I picked up this book at the recommendation of a friend of mine. He told me that it was absolutely mandatory that I read this book immediately because I am in the process of starting a business. The “Laws” outlined in The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, by Al Ries & Jack Trout, are interesting and have a few gems, but the book is definitely outdated. Originally published in 1993, Ries and Trout identify many fledgling companies and predict their ultimate downfall. For instance:
Microsoft is the leader in personal computer operating systems, but it trails the leaders in each of the following major categories: spreadsheets (Lotus is the leader), word processing (WordPerfect is the leader), and business graphics (Harvard Graphics from SPC Software Publishing is the leader).
[…]
There are ominous signs of softness in Microsoft’s strategy. The Economist reported in early 1992, “Mr. Gates is putting together a range of products, based on a common core of technology, that will compete across virtually the whole of the software industry: from big computers to small ones, and from operating systems in the information engine-room to graphics programs that draw every picture for executives. Nobody in the software industry has yet managed a venture of that complexity – though IBM has tried and failed.
When you try to be all things to all people, you inevitably wind up in trouble. “I’d rather be strong somewhere, “said one manager, “than weak everywhere.”
Clearly, Microsoft is now the leader not only in spreadsheets (Microsoft Excel) and word processing (Microsoft Word), but also nearly all facets of the user interface of personal and business computers. Additionally, Microsoft is a significant player in servers, mobile smart phones, search engines, among many others. Google didn’t even exist at the time 22 Laws was written, but brand extension has worked remarkably well for Larry Page and Sergey Brin. (One could argue that Microsoft and Google created their own categories. If that is the case, I believe the “line extension” argument would still be voided.)
This example identifies a core weakness in the book: it was written before the rise of the internet age. Prior to the internet really taking off, marketing was a completely different animal. It cost a lot of money to market any product. It cost a lot of money to develop and launch a product (take a look at Inc Magazine’s feature “The Day My Industry Died” to see a few examples of how the cost of business has plummeted since the early days of the internet). Lastly, it took a lot of money and time to grow a company. It was difficult to have the explosive growth that was experienced on a large scale late last century and early this decade.
While the book is a quick read (I read it in its entirety on a flight from Denver to Minneapolis), I will save you the trouble by listing the laws here and adding some salient commentary.
The law of:
- Leadership
- The Category – Create a category you can be first in. Focus on categories, not brands. People are defensive of their brand. People are more interested in what’s new, not what’s better.
- The Mind – Brands play on perception rather than product. Always use a simple, easy to remember name (maybe why orkut hasn’t caught on in the USA?).
- Perception – You can become an “expert” quite easily; simply manipulate people’s perception of you.
- Focus – Own a word in the mind of the prospect. Get others to use this word.
- Exclusivity – Using a competitor’s “word” only entrenches them.
- The Ladder – You will tend to have one half of the market share of your next biggest competitor and two times the market share of your next smallest.
- Duality
- The Opposite
- Division – Categories begin with a focus, but then break into segments. (Computers into personal computers, portable computers, workstations, etc.). It’s best to be first to enter a segment, but be prepared to wait for the market to catch-up.
- Perspective – Having a sale on your product can ultimately decrease sales by leading customers to perceive the normal price as too high.
- Line Extension – See my comment on Microsoft. This law has been disproven.
- Sacrifice – Three things to sacrifice: product line, target market, and constant change. Keep selling the same narrow product line to the same customer base and don’t change it.
- Attributes – Don’t copy the attributes that make your competitor’s product successful (cavity fighting toothpaste), find your own attribute and dramatize it (whitening toothpaste).
- Candor
- Singularity
- Unpredictability
- Success – there’s a difference between predicting the future and taking a chance on it.
- Failure – Be willing to admit failure and move on. Many mistakes aren’t worth fixing.
- Hype
- Acceleration – If confronted with a fad, dampen it to ensure that your product has longevity (Barbie vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)
- Resources
(3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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