Skip Spoerke - Innovations Assignment

Running Head: INSECT SHIELD® CLOTHING
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Innovations Assignment: Rate of Diffusion of Insect Shield® Clothing
Skip Spoerke
MKT-345-05134: Consumer Behavior
Professor Karen Stone
Fall 2015
December 5, 2015
Author Note
I certify that I am the author of this assignment. Any assistance I received in its preparation is
fully acknowledged and disclosed within this document. I certify that I have not received help
from any unauthorized persons.
I have cited any and all sources, both print and electronic, from which I have used data, ideas,
or words, either quoted or paraphrased. My cited sources are indicated within this document
using APA citation style. I also certify that this assignment was prepared by me especially for
the course as listed above.

INSECT SHIELD® CLOTHING
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Table of Contents
Section One: Product ..............................................................................................................3
1.1 Product Selected...........................................................................................................3
1.2 Need/Want Satisfied......................................................................................................3
Section Two: Competition.......................................................................................................3
2.1 Direct Competition........................................................................................................3
2.2 Indirect Competition .....................................................................................................4
Section Three: Amount of Change in User’s Behavior ..............................................................4
3.1 Effect on Rate of Adoption ............................................................................................4
Section Four: Relative Advantage............................................................................................5
Section Five: Observability of the Relative Advantage..............................................................6
Section Six: Complexity..........................................................................................................6
Section Seven: Compatibility ..................................................................................................7
Section Eight: Trialability .......................................................................................................7
Section Nine: Overall Conclusion of the Rate of Diffusion/Adoption .........................................8
References .............................................................................................................................9

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Section One: Product
1.1 Product Selected
In 2001, Insect Shield, LLC was founded to develop, manufacture, and distribute Insect
Shield® Insect Repellent Apparel. Within a year, all cadet uniforms at West Point Military
Academy had been processed with Insect Shield® to combat a rise in Lyme disease cases on the
campus. Insect Shield® reduced the number of West Point Lyme disease cases to zero
("Company background," n.d., pars. 2-3).
Registered by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in 2003, Insect
Shield® apparel and gear are effective, odorless protection against mosquitoes, ticks, ants, flies,
chiggers, and midges. It achieves this through specific processing of material impregnated with
the insect repellent permethrin ("What is insect shield?" n.d., pars. 1, 3).
1.2 Need/Want Satisfied
Insect Shield's® highly visible, insect repellent impregnated, and flame-resistant apparel
and gear for youth, laborers, and professionals provides long-lasting physical safety while in
insect-borne disease-risk parts of the world (Anonymous, 2011, pars. 2-3).
Section Two: Competition
2.1 Direct Competition
Whereas insect-repellent apparel is viewed by consumers in developed countries—like
the United States—as a luxury item, it plays a crucial role in the health and survival of people in
developing countries. Sportswear brands and outdoor clothing companies have found an
expanding market thanks to mosquitoes migrating north over the past several years. Columbia
Sportswear, Craghoppers, and Burlington, for example, have successfully developed direct
competition repellent fabric technology to Insect Shield® (Just-style.com, 2012, pars. 7-9).

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2.2 Indirect Competition
Common throughout the world is indirect competition insect repellents, such as netting,
chemicals—including repellents that contain DEET or IR3535, and plant-based repellents—
including citronella and natural oils. Mosquito nets, for example, are deployed with aid workers
in many countries to prevent and control the spread of malaria (Just-style.com, 2012, para. 10).
One study conducted at the University of Florida examined sixteen chemical and natural
repellents to measure the effectiveness of each. The study determined that DEET-based repellents
provided complete protection for the longest period ranging from eighty-eight minutes for
repellents with 4.75% DEET to more than three-hundred minutes for repellents with 23.8%
DEET. DEET, however, can dissolve watch crystals, frames of glasses, and certain synthetic
fabrics; it can also be washed off with water or sweat and is less effective in warmer
temperatures (Fradin & Day, 2002, pp. 13-18).
Section Three: Amount of Change in User’s Behavior
Insect Shield® is a dynamically continuous innovation. Apparel and gear developed with
Insect Shield® do not alter established behaviors, as most users likely choose to wear clothing
and carry gear in environments where Insect Shield® is effective. The apparel and gear
impregnated with insect repellent are, however, significant modifications to the apparel and gear
currently familiar to users, which will especially cause some disruption to established purchasing
behavior (Schiffman & Wisenblit, 2015, p. 348).
3.1 Effect on Rate of Adoption
The amount of change in user's behavior will slow down the adoption of Insect Shield®.
Despite being a dynamically continuous innovation that could replace apparel and gear, the
disruption to established purchasing behavior is enough to prevent rapid adoption of the product.

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Section Four: Relative Advantage
Many chemical and plant-based repellents produce an odor and oily residue.
Permethrin—used in Insect Shield® apparel and gear—is an odorless and invisible man-made
version of an insect repellent that occurs naturally in chrysanthemums (NewsRx.com &
NewsRx.net, 2003).
The best topical repellents, containing 23.8% DEET, only provided complete protection
for three-hundred-one minutes (Fradin & Day, 2002, p. 14). Insect Shield® technology provides
complete protection for the entire expected life of the garment—seventy launderings ("What is
insect shield?" n.d., para. 5).
Insect Shield® was the first insect repellent apparel to be approved and registered by the
United States Environmental Protection Agency in 2003, which required extensive data proving
the effectiveness of the product. Insect Shield® technology has been proven effective for
multiple species and varieties of insects, including insects that carry dangerous diseases ("What
is insect shield?" n.d., pars. 1, 3). Evidence shows that topical insect repellents, such as those
studied at the University of Florida, are ineffective at preventing and controlling certain
dangerous diseases (Wilson, Chen-Hussey, Logan, & Lindsay, 2014, p. 452).
The relative advantage of Insect Shield® will help speed up adoption of the product. That
claim is supported by the facts that, unlike the direct and indirect competition, Insect Shield® is
odorless and invisible, lasts the entire life of the garment, and is proven to be successful for
complete protection. The rate of adoption will increase as consumers become educated about the
advantages of Insect Shield®.

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Section Five: Observability of the Relative Advantage
While the relative advantage of Insect Shield® demonstrates significant improvements
over the competition, the observability of the relative advantage remains very poor. Because of
the technology behind the apparel and gear, consumers will not see, feel, or smell anything
different about the product. The only way consumers will know that there is an insect repellent
involved is when the insects don’t bite, which means the observability of the relative advantage
by prospective consumers is extremely low (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net, 2003, para. 5).
Because the observability of the relative advantage is extremely low, the rate of adoption
will be slowed. To speed up the rate of adoption, Insect Shield® apparel and gear would need to
differentiate itself in some way from other outdoor apparel and gear.
Section Six: Complexity
Insect Shield® apparel and gear cannot be dry-cleaned, but should be washed with home
laundry. The product may also be bleached, pressed, and starched without concern of losing its
ability to repel insects ("FAQ's," n.d., para. 14). After the Insect Shield® technology has worn
out of the apparel or gear, the product can safely be thrown in the trash; there are no special
disposal requirements ("FAQ's," n.d., para. 13). Simple product care instructions make
preparations, maintenance, and disposal easy for the consumer and keeps complexity at a
minimum.
When it comes to basic necessities, like clothing, consumers prefer simplicity over
complexity. Insect Shield® apparel and gear is complex to manufacture, but the consumer does

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not need to do anything special; therefore, the rate of adoption based on the complexity of Insect
Shield® products should speed up.
Section Seven: Compatibility
Whether hiking, camping, golfing, fishing, hunting, working, or doing anything else in
the great outdoors, Insect Shield® apparel and gear is being used daily around the world to
protect people from insect bites that may transmit dangerous diseases ("Company background,"
n.d., para. 17). Insect Shield® is odorless, invisible, and lasts for the life of the garment, which
eliminates the need to carry a can or bottle of topical insect repellent when spending time
outdoors. The product targets outdoor-enthusiast consumers and outdoor-working consumers,
which are the ideal consumers since the product is intended to provide protection from insect
bites.
The compatibility of Insect Shield® to the consumers that spend a significant amount of
time outdoors will speed up the rate of adoption among those consumers because the product
will ultimately offer improved safety and enjoyment being outdoors.
Section Eight: Trialability
Just as the observability of the relative advantage remains very poor, the trialability of
Insect Shield® is also very poor for the same reasons. Consumers will not see, feel, or smell
anything different about the product in the store. Until the product is purchased, the consumer
does not know how well Insect Shield® works to protect against insect bites.
The lack of trialability will slow down adoption of Insect Shield®. Many consumers
don’t want unnecessary risk in purchase decisions, and no trialability increases the risk.

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Section Nine: Overall Conclusion of the Rate of Diffusion/Adoption
Because Insect Shield® is a dynamically continuous innovation and insect repellent
impregnated apparel is a significant modification to the apparel expectations of consumers,
diffusion will be moderate. Trialability and observability of the relative advantage are, however,
detrimental to the rate of diffusion. Both, trialability and observability of the relative advantage,
are highly influential in the purchase decision and neither factor is being met with Insect
Shield®; therefore, overall diffusion will be slow. Many consumers will wait until enough
innovators have tried and recommend the product before feeling confident that they are not
risking too much by also trying it.

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References
Anonymous. (2011). Insect Shield work wear enhances safety. Mining Engineering, 63(2), 72.
Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/docview/853757424?pq-
origsite=summon&accountid=3783
Fradin, M. S., & Day, J. F. (2002). Comparative efficacy of insect repellents against mosquito
bites. New England Journal of Medicine N Engl J Med, 347(1), 13-18.
doi:10.1056/nejmoa011699. Retrieved December 2, 2015, from
http://ezproxy.snhu.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/223937459?accou
ntid=3783
Insect Shield International, LLC. (n.d.). Company background. Retrieved December 1, 2015,
from http://www.insectshield.com/AboutUs/CompanyBackground.aspx
Insect Shield International, LLC. (n.d.). FAQ's. Retrieved December 3, 2015, from
http://www.insectshield.com/ourTechnology/FAQs.aspx
Insect Shield International, LLC. (n.d.). What is insect shield? Retrieved December 1, 2015,
from http://www.insectshield.com/ourTechnology/
Just-style.com. (2012, November 22). WORLD: Heated and insect repellent apparel growth
markets. Retrieved December 2, 2015, from
http://bi.galegroup.com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/essentials/article/GALE%7CA309546582?u=n
hc_main
NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net. (2003). Mosquito-borne disease; insect-repellent apparel registered
by EPA. TB & Outbreaks Weekly, 32. Retrieved from
http://ezproxy.snhu.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/209836960?accou
ntid=3783

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Schiffman, L. G., & Wisenblit, J. (2015). Consumer Behavior (11th ed.). Upper Saddle River,
NJ: Pearson Education.
Wilson, A. L., Chen-Hussey, V., Logan, J. G., & Lindsay, S. W. (2014). Are topical insect
repellents effective against malaria in endemic populations? A systematic review and
meta-analysis. Malaria Journal, 13(1), 446-454. doi:10.1186/1475-2875-13-446

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