Case Study Purpose:

• Consumer Insight Development Process: Given I maintain confidentiality in work with clients, I’ve always hesitated to share a client case study. This is my opportunity to share a true consumer insights to product development funnel experience.
• Personal Challenge: What happens if I start with a blank slate, build consumer insights and create a product line without a corporate umbrella? Success? Failure? Time, and this case study, will tell.
• You: Take what you need as I share the journey. Improvement helps everyone.

Inspired by:

• Truth. Authenticity. I am putting my money where my mouth is and trusting the process.
• Perseverance. Testing an idea I’ve latched onto, that people overestimate what they can accomplish in a year and underestimate what can be accomplished in a decade.
• Motivation. The itch to combine two things I love – insights and product development.
• Heart. A sign my daughter posted on our community greenbelt a few years ago inspires me to help others along the way.

More on heart and authenticity. My daughter publicly posted a handmade sign which read, “Take What You Need.”  At the base of the sign she cut strips. Typically these strips would have a phone number, web address or social media page if this was an advertising tool. But instead, these strips had a community outreach and emotional intelligence on them far beyond her years. The tear-off strips had inspirational words such as “Courage” or “Confidence.” She was so thrilled that people took what they needed and quietly went on with their walk. I’m drawing in courage and confidence and hoping to share a bit with you as well. Not all packaged with the latest marketing language up in a postmortem review. An authentic pre-concept to completion case study project, and in real time.

I love helping companies when they are in need of understanding a new or existing market. Now I am getting that itch myself…so here it goes. Let’s see where this year, or maybe even this decade of innovation takes us. Take what you need!

Consumer Exploration/Immersion

This summer was spent doing a lot of fun trips, but also soaking it all in. Like most people, I already had some ideas in mind, so as I would suggest to you, I started with step one. Capturing your low hanging fruit.

So, what do you know?

1. Play, look and free your mind

Create an Idea List – move all of those ideas already in your head onto a list and prototype/rough out those you think have merit

• Capture top of mind product ideas from the industry of interest
• Scour social media for inspiration, consumer insights, attitudes, beliefs, and my personal favorite – jobs to be done and compensating behaviors or work arounds to get it done
• Go shopping. But not in the stores that cater to my target market. Rather be inspired by materials, design and ideas outside of the industry that can inform and spark imagination

Then, Start from Stupid

2. The fun stuff!! Marry your inspiration to the insights.

Consumer Insight Field Work

It’s tempting to sit behind a computer screen combined with some store checks and consider it a roaring good start. And, yes, it’s a start. But to get beyond what exists today, and make connections to the actual need, you need to get out there with your consumers. Let go of preconceived notions. Watch their processes, compensatory behaviors, and their own biases. Listen. Become an agent of wonder. Learn from them. Yes, it takes a lot of time out of the office, but it pays dividends. Maintain consumer focus.

As an ongoing process, I will learn what I can learn through observation, in depth interviews, online review and through social media shares to bulk out an insight list for further brainstorming and the idea list for feedback and go/no go decisions. A growth mindset is important to look with fresh eyes at:

• Established consumer habits.
• Understanding circumstances of struggle.
• What compensating behavior or circumstance will be fired?

While creativity is always appreciated, early in the development cycle, this is when it’s a focus. Consumer insights are always in motion. My potential customers might relate to technology differently, their homes, their families and overall belief systems year over year. It’s important I never consider myself with a fixed mindset, as the consumer is ever growing and changing.

So that’s where I started this summer. I went in homes. I observed processes. I took photos, lots of photos. Grabbed some video. Took some notes. And I will continue to go through it all again. Flip through the photos, walk through aisles of stores I wouldn’t usually go to, make connections and links with my visits to museums, libraries, amusement parks, nature – anywhere. Moving the deep rivers of thinking to new ground.

INSIGHT DEVELOPMENT

A consumer insight defined = aha!

A consumer insight is that aha moment. There is a tension. It’s when you realize that a specific consumer target has a belief, a desire and something standing in the way of that desire or need.

As I pulled them into a presentation format I had some aha moments. In fact, after my first in home observation, I put together a rough prototype of something and mailed it out to some people I trust to use it. I want to protect it. Based on early in use feedback, I might be on to something, and so for one idea I’m beginning the patent process. Others are much earlier. And other insights are too early to even brainstorm around. But, score one for the consumer insight process! I already have a tangible idea and I haven’t even gotten to the brainstorming process.

Concept Testing

With my one tangible product idea, I have produced about 8 – 10 prototypes and am doing some in use testing. Family members, friends, and friends of family members who are smack dab in the middle of my target market. I’m getting feedback on what’s working well and improvements via simple photography, texts, emails and an online survey sent just to those I trust.

If that pans out, I’ll also further develop some concepts, in words and with imagery, to do an initial concept screening test. Thus, if this becomes a product line of interest to retail I will have a pipeline and a full set of products for a category. Certainly, I can’t as an individual afford to fund a full pipeline of product, but that’s a bridge I will cross if and when I get to it.

In the mean time, it’s an exciting start.

Keeping the Zap

The whole reason I started Innovative Zap is because I always felt that I could do and be so much more if I could just be in consumer’s homes and minds all day. Knowing that was impossible, I wanted to be that connection for other innovators, product and marketing teams. Be their eyes and ears, and in their corner as insights unfold. I still do love that work! And I am still taking on clients and doing that work. But, now I’m learning so much. I’m immersing beyond the consumer for entrepreneurial progress.

• Listening to audio podcasts and books while I’m running. Keeping my mind open to more macro subjects like the daily news, broader talks, and general interests, and more micro subjects dealing with entrepreneurial issues, marketing, branding, and business. I’ve really enjoyed this narrative of knowledge as I run, or even run errands.
• Keeping a PowerPoint as a business document. Allowing me to think through the current product and next steps.
• Creating a LeanStack business plan to consider the ability to monetize the ideas.
• Getting mentored. Connecting with my favorite business mentors, getting NDA’s signed and talking about what I’m doing with an open arm to feedback. Also connecting with friends and neighbors who work in places I want to get into for feedback.
• Asking complete strangers if I can go home with them! Not kidding. This is my in home recruitment process.
• Purchasing the Web Addresses and Social Media accounts.
• Getting rolling on logos.
• Beginning to lay out next steps in each process of product development. More prototyping, provisional patent, packaging plan, content needs, sourcing, pricing, safety requirements, specifications and the list goes on

Each day the goal is to move forward, take meaningful action and focus on the priorities to maintain momentum in product launch.

As 2017 Closes – Prototypes Complete, Photo Shoot in Session

As I had to travel twice in November for client work out of state, my sister flew in from Iowa to babysit my husband (yes, I have kids, too, but truth is truth). He admits his suffer score is too high when I’m not on the home front. That my friends, is the subject of a different blog, but fortuitous for this personal work project. Because, my sister is essentially running my prototyping.

It’s perfect. She is a master seamstress, a trusted confidant, a scientist by nature and teacher by profession. Perfect. Let the build, measure, repeat process continue! While I was doing consumer insight work for a paying client, she kept a sewing machine and serger running at home to test out fabrics and samples. We extended her trip before and after both November trips for time to go to the LA garment district and get our fabric haul, talk through any plans, and immediately get to rapid prototyping. This is becoming a rewarding family venture.

Today I promise to get my photo shoot complete. I leaned on my neighbor, a retired Hollywood cameraman, to set up my lighting in a spare bedroom gone prototyping shop and now photo studio. Are my photos going to be perfect? Absolutely not. Will they be as professional as possible from a start up business keeping a tight belt? Indeed. Once I get the photos complete, I can get the web site moving and test some marketing messaging and online marketing tools. Can’t wait! Forward progress.

2018

Oh my gosh. My photos were terrible. Round two. Hiring a professional.

Kicking off the New Year with in-use testing.

• Build, measure, repeat
  • Updated each prototype based on in use performance feedback
  • NDA’s signed
  • Re-testing with our final prototypes with 15 – 20 recruits with newborns
• Beyond understanding ‘jobs to be done’ from a new parent lens, the in use testing highlights alternative usage scenarios
• Partnering with Parents on functional and emotional needs
  • Product has been optimized via consumer in-use feedback
  • Successful photo shoot captivating the emotional and functional product appeal
• Applied for Provisional Utility Patent
• Determined soft launch plan with minimal inventory for sales (build, measure, learn part two!)
• Production
  • Production by my sister who is partnering with me for a conservative launch and learn
  • Planning for how to sew and ship. Purchasing supplies, operational needs, testing.
  • A production facility in the works for growth planning
• Marketing and Sales
  • Logo (thanks Kendall and Kunzler Studios!)
  • Started marketing pieces including a 1-pager to include with product; care tags
  • Website development through Shopify (thanks Randy!)
  • Aiming for a soft launch by Mother’s Day 2018
• We’ve Launched. We’ve Learned!
  • Initial launch on www.hummingbirdinfant.com
  • What’s going well? Product reviews are terrific, quality is outstanding and it delivers on the promise of taking the stress out of bath time for new parents and care takers. It’s creative. Innovative. A challenge. A ton of fun for my sister and I. And,it makes parent lives better.
  • What’s not going well? A swaddle immersion bath is a new bathing process. And nobody know what it is. I mean nobody. If you use Jungle Scout to see how many people have searched for that term on Amazon. Zero. Quick yes/no/maybe poll to the local Moms of Conejo Valley. I got – “mama say, what?” I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. I thought I came up with the idea as inspired by consumer in-home observations, and only later learned the UCHealth Pouvdre Valley Hospital was spearheading a swaddle immersion program for their newborns.
  • Now what? Educate. Start small. Local businesses. Local Doctor’s offices. While consumer behavior is hard to change, new parents don’t have a behavior to change. Only to be educated on how to make baths less stressful. So, we will begin including less innovative and more easily accessible and understandable products to fill out the line. And, continue to educate the market.
  • Stay aware. Constantly learn. As I integrate into the birth community, I had an eye opening meeting with a Doctor in physical therapy at the close of last week, and a pediatric Dr. today. More product, based on true parenting need, will come of these meetings. Infant products inspired by parent needs.
  • “If You Build It, They Will Come.” – Field of Dreams. The beauty of launching a product line in 2018 is that there are so many marketing options for an entrepreneur. As of September 2018, I have kicked off a small social media team of moms. As we know the product is fantastic and well reviewed, our team will now amp up interest through commission sales based affiliate partnerships with new mamas aligned with our values.

2019

This year we focus on providing content