BEYOND SOCIAL TREND DATA Available to Purchase

In the first issue of this Journal, Florence Shelly states that the proper use of social‐trend data can help market‐ing managers in at least four areas by providing: 1. a future outlook for specific business units; 2. an input for brand / product strategy; 3. a basis for checking specific tactics; and, 4. an enriched understanding of market segments. Perhaps, the major point of that article is not just what it says, but what it implies‐the need for a marketing philosophy of “implementation based on anticipation.” In conceptualizing this philosophy, the correct use of social‐ trend data can be seen as the first step necessary in strategic‐marketing planning—the tip of the iceberg. However, the strategies adopted by American marketers over the past two decades do not demonstrate that the levels of marketing myopia which Levitt discussed in the 60's have diminished. What is even more disconcerting is that the tools for reducing marketing myopia are not obscure trade secrets; as a matter of fact, they can be found in most introductory marketing textbooks. Environmental scanning, the prime instrument available for this purpose, deserves a closer look in relation to its worth for managerial decision making.