Inevitability
February 27, 2008
Malcolm Gladwell calls it “The Tipping Point”. Jim Collins calls “The Flywheel”. I simply call it “Inevitability”.
Inevitability is the combination of many things: The sense of momentum with an idea or product; reaching a level of ubiquity; a place of assumption. Inevitability is beyond name recognition and brand awareness.
It is hard to compete with the shear weight of inevitability. Companies, sports teams, and politicians crave it because it just makes things easier. And easier means more profits/wins/votes. Inevitability happens in small circles like families (going to grandma’s house for Christmas every year), small businesses (becoming someone’s plumber of choice), and global brands (more on that below).
But how do you reach Inevitability? That is the hard part. I think there are 3 ways (for the sake of this post, I am primarily using corporate brands as examples):
- Own the Channel - If you are the only newspaper in a small town, you have reached Inevitability. It doesn’t mean you are the best option; you are just the only option. Microsoft would fall into this category, as would HP. They both “own the channel” - meaning they have distribution and partner relationships that lock them into the sales process. They also were first-to-market in the early days of technology. They seized momentum, got to the top position, and (mostly) have held that advantage. Today, this method is probably the most difficult unless you are in a very specific sector or niche. Distribution rules have changed - primarily because of the direct-to-consumer nature of eCommerce. I would also place WalMart, Walgreens, and McDonalds in this category. The channel they own is simply just being everywhere.
- Be the Best - In a small town, the busiest pizza place is the one with the best pizza. To me, this is the best kind of Inevitability. Who wouldn’t want to be the best? Being the best use to mean just having the best product. But with the consumer revolution, “best” also is about the image, the shopping experience, and the customer experience. It also includes being the best place to work … and probably doesn’t hurt to have the best stock value. I would place Apple, Southwest, and FedEx in this category. They all have varying degrees of being the best - Apple is the best at creating cool products. Southwest is the best at being the low fair airline. FedEx is the best at overnight shipping. Being the best requires tremendous focus and discipline. It also isn’t something that is trumpeted via advertising; it has to be experienced.
- Be First - I alluded to this with “owning the channel”, but think it is actually a different category. Being first can be brutal. It typically requires enormous cash reserves. It often involves educating the audience. In short, it is difficult for brands to quickly reach Inevitability by being first to market. They almost have to grow into it through the process of introducing/educating, nurturing early adopters, creating customer evangelists, etc. It can be a long, slow process but can lead to Inevitability. I would put eBay, Amazon, and Google in this category. These brands all took awhile to catch on, but now they are the leaders. If you have something to sell, you use eBay. Want to buy a book, it has to be Amazon. And Google just might be the most inevitable brand of our time.
Notice that I didn’t say Inevitability comes from advertising or marketing. While marketing is essential throughout the process of becoming Inevitable (a process that we refer to as The 1000 Year Brand), it is less of a factor than you would think. After all, Google became the #1 Brand in the world without spending any money on advertising. Marketing is best as a catalyst, but things like the customer experience, quality, and usability are at the root of Inevitability.
I also find interesting how view long-term brands are still inevitable. Missing from the lists I have put together are Crest, Tide, Ford, Coke, Levis, Wrigleys, Sears and dozens of other established companies. Maybe this is because the hardest thing is to stay inevitable (just ask the Patriots!). I think of Dell, Starbucks, Nike, Disney and Red Bull. At one point, they had reached inevitability.
While these are all still successful brands, their place in the pecking order has slipped. And all are trying to get it back. They may say it is to “improve shareholder value” or to “adapt to a changing marketplace” - but I think is more simple than that. It is just good to be #1 - to be the Elvis/Tiger Woods/Harry Potter of the world.
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