How to inject a massive dose of innovation into your company

While at first glance it would make sense that the smaller, more agile entrepreneurial companies among us would be by far the most innovative. You would think this would be true. And you also would be wrong. It’s not for a lack of trying or desire. It’s simply that smaller businesses do not have the R & D budgets, the staff, and the vision that larger companies can commission. Needless to say, the challenge for small business innovation is to break past the glass ceiling keeping it from innovating, and actually get into the game! Less than half of small businesses were brought into being as the result of a “new idea”, according to a study by Erik Hurst and Benjamin Wild Pugsley of the University of Chicago. They state that most new business is another “Me-too” venture, offering the already crowded marketplace another grocery, plumber or florist. Little innovation required, and consequently little growth.

So how does a small business get from the morass of just another business to one that is offering new and exciting products and services people are clamoring to try?

4 Strategies to create a culture of innovation in your business!

• Reward and encourage innovation – Give your staff perks and tangible rewards for coming up with and helping to implement new and innovative initiatives. Creating some excitement around finding new and better ways to run your business should benefit them as well.
• Know what your market wants and needs – Keep your finger on the pulse of latest trends and ideas in your market. Make an effort to not only keep up, but be on the leading edge, which is only possible if you are watching and listening!
• Connect with existing customers – In order to truly determine what may be a great idea for your customer, you have to talk to them. And more than that, you ought to keep the conversation around the customer’s problems, and shape your recommendations to provide those answers!
• Be willing to try something new! – Don’t be scared to be innovative. A great demonstration of a company happy to fill a need is Behance.net, a Web-based platform for creative works, where artists can show their work regardless of their resumes, hoping to turn more ideas into reality.