Concept Development – Online Digital Tools & Templates

Concept Development is the starting point for a business idea. It includes the type of service or product, the target customer demographic, and describes what is unique about it that will give this idea a competitive advantage. The process of Concept Development results in a portfolio of business concepts that can be prioritized and then used to develop a business plan.

Concept Development is often a component of the fuzzy front end of the innovation process. It is the “getting started” period of new product development where a team or startup formulates a concept of the product to be developed and decides whether or not to invest resources in the further development of the idea. Concept Development starts with the brainstorming of new opportunities and continues with the formation of an idea and narrowing down a more precise concept. The Concept Development phase is usually where requirements are identified involving time, money, and the product’s nature, thereby setting the direction for the entire project and final end product.

Generally there are five elements within the Concept Development process, including:

1. Opportunity Identification
2. Opportunity Analysis
3. Idea Generation
4. Idea Selection
5. Idea Development

Specific tools used in Concept Development are market research, technical capabilities assessment and customer value assessments. Many teams use PowerPoint or Excel to create a common format to define a new business concept.

Unlike most traditional Concept Development techniques, upBOARD’s online Concept Development collaboration tools allow any team or organization to instantly begin working with our web templates and input forms. Our digital platform goes far beyond other software tools by including progress dashboards, data integration from existing documents or other SaaS software, elegant intuitive designs, and full access on any desktop or mobile device.

Learn more about upBOARD’s library of other innovation management online best practice tools and templates, including:

Agile Innovation Process, Business Case Development, Business Model Canvas, Concept Development, Concept Screening, Concept Testing, Customer Empathy Map, Customer Problem Statements, Design Thinking, Innovation Funnel Management Process, Innovation Horizons Model, Innovation Roadmap, Jobs to be Done, Lean Startup, Listening Hats, Open Innovation Process, Painstorming, Rapid Prototyping, SCAMPER, S-Curve Mapping, Stage Gate Process, Technology Life Cycle, Technology Scouting, and Teece’s Win-Lose Innovation Model.

Learn more about upBOARD’s full portfolio of online digital best practice tools and templates for specific topics including business strategy, marketing, human resources, operations, project management, change management, and software development.