Unlocking Consumer Intuition: Bridging Innovation Gaps

At Mission Field, I have the pleasure of working with CPGs in many different categories, with innovation teams of varying configurations—from designated in-house innovation pods to busy managers and marketers who oversee both innovation and established businesses. No two collaborations with clients are the same, but in every case, the Mission Field team bridges gaps in resources, knowledge, and logistics that would otherwise create barriers to innovation speed and success.

And yet, filling gaps is just one way to look at it. Ultimately, in the best cases, I see how Mission Field’s methods give the innovation owners the consumer intuition and insights that will help the product, and business, succeed.

Our methods follow a “consumer first” philosophy, which emphasizes hearing from consumers directly. This helps brands gain empathy and intuition to drive innovation, rather than just relying on data. Consider that startups—often some of the best innovators—very often are the product’s target consumers themselves. Because they lack resources, they’re typically the ones talking directly to consumers. They go on to succeed in market because they’ve built strong consumer intuition.

This is why we strongly recommend clients make it a priority to be there with us and hear from consumers firsthand. In many cases, I’ve seen how this kind of experience helps innovation teams over the long term, by helping them become better advocates for the innovation in meetings with leadership and better able to translate consumer preferences back to their cross-functional teams.

What I know for sure, having worked for many years in and with large CPGs, is that you can’t externalize consumer intuition. No matter what innovation model you’re using, there’s no substitute for building firsthand consumer empathy and then making an effort to translate that back into business decisions.

To learn more about how we collaborate, reach out to us at hello@mission-field.com.