Innovation, Branding, and Competitiveness

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Chapter 9 Innovation, Branding, and
Competitiveness
Prepared by John T. Drea, Western Illinois
University
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An Entrepreneurial Approach to Marketing Has Four
Key Dimensions
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Marketing Entrepreneurially
is the creation of something new and commercially
useful.
Innovation
Opportunity Seeking
is seeking out commercially-viable ventures.
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Exhibit 9-1 Entrepreneurial Progression
Opportunity recognition
Idea generation
Business idea development
Business planning
Obtaining resources
Experimental and exploration
Launch
Feedback
Revise
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Exhibit 9-2 Interaction of Types of Innovation
Radical innovation
Increasing role of technology
Increasing uncertainty
Incremental innovation
Sustaining innovation
Disruptive innovation
Most common combinations of innovation types in
shaded boxes
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Creating an Environment for Success in Innovation

• A company must adopt a predisposition for trying
  new things. The company must accommodate and
  assist employees who innovate, even if they fail.
  Failure in innovation is still positive as long
  as
• something valuable is learned in the process,
• it does not kill the company.

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Incremental and Radical Innovations
Incremental Innovations
Radical Innovations
Producing large changes in the functions and
performance of an offering. This is sometimes
called a breakthrough innovation.
Take the existing product offering and make
small-step improvements.
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Disruptive Innovations
Introducing offerings based on technology that is
substantially different from the dominant
technologies in the market.
Key Points

• It is difficult for market-share-focused
  organizations to pursue disruptive technologies.
• Disruptive technology does not necessarily equal
  radical innovation.
• A business that intends to redefine an industry
  usually needs disruptive innovation.

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What Does Pursuing Disruptive Technologies Mean
for Marketing?

• Separate the project using disruptive innovation
  from
• the existing company with its established
  customers and
• business model.

• Address the new business with a SBU appropriate
  in
• size for the small market size of the initial
  opportunity.

• Use an exploratory approach to find the right
  market
• and the right way to address the market.

• Use processes/decision-making rules appropriate
  to
• the new business model.

5. Develop the markets that want the offering.
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Sustaining Innovations
Innovations that make somewhat predictable
improvements to existing technologies. Most
innovations are sustaining innovations
Key Points

• Radical sustaining innovation increases
  performance dramatically but in the same
  technology direction.
• Incremental sustaining innovation small changes
  along predictable vectors.
• Customers can provide an idea of what they want
  and how it will be used.
• The periodic marketing plan can be used as a
  framework for instituting innovation in the
  offering.

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Practical Aspects of Accomplishing Innovation
Obtaining the Right Kinds Of People
Impediments and Incentives
Directing the Right Activities
Holding managers accountable to justify projects
without data, and over-punishing failure.
Match the team members to the type of innovation
being pursued.
A current trend is the use of collaborators and
partners in innovation efforts.
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Making a Manufacturers Brand a Standard
Here are some possibilities
Being First with New Technology
Innovating the Need, not the Technology
Being Best with Service
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Defending the Brand
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Creating Strong Brands

• Brand strength
• Brand awareness
• Is mere name awareness (simple awareness) enough?
• Quality of the offering
• It is perceived quality in the eyes of the
  customer.
• Customer positive beliefs the associations that
  are linked to the brand.
• Associations are based on perceptions and the
  management of perceptions