Adapt To Survive

Time is something that has never and will never stop. As time goes by, people, environments, opportunities, jobs and how we market continue to evolve. Unfortunately, if people are unwilling to adapt they will not survive. In World War I, U.S. troops were poorly trained and improperly equipped with the right weapons to engage in trench warfare. “Those who adapted quickly and sought training from the French and British were most successful,” as displayed at the General Patton Museum. The need to adapt to our markets and customers as recruiters and marketers alike is more important than ever. Consumers and recruits look for updated content relevant to what is happening right now in the world, not what happened last year? One of the best examples of success of this is the TV show South Park. Created in 1992 and going on its 19th season, South Park is a great example of weekly produced relevant content. Each episode is created the week of its showing. This allows the TV show, which has won numerous awards and was named by TV Guide the 10th greatest cartoon of all time, to remain relevant and fresh.

Our businesses and organizations have to use this type of marketing strategy when it comes to reaching our target market. As a teenager, one of the easiest ways to contact me was through a home phone. If you attempt the same thing today you will likely fail to make contact because most youth rely heavily on their mobile devices. According to a Pew Research paper by Aaron Smith in April 2015, “nearly two-thirds of Americans are now smartphone owners.” We have keep figuring out new and better ways daily to reach our target market.

A good question to ask yourself on a regular basis is, “what’s happening in the world and what’s important right now to our customers?” Answering those two questions today would be simple, Pokemon GO. The application was released only a week ago and has become an overnight viral sensation. The application has more people and target market aged youth up on their feet and out walking around than any other known game in existence. In one week, businesses aware to the phenomenon were quick to take advantage of a game that entices players to go out and explore notable locations that provided game objectives such as Pokestops and gyms. According to Schiavo, (2016) one such business, L’inizio Pizza Bar in Long Island City, Queens has seen a 75 percent increase in sales. This is a terrific illustration of adapting quickly before the trend fades away. Though seasonal and experimental, as everything we do will be, it is worse to sit back and ignore the trend. Energize your staff to consider ways to use new and better innovations to attract the market. Whether you were dancing back during the Harlem Shake videos or participating in the Ice Bucket Challenge, it is all productive. Reaching your audience in the simplest ways will gain traction for a long time. Ignoring it because it’s a trend you think will die off is failing to take advantage of an opportunity. Empower people, adapt, energize fresh ideas and you will not only survive but take your team to a whole new level. Don’t sit back and see a picture from another company and think “dang that is a good idea!” Let’s get them looking at our ideas and actions and show how we can lead the way in adaptation!

 

 

 

 

Smith, A. (2015). U.S. Smartphone Use in 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2016, fromhttp://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/01/us-smartphone-use-in-2015/

Schiavo, A. (2016). ‘pokémon go’ helping small business owner boost sales. Retrieved July 20, 2016, from https://www.thestreet.com/story/13638437/1/lsquo-pok-eacute-mon-go-rsquo-helping-small-business-owner-boost-sales.html