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News Release from: Rowan Limited | Subject: Innovation and commercialisation
Edited by the Marketingservicestalk Editorial
Team on 09 August 2007
How innovation can bring commercial
success
In any competitive market introducing new products and services is a key way for companies to differentiate and win new business, argues Chris Rattigan, Managing Director of Rowan Group.
Whether we're talking about entirely new products, improvements to old ones or range extensions, creating new things to sell will help you to find new customers, service your existing customers better, differentiate from the competition and offset the risk of being a one-trick pony Chris Rattigan, Managing Director of commercialisation specialists Rowan Group, maintains that - if you can negotiate the obstacles - innovation can generate excellent rewards
This article was originally published on Marketingservicestalk on 19 Mar 2007 at 8.00am (UK)
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The reaction to such advice for many companies is that innovation is costly, takes time and is complicated.
Some will have tried before and found it took too long to get a return and almost everyone would claim that they have enough work running their existing business.
These are all fair points, of course, but through long experience, we've found better ways to make money faster from new products and services.
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First of all, it's worth looking at what goes wrong most often with the innovation and commercialisation process.
* It takes too long and costs too much - products get stuck in development hell and never seem to be ready to sell.
* The new products or services don't sell as expected, leading to poor returns on investment and potentially causing cash flow difficulties.
* The whole adventure leaves a bad taste in the mouths of company owners and managers, everyone goes back to doing what they know and the company loses a key opportunity for growth.
All of these can be fixed or avoided, leading to greater commercial success, by adopting some basic principles.
Commercialising new innovations quickly can be easier than people think, but it does need a different approach to be successful.
Rather than developing products behind closed doors, we would always recommend involving customers throughout the innovation and commercialisation process - even trying to sell products very early in the process.
Talking directly to customers is the best way of making sure you're developing a product or service that meets customer needs, and getting customers to commit to paying for a new product or service early in the development cycle is a great way of validating the market and guaranteeing ROI.
Now, this all sounds good in theory, but does it work in practice? Yes it does.
Customers are surprisingly willing to make an input to a development process that will give them additional benefit.
Customers will also often support a project financially, whether through development funds, deposits or committed orders.
And if every customer says No, that's a sign that the proposition needs a rethink.
Rowan has helped a wide range of companies to go through this process with their customers.
So in summary, being a bit cheeky with customers and asking them for their input and financial commitment to a new product or service, even before it's ready for market, is a great way to reduce risk and secure ROI.
It's an approach that ensures everybody wins.
Chris Rattigan is co-founder and managing director of sales and marketing specialists Rowan Group, which helps businesses large and small to make the most of their great ideas with a unique blend of advice and practical hands-on support.
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