idea generation
Definition:
Literally, the process of producing a new idea; taken in MARKETING terms, it relates to new PRODUCT ideas. The idea generation process is conventionally regarded as a substage of the NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT process, which occurs before the IDEA SCREENING stage. The postulation of idea generation as a discrete management activity is one of the principal differences between the 1965 and 1980 versions of the Booz, Allen and Hamilton NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT (NPD) model, and is taken to be one of the key factors in the sharp apparent fall in the drop-out rate of new product ideas between screening and COMMERCIALIZATION. The 1965 version of the model suggested a survival rate of 1:57; the 1980 version showed an improvement to 1:7. One change detected in management practice over the fifteen-year interval was the growth in the number of companies which not only actively sought new product ideas, but which devoted resources to the search for ideas in response to specific product problems or perceived MARKET OPPORTUNITIES. Idea generation is thus a proactive element of a company's product (or new product) strategy.
Cross-References:
[commercialization]
[new product development (NPD)]
[marketing]
[product]
[idea screening]
[market opportunity analysis]
[new product development (NPD)]
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© Westburn Publishers Ltd 2002, The Westburn Dictionary of Marketing edited by Michael J Baker, ISBN 978-0-946433-01-8. www.themarketingdictionary.com. Entry: [Ken N. Bernard], [1998].