CRM or Customer Relationship Management Systems How would you like to take your kids to a playground where there’s a gigantic sign that says: “No Running?” How would you like to take your kids to a playground that has a big antique railroad caboose that says:...
One of my favorite Innovation Superstars is HP, and in particular, I’m impressed with the “HP Garage”. I’ll never forget my first “dot.com” consulting engagement at the very beginning of the dot.com boom. The first day of that engagement I sat in on one of their...
I have a question – a question that you may have as well: How can you, as a manager, marketer or an innovator, tell if you’re really customer connected? Sure, it’s easy to feel customer connected – you’ve done your market research, sat in on the focus groups,...
Think holistically about the customer experience. As you’ve probably picked up I’m not a fan of incrementalism – the “paint it blue, call it new” style of innovation that seems more directed to satisfying the need of new product development departments who want to proclaim...
It’s not enough just to provide for carpet time – you must work at it to make it effective. Simply spending time with customers alone won’t do the trick. Regardless of what kind of “carpet time” you choose to engage in, there are some guiding principles...
This one’s pretty simple. What good does it do to invent something if you can’t bring it to market? Yet, so many companies do just that. Some of the more “techno-centric” organizations, in fact, simply judge their innovations by the number of patents they receive....
This past year, a colleague of mine went to a Staples office products store in a small town in the California mountains. His intent was to find a quick, cost-effective way to make copies of a picture of his kids for a Christmas letter. He...
At the risk of sounding old-fashioned – and unfortunately, it probably does – I believe that one amazing component that is alive and well with all innovation superstars is craftsmanship. Now, when we think of the term “craftsmanship” we think of hand-crafted wood items or...
So when I use the term “risk management system,” what am I really talking about? Are these systems simply checklists to make sure all the bases are covered in designing and introducing a new product? Or do they reach back into the idea generation and...
Almost anyone who has taken a business marketing course has learned about the so-called “Four P’s” of marketing – product, price, promotion, and place. It’s worth another look at the “P’s,” because they can also be used to build your understanding of net customer value...
