We all know their stories–the once-industry leaders that failed to keep up with changes in technology and quickly lost traction. But what about their counterparts? The ones that not only survived in times of change, but thrived? Here are their stories, and here's what we can learn:

1. The Survivors of Tech
WHAT YOU CAN LEARN FROM THEM

2. You’ve heard their stories over and over again, cited as
companies you don’t want to end up like. The
“failed-to-innovate graveyard” is filled with companies who
have stories used as scare tactics, and for the most part their
stories are the same: household names who failed to adapt
to quick-changing technological advances. The stories are
enough to keep us up at night, but what about their
counterparts? What about the companies that stole the
industry spotlight with their continuous innovation and bold
strategies?

3. “It is about comfort, safety, having a
courteous driver – all those things that
go into a great customer experience.”
Uber Head of European Business
Development Fraser Robinson11
“Transportation companies compete for
customers, and ultimately it is the
consumer who makes the choice.”
Chicago’s Department of Business Affairs
and Consumer Protection10
Talk about an industry that was completely ignorant of customer service. Just thinking about the
process of hailing a cab, riding in an often dirty car, and paying outrageous fares (in cash, usually) is
enough to make us cringe now that we know there is an alternative. Uber truly changed the game,
taking all hassle out of grabbing a ride and providing a frictionless experience for their customers,
from hailing to paying on their smartphones to having pleasant experiences with drivers.

4. “At least initially, they thought we were
a very small niche business.”
Former Netflix CFO Barry McCarthy on why
Blockbuster turned their partnership offer
down3
“Investor concern over the threat of new
technologies is overstated.”
Blockbuster analyst report, 19991
Then-CEO John Antioco had a chance to buy Netflix for $50 million in 2000, but–being the top dog
in the industry at the time–he showed them the door, thinking that the new technology was “niche”.2
Instead of remaining stagnant in their roots (remember getting DVDs snail mailed to you in those red
envelopes?), Netflix noticed a trend and adapted quickly to a streaming model in 2007.4

5. “We’re not competitor obsessed, we’re
customer obsessed. We start with the
customer needs and we work
backwards.”
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos8
"Any company that sells at the lowest
price with no customer service is going
to fail.”
Customer Service expert Grant Cardone on
Sears7
Once upon a time, Sears was the pinnacle of customer experience. But when times got tough
financially, that customer experience standard was the first to go, and the retail giant simply couldn’t
recover.7
Amazon has been the undisputed customer satisfaction champ9
for the past several years,
and it’s due largely to the fact that they’re meeting customers exactly where they already are: online.

6. “So accessible and so easy.”
Acclaimed photographer Annie Leibovitz on
the iPhone’s camera6
“The change from preserving memories
to sharing experiences...these were
things Kodak simply couldn't handle.”
Cambridge professor Dr. Kamal Munir, who
has studied Kodak for more than a decade5
There’s no doubt that Kodak had a great product and stellar marketing, but what they didn’t have was
willingness to adapt. Not only did they fail to follow through with the technology shift12
, but they also
ignored the consumer mindset shift from taking photos to preserve memories, to taking photos to
share experiences.5
With a good read on both current technology trends and societal trends, Apple
swooped in with not only a product for taking high-quality photos, but also integration to platforms
that allowed you to share those digital memories and experiences.

7. "Ultimately advertising is about selling
attention, and if most of that attention is
focused on Google and Facebook, then
naturally they can monetize it."
Balderton Capital Venture Partner Suranga
Chandratillake14
"It was a tough hand. They weren't born
with great content, and they were trying
to compete with Facebook and Google."
Chief Executive of Digital Content Next
Jason Kint on Yahoo13
Even though the popular email service and news curator was able to remain the third-most-visited site
in 2016, its main revenue generator (ad sales) was flopping due to its inability to adapt to mobile
trends.13
This power combo quickly took over the mobile market, collectively owning eight of the top
apps and generating combined billions in mobile ad revenue.13

8. “Barnes & Noble’s success to date
demonstrates that market leaders can
innovate and, indeed, reminds us that
they must.”
Chunka Mui for Forbes16
“The point was that Borders was
completely indistinguishable from
(Barnes & Noble) and the competition.
The books that you could buy at Borders
you could buy at Costco–cheaper."
Borders Store No. 1 Manager Joe Gable15
Although Borders started strong in times of technological change, it fell behind when it came to
eBooks. Borders began selling eBooks just eight months after Barnes & Noble did, but it wasn’t fast
enough to fix their failing finances. Barnes & Noble saw customer behaviors tending toward the web
and didn’t skip a beat. Not only did they ramp up online selling and develop the Nook eReader, but
they also kept focus on Barnes & Noble brick and mortar locations, which played to the
paperback-purist crowd that wasn’t too keen on reading via screen.

9. Here’s What These Champions of Change
Have In Common:
A future-first
approach to adapting
new technologies and
trends.
A customer
centric approach to
implementing new
technologies.
The guts to try
something new rather
than remain in their
comfort zones.

10. Your Guide to Being A Change Champion
Evo
lve
Com
pete
Eval
uate
Chal
lenge
Don’t be afraid to challenge the
status quo
Constantly evaluate your customer
experience with a customer-centric
mindset
See new competition as an
opportunity to innovate
Stay on top of evolving technology
trends

11. Even though each of these brands were well-known and loved
by their customers, their affections quickly turned when some-
thing better and newer came along. Brand loyalty can only get
you so far–it’s truly the innovators that come out victorious.
For more information on how you can innovate your way to the top,
visit lumavate.com
1
http://digitalcommunications.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk/2015/03/05/whats-the-value-in-pixels-the-ethos-of-digital-change/
2
http://variety.com/2013/biz/news/epic-fail-how-blockbuster-could-have-owned-netflix-1200823443/
3
http://tusb.stanford.edu/2008/01/barry_mccarthy_chief_financial.html
4
http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/21/showbiz/gallery/netflix-history/
5
http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/the-rise-and-fall-of-kodaks-moment
6
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/apple/8903814/Annie-Leibovitz-praises-iPhone-camera.html
7
http://www.businessinsider.com/sears-gave-up-on-customer-service-2013-2
8
https://www.salesforce.com/blog/2013/06/jeff-bezos-lessons.html
9
http://www.theacsi.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=149&catid=&Itemid=214&c=Amazon&i=Internet+Retail
10
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/06/05/chicago-cabbies-say-industry-teetering-toward-collapse/102524634/
11
https://www.marketingweek.com/2015/01/12/uber-focuses-on-driver-loyalty-in-bid-to-boost-customer-experience/
12
https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/08/12/kodaks-first-digital-moment/
13
http://www.chicagotribune.com/bluesky/technology/ct-behind-yahoos-downfall-20160420-story.html
14
http://fortune.com/2017/01/04/google-facebook-ad-industry/
15
http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/09/12/first.borders.bookstore.closing/index.html
16
https://www.forbes.com/sites/chunkamui/2012/05/03/barnes-noble-out-innovates-microsoft-how-could-this-happen/2/#5d53a65376ae