Does Innovation Need Marketing?

Eugene Schwarz is known for applying the idea of desire to a product, but can this be applied in today's innovative and ever-changing world? Is innovation only as good as its marketing?

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Companies often prioritise innovation and consider marketing as an afterthought. But to what extent should marketers be involved in the early development of the innovation process?

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If you look at the biggest innovations of recent years, most of them were launched with a big bang. The new iPhone, a new world. With Kindle people could experience a library on the go without any eyestrain.

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But what happens when customers, companies and marketing are not on the same page?

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Look at products like the Betamax videotape format, which couldn't compete with VHS, or the HD-DVD format, which was replaced by Blu-ray. In both cases, it was not the technical specifications that caused the failure, but the lack of support from customers and companies. And now we see a downtrend in Blu-ray purchases which is closely linked to the streaming sector.

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So how can companies ensure that their product is accepted by consumers and businesses? This is where marketing comes in. Marketers can gather feedback from potential customers and business partners early on to ensure that the product will be successful in the marketplace.

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Now let's compare this with recent advances in AI and machine learning. With almost every news outlet covering the release of ChatGPT, it is easy to say that the product sold itself. But how?

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Today, companies have a variety of ways to target and understand consumers. By analysing big data and using AI tools, companies can create accurate customer profiles and run personalised advertising campaigns.

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But what if the marketing does not match the actual performance of the product? While successful marketing can temporarily raise awareness of a product, long-term success depends on the actual performance and quality of the product.

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For instance, I think Elon Musk's marketing stunts have kept the public interested in Twitter for a while, but unless he changes the product, it will be hard to retain and attract new users.

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Overall, innovation and marketing are closely linked. Successful innovation requires early involvement of marketing experts to ensure that the product will be successful in the marketplace. At the same time, it is important that the actual performance of the product matches the marketing promise.

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My take: Companies that can effectively combine innovation and marketing will be successful in the long term and will be able to compete in an increasingly competitive world.

What are your thoughts?

Reference:

Schwartz, E.M. (1753) Breakthrough Advertising. Bottom Line Books.

?Boitnott, J. (2022) Inspired by Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover, Here Are 10 Marketing Tactics That Will Help You Make the Most of Big Changes to Your Company Available from https://www.entrepreneur.com/growing-a-business/10-marketing-lessons-from-elon-musks-twitter-takeover/439042 [accessed 24 April 2023].

Williams, N. (n.d.) The Real Reason HD DVD Failed Spectacularly Available from https://history-computer.com/real-reason-hd-dvd-failed/ [accessed 24 April 2023].