Growth secrets of digital champions

The advent of digital seems to have divided companies into two camps. While a small number, like Netflix, Amazon and Apple, display incredible growth, many others struggle to gain a few points. A Harvard Business Review study reveals that, of 8,000 major global firms, three quarters had gone through at least one period of prolonged stagnation in the past fifteen years. There is no shortage of reasons for these difficulties: financial crisis, sluggishness of mature markets, complexity of emerging markets, hard-to-predict technological disruptions, competition from faster new players, etc. But are these the only reasons?

Do growth “champions” stand out for their ability to develop exceptional products, which consumers snap up because they correspond to the going trend? Actually, these players are observed to distinguish themselves primarily through a new way of thinking about growth—an approach that drives them to continuously reinvent themselves. For example, Amazon is now much more than a mail-order bookstore, and Facebook much more than an online portrait gallery!

This approach goes far beyond a strategy to conquer market share and attract customers: the companies that have adopted it have ceased thinking of the lifecycle of a product or service as a linear sequence from design to marketing. Instead, they work to continuously adapt themselves in order to offer the best value proposition on the market, and constantly expand it. They thus ensure the loyalty of their current customers and the conquest of new ones. To accomplish this, they innovate at disconcerting speed; interact closely with their customers; react almost instantaneously to adapt their offering and seize emerging opportunities.

Of course, we are not suggesting that every company can follow the trajectory of the stars of Silicon Valley. Every organization has its own heritage, and every business evolves in a more, or less, promising sector. Nevertheless, every business leader can find inspiration and benefit in the clever way these “unicorns” use digital technologies and agile methods.

In this synopsis:
– Create a team dedicated to growth in your organization
– Rethink growth in the digital era
– Growth: Start by building loyalty with your existing customers