The significance of this to senior marketing executives is twofold: First, they cannot-indeed, they must not-assume that yesterday’s customers will be available tomorrow. The need to understand and anticipate future customers is bound to become even more essential than in the past, because the end users of almost every company’s products are shifting in makeup, location, and number at an ever-increasing rate. But this trend-the first on my list-is still in process of evolution. It is nearly a truism that the needs and wants of the consumer are the critical issues today in creating new products and services, and developing the accompanying plans to merchandise them at a profit. And among these broader trends, there are six whose effects, I believe, will be felt by almost every business. Others are broader and more functional in nature. Some are confined to particular industries. Not all changes in marketing, of course, are equally significant. And even while adapting to change, a company’s marketing effort must reflect an internal constancy of purpose and an external consistency of image. Change gets costlier every day yet not changing can be costlier still. Today’s chief executive faces a baffling dilemma. This is particularly true in marketing, where the very tempo of change is constantly quickening. And the ability to master and exploit change has become one of the most sought-after management skills. Change is the dominant fact of life in every business today.
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