Ideas To Go

The ITG Katies enjoy lunch.

One of our successful product ideas, Pizza Hut Cheesy Bites Pizza, is available again, and several of us in the MN ITG office wanted to give it a try. 

As Pizza Hut CMO Kurt Kane said recently, “Pizza Hut is known for pushing the envelope on innovation and building menu items that keep consumers talking. But nothing captures the attention of our customers quite like the fan favorite Cheesy Bites Pizza. With Cheesy Bites, you’re getting our mouthwatering pizza surrounded by cheese-filled miracles that can take pizza right from good to great.” 

Since our hunger was miraculously cured, we tend to agree!

We asked one of our long-time Creative Consumers® associates (CC), Frank Auer, to tell us what it’s like to be a CC. Here is his response:

Initially it may seem as if being a CC is just fun and games—without being challenging and without a solid application to personal life. Nothing could be further from the truth.

From my experience there are three main challenges to being a CC that also apply to daily life.

1. Endurance
2. Acceptance
3. Understanding 

Endurance – One cannot simply be prepared with one idea. In session this means the CC must power through round after round of constant new ideas. Always stretching for new views and thoughts. I believe that people who always search and stretch are prepared for what life throws at them. There is many a story of a successful creative person having a smashing success, but then floundering because they have no second, let alone, third idea.

Acceptance – As Creative Consumers® associates, we must accept all ideas. We cannot simply reject an idea because it sounds silly or impossible to us. To refuse ideas is to shut down discussion, and essentially not respect the thoughts of others. In everyday life, you would do well to truly listen to people’s ideas. Do not reject them just because they may initially sound strange or too “out there.”  While the idea as a whole may not work, it may very well hold a nugget of great value that you can spin into a unique, fantastic idea. You just have to learn to accept and value all ideas.

Understanding – Understanding what others are asking for, or need, is vital to being a good CC. Being able to interpret a client’s request and understand how it applies to the ideas in my head can always be a challenge.  As Creative Consumers® associates, we have large blocks of ideas but we also need to understand the client’s need in order to shape and sculpt those ideas in a way that is useful to their objectives.  I think of it as Super-Powered Active Listening. You must actively process what you are being told, and be willing to ask questions to fill in the gaps, in order to move forward in a manner that benefits those involved.

As a CC, I strive to use all three facets of my abilities. However, even if I wasn’t a CC, I think I would endeavor to make use of these skills in my daily life to be a better employee, friend and family member.

By Adam Hansen, Facilitator and VP of Innovation

If you’re thinking like an innovation mercenary, then you’ll find innovation inspiration everywhere. Including the reality television show America’s Got Talent (AGT).

We know innovation hinges on the Big Two—Uniqueness and Relevance—which together account for about 85% of all innovation success. On a recent episode of AGT, an Earth Harp performance gave us a look at a couple key levers of Uniqueness and Relevance.

Uniqueness:

• The biggest instrument most of us are aware of would be something on the order of a string bass, a sousaphone (the wrap-around tuba in marching bands) or perhaps Neil Peart’s drum set (the drummer from Rush…there, I invoked Rush!).  The Earth Harp uses the whole theater as the sound chamber—literally tying the stage to first balcony.  When thinking “scale” as a lever of uniqueness, we’re often impressed by 50%, 100%, or every now and then 200% more than the expected size.  How about something 2000% larger?  Couple that with what seemed to be original music, played by a clear master of this breakthrough instrument, and you have a very exciting Uniqueness story.
• How This Relates To Innovation Work: Look for opportunities to scale on an order of magnitude that no one else would even begin to consider.  The quickest way to cut through competitive clutter is to have no competition.

Relevance: 

• What would it be like for you, an audience member to be inside the instrument?  I would love to get inside an acoustic guitar when a Segovia was playing it.  With the Earth Harp, you are literally involved in the performance, like egg whites are involved in meringue.  Hear it, feel it, be it.  It’s one thing to feel a pounding bass in your chest from massive speakers at a loud rock concert, but this seems to be a very different experience, substituting the brute force of volume for something approaching the other-worldly.  It seems like the music would entirely surround you.
• How This Relates To Innovation Work: Seek out ideas that involve your customers at a heightened level and have more potential to resonate long-term. Uniqueness doesn’t work if there’s no intention of repeat purchase. To be relevant, something needs to burrow itself into our lives and stay tethered there so we can enjoy the experience of it again and again.

So what can innovationistas learn from a somewhat formulaic reality contest?  Innovation can be spurred by approaching Scale and Involvement in a fresh way.  Use that inspiration to start thinking of strategies/levers that can drive to each of the Big Two.

Challenge Yourself:  Consider new Uniqueness and Relevance levers for your product-market space.  Within each lever, think outrageously, not just incrementally.  Where does it take you?  Go far beyond reasonable, then scale it back to something that’s still obviously breakthrough, but perhaps just a tad more approachable or feasible.

The Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy, by E L James, is an international pop culture phenomenon. The books, categorized as erotic fiction—and dubbed “mommy porn” by The New York Times—have been at the top of that paper’s bestseller list for weeks. The movie rights have been sold. And the media is gaga over the author’s story. What’s so special about these books? They started as Fan Fiction—as in, one ardent fan’s love for something so much (the Twilight books and movies), that she had to respond with her own embellished twist on the story.

Fan Fiction is a passion-fueled online trend where fans of a particular book, movie, TV show, etc., write their own version as a tribute to the story, characters and worlds they love.

Like Fan Fiction, building on something you love is rampant in ideation sessions. We call it elaboration. And there are lots of benefits to it.

1. Sometimes it’s easier to respond to something that’s already out there, than it is to come up with an idea on the spot. 
2. Elaborating on an idea can add depth and breadth to an idea generation. 
3. Passion for an idea increases the energy in the room—making it more comfortable for others to offer even more ideas, and taking the passionate builders in other new directions. 

Perhaps the most rewarding benefit shared by elaboration and Fan Fiction alike, is the viral enthusiasm that grows from one person to the next. This phenomenon fuels not only the shaping of the idea, but also the adoption—transforming a possibility in the ether into something with real application for its users…which is something anyone in the idea business should be a fan of.

by Susan Robertson, Facilitator and VP of Business Development

For those of us who love the power of brainstorming, the current trend to bash the benefits of it is tough. It seems to have started with Susan Cain’s book, Quiet: The Power Of Introverts In A World That Can’t Stop Talking, where she claims group brainstorming is worthless. (A book that compelled me to write an article pointing out some of the issues with her research and assumptions.) And was followed by several articles with similar themes of demonizing brainstorming—including The New Yorker and Fast Company.

These articles prompted me to start thinking about how a responsible client would go about hiring an innovation company—especially when there is so much conflicting information being bandied about. If I were in their shoes, how would I decide amongst all the companies who are offering services that are supposed to help me innovate?  How could I guarantee that the company I picked to help in our innovation efforts would deliver what we need and want?

The answer, of course, is that there are no guarantees in this, just like in life.  So I’m going to offer some thoughts on how to minimize the risks of going wrong, and maximize the chances for success. In short, my suggestion is to treat this relationship like you would any other relationship in your life. 

Do You Trust These People?
This is not about whether you trust their model or their process. Models and processes are plentiful; everybody’s got one. That’s not to denigrate their importance. It’s critical that innovation is repeatable; structure is absolutely necessary. So every innovation firm has a structure, process, or model that they follow. And most of them work quite well. If you think someone’s model seems reasonable, it probably is. So you need to decide if you trust the people as much as you trust the model. If by chance, something does go wrong, are these the people you want in the lifeboat bailing with you, or are they potentially going to bail on you?

Do They Care What You Think?
Early in my career, I was an assistant brand manager at Quaker Oats, working on the Gatorade brand. The senior management hired one of the big strategy consulting firms to rethink the future of the brand. After a meeting with the consultants (in which they pretty much ignored the opinion of everyone on our team), I privately asked my 2-levels-up boss, “Don’t you think they’re kind of … arrogant?” (I actually used a different “a” word that I won’t repeat here.)  Her response was, “Yes, totally. But they’re really smart.” 

In my relative naiveté, I assumed she must be right and that intelligence trumps all else in a relationship like this. Over time, however, I’ve learned differently. I now know that the people I want to work with are the ones who view our work together as a collaboration. 

No matter how smart a consultant is, they will never know your business like you do. They know DIFFERENT things than you know, and have DIFFERENT experiences than you have. The magic happens when those diverse sets of knowledge and expertise come together. So, don’t hire someone who agrees with you on everything, and does exactly what you ask for every time. And don’t hire someone who tries to look smarter than you, and doesn’t value your experience as important or unique. Hire someone who listens to what you say, but also challenges your assumptions, who adds value with their perspectives, questions, and suggestions, and who works WITH you to arrive at the best solutions.

Get beyond the first date before you tie the knot. Who are you really?
A client recently said to me, “We hired Firm X on the basis of the guy who originally presented to us. He was charismatic, smart, funny, and he really won over our whole team. As soon as we hired the firm, they sent in a bunch of inexperienced 24-year-olds to do the work, and we never saw or heard from him again. Obviously, we were a lot less impressed with the resulting work than we were with the initial presentation.”  Ask some questions about who will actually do the work. Is it the person/people presenting?  If you’ve only ever spoken to the Business Development specialist, ask to also speak to the person who will lead your project, and make sure that person also feels right, before you sign the contract.

Do you like them well enough to live with them?
It’s quite likely that you are going to work closely with these people for a while, and in some relatively intense environments. For example, you may find yourself in a dark back room of a focus group facility with them for several days. Would you enjoy going out to dinner with these same people every night afterward? Do you think that would be fun and/or relaxing after working with them for many days? If so, then dive in and hire them. If not, look around a little more. The best kind of consultant-client relationship is one where you’re actually so energized by the hard—and often exhausting—work you’re doing together, that you still want to hang out at the end of the day.

Of course, all the rational factors will play into your decision — quality, price, timing, output, etc. But even after you apply those filters, you will likely still have lots of potential partners to choose from. If you consider the human factors into your decision, you’ll ultimately be happier in your work with them, and more satisfied with the results.

In praise of irrational innovators

“But our world is — unquestionably — a better place because people take risks that don’t quite make logical sense.” —Scott Anthony

Written by Susan Robertson, Facilitator and VP of Business Development

While we have to remember that it is entertainment—and that some parts of it might not be totally real—it’s been an interesting study for me to watch the differences between the judges on American Idol.

Randy Jackson exhibits all the hallmarks of a flaming extrovert. He interrupts the other judges, and host Ryan Seacrest, all the time. Not because he’s being rude, but because he’s thinking. And extroverts think out loud. He says a lot of words when he talks, and often repeats one or more of them many times—especially if he’s passionate about what he’s saying. His gestures are large. His voice is loud. And while the last two don’t necessarily point to extroversion (I’m a rather loud introvert myself), they do often go hand-in-hand.

Steven Tyler exhibits the tendencies of an introvert. I know it seems hard to imagine that this rock star, who has made his name (and fame) by being the exhibitionist front man for one of the most famous bands ever, could be an introvert. But based on his behavior as a judge on Idol, I’d guess that’s who he really is. He rarely speaks until he’s specifically called upon by Ryan. He never interrupts the other judges. He says far fewer total words than Randy does.  His speaking voice is relatively quiet (again, not that that necessarily means he’s an introvert, but it seems to fit the demeanor in this case). His gestures and body language generally aren’t flamboyant (again, not necessarily the sign of an introvert on its own, but another clue). While he does make the occasional grand gesture (like diving into the pool fully clothed at the end of one episode) it appears to me that this is him performing. I think the “real” him is the thoughtful, relatively quiet, more introverted person.

Jennifer Lopez’s preference for introversion or extroversion is less clear, based on her behavior on the show. I tend toward thinking she prefers more extroversion, but that’s more speculation. The other two’s preferences seem more clear to me.  So I’m going to focus on the differences between Randy and Steven.

While Randy might, on the surface, appear to be giving more feedback, if you really think about what’s being said, Steven contributes an equal amount of thinking and feedback as Randy, just more in the style that an introvert contributes. He’s equally effusive, although less wordy, when someone performs outstandingly well. And he’s equally honest when someone doesn’t.  He appears to think through what he wants to say before he says it—a classic trait of an introvert.  Randy, true to his extroverted style, appears to do his thinking as he’s talking.

How Does This Relate To Your Innovation Work?

Well, besides the fact that I just find it interesting, it can illuminate how to get the best of each person on your innovation team—by making room and space for both introverts and extroverts to do their best thinking.

A lot of innovation work, particularly in the early discovery and idea generation phases, tends to be done with a team all in a room, or on the phone together. This group work is where extroverts are most at home—they love the energy of bouncing ideas and thoughts off other people, it’s often where they do their best thinking, and it’s how they get jazzed about a project. So make room for that in your process. Let them talk all they need to, because that’s how they think best.

But, to ensure that you get the best thinking from the introverts too, you need to give them their commensurate time and space. You can start by publishing the objectives and agenda of any meeting well in advance, so they have time to incubate on it privately.

When you need to generate new thinking in a group, ask that all participants do a preparation assignment in advance.  This allows the introverts to do some deep thinking about it when they’re alone and can do their best thinking. It also offers the added benefit of getting the idea generation off to a quick start when you do get the team together. The introverts will come with some ideas already thought-through. The extroverts might come with their thoughts less fleshed out, but they’ll use the energy of the moment to generate even more.

And when you do need to come up with ideas more in the moment (when there isn’t time for a prep assignment), make sure you have a few minutes of silent thinking before people start talking. The extroverts will be chomping at the bit to start talking, and will think the three minutes of “thinking time” isn’t necessary. But if you skip this, the introverts in the group will never have time to think, because it can be tough for them to think when everyone else is talking. So, if you’re the one running the meeting, say: “Everyone please take a quiet moment to jot down some thoughts before we start talking.”  The three minutes you spend, even though they feel wasted to the extroverts, will buy you dramatically better input and participation from the introverts.

In summary, keep in mind that you need to allow both types of people to feel like they’re contributing at their best. An easy way to remember to do this is to remember what they might say: 

An extrovert would say, “I don’t know what I think until I say it.”
An introvert would say, “I don’t know what to say until I think about it.”

You need to create both individual thinking time and talking time into your innovation process. Or you just might end up with ideas only Paula Abdul could love.

John Cleese on 5 things you can do to inspire creativity.  

Originally found at Brainpickings.org.  Thanks!

Want More Creativity? Tear Down the Walls

ITG was highlighted in an article on the importance of creative environments. Thanks to Vera Dordick of Tangible Develoment LLC for including us!

Why Jeff Bezos LOVES Consumers

Forbes magazine will profile Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, as one of the best leaders in America in its April 23, 2012, issue. And it’s his love of customer-driven innovation that helped put him there.

According to the article:

“For Bezos a data-driven customer focus lets him take risks to innovate, secure in the belief that he’s doing the right thing. ‘We are comfortable planting seeds and waiting for them to grow into trees,’ says Bezos. ‘We don’t focus on the optics of the next quarter; we focus on what is going to be good for customers. I think this aspect of our culture is rare.’”