NPD Assumptions tool

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Question - Does your business have any “sacred cow” beliefs that would lead to business breakthroughs if they were discarded?

Answer - Almost certainly!

Key points

In business, we all walk around with a whole series of assumptions about the market, about what we are capable of, about what we are allowed to do, about what it is cost effective to do.

Yet, nearly all the biggest market breakthroughs are made by busting some of these assumptions.

IKEA proved that you could sell furniture without actually having to assemble it. The supermarkets proved that most people preferred to help themselves rather than to be served, and that shopping was easier out-of-town than in the high street. Low cost airlines proved that many people would much rather save the money than have a full in-flight service.

Are there any other incorrect assumptions out there? More importantly, are their any that affect your business?

In more detail....

Some of these assumptions will be about:

• who the market is (that the youth market is more viable than the 50+ market)

• what the market wants (solutions rather than your undivided attention)

• where the market is (in the provinces rather than in the capital)

• who the biggest distribution channels are (physical wholesalers rather than on-line)

• what your company is capable of doing (limited by internal capabilities rather than investigating outsourcing)

• what top management will accept

...... and so on.

Of course you question some assumptions all the time, but do you challenge the truly "sacred cows", the ones you will be laughed at for attacking?

It has been identified that the best new product ideas are often ranked 10-15 in the priority listing, because they feel too dangerous or too logic-defyingly ridiculous to the organisation.

So this tool is designed to give you and your team permission to challenge every aspect of your business, and in doing so you may well come up with a breakthough idea.

This tool can be bought separately here.

It also makes up part of our broader “Innovation” training e-package which comprises an e-booklet and nine of our new product / service development tools. To find out more, please click here.

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