How does Yoplait go from being a perennial also-ran to dethroning Dannon for the yogurt title? BIG Innovation. I broke the (cup) paradigm with packaging to target a new market segment – kids. A new market segment was born with a blockbuster $100+ million business. The rest is history.
Resting on new product innovation laurels is never a good thing. The lesson here was lost – actively seek out the next market segment – BEFORE your competitors (Greek Style, Activia) do.
No doubt, the reinvention of the fragmented and poorly innovated cottage cheese market is taking place now with Greek Style yogurt – without the curds. Think about it. The newly created yogurt segment is the perfect hybrid – leveraging what’s great about yogurt while I improving upon key barriers to cottage cheese (curds, taste, variety, and branding).