Influx Insights Tag Feed: innovation

product innovation back on the agenda at unilever

Influx Insights — 2008-05-27T05:08:15Z

At a time when product performance now trumps marketing spin, Unilever's Chairman is looking for more product innovation from the giant multinational.

According to an interview in the Times of London.

"Michael Treschow thinks there is not enough “wow” at Unilever.

The Swedish chairman likes inventions, gadgets and new whizz-bang things. He has been in his job for a year and, after a shake-up and streamlining of the top team at the Anglo-Dutch food and soap company, he wants the men in white coats to work faster, creating an assembly line of new products.

The marketing is good, the selling is good, it's the product line that needs attention, he says. “The single most important thing is that we speed up our innovation machine, which means that we bring more highly appreciated products to the consumer so that they say, ‘Wow, this is really something I would like to have',” he says."

Can we now expect increases in R&D spends as packaged goods companies go back in search of product performance and difference?

Posted by Ed Cotton

nike-entering a new era?

Influx Insights — 2008-05-15T16:43:27Z

Nike is a brand that was built on the back of raw emotion of sports, but is it about to change?

Are product performance and technological innovation going to be the drivers from now on?

Take a look at the amazing exhibition the brand is putting on in Beijing that celebrates the 100 most important innovations in the company's history.

In the past, the company has been reluctant to let technology dominate the story, but in this show, it's the star.

Perhaps, the brand feels it needs to demonstrate the substance that lies at the heart of the company and put fear into anyone, especially the smaller Chinese upstarts, that Nike's success isn't something that can be easily copied.

Posted by Ed Cotton

ad agencies and innovation

Influx Insights — 2008-02-08T14:52:30Z

It's somewhat surprising with all the creative and strategic people employed by ad agencies, how poor the industry is at innovating.

It's something we seem to demand from our clients, but are terrible at doing ourselves.

Most of the energies are focused on short-term brand ideas, not new platforms, formats or business ideas that can be of mutual benefit to client and agency alike.

Are we simply too occupied in the present, to build for the future?

Is Havas about to change the game?

Umair Haque well known for his provocative writing on business strategy and the media business over at Bubble Generation has been picked to lead the Havas Media Lab.

Umair writes that the creation of the lab is a response to other things not working.

"The Lab happened because I don't think any of the standard models - venture funds, corporates, firms, etc - can really make it happen (or else it would be happening).

Hence, the need for a new kind of entity, which is focused on driving new ideas - but also focused on igniting experimentation and discovery."

It remains to be seen exactly what this turns into and if it has the power to create genuinely new and valuable ideas.

Posted by Ed Cotton

beer innovation

Influx Insights — 2008-01-09T17:12:01Z

Most brewers focus their innovation around new taste, flavor and lightness profiles.

They focus on the beer itself, Heineken has done the same, but it's also created some interesting innovation in packaging and product delivery; the keg can and the draught keg are two breakthrough ideas.

In March of this year, the will launch take the delivery innovation a step further with the Beer Tender.

It's a home draught beer system developed in conjinction with Krups and others.

It's a great move on so many levels; it elevates the brand, it provides interesting interaction and engagement for the consumer, it has talk value and provides an entry point for dialog with the older segment of beer drinkers, who mainly drink beer at home.

It will be interesting to see how other brewers respond to this.

Posted by Ed Cotton

influx quote of the day- robert stephens- geek squad

Influx Insights — 2007-12-15T00:11:36Z

"Advertising is a tax you pay for unremarkable thinking."

Robert Stephens, founder of GeekSquad

Via Social Customer Manifesto

Posted by Ed Cotton

aaaa's planning conference- day one- sir ken robinson

Influx Insights — 2007-08-07T02:14:55Z

The first day at the AAAAs Account Planning conference in San Diego started with a bang, straight out of the gate, Sir Ken Robinson set the stage with an inspiring address about the human resource crisis and suggested building and nurturing creative cultures as the only way out.

Sir Ken suggested, as many others have done before, that we are entering a period of perpetual change, where creativity and innovation are the only solutions to gain competitive advantage.

He also noted some other problems:

1. Our perception of creativity and intelligence

There is little recognition that the two are linked. You can’t be creative and intelligent and visa versa. In fact, it seems that planning thrives on this perceptual division.

2. Our narrow definition of creativity.

It’s not just art, design and communication. There can be creative approaches to process- he cited Wal-Mart or adding a culture around coffee like Starbucks has done.

3. The creative ghetto

Putting the responsibility for all things creative in the hands of one department negates the creative capacity of the whole organization.

4. Our education system

A system that beats creativity out of kids.

Sir Ken noted that being creative requires people to DO something- people have to make something, they can’t just think about it. So the secret is to help people find their outlets- the best medium for their expression.

Creativity, like intelligence comes in different flavors.

He challenged the audience to consider the questions:

How are you intelligent?

How are you creative?

Sir Ken’s secrets for creative success were all about having teams of people who were multi-disciplinary and had the power to take ideas upwards. He also mentioned the importance of creative workspaces as they are both reflections of the corporate culture and play a vital role in stimulate employees imagination. Companies need to strive to create the ideal conditions where creativity can blossom.

Finally, he challenged everyone too aim high and succeed because too often we aim low and succeed.

Posted by Ed Cotton

clients dont want great ideas

Influx Insights — 2007-05-14T14:43:15Z

Business Week recently conducted a survey amongst senior executives on the topic of innovation. One of the questions struck Influx as being especially interesting; the obstacles to return on investment for innovation.

The barriers aren’t exactly what you expect them to be, for example, clients don’t seem to have a problem generating the ideas, it’s the implementation that’s the issue.

Clients need help in areas beyond the creative generation of the ideas themselves.

Specifically, clients want help in the following areas...

-    Becoming more comfortable with risk
-    Streamlining the internal co-ordination process
-    Identifying the right opportunities
-    Bringing relevant consumer insights to the table

It appears clients want strategy and process, more than creativity a notion that runs counter to the thinking at most communication agencies.

innovation doesn't need to be complicated

Influx Insights — 2007-05-10T04:28:44Z

In the last couple of years, the term, Innovation, has risen and fallen from star to clich�.

Mention the word to many marketers and their c-level brothers and sisters, and they will give you a perplexed look. There’s the perception that innovation is hard and complex. It’s not achieved easily and not to be undertaken by anyone without sufficient stamina. The most popular misconception is that it’s hard because it’s all about breaking through with a radical idea.

Sometimes innovation can happen in a much simpler way.

Take the fast food giant, McDonald’s and it’s latest pride and joy, the snack wrap.

Developed by Dan Coudreaut, the company’s director of a culinary innovation.

He was given the brief to develop a new chicken item that would work well for takeout.

Coudreaut developed 85 ideas that met the brief including one called a “tacadilla” which failed in consumer testing.

His solution was to create something simpler.

According to the Wall Street Journal.

“He took breaded chicken used in the restaurant's Chicken Selects strips, topped it with shredded cheddar jack cheese and lettuce, added a few squirts of ranch sauce and wrapped it in a flour tortilla. McDonald's called it a snack wrap and put it on the menu for $1.29.”

The Snack Wrap is one of the most successful product launches in McDonald’s history and was mentioned yesterday as a major contributor to the company’s 4.8% worldwide growth for the month of April.

influx interview-staples

Influx Insights — 2007-04-18T16:59:54Z

The world of office supplies has seen very little in the way of design innovation, most of the products we buy, look and function the same way as they have done for 50 years of more.

The office supplies retailer, Staples has set out to developing a program to bring design innovation to its own brand of products.

Influx was keen to learn more, so we fired off some questions to the Staples team.

1. When did Staples design initiative start and what was the catalyst for it?

Over the last four years Staples has placed an increased emphasis on building the world's best office products brand. We have made investments in both internal and external resources to help launch higher quality, more innovative products. The catalyst for this investment was our customers telling us they want an easier shopping experience. Staples brand products are a big part of that experience because we offer them with quality equal to or better than the leading national brands at a better value.

2. What are some of the first products you've produced and what are the stories behind them?

We are always developing and launching new and innovative Staples brand exclusive products. Four recent products worth mentioning include:

*    Staples better binder - Built for life, the new binder design addresses a clear customer frustration - durability - and features an improved ring system with an easy open button design, reinforced yet flexible rubberized edges and spine, and an easy-insert spine label. The better binder's sleek design and great colors allow it to blend with any office, home or classroom environment.
*    The One-Touch line of staplers first launched a few years ago. This is the easiest stapler we've ever seen. Our customers can staple through 20 sheets of paper with push of one finger (we make a high capacity version that will go through 60 sheets).

*    MailMate Shredder - Staples discovered that most consumers open their mail in their kitchen, but there was not a shredder designed to fit seamlessly into the kitchen environment that could devour junk mail whole. With ID theft on the rise and the undeniable link between junk mail and ID theft, Staples designed the compact and attractive MailMate shredder.
*    The Staples Heavy Duty Micro Cut Ultra Quiet Shredder - Staples employees noticed that places like doctor's offices waited until after business hours to shred private and confidential documents because of the loud noise. Staples looked for a way to minimize the noise, which resulted in the launch of the Heavy Duty Micro Cut Ultra Quiet Shredder.

3. Who does the design work?

The design work is led primarily by our internal teams, but we start with our customer first. We spend time in their work settings (offices and home office environments) to understand what frustrations exist with existing products and how we can help make better products that solve those frustrations.

4. What do your suppliers feel about you taking the lead, is it shaking them up?

Innovation and high quality products are a top priority for our customers. We will always offer our customers a choice of brands, including our own. Our suppliers are generally supportive. Additionally, the innovation of Staples brand products has helped us secure distribution in several grocery store chains that hope Staples' unique product offerings will help them differentiate vs. the competition.

5. What other categories might Staples extend this initiative into?

We are actively looking at all product categories to see where there is an opportunity for us to make a difference. Supplies, technology and furniture continue to remain key categories for us.

6. How successful has it been and how are your customers reacting?

Consumer reaction has been tremendous. Staples brand products accounted for 20% of our revenue in 2006, up 11% from four year's ago. Our customer research shows that Staples leads the pack when it comes to innovation as we work to maintain our brand position as the world's best office products company.

coors to develop popsicle

Influx Insights — 2007-06-14T18:10:49Z

In a battle for attention, it’s almost impossible to get through to consumers and communicate the one thing that you stand for.

However, Coors appears to have struck gold in their ability to communicate that Coors Light “owns” cold.

Taking a step back from beer land, it seems preposterous to assume that any American beer is ever going to be served “warm”, but the critical understanding that “the cold” in beer is a very important element for American beer drinkers, is smart.

Ladder this idea down to Coors roots in the “cold” Rocky Mountain, with its “cold” fresh water and you start to have a robust strategy.

Obviously, this approach is working for Coors, who just announced a couple of “cold” innovations for Coors Light. They aren’t developing popsicles, instead bottles with thermocromatic ink which turns blue when the beer has been chilled to the right temperature and a Super Cold Draft system to pour the beer at a temperature below freezing.

Beer brands are notorious for their quest to find the one single thing that resonates with consumers, so often, their quest shows through in inconsistent advertising that jumps around from idea to idea. It’s the equivalent of a political candidate who keeps changing his policy and personality with each interview. The consumer is left not knowing what the brand really stands for and the brand itself makes no commitment to prove anything.

Coors is interesting because it’s not only delivering to the single idea in its communication, it’s also proving it with tangible actions that reinforce its strategy.

innovation is demanding- fireplaces and harry potter

Influx Insights — 2007-06-14T18:10:24Z

Yesterday, Gizmodo broke the news of a fireplace manufacturer installing iPod functionality into their latest line of luxury of fireplaces and at the same time, Harry Potter’s publishing house, Bloomsbury, announced that it would be looking to make acquisitions following a 74% drop in pre-tax profits.

Both these stories suggest that it’s easy to get fat and lazy; either you borrow someone else’s innovation, take it into a new category call it your own, hoping people will respond or you continue to milk the same franchise until time runs out.

The problem with both these initiatives is that they lack fundamental foresight.

Surely, execs at Bloomsbury must have been aware that not having any Harry Potter books to publish would result in profit and revenue declines.

Influx would have loved to be in the meeting with the fireplace manufacturer where the embedded iPod was given the go ahead.

Did anyone question it?

How did they justify it- everyone’s doing it- so we should?

In the end, this is all about timing.

Had the fireplace manufacturer come up with the idea two years back; there’s a slight possibility it would not have been ridiculed.

Had Bloomsbury started thinking about acquisitions and finding the next Harry Potter, three years ago, things might have been different.

The time to look for the next new thing is right after you had your first success.

You shouldn’t wait till problems strike to innovate.

Innovation is not just a way out of a problem; it’s a continuous process to ensure that you don’t get into trouble in the first place.

The secret is to never to stop and you don't get so drunk on success that you press “pause” on the innovation engine.

target continues to be innovative with media

Influx Insights — 2007-03-31T16:10:04Z

Target is incredibly consitent in everything it does and especially in its innovative use of media.

Here's the latest example from the BART subway in San Francisco.

Via SFist