Newton vs Darwin....

Is what you do accountable to Darwin or to Newton?

I came across this question very recently and the Science geek inside me sat up and took immediate notice.

What are we really talking about?

What does it actually mean?

And it led me onto History - another subject that I have started to enjoy lately.

It led me on to President Woodrow Wilson - the only president with a Ph.D. in political science.

One of his complaints was that too many people in government held the belief that it was a Big Machine: once you set up a series of rules you could take your hands off the wheel & let the govt run on its own forever.

The trouble with the theory is that govt is not a machine, but a living thing. It falls, not under the theory of the universe but under the theory of organic life.

It is accountable to Darwin, not Newton.

It is modified by the environment, necessitated by it's tasks, shaped to it's functions by sheer pressure of life.

They viewed government like physics, with a set of customs and laws that required no updating or second-guessing because they were believed to be precise and perfect as they were.

WOW.

This wasn't just about politics anymore.

But applied to what I do as well...

I have often drawn parallels between Marketing and Physics - whether it is the similarities between Potential and Kinetic Energies & Brand and Growth Marketing or in the concept(s) of increasing and decreasing Friction in Marketing vs Physics and their relative impact.

But this one opened my eyes a bit further.

What about the MARKET in MARKETING?

The ever changing customer dynamics, the growing competition, price wars, government regulations.

Where does that leave us?

To EVOLVE.

And more importantly, in a world where DIGITAL is the norm, the affinity to DARWIN becomes greater than the affinity to NEWTON - because we can really NEVER TAKE THE FOOT OFF THE PEDAL.

The hardest thing here is understanding two opposing ideas within this theory:

Reversion to the mean is a powerful force and you should expect most things that are disconnected from their long-term averages to find their way back in due time.

This goes for the basics of marketing - the 4 Ps, the Maslow's Hierarchy which have (and probably will) stand across times.

Things change, and what used to reliably work in the past often becomes outdated, arbitraged, outlawed, and socially unacceptable.

This goes for our media and the consumers.

Hoardings and newspapers were hot day before, Facebook and Google were popular yesterday, Tik Tok and Instagram is the talk of the town today, and Snapchat may the the way tomorrow.

Brick and mortars were popular yesterday, Amazon and Flipkart led the E-Com revolution and changed habits yesterday, but today it is about quick commerce with Zepto and BlinkIt.

If there is a common theme in this puzzle, it’s that Darwin is usually the boss, but anything that does answer to Newton is exceptionally important.

But if everything is everchanging what is it the reports to Newton, I thought (believing I cracked a good joke)...

Compounding. Extremely Newton-ion. The longer ypu keep yourself in the market by way of promotions, by being creative, your returns are bound to compound - much like finances.

Incentives are Newtonian as well. These can range from first service free to cashbacks to a lucky winner winning an iPhone - Their details come and go, but the idea that rewards guide motivations and morals – in good ways and bad – was as true 1,000 years ago as it will be 1,000 years from now. It’s also a guiding force of most outcomes.

But Darwin is in control most of the time - a very marketing phenomenon. Something that keeps us on our toes - for he rules by enforcing humility. He hates assumed certainties and overconfidence.

And if you don't evolve quickly enough, there may not be a tomorrow.

Ask Kodak :)

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Siddharth, or Sid, has worked for 3 organizations across 6 different states, selling everything from laptops to mobile recharges to SaaS products. He was handling brand and growth marketing for 15 countries at his last organization before he got bitten by the entrepreneurial bug.

Three years in, he now leads a team more driven than him at Ad Momenta. You can find him talking branding, B2B marketing and growth at @sidgrover25 on Twitter and LinkedIn.

And if you are stuck with some your brand and marketing problems, say Hi @ admomenta.com :)