transforming innovation, visions, and ideas – thoughts and emotions – into tangible things that move the business.
At its core level, then, concept development is what turns ideas into strategy. We can call this process the ‘seedbed of strategy’ for a business enterprise.
It’s where growth starts.
Creative & Analytical Thinking
The crux question is, ‘How do we develop compelling concepts and convert them into winning products, brands and advertising platforms?’
To answer this question, let’s look at how we think, and how the people involved in concept development might be asked to think in a certain way because they play specific roles in the business and in the concept development process. We’ll come up with the best concepts if we do.
In our view, the mandate for decision-makers is this:
Achieve competitive advantage by interweaving creative and analytical thinking.
The process of concept development must employ and interweave two very different types of thinking: creative and analytical.
Incubation everywhere.
Incubation should be built-in at every step of the way. Give yourself and your team adequate time to sleep on it.
Incubation is usually associated with the creative process; that is, idea generation. It’s the ‘quiet time’ of the mind; the rest and relaxation after focused intense work. Advertising and branding agencies know how important it is in the production of great ideas.
Incubation also works elsewhere:
- Determining the goal;
- Designing the research; and
- Uncovering and prioritizing opportunities.
As an example, a client of ours had engaged us to undertake a long-term market and new product feasibility engagement. The engagement involved multiple research stages. The results of our initial landscape research, and the time it took, gave our client both initial insights and some valuable thinking time. This time and fresh data created an incubation window for new thinking and our client change direction regarding the target new product category. Having planned enough time in the engagement schedule, our research team to refocused on the new target and continued with modified later stages. Clearly, the time and incubation it allowed, added immense value.
Put incubation time on the schedule for all players involved in the concept development project.
Use a ‘great idea’ to explore more.
Often, concept exploration starts with a single idea. Use it to take a step back to view the full market opportunity.
Often times a new concept development activity jump starts with the emergence of a ‘great idea’ for a new product or advertising. While one approach is to proceed directly to test and evaluate the one idea, our view is to use the nub of the initial idea as the seed to fully explore the market opportunity it represents.
You may find additional options and greater long term success.
The creative process continues as ideas and new research data come in. Incubation continues. At play too, is a third element − Drivers: the goals, passion and judgment of decision-makers. Some call this ‘gut feeling’. Drivers color the data and ideas under development: the same ideas and data in one organization may be acted upon quite differently in another based on the organization drivers. Understand your drivers.
The Big Picture: A product development and product research example ...
Using product development and product research as an example of one application of marketing concept development, here's how all the elements fit together in a sequence of creative & analytical thinking, using concept testing research data, allowing incubation, and using 'drivers' to filter and evaluate.
Power Decisions Group
San Francisco USA
website: http://www.powerdecisions.com/inquire.cfm