While their ultimate goal is to find solutions to customers’ (consumers and retailers) challenges, it’s important to explain the process of getting there. At Ring Container Technologies, they offer two types of innovation services, Consumer Insight Sprints and Bottle Design Sprints.
Consumer Insight Sprints use design thinking methodologies to develop ideas into testable prototypes. The company recommends this innovation service when a team is looking for richer insights and strategic guidance on packaging opportunities. As the word “sprint” implies, these are microbursts of powerful, directional research.
Bottle Design Sprints bring dozens of bottle designs to life in a single day. In addition to quickly producing outstanding cutting-edge designs, these sprints are tethered to the realities of manufacturing and supply chain optimization. Ring Container recommend this innovation service when a team already has the key insights to direct a design exercise and needs a super-charged method to go from concept to final design in a short period of time.
In the case of their pet parenting deep dive, the company engaged in a Consumer Insight Sprint to understand what pet parents are really looking for in pet packaging.
The design thinking methodologies included:
-
20+ Ring professionals
-
Five innovation moderators
-
In-home, in-store, focus groups and pet park interviews
-
30+ consumers on-site, plus dozens of field interviews
-
800+ refined prototypes tested with customers
Through this collaborative approach, the firm were able to find a deeper and broader understanding of pet parents and potential customers’ packaging concerns. This led to the inspiration for differentiated solutions that can displace existing pet packaging and increase market share.