Innovation Compass

The primary goal of the research program is to analyze the critical success of innovative and product innovation product development planning. Our point of departure was the assumption that the success factors of radical inventions differ radically from incremental innovations in type and potential effect. The first three waves of the innovation compasses are closed and publicized. Further waves are still in the making.

Innovation Workshop

Up to 40 students are selected to work with innovative firms at a workshop in their semester break. Here they focus on new technological products and the market acceptance of innovations, make recommendations for product design and market communication. Participants develop tailored strategic and operative marketing concepts.

Cooperation with China

For years the TU Marketing Chair has conducted a series of investigations on the success and failure factors surrounding German companies and their Chinese partners, and how to overcome the common obstacles to successful cooperation. The focus of our Chinese management research continues to be Chinese-German cooperation in product innovation as well as the corresponding pitfalls and avoidance strategies. Professor Trommsdorff works closely on this project with his Chinese network at the Chinese-German College CDHK of the Tongji University in Shanghai. He is the technical coordinator for the Business faculty and maintains excellent contacts to German firms, which are involved with endowed chairs at the CDHK. He also cooperates with the Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT) and other Chinese universities.

Pre-testing / Advertising Impact Research

The demand for measurable effectiveness (doing the right thing) and efficiency (doing it in a cost-effective way) of ad campaigns leads to a growing emphasis on systematic advertising effectiveness studies on the basis of pre- and post-tests.

The investigations of the TU Berlin give interns guidance in advertising management with integrated pre-testing on the decisive intersection between clients, agencies and research institutes. The comparative study of pre-test products at the Institute is not simply product testing. The study is explorative and qualitatively applied, the sample of 122 campaigns tested before their release is typically targeted (for comprehensive exploration) and not representatively (for extrapolation).

This Study

• Investigates all phases of planning, execution and control of a campaign (advertisement controlling), with particular focus on pre-testing
• Shows the concrete, controllable success factors in this process
• Gathers the checklists for clients, agencies and institutes
• Comprehensively illustrates the current state of pre-test theory
• Observes the creativity factor, its operationalization and effect on success
• Typologizes tested campaigns in the light of actual campaign success
• Illustrates this through case studies