Tech 1 Brand 0?

So Kodak is on the ropes.

Beyond just falling victim to the digital revolution, Kodak found itself on the wrong side of a double-wammy that can hit any industry: a new product (in this case digital) that although inferior is so much cheaper (in this case, than film) that people flock to it. It’s a phenomenon hitting all sorts of industries from education ($1000 degree anyone?) to retail (ASOS).

Lots of businesses see their brand as the defense against this phenomenon. The brand can help by signaling quality. Yet, only a very few niche brands can maintain significant premiums without out-innovating the competition on value.

The fact of the matter is, the enabling, leveling, democratizing power of technology will always make things cheaper, and that’s a good thing. And the always progressive nature of technology means those things will get better and better in no time at all.

Today’s hardened consumers are armed with hard facts. Any brand that tries to buck the trend by making a quality argument as a defense against a value argument is living on borrowed time.

This is something to rejoice in. It compels us to continually make new things and make them more accessible and affordable. And in this, Brand and Technology can play for the same side, inspiring and equipping the organization to invent relentlessly. The guys at Jawbone (jawbone.com|) illustrate this perfectly.

There is of course an alternative. You can just sit tight. Trouble is, you may just end up with the wrong kind of Kodak moment.

(Ije Nwokorie)