I'll always remember my first one. As a young girl in the mid-seventies, a good family friend brought a large box-like structure to our home and told us it was a new camera. One that could take a picture and we would be able to see it within minutes. We all stared at the thing in awe.
No one in my family owned a personal camera. When special moments needed to be recorded, we called a photographer. It was always uncomfortable. And after the posing and primping, you were lucky to get a picture back to you in a couple of weeks.
Our family friend offered to take a picture. Just like that! No special primping, no awkward pose...just a smile please & a flash and a few minutes later, just like he'd promise, we could see ourselves. As we were moments ago. Wow! We were thrilled and awed. Polaroid camera would become for me and many of our friends our first foray into the era of new imaging technologies.
Today, my Active Rain friend Colleen Kulikowskisent me a Digg on an article she thought might be of interest to me. It was about the virtual demise of Polaroid. The story, filed earlier this month in the New York Times by the Associated Press chronicles the demise of what was once an industry giant. This month, Polaroid is dropping the technology that gave it worldwide fame and is whittling down it's work force which topped 21,000 world wide just 30 years ago to a minimalist 150. In fact, Polaroid stopped making instant cameras almost two years ago leaving the camera to languish in the relics of history.
The president of the company, Tom Beaudoin is quoted as saying:
''We're trying to reinvent Polaroid so it lives on for the next 30 to 40 years,'' Tom Beaudoin, Polaroid's president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer, said in a phone interview Friday, after the company's plans were reported in The Boston Globe.
The article goes on to note:
Polaroid failed to embrace the digital technology that has transformed photography, instead sticking to its belief that many photographers who didn't want to wait to get pictures developed would hold onto their old Polaroid cameras.
Three things struck me as particularly poignant:
Polaroid executives failed to discern the Future of their industry. They failed to embrace digital technology even though they were the industry leaders.
Polaroid still holds Market Share in the mind of loyal enthusiasts who will go to great lengths to procure and continue to use a Polaroid for sheer nostalgia's sake
Polaroid is struggling to emerge from a near-death experience by touting a new mini-sized printer of photographs.
Today, the real estate industry stands at similar crossroads.
We are in danger of failing to discern the future of our industry and failing to embrace the technology which will define it in the next decade even though we are currently the industry leaders. We are in danger of failing to comprehend how drastically the nature of SEARCH will re-define the real estate process in it's entirety.
Polaroid didn't see it coming. The instant picture is no match for a digital image which can be deleted, re-imaged, shared, colorized, stored AND printed at the whim of the user with minimal cost.
Today, most real estate continues to be sold by real estate agents. In fact, over 80% of sales are transactions facilitated by real estate professionals. But last year, according to the National Association of Realtors, approximately 400,000 Members did not Sell even one home. That number is expected to increase this year. The point is this: there will always be a place for real estate agents who are effective and efficient. But, we risk loosing our market dominance if we don't adapt in a way that meets the needs and desires of today's consumers who are looking for:
*Convenience & Easy Access to ALL real estate related information
*Reasonable Costs for Value Added Services
*Verifiable Expertise
*Enhanced Options & Opportunities aided by the use of new technologies
Will Polaroid be able to regain it's glory days by touting the development of a convenient mini-sized printer? Maybe. But, I would suggest that the odds of this happening are infinitesimally small. Why? Because this is not their unique service advantage. There are many in the printing world who have been doing this far longer and have the benefits of "mind share ownership" in the consumer's mind in the arena of printing. When I think of printing, I think of Hewlett Packard...not Polaroid.
Is the real estate industry in danger of making this type of error?. Absolutely. If we loose our Core Mission even though we have a significant margin to our advantage, we may also find that within a decade, real estate agents who survive in semblance close to what we understand the term to mean today, will be struggling to do everything BUT actually helping members of the general public to buy and sell homes. Just a thought...
Copyright 2008 Audu Real Estate All Rights Reserved
Photo image of young photographer is courtesy of muha's photostreamon flickr.com
Photo image of crossroad is courtesy of bradleyolin's photostreamon flickr.com
Lola Audu, is the Designated Broker & Owner of Audu Real Estate. Our company specializes in helping people buy and sell homes in the greater Grand Rapids, West Michigan area. You can contact us via e-mail @ info@auduhomes.com or by phone at 616-791-0511. Thanks for visiting our blog. Here are links to some of our most popular posts for you to enjoy!
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Lola - Polaroid has, indeed, been through many changes, the most recent only one of a series. The story, unfortunately, is not uncommon among corporations whose leaders fail to recognize the changes taking place in their marketplace until it is too late, and then dramatical alter their business plan impacting thousands of employees.
I really enjoyed this article, in part due to my own interest in photography and the impact the digital age has had. The photo of the child with the camera immediately made me think of a fabulous documentary "Born into Brothels: The Children of Calcutta's Red Light District." The power of a camera to change a life is remarkable. I've got a post brewing...
Jeff
Your post brought back memories of my first camera.
Lola -- Those of us who embrace the power of web 2.0, I hope, will reshape and move the industry to a new and better place. Obviously, information is readily available, but the conversation is what is so powerful. Consumers can connect with us at lightening speed. Facts, figures, data and opinions can be transmitted regardless of locale...
Unlike the short sightedness of the executives at Polaroid, the beauty of our industry is that individual Realtors(R) have the power to create a business that is nimble, flexible and accessible to the consumer regardless of how the "big boys" choose to operate. You are a shining example of this reality -- charting a new course in a familiar but changing environment.
Lola. I keep a few Mavika digitals that load to floppy for buyers who still have a floppy disk.
They also make a printer that will print out images from a digital on the road. If I was still "on the road", I'd have one in my car.
The digital revolution is here to stay. I just retired my daily Mavika last year.
Kodak missed the digital market too.
I still have a Poleroid, if I needed one. Do they still make film packs for them, I wonder?
Lola,
As always, a powerful and thought provoking post. I had read the New York Times article and shaking my head in disbelief. Here was a brand name company who did not keep up with the technology and what people wanted.
The same thing can happen to Realtors, or any other profession. If we do not embrace the available technology and give our clients the value in our services, we will be relegated to the "the good ol days" of Real Estate and the insta-matic camera.
Lola, This is an outstanding post as usual! The analogy between Polaroid and our industry is spot on. We MUST listen to the market and adapt our businesses to meet it's needs. If not...well we too will be obsolete.
This post reminds me of one of my favorite groups Outkast and their song "Shake it like a Polaroid".
Lola - so many market leaders don't make it when there's a major change - Singer sewing machine, IBM typewriters - it's not about just improving what's there, it's about innovating and jumping to another level.
You're Welcome Dan. Thanks for your comment. The challenge is going beyond the slogan and delivering a consistent service or product which satisfies OR creates a demand. We're already more than half-way there by virtue of the fact that we sell homes. This fight is our to loose ONLY be default if we choose to stay asleep.
Lola...way to look the future straight in the eye. You will not go quietly...and neither will I.
Remember those cameras that had a small polaroid photo-sticker? That lasted about a month.