Market Research for Radical Innovation

‘Strong market orientation is essential for innovation success!’ Although both academics and market research practitioners would generally accept this statement, the need to calibrate with the needs of the customer often results in conservative innovation strategies. Due to their focus on what is currently on offer in the marketplace, customers primarily demand so-called incremental innovations. Companies, however, want to develop entry points for radical innovations. The identification of radical innovations is a difficult task whose implementation is often associated with significant risk. It is questionable whether market research alone can allow innovation management to develop attractive areas for radical innovations and if it can also contribute to the reduction of the risk inherent in such innovations. Closer observation shows that the market research methods used today for the discovery of radical innovations, in the form of new market/technology combinations, are only partially suited. Empirical tests verify that successful innovative companies often don’t use such methods, rather they involve specifically qualified, innovative knowledge carriers early on in the process, such as Lead Users or external experts with relevant knowledge from analogous markets in the search for innovations. When searching for applications for radical innovations, market