The Importance of Innovation

It can be tempting to shut down new and risky projects when economic conditions are tight, and you must use your resources wisely.

Research shows that tough times are precisely when you should continue to innovate and change.

Value-focused innovation and growth can make businesses stronger than ever in a recession and this helps position them for brighter days. Manufacturers who choose to innovate are 1.8 times more likely to grow overall sales. More telling is that those who innovate during times of crisis outperform those who don’t.

Consumers also appreciate the efforts of businesses to hear their needs when money is tight, with 63% of purchasers willing to buy a product that has used innovation to make it more affordable.

Need an Extra Pair of Hands?

Every business is watching their budget at the moment. Hiring a freelancer during a recession can give a business the expertise, flexibility and strategic support to weather hard economic times.

My AIIP colleague, Linda Rink, gave these great reasons why having a freelancer do just that in your business can be smart.

The benefits of having a freelancer are…
1) Freed up staff time for core business or urgent tasks
2)    Reduced costs by not having to hire more staff
3)    Specialised expertise not available in-house
4)    Objective third-party evaluation and recommendations
5)    Extra resources when you need them
6)    Ability to compete with larger companies 
7)    Reduced “ramp-up” time for new initiatives
8)    Fresh perspectives from outside your organisation

If you need help with a research problem and are looking for a cost-effective solution, please call (027 4393795) or email me for a confidential chat.

Why You Need Competitive Intelligence

Crayon's '2024 State of Competitive Intelligence' benchmarking report points to the need for CI for business. This survey finds that 65% of business sales are competitive by nature, and that's only when the client says it's a competitive business pitch. The figure is likely to be much higher, and with times being tough, businesses will have to be better prepared with their knowledge about how the market operates.

If you need background information for a sales pitch, please get in touch.

Light Bulb Moments

New market opportunities can be hard to spot. One way to find them is to look at the internet and social media and see how people are employing ‘hacks’ when using particular products or services. This can highlight pain points for consumers and show you how they have circumvented the issue and found a solution that works. You can then consider offering these improvisations to make your offering more useful as well as exploring different scenarios where your product or service can be used.