Role of Customer IQ in Product Innovation

Abstract

Product innovation is not just technological innovation; it is a market oriented approach with upgradation of all the elements of marketing mix of the product. The marketing mix is a set of seven variables i.e. Product, Place, Price, Promotion, People, Process and Physical evidence which is upgraded and the same can be launched as the upgraded product. Customers’ taste and behaviour changes from time to time, so for market oriented innovation to succeed; market information is necessary. Market information is collected using the internal or statistical method and external method. Companies take their Strategy decisions using this information. Both methods are used by companies to launch innovative products to the target market. In this approach, the product must address the demands of the customer. Innovation differentiates a product from its competitors for the customer. So When an Innovative product is introduced to a market, the customer uses the product based on his intellectual capacity. Customer takes the decision to purchase the product based on his thinking and analysis of the product. Here Customer IQ is reflected in the Customer purchase behaviour. As per the Lavidge and Steiner model, customer purchase decision is made up of awareness, knowledge, liking, preference, conviction and purchase. Hence Customer IQ plays an important role in Product Innovation. Customer IQ can be measured by calculating the cognitive ability of the customer to understand the product. In order to Grade customer IQ, D’Well research conducted a mall case study on 200 visitors’. The result shows that the Customer IQ of visitors is less than Normal IQ of population. The conclusions are Customer is not just demographic; they have ability to think, analyse & conclude and companies have to move away from their beaten paths.