Permanent Challenges of Market Demand New Answers
Student: Dr. Einstein, Aren’t these the same questions as last year’s final exam?
Dr. Einstein: Yes; but this year, the answers are different.
I have heard this Einstein story several times. Although I am not entirely sure of its authenticity, I believe its essence perfectly applies to marketing strategy. Every day, marketers face challenges such as sluggish performance, unexpected difficulties, and inefficiencies compared to the past. Yet, the core marketing questions remain the same. The constant challenge is: how do we dominate the market through marketing?
The key point, which many marketing theorists fail to emphasize in their lectures, articles, and books, is that winning over customers who are loyal to a competitor is exceedingly difficult. Getting these consumers to switch brands seems almost impossible.
Nevertheless, countless marketing experts continue to search for ways to draw the attention of competitors’ customers to their own products, investing immense energy in this pursuit. One clear example is Samsung’s advertising strategy after the launch of the iPhone 6, where they attempted to tarnish Apple’s reputation. But was Samsung successful?
According to the International Data Corporation report in August 2015, the market share of both Samsung and Apple dropped significantly.
This approach of attacking competitors often backfires, increasing market awareness and inadvertently highlighting the shortcomings of your own products. Instead of winning over customers, you create new vulnerabilities in your market share. The growing consumer awareness is one of the most significant challenges for marketers today.
What’s the Solution?
The first step is to change your perspective. Instead of focusing on your competitors’ customers, aim for those who have never been loyal to your rivals or have left them for good. These consumers are not fans but rather opponents of competing brands, often due to negative experiences or recommendations from others to avoid those products.
These customers are located within the market cracks, not the gaps. What’s the difference? A market gap exists where the market leaders fail to meet the needs of a large customer group. Market gap theory sees the market as linear, with rivals, opportunities, and gaps all on the same plane.
On the other hand, market cracks appear when the market is analyzed in a multidimensional way. Cracks form where consumer demands are not being met, either due to lack of innovation or failure to keep up with evolving societal and technological changes.
Market Cracks vs. Market Gaps
Market gaps are typically filled using one of two strategies: Pull or Push. In the Pull strategy, you introduce new products or technology to solve a market problem, while the Push strategy uses an existing product or technology in a new way to address the gap. However, filling these gaps creates an added value that is easily imitated by competitors. If you’re not a market leader, your advantage may be short-lived as others quickly replicate your solution.
Soon, a new gap will emerge in the market, creating a cycle that’s hard to break. Many brands end up expanding their product lines in response to these gaps, diluting their brand and straying from their core market.
In contrast, market cracks indicate that a specific market is nearing its end. To determine whether a market is on the path to extinction, look at its history and the number of market gaps that have been addressed. If the leading market players are struggling to hold onto customers, it’s time to act.
To capitalize on market cracks, you need a product that doesn’t just fill a gap but creates a whole new market. Your product should be a replacement for what’s currently available, drawing customers away from the crumbling walls of the old market.
Timing is Everything in Marketing
Successful brands like Windows, YouTube, Yahoo Mail, Honda Motorcycles in the U.S., and Amazon all entered the market at the perfect moment. None of these companies had an elaborate marketing plan at first, but they succeeded by launching at a time when their product met an urgent need. Timing, more than anything else, is the determining factor in whether a marketing plan will succeed or fail.
For example, Windows revolutionized the computing industry by allowing users to navigate their computers through a graphical interface. YouTube offered the first free platform to share videos, and Amazon became the first online bookstore. Their success didn’t come from a flawless marketing strategy but from entering the market at precisely the right time to meet consumers’ hidden needs.
How to Capitalize on Market Cracks
To fully leverage market cracks, you need to act decisively. Identify the deepest and widest cracks in a market that is on the verge of extinction. Start by providing a select group of customers easy access to your product, minimizing their risk and encouraging them to spread the word. When enough people have heard about your offering, launch a full-scale public relations campaign to solidify your position.
At this point, the existing market structure will begin to collapse under the pressure of its cracks, and you’ll be there to take advantage of the shift.
Key Points to Consider for Successful Market Entry
- Your product must not only surpass competitors but also address a shared weakness among all market players.
- Never launch your public relations campaign before your product is ready for market.
- Initially, make your product available to influencers and decision-makers whose opinions shape consumer behavior.
- Entering a market on the brink of collapse is risky, so be prepared to go all in—you’ll either succeed or fail spectacularly.
- Understand that consumer loyalty, even in a dying market, is tied to familiarity. Consumers need to feel that leaving the old market is their choice, and they won’t switch without being fully convinced of your product’s superiority.
- Avoid becoming a temporary fix or a backup plan for consumers. Your product should be seen as the definitive solution to their needs.
The next great market disruption will happen, but it’s up to you whether you seize the opportunity or let someone else do it. Will you be the next breakthrough brand, or will you miss your moment?
