How successful is the product in the environment of relevant competitors and what could be optimised for the launch?
Product packaging, price and especially design are put to the test: how well does the product differentiate from other brands and within its own product family? Does the design communicate the relevant values – both with a view to the target group and the strategic positioning? Is the price position supported? And finally: how large is the preference share?
Design Check & Design Lab
Feedback loops for the development of pack and product design
Success depends on the implementation of an idea: doing the right thing. And doing it right. Design Checks and Design Labs provide clarity in the implementation process. Clients, product and service designers collaborate to coordinate the concept, expectations, signals and codes as well as to develop and test new possibilities of implementation in order to identify distinct design routes.
Design Checks and Design Labs are structured as an experimental visual dialogue between designers and consumers. To understand the world, benefit and added value of the idea and to identify new implementation approaches, a set of qualitative techniques has been developed and tailored to design issues.
The Design Lab differs from the Design Check in its iterative feedback loops.
In a 2-3 day workshop, first design routes or mood-boards are initially discussed with consumers. Feedback and further ideas are used in rework sessions to produce and further develop the product visualisations and prototypes.
Examination of existing products to understand market-defining expectations, signals and codes.
Identification of new signals that transport the environment, the functional, emotional or social benefit and the added value of the idea.
Evaluation of first implementations and development of coherent, distinct routes in the iterative process.
Design Screener
Measure potential and identify promising routes for further product development
It is the most successful creative processes that create a problem: variety. A variety of competing ideas and design routes that follow totally different paradigms. From a strategic perspective, all of them are basically feasible – but which of them is the most promising? Based on initial designs and renderings, the most viable routes have to be selected at an early stage in order to make further design development more efficient and effective.
This is where the Design Screener comes in by accelerating and objectifying the strategic decision-making process. The starting point is a multitude of strategic design routes whose potential is to be evaluated. The first renderings are not only the basis for evaluating potential but also for assessing the inner logic of the design language:
Stopping power and uniqueness
Likeability of the design
Communication of the relevant functional and emotional benefits
Fit with brand values
Identification of overarching design clusters beyond the individual routes in order to identify basic preference patterns and underlying logic
Product Performance Check
Right positioning of the right product in the market
Identify the most promising route for development, ideally position the product, give it the right features and price: the ideal combination of design, features, price and brand guarantees success. But what exactly is ideal?
The Product Performance Check measures the impact of the final prototypes and their market potential in volume and value. Understanding product perception in the real competitive environment and the online or offline selection process is the basis for a successful market launch. Multivariate analysis, price and conjoint analysis identify the mix of measures that guarantee maximum reach, profitability and sales in the competitive environment.
Decode the consumers’ selection behaviour
Test stopping power and emotionality in the competitive environment
Identify purchase drivers and barriers as well as points of leverage for improvements
Determine the ideal product mix
Portfolio and Range Optimization
Optimisation of market reach, sales and profitability
Whether line stretching or filling strategy: how to determine the ideal portfolio or product mix for maximum market reach, sales and profitability? How to equip and price the individual products within the portfolio to achieve maximum attractiveness versus competitors but minimum internal cannibalisation?
This is where the Range Optimizer comes in. The central element is the conjoint analysis, which enables many different configurations and price scenarios to be considered. It not only provides clear forecasts on different portfolio scenarios but also helps to optimise the market strategy.
Product portfolio for optimal profits and sales
Relevance of each product component for perceived value
Relevance of each product component for the buying decision
Optimal price for different product variants
Optimal product and price strategies in the competitive environment
Home Placement Check
Put products through the endurance test of real life
Are the new products convincing in everyday life? Do they fit in with existing usage habits or even manage to inspire a positive change in daily routines? How are the claimed product attributes experienced in practice?
These are the main questions addressed by the Home Placement Check. In test phases lasting several weeks, consumers document their usage behaviour, experiences and satisfaction over time and how far an improvement has taken place compared to the previously used solution.
However, the increase in utility is only one of the criteria for evaluating and improving a product. Multivariate analyses identify the product attributes which make the greatest contribution to use cases, repeat purchase or willingness to recommend. They specify and prioritise the needs for optimisation.
Performance – overall and at feature level
Problems with usage, preparation, operation faults, product failures and/or signs of wear and tear
Emotional and functional benefits
Buying intention and willingness to recommend after the test phase
