Business
The Rise And Fall Of Netflix
For the first time in over a decade, Netflix has lost 200,000 U.S. subscribers and expects to lose more. This would be shocking news if it weren’t for recent decisions by the steaming giant’s executives. The rise and fall of Netflix is a story of trendsetting domination to a single-day 35% plummet in stock value.
To fix this, Netflix has proposed cracking down on password sharers and introducing ads.
Are they sure they wanna do that? Netflix was once the cool kid for not having commercials. It even relied on password sharers in order to grow.
What was once the future of media consumption has begun its inevitable downfall. The pioneer for streaming services has plummeted across the board. How did this happen? How could a company go from underdog to trendsetter to failure in just 20 years?
This is another business tale of cheer and woe: the rise and fall of Netflix.
The Birth of DVDs
Netflix was founded in 1997 by Marc Randolph and Reed Hastings as an online DVD rental service. Hastings loves to say he was inspired to start Netflix after being charged $40 in late fees at his local Blockbuster.
“I had a big late fee for Apollo 13. It was six weeks late and I owed the video store $40. I had misplaced the cassette. It was all my fault.”
It’s a cute, relatable story, right? Well, it’s not true. It’s totally fabricated for marketing. Co-founder Randolph clarified in an interview:
“The founding stories are just that, they’re stories. They’re constructs that we come up with to take what’s a very messy process with input from many, many people and condense it into a story which you can get across in a sentence or two.”
Also known as an “elevator pitch,” the story of a company’s founding works as a sales pitch. Everyone loves a story, and Hastings told a good one.
The real story of how Netflix was founded was much like every other tech company’s story in the late 90s.
Hastings’s software company, Pure Atria, had just been sold for $700 million – a Silicon Valley record. Randolph worked as a marketing director for Pure Atria. The two came up with the idea for Netflix while carpooling between each other’s homes.
Randolph admired Amazon’s large catalog of items to sell over the internet. Hastings and Randolph wanted to take that model and apply it to movies. VHS tapes were too easily damaged to sustain an online delivery service, but the brand new DVDs proved to handle travel well.
And so, Netflix launched in 1998 with 30 employees and 925 titles available for rent. The races were off.
The Death of Blockbuster
You can’t talk about the rise and fall of Netflix without mentioning Blockbuster. Despite being direct competitors, very different and specific business decisions led to Blockbuster’s eventual downfall that cannot be attributed to Netflix’s success.
Still, it’s hard not to imagine Netflix being the company that “killed” Blockbuster.
In 2001, DVD players were the hot holiday gift item. Netflix was in a position to be the cool alternative to Blockbuster as DVD subscription services were growing like crazy. But Blockbuster was still the king of movie rentals. It was an event for friends and families to visit Blockbuster on a Friday evening to rent the hot new flick or a timeless classic.
But there was one thing that everyone equally hated about Blockbuster: Late fees.
Netflix, despite totally having late fees at the start of their business, jumped on this with glee:
Being the sexy alternative to Blockbuster helped give rise to Netflix. Eventually, due to poor leadership and the Great Recession in 2008, Blockbuster eventually declined. Today, only a single store remains open in Oregon.
Netflix continued to grow. By 2005, Netflix had 35,000 different films available and shipped 1 million DVDs in a single day.
But that wasn’t all for Netflix. They were about to completely upend the movie industry.
How To Binge An Entire Series In One Weekend
In 2007, Netflix launched its streaming media service. They had 1000 films available for stream and 70,000 available on DVD. With TiVO being the current “cool kid” in movie/television consumption, the original idea was to build a “Netflix box” where one could download movies overnight.
The success of YouTube, however, nixed that idea. People didn’t want to download content, they wanted to stream it.
Soon, Netflix acquired the streaming rights to series like The Office, Futurama, Friends, Breaking Bad, and many more. Viewers quickly latched onto this method like content junkies ready to fight sleep in order to watch “just one more episode.”
Before you knew it, Netflix was inspiring other streaming services like Hulu. Their viewership grew and grew as regular cable viewership dipped. Networks like FOX, CBS, and NBC soon began to openly tease their own streaming services. Why should Netflix get viewers for NBC shows?
With big networks in the rearview mirror, there was only one logical step forward for Netflix: original content.
Netflix is the New HBO
In 2013, Netflix jumped into the world of original content. When House of Cards, Hemlock Grove, and Orange is the New Black first aired it harkened back to the Golden Age of HBO with The Sopranos, Sex and the City, and Six Feet Under.
Netflix ran with original content as fast as they could. A deal with Marvel brought about Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and Daredevil to the home screen. Comedies like BoJack Horseman, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Master of None, and Grace and Frankie expanded Netflix’s audience even further.
By the time the blockbuster series Stranger Things premiered in 2016 to great success and acclaim, Netflix was the premier network. Everyone had a Netflix. And if you didn’t, why the hell not?
Netflix was acquiring so much content at such a high rate that it soon became a joke amongst certain crowds that Netflix would buy anything.
Exclusive, multi-million dollar stand up specials with comedy legends like Dave Chappelle, Louis C.K., Chris Rock, Jim Gaffigan, Bill Burr, Hannah Gadsby, Ali Wong, Jerry Seinfeld, and more garnered even more viewership.
With a continuous stream of high-quality content, the desire for prestige soon followed.
Here Come The Awards
Now that you have all the viewers in the world, you need the awards to cement their status as a major player in entertainment. Netflix didn’t want popular soap dramas to gobble up audiences, they wanted those shiny awards.
Starting in 2019, Netflix began to dominate awards shows. Films like Roma, The Irishman, Marriage Story, Mank, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Don’t Look Up, The Power of the Dog, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, The Two Popes, 13th, Icarus, My Octopus Teacher, and many more were bestowed Oscar nominations and wins.
Netflix also dominated television. Starting in 2014 with Emmy wins for shows like House of Cards and Orange is the New Black began to rack up for the streaming service. Uzo Aduba and Claire Foy famously won Emmys for their performances in Netflix original series.
Nothing like a whole bunch of awards to cement your status as the king of content. When you’ve made it this far, why stop?
Too Much and Never Enough
If you were to scroll through Netflix’s massive library of content, you might find yourself a little overwhelmed. There is so much original and licensed content, with more being added and subtracted every month, that you can never run out of something to watch.
But all of that content means very little can succeed from within. Peter Csathy, founder of media advisory firm Creativ Media, summed it up nicely:
“Netflix is voraciously gobbling up movies and television shows across all genres, making it a seller’s market.
“The main negative for creators and content owners in working with Netflix is that there is so much new original content that is featured by Netflix, it is increasingly difficult to break out and find an audience on Netflix.
“Without a deep marketing commitment on the part of Netflix, those movies and television shows face the cold reality that they become lost in the content shuffle.”
If you were to have an original show idea, the smart thing to do used to be to take it to Netflix. Chances are, they were going to buy at least one season from you right off the bat. But if success isn’t guaranteed (and it never is in entertainment), you’re going to start exploring your options.
HBO, still one of the best networks for a creative series or film to take off, knows this. Casey Bloys, HBO president of programming, uses this very specific metaphor to explain how they give shows the necessary attention they need:
“If you have 50 kids, you’re not going to every soccer game. We go to every soccer game, and we’re the snack parents at every soccer game.”
HBO CEO Richard Pleper follows up:
“More is not better. Only better is better.”
HBO continues to dominate its reputation as a source of seriously high-quality content.
What Is Netflix’s Future?
Netflix will surely bounce back from this recent setback. Its stock will rise again, and subscribers may return. But their reputation as the future of media is no longer. The company went from thinking ahead to throwing all the money at anything.
Throwing everying at the wall to see what sticks is a necessary strategy for any company looking to grow. But that strategy has a limit. Netflix appears to be throwing more and more and more at the wall and letting all of it stick.
Who asked for video games on Netflix? That’s an odd medium for the company to step into. $30 million per episode of Stranger Things? Settle down, that’s way too much.
Currently, Netflix has three price tiers: $10, $15.50, and $20. No competitor costs more than $15/month. They may raise their prices once again. But as Disney+, Paramount+, Peacock, Hulu, and HBOMax snag a sizeable share of the market, Netflix is looking like they’re playing catch up.
Suddenly, Netflix’s future looks a little more like this:
Omnichannel has become a recent buzzword online. That’s because the business landscape has shifted most of their marketing efforts into virtual communication. Advertisers are always looking for new ways to boost online connections with audiences while increasing sales. This is how “omnichannel” sprouted quickly and into every marketer’s arsenal. But what is omnichannel, and what are some omnichannel marketing platforms that do the job? Read on to find out.
What is Omnichannel Marketing?
The concept of omnichannel is simple. It aims to provide marketers a quick way to communicate with their customers and get as much engagement and conversion as possible from one go. Their objective is for customers to enjoy a seamless shopping experience on multiple brand channels, including online, mobile, or in-store. This means, marketers would have to show customers the same pricing and promotions across all brand channels.
However, it also goes beyond that. You have to ensure that customers can navigate through different channels with ease. This means customers can switch between your brand channels without any roadblocks. For instance, a customer can order from your online store and have the option to pick it up from your physical location. One way to increase sales is by offering customers additional items to boost order value.
Why is Omnichannel Marketing Important?
Omnichannel marketing is crucial these days since most people have shifted to online browsing and shopping. Moreover, if advertisers market on three or more channels, this could result in a 90 percent higher retention rate compared to using a single-channel campaign.
Additionally, omnichannel marketing also strengthens your brand messaging since campaigns are consistent across all platforms. But what are the primary reasons why advertisers focus on omnichannel marketing?
- Brands will get high customer retention
- Gains customer loyalty
- More personalization in the customer’s journey
- More integrated business
- Better customer insight
- Smooth and enjoyable customer experience
How Does Omnichannel Advertising Work?
An example of omnichannel marketing is when a sports retail store sends its prospects an email containing a recent promotion on its newly launched running shoes. The email content shows the link to the promotion. Once customers click this link, they are taken to the brand’s eCommerce website. Instructions also let them know they can get it from the brick-and-mortar store.
Another example is when a furniture store shows a behind-the-scenes video on YouTube about how its experts craft their pieces. Once viewers watch the video, they are welcomed with a link inviting them to join the brand’s email newsletter.
10 Omnichannel Marketing Platforms
Here are 10 best omnichannel marketing tools.
1. BigCommerce
This online and offline sales tool is for large-scale businesses looking to streamline their advertising strategies. BigCommerce unifies all marketing campaigns in an easy and convenient platform, including in-store, online, social media, and marketplaces. It can also handle large volumes of sales, traffic, and transactions, providing customers with a smooth experience.
2. NewStore
NewStore is the tool for all your POS and inventory management systems. It can manage orders, inventory, and customer data across the brand’s channels. It also comes with robust marketing tools that offer personalized engagement, such as push notifications, mobile apps, and location-based marketing.
3. Glassix
If you’re looking for the best omnichannel marketing platforms for communication, Glassix sits at the top of the list. It’s an AI-powered advertising tool that helps with email, SMS, live chat, messaging apps, and social media. Using Glassix means tracking all customer interactions and messages in one user-friendly interface is easy. It also lets you send targeted messages to your audiences based on their preferences and behaviors.
4. Desku
In addition to integrating all customer communications in one interface, Desku also helps with automation functions, such as chatbots, canned responses, ticketing systems, and more. Plus, it offers reporting tools and analytics to monitor progress.
5. Omnisend
Omnisend is the platform for all your SMS and email marketing campaigns. It’s best suited for eCommerce businesses and allows advertisers to create, monitor, and automate campaigns across all channels. It offers drag-and-drop features and is extremely easy to use.
6. Tidio
When searching for the best omnichannel communication platform, Tidio ranks high. It’s designed to facilitate customer interactions, manage inquiries, and offer real-time support.
7. Adobe Experience Cloud
You can’t succeed in omnichannel marketing without using a cloud-based service. And Adobe Experience Cloud ensures you get the right cloud-based solution for optimizing customer experiences. You can use this tool to build and manage customer journeys through AI-powered insights. You can also integrate this platform with other Adobe tools like Adobe Experience Manager, Adobe Target, Adobe Campaign, Adobe Analytics, and more.
8. Revealbot
If you’re spending time on paid ads, Revealbot will help you manage them in one user-friendly interface. It’s a marketing tool that helps optimize digital advertising campaigns on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Google Ads. You can use this tool to set automation features, campaign budgets, and custom ad rules.
9. Shopify Plus
Shopify Plus if one of the best omnichannel marketing platforms for eCommerce businesses. It helps create a streamlined customer shopping experience. From workflows and checkouts to customer segmentation and targeted marketing campaigns, this is a reliable tool to use.
10. Oracle CX Commerce
Oracle CX Commerce is the best solution for B2B and B2C businesses. It’s a cloud-based eCommerce platform that helps provide personalized experiences. It also offers advanced features that simplify segmentation, customized content, targeted promotions, and customer engagement.
If you frequent the outdoors, you know how important protecting your playground is. When you’re close to nature, you must always prioritize eco-consciousness. While you practice sustainable habits, supporting brands prioritizing sustainability becomes a top priority. If you’re always planning an outdoor adventure and need the gear, here are the top 10 sustainable outdoor gear brands you must check out.
1. Patagonia
Over the years, Patagonia has lined up its corporate social responsibilities, mainly focusing on labor and the environment. They have robust social responsibility programs that ensure workers and communities are cared for. Patagonia claims that 85 percent of its products are made in factories with Fair Trade Certified certifications. The brand also helped over 85,000 workers by participating in Fair Trade programs. The brand also helped more than 2,000 farmers from its Regenerative Organic Certified cotton program.
2. Osprey
Osprey, a brand that creates robust backpacks for travel and outdoors, is also committed to sustainability. The company is a trusted bluesign SYSTEM partner, which helps eliminate PFAS-based DWR in 100 percent of its textile products. On top of its promise of eco-friendly materials, the standard for its backpacks is unparalleled, offering durability, functionality, and repairability. These products undergo field testing and athlete evaluations to ensure it’s a pack that runs a lifetime.
3. Hydro Flask
Plastic bottles comprise one of the highest numbers of ocean pollutants. Hydro Flask is committed to minimizing this by introducing excellent insulated water bottles that last a lifetime! I bought one five years ago, and the insulation functionality still works like the very first day I got it. The brand boasts its recycled-content bottle, the Slingback Bottle Pack, with a 100 percent recycled polyester body. It also eliminated single-use plastic for its packaging, specifically for 90 percent of its products. Hydro Flask uses soy-based inks and no foils and varnishes for their products too!
4. Black Diamond
Black Diamond is among the top brands for the best outdoor gear, specifically reliable and durable helmets. The company’s ethos is based on the team’s outdoor pursuits. First, the company’s 12,000-square-foot headquarters is energy-efficient, with a 2,200-watt solar photovoltaic system that generates about 3,000 kWh of electricity per year. Black Diamond also advocates for sustainable outdoor and recreation practices and is a founding member of the Outdoor Industry Association’s Climate Action Corps.
5. Sierra Designs
Sierra Designs is also one of the best sustainable outdoor gear brands you can rely on. They aim to create products that have as minimal impact as possible on Mother Nature. The brand boasts the DriDown product, which ensures that feathers come from animals that weren’t subjected to any harm. The brand also uses neglected recycled materials for its fabric’s exteriors and insulation for apparel and sleeping bags. A lifetime warranty also backs all Sierra Designs products.
6. Hyperlite
Hyperlite is your go-to outdoor gear brand if you’re into climbing, hiking, or rock climbing. The company is committed to sustainability for as long as the brand is still in operation. They created the Hyperlite Mountain Gear ethos, essentialism, which differs from minimalism. The brand believes that an intentional and thoughtful approach to assembling its backpacks ensures its products are safe, comfortable, warm, and efficient. Hyperlite is a proud partner of Dyneema, a bio-based fiber company, and promises to use this fiber in all its outdoor gear products.
7. MSR
For all your climbing equipment, don’t miss out on MSR products. The founder, a lifelong mountaineer, believed that a safe and reliable equipment is key to greater adventures. Today, the brand is proud to hand-build many MSR products. The brand is also another founding members of the Outdoor Industry Association Sustainability Working Group. It’s a collaboration of over 300 outdoor brands, manufacturers, and suppliers that focus on sustainability challenges and solutions.
8. Sunski
When you’re enjoying outdoor adventures, make sure you enjoy it in style with Sunski sustainable glasses. Sunski is a fantastic eyewear manufacturer in America that uses plastic scraps to turn into frames! A unique sunglass niche in the industry. The sunglasses are flexible, lightweight, and extremely durable. All Sunski customers will also get a lifetime warranty for their glasses. And if they break? Repair or replacement is free!
9. Cotopaxi
Cotopaxi backpacks, travel packs, hip packs, and duffels are colorful and vibrant and made with eco-friendly materials. They embarked on the The (Re)Purpose™ Collection program, which uses recycled deadstock or leftover fabric from other fashion brands. They also offer a lifetime guarantee on repairs or replacements. As members of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, they support Amazon’s reforestation. Cotopaxi believes that doing good will create a ripple effect, so they reward customers who #DoGood!
10. Goal Zero
Here’s another eco-friendly outdoor gear brand for all your needs and more. To offer you the best outdoor camping experience, Goal Zero even sells power essentials, such as inverter generators, handheld portable power devices, solar panels, and battery banks. The company also aims to practice eco-conscious manufacturing methods by ensuring all 10+ factories in nine countries adhere to environmental and human rights standards. Its top sustainable camping gear is the Yeti Portable Power Station, with a four over five rating!
Eco-consciousness and health and fitness must be the perfect tandem. If you prioritize your health and fitness, the same care should also concentrate on sustainability. While you’re focused on your fitness goals, the process shouldn’t be as destructive to the environment. Just like you want to nourish your body with the good stuff, you also want to protect Mother Nature like it’s your own body. After all, the outdoors offers so much to benefit your health in the long run. Hiking, camping, rock climbing, surfing, swimming, to name a few. That said, protecting your playground as much as possible is only fitting. And that starts with choosing the most sustainable activewear brands. Here are the top 10 sustainable brands for fun and play.
1. Iron Roots
While some activewear brands claim 80 percent sustainability, Iron Roots embarks on 100 percent sustainable products and processes. It’s plastic-free all-organic athletic apparel that will not only make you feel good but also make you feel better about wearing Mother Nature-friendly apparel. Founded in 2018 by Dutch friends, the founders combined functionality, design, and sustainability in beautiful sportswear. They were both fed up with how the market manufactures most apparel from unsustainable materials. The brand uses non-plastic materials and unique plastic-based apparel like polyester. It’s a breathable and comfortable activewear that will help you achieve your fitness goals!
2. Girlfriend Collective
Girlfriend Collective is a Seattle-based brand making waves in the sustainable activewear niche in 2024. They are famous for their sports bras, trendy gym tops, leggings, and more! But the best part is the teams behind this brand are tree huggers, prioritizing recycled materials for their apparel. From fabric scraps to water bottles and fishing nets, you know you’re working out and helping the brand’s mission. The brand also uses eco-friendly dyes to color its clothes while managing wastewater responsibly. They created the ReGirlfriend program to prevent textiles from being in landfills!
3. Patagonia
Every outdoorsperson has heard of the famous brand Patagonia. The company has set a gold standard for sustainable apparel and manufacturing. Recently, the popular activewear brand has revamped its ownership structure to ensure it allocates a budget for environmental initiatives. The brand not only outsources sustainable materials and works with eco-conscious factories, but it is also transparent about it.
4. Groceries Apparel
Groceries Apparel is another sustainable activewear brand that focuses on upcycled food waste without needing third-party people or factories. They manufacture their activewear themselves through non-toxic and locally sourced materials. Who would’ve thought another person’s food waste could be a gym rat’s workout clothes? They manufacture all their products in their Los Angeles factory, making them a 100 percent self-sufficient brand!
5. Move by Mate
Move by Mate knows that conventional cotton, a material used by most apparel brands, is detrimental to the environment due to its pesticide use, heavy farming, and excessive water consumption. Move by Mate is also one of the sustainable activewear brands that uses organic cotton instead of traditional cotton, keeping the soil healthy. They claim that organic soil is also more breathable.
6. Wolven
If leggings are your workout go-to, then you must check out Wolven. It’s a brand that produces recycled sexy leggings for your exercise routines. Wolven is also deemed Lululemon’s competitor due to its elegant designs in multiple muted colors. Wolven leggings are made of 84 percent recycled PET or plastic bottles. The brand’s recycled materials are also Global Recycled Standard-certified. When you buy Wolven leggings, you’re guaranteed they are free of uncomfortable, harmful chemicals.
7. Reformation
You can be sure this brand is one of the most mainstream activewear brands that doesn’t take eco-consciousness lightly. Reformation boasts multiple eco-friendly initiatives, and they will not stop anytime soon. For one, they have a RefRecycling program, encouraging customers to drop off their used Reformation products in exchange for store credits. Moreover, Reformation also partners with many eco-conscious organizations like Bluesign. They also have a FactoryForward to ensure their suppliers become the best at what they do.
8. Gngr Bees
Founded in 2019, the owner, Natalia Grisard, was inspired to create Gngr Bees by her love for wildlife. She claims this brand is “driven by purpose and not by profit.” The brand’s apparel is made from discarded products. The company has reclaimed over 45,000 plastic bottles and over 4,000 kilograms of fishing nets. Gngr Bees also partners with Azizi Life and Beach Collective to plant mangroves and recycle ocean-bound plastic.
9. The North Face
The North Face has a long history of embracing eco-friendly products, initiatives, and commitments ever since. They are committed to prioritizing nature through science-based and actionable goal-setting. The North Face ensures all their materials are 100 percent recyclable and responsibly sourced. They created the North Face Renewed program that focuses on circularity by giving used gear a second life. This way, they are given a chance before users toss them into a landfill.
10. Tentree
Tentree is a Vancouver-based brand that believes in the power of tree planting. Its name is embedded in its company vision to plant ten trees in exchange for every item purchased. The company centers its practices on environmentally friendly ways, which they call the “earth-first approach.” This focuses on safe and fair working conditions for all employees and prioritizes sustainable and recycled materials for their products. Some of these materials are Tencel lyocell, Repreve polyester, and more. They created the Climate+ Initiative, which lets customers prevent carbon emissions by buying a pack of trees.
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