If you’re trying to find a new way to serve customers, don’t ask them what they like or want. Ask them what they’re unhappy with. When Campbell’s Soup asked consumers what they like about soup, they got generic answers: heart, nourishing, warms you up. But when asked what they didn’t like, the answers were very different: skimpy vegetables, tiny pieces of meat, not filling. And thus, Chunky™ Soup was born. If you want to kickstart innovation, get customers to complain a little.
