George Eich Institute · Market Needs Research

THE NEED GAP EXISTS IN EVERY COMPANY

We measure, with real market evidence, the distance between what companies believe they should prioritize and the needs that truly concentrate value.

In our first study, with 1,423 needs analyzed, 80.32% did not turn out to be a priority for 30% of the surveyed base.

NEED GAP  ◆  VALUE AT STAKE  ◆  NEED-BASED DECISION SCIENCE  ◆  ICAN  ◆  CORE, GROWTH, INNOVATION  ◆  NEED GAP  ◆  VALUE AT STAKE  ◆  NEED-BASED DECISION SCIENCE  ◆  ICAN  ◆  CORE, GROWTH, INNOVATION  ◆ 
80.32%
The Central Finding of Our First Study

80.32% of the needs mapped in our first study do not turn out to be a priority for 30% of the analyzed customer base.

The need exists and is real. The problem is that most of it remains concentrated in small slices of the market, which makes prioritization, not discovery, the real strategic challenge.

See the full study with methodology and data
The Core Concept

Need Gap.

The distance between what a company believes it should prioritize and the needs that actually carry the greatest potential for value generation.

Internal Perception
What the company believes it should prioritize.
NEED GAP
Real Evidence
What the market actually prioritizes.

This gap represents value potential not yet captured: growth, margin and enterprise value that exist, but have not yet been identified.

Value Horizon

Where value exists to be captured.

Value generation happens across three horizons. The Institute identifies which one holds the greatest opportunity and structures how to capture it.

Core Business

Generate more value from what already exists: improve the offer, prioritize needs and close service gaps based on what already works.

Growth

Find new spaces close to the business, in segments and offers where relevant needs still go unmet.

Innovation

Discover emerging needs that can create the next businesses before they become obvious to the market.

Market Evidence

Not opinion. Studies.

We publish open studies on how real needs are distributed across the market, using the same methodology applied in every corporate diagnostic.

Proprietary Study · 2026
The Need Gap 2026
80.32%

A study with 1,423 needs evaluated across 59 companies, revealing the challenge of prioritizing what truly matters to the customer.

Read the full study
In Progress
The Institute's next study, coming soon.

New evidence on market needs is published periodically. Follow the studies page for updates.

See all studies
"

You can execute perfectly and still generate less value than you could have. The biggest strategic risk isn't always poor execution. It's generating value for what matters least.

George Eich
For Journalists

Exclusive data available
for your story.

The Institute publishes proprietary studies on market needs and makes data, methodology and interviews available to the press.

George Eich, researcher and founder of the George Eich Institute
Researcher and Founder

"We need to see, before anyone else, where value exists, and quickly structure how to generate it."

George Eich is a researcher of the Need-Based Era and creator of the ICAN metric and the Need-Based Decision Science discipline. He has advised more than 500 companies in Brazil and the United States over the past 10 years.

See his full background

Companies served by George Eich, more than 500 companies and 600 startups

Motorola Solutions Ambev SEBRAE ScanSource Miditec Acate Guarida Profissionais SA Evous

In your company, do you know which needs fall within the 19.68% that truly concentrate relevance? And which of them are Core, which have Leverage potential, and which should guide your positioning?

For Companies

You're deciding where to invest in 2027.

But do you know which needs should actually be guiding those decisions?

We map your customers' needs, measure which ones are truly a priority, and identify where your Core, your Need Gaps, and your biggest value-generation opportunities are. The result is the Need Gap Strategic Study, a proprietary study to guide your company's investment, innovation, product and positioning decisions.

Preserve
Which needs sustain the Core and are already well served.
Invest
Which needs have the greatest Leverage potential.
Deprioritize
Which are real, but have little strategic relevance.
Build For
Which groups form the base's Need Based ICPs.
Position
Which needs can sustain a relevant position.
Need Map Priority Map Need Gap Map Core Map Leverage Map Need Based ICPs Positioning Opportunities Decision Map 2027

"We don't help your company find more ideas. We help you identify which needs deserve to become investment."

I want to map my company's Need Gap