Crazy New Products – Real and Imagined

Krispy Kreme SmartfoodMayOreoLay's Chicken WafflesPop Tart Bud Light

Above are three crazy new product photos – two real, two imagined.

Can you guess which is which?

I’ve written before about flavor proliferation but every day it seems as if food companies keep increasing variety even as the number of choices on our shelves are already at ridiculous levels. Does the world really need Oreo mayonnaise? Or Krispy Kreme Smartfood popcorn? Or Bud Light Pop Tarts?

I’m not so sure.

But what is a reality is that in today’s world it has never been easier to do quick and dirty market research to find out whether or not there is demand for a potential new product or service without building it at scale. A photo ready prototype or even a mock up is often enough to throw up a web site, run some banner advertisements and see how many people are willing to click and pay real money, at least to request information, about your new product or service.

To the entrepreneurs out there without a marketing department or a fancy marketing agency – don’t waste your money, leverage these techniques to gauge the market of something you’re considering launching, to fine tune pricing, etc.

So, which of these products are the real ones and which are the fakes?

Well…

  1. Bud Light Pop Tarts — Fake
  2. Krispy Kreme Smartfood — Real
  3. Mayoreo — Fake
  4. Lay’s Chicken & Waffles — Real

I know the Krispy Kreme Smartfood and Lay’s Chicken & Waffles are real because I’ve seen them in my local grocery store and I was more than a little surprised – especially given the brand positioning efforts of Frito Lay for Smartfood over the past several years. But, I guess things change – not always for the better.

Keep innovating!


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