"You know, most of our new products people do a great deal of marketing research--concept testing, attitude surveys, and the like. But let me read some-thing that one automobile designer thought about marketing research." (She then read from a yellowed clipping on her desk.)
Market research is probably the greatest single deterrent to excellence in modern business. It's a crutch for managers with no vision and no conviction. On the surface, it sounds sensible enough: Find out exactly what the buyers want before you come to a design. But in practice, it's impossible. The public doesn't know what it wants without being shown the choices, and even then, preference is apt to veer off in the direction of Kmart. Market research gives you Malibu's with Mercedes grilles, refrigerators in avocado hues, and Big Macs with everything. You do not, however, produce greatness with this technique.
"Perhaps you would comment on that statement."