Despite a year full of unprecedented changes, Horizon has still managed to claim victory by becoming the recipient of first place in Best of Consulting 2020, in the category of “Technology & Innovation”, for our case submission in consumer product demand validation. This was awarded by Wirtschaftwoche, a highly renowned and prestigious business magazine in the entire DACH region. As Horizon moves into international waters, this award further reinforces our path to becoming a global market leader.
This award does not only confirm that we have become one of the pioneers in the field of digital product innovation but is also proof that we had the right data for our own product validation when we decided earlier this year to put our several years of expertise in validating market demand into a software-as-a-service solution, Horizon.
Our cosnova use case as a recipe for success
The use case we had submitted which brought us major success at this year’s “Best of Consulting” award ceremony — which was held entirely virtually — was the collaboration with our client cosnova: the leading cosmetics company in Germany, with essence and CATRICE among their portfolio of brands. Cosnova is regularly faced with the challenge of having to forecast in advance whether a new product will actually be in demand — and to what extend that demand will be.
Instead of relying solely on feedback from customer surveys, which very seldom reflects actual purchasing behavior, Horizon delivers concrete data on how a product will perform in the target market before the product is developed. Validating a product idea in the early phase protects and increases a companies return on investment, by ensuring the right product goes into development before dedicating valuable resources. “Thanks to the use of Horizon, we can test the efficiency of products and services very early in the development phase,” says Maximilian Seidel, Senior Innovation Expert at cosnova.
“There is no more reliable demand data available”
So, how does Horizon work exactly? First, a landing page (for a product that does not yet exist), is created, which potential customers can access through social media advertising/campaigns. When a user is on the website, they have the opportunity to click on “Buy” or another button, that prompts the user to enter their email address to use the product. Eventually, Horizon acquires even more demand data in the following process of validating the submission of the user. You can also watch a full how-it-works video here. “Interest in buying or using the product is clearly signalled by the behaviour on the website. There is no better option for demand data, without having developed an actual product” explains our founder, Daniel Putsche.
The crowning glory of the award
Behind the scenes, Horizon collates all relevant data and determines how high the market demand for the product is, with the help of a carefully developed algorithm. Horizon can also be used to determine the optimal price for the product, as several variants can be tested against each other. “Cosnova can use this data to decide which product innovation is strategically worth developing”, says Daniel Putsche, summarising the added value of Horizon.
Maximillian Seidel confirms this: “We were looking for a way to test our ideas pre-prototype based on data, and we have now found it. Horizon ultimately ensures that we increase our profitability”. A great confirmation of our work a great reason in itself to be happy. By winning the “Best of Consulting” award, our entire team has been rewarded for their amazing efforts and hard work.
Would you like to see Horizon in action? Book now for a free product demo.
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