Exploring the Edges of Innovation: How to Push Your Brand’s Potential
Sometimes we see that companies approach innovation too gently, sticking to the safest of options. I like imagining innovation’s risk-reward scenarios like the analog of a donut: the best innovations happen within the shape of the donut itself, but stray too far or stay too close to the center and you’ll find empty space.
Think of the hole of the donut representing the easiest of line extensions… your core product re-executed as a new flavor, size or packaging – all of which add variety but none of which help your brand solve new consumer problems. Now think of the space past the donut as being a space that shatters current belief systems… things that go beyond a consumer’s expectation of what your brand/product stands for. Sticking too close to the core results in me-too products easily copied by competitors, while going too far can feel disingenuous.
True innovation is about learning how to push far enough to find new possibilities, without being too safe, and also to push just a little too far to know exactly where the outer boundaries are located so that you’re not reaching too close in.
For example, if a chip maker releases a new barbecue flavor, it is likely that other brands have already done that or can do the same. If that chip company decides to make a chip-flavored beverage, that may feel too far too fast. The magic comes in trying to find something in between those two spaces where you’re willing to explore and unlock opportunities, not just in current lines and categories but in new lines, new categories.
Thinking about your current brand/product in a new Category can be a way to unlock potential. For example, Mission Field has been asked interesting innovation questions such as how to take a beverage and turn it into a snack, take a frozen food and make it shelf-stable or turning a diet format into a ready-to-eat meal. However, taking a cereal brand and turning it into a dietary supplement may be a stretch too far. The boundaries, to me, are more about the brand’s purpose and role—what it stands for and how consumers can see its equities translating into something new.
Take Kellogg’s Cheez-Its, for example. Cheez-Its is a super cheesy cracker. How far could we take cheesy snacking? (I’m not going to say the word "cracker" because that’s a category, and I don’t think that’s a boundary.) You could put it into frozen foods, fresh snacks, or something you dispense from a bin, like nuts. Why not? You could even mix it with chocolate. Chicago is famous for their caramel and cheese popcorn, so why not?
Pushing boundaries to unlock breakthrough ideas is about exploring how far a brand's equities can stretch. For instance, could Cheez-Its be used as a crust for frozen fish? That’s not out of the realm of possibility—I’ve had cheesy, breaded, crusted fish before. On the other hand, Cheez-Its in a yogurt sounds like a bit of a stretch, but only because I’ve never come across a really cheesy yogurt. And a Cheez-Its underarm deodorant sounds like a fun promotional play, but as something you would buy everyday it would be a bit far-fetched. Companies might create something like that for fun or for eye-catching promotions, but not to build the business.
The boundaries of innovation and new products are more about the brand's promise and identifying where that promise loses relevance. For example, it makes sense for a cereal bar to become an energy bar. Turning granola into a bar is logical, so turning Special K into a bar also makes sense.
In concept development, it's essential to stretch enough in what your brand could become to be able to discover your future potential. To unlock product ideas, consider the relevance of your brand’s promise and how far it can stretch. Even if some ideas are too risky or far-fetched, they might just unlock big hidden opportunities. If you don't explore the outer limits, you'll never know how far you can go.
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