Accelerate Innovation Execution

From Vision to Market Success

Today’s FMCG marketplace is hungry for innovation. Speed is essential - but rushing to launch without clear insight & customer alignment can backfire. Cutting corners to meet tight timelines often results in compromises, lower sales velocity, and the risk of delisting.

A focused, strategic approach to innovation drives clarity and can build confidence to move faster.

Here are 6 ideas to help you build a solid foundation and achieve execution excellence in your innovation journey. 

Great execution, at high speed, is increasingly important for innovation success in FMCG.

1. Set the Right Goals

Successful innovation starts with clear, strategic goals rooted in consumer and market insights. Without this clarity, resources can be wasted and opportunities missed. 

• Analyze the market landscape: Identify what drives scale in your category. Which suppliers are winning, and what launches have added the most value to the category?

• Differentiate innovation types: Evaluate what has worked in your, and adjacent categories. For example, how much value is created by flavor or packaging updates versus entirely new concepts? What is the right mix of low-risk "bankers" versus higher-risk "big bets"? 

• Define actionable goals: Ensure your goals are measurable and focused on adding value to the category. These include commercial targets (e.g. revenue growth) and strategic priorities (e.g. capturing a new segment). 

Setting the right goals supports effective resource allocation and guides pipeline development from the beginning. 

2. Build Strategic Alignment with clear Innovation Platforms

A strong strategic foundation is essential for driving alignment across teams and partners.

• Clarify direction: A well-defined innovation platform serves as a blueprint for ideation and a framework for evaluating ideas. It helps align internal stakeholders and retail partners early in the process.

• Create a "triple win": Ensure your platforms deliver value to consumers, retailers, and your organization alike. 

• Balance your pipeline: Combine low-risk, near-term initiatives with high-risk, high-reward projects. This creates learning opportunities and optimizes ROI over time

3. Define Winning Attributes - Details matter

Clearly defined success factors will help you to channel resources into areas that resonate most with your target consumers and set your product apart in the marketplace.

• Think about the 4Ps: What aspects of Product, Pack, Price or Promotion will deliver to trending consumer or shopper needs? 

• Benchmark against winners: Analyse what works for competitors and leverage learnings for your concept development. 

• Enhance relevance: Build features that make your product distinct while addressing key consumer pain points. 

• Plan Point of Purchase back: Where will you merchandise? How will packs stand out? How will pack/pricing grow the category?  

4. Leverage Organisational Strengths & Build Capabilities

Knowing your strengths and limitations is crucial for strategic innovation. 

• Review past successes: Identify patterns in successful launches and the factors that drove them. 

• Assess competitive positioning: Determine where you lead and where competitors are outpacing you. 

• Learn and adapt: Look beyond your industry for inspiration and refine your approach based on these insights. 

Make plans that leverage your team's strengths. Address gaps by partnering with external experts or investing in targeted upskilling. 

5. Engage Retailers … Early

Retailer collaboration is key to ensuring your product gains traction in the marketplace. 

• Align goals: Work with retailers to ensure your innovation matches their strategic priorities and addresses shopper needs. 

• Gather insights: Leverage retailer feedback to refine your offering, from product features to pricing and packaging. 

• Secure support: Early engagement helps build buy-in, paving the way for a smooth, well-supported launch.

6. Master Execution with Detailed Planning

Even the best concepts fail without excellent execution. 

• Develop measurable plans: Define KPIs and execution standards to track progress and ensure accountability. 

• Prepare scenarios: Have contingency plans in place to address under or over-performance. 

• Allocate resources wisely: Avoid spreading resources too thin—consider testing in limited geographies before scaling up. 

• Win at the Point of Purchase: Invest sufficiently to drive cut through and motivate retailers to prioritise your launch. 

Tip: A regional test launch can reveal valuable insights that build confidence to invest, as well as save time and resources during national rollout. 

Shape the Future, don't be Shaped by It

Strategic clarity supports Speed to Market of innovation.  

By setting clear goals, aligning on strategy, and engaging the right partners, you can accelerate your journey from concept to launch.

Balancing low-risk "bankers" with bold, high-reward ideas helps you identify what can be fast-tracked and what needs more development time.

Why Real World Marketing?

Our experienced consultants and trainers are former FMCG leaders who have guided some of the brightest minds in our field. With deep-rooted expertise in the consumer goods industry, we are well-placed to support you and your teams as trusted coaches and mentors, with help tailored to your unique requirements.

If you need assistance with how to better integrate or execute Innovation in your business, please reach out to one of the team at Real World Marketing.

We’re here to help you navigate complexity and achieve your business goals.