Marketing Insights for Innovation

A description of what we mean by insights and how they are useful in marketing and target understanding.

 Introduction of an insight model to show how insights can help new ideas emerge, showing the space between context and dissatisfaction.

Students will understand where insights fit in the idea generation process and in the development of new marketing concepts, for products or services.

Students will better understanding the importance of consumer context. How consumer truths and dissatisfaction can help us deliver stronger insights that go beyond the obvious.

The 3 dimensions of insight gathering: Truth / Dissatisfaction / Empathy

Understanding individual differences

Communication empathy model - discovery process through interviewing. How an open-minded approach can help better understand behaviours and attitudes.

Students will hear how insights can help innovators search for new solutions

Examples will help students gain better understanding of how big brands use insights to help grow their businesses.

Brand examples include: Dove, Easyjet, Apple and Google.

Students will understand the notion of empathy as a key technique in interviewing consumers / end users.

Understanding the Why - seeing the world through the eyes of your consumers

Interview toolkit - students can examine and learn top tips for better interviews

3 steps to Empathy sessions

1. Consumer / end user context
2. Product storage / usage environment 
3. Visit retail / selling outlet to better understanding shopping context and purchase decisions

Conducting an interview - 

• Techniques
• Open questions
• Style 
• Checking and reviewing

The importance of why - the question that will challenge consumer habits and behaviours.

Students will learn about more interview techniques and the insight storytelling model

Techniques for challenging initial answers and digging deeper

Insight storytelling model 

• Pain points
• Possible solution start points
• Target's issues in storytelling format

Fireside chat over coffee vs. interrogation !

Successful interview output

• Active Listening
• Using silence
• Focus on consumer / end- user 

Students will learn about developing interview outputs that go beyond the obvious

Learning Objective:Practice observing and listening in an unusual habitat to understand different target behaviours and values

Framing the challenge - finding the right balance, open questions that express your challenge

Potential targets & research methodologies

Depth vs. breadth

Targets: Experts vs beginners

Going beyond the obvious

Students will learn about considering alternative, complementary insight sources

Rich sources of insight to boost team creativity:

1. Visit non stockists
2. Go to another country to understand alternative cultures
3. Examine alternative distribution channels

Similar vs. different - changing the mindset

Student learning: Examples of alternative sources - parallel markets that can help boost team creativity

Buyers vs. non Buyers

Blue Ocean Strategy - understanding non-consumers:

• Nintendo Wii
• Callaway

Listening and investigating different perspectives

Student learning: considering behaviours at point of purchase

Shopping behaviour, habits and routines

Spotting new and different vs existing

Best in class examples vs standard of excellence

Student learning - techniques to help stretch thinking over and beyond product, brand and category rules into new new territory.

Consumer and end-user driven to guide thinking but also consider:

1. Retail data
2. R&D - 
3. Trends
4. Geographies
5. Societal trends
6. Legal / Regulatory

Student learning: other sources of insight to open up alternative avenues 

Student learning: Assembling insight sources, mapping and visualisation to bring thinking to life!

Practice setting a problem or challenge so that the overall question sounds both interesting and achievable!

Working with others, challenging thinking

From platforms to insights

Insight springboards, confronting consumer barriers

Example - healthy snacking 

Crafting - tips

Example - healthy vs indulgent

Student learning: Insight crafting and copywriting

Developing insight storytelling

Visualisation - supporting insight stories and make thinking come alive!

Student learning - adding storytelling model and visualisation to build a complete insight

Assembling all your different insight sources to map out the big picture!

Framing the challenge

Targets - Verbatims to help build a picture

Alternative sources of insight 

Insight Crafting - small team --> Insight platforms

Insight Storytelling & visualisation

Project finalisation and certification

Student learning - briefing to guide course learning into addressing YOUR marketing insight for innovation challenge!

Where insights fit into concept development process

Better insights for more successful innovation

Empathy for consumer understanding

Tasks - quizzes, assignments

Your challenge

Sharing insights to drive consumer / end user led issues

Taking the course learning and applying it to a project of your choice.

Assembling your Insights Journey Report (IJR)