Through years of learning how to better, more efficiently create new ideas from the consumers’ perspective, we have identified multiple rules to get there faster. Here are 7 key examples:

#1 Why Before What: Why defines your true tolerance for risk and desire for reward. If you don’t know Why, you will never get there. Why creates the pathway to success.

#2 The 7 Second Rule: Marketers live the category 24/7; Consumers are consciously aware just 7 seconds. You have only seconds to connect with the consumer at shelf.

#3 Consumer Demand = Better/Easier/Faster: The consumer asks “What does it do for me?” Consumers don’t care about your product. They only care about themselves – See Consumer Drivers below.

#4 The 8 Core Consumer Drivers: Knowing what they are, and how to use them, significantly increases innovation success. These 8 Drivers are the key to consumer interest and purchase.

#5 The Human Mind is only Aware of 1/6th of Mental Activity: Consumers are primarily unaware of the inner thoughts/emotions that drive their actions, choices and purchase decisions.

#6 Behavior trumps words every time: It’s what people do, not what they say. What consumers think they will do, is very often not what they will do.

#7 Just 3 Degrees of Change: Small changes drive dramatic differences in consumer perception and interest. Most highly successful innovations are already there, just waiting to be found – by looking at the category differently.