What makes a breakthrough innovation?

Nielsen’s ‘Breakthrough Innovations’ report analysed retail sales of 61,000 SKUs of 12,000 new products launched in Europe since 2011. One of the things Nielsen’s experts found was that from two thirds of new innovations less than 10,000 units were sold. Three from four new products were unable to stay on store shelves after one year. The report states that if companies start approaching innovation differently, 85 percent of new products can be successful. Johan Sjöstrand, Nielsen’s director of innovation in Europe and one of the study’s authors told products never become successful by chance. In successful innovation various phases of the process are separated from each other and every detail is analysed. Four key factors of successful innovations: 1. Meeting consumer demand, 2. Creating the new product at the right time, 3. Having the right launch strategy, 4. Strong backing for the new product from everyone. Mr Sjöstrand reckons that if any of these four factors is missing, the chances of success are smaller, no matter how well the other three components work. After the comprehensive analysis in the report, Nielsen named Europe’s Breakthrough Innovations in 2014: Foster’s Gold beer, Magnum Infinity ice cream, Milka Choko Supreme chocolate, Müllerlight Greek yogurt, Lucozade Energy Pink sports drink, Oral-B Pro-Expert All-Around Proteciton toothpaste, Sodebo Salade et Compagnie salad. Three more products are on the right way to become Breakthrough Innovations: Lay’s Xtra snack, Cadbury Dairy Milk Marvellous Creations chocolate bar, Ariel 3-in-1 detergent capsules