WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:11.201 align:middle line:90% 00:00:11.201 --> 00:00:13.820 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: Welcome to the HBR IdeaCast for Harvard 00:00:13.820 --> 00:00:14.900 align:middle line:90% Business Review. 00:00:14.900 --> 00:00:16.250 align:middle line:90% I'm Sarah Green. 00:00:16.250 --> 00:00:19.300 align:middle line:84% I'm here today with Joan Schneider and Julie Hall of 00:00:19.300 --> 00:00:22.690 align:middle line:84% Schneider Associates, a PR and marketing communications firm. 00:00:22.690 --> 00:00:26.380 align:middle line:84% They're the authors of the April 2011 article Why Most 00:00:26.380 --> 00:00:28.100 align:middle line:90% Product Launches Fail. 00:00:28.100 --> 00:00:30.780 align:middle line:84% Joan, Julie, thanks so much for coming in today. 00:00:30.780 --> 00:00:31.620 align:middle line:90% JULIE HALL: Thank you. 00:00:31.620 --> 00:00:32.804 align:middle line:84% JOAN SHNEIDER: Thanks for having us. 00:00:32.804 --> 00:00:35.840 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: So why do most product launches fail and how 00:00:35.840 --> 00:00:38.100 align:middle line:84% can you tell if what you're working on is the next Segway 00:00:38.100 --> 00:00:39.420 align:middle line:90% and not the next iPod? 00:00:39.420 --> 00:00:41.490 align:middle line:84% JOAN SHNEIDER: Well there's so many reasons 00:00:41.490 --> 00:00:42.370 align:middle line:90% new products fail. 00:00:42.370 --> 00:00:45.970 align:middle line:84% In fact, we have created a list of 40 ways to crash a new 00:00:45.970 --> 00:00:48.610 align:middle line:84% product launch which is going to be on the HBR website in 00:00:48.610 --> 00:00:50.300 align:middle line:84% conjunction with the April issue. 00:00:50.300 --> 00:00:53.230 align:middle line:84% So viewers might want to look at that and consider that list 00:00:53.230 --> 00:00:54.990 align:middle line:84% before they launch their new product. 00:00:54.990 --> 00:00:58.260 align:middle line:84% But there's several really fatal flaws that people make. 00:00:58.260 --> 00:01:00.660 align:middle line:84% The first is they spend all their time on new product 00:01:00.660 --> 00:01:02.750 align:middle line:84% development and manufacturing the product. 00:01:02.750 --> 00:01:05.319 align:middle line:84% So by the time they get to the launch, there's hardly any 00:01:05.319 --> 00:01:07.050 align:middle line:90% time or money left to do it. 00:01:07.050 --> 00:01:10.900 align:middle line:84% The second is that they get research and they do testing, 00:01:10.900 --> 00:01:12.480 align:middle line:84% but they fall in love with the product. 00:01:12.480 --> 00:01:14.820 align:middle line:84% So they say, oh, we don't really need to change it or 00:01:14.820 --> 00:01:15.770 align:middle line:90% they're not right. 00:01:15.770 --> 00:01:17.330 align:middle line:84% And they launch it and consumers 00:01:17.330 --> 00:01:18.620 align:middle line:90% don't buy the product. 00:01:18.620 --> 00:01:22.180 align:middle line:84% If the product defines a new category, you really have to 00:01:22.180 --> 00:01:25.000 align:middle line:84% leave enough time and money to educate people. 00:01:25.000 --> 00:01:27.450 align:middle line:84% And I always say that everybody gets so excited 00:01:27.450 --> 00:01:29.980 align:middle line:84% about it in the companies that they have these really 00:01:29.980 --> 00:01:31.630 align:middle line:90% aggressive sales forecasts. 00:01:31.630 --> 00:01:33.510 align:middle line:84% We're going to sell a million of these! 00:01:33.510 --> 00:01:34.610 align:middle line:90% But guess what? 00:01:34.610 --> 00:01:36.890 align:middle line:84% You're not going to sell a million of them the first year 00:01:36.890 --> 00:01:38.790 align:middle line:84% because people don't even know what it is. 00:01:38.790 --> 00:01:42.280 align:middle line:84% So you have to leave a lot of time to educate people. 00:01:42.280 --> 00:01:46.300 align:middle line:84% And the last thing is that, guess what, some products are 00:01:46.300 --> 00:01:47.200 align:middle line:90% really successful. 00:01:47.200 --> 00:01:48.600 align:middle line:84% How are you going to produce it? 00:01:48.600 --> 00:01:49.980 align:middle line:84% How are you going to distribute it? 00:01:49.980 --> 00:01:51.430 align:middle line:90% Where is it going to be sold? 00:01:51.430 --> 00:01:53.550 align:middle line:84% The inventors come up with these great things but they 00:01:53.550 --> 00:01:55.050 align:middle line:90% don't really think ahead. 00:01:55.050 --> 00:01:57.150 align:middle line:84% So there's a lot to think about. 00:01:57.150 --> 00:01:59.140 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: Is part of the problem just that we have so 00:01:59.140 --> 00:02:00.510 align:middle line:90% many products already? 00:02:00.510 --> 00:02:03.260 align:middle line:84% If you look at a category like cola. 00:02:03.260 --> 00:02:05.000 align:middle line:84% There've been so many failed product 00:02:05.000 --> 00:02:06.140 align:middle line:90% launches in the cola industry. 00:02:06.140 --> 00:02:08.699 align:middle line:84% Is the problem that we don't need more sugar water? 00:02:08.699 --> 00:02:10.979 align:middle line:84% JULIE HALL: The cola industry is unique in that it's a 00:02:10.979 --> 00:02:13.280 align:middle line:84% billion-dollar industry so they're constantly looking for 00:02:13.280 --> 00:02:14.580 align:middle line:90% innovation. 00:02:14.580 --> 00:02:17.020 align:middle line:84% It's very fickle like the fashion industry. 00:02:17.020 --> 00:02:20.070 align:middle line:84% We've had two new cola launches with Pepsi launching 00:02:20.070 --> 00:02:24.390 align:middle line:84% the little skinny can and with Dr Pepper actually launching a 00:02:24.390 --> 00:02:27.630 align:middle line:84% Dr Pepper 10, which you think would be for the female 00:02:27.630 --> 00:02:30.020 align:middle line:84% market, was actually made for brawny men and features Rambo 00:02:30.020 --> 00:02:33.280 align:middle line:84% in their television advertising. 00:02:33.280 --> 00:02:36.140 align:middle line:84% Last year alone, there were over 42,000 new products that 00:02:36.140 --> 00:02:37.730 align:middle line:90% were launched. 00:02:37.730 --> 00:02:40.420 align:middle line:84% In the 10 years that Joan and I have been doing research 00:02:40.420 --> 00:02:42.330 align:middle line:84% with our most memorable new product launch, we've seen 00:02:42.330 --> 00:02:44.420 align:middle line:84% this number go up, we've seen the numbers go down for a 00:02:44.420 --> 00:02:46.420 align:middle line:90% variety of economic reasons. 00:02:46.420 --> 00:02:49.860 align:middle line:84% But the one thing that we know remains true is that if you 00:02:49.860 --> 00:02:52.430 align:middle line:84% create a product that has a target that's going to be 00:02:52.430 --> 00:02:55.800 align:middle line:84% interested in it, many times it is going to be successful. 00:02:55.800 --> 00:02:58.650 align:middle line:84% And I think marketers sometimes fail to do that 00:02:58.650 --> 00:03:01.380 align:middle line:84% proper market research in creating a product, like Joan 00:03:01.380 --> 00:03:04.150 align:middle line:84% said, that they fall in love with and not really look for 00:03:04.150 --> 00:03:05.320 align:middle line:90% that target market. 00:03:05.320 --> 00:03:08.560 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: Let's talk about an example that you worked on 00:03:08.560 --> 00:03:10.440 align:middle line:84% that didn't pan out quite that you'd hoped. 00:03:10.440 --> 00:03:12.380 align:middle line:90% Tell me about the Cell Zone. 00:03:12.380 --> 00:03:15.630 align:middle line:84% JULIE HALL: Cell Zone is one of our favorite new product 00:03:15.630 --> 00:03:17.500 align:middle line:90% launches that we worked on. 00:03:17.500 --> 00:03:20.590 align:middle line:84% Cell zones had just become extraordinarily mainstream and 00:03:20.590 --> 00:03:22.740 align:middle line:84% people were finding a need to go 00:03:22.740 --> 00:03:24.500 align:middle line:90% somewhere to talk privately. 00:03:24.500 --> 00:03:26.000 align:middle line:90% This was before texting. 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:27.640 align:middle line:84% They launched at The Restaurant Show. 00:03:27.640 --> 00:03:30.790 align:middle line:84% Our firm was able to get them on The Today Show. 00:03:30.790 --> 00:03:33.690 align:middle line:84% We got a USA Today front page story. 00:03:33.690 --> 00:03:37.600 align:middle line:84% And the calls just came in and people were just so excited 00:03:37.600 --> 00:03:39.620 align:middle line:84% about the Cell Zone and wanted to buy it. 00:03:39.620 --> 00:03:41.000 align:middle line:84% They didn't really have enough ready. 00:03:41.000 --> 00:03:43.130 align:middle line:84% So that was one key lesson that we learned that you'll 00:03:43.130 --> 00:03:44.380 align:middle line:90% see in the article. 00:03:44.380 --> 00:03:47.380 align:middle line:84% But the key fatal flaw, I think, was misreading the 00:03:47.380 --> 00:03:51.270 align:middle line:84% marketplace contextually where the product fell. 00:03:51.270 --> 00:03:52.630 align:middle line:90% And the founder actually-- 00:03:52.630 --> 00:03:55.250 align:middle line:84% and I spoke recently about this and he said, they 00:03:55.250 --> 00:03:57.760 align:middle line:84% underestimated the potential of the texting market. 00:03:57.760 --> 00:03:59.580 align:middle line:84% They didn't see it coming as quickly. 00:03:59.580 --> 00:04:03.110 align:middle line:84% However, there's a silver lining to the story and the 00:04:03.110 --> 00:04:05.270 align:middle line:90% product didn't fail dismally. 00:04:05.270 --> 00:04:07.810 align:middle line:84% We know now that they really found a perfect niche market 00:04:07.810 --> 00:04:08.760 align:middle line:90% in college libraries. 00:04:08.760 --> 00:04:12.210 align:middle line:84% They're actually at Harvard, they're actually at Yale, and 00:04:12.210 --> 00:04:14.030 align:middle line:90% many ivy league schools. 00:04:14.030 --> 00:04:16.839 align:middle line:84% And we also found out that the White House and the Department 00:04:16.839 --> 00:04:19.560 align:middle line:84% of Defense and the Pentagon have cell zones where, one 00:04:19.560 --> 00:04:22.340 align:middle line:84% would assume, you need to have private cell conversations. 00:04:22.340 --> 00:04:25.190 align:middle line:84% So there was a learning as they went along the way. 00:04:25.190 --> 00:04:29.200 align:middle line:84% And we find with many entrepreneurs, they launch, 00:04:29.200 --> 00:04:32.560 align:middle line:84% retreat, maybe launch again, retreat, and figure it out as 00:04:32.560 --> 00:04:33.180 align:middle line:90% they go along. 00:04:33.180 --> 00:04:36.060 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: That is a nice ending to this story. 00:04:36.060 --> 00:04:38.510 align:middle line:84% I wonder though, is there any way that they could've 00:04:38.510 --> 00:04:41.440 align:middle line:84% anticipated that texting would become such a big thing and 00:04:41.440 --> 00:04:43.680 align:middle line:84% really disrupt what their business model was? 00:04:43.680 --> 00:04:45.520 align:middle line:84% JOAN SHNEIDER: Yes, I think that you always have to be 00:04:45.520 --> 00:04:46.520 align:middle line:90% looking at the trends. 00:04:46.520 --> 00:04:48.900 align:middle line:84% You have to be looking not only at the consumer trends, 00:04:48.900 --> 00:04:50.460 align:middle line:90% but the technology trends. 00:04:50.460 --> 00:04:53.120 align:middle line:84% I think they were talking to restaurateurs who were 00:04:53.120 --> 00:04:55.430 align:middle line:84% grown-ups who are really using their cell phones. 00:04:55.430 --> 00:04:57.860 align:middle line:84% If they had been looking at the kids, they would realize 00:04:57.860 --> 00:05:00.920 align:middle line:84% that no teenager ever picks up the phone. 00:05:00.920 --> 00:05:04.050 align:middle line:84% So the audience that was coming up 00:05:04.050 --> 00:05:05.610 align:middle line:90% were really into texting. 00:05:05.610 --> 00:05:08.580 align:middle line:84% So it's always important to stay close to what's happening 00:05:08.580 --> 00:05:09.360 align:middle line:90% in the market. 00:05:09.360 --> 00:05:10.610 align:middle line:84% You can't just look at your market. 00:05:10.610 --> 00:05:13.240 align:middle line:84% You have to look at everything that's going on-- 00:05:13.240 --> 00:05:15.530 align:middle line:84% JULIE HALL: --which changes quickly, too. 00:05:15.530 --> 00:05:17.660 align:middle line:84% I think in this day and age-- and we talked a little bit 00:05:17.660 --> 00:05:20.300 align:middle line:84% about this, is the importance of beta launch. 00:05:20.300 --> 00:05:22.690 align:middle line:84% It's hard to look contextually at trends and things that are 00:05:22.690 --> 00:05:24.710 align:middle line:84% changing when things are changing now 00:05:24.710 --> 00:05:27.040 align:middle line:90% 24/7 and so, so quickly. 00:05:27.040 --> 00:05:30.475 align:middle line:84% So we've seen, what we've called, the beta launch 00:05:30.475 --> 00:05:33.340 align:middle line:84% phenomenon which Google really perfected in just launch it, 00:05:33.340 --> 00:05:34.000 align:middle line:90% get it out there. 00:05:34.000 --> 00:05:35.930 align:middle line:84% If it doesn't work, pull it back, launch another one. 00:05:35.930 --> 00:05:38.950 align:middle line:84% And just constantly putting new, innovative products out 00:05:38.950 --> 00:05:42.240 align:middle line:84% there to keep the noise level and the news level about your 00:05:42.240 --> 00:05:44.280 align:middle line:84% product your company out there. 00:05:44.280 --> 00:05:46.740 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: We've talked now about a few different kinds of 00:05:46.740 --> 00:05:49.120 align:middle line:84% products and also a few different kinds of things like 00:05:49.120 --> 00:05:51.380 align:middle line:84% beta launch, things you can do to overcome some of these 00:05:51.380 --> 00:05:52.300 align:middle line:90% challenges. 00:05:52.300 --> 00:05:55.160 align:middle line:84% But is there one type of product that really is the 00:05:55.160 --> 00:05:56.070 align:middle line:90% toughest to introduce? 00:05:56.070 --> 00:05:58.860 align:middle line:84% JOAN SHNEIDER: Well, they're all tough to introduce now 00:05:58.860 --> 00:06:01.200 align:middle line:84% because the environment is changing so quickly. 00:06:01.200 --> 00:06:04.310 align:middle line:84% But I like to say that evolutionary products are 00:06:04.310 --> 00:06:07.670 align:middle line:84% really hard which means something that's a better 00:06:07.670 --> 00:06:11.990 align:middle line:84% mousetrap, it's an improvement over the original version but 00:06:11.990 --> 00:06:13.650 align:middle line:90% it's not really that dramatic. 00:06:13.650 --> 00:06:17.440 align:middle line:84% Or a line extension, those are really hard to launch because 00:06:17.440 --> 00:06:18.750 align:middle line:90% what's new about that. 00:06:18.750 --> 00:06:22.160 align:middle line:84% So you really have to create things around them that make 00:06:22.160 --> 00:06:23.400 align:middle line:90% them interesting. 00:06:23.400 --> 00:06:25.950 align:middle line:84% Revolutionary products, believe it or not, can be hard 00:06:25.950 --> 00:06:28.370 align:middle line:84% to launch as well because, you know what, if they're first in 00:06:28.370 --> 00:06:30.970 align:middle line:84% their category, nobody knows what they're supposed to do 00:06:30.970 --> 00:06:32.510 align:middle line:84% and you really have to educate. 00:06:32.510 --> 00:06:35.700 align:middle line:84% The early adopters always love revolutionary products. 00:06:35.700 --> 00:06:37.120 align:middle line:84% But then there's that huge chasm. 00:06:37.120 --> 00:06:40.130 align:middle line:84% How do you get the mass audience to adopt it? 00:06:40.130 --> 00:06:42.130 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: Well let's talk a little bit about a 00:06:42.130 --> 00:06:43.980 align:middle line:90% revolutionary product. 00:06:43.980 --> 00:06:46.980 align:middle line:84% Something like the iPad was something that actually got 00:06:46.980 --> 00:06:48.830 align:middle line:90% pandering in its launch. 00:06:48.830 --> 00:06:51.220 align:middle line:84% The early reviews said who's going to use this and the name 00:06:51.220 --> 00:06:52.300 align:middle line:90% is terrible. 00:06:52.300 --> 00:06:54.710 align:middle line:84% Yet, they seem to be selling very well. 00:06:54.710 --> 00:06:56.820 align:middle line:84% So how does a good product like that, that is 00:06:56.820 --> 00:06:59.220 align:middle line:84% revolutionary, overcome a bad launch. 00:06:59.220 --> 00:07:01.860 align:middle line:84% JULIE HALL: They clearly had a market. 00:07:01.860 --> 00:07:04.000 align:middle line:84% We did a blog post with Harvard Business Review with 00:07:04.000 --> 00:07:07.890 align:middle line:84% Julia Kirby last year when the iPad came out saying they are 00:07:07.890 --> 00:07:09.630 align:middle line:84% the masters at new product launch. 00:07:09.630 --> 00:07:11.120 align:middle line:90% From 1984-- 00:07:11.120 --> 00:07:12.320 align:middle line:84% and we get this question all the time. 00:07:12.320 --> 00:07:13.790 align:middle line:84% People say, what is the best product 00:07:13.790 --> 00:07:14.600 align:middle line:90% launch you've ever seen. 00:07:14.600 --> 00:07:18.310 align:middle line:84% And, hands down, it was really in 1984 during the Super Bowl, 00:07:18.310 --> 00:07:23.190 align:middle line:84% which set the stage for Super Bowl ads, was Apple's launch. 00:07:23.190 --> 00:07:25.640 align:middle line:84% They've continued to really just do all the right things 00:07:25.640 --> 00:07:26.890 align:middle line:84% when it comes to launching a new product. 00:07:26.890 --> 00:07:28.280 align:middle line:90% Motivating your base. 00:07:28.280 --> 00:07:30.660 align:middle line:84% Making sure that you're getting those early adopters, 00:07:30.660 --> 00:07:33.250 align:middle line:84% those influencers, those folks that love your brand behind it 00:07:33.250 --> 00:07:34.770 align:middle line:84% ahead of time and bringing them in. 00:07:34.770 --> 00:07:36.730 align:middle line:90% Creating that anticipation. 00:07:36.730 --> 00:07:38.650 align:middle line:84% Making a big splash at the announcement. 00:07:38.650 --> 00:07:41.180 align:middle line:84% It's almost formulaic the way that Steve Jobs is out there, 00:07:41.180 --> 00:07:43.310 align:middle line:84% black turtleneck and in the next product and you're just 00:07:43.310 --> 00:07:45.410 align:middle line:84% waiting and he's going to do it again. 00:07:45.410 --> 00:07:48.400 align:middle line:84% So they really do have it down well. 00:07:48.400 --> 00:07:50.880 align:middle line:84% There're other products that were poised 00:07:50.880 --> 00:07:51.710 align:middle line:90% to change the world. 00:07:51.710 --> 00:07:52.890 align:middle line:90% Look at the Segway. 00:07:52.890 --> 00:07:56.300 align:middle line:84% The anticipation for the Segway was almost unheralded. 00:07:56.300 --> 00:07:59.570 align:middle line:84% It was almost like the iPad in some respects, but it didn't 00:07:59.570 --> 00:08:00.800 align:middle line:90% have a market. 00:08:00.800 --> 00:08:02.660 align:middle line:84% We didn't know what to do with it. 00:08:02.660 --> 00:08:04.290 align:middle line:90% Do I drive it to work? 00:08:04.290 --> 00:08:06.940 align:middle line:84% I see mall security men using it now. 00:08:06.940 --> 00:08:09.170 align:middle line:84% But they didn't really have a market for it yet. 00:08:09.170 --> 00:08:11.720 align:middle line:84% It might have been a little bit before its time. 00:08:11.720 --> 00:08:14.150 align:middle line:90% The iPad nailed it. 00:08:14.150 --> 00:08:17.820 align:middle line:84% But when the Newton had been launched 12, 15 years earlier, 00:08:17.820 --> 00:08:19.010 align:middle line:90% we weren't ready for it yet. 00:08:19.010 --> 00:08:20.960 align:middle line:84% So I think some of it is timing. 00:08:20.960 --> 00:08:22.410 align:middle line:84% And then I think a large part of it is 00:08:22.410 --> 00:08:23.990 align:middle line:90% definitely having a market-- 00:08:23.990 --> 00:08:25.590 align:middle line:84% JOAN SHNEIDER: --and promotion. 00:08:25.590 --> 00:08:29.820 align:middle line:84% I think Apple is genius at making everybody 00:08:29.820 --> 00:08:31.020 align:middle line:90% want what they have. 00:08:31.020 --> 00:08:33.900 align:middle line:84% If you really dissect their commercials, you're going to 00:08:33.900 --> 00:08:36.000 align:middle line:84% be smarter, you're going to be cooler, you're going to be 00:08:36.000 --> 00:08:39.220 align:middle line:84% hipper, it just makes you a better person. 00:08:39.220 --> 00:08:42.030 align:middle line:84% And by the time people start to get it, then they have the 00:08:42.030 --> 00:08:42.570 align:middle line:90% next version. 00:08:42.570 --> 00:08:45.160 align:middle line:84% So all the early adopters want the next version. 00:08:45.160 --> 00:08:47.990 align:middle line:84% So it's just a snowball effect. 00:08:47.990 --> 00:08:51.450 align:middle line:84% JULIE HALL: We've been researching new product 00:08:51.450 --> 00:08:53.720 align:middle line:84% launches for just about 10 years now. 00:08:53.720 --> 00:08:56.910 align:middle line:84% So we've got close to 100 products that we've watched 00:08:56.910 --> 00:08:57.900 align:middle line:90% over the years. 00:08:57.900 --> 00:09:01.660 align:middle line:84% 20% percent are no longer on store shelves so that was 00:09:01.660 --> 00:09:02.770 align:middle line:90% interesting to look at. 00:09:02.770 --> 00:09:06.790 align:middle line:84% But last year's most memorable new product was the iPad. 00:09:06.790 --> 00:09:10.750 align:middle line:84% And it was almost overwhelming the amount of people who 00:09:10.750 --> 00:09:12.580 align:middle line:84% remembered it as a new product launch. 00:09:12.580 --> 00:09:15.460 align:middle line:84% JOAN SHNEIDER: With that being said, 45% of consumers could 00:09:15.460 --> 00:09:17.870 align:middle line:84% not name a single new product in the year that 00:09:17.870 --> 00:09:19.350 align:middle line:90% the iPad was launched. 00:09:19.350 --> 00:09:22.990 align:middle line:84% So think about how hard it is to generate recognition 00:09:22.990 --> 00:09:27.370 align:middle line:84% because it was on television, bus stops, front page news, it 00:09:27.370 --> 00:09:28.870 align:middle line:90% was on the TV all the time. 00:09:28.870 --> 00:09:31.265 align:middle line:84% It was pretty hard to escape the iPad last year. 00:09:31.265 --> 00:09:34.650 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: Just for fun, can you tell me about the wackiest 00:09:34.650 --> 00:09:36.820 align:middle line:84% product idea you've been pitched on? 00:09:36.820 --> 00:09:39.760 align:middle line:84% JOAN SHNEIDER: Well, people call our office all the time 00:09:39.760 --> 00:09:41.540 align:middle line:84% asking us to launch these wacky products. 00:09:41.540 --> 00:09:45.160 align:middle line:84% But one of them that rose to the top was this Harvard 00:09:45.160 --> 00:09:48.850 align:middle line:84% Business School graduate who came to us with the sex chair. 00:09:48.850 --> 00:09:50.560 align:middle line:90% This was about five years ago. 00:09:50.560 --> 00:09:54.840 align:middle line:84% And it was a device to help people have sex as they were 00:09:54.840 --> 00:09:57.860 align:middle line:84% growing older because his belief was that, as the baby 00:09:57.860 --> 00:10:00.800 align:middle line:84% boomers age, being from Woodstock, we would all want 00:10:00.800 --> 00:10:02.600 align:middle line:90% to have sex into our 90s. 00:10:02.600 --> 00:10:06.550 align:middle line:84% And so, in principle, it was a really good idea, except what 00:10:06.550 --> 00:10:08.150 align:middle line:90% would you do with that? 00:10:08.150 --> 00:10:10.160 align:middle line:84% In those days, we didn't have social media. 00:10:10.160 --> 00:10:12.310 align:middle line:84% So which section in the newspaper-- 00:10:12.310 --> 00:10:14.490 align:middle line:84% or would you go to a health reporter with that? 00:10:14.490 --> 00:10:16.600 align:middle line:84% It just seemed a little way out there. 00:10:16.600 --> 00:10:19.730 align:middle line:84% But now, with social media, I think you can really do a 00:10:19.730 --> 00:10:21.900 align:middle line:84% great job with that kind of crazy product. 00:10:21.900 --> 00:10:24.780 align:middle line:84% So I think the market has really changed. 00:10:24.780 --> 00:10:28.410 align:middle line:84% Even in terms of prohibiting product failure because you 00:10:28.410 --> 00:10:29.270 align:middle line:90% can test it. 00:10:29.270 --> 00:10:31.700 align:middle line:84% You can use social media to have a beta test. 00:10:31.700 --> 00:10:33.690 align:middle line:84% You could use it to have a focus group. 00:10:33.690 --> 00:10:37.440 align:middle line:84% You can get bloggers involved, you can invite bloggers in. 00:10:37.440 --> 00:10:40.640 align:middle line:84% With social media, there's really no reason not to test 00:10:40.640 --> 00:10:43.620 align:middle line:84% your product and make sure that consumers can use it. 00:10:43.620 --> 00:10:45.790 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: Joan, Julie, thanks so much for coming in. 00:10:45.790 --> 00:10:46.140 align:middle line:90% JOAN SHNEIDER: Thank you. 00:10:46.140 --> 00:10:47.562 align:middle line:90% JULIE HALL: Thank you. 00:10:47.562 --> 00:10:49.960 align:middle line:84% SARAH GREEN: That's John Schneider and Julie Hall of 00:10:49.960 --> 00:10:51.220 align:middle line:90% Schneider Associates. 00:10:51.220 --> 00:10:54.190 align:middle line:84% The article appears in the April 2011 issue of Harvard 00:10:54.190 --> 00:10:56.080 align:middle line:84% Business Review for more go to hbr.org. 00:10:56.080 --> 00:11:03.028 align:middle line:90%