Abstract
To create a breakthrough service innovation, firms need to go beyond current customers' needs and tap into the needs of the future market. As marketing theory favours customer‐centric approaches, customer‐led ideation and co‐creation of innovation seem natural candidates for extracting the ‘sticky’ information nested in some of the most innovative customers' minds. Grounded in the service innovation literature, this paper extracts innovative service ideas from ordinary users (n = 388) in three different service domains and seeks to identify the salient characteristics of the most innovative customers. Past research shows that innovative users are more likely to be service defectors, frequently switching from firm to firm, and motivated by their predisposition to seek variety. Using a structural modelling strategy, variety seeking is tested as a mediating factor between the subjective knowledge level and the presence of high level unmet needs leading to the generation of innovative service ideas. The results show that variety seeking fully mediates the relationship between subjective knowledge and unmet needs. Several interpretations of the role of variety seeking on customers' behaviour are explored within the context of capturing innovative service ideas.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.