Diffusion and innovation

Diffusion is  the wide acceptance and sale of a product or innovation.

 

A good article from PSU

The impact of Rogers’ characteristics on consumer adoption of an innovation

 

Rogers’ Characteristics from the Open University

The impact of Rogers’ characteristics on consumer adoption of an innovation can be considered in terms of:

• Relative advantage – is the  “the degree to which the innovation is perceived as better than the idea it supersedes. Relative advantage refers to the extent to which the innovation is more productive, efficient, costs less, or improves in some other manner upon existing practices”.
  • An example on the Open Uni
• Compatibility – is ‘the degree to which the innovation is perceived as being consistent with existing values, past experiences, and needs of potential adopters.  An innovation must be considered socially acceptable to be implemented. And some innovations require much time and discussion before they become socially acceptable’.
  • An example on the Open Uni – the mobile phone.
• Complexity (simplicity) – is “the degree to which the innovation is perceived as difficult to understand and use”.
  • An example on the Open Uni – GUI (Graphic User Interface) of the Apple computers allowing users to pint and click and what they can see.
• Observability – is “the degree to which the results of the innovation are visible to others. The chances of adoption are greater if folks can easily observe relative advantages of the new technology. In fact, after some adopt, observability can improve the diffusion effect, a critical component of technology transfer”.
  • An example on the Open Uni – Solar panels on roofs.
• Trialability – is “the degree to which the innovation may be experimented with on a limited basis. Innovations are easier to adopt if they can be tried out in part, on a temporary basis, or easily dispensed with after trial”.
  • An example on the Open Uni – test driving a car.

Quoted from http://www.soc.iastate.edu/sapp/soc415Diffusion1.html

“In general, innovations that are perceived as having relative advantages, being more compatible, less complex, observable, and trialable will diffuse more rapidly than other innovations.In general, innovations that are perceived as having relative advantages, being more compatible, less complex, observable, and trialable will diffuse more rapidly than other innovations.” – Open Uni

Social roots of consumerism

• lifestyle
• values
• identity

Issues for companies in the global marketplace when attempting to satisfy consumer needs in relation to lifestyle, values and identity

The influence of social media on the diffusion of innovation

 

Consumers can influence diffusion of innovation. When considering the influence of social media in rallying support for boycotting of some products/systems, students can explore the concepts behind organizations such as Kickstarter, Sellaband, Seedrs and CrowdCube, which act as crowd-funding platforms for creative products and projects. They can also examine the role of social networks such as Facebook®, LinkedIn® and Twitter® as methods of raising brand awareness.

 

The influence of trends and the media on consumer choice

Students will need to consider how consumer choices are influenced by trends and the media, including advertising through magazines, television, radio, sponsorship and outdoor advertising; product placement through film and television; product endorsement; and so on.

Categories of consumers

This in relation to how  adopt consumers technology:

• Innovators (risk takers) – are the first individuals to adopt an innovation. They are willing to take risks.
• Early adopters (hedgers) – are the second fastest category to adopt an innovation.
• Early majority (waiters) – the third group, tends to take more time to consider adopting new innovations and is inclined to draw from feedback from early adopters before taking the risk of purchasing new products/systems.
• Late majority (skeptics) – adopts the innovation after it has been established in the marketplace and is seldom willing to take risks with new innovation.
• Laggards (slow pokes) – are the last to adopt an innovation. They tend to prefer traditions and are unwilling to take risks.

 

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