Achieving Taste Superiority

SITUATION
A company had been working internally for four years, unsuccessfully, to develop a product with taste superiority to a top competitor.

PROBLEM
Breakthrough thinking was required.  The client needed to take a new approach to solving the technical challenge.

SOLUTION
The objective was to identify sensory attributes that would leapfrog the old formula. For this project we utilized our Design Sprint consumer research and product development methodology.  This process combines qualitative consumer discussion groups with rapid product formulation in our own test kitchen in-between sessions:

• Our sensory and consumer research team reviewed relevant commercial products to identify good and bad sensory attributes
• We evaluated with consumers a set of prototypes with variations on flavor, texture, taste factors
• Our culinary chefs built the “ideal” product samples in real-time utilizing a rapid feedback loop with consumer from each subsequent group

Following the Design Sprint our food and sensory scientists developed a commercial formula matching the “ideal” product developed in consumer groups. A competitive benchmark CLT confirmed the new formula was superior achieving a 60:40 preference.

BENEFITS
The client updated their product with the revised formula.  In-market sales growth improved double-digits as a result of product improvement news. The client’s team received a corporate award.

For more information, contact Eric James at 607-592-2986 or [email protected].