Comments on: Using Social Media to Elicit Customer Insights for Innovation

By: Phil Hunt

Phil Hunt — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:32:50 +0000

Totally understood. Your blog just got me thinking about the nature of product or service innovation through social media. Social media’s obviously a great way to directly respond to customer wants/needs, but can it be used to generate the revolutionary ideas as well?

I don’t know the answer, but it’s interesting to think about.

By: Andy Reierson

Andy Reierson — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:18:20 +0000

Great point Phil and I agree. Not every company is as adept at identifying customer needs and wants before even the customer recognizes them. And I’m sure that Apple has a pretty generous budget for consumer research that many companies do not have access to.

My point is that social media allows organizations who don’t have the resources to do that kind of research the opportunity to engage their customers, identify their needs, whether stated or observed, and develop products that their customers are demanding.

Without social media and without the budget for research, this wasn’t possible before.

By: Phil Hunt

Phil Hunt — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:35:34 +0000

How might a company use the information gained from social media interaction to reset the customer experience — and deliver value that customers either haven’t thought of or asked for?

For example, Apple seems to be really good at dreaming up scenarios that change everyone’s idea of what a device ought to do.

It seems like people are generally not asking for that type of innovation. Or are they?

Could you do that kind of innovation with social media? Maybe, but you might need to stop reacting once in a while to look at what everyone’s input really means — to look for behaviors, patterns, attitudes and and whatnot. And you have to be a very brave organization as well.