Marketing Myopia

Marketing Myopia, a term coined in the world of marketing, was the topic of discussion in Theodore Levitt’s popular, well-known article of 1960. At one point or another every industry is considered a growth industry. A look into the past reveals a decline in a majority of industries. This decline is a result of mismanagement. The basis of the mismanagement is the focus on selling rather than marketing. This is a disservice because selling focuses solely on the needs of the seller while marketing focuses on the needs and wants of the buyer. Levitt (1960/1975) said, “To continue growing, companies must ascertain and act on their customers’ needs and desires, not bank on the presumptive longevity of their products” (p. 25). In the end a lack of focus on customers is the demise of most industries.

An example of an industry that failed to grow beyond what it was is the railroads. Top management limited their views to strictly railroads. They failed to look beyond their immediate offering. They were so focused on selling the railroad industry that they neglected to realize they were actually in the transportation industry. Levitt (1960/1975) said, “They were railroad-oriented instead of transportation-oriented” (p. 25). They were also product oriented instead of customer oriented.

Hollywood is another example of myopia. Like railroads their nearsightedness produced trouble for their industry. Hollywood thought they were in the movie business. By restricting their business to just movies they missed their opportunity to expand in the entertainment industry. The limit they set is the very reason for the disappearance of many film companies.

The history and decay of every failed industry is supported by four factors: reliance on population growth, confidence in no competitive substitutions, reliance on mass production and “preoccupation with a product that lends itself to carefully controlled scientific experimentation, improvement and manufacturing cost...