Innovation is the vital key to business success. Innovation brings a financial payoff. Research by McKinsey tells that companies like Aspire, Discover, and Mobilize received more economic benefits than companies with less focus on innovation. Data from Microsoft indicates that companies that tried innovative culture are experiencing double-digit growth compared to companies that never focus on innovation. To be unique in the crowded market, every successful business leader should try product innovation process to maintain the brand name.

What is the importance of Product Innovation?

Product innovation is the development and market introduction of a new, remodeled, or improved product or service. It includes both developing something new and making something much better than earlier.  Not everyone invents a new product, but anyone can make an old product more effective by adding creativity. Product innovation is important because it can help you acquire a top place in a crowded market. By identifying the flaws of your product and adopting new and refreshing methods, you can reach more audiences and satisfy the consumer's needs. Product innovation means finding a new product and updating the existing one with new technologies. For example, the Kindle, the first model, and the latest one succeeded. Amazon tried and applied innovation to get that success. Innovation happens when improving a product or adding extra features to the product. High-quality cameras in mobile phones are a new feature.

Product Innovation Process

You can use several metrics to measure the innovation. Most business leaders use sales rate and ROI to find the success of a product. You can apply these metrics only when the new one has already been launched. How can you measure the product innovation before the product launch? In the development stage, how can you know about the audience mindset? The only answer to all these questions is market research. Gaining the market knowledge, customer interest, and competition details will add advantages during a product launch. Following are the essential parts of the product innovation process.

• Identifying gaps and blue oceans in the market

Blue ocean is a term introduced by two professors named W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne in Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant. The Blue ocean is an unexplored area in the business that can give high potential profits. For example, before the launch of iTunes, users were illegally downloading music from the internet that was a blue ocean. iTunes provided a platform for consumers to download music that had never existed before. Spotify and Apple Music followed the same. Their creators found a blue ocean in the market and launched them. Only a person who keeps his eyes open for gaps in a specific industry can identify a blue ocean. These opportunities do not happen daily. Gaps are some new services that well-established businesses do not provide yet. You can work on the business model and add that new service.

• Collecting data needed for product innovation

Two essential things for product innovation are monitoring the global market and listening to customer reviews. These help you read the minds of potential customers and their needs. People discuss the product, write positive/negative reviews, and share thoughts in the media. They are valuable when you are planning for a product launch. You can hire a market research firm or do it by yourself.

Benefits of Innovation Training Programs

MIT ID Innovation offers you the product innovation training program that helps you understand innovation theories, strategic thinking, and techniques. Strategic thinking helps improve your team's performance and attain the highest potential.  MIT ID Innovation's innovation programs drive your organisational growth and performance.