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Problem Based Ideation Finding and Solving Customers Problems

It will be devoted to the most productive concept-generating system that we know—the problem-based approach of finding and solving customers’ problems. It seems obvious and easy: Ask customers what their problems are and have a scientist put together the solution! But it’s not always so simple. Just getting customers involved is often difficult. Learning their toughest problems is more difficult, partly because they often don’t know their problems very well. Many departments of a firm may be involved, not just the technical ones. You might want to glance back, which briefly depicts the problem-based approach to generating concepts, and see how problem based ideation fits in with other methods for gathering new product concepts. But ask product managers, and you’ll find that they are passionate about identifying customer problems and figuring out how to best solve them—for them, this is fun and exciting work! Think about toy companies. The most innovative ones recognize that one cannot just ask young children what problems they experience with existing toys. But watch them playing in a room with a variety of toys and observe what appears to be missing to them and what they do about it (for example, Using the box a toy car came in as a garage), and you may be on to something!

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780 views

Problem Based Ideation Finding and Solving Customers Problems

It will be devoted to the most productive concept-generating system that we know—the problem-based approach of finding and solving customers’ problems. It seems obvious and easy: Ask customers what their problems are and have a scientist put together the solution! But it’s not always so simple. Just getting customers involved is often difficult. Learning their toughest problems is more difficult, partly because they often don’t know their problems very well. Many departments of a firm may be involved, not just the technical ones. You might want to glance back, which briefly depicts the problem-based approach to generating concepts, and see how problem based ideation fits in with other methods for gathering new product concepts. But ask product managers, and you’ll find that they are passionate about identifying customer problems and figuring out how to best solve them—for them, this is fun and exciting work! Think about toy companies. The most innovative ones recognize that one cannot just ask young children what problems they experience with existing toys. But watch them playing in a room with a variety of toys and observe what appears to be missing to them and what they do about it (for example, Using the box a toy car came in as a garage), and you may be on to something!

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Stella-Jebas
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© © All Rights Reserved
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Welcome to PDMA-India

Presenter
Jegan Jayabal, BE, MBA
Vice President-Training, PDMA-India

Problem-Based Ideation: Finding and Solving Customers


Problems

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Problem-Based Concept Generation

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Problem Analysis: General Procedure
1. Determine product or activity category for study.
2. Identify heavy users.
3. Gather set of problems associated with product
category.
Avoid omniscient proximity -- rate importance of
benefits and levels of satisfaction.
4. Sort and rank the problems according to severity or
importance.

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Problem Analysis Applied to the Cell Phone
Keeping the unit clean. Health risks?
Breaks when I drop it. Cant cradle between ear
Battery doesnt stay charged and shoulder.
long enough. Antenna breaks off.
Finding it in dark. Flip cover breaks off.
Battery dies in mid- Disruptive instrument.
conversation. Cant see facial/body
Who out there hears me? language.
Dropped calls. Rings too loud/too soft.
Looking up numbers. Wrong numbers.
Voice fades in and out. Fear of what ringing might
Hard to hold. be for.

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


The Bother-Someness Technique of Scoring
Problems
A B
List of pet owners' problems: Problem Occurs Problem is AxB
Frequently Bothersome

Need constant feeding 98% 21% 0.21

Get fleas 78 53 0.41

Shed hairs 70 46 0.32

Make noise 66 25 0.17

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Problem Analysis: Sources and
Methodologies
Experts
Published Sources
Contacts with Your Business Customers or
Consumers
Interviewing
Focus groups
Observation of product in use
Role playing

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Typical Questions for Problem Analysis
Focus Groups
What is the real problem here what if the product
category did not exist?
What are current attitudes and behaviors of focus group
members toward the product category?
What product attributes and benefits do the focus group
members want?
What are their dissatisfactions, problems, and unfilled
needs?
What changes occurring in their lifestyles are relevant to
the product category?

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Observation and Role Playing in Problem
Analysis
Carmakers send their designers out to parking lots to
watch people and how they interact with their cars (Ford
called this gorilla research).
Honda got insights as to how large the passenger
compartments of their SUVs should be by observing U.S.
families.
Bausch and Lomb generated ideas on making contact
lenses more comfortable by getting pairs of executives to
act out skits in which they played the eyeball and the
contact lens.

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Scenario Analysis
Extending vs. leaping
Using seed trends for an extend scenario
Techniques:
Follow trend people/trend areas
Hot products
Prediction of technological changeover
Cross-impact analysis

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Relevance Tree Form of Dynamic Leap
Scenario

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Wild Card Events and
Their Consequences
No-Carbon Policy: Global warming may cause
governments to put high taxes on fossil fuels, shifting
demand to alternative sources of energy. This changes
the allocation of R&D investment toward alternative
energy, possibly causes new energy-rich nations to
emerge, and ultimately may lead to a cleaner
environment for everyone.
Altruism Outbreak: This is the random acts of kindness
movement solve social problems rather than leaving it
up to the government. Schools and other institutions will
revive due to community actions, and perhaps inner cities
would be revitalized.
Cold Fusion: If a developing country perfects free energy,
it becomes prosperous overnight. It gains further
advantages by becoming an energy exporter.

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Solving the Problem
Group Creativity Methods/Brainstorming
Principles of Brainstorming:
Deferral of Judgment
Quantity Breeds Quality
Rules for a Brainstorming Session:
No criticism allowed.
Freewheeling -- the wilder the better.
Nothing should slow the session down.
Combination and improvement of ideas.

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Brainstorming Techniques
Brainstorming circle
Reverse brainstorming
Delphi method

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


Electronic Brainstorming
Supported by GSS (group support systems)
software.
Overcomes many drawbacks of brainstorming
(only one can talk at a time, fear of contributing,
social loafing).
Participants sit at networked terminals.
Contributions are projected on screen, and also
recorded (so no errors are made in transcription).
Can be done over multiple sites via computer
linkups or videoconferencing.
Can handle larger size groups (into the
hundreds).

www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249


www.fhyzics.com | [email protected] | +91 8056-000-249

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