Totem is a consultancy that utilizes crowd-sourced insights for innovation, focusing on methods to extract valuable ideas and patterns from large groups. The document outlines processes for identifying crowd patterns, deriving insights, and testing ideas, emphasizing that crowd intelligence often surpasses individual expertise. Through various case studies, it illustrates how effective crowd engagement leads to innovative solutions for several major companies, supporting the view that properly harnessed crowd wisdom can drive successful outcomes.

1. Harnessing the
Collective Wisdom of
the Crowd
Harnessing the
Collective Wisdom of
the CrowdSuzan Briganti, CEO Totem | suzan@totembrand.com | @skuzin

2. Totem is a crowd-powered innovation consultancy based in
Silicon Valley, and Ideacale’s Advisory Services Partner.
Totem leads crowdsourcing programs for Global Fortune 500s
for consumer insights and innovation.
We have developed a unique patent-pending process for
scaleable innovation crowdsourcing.
Who We Are
2

3. 1. How to find the crowd patterns
2. How to extract insights from your crowd
3. How to test crowd ideas
What You’ll Learn Today
3

4. International Exposition in London in 1884:
Re-appraisal of group intelligence was sparked when a crowd
of non-experts guessed the weight of an ox within a single
pound.
It all started with an
unsuspecting ox

5. “Under the right circumstances, crowds are remarkably intelligent,
and are often smarter than the smartest people in them.”
— James Surowiecki
TED
Talks:
Crowd
reproduces
infamous
1884
experiment,
guesses
weight
of
an
ox
within
1
lb
Guys in black turtlenecks
Forward to two guys in
loafers?
The four conditions of wise crowds:
Diversity of opinion
Independence
Decentralization
Aggregation

6. How about when there is
no “right” answer?
The Ox example is an easy one to cite,
because there was a single correct answer.
But no one in the crowd had THE correct answer.
And the correct answer was not found on a short list!
It was an un-weighted average of all answers.

7. Votes can be mis-leading
7
The majority of the 20 Top Voted ideas were
short-term (remedial), tactical or expected.
The
Client:
A
major
UK
university
seeking
ideas
for
their
long
term
vision
The
Brief:
“Imagine
the
University
in
the
Year
2029.”
Top 20 Ideas by Net Votes

8. Are ratings any better?
8
Only in the case of a handful of ideas
do the Community and Expert ratings typically align.
Community vs. Expert Ave. Ratings
The
Client:
A
global
packaged
goods
company
The
Brief:
“Imagine
the
ideal
seamless
shopping
experience.”
Short-­‐listed
ideas

9. The biggest drawback of ratings
& votes?
They
fail
to
capture
the
larger
pa6erns
in
the
ideas
9
The
Client:
A
global
beer
holding
company
The
Brief:
“What
is
the
future
of
beer
packaging?”
Short-­‐listed
ideas
‘Deep tagging’ of packaging innovation opportunities
uncovered two major overlooked white spaces

10. 1. How to find crowd patterns

11. How to find crowd patterns
11
1. Study the first few dozen ideas that come in
2. Write down the themes emerging in the ideas; get
several eyes on it
🌿 The themes should describe 85%+ percent of the ideasThe themes should describe 85%+ percent of the ideas
🌿 Every project has its own unique dimensionsEvery project has its own unique dimensions
🌿 You cannot expect the crowd to think this wayYou cannot expect the crowd to think this way
3. Tag the ideas according to these dimensions
4. Tweak the tagging scheme, as ideas come in.
5. Go back and check you applied the scheme to all ideas
and that it holds up
6. Look for the meta patterns

12. Example: High Tech
12
Key
Capabili<es
Power
On
demand
Always
on
Data
capture
Basic
Intermediate
Advanced
Interpret/act
(Data
processing)
Basic
Intermediate
Advanced
Mobility
StaTonary/
fixed
Carried/
portable
Worn/
embedded
Where
worn
Head
Hands
Body
Usage
Remediate
senses
Filter/manage
Enhance/
extend
senses
Target
Profiles
user
Profiles
crowd
Access
Remote
monitor
Remote
access
We
tagged
all
ideas
on
the
key
capabiliTes,
in
addiTon
to
the
relevant
Use
cases

13. Example: High Tech
13
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
Always
on
On
demand
Basic
data
capture
Intermed
capture
Advanced
capture
Profile
user
Profile
crowd
Interpret/act
basic
Interpret/act
intermed
Interpret/act
advanced
Remote
monitor
(1-­‐
way)
Remote
access
(2-­‐way
…Which
revealed
good
news
and
bad
news:
The
device
had
to
be
“always
on.”
But
if
it
was,
the
majority
of
Use
cases
required
only
Basic
data
capture.

14. Result: Crowd powered dev
roadmap
14
Crowd-powered development roadmap for global technology leader, depicts
use cases by tech capability requirements and associated opportunity

15. 2. How to extract insights

16. What are insights? Why do we
need them?
16
An insight is the expression of a problem in a way that is
both relevant and fresh to the intended user.
Understanding
a
problem
A
solu<on
to
the
problem
+
=
An
innova<on
Problems can
have functional,
emotional,
experiential and
social
dimensions.
Insights are
responsible for
20 - 50% of
your innovation
success.

17. Examples of great insights
17
“I see discovery in life as a game that I
like to play, which is why I get excited
when I discover truly new tastes in drinks.”
“I love to share videos of the best parts of
my day. But I don’t always know when
great moments are going to occur. So I
end up either missing a lot, or capturing
too many boring bits.”
“Household spills can sometimes cause
an unexpected reaction in me. The faster I
can resolve household tensions, the better
for my family.”
Client confidential

18. How to extract crowd insights
18
1. When looking at ideas, capture the underlying problem
2. Look for recurrent problems, AND new unfamiliar
problems
🌿 Many ideas just describe the solution and benefits, so youMany ideas just describe the solution and benefits, so you
must deduce the problem
🌿 Some weak solutions contain important problem statementsSome weak solutions contain important problem statements
🌿 Problem statements are extremely sensitive to languageProblem statements are extremely sensitive to language
3. Once you’ve gathered potential problems, spend
several hours trying to state them in simple, vivid
language. Ask your best writer for help.
4. Insights can and should be tested among target users.

19. What makes a great insight?
19
1. Structure your insight for success – lead with the frustration
2. Short, sharp sentences work better
3. Needs or frustrations should be as category-specific as possible
4. Avoid the hard-sell
5. Don’t patronize or invite the customer to patronize others
6. Don’t gush, but write like a human being
! Great Insights are fresh – an edge on top
of just resonance, an unuttered truth
! An Insight statement should address both
the targeted behavior and the underlying
psychological driver
! Insights should be captured as concise
statements in User Language
! Statements should be true, excite people
and have a real distinguishing element:
they offer a new perspective on a
(familiar) issue

20. 3. How to test crowd ideas

21. Crowd ideas can arrive in many
formats
21
From videos & animations
To rough sketches
To Power Points & simple text

22. How to test crowd ideas
22
1. Focus on solutions to your top-scoring insights!
2. Take your top ~ 8-12 ideas and craft them using a consistent,
proven concept format.
3. Evaluate the concepts with qualitative or quantitative methods (we
like prediction markets).
4. In this way, you can detect which parts are working or not:
🌿 The insight (does the solution really address it?)The insight (does the solution really address it?)
🌿 The solutionThe solution
🌿 The benefitsThe benefits
🌿 The reasons to believe/supportThe reasons to believe/support
🌿 The relative valueThe relative value
🌿 The visualizationThe visualization

23. Concept Template
page
23
Concept name
Visual
End user Insight
Reason to Believe
End user Benefit
Price reference
Tagline
The basis for knowing an opportunity exists.
A statement that gets to the heart of user motivations, which
can reveal opportunities to maintain and change behaviour
resulting in brands’ growth
What the product offers that addresses the opportunity
defined by our consumer insight.
Evidence (features) that makes the benefit compelling and
believable
Optional element of proposition – may be absolute or
relative
Gives product name and states benefit in as few words as
possible
Product reference – show both trade and end-
user formats; packaging and product, if relevant

24. Concept Example
Nothing
beats
the
taste
of
draught
beer.
Unfortunately
a
tap
is
not
always
within
reach.
Now
Heineken
introduces
the
DraughtKeg,
which
delivers
you
fresh,
high
quality
Heineken
draught
beer
anywhere
you
like.
DraughtKeg
has
a
pressurized
CO2
system
inside,
which
releases
Tny
bubbles
that
deliver
smoothness
and
a
rich
layer
of
foam.
This
unique
5l
system
is
available
in
supermarkets
for
the
same
price
as
a
carton
DraughtKeg:
tap
your
own
draught
quality
beer
page
24
DraughtKeg
Concept name
Visual End User Insight
Reason to Believe
End User Benefit
Price reference
Tagline

25. That Concept Goes to Market
page
25

26. 1. How to find the crowd patterns
2. How to extract insights from your crowd
3. How to test crowd ideas
What You Learned Today
26

27. How do we know this works?
27

28. The Proof: 5 of 7 insights in Top
20% globally INSIGHT
STRENGTH
136
I
see
discovery
in
life
as
a
game
that
I
like
to
play,
which
is
why
I
get
excited
when
I
discover
truly
new
tastes
in
drinks
136
Technology
plays
an
important
part
in
my
life.
I
wish
there
was
a
drink
that
uses
technology
to
create
a
beher
drinking
experience.
131
I
really
look
forward
to
the
weekend,
but
when
it
arrives
I
can
be
a
lihle
low
on
energy
from
the
week
gone
by.
I
would
like
to
have
a
drink
that
helps
me
‘switch
gears’
at
these
moments,
giving
me
a
lik
for
the
good
Tmes
ahead.
124
I
don’t
like
others
telling
me
what’s
good
or
not
good
to
drink.
I
like
to
try
and
decide
by
myself.
All
i
need
is
a
product
which
is
honest
and
open
with
me.
124
Having
a
drink
by
myself
is
never
as
good
as
when
i
am
around
others.
When
I’m
with
others
it
turns
having
a
drink
from
just
drinking
alcohol
into
a
memorable
experience.
120
I
enjoy
solving
problems
and
gelng
stuff
done.
So
ideally
i
want
a
drink
that
allows
me
to
keep
going
so
I
can
stay
ahead
of
the
pack.
110
I
believe
the
best
things
in
life
are
really
simple.
That’s
why
i
like
simple
choices
like
beer,
but
i
realize
it
doesn’t
really
impress
anyone.
92
It
someTmes
takes
a
long
Tme
to
order
drinks,
during
which
I'm
tempted
to
take
out
my
smartphone.
This
makes
me
feel
connected
but
it
also
increases
the
chances
of
me
missing
out
on
my
turn
to
order.
Insights
are
overall
very
well
evaluated
by
the
Jay
group.
5
of
them
gather
top
terTle
scores
for
all
3
core
KPIs,
thus
achieving
the
status
of
Cra$ed
insights.
Also
noTceable
is
that
“Technology
in
life”
insight
(2nd)
acquires
a
very
high
score
for
this
group
and
becomes
one
of
the
two
best
scoring
insights
–
for
the
General
sample
same
insight
drops
to
6th
place.
On
the
other
hand,
last
insight
presents
poor
results
(in
both
subsamples,
meaning
it’s
indeed
a
weak
insight
overall).

29. All 7 Concepts in Top 20%
globally
• Further evaluation for financial, manufacturability, environmental factors
• #1 concept not feasible technically yet; enviro issues
• #2 concept blocked for PR reasons
• #3 concept taken to market, now in 19 countries, became “Radler” under
Foster’s in AUS, Amstel in Greece, Kaiser in Brazil
Client confidential

30. The Proof: In-Market
Performance
“Radler is one of our most successful volume innovations ever.” — Heineken

31. Suzan Briganti, CEO
Totem Inc.
+1 415.290.2476 I suzan@totembrand.com
Skype: TotemBrand I Twitter: @skuzin 31
Thank you!