In INNOVATION, the flagship publication of IDSA,* Motiv principal Paul Metaxatos suggests “Three Ways Businesses Can Create Enduring Design Solutions.” According to Paul, it’s become increasingly difficult for businesses to achieve product design solutions that remain relevant for more than a few years. Foreign knock-offs, data-driven pricing of online retailers, and a culture of disposable Read the full article…

Here’s a great read from Entrepreneur magazine, featuring iRobot’s repositioning of the value proposition for Roomba, its robotic vacuum cleaner. According to Dwight Brown, iRobot’s senior VP of global marketing, marketplace acceptance can be based on adjusting customer expectations, rather than changing the product. In our work with Dwight, both at iRobot and Keurig, we’ve Read the full article…

Whether the design task involves a product or packaging, most often our goal is to create enduring solutions that will stand the test of time; not only to amortize product development costs, but also to sustain brand recognition and customer loyalty over time. Once in a very great while, enduring design solutions can become brand Read the full article…

In his interview with Motiv, Steve Berg – Managing Partner of the Boston-based private equity firm Castenea Partners – provides a candid behind-the-scenes view into how his firm helps emerging growth companies to reach the next level of growth. Our conversation with Steve covers a broad range of topics, including the process he applies to Read the full article…

We’re always studying “fringe markets” that don’t represent mainstream tastes, because they can provide meaningful insights into future consumer preferences. Counter-culture trends also help fuel our ideas for design and new products. For that reason, every year we attend the SEMA Show, the world’s largest showcase of automotive specialty products. Download our SEMA 2016 Trend Read the full article…

In his interview with Motiv, Nick Lazaris — the former President and CEO of Keurig and other successful ventures — provides insight into the underlying razor / razor-blade business model on which Green Mountain, Coravin and other companies have created new product categories. Our conversation with Nick covers a broad range of topics, including lessons learned from Read the full article…

In his interview with Motiv, Sam Aquillano, the founder and executive director of Design Museum Foundation provides insights into his nomadic, multi-site design museum operating in Boston, Portland and San Francisco. Sam’s mission is to bring the transformative power of design everywhere, as a means to inspire a world full of creative problem solvers. Design is everywhere, Read the full article…

Don’t miss the upcoming HBR webinar, scheduled for July 26th, based on our recent Harvard Business Review article, The Internet of Things: Design, Not Just Technology co-authored by technologist Scott Nelson. The webinar will explore the product development mistakes that many companies are making by overlooking design, and offer specific ways that technology and design Read the full article…

Nobody likes to hear, “I told you so…,” but we predicted a significant product design trend back in January. So we’re feeling pretty good about Motiv’s ability to see where consumer tastes are headed. Here’s the backstory: Last November, we attended the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, which attracts more than 140,000 automobile buffs. This Read the full article…

Motiv teamed up with noted technologist Scott Nelson to provide some practical guidance on how companies can succeed in the new user-driven world of Internet of Things (IoT) Version 2.0. This approach begins with recognition that a product’s design is as important as its technology, in terms of market acceptance. Read the article on Harvard Read the full article…