Lead user

Lead user is a term developed by Eric von Hippel in 1986(Von Hippel 1986). His definition for lead user is: Lead user is a term developed by Eric von Hippel in 1986(Von Hippel 1986). His definition for lead user is: In other words, lead users are users of a product or service that currently experience needs still unknown to the public and who also benefit greatly if they obtain a solution to these needs. Because lead users innovate, they are considered to be one example or type of the creative consumer phenomenon, that is, those 'customers who adapt, modify, or transform a proprietary offering' (Berthon et al. 2007). The Lead User Method is a market research tool that may be used by companies and / or individuals seeking to develop breakthrough products. Lead User methodology was originally developed by Dr. Eric von Hippel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and first described in the July 1986 issue of Management Science. In contrast to the traditional market research techniques that collect information from the users at the center of the target market, the Lead User method takes a different approach, collecting information about both needs and solutions from the leading edges of the target market and from analogue markets, markets facing similar problems in a more extreme form.