3 Ways to Innovate better
Innovation is a key factor in achieving business success. However, it is not easy to think of ways to get better at your products and services, over and over. Over and Over. That is the key. Most entrepreneurs will be successful once, twice or max thrice. Why is that so?
It is simple to think of ways to innovate, up to a point. Then the whole game becomes a drill. Ever wondered why? This is because most entrepreneurs employ the same strategies, the same ways to innovate. All their ideas come from one source. How much can one source serve? Even if it can serve more, we can’t get beyond 3 ideas because we are not motivated enough to find a clue. Here are three ways to help you innovate better.
1.Be a good observer: Be watchful. Look around you. What do you see happening in your favourite restaurant that can help you run your business better? What did you see a street vendor do that can change the way you do business? It may not apply directly. And if you think this is silly, here’s a piece of information for you to stop smirking and start thinking: Henry Ford applied what he saw at a meat production firm to his own, thereby drastically reducing automobile assembly and cut production costs.
2.Ask your customers: Asking your customers is the best way. They will come up with ideas of products that work better for them. Ideas that make products cheaper, better and user friendly. Have you heard of how Starbucks uses customer inputs to better their business?
3.Observe your customers: Once, I had asked for a demo for a food processor. The Salesman, a smart young chap, told me of the benefits and showed me a demo. The list was endless. He claimed the processor could do more than it claimed. For instance, he claimed it could shell peas. This was surprising as no other processor, not even this one, claimed such a thing in the User Manual. I asked him if it really worked. He instantly asked for a bunch of peas & shelled them right in front of my eyes. The amazing part was he told me his customers tried it & called him to tell him it worked! This young man was learning from his customers all the while. If the company asked his customers for advice, they would probably get a list of 100 odd things they never thought about.
Seen the upside down ketchup jars from Heinz? That’s an idea that came from watching their customers. What new ideas do you have today? Start an idea file. Not all of them may work straight away, but you won’t have to search or rethink the next time you think of innovating.
