April 23, 2014 · 8:30 am

New Data On A Shifting Market

Every so often we take a look at the cord-cutting phenomenon. This is the term that applies to the act of getting rid of your cable subscription,

Early 1950s Television Set

(Photo credit: gbaku)

or as is more frequently the case with young consumers, never having one to begin with. Since the folks at Experian Marketing Services just released some new information on the topic I thought this might be a good time to take another look.

As we’ve discussed here before, I think it’s probably too soon to tell if what we’re seeing in the data below as well as other data at which we’ve looked is a trend or a blip.  That said, I think we’re probably getting to the point, especially among young people, where we can begin to draw some conclusion and maybe to adjust our business plans accordingly.  Let’s see what you think.

An April 2014 survey published by Experian Marketing Services suggests that 7.6 million U.S. households, or 6.5% of all U.S. households, have now cut the cord–up 44% in the past three years. Ownership of an iPhone or iPad “noticeably increases the odds” that a household will cut the cord, Experian said. Experian notes that nearly 25% of adults between the ages of 18 and 34 who subscribe to a streaming video service like Netflix and Hulu do not pay for a traditional TV service. Experian also found that households who only watch streaming video on mobile devices are 1.5 times more likely to cut the cord, while those who watch streaming video on TV are 3.2 times more likely to cut the cord.

The above is taken from Cir.ca’s summary which also contains some other data points you might find of interest.  I think it’s pretty clear that whatever is going on it’s happening at an increasingly rapid pace.  It’s pretty apparent that as mobile devices – phones and tablets – become more able to handle high quality video streams the tether to the TV screen gets weaker.  The rapid growth of Roku devices along with Chromecasts, Amazon’s Fire TV, Apple TV, and other over-the-top devices, along with “smart” tv’s, has meant that well over half the homes have some way to access “television” on their TV screen without using a traditional cable service.  To me, that doesn’t bode well for the cable guys.

On the other hand, I’m guessing that most homes get their broadband internet service from the same people from whom they get their video service.  We’re already seeing Comcast and other providers marketing high-speed internet with a small dose of video, a very different approach.  Is the door open to others jumping in as Google has with Google Fiber?  Where are the WiMax folks?  Stay tuned – this isn’t over.  I am not sure where the trend line flattens out and the cord-cutting phenomenon stops, but we’re not there yet as this data shows.  What are your thoughts?

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April 22, 2014 · 9:56 am

Nothing But Flowers

I had intended to write on a totally different song (and topic) this morning but sometimes what you write finds you instead of the other way ’round, I guess.

Horseshoe tavern, Toronto, May 13, 1978

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

My original thought – which might just show up in this space next TunesDay – had to do with hiring and the future. As I was searching for an appropriate song about the future with which to make my point, a number of choices filled my head.  Joni Mitchell, David Bowie, Queen, and others have all written about the topic but I think The Talking Heads describe it – and make my point – the best of all:

 

 

I love that video!  It also makes a couple of great business points which, of course, are our topic today.  The song is about a post-apocalyptic world in which everything has fallen apart.  No more malls, 7-11’s, or Pizza Huts.  It’s a bright, upbeat, dance tune which is in direct contrast to the dark vision the lyrics paint and the singer’s statement that “if this is paradise/I wish I had a lawnmower.”  That’s the first business point.

Too often we don’t listen to what people are saying and get way too focused on how they’re saying it.  A simple example is the person in a negotiation who comes to you with an issue and expresses himself in an inappropriately angry manner.  It could be the young person who weeps while talking about their salary.   In any case, one needs to listen to the words and ignore their “music” lest we receive a different message.

The other point this song makes is the we need to be careful about the long-term implications for what we’re doing.  “And as things fell apart/Nobody paid much attention”.   Not only do we need to pay attention, we need to take action.  In this case, the singer once wanted the world in which he find himself.  Be careful what you wish for, and take the time to think about the longer term.

You got it, you got it!

 

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April 21, 2014 · 8:15 am

Benjamin And Your Business

You’re probably familiar with Benjamin Franklin.

Jean-Baptiste Greuze portrait of Benjamin Fran...

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I wonder sometimes if all of the folks who say “it’s all about the benjamins” know why old Ben is on the hundred-dollar bill. They’d do well to pay attention to one of the things he had to say that ought to be a guiding principle of our business lives.

Believe only half of what you see and nothing that you hear.

In know it’s not Tuesday (TunesDay here on the screed) but The Boss paraphrased this in his song, “Magic.” The lyric is “Trust none of what you hear / And less of what you’ll see”. He explained it this way:

The song ‘Magic’ is about living in a time when anything that is true can be made to seem like a lie, and anything that is a lie can be made to seem true. There are people who have taken that as their credo.

Bruce went on to make a political statement which we’ll ignore for the moment in favor of how that thinking can help us in business.  Way too many managers rely on what they hear rather than what they see.  They’re often behind closed doors, reading reports that others have spent many hours compiling.  That’s kind of hearsay evidence in my mind.   It’s someones interpretation of what the numbers say which may or may bot be accurate.  As Bruce implies, people have their own agendas and they can twist numbers or facts to tell you their story, not THE story.  However, our jobs as managers are way too demanding on our time for us to do everything, of course, so how do we manage that dilemma?

We do a couple of things.  The first is that in the case of critical decisions we must gather information ourselves, and then trust only half of what we see as Ben advises.  The second is that we must train others to be our eyes, not our ears.  Then we need to remind them that they must “see” so you can.  That means teaching them to dig for information which presents itself first-hand.

Get out from behind your desks.  Wander around.  Don’t rely on a quarterly report that’s passed through several sets of hands of people who may or may not be relaying the information in an unfiltered manner.  If your reports tell you that you’re selling a lot and yet when you look in the warehouse it’s overflowing, ask questions.  Trust what you see, half of it anyway.  You’ll be seeing a lot more of Mr. Franklin that way – he’s the guy on the hundred.  Won’t that be fun?

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