6 min read
What is idea screening?
Screening ideas is the first step in any innovation process. It’s a procedure that requires a significant investment, so having consumer insights at each stage of innovation will allow you to ensure the success of your product or service. How? The idea screening test enables you to identify those ideas that present a greater acceptance among consumers. Read on to find out what it’s and how to perform one!
The idea screening test is the process of evaluating ideas in the development of new products and services. It’s a process for assessing product concept ideas and selecting those that meet consumer expectations, marketing, and overall business objectives.
Evaluating potential product ideas before they hit the market reduces the risks associated with the product development process and the feasibility of new products. It maximizes your chances of achieving a positive ROI.
The idea test is an agile and easy study that allows testing ideas in simple and reduced text format, and evaluation takes place through a monadic-sequential test. With this study, it is possible to obtain a ranking of the potential of the tested ideas, thus selecting the most suitable ones to continue with the next phase of product idea development. The development of the concept can be evaluated by means of a concept test.
Benefits of evaluating ideas
The idea screening test allows knowing the potential of new products or services in the first stage of the innovation process. In this way, it’s possible to know which ideas are the most accepted in the market and to test those that are very innovative or follow new trends to see if consumers are interested.
For example, this type of study can be beneficial when considering creating a brand that taps into a brand-new market, as was the case with the launch of the Heura and Oatly vegetable alternatives. Brands such as Nestlé, with the Garden Gourmet product line and the new vegan KitKat, are also successfully betting on plant-based and vegan product lines.
Thus, the idea screening test is a tool with which to obtain data that help to:
- Identify the ideas of products, services, or solutions most likely to succeed.
- Confirm that it covers a need and that the product benefits are perceived.
- Determine if it’s considered innovative and, therefore, different from what already exists in the market.
- Verify or define the core target, including market niches.
- Validate that it fits with the brand and its values.
Thus, the idea test will help you to focus the efforts and investment required for any new product innovation process.
Key questions for an idea screening: KPIs
The idea screening solution is an initial study that allows prioritization and ranking, so the information has to answer aspects such as whether the new idea meets a market need, whether it’s perceived as innovative, whether it’s credible, whether it would be bought, etc.
Therefore, the critical KPIs in an idea screening are:
- Ideas appraisal: general feedback on the first impression after exposing the idea. In addition, it’s possible to collect “likes” and “dislikes” to have information that allows a deeper understanding of its valuation.
- Relevance: to what extent it’s relevant in any innovation process? If a product isn’t considered suitable by the consumer, it won’t have an impact and will go unnoticed.
- New and different: every innovation must be perceived as unique and different to arouse curiosity and, therefore, the desire to try the product. Imagine the consumer walking in front of a shop shelf. If the product isn’t relevant, it won’t stand out, it won’t catch his attention, and if it’s not perceived as new and different, they won’t stop to look at it.
- Degree of credibility: confirm that the idea isn’t perceived as an overpromise that is difficult to fulfill, as it could generate rejection.
- Intention to buy the product: its objective is to evaluate the degree of persuasiveness, i.e. whether the target audience would be willing to try it.
- Product that could replace in the market: this question allows us to identify the market and competitors with which the new product would face.
- In the case of brand testing: determine if it fits with the brand and if any image attribute could be included to verify that the new product is in line with the brand values.
- In the case of testing price: price-quality ratio and purchase intention with the price.
All of these are critical indicators for gathering consumer insights to determine the degree of the potential of the ideas tested utilizing a ranking according to consumer acceptance. This information is also beneficial for the future development of the winning idea or ideas.
In the development of a new product or service, do not hesitate to include market research to gather consumer opinion at each stage of the innovation process: naming test, concept test, packaging test, price analysis, etc.
Ensure the success of your product in the market! Contact our team of experts, and they will recommend the best solution for each stage of developing new products or services.
