The Risky Business of Marketing
"We should all take more risks in the marketing community," Tim Mahoney, SVP and CMO of Subaru, told last week's Conference Board Marketing Conference audience. That sentiment was also echoed by Carlson Marketing CEO Jim Schroer during his keynote. He explained that many marketers don't take the risks they know they should take because "it's too damn hard."
Subaru took the risky move of eliminating front-wheel drive vehicles from its product line, and has also decided to embrace alternative market segments such as the gay and lesbian community. For Mahoney, having a real understanding of his customers helped make the risk a little less scary.
"Know the customer backwards and forwards," Mahoney said. "Play to your strengths, but make them relevant to customers." He added that the most important question to ask is, "Do you know your customers well enough to take a chance?"
What do you think? Do you know your customers well enough? Does any company? Should more risks be taken, or less?
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