This One Thing Can Help You Predict The Future

No, I don’t mean the crystal ball and glass bead curtains type of prediction…

The key to getting on a reliable path to predictable profits in your business is consistent marketing and innovation.

To illustrate, let’s presume you own a smart phone…

So, how did that cool little gadget with all those apps you love – and maybe sometimes get totally exasperated with – end up in your hot little hands?

Starting with market research, the guys n’ gals at Apple or Motorola or Vodaphone identify the key benefits a buyer like yourself might be attracted to and ultimately purchase.  They took the existing technology and create a new design, giving you what discovered in their research what you most want in a cell phone, within the confines of technical and cost limitations.

They made it stand out from all the other cell phones out there, enough for you to conclude you’d rather have that iPhone 5 or Android Razr than some other phone.

So the messages get through to you, in spite of your resistance, about the cool voice recognition, long battery life, status conferred by brand, whatever turns your crank – online, in a store, word of mouth, etc. – enough to capture your interest.

Now that your appetite has been whetted, you get cool videos, stories, scripted conversations with sales agents and enough reasons to go ahead with the purchase.

Finally it was easy and painless enough for you to get what you wanted, and because you believed they could more or less fulfill on all promises made, you soon became the proud owner of a new cell phone.

Which, of course, if all goes according to plan, you’ll be bragging about to friends and family, some of whom will look into owning one for themselves, and so the wheel turns…

So in the end, quite simply, marketing – getting the messaging processes right – coupled with innovation – creating something new and better – is what created this happy cycle.

And, of course, their cell phone into your eager hands.

So, how does all this help you predict the future?

Consistent product development and marketing on a daily, weekly and monthly basis is the only assurance you have of consistent growth in sales, profits and of course reaching the vision you have for your business.

What if you had only two products and a competitor has two dozen?  Obviously not a good situation.  Best to turn those tables with consistent commitment to marketing and innovation.  Knowing you have plenty of product – and customers – coming into the pipeline is about the best assurance your business has of a profitable future.

For some good reads on this, check out Blue Ocean Strategy, The Lean Startup and The New Rules of Marketing & PR.  Also, Drucker’s book, The Effective Executive is one of the most useful books I’ve ever read in terms of how to get the really important things done.

Is this helpful?  Hit reply, let me know what you think – Next week back to the nuts and bolts of making it all happen…

To your wildest success,

Image courtesy of Poonsap / FreeDigitalPhotos.net