The disruptor’s disruption

 ‘The best companies in the world never get nostalgic, they evolve’- Shawn Kanungo

Change is inevitable and in today’s fast paced markets getting disrupted is not a possibility, it is given.

Many famous brands/ business models which existed for so long are nowhere today. Sooner or later

some Oyo, Treebo, Delhivery or Practo might disrupt the market and may change the way things work

in their segment. Disruption is not bad, provided, you are doing it to yourself (Cannibalization, in other

words). Though it’s not easy and it demands hell lot of resources but it is highly recommended.

Companies are required to work tirelessly and continuously redefine themselves and their

brands and products. Failing to which can be fatal like what happened to Nokia and Blockbuster and

many other companies. Disruption can never be a one-time deal. Companies must think over and over

again to enhance value for its customers. Displacing the incumbent once is not end of the game. Skype

disrupted the way long distance communication was happening and back then it was way ahead of its

time but failed to establish itself in the long run. Marketing doesn’t mean developing the right product

at the right price only rather the product/ service should be made available to the customers when they

are looking for it. Covid-19 compelled us all to find a digital tool for communication and Zoom showed

up smartly. Even Google didn’t do well if compared with Zoom. They did the same mistake with

digital wallet too and till date they are struggling to fight with Paytm.

Another classical example here is Netflix. They started as Dvd rental company and soon

realized that customers won’t stick to typical CDs or DVDs in long run. Netflix was smart enough to

foresee the potential of online streaming and by disrupting themselves they not only saved their

business but are setting new dimensions of onscreen entertainment today.

Practo disrupted itself in a beautiful manner. The company started in 2008 as B2B clinic management

software and later on evolved as a complete healthcare service provider. It was quick to learn that

narrowing down focus on the needs of the doctors only is not necessary and soon they developed

themselves as a platform meant for the patients as well. Today it is said to be the most successful

healthcare startup in India.

Byju’s was typically an offline business and was a service oriented company till almost the mid of the

last decade but they successfully disrupted themselves and shifted their focus on becoming 100%

online company.

The idea is that a company must be able to see what is likely to happen down the line and must

go beyond the traditional ways of strategic formulation to tap the opportunities present in the market

and to protect itself from the heat of competition. Several companies could not develop that fine sense

of understanding and were thrown out the market and customer forgot them like they never existed.

Loyalty is the last think that a company can expect from its customers. Although, the entire marketing

program aims at creating loyal clientele but today’s customers are loaded with information and have

multiple options at their disposal and hence loyalty becomes tricky. Considering everything the best

strategy for any company seems to be disrupting itself and disrupting again and again!!