This is part 2 to my previous post.
Many products have changed over the past 30 years as technology has changed to produce different ways to meet our needs.
I recall when I wondered why I was carrying a digital point-and-shoot camera with me on vacation, while I was taking 95% of the photos with my phone and decided I no longer needed it.
The phone camera offered a way to meet a need (take vacation photos) that was multiple times more convenient on a few dimensions. One, I didn’t have to carry two devices with me everywhere and keep both charged. Two, I didn’t have to download and manage the photos on my phone. Three, I could share photos instantly with others.
Two years before, that camera did a great job of meeting the needs. I didn’t mind the $300 dollars I paid for it. It was small and easy to carry and easy to use. It took great photos. It had a nice, large screen to view the photos. Downloading photos was easy and the software that came along with it was easy to use.
But, in just a few short years, my phone could match it well enough on most of those dimensions and beat it on the ones mentioned before.
Two things worth highlighting here.
First, my need to take vacation photos didn’t change. How I met that need did.
I think that’s important because I don’t think many people view it that way. They see one product dying and another rising, but don’t connect that the need remained.
Second, I doubt the business leaders, strategy or product managers of that camera company knew what hit them. I doubt they foresaw that their products would be killed simply because people didn’t want to be bothered with carrying around two devices anymore.
Like most companies, they were probably still plotting a linear path of progression for their products based on what they heard from customers through market research. For example, a common complaint in market research may have been that the camera’s battery life was too short or the view screen was hard to see in bright daylight, so they were working on improving those.
The problem with market research is that customers can’t even foresee how they meet their needs might change.
I didn’t realize how good it would be able to instantly text a photo to people until I could actually do it. Prior to that, it seemed perfectly normal to email them once I downloaded them.
That also impacted how other needs were met. It was common to mail my parents postcards from wherever I was vacationing. But, why do that when I could just text them photos immediately? So, postcard and stamp sales declined as that need was met other ways. And the number of emails I sent with photos attached declined.
It never occurred to me, “it’d be really nice if I could just zap the photos to someone now.” Probably didn’t occur to many others did. Even if a few people mentioned it in market research, it was probably just a few so when the market research folks ranked things to work on for the future that was near the bottom of the list and longer batter life was on top.
Taking vacation photos is just one need that has changed dramatically in the way it is met over the past 20-30 years.
It’s been awhile (or happens much less frequently now) since I’ve bought a paper map, rented a DVD, had a landline, read a physical book, listened to a CD, used a copier or printer, faxed anything, left a voicemail, sent or received or a personal email, bought a stereo and quite a few other things.
What do I take from this?
When I help companies with strategy and innovation, I pay closer attention to the need the product is meeting than the product itself.
Instead of just thinking of the linear progression of the product, I think about the progression of how the need might be met.
I also like to start at the bottom of the ranked and sorted list of customer comments, because those might offer some clues to the dimensions that can disrupt the way the needs are currently met.
Our Dinner Table 