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Benefits of Indirect Observation

February 21, 2012 in Customer Behavior, Demand Generation, Processes, Product/Market Fit

According to Laura Johnson, even indirect observation is a very useful tool for determining consumer product viability. By having your customers document immediate reactions with your products, you are able to gain a wealth of consumer insights data.

The Top 5 ways indirect observation can benefit your company:

1. Tap into areas of your customers’ thoughts that are generally unobserved.
2. Make your customers feel that they are playing an integral part in your product development and innovation. A sense of involvement gives customers a feeling of belonging and loyalty.
3. Researchers gain insights with consumer data they might not have expected. More fodder is created for future observation projects.
4. Your company is better able to make its services and products run parallel with your target customers’ wants and needs.
5. Your customers are able to show you their emotional thoughts with product association. This is especially beneficial because typically target customers only reveal their analytical, rational thoughts. The “why” of their purchases is revealed, and thus the foundation of a competitive business advantage is gained.

Source:, “Technology, indirect observation yield insights”, Marketing News, May 15, 2007, Pages 25 and 27

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Net Promoter Tool Catching On. Building Sales

February 7, 2012 in Customer Behavior, Demand Generation

Sometimes the most radical and effective ideas are the most simple. As is the case with the net promoter process for gauging customer satisfaction with quality and cost, as a Business 2.0 article highlighted (“The Only Question That Matters,” September 2005, p. 50).

The concept, which was developed by Bain consultant Fred Reichheld, relies on a very simple premise: if you have a sense of whether customers like your product, you will be able to sell more. And so rather than conducting cumbersome, time-consuming surveys, you can get most of the information you need by simply asking them, “would you refer this product to a friend?”

Once you have the answers to the question, you simply subtract the negative and neutral scores from the positive scores, and you have your net promoter score. Net promoter scores have been used by companies like GE, Intuit and even The Wall Street Journal to determine whether or not they are in-line with customer desires.

While it might seem simple, asking just one question of your customer base can produce volumes of information about where to go next to improve products or product delivery. And it is certainly less taxing on consumers to answer a single question rather than filling out a long survey.

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The Master of Innovation Speaks: Apple on Apple

January 24, 2012 in Critical Success Factors, Customer Behavior, Ideas, Product/Market Fit

The June 9, 2007 issue of the Economist ran an article titled “How does Apple do it?” After many had left it for dead a decade ago, this is the company that sets the pace in the consumer electronics industry. The article highlighted two main development strategies: First, Apple looks both within and outside its walls for new product ideas, an approach referred to as “network innovation.” The iPod, a notable example, was the brainchild of a consultant that Apple hired to run a project; not an employee. Second, Apple is obsessed about looking at new concepts through the eyes of its customers. Everybody gives testament to the importance of this commitment, but few live it. “If we build it they will come” is a sure path to failure.

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