Want Skyrocket Growth? Create Trends Don't Chase Them
"If your brand is not creating trends you are chasing them. There is an end game to chasing trends that has many disadvantages."
Want skyrocket growth - create trends
If you are not creating trends you are chasing them. Most likely you are also chasing the leader which is bad news. Unfortunately you are actually chasing the leaders past performance and strategies. It is also likely that they have moved on because there was not much left of that time and space after they passed through it and picked it clean. That's the dilemma for all industries and businesses, quite often when you catch up, consumers have moved on. That's the same problem with reinventions.
The solution is one of continuous bold innovation, it is one of the four building blocks I refer to in the book The New Bricks & Mortar Future Proofing Retail. Without bold innovation you cannot deliver skyrocket growth. Unfortunately, in this case it is more than just subtle changes in service. Innovation has to be dynamic enough that it creates high interest and demand, each opportunity needs to be weighed against both of those. And if you are lucky enough to create something that appeals to the masses you may just have a winner. The "I Gotta Have It" consumer mantra needs to be the outcome. Of course it needs to also create value and offer the consumer a solution to a problem or increase their sense of worth. The ego must be fulfilled and very important when looking to create that trend. Research is also important and following other products that are winning in the market place. AI and fast data analysis is also key. However at the end of the day it is also about the human creative mind what can it conjure up that sets the world on fire...like Apple did with iPhones. It is certainly a journey. Don't wait for innovation to be created by others, pursue and perfect it through its failure and its and ultimate success. If it doesn't work quickly move on to the next one.
The retail chess game
In the Netflix series the Queens Gambit Read More the protagonist Beth taught us that to become a true master at what you do, first you must learn to play the game and know its rules. Then study the from the masters themselves. She read every book she could find on chess and the best strategies deployed and listened to competitive contemporaries whom she went on to beat. Clearly no person or organization can win on their own, nor are they all knowing or all seeing. Eventually Beth showed us that she became mature and came into her own mastery of the game. Out thinking and out playing the old masters with her own strategies as well. The key of course is to continuously learn and to never believe that past experiences and wins will guarantee you continued success. At the end of the series Beth sits in the park to play chess against the public and learn more from them. Perhaps that's the message to business, its one thing to know the rules it is another thing to engage strategies that will endure on main streets with consumers. Retailing is a chess game and the books you are reading and the contemporaries you are learning from may have been great in the past. However today you need to find new moves. How many moves are there in chess? 10 to the power of 111 to 123, if every retailer is a chess piece then I would argue retailing has more moves to make and strategies to play out. You may find the next strategy with an independent. If you are a retail strategist start looking for your next prodigy at George's Convenience Store.
What is this retailers next big move?
I am always intrigued with the rhetoric about the design of Amazon's business and their practices. Some even believe that they could fail one day, I am sure they will, however not likely in my lifetime. I view Amazon as a very effective entrepreneurial competitor in the technology sector that serves consumers directly. What many retailers continually miss about Amazon is that they strive to deliver a higher level of "consumer convenience" it is the future of retailing. Few want to admit it or even hear it and no self-respecting key note speaker in support of retailing will ever talk about how e-commerce players can take more share because of this continual shift. However, I do because I see it as a risk to retailers. This transition is far from over! And while we are in the midst of a slow down don't think for one minute that Amazon hasn't already planned their next big moves a few years out. I would! While you can't beat Amazon all retailers should work very hard at learning about that internal drive and entrepreneurial spirit to innovate, build next generation business models and grow revenue. Several years ago I said that Walmart would be one of those brands, so far they haven't disappointed. Who else is willing to step up to the plate?
Newswire
Politics: The war declared by Russia on Ukraine must end or the world continues to hobble along economically and politically waiting for the next shoe to drop. Here is how President Zelensky thinks it will end NY Times This week in Germany security officials made a number of arrests to stop a group from attempting a Coup which included Russia. Read More In Alberta the controversial Sovereignty Bill has passed without all of the risks of cabinet making decisions that actually impact Canadian laws. However this doesn't change how the people who voted for Daniel Smith to be the Premier feel. Daniel Smith is also a former lobbyist representing large oil companies. Read More The NDP suggest that people don't like it. The problem is that for many Canadians its too uncomfortably close to calls for separation. Then there is Taiwan and China Read More Iran and Russia arms dependency. Read More Not to forget or dismiss how the people of Iran are protesting for freedom. Why is all of this important? Because it can further destabilize our world.
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Economy: The biggest question is how much pain will global economies endure in 2023? All around the world it's about the impact of inflation, it feels like the pandemic and its contagious. Inflation rates are all over the place here are the G20 Inflation rates. From 1.6% in China to 88% in Argentina. Next year is expected to be tough on consumers and businesses, not a complete shutdown but a slow down of a sort. However policy makers are beginning to pause rate hikes. The Financial Post suggests it's time to pause before we hit a serious recession. It's quite possible we will face a tough recession.
Environment: Save the Oil or Save the Whales? The problem really boils down to fear of change. That fear is driven by individuals and corporations who believe that their wealth is at risk. The people who used to make buggy whips, horse drawn carriages, operated stalls and horseshoe repairs felt the same way. The streets of New York went from the stench of urine and manure to CO2 and pollution. Are we really any better off? The rhetoric from both sides of the class for the environment or industry are becoming very obvious in their daily media coverage, you can tell a paid for article quite easily. The problem is that we are clouding societies judgement with fear, we either agree to save the planet or pay the price. The fear of our fossil fuel economy ending, we are reminded by history that millions of new jobs were created after we abandoned horses. Read The Day The Horse Lost It's Job
Who is Satoshi Nakamoto, what was his plan?
Who is Satoshi Nakamoto, what was he really up to? First the lure of crypto today seems to be more about making a lot of money fast versus the properties of blockchain that can enhance transactions and build the metaverse. Why do we invest in it? For starters cryptocurrency was created by an individual who went by the pseudonym of Satoshi Nakamoto. By the way no one is really sure who this person is. Who is he really? Read This In effect this person believed that governments and banks had too much power and that a currency needed to be created that was not in their control. This evolved from theory to myth and demigod. The mining of crypto began, however over a decade it is now being driven by large corporations. That was the end of a people movement! It's a currency that you can't physically hold but if you have a digital wallet you can store and have access to using it. Needless to say that FTX and others offer no credibility or viability to cryptocurrency. And the horde of financial experts that jumped in with billions to invest in this FTX get rich quick scheme. And of course recently a politician in Canada made a big deal that he bought a sandwich with cryptocurrency and recommend it as a means to offset inflation. Truth be said most investors have seen their investments shrink by 50%. In effect we humans have created a commodity based on a myth and a fictitious demigod who was supposedly going to save humanity from ruthless bankers and governments. We may never know who he/she is, except that this person as I have always suspected is holding on to a lot of Bitcoin. If you can't prove who this person really is anyone can claim they are that person. Read More Ironically, one global currency would theoretically solve a lot of problems but Governments won't hear of it because it can destroy existing wealth. For the record I don't own any cryptocurrency.
Personal Log: Feeling a little nervous about 2023
Even though I have written about and expected turbulence between 2021-2024 I have become very concerned about 2023. In fact, the first thing that to came mind was the Humpty Dumpy nursery rhyme, hence the cartoon. What particularly worries me are a black swan event in already fragile economy. Heading into a recession makes the world more vulnerable and all it will take is one incident that has global implications to blunt our continued recovery from both the pandemic and our current economic anxiety. What are the odds? 50/50 We should never dismiss anything. Of course I haven't barricaded myself in my home nor boarded up the windows, I still go out and enjoy life. What we don't need is political unrest or any trade issues to boil over. That can really create a frenzy. I am going to bet bet on smart companies that think of all the opportunities and consider the potential risks, plan for them and move on to running their business. Everyone needs an emergency exit plan in case of fire. Just hoping for the best is so counterintuitive to all the business training and experiences most of us have had. The businesses that survive a recession already have a plan.
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