Should you apply design thinking to your B2B new product development? Absolutely! This type of user-centered design is badly needed by most B2B companies. But you can take a design thinking process much farther than most, because you can optimize the first two steps for B2B. Don’t apply design thinking like a consumer goods producer, or you’ll invite confusion and overlook your special B2B advantages.
Preview: Design Thinking for B2B
If you develop new products, a design thinking process can help. All the more so if you’re a B2B innovator: You can upgrade the most important parts of design-thinking in ways consumer goods developers can only wish for. But you must do steps 1 (Empathize) and 2 (Define) differently for B2B-optimized design thinking.