The Perils And Payoff Of Changing A Brand

What Happens When A Product Becomes New And Improved?

(CBS) 
One reason Kodak has changed was the invention of the digital camera in 1975. It changed everything about taking pictures: no film, no developing, and no waiting. Kodak stopped short of fully embracing the new technology, even though the guy who invented the digital camera was a Kodak employee.

"Many companies have these kinds of inventions," Trout said. "'Cause they're very bright people … And guess why it — they never get anywhere? Because they challenge the mother load. Now, this guy's invented something which is gonna undermine film. Do you think that's a happy idea inside of Kodak? No, sir."

Whatever the thinking was at Kodak, digital photography took off and Kodak's share of the photo business began to fade.

The turning point at Kodak came in 2004 when the CEO told investors in the world's pioneer film company that "film was in secular decline." Translation: make the transformation to cutting-edge digital technology or die.

Kodak finally got the message: the company is now in its third year of a transition to digital technology. These inkjet printers are only a fraction of a new product line that includes an array of digital cameras. Making the change has been painful: more than 24,000 jobs have been eliminated so far, but the company has learned to live with the new reality.

An in-house release called "Winds of Change" is a video pep talk for Kodak employees. For one of America's most iconic companies, it's a clean break with the past. Even the attitudes here are "new and improved."

"People want more digital things…ways to bring their pictures into the 21st century," the actor on the video says. "Well, Kodak is doing it. You thought they were just hiding out waiting for this digital thing to blow over, didn't you?"

[frebergfan]

Loved the info on Marketing - especially the Geico Ads! But You were Dead WRONG and a very important element of the segment! Stan Freberg (REMEMBER: "Today the Pits - Tomorrow the wrinkles" in the Sunsweet pitted prunes commercials & MANY other VERY GROUND BREAKING ADS that changed Marketing/Ads F O R E V E R!) Stan was/IS the FATHER of the adverse advertising concept! AND WAS THE VERY FIRST EVER AD MAN TO APPEAR IN COMMERCIALS HE CREATED - and he appeared in MANY! Hey, wouldn't you want to be given credit for your original and very venture-some, ground breaking & field changing work! So let's give the "Madison Avenue Werewolf" his credit that you totally overlooked in that segment! The additional component you thus left out is the "cyclical" pattern of marketing and thus the FREBERGIAN type ads are Back and As successful as when Stan birth the trend (at the risk of his career!).
Thanks, Deb - ie FrebergFan!

[orkinn]

Dear henninghg,
My "grammar" seems more important to you than the ripoff by Kodak. Too bad. Perhaps we'd have a good employee inventor law with fewer people like you!

[hennighg]

orkinn: his/her and he/she are not words in English. It reads like bloody hell. Either choose a pronoun (masc. or fem.) and go with it, or bother to write, "his or her" and, "he or she". Ye gads, it's hard to read/comprehend with all the words/slash/marked.

[orkinn]

The employee who invented the Kodak digital camera in 1975 received no remuneration for his/her invention. He/she was also subject to termination under employment at will if he/she complained. Not so in Germany & Japan where employee inventors are entitled to mandatory compensation. the German law was enacted by the Nazis in 1942, the Japanese in 1959. Why can't we do the same in our democracy????