Have you uncovered a challenge worth tackling? While a gap in the market might stand out, not every gap signals opportunity; some exist for a reason. Thorough research is essential to understand why that space is empty and to map a route that gives your innovation the best chance at success, whether by succeeding where others have fallen short or standing out in a crowded field. Bringing a new idea to market demands a deep understanding of the landscape, a well-defined path to commercialisation, and a clear view of your potential impact. This guide will take you through the questions to ask yourself to assess your market potential, refine your approach, and position your innovation for commercial success.
Market Awareness
Before launching an innovation, it’s crucial to understand your market dynamics, growth potential and competitive landscape.
How to define your target market
- Who are your ideal customers? If you’re targeting individuals, think about their demographics (age, gender, location). If you’re targeting businesses, consider their size, industry and needs.
- What industry or sectors are you targeting? Are you focusing on healthcare, retail, or finance? Are there subsectors within the main industries that your product or service will be targeting?
Here’s an example:
Our target market is industrial companies looking to improve their environmental compliance and air quality monitoring processes. Typically, our customers are men aged between 35 and 55 years old, working in environmental management or operations departments in manufacturing and waste management, and based in countries with strict environmental regulations, such as the EU. They need to measure and report air pollutants in real time and are motivated by meeting regulatory standards and improving public health outcomes. These customers are usually Environmental Compliance Officers, Facility Managers or City Infrastructure Planners, who value data accuracy, remote monitoring capabilities and ease of integration with existing reporting tools. They are eager to adopt reliable technology that simplifies compliance, reduces the risk of fines and builds public trust in their environmental practices.
Why it matters: Defining your target market ensures your innovation is designed to meet the specific needs of the people most likely to adopt it. Without this information, you risk building something nobody wants or needs.
Understanding market size and growth potential
- How big is the market? Research the total market value (e.g. in revenue or customer base) to gauge your business’s scalability. It’s important to cite sources, so utilise things such as industry reports, government data or market research studies.
- What are the growth trends and projections? Identify whether the market is expanding and at what rate. Are there emerging technologies in this market that will influence your business’s offerings? Shifting consumer demands and behaviours will also be important to factor in.
Why it matters: Knowing how big your market is and how fast it’s growing means you avoid investing time and money into a limited or declining space. You will also gain insight into the potential for scale and long-term viability.
Breaking down barriers to entry
- What regulatory, technological, or financial hurdles exist? Regulatory compliance requirements vary from industry to industry, as well as country to country. For technology, a lack of infrastructure can surprise you as an unexpected barrier. With these hurdles in mind, how much investment is needed to enter the market?
- Are there established competitors with strong market dominance? Assess the market leaders and how they dominate the industry, examining things such as brand recognition, customer loyalty and pricing. Are there gaps in the market where competition is weaker?
Why it matters: Barriers to entry can make or break your business. Understanding them early means you can de-risk your innovation, plan strategically and avoid pitfalls others have overlooked.
Value Proposition
- What makes your product valuable to your customers? Define your key benefits, such as cost savings, quality or efficiency.
- How does it compare to existing solutions? Highlighting key differentiators such as price, features, or service is crucial. It should be simple and straightforward for your customer to understand why your offering is more valuable.
Why it matters: It needs to be clear why your innovation matters – not just to customers, but to yourself, your team and (if applicable) your investors. A strong value proposition explains the unique benefits of your product and why it’s better than existing alternatives.
Outcomes and Route to Market
Market Positioning
- How does the UK compare globally in targeting this market? It’s important to understand the UK’s strengths and weaknesses, such as market size and investment climate.
- Are there government initiatives, funding, or trade policies supporting entry? Look into government grants, tax incentives or R&D funding (e.g. Innovate UK grants) that may support your route to market.
- Will your innovation contribute to the UK’s economy? This is a common question for funding applications. Consider things such as job creation, increased exports or industry growth.
- Does your project support sustainability, net-zero goals, or public sector innovation? Address how you will approach environmental concerns, the right to repair, waste management or a circular economy model. If you’re seeking grant funding, you should demonstrate how your supply chain and manufacturing processes impact sustainability.
- Could it help solve regulatory or policy challenges? For example, applications in healthcare, transport or public safety.
- If no clear market exists, what is the potential demand? Take the time to research comparable innovations and how they gained traction. What did their early adopters look like
- How will your project explore and validate this emerging market? Make use of pilot programmes, surveys or small-scale product launches. DefProc has a wealth of experience helping clients develop proof of concepts and prototypes that can be trialled and tested in focused, low-risk environments. The feedback can be invaluable for refining your project and ensuring a genuine need for the product.
An example:
During the early development stages of our Push to Talk device, we wanted to get a feel for how people might respond to the device, who would benefit from it most and how we could reach more people.
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- In-person interviews: we reached out to communities to gather their initial impressions, understand their requirements for the device and opportunities to implement feedback.
- Local events: meeting the people who would eventually use our device deepened our understanding of their needs and the challenges they faced.
- Quantitative data: Small-scale trials allowed us to analyse data from people using the device, such as how long they used it for and what time of day was preferred, to make improvements.
Why it matters: Your innovation doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Successful market positioning should demonstrate how your product fits into the wider world and the impact it will have.
Mapping Your Route to Market
- Will you sell directly, through distributors, or via licensing? Each option has pros and cons. Direct sales offer more control but require strong marketing. Distributors expand reach but take a percentage of your sales. Licensing generates passive income but is dependent on establishing partnerships.
- Will you focus on digital (e-commerce, social media, online platforms), physical (retail store, trade shows, in-person), or hybrid (combination of both) sales strategies?
- How will you generate revenue (subscriptions, one-time sales, service-based models)? Define your pricing structure and options such as tiered pricing, upselling opportunities and freemium models.
- Will you rely on grants, investors, or self-funding to scale? Create a clear strategy that identifies funding sources and financial timescales.
Why it matters: It’s never too early to plan how your innovation will reach customers. A considered approach to your market strategy will allow you to showcase how your product is commercially viable.
Impact
- What short-term benefits will your innovation bring? This could be faster processes, lower costs or increased efficiency.
- How will it drive long-term industry change? Consider things such as sustainability, industry transformation or new standards.
- Will it improve quality of life, education, or workplace safety?
- Could it create job opportunities or enhance diversity in the industry?
Why it matters: Stakeholders are now looking for more than profits; they want to see a measurable impact. Whether it’s a social, economic or environmental benefit, investors want to know the wider value of your innovation.
Protecting Your Innovation
- Will you secure patents, trademarks, or copyrights? Generating intellectual property (IP) can add significant value to your business. However, formalising ownership over IP can be a costly and time-consuming process, so it’s important to factor this into your budget and product timeline.
Why it matters: When your idea takes off, others will try to copy it. Having a strategy to protect your IP will safeguard your competitive advantage and reassure investors.
Managing the steps to success
Bringing an innovative product to market requires careful planning and a timeline mapping stages from research and development to manufacturing and distribution. Whether you’re refining your concept, exploring routes to market or preparing for commercialisation, knowing your next steps is key to staying on track.
Launching something new is rarely straightforward, but with the right support, it becomes achievable. At DefProc, we’ve been helping clients bring their ideas to life since 2013. Our team supports projects through all stages of development, offering technical expertise and guidance through the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) framework to make your innovation viable and market-ready. If you’re looking for a trusted technical partner to support your journey, we’re here to help.