Identifying ideas of attractive quality in the innovation process

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate whether and how new ideas generated by customers can be used in a process of attractive quality creation. In addition, it aims to discover whether ideas identified as attractive early in the innovation process have certain characteristics that separate them from other ideas.Design/methodology/approachThe study involved 30 customers of a company that designs and produces microwave ovens. In a number of experiments, these customers generated over 100 new ideas on functions, attributes and services related to microwave ovens. Company specialists identified the 21 best ideas and these ideas were then evaluated by a large customer group using the theory of attractive quality.FindingsThe study shows how the theory of attractive quality can be used in the development of innovative products. It also provides empirical evidence that ideas identified as attractive are more original and of higher customer value than other ideas.Practical implicationsThe study shows the extent to which and the circumstances in which the theory of attractive quality can be used to evaluate ideas in the early phases of product and service development.Originality/valueEmpirical research on attractive quality creation is sparse, and this study represents a rare example of a comprehensive study of attractive quality creation.

Identifying latent needs: towards a competence perspective on attractive quality creation

“…There seems to be an overlap or degree of consensus between innovation and design scholars in terms of the approaches towards ethnography and empathy compared to the quality literature where this overlap is much smaller. This supports the comment of Witell et al (2011b) that in the quality movement, there is very little focus on innovation and creative idea generation. According to Cole and Matsumiya (2007), quality routines are excellent for reducing faults and for working with continuous improvement but are far less suited to achieving more radical solutions.…”

“…However, by relying solely on methods such as co-creation or Kansei, important needs run the risk of remaining unidentified. A deeper knowledge about latent needs is also necessary in order to select which customer-created ideas to pursue, something that Witell et al (2011b) suggest should be the responsibility of the firm.…”

“…For example, in an experimental study by Witell, Löfgren, and Gustafsson (2011b), 'ordinary' customers were invited to use a working prototype of a future product in their homes and provide feedback and ideas about the experience and their needs when using the product. The resulting ideas were assessed by other customers using a Kano survey and it was concluded that this approach to customer co-creation yielded several ideas linked to attractive quality attributes.…”

“…Concerning customer orientation and attractive quality creation, to the author's knowledge there are only a few publications that focus on specific practices for identifying latent needs (with some exceptions mentioned above, see e.g. Witell et al, 2011b), in particular whether a certain mindset might be useful in this respect.…”

Theory of attractive quality and the Kano methodology – the past, the present, and the future

“…Recently, Witell et al (2011) The present paper aims to perform an extensive review of the literature on the theory of attractive quality. The purpose of the paper is to synthesize and critically review the existing research on the theory of attractive quality and the Kano methodology, and investigate the evolution of the research field.…”