Being the Customer

Key Insight

A highly effective way to foster continuous innovation is for individuals within a company to invent solutions to their own problems or needs. This 'being the customer' approach is evident in the creation of the Band-Aid by an employee for his wife's cuts, the Personal Publisher by a CEO needing a party invitation, and the personal computer by its creators who couldn't afford one. If direct personal experience isn't feasible, companies must simulate the customer's world, deeply observing their experiences and struggles in real-time rather than relying solely on abstract market data.

This strategy often activates the 'woodwork factor,' where addressing a personal problem reveals a widespread, unarticulated need, leading to broad commercial success. The ulcer drug Tagamet, for instance, brought millions of previously untreated patients 'out of the woodwork' once available. To cultivate this, companies can hire customers, such as NIKE employing athletes, or allow employees dedicated time for field-testing products. L.L.Bean executives, for example, can receive an extra week of vacation for product testing, while encouraging employees to document personal ideas and sharing internal success stories further embeds this philosophy.

When personal experience is impossible, simulating customer interaction is vital. This can involve solving the specific problem of a single customer, as with Johnson & Johnson's baby powder, which originated from one patient's irritation and subsequently saw demand from hundreds. Alternatively, companies must achieve profound customer proximity through direct field observation. Ballard Medical Products, for instance, integrates customers and salespeople directly into its innovation process, with R&D swiftly responding to field-generated ideas, achieving rapid product cycles typically within a few months. Rotating R&D personnel into sales roles or having leaders directly engage with customer issues further enhances this 'touch and feel' understanding.