Top or Flop: Evaluating Project Ideas with the 360° PIC-UP

People come up with countless new ideas – but which one is good enough to enter development?

Lack of market potential, too expensive implementation, too strong competition – every idea involves risks and, especially as product developers, we have to weigh again and again whether a project can ultimately bring the desired success. If it reveals itself as a flop only after the product launch, the disappointment as well as the financial and time loss are often great. Our proven AntiFlop strategies from 2011 are also worth mentioning again in this context.

In general, there is not a lack of ideas, but a lack of accurate and valid evaluation of new ideas. For product managers, it is often difficult to assess whether the implementation of an idea is worthwhile. We know it from practice: Half-baked ideas are first launched and only during the process you realize that not everything works as planned. In addition, development becomes disproportionately more expensive with each passing day, and the losses are thus even greater.

Companies therefore need an agile process that offers security right from the start of a project. In cooperation with Thomas Bragagna from Tripenso AG, Markus Wild has now developed the 360° PIC-UP for the larssoncreative group which offers a well-founded assessment of the chances for a project at an early stage. Similar goals are for example pursued with the worldwide applied “Proof of Concept”. However, often the PoC is already part of the actual development with all its temporal and cost disadvantages.

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Condensed know-how in 14 steps

Think of the 360° PIC-UP as a condensed concept that provides a complete overview even before the project starts. No one can look into the future – but our feasibility check is a great step to minimize risks of failure within a few days to weeks with 14 comprehensible analysis points. Divided into the three categories Market, Innovation and Realization, each step looks at a different facet of the project and thus offers a clear assessment.

Thanks to our own diversity of competencies in design and usability and our large network of experts, we have a wide range of know-how to bring together the needed experts quickly and easily. The 360° PIC-UP is the first offer of the larssoncreative group in which we bring together the most diverse disciplines and focal points. An essential component is the expertise in the field of product development and system architecture which in this case is provided by our external partner Thomas Bragagna. He looks at new ideas from a bird’s eye view and thus recognizes strengths and weaknesses. WILDDESIGN tends to focus on user requirements and the possible design vision – likewise, extended perspectives from our network partners can also be incorporated.

24 Design Factors are more of a checklist that effectively guides the conversation between client and contractor and ensures that nothing essential is forgotten. The 14 steps of the 360° PIC-UP go far beyond this “conversation situation” and do research in depth, so that even questions that are difficult to assess, such as manufacturing costs or property rights, can be clarified.

The 360°PIC-UP has so far been used in two pilot projects in the homecare sector. One of the two ideas, an innovative electric toothbrush, came with the special challenge that extremely strong opponents of well-known brands are already on the market. The specific market gap for the innovation had to be determined precisely by the 360°PIC-UP. The two projects had shown how the check-up helped us to decide quickly whether the project made sense. Now we are looking forward to proving this service on other project ideas soon. You can also find more information in the flyer.

Would you like to get a first overview and put your project idea to the test? We will be happy to provide you with an individual offer upon request.