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Innovative Home Builder
New Product Review Panel

The NAHB Research Center is offering a quick, cost-effective service called the New Product Review Panel to obtain customer feedback on new products and services before undergoing extensive develoment. The panel consists of leading homebuilders, on the forefront of innovation, who have agreed to review the description of new home building products and services and provide open-ended feedback. Users of this service get a "reality check" of the merit of new products or concepts before they undertake further development and gain customer insight on potential product refinements and market strategies.

How It Operates:

The sponsor decides how many homebuilders are needed to review the new products or service -- a minimum of 20, and up to 100 -- and the geographic or demographic criteria for the reviewers. The sponsor then submits a detailed description and any relevant drawings of the new product or services to the NAHB Research Center, who will review it for fitness and combine it with a invitation to the panel for their review. The Research Center posts the open-ended questionnaire on its website. When the desired number of reviews is received (typically within a week), the panelists' comments are checked for completeness and are forwarded to the sponsor.

The Questionnaire:

The NAHB Research Center has designed the questionnaire based on its experience in new building product commercialization to assure the most important topics are covered. The sponsor has the right to modify the questions or substitute questions that are more relevant. The standard questionnaire contains 10 open-ended questions on topics such as:

  • Problems solved by the new product/service
  • Likelihood of market acceptance
  • Possible design improvements
  • Potential code issues and barriers
  • Acceptable pricing
  • Most favored applications of the technology
  • Tips for marketing, distribution, installation, and support

Panelists must agree to maintain confidentiality for the new product or service they are reviewing. The Research Center pays panelists a fee each time they participate.

Fee for a Review:

The fee to a sponsor for having its product or service reviewed is $125 for each home builder completing the review. Sponsor modifications to the questionnaire may result in additional fees.

Let Us Know How We Can Help You

For more information or to get started, contact Ed Hudson at (800) 638-8556, ext. 6305.