It was a simpler time before smartphones took off. I was the Product guy for Strålfors Marketing Solutions and we were creating something amazing, well ahead of its time, it was Gateway Direct. A tool to lead customers into the future by allowing them to create messages that could be delivered through email, SMS, print, and the web. It would integrate into any CRM system, and support personalization. It would even give you price optimization for different combinations of print and postage facilities. It would enable you to craft a message by lunch and physically delivered it the next day. Within the first two weeks after launch, we had over 50 prospects, with a value of more than 30 MEUR. The product was truly revolutionary, to this day there is nothing really like it.

How did we do it? We did 60 interviews to uncover what the market thought and where it was heading. We mapped the data into 7 Driving Forces to understand the future: Personalization, Integrity, Centrally Controlled Local Communication, Process Not Campaigns, and more. We used the driving forces as filters for all feature development. We launched Gateway Direct using driving forces. We lead the customers into the future.

Driving Forces is about going behind the existing customer needs. We want to understand how it will be altered in the future. What is making the customers change behavior? What is driving the change? That is the Driving Force!

It is easy to find the changes occurring and adopt, but then you really do not prepare for the future. You are merely riding out the present storms. You need a creative arena for development. You need to understand the Driving Forces to create the long-term success needed to position your product deeper than others. You need to lead your customers into the future.

The Driving Forces will help you build a sustainable differentiation for your product.