Engineering Reverse Innovations

This article is about reverse innovations - i.e. making products/services for customers with low budgets and high demands, then adapting them for markets with more buying power.

The article lists 5 traps that make this process fail:

1. Trying to match the new market with existing products
2. Reduce price by eliminating features
3. Not thinking through all technical requirements
4. Neglecting stakeholders
5. Not thinking products for emerging markets could have global appeal

In summary it is possible to create products for developing countries successfully by understanding their needs and value chains and then use the lessons learned to create products to specifically meet the market needs. Not fully understanding all the forces in play will lead to products not suited for the market/customers. The innovations discovered in the process can then lead to uses in other markets.