Visual Notes on Marketing Myopia by Theodore Levitt
The notes uncover the myth of a growth industry and the key factors that lead to an industry’s decline; why it is important to reevaluate over time the products and business a company is in and much more.
If you work in the product space, you’ve likely come across the influential ideas of Theodore Levitt. One of his famous quotes states that customers don’t buy a quarter-inch drill; they buy a quarter-inch hole. Levitt’s article, ‘Marketing Myopia,’ published in 1960, remains relevant even today. It highlights the importance of continuously reassessing the industry and the products offered in response to evolving customer needs and emerging alternatives.
The book emphasizes focusing on customer needs rather than being fixated on the company’s production process, often referred to as a ‘feature factory’ today. Marketing Myopia’ also provides valuable insights, such as the origin of the expression ‘oil for the lamps of China.’ This expression represents the concept that demand can be generated by inventing a problem that did not exist before, through the introduction of another product. Years later, Steve Blank described these phenomena in his book ‘Four Steps to the Epiphany’ through the concepts of market and customer development. Levitt’s analysis of Ford’s assembly line and mass production is another notable aspect.
In summary, ‘Marketing Myopia’ is an exceptional article that I highly recommend reading. If you haven’t read it yet, I hope my notes inspire you to do so (HBR has the complete version online for free). For those who have already read it, I hope these notes spark new thoughts and reflections
