In physics there is a phenomenon where stressed materials that have been in use for some time suddenly fail without any apparent prior warning. The same thing can happen to a business for very similar reasons. Constant pressure, work that appears to be largely unchanging, successfully overcoming challenges on a daily basis, leads to a slow erosion of core stability in a business, an accumulation of errors that will only become apparent when things reach a critical stage. By then, of course, it will be too late.

The classic case of the Blackberry PR meltdown in 2011, the erosion of brand value experienced by GAP in 2010 and the inability of Microsoft to capitalize on any of its innovations and market ‘firsts’ like smartphones, tablet computers, social search and web mail, are all perfect examples of the fatigue syndrome in business.

There are two questions here to consider: why does it happen? What can be done to avoid it? Typically the answers are easier than the implementation which is also the measure of the challenge for businesses. Fatigue Syndrome in business occurs when the systems and processes, all the ‘tools’ that are in place in order for a business to work better, become the end in themselves and begin to be substituted for the purpose and vision of the businesses. In this Online Marketing Help podcast we look at why some great businesses suddenly fail. Best-selling SEO and Social Media Marketing author, David Amerland, explains:

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