In this blog, we take a look at Agile NPD (New Product Development), what it is, why it matters and how it could benefit your business. Topics include;
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What is Agile Methodology?
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What is Agile NPD and why does it matter?
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Agile for FMCG
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Being more Agile - The benefits you’ll see!
What is a Agile Methodology
Coming from a software development background, it’s no surprise that our founders are big fans of Agile methodology. Software development and Agile pretty much go hand in hand, providing an iterative and flexible approach to development and project management. They emphasise collaboration, adaptability, and customer feedback throughout the development process.
Key principles and characteristics of Agile methodology include:
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Iterative and incremental development: Projects are divided into small, manageable increments called iterations. Each iteration aims to produce a potentially shippable product increment.
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Customer-centric approach: Customers and stakeholders are involved throughout, to ensure that the product meets their needs and expectations.
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Adaptability and Flexibility: Teams can respond to changes quickly and adjust their approach accordingly.
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Cross-Functional Teams: Agile teams are typically small, cross-functional groups that include members with various skills (e.g., developers, testers, designers) necessary to deliver a product increment.
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Collaboration and Communication: Daily stand-up meetings, frequent communication, and continuous feedback help ensure everyone is aligned and aware of project progress.
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Transparency: Progress, challenges, and project status are made visible to all team members, stakeholders, and customers. Transparency helps in identifying and addressing issues promptly.
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Continuous Improvement: Agile promotes a culture of continuous improvement, encouraging teams to reflect on their processes and outcomes regularly and make adjustments to enhance productivity, quality, and efficiency.
Teams often choose and tailor a specific Agile framework (e.g. scrum, kanban, lean) based on the nature of their project and team dynamics.
What is Agile NPD and why does it matter?
Agile NPD - New Product Development - involves applying the same principles of agile methodology to developing products and services.
In traditional New Product Development (NPD) processes, development follows a linear or waterfall approach, where each stage has its defined set of tasks and requirements. However, this can lead to challenges when requirements change, or if customer feedback is received late in the process. Involving the customer throughout the process is a critical part of ensuring that the marketing mix (price, product, packaging, place, promotion, people, physical-evidence and process) is one that is attractive to customers and makes them want to spend more.
A great example of where Agile NPD can be used to the best effect is in rapid prototyping and testing of advertising campaigns. Sharing early stage ideas such as scamps or campaign concepts can help marketers to identify how the general population will perceive the idea. A best case scenario is that their ideas are great, the participant thinks they’re great and the campaign lands perfectly. A small amount of early stage research has helped make sure that the idea is well received. Importantly, the brand is enhanced, the product will see an uplift in sales and everybody in the marketing team sleeps well.
In another scenario, the campaign doesn’t land well at all. In fact it lands really badly. The audience feels indifferent about it (or even worse) they spot something that actively turns them off from the product or brand.
Involving the customer at early stages can help to save the day. Their feedback allows the marketing team to iterate on their campaign, to develop the idea further and make it much more appealing. Without early stage testing, the marketing team would have blissfully proceeded with the campaign, have actively upset existing customers and spent a lot of budget on a failed campaign that resulted in a lot of lost sales (and sleep).
For a great example check out how John Lewis made a blunder with one of their insurance products - https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/oct/27/john-lewis-pulls-controversial-advert-for-being-potentially-misleading
Agile for FMCG
Agile New Product Development (NPD) can offer several significant benefits for the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry. The FMCG industry, characterised by high consumer demand, rapid product turnover, and frequent market changes, can particularly benefit from Agile methodologies in the product development process.
Agile NPD allows for quicker development cycles and shorter release times. Cross-functional teams work collaboratively in iterations, delivering product increments rapidly. This ‘faster-to-market’ advantage is crucial in the FMCG sector where getting products on shelves quickly is a competitive advantage.
Agile NPD emphasises making decisions based on market data and customer feedback. This 'market-driven decision making’ approach ensures that product features and requirements are continuously refined based on actual market needs, resulting in a product that is more likely to succeed in the market.
In summary, Agile NPD offers the FMCG industry a powerful approach to streamline product development, meet consumer demands, and stay ahead in a highly competitive market by delivering high-quality products quickly and efficiently.
Be more Agile - The benefits you’ll see
An Agile approach to product innovation can give your business a steady and consistent way of innovating through constant iteration. The feedback you receive from customers can boost your chances of producing a better product and a better way of marketing that product. You’ll appeal to more customers and reduce the chance of failure.
It’ll also help you build a better business culture, focused around the customer and real feedback rather than internal perception and blame when things go wrong.
The principles of Agile can be adapted and tailored to suit the unique needs and challenges of various domains, promoting better collaboration, faster delivery, and higher customer satisfaction. However, organisations need to assess their specific context and requirements to determine the best fit for adopting Agile NPD practices.
To understand more about the Agile NPD and how you can use it to improve your products and marketing, speak to the Brand Jar leadership team.
Drop them an email on hello@brandjar.co.uk
