Tag Archives: product development

by | Tuesday, September 10, 2024 · 6:40 am

What Happens to Cars after the SUV Craze?

Automobiles are a big part of the global economy and global infrastructure. How big? In 2021 it was valued at $2.86 TRILLION, and in 2023 it was valued at $3.56 TRILLION.  That’s Trillions with a capital T – and certainly an industry that is future-focused.

In the 1960s there were station wagons, which were replaced in the 1980s with mini-vans. Then, in 2000s, the Sport Utility Vehicle took over the mini-van market. According to Edmunds automotive research company, the SUV accounts for 60% of the U.S. market. However, with the rise of new car prices to an average of $50,000, the industry needs to re-think the products that consumers want.

What comes next after the SUV? Does it have:

  • Batteries.
  • Different driving modes.
  • Dashboards and steering wheels.
  • Voice controls.
  • Emotions.
  • Form and shape.
  • Storage.
  • Speed.
  • Environment concerns.

After all, the increasing use of AI along with autonomous driving options makes this an amazing age of technology and innovation. And of course, challenges abound as well.

Take a few minutes and think about it. What are the problems with today’s cars? Then think about solutions – crazy ideas are welcome. What would your car of the future look like?

Let’s go for a ride.

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Discuss the framework for innovation. 
  2. Show the IDEO video about innovation for a shopping cart: https://youtu.be/izjhx17NuSE?si=gy8a-Mcpi6xMnoy7
  3. The original design was from 1999. Why do students think it never caught on?
  4. Have the class execute the IDEO process for car design: problems, ideas, crazy ideas, etc… Use large white poster paper for this exercise.
  5. Describe the final future car based on student ideas.
  6. Show video of possible future cars: https://youtu.be/D-f0yVjYBRQ?si=5lpHH2VxGYMGc38p

Source: Berk, B. (8 June 2024). The auto world’s next obsession: What comes after the SUV? Wall Street Journal.

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by | Saturday, April 20, 2024 · 9:41 am

Tide Evolves into New Tile Form

Laundry is big business. How big? Roughly $9.3 billion worth of big annually! Market researcher Circana estimates that of that amount, 70% is spent on liquid detergent, 24% on packets and tablets (e.g. Tide Pods), and powder detergent is only 6%.  Tide Pods were launched in 2012 and quickly reached $500 million in sales within its first year.

That’s a big shift in how consumers select detergents to do their laundry. And Tide (owned by Proctor & Gamble) is introducing yet another form of detergent – dry detergent sheets for your laundry – with hopes to repeat its success with Tide Pods.

Why the new form? The dry laundry sheets appeal to consumers who want to eliminate both plastics and waters that adversely impact our environment. The new technology also eliminates the need for heavy plastic bottles and thereby reduces shipping weight and cost for online purchasers. P&G isn’t the first to use this dry sheet format, but it is the largest laundry detergent brand and hopes to convince consumers to change the way they wash clothes.

What are they? The dry sheets are roughly the size of your palm and are composed of six layers of fibers that dissolve in cold water, reducing energy bills for washing. A package of 44-tiles will retail for $19.94, the same price as a 45-pod container of Tide Power Pods + Ultra Oxi.

Unlike the colorful Tide Pods, which presented problems with children mistaking the pods for candy as well as criticism of water pollution, the dry sheets will be colorless, a form preferred by consumers in the testing phase.

What’s your preferred laundry detergent?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Show website: https://tide.com/en-us/our-commitment/tide-evo
  2. Discuss the importance of clearly defining a target market.
  3. Divide students into teams. For Tide evo, what is the target market? Include demographics, psychographics, behaviors, values, attitudes, etc.
  4. Based on the target market profile, what makes this product unique for these customers?
  5. Discuss newness from the consumers’ perceptive. Is this product an example of continuous innovation, dynamically continuous innovation, or discontinuous innovation? Why?
  6. How does this product fit into P&G product line?
  7. Who is the main competitor to Tide evo?

Source: Khan, N. (3 March 2024). P&G launches Tile Tiles in bid to change how laundry is done. Wall Street Journal; Weiss, G. (8 March 2024). Forget Pods. Tide wants to make fabric ‘tiles’ the future of laundry. Business Insider.

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by | Wednesday, July 5, 2023 · 5:05 pm

Apple Launches Vision Pro Headset for VR/AR

It’s finally here (well, nearly here). Apple recently launched a new AR/VR headset, the Apple Vision Pro to be available in 2024 for $3,499. The new product enters the growing AR/VR entertainment market, but also takes it a step beyond the capability of other devices.

Users navigate the device using their voice, eyes, and hands for a seamless view of digital content. Apple calls it a spatial operating system with familiar icons. The headset also allows viewers to see others in the room through its glass, and a turn of the button lets others see the wearer’s eyes too. This feature helps lessens the isolation caused by wearing the headset for long periods of time.

It also contains a 3-D camera for recording videos and photos, or to immerse yourself in a video. The headset can transform any room into a personal theater for viewing movies, shows, and games.

The physical headset has a glass front and aluminum frame on a soft headband. It has a cable that attaches to a small battery pack that can be slipped into a pocket. The company wants the headset to be used for both work and entertainment and it automatically connects to a Mac so that wearers can take over their desktop when wearing it.

It has already received great reviews, but that $3,500 price puts it out of reach for many people.

Are you interested?

 Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Poll students: What has been their experience with VR/AR headsets to date?
  2. View a product demonstration: https://www.apple.com/apple-vision-pro/
  3. A longer introduction video is available on the same site. Have students spend some time online viewing details about the product.
  4. Divide students into teams and have each team develop a profile of a target market for the product. Include demographics, psychographics, behaviors, values, attitudes, etc.
  5. Based on the target market profile, what makes this product unique for these customers?
  6. Divide students into teams. Have teams research how this headset compares to other VR headsets from Meta, Magic Leap, and Sony.

Source: Chen, B. (6 June 2023). A first try of Apple’s $3,500 Vision Pro Headset. New York Times.; Gershgorn, D. (5 June 2023). Everything Apply announced at WWDC2023: Vision Pro VR headset, new Macs, and More. New York Times.; Panzarion, M. (5 June 2023). First impressions: Yes, Apple Vision Pro works and yet, it’s good. TechCrunch.

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