4.Conclusions

Applying customer focused innovation methods in practice has proven worthwhile in our Deloitte innovation practice. The effectiveness and efficiency of these methods will continue to improve if combined with quantitative research and by applying digital tools.

The case study analysis with Deloitte innovation Practioners has provided a lot of insights regarding the way that we can start using customer focused innovation methods. Valuable insights and satisfied clients have shown proof of the use of customer focused innovation methods, yet applying these methods for a first time can be a hurdle in innovation projects,. A couple of overall conclusions can be made regarding the use of customer focused innovation methods can be found below. A summary of the lessons for each of the customer focused innovation methods can be found in table 2.

Provide evidence for trust

It is not easy to convince your clients of customer focused innovation methods in the discover stage as they might be more willing to come up with an idea about a solution first. It is wise to provide them with examples and stories of successful innovations that have been based on these needs and methods. When applying these methods it helps to start small and work side by side with your client. From our experience this has always proven to be enough reason for our clients to believe in the value of customer focused innovation methods.

Make use of digital tools

Digital tools cover a wide array of possibilities. In applying customer focused innovation methods one could think of using digital ethnography apps, such as EthOs, or Indeemo. Another way to make more use of digital tools is to use available data on your customers a starting point. Many times, social media channels, or apps like Move can tell us a lot about the behavior of customers. Although digital tools or online open data is a valuable starting point, this should always be validated with real life customers to make the needs tangible and come to life.

Combination with quantitative methods is a must

Quantifying your findings to substantiate the needs that have been found is key in convincing your client but is also the only mean to reach enough foundation to continue your process. This foundation (or use cases as we call them) should consist of two things: 1) knowing that the problem is supported by multiple customers 2) knowing the value to be gained when resolving this problem.

For instance if you find that your customers mentioned that not knowing when or how late their train arrives gives them a lot of worries, it is good to investigate whether this is true for more customers (through for instance a survey), but (and even more worthwhile sometimes) is to think about how much pain this gives them and what they are willing to pay for a solution on this matter.

Visualize your findings

This can be done in the form of a persona, a customer journey or a needs prioritization with quotes of customers. In Deloitte’s experience the client was always interested if the results were presented in a personal, story like and highly visual manner. This brings the customer to life and will provide a valuable guide in design choices to be made.

Table 2: Conclusions for the six customer focused innovation methods in the case study analysis

Method

Immersive interviewing

Participants diaries

Customer ethnography

Digital ethnography

Customer journey mapping

Context mapping

Key learnings

Perform the interviews in pairs of consultant and client Use the customers later in the process to validate your ideas Support the qualitative insights with quantitative use cases

Make sure your participants get time to help you in your request Validate your “paper insights “of the participants’ diaries with real life observation Prioritize your findings with your participants Use digital tools, like Contextmapp

Independent observation is key in understanding customer experience, so make sure you guard these boundaries at your client Visually represent your experience and place your observations in context If available use data to substantiate certain findings in occurrence and severity

It is a quick and cheap method to gain a lot of insights, but be aware that people tend to express themselves differently online Privacy concerns might play a role in the future In the future sentiment analysis could help in putting together profiles, yet currently they are too much unaware of context and human emotions

Force yourself to learn (at least) three new things from each customer journey mapping as this will help you to keep an open mind Make room for both unique and common events in your analysis as the unique events (that are not confirmed by all customers) can provide you with interesting and innovative thoughts Be a customer yourself and for instance try out comparable offerings yourself

Using visualization tools is worthwhile to represent dreams and ambitions, but also to overcome cultural and language barriers Real life simulation of the desired situation based on the context mapping was worthwhile exercise to prioritize and co-design