New business ideas are the grist that feeds an existing company’ s bottom line. Without changes to product and service offerings, the customer soon switches to other suppliers who will provide and service offerings, the customer soon switches to other suppliers who will provide the special attention and need benefit that a dynamically shifting market demands. Most entrepreneurial firms rely on this as a regeneration process that assures profitability and survival.
Peterson found that most were aware of this requirement, although the methodology for stimulating new product or service ideas varied. “The findings suggest unstructured and unplanned processes, such as reliance on inspiration and spontaneous thoughts, are relatively common in the small business arena.” Table 10.1 sets out Peterson, results: