Picking winners: new product concept testing with item response theory

This paper describes how, based upon item response theory (IRT) and its differential item functioning (DIF), two studies were designed to address two important issues – adopting effective items or inviting proper respondents – involved in the identification of successful new concepts, to test new concepts with different levels of newness.
Li, Peng and Cui

Picking winners: new product concept testing with item response theory

Chunyu Li

Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, People's Republic of China

Ling Peng and Geng Cui

Lingnan University, Hong Kong

Introduction

Suppose that you are the brand manager of Coca-Cola and plan to introduce an extension to the cola line and call it ‘Zero’. Although the result of the initial concept testing is encouraging, public reaction to the new product is devastating. After all, who would want to call a new product ‘Zero’, which surely sounds like a loser? You certainly do not want...

Not a subscriber?

Schedule your live demo with our team today

WARC helps you to plan, create and deliver more effective marketing

  • Prove your case and back-up your idea

  • Get expert guidance on strategic challenges

  • Tackle current and emerging marketing themes

We’re long-term subscribers to WARC and it’s a tool we use extensively. We use it to source case studies and best practice for the purposes of internal training, as well as for putting persuasive cases to clients. In compiling a recent case for long-term, sustained investment in brand, we were able to support key marketing principles with numerous case studies sourced from WARC. It helped bring what could have been a relatively dry deck to life with recognisable brand successes from across a broad number of categories. It’s incredibly efficient to have such a wealth of insight in one place.

Insights Team
Bray Leino

You’re in good company

We work with 80% of Forbes' most valuable brands* and 80% of the world's top top-of-the-class agencies.

* Top 10 brands