INNOVATION – INSIGHT 10. No, of course they cannot. Consumers find it very difficult to envisage what they have never imagined or predict what they might want tomorrow. Consumers find it almost impossible to tell you with any certainty or accuracy what innovations they might want in the future or what they might need in […]

INNOVATION – INSIGHT 10. No, of course they cannot. Consumers find it very difficult to envisage what they have never imagined or predict what they might want tomorrow. Consumers find it almost impossible to tell you with any certainty or accuracy what innovations they might want in the future or what they might need in the future. Indeed Steve Jobs once noted that it is absolute folly to base innovations on the comments made by consumers regarding what they might need or want in the future. He hated focus groups as a tool for driving or even guiding innovation – so do I. It might seem that this is at odds with my previous protestations that effective innovation and in particular disruptive innovation required a high level of customer focus. It certainly appears to be at odds with comments made by representatives of major FMCG manufacturers like Proctor and Gamble…