What You Can Learn From Your Customer’s Customer

Working closely with your customers to tweak offerings and even business models is a standard business practice. But some companies gain ideas and insights from their customers’ customers as well.

BY JAMES C. ANDERSON AND MARC WOUTERS

INNOVATIVE COMPANIES FUND internal research and development to help them gain a future edge in the marketplace. They also work closely with their suppliers in an effort to offer greater functionality and performance for their customers.¹ However, some critical new product insights come not from suppliers and customers working together but from the customer’s customers.

Although the supplier may have demonstrated the basic commercial viability of its offering, uncertainty ...