Given a long enough time line, quite a few things can change. The issue is that even on a very short time line, things have a habit of shifting around a lot more than many companies are even aware of.
In the world of video games, back in the early nineties the name Nintendo was the undisputed heavy weight champion of the industry. It only took a single year for the Sony Playstation to dethrone them, just as it only took a single system—the Nintendo Wii—to put Nintendo back on the map.
These are some fairly major changes in a very short period of time, and while any tech industry is known for quick changes, these kinds of things can apply to pretty much any industry.
People are fickle, and any marketer should be fully aware of it. Minds can change quite quickly if something better happens to come along. People will flock to whatever is going to be in their best interest, so your job is to make sure that you’re in their best interest.
Once you establish that, the issue becomes holding onto it. The earlier example of Nintendo is a prime example of this. For those who aren’t as aware of that particular industry, there was a shift with the introduction of CDs into a CD based system for video games, which is now the industry norm. Nintendo ignored the change in the market and stuck with a cartridge-based system, something that cost them millions and lost them their dominance of the market.
You need to be sure that you’re paying attention to everything pertaining to the market place and your customer base. The style of brochure printing you used once that was effective might not be the same the second time. Don’t let past research stop you from keeping up with it.
For any kind of marketing campaign, constantly research what people are interested in. Check out what print advertising campaigns your competitors are getting into and evaluate if it would work for your business as well.
Never let yourself be lulled into a false sense of security by a previously successful marketing campaign. This is the biggest reason why large companies lose their position at the head of the marketplace, and if you aren’t careful you’ll suffer the same fate if you don’t make sure to keep on top of things.
Always be watchful for any shifts. If you release something that wasn’t as popular as you were expecting, figure out why as fast as you can. The best thing you can do is set up a database dealing with all of your sales and marketing information along with details about all of the competition. Now you’ll be in a prime position to keep track of trends and be able to look ahead to the future.
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