We believe that all three versions may have occurred simultaneously. An idea is often a combination of needs and circumstances and the sign that the right timing has come to implement it.

The indisputable fact is that the idea pre-existed. But, it was never implemented commercially and massively. In 1979 two Christmas cards became famous as they were auctioned in England and are considered to be the first known.

It was 1612 when the German physicist Michael Maier (1568 - 1622) sent two New Year's cards to King James and his son Prince Henry. Obviously not with the post office but with some... “courier” of the time. Which means that timing is a prerequisite and that the visionary does not always have a commercial or appropriate version in mind.

Concept Development - Testing - MVP

The next step in the innovation cycle is the MVP or Minimum Viable Product. This phase involves creating a prototype or beta version of the product or service. The MVP phase allows you to test the idea, receive feedback, and refine the product.

Back to our Christmas Cards. We go back to 1843. Somewhere there begins the cycle of innovation for our product. The card is conceived as an idea, designed by a specialist professional and printed, people must approve it.

Sir Henry Cole - not in the context of any methodology - proceeds with prototyping and prints the first cards (there you have it! The Minimum Viable Product). The cards are a major success they say, although we can’t know for sure how many were sold, 2,050 were printed.

He sends many of them to acquaintances and friends and gets feedback (testing phase). Wouldn’t you have done exactly the same? Our friends and family are sometimes the harshest critics. Take a look at the first commercial Christmas card. What do you think?

Go to Market-Launch

The third step in the innovation cycle is taking the product to market. This phase involves launching the product or service to the target audience. This phase is essential because this is the point where you generate revenue, establish brand recognition, and gather feedback from customers.

It is also the stage where the real criticism begins and that is what happened with our Christmas card. The card is not consistent with the moral spirit of the time. The depicted family is celebrating, but they are celebrating by drinking wine, in the company of their children, and the card is strongly criticized as immoral.

The idea freezes and is considered a failure. In the phase of resistance to any new product, the initiator must be ready to literally listen to what is good or is not as in the above case. The biases of non-acceptance are usually moral, social, economic, religious, etc.

The idea is filtered by all parameters and here is where you can utilize the excellent Six Thinking Hats Technique to avoid sudden unpleasant surprises! It is one of the top recommended tools by participants in our Innovation Management Workshops!

Creativity Triangle Missing *Bonus step

One aspect of the innovation process that is often overlooked is the creativity triangle missing phase. This phase involves taking a step back from the project to gain a fresh perspective and seek inspiration. It is crucial because it helps you stay creative, innovative and avoid getting stuck in a rut.

A methodology developed a century or so later than the story discussed, attributed to our beloved Walt Disney is the Creativity Triangle. According to this methodology it is important to remember that:

1. Every idea will be created by a Dreamer. They will get excited, "fall in love" with their product and perhaps have some degree of naivety and frivolity, blinded by their love! This gives an opportunity to…

2. The Critic to level it... The Critic is the other side of the coin in this situation. They will see what can go wrong, consider the risk, discover loopholes, find that it cannot be implemented or uncover extra weaknesses in the idea.

This happened with Christmas cards and the critic was the "market" itself. The idea stopped as soon as it started. What was missing was the third role of the Creativity Triangle.

3. The role of the Realist. This role undertakes to rationalize the product, to transfer the idea to reality, to create a realistic action plan, to set goals, quality norms (and thus in the above example the "ethical" issue would have been avoided by a realistic third perspective) and to objectively evaluate the idea.

If you don't use these three roles to experiment with, the critic will automatically emerge from the market and the idea will soon fail.

Becoming a Habit - Scaling

The next step in the innovation cycle is to make innovation a habit. This involves creating a culture of innovation within your organization, constantly seeking new ideas, and encouraging experimentation.

Soon Christmas cards came back into the limelight. This time in 1848, with an also brief and unsuccessful attempt and soon after in 1855 they were established as a custom, a habit campaigned by the English Post Office and the press. From that time until the late 1980s, Christmas cards created pandemonium at the Post Office during the holidays.

When Novelty Takes Over (vs Innovation) *Bonus step

It is important to distinguish the difference between novelty and innovation. In the Christmas cards a lot of amendments were conducted during the first years of the successful launch but each of these differentiations were novelties and not innovation.

For example a second card was added to the “portfolio” to make them stand out. It was the one where, when you opened it, the card played christmas carols - jingle bells - and then...

Maturity and Maintenance - Rebirth

The last step of the innovation cycle took place. The rebirth. This phase involves reflecting on the innovation journey, identifying areas for improvement, and planning for the future. This phase is essential because it allows you to learn from your experience, innovate, and grow.

So what happened in this phase? Card gone missing? Of course not. It went digital. Thousands of emails go out from corporate and personal accounts every Christmas until about 2012. Some companies even banned sending them to protect their servers while others created standardized cards to advertise their brand.

The evolution and innovation of the Christmas card continued with the advent of social media. And their usefulness has been called into question. Thousands of Christmas cards on social media help a business or an individual to wish a large number of acquaintances or followers with a single post.

The recipient of the card is now obliged to read it until... indignation. And the sequel... who knows?...NFT Christmas Card, VR Christmas Card, AI Christmas card (to place product ads under the tree according to tracking cookies, etc.

Innovation: The Gift that Keeps on Giving

What we consider a fact is that a brilliant idea never dies. The Innovation Cycle never ends if someone is actively engaged with a product / service / solution, even if their orientation changes.

Startup Pathwayswas created to enhance the soft skills of entrepreneurs of Startups and ScaleUps and through Business Pathways to share that creativity and innovation with the corporate world. Come along as we bridge these two beautiful worlds, creating a powerful alliance and join our tailor-made learning journeys for more innovation tips!