As innovators, we all have ideas, but how do we evaluate a winning innovation idea when we see one? We're going to look at a way to do this. One of the ways to do this is what we call a buyer utility map. We've explained this buyer utility map in an article In the Harvard Business Review, it's actually posted on Canvas and it's called Knowing a Winning Business Idea When You See One. And what we're going to do is look at this buyer utility map and the buyer cycle to begin to understand ways that you can parse out those different steps in the buyer's cycle, and what ways there are to look for innovation opportunities? So, let's start by looking at what the buyer experience is when a buyer buys a products or a service. So if we startup on the upper left-hand part of this circle, we see the first step is purchase. And then there's the delivery of the product, maybe it's the person taking it home. And then there's the use of the product and then there is what we call supplements, which is maybe some modification of the product or the service, then there's maintenance of the service or a product. And then finally, disposal when the product is obsolete or not useful anymore. And so this circle of steps is really what every buyer experiences when you buy any product, any innovative product in the marketplace. And so the way we're going to look at the buyer's experience is to look at it through the lens of what we call six utility considerations and we're going to ask the question of each of the steps, to what extent is there a certain amount of environmentally friendliness? How easy is it to relate to the product in the buying experience? And what kind of image and fun, and ease is it to actually make that purchase? Is there any risk associated with a purchase? Maybe it's a financial risk, maybe it's a Is a physical security risk, maybe there's some other kind of risk. It could be a variety of those things. How convenient is it? Is it something that's right next door? Is it something that's online? Is it something that you have to drive 50 miles to? All of those are ranges of convenience. How simple is the transaction? If the transaction is done in cash, it's pretty straightforward. If it's done by check, if it's done by credit card, if it's done online, if it's done by bitcoins. All these things are a possibilities, but how simple is the transaction? It's another way of looking at how, how the buying experience is? And finally, what is the customer value and how productive, how helpful, how value added is the purchase of any of these products? So we going to map these things out by looking at what we call buyer utility map and the physical picture of this in the article is actually a little clearer than this this video right here, but we can think about what's going on the left-hand side each for the utility levers, each of the waves in which we look at the buyer experience is along the left-hand side. Along the top, what we have are the steps in the buyer utility or process. And so, each one of those squares offers an opportunity to examine what goes on in the buyer experience and how we can look for innovation opportunities? So, let's start by looking at the buyers purchase experience. We on the left-hand side, we're going to have lens again of the six utility levers and ask the question about what are some of the key concerns of the purchase experience? So, one of the key concerns is how long does it take to find the product or service that you need? Is the place in which you're purchasing it attractive and accessible? And how secure is the transaction environment in which you're buying that product or service? How rapidly and easily can you actually make the purchase? And so if we ask some questions about the purchase experience, you might have in your own mind. Consider an example of the best and worst purchase experiences that you've had recently over the last year or the last month? Could some form of innovation have made that better? And if you think that it could, what innovation might that have been? And so it is an opportunity if you begin to analyze, what goes on in each cell of the purchasing experience? What would make it better? Another step is the delivery experience. And so when the buyer experiences delivery, you might ask, how long does it take to get the product delivered? If its shipped that’s one thing, do you get next day shipping or does it take two weeks to get to you? Does it get delivered to your doorstep? Does it get delivered inside of your housing unit? How difficult is it to unpack and install the product? So, these are fundamental questions about the delivery experience. So, what would we think about in this delivery experience? Has the packaging of a product you've purchased ever been so difficult to open that it discouraged you from buying another type of product of the same type? Now, one example that comes to mind is an obvious example. This plastic clamshell products that are packaging plastic clamshells that are extremely difficult to open. Of course, it's great for security in the store, but it's not so great when you actually try to open them. And I hope none of you have been cut or hurt by these things, but many people have. And so, that's something that is waiting for an innovation to improve the packing and delivery experience. Plastic clamshell, there must be a better way. So here is another example or another step in the buyer's experience, it's the buyer's use. And so now that you've purchased the product, you've had it delivered. Now, you're using it. And so you ask, does the product require training or expert assistance in order to make its first use helpful to you? Is the product easy to store when it's not in use? And how effective are the product's features and functions? We could think about all these things in everything from an automobile to a vacuum cleaner or to a television set, or to a dishwasher. All of these things have an experience associated with them and we do as customers evaluate these things. So here are some questions to think about, as you think about the buyers use experience. What's an example of a new product you've bought recently that has required a lot of instruction or training, or even do the first basic use activities that you bought if for? And what form of innovation would improve your ability to use this product? Would it be something that could be done that would improve the ability to use it quickly, to use it efficiently, to use it without training? So here, we have another element of the buyer's experience is what we called the supplements. This is where you have ways in which you can improve the function and use of the product that you bought and you might then ask, do we need additional products, modifications of this to make it work better? And if so, how costly would they be? So one consideration in the supplements experience would be to say, ask yourself, have you experienced any example of product types that have after market potential? Those products that supplement other products already on the market. They're plenty of those. An obvious service that comes to mind is the AAMCO Transmission Services. That is really an after market service that is constantly fixing things that are vulnerable to breakdown, automobile, automatic transmissions. And so, that's a supplement experience. So if you had a car that needs to have your automatic transmission repaired, that is something that you're concerned about. You don't want to have to have that. And so, there are supplemental services and products that help do that. Sometimes, they're after market services. Sometime, after market products. Or sometimes, manufacturers build these things into warranties. So, those are innovative process experiences that actually help that. The next step is the maintenance experience for the buyer. And again, the key concerns here are does the product require a lot of maintenance? And how easy is it to maintain or how easy it to upgrade that product? And so one of the concerns that you would then think about is if you could identify a product that requires so much maintenance that it would generate enough demand for fixing and maintenance to be able to build another support service around it, what would that service be? What form of innovation would make product maintenance easier and more efficient? So, all of these things about maintenance do present opportunities for innovations and new ventures. And finally, we get to the last stage in the buyer process, the disposal experience and one of the key concerns is does the product actually create waste items? Most products don't, but sometimes they do. And so, [COUGH] you have to ask whether it's easier or difficult to dispose of the product after it is used. And so, are there any trade in arrangements? Can you recycle it? And so if you think of products, actually, desktop computers are a classic example of products that are often difficult to recycle. Not that they're costly, it's just they're bulky and you have to move them around. Think about what in the disposal experience could be done to recycle a product that would provide some opportunity for an innovative solution. And so, manufacturers are constantly thinking about ways in which they can have their products be trading in for new products. Automobiles, obviously are the classic example of where there's a trade in up to a new product, but it's not so easy for larger appliances or other things that are basically big and bulky and difficult to remove for any individual homeowner. So, the takeaways from the buyer experience are essentially trying to use something like the buyer utility map to reveal innovation opportunities. If you begin to look at each one of those cells in the Buyer Utility Map, they present some way of analyzing the innovative idea that you have as a product or a service in that fits in the buyers experience and by evaluating which one of these intersections of the cell is most feasible. And how it can work and how it presents an opportunity to improve the buyer experience can lead to greater value for customers, as well. All of these things can help you spot innovation opportunities.
