Shorter University
Abstract
This document summarizes the work of Theodore Levitt in his work published in The Harvard Business Review titled “Marketing Myopia.” Levitt’s work details the reasons growth industries are actually not that at all, and how organizations fail across the globe in regards to marketing. In addition, the document will correlate Levitt’s work in 1960 to contemporary marketing. Keyword: Theodore Levitt, marketing myopia, contemporary marketing
A Summary of Marketing Myopia Marketing Myopia by Theodore Levitt was published by Harvard Business Review in the summer of 1960. According to Levitt (1960), all industries are growth industries and the failure of industries is not because of marketing saturation, but because of management. Levitt uses the oil industry, automobile industry, transportation industry, and electronics industry to support that notion. In addition, Levitt details how population has no effect on business success. Lastly, Levitt summaries what is necessary to avoid the marketing myopia syndrome from an overview. Levitt opens his work by point out that failure is at the top. In a more specific response, failure of the organization rest on the top executives who are responsible for broad aims and policies (Levitt, 1960). To support his idea, Levitt utilized the railroad and Hollywood movie companies as examples. Levitt explains the railroad did not fail because passenger and freight transportation declined, but because the railroad failed to supply the customers’ need (Levitt, 1960). Levitt continues with Hollywood explaining that they did not fail because TV shows; they failed because management classified them as the “movie” business instead of the “entertainment” business (Levitt, 1960). Levitt continues to support his notion by indicating what saved Hollywood. Levitt explains, it was not a resurgence of customers to the movie industry, but in fact was a surge of young new
References: Levitt, T. (1960). Marketing Myopia. Harvard Business Review, 138-149.