Welcome to the world Snapcash! You are providing people with yet another method of being able to transfer their money digitally through an online source. The highly popular mobile application known as Snapchat has come up with an innovative feature that will enable its users to send money through its platform to others around the world. It works like this- let’s say that your friend owes you $20 from the other night because you paid for dinner as he forgot his wallet (yeah right…), and he wants to pay you back. It sounds all good and simple, but what if he legitimately can’t find the time to meet with you at all during the week? Behold- the amazing feature known as Snapcash will allow to transfer the $20 owed over to him without any hassle.

As long as you’re 18 years of age and have a visa or master-card under your name you’re allowed to utilize this part of the app. Just type in “$20 for dinner” in a “snap” that you’d send to your friend and the application will recognize that this is money needing to be transferred over because of the $ sign being included in the message. It will withdraw the money from one’s checkings account under their debit card and transfer the amount in question over to the friend. I personally would not feel comfortable doing this as I feel my privacy and security could be breached knowing how hackers react to features like this these days, but I can understand why it may be such a powerful tool in the long run. After all, it is all about convenience in this day and age, and Snapchat is certainly providing that in a “snap” (no pun intended).

I have wanted to touch on this topic for a while, but I have been waiting for the appropriate time. I have always found it interesting how many are being consumed more by mobile applications these days opposed to actually viewing websites. Personally, I am a huge sports fan, so I avidly follow the NHL (National Hockey League), NBA (National Basketball Association), and the NFL (National Football League). Instead of actually going on each individual website, I utilize an application called “the Score” as it merges all 3 sports leagues and many others into this one domain. I am able to access all of the news updates, scores, and I also receive push notifications/alert of breaking news on the home screen of my smart phone.

It is not difficult to tell as to why one would choose an application over a website, as it is simply a matter of convenience now. I personally would never go back to using websites for this particular aspect of my life, and it is definitely something I have been phasing out. Websites simply lack the major element of push notifications in my opinion; without even having to open my phone I am offered scores and updates. Could I ask for anything better? Probably not…

This is a topic that has been discussed from time to time, however I truly find it fascinating that it is not discussed more frequently. As we are all well aware there are currently no advertisements on Instagram, but that does not mean there are not informal means of it. Endorsements and product placements have been an influential factor for a significant period of time and have popped up in many places. Films and interviews in particular have always been a popular hit, but what about the home run that Instagram has become for endorsements? It is astounding how many advertisements there technically are on this particular platform of social, but perhaps it is so subtle no one cares or notices? Wrong- and that is why companies are willing to shell out the big bucks to pay influential, well-liked, and highly-respected figures to represent them.

Let’s take Kim Kardashian for instance, as she is arguably a part of a list that consists of the world’s most influential women, rakes in nearly $20,000 for a 140 character tweet! One may think this is insane, but remember how many followers she has- 25.6 million people! Even if 5% of her followers saw pictures or status updates, that’s still 1.28 million people! The sky is the limit, and the potential for a business to promote itself can be accomplished in many ways. I thought this would be an interesting one to mention-despite the high costs associated with it, having stars endorse products could truly gain the exposure a company needs.

Apple has done it again- they have come up another innovative way of making operations more efficient for human beings. Apple Pay is the new thing- it’s thats awesome, unbelievably cool way to to purchase items. Is it really catching on though? Despite the hype and excitement that has surrounded the application, there are many who frown upon the idea. CVS and Rite Aid are two major companies who have made it clear- it will not support Apple’s newly released payment system. Why? It’s all about the money after all, and it is no different in this situation. It actually costs less for companies to utilize its own mobile payment system than using that of another company. However, there is a risk despite costing less and saving a little in the short term. The security features that Apple offers for the Pay system are extremely secure, amid the scandals that have occurred especially within the retail industry it may be a smart move to actually hop on board and offer the service.

At the moment it is only compatible with the iPhone 6 and 6 plus, but Apple Pay is able to work in already more than 200,000 stores. Some of these names would include powerhouses such as McDonald’s, Nike, Aeropostale, and Staples. The endorsements are certainly there, but there is still amends to be made with certain companies such as CVS and Rite Aid- I truly believe a collaboration could be made one day, but I don’t feel it is beneficial for either side to hold out much longer.

As I sit here and write this entry, I must say how pleased I am to have signed up for COMM 464. I came into this course feeling extremely nervous, and being really scared for no apparent reason. I have not been the best person with computers, however, I do know enough to get around. I never could have imagined that I would be a part of a team leading an online campaign via social media for a legitimate company that is already up and running. I was not certain if I was the right type of student to be in this class, but now that I have chance to reflect back on it, I feel fortunate to have signed up. My position in the group was that of the Email Campaign lead, ensuring that a newsletter or update of some sort was sent out on behalf of the company those who were deemed as “subscribers.” The company we represent started out with none, and within 7-10 business days we managed to have 15 followers on our website.

In order to carry out the campaign, we utilized a program known as “MailChimp” which enabled us to create and form an upscale newsletter before sending it out to subscribers. It was extremely beneficial to make use of the statistics as we were able to go back and analyze certain factors such as “peak times for opens”, “click rates”, and even figuring out how many people were able to open our link within 24 hours. It was extremely satisfying to accomplish our goals and utilize an amazing program like MailChimp to not only help carry out the campaign, but to learn from it. If I ever have a marketing project similar to this in the future, I am certain there is a chance that MailChimp could be used. I feel much more confident now knowing how to fully run a campaign, as I’ve had excellent teammates work with along the way.

We recently had a marketing executive from A & W come to visit in our class, and I must say I was really anticipating this lecture. Having guest speakers come to the Sauder School of Business is always a privilege, as they are certainly taking the time out of their busy schedules to be with us. I found it quite interesting that this particular fast food chain was one of the last, if not the last major food corporation join the social media scene. In fact, it had avoided it for years sticking to traditional forms of advertising such as T.V., print, and radio. The brand awareness itself is rather large and highly significant, however there is a clear trend towards taking businesses online.

The type of campaigns run by the company were very interesting to hear about, as A & W attempts to focus on the “lifestyle change” and how its food (particularly its beef) is grass fed, locally raised, and trustworthy in the health department. Many other companies by the likes of McDonald’s and KFC have had to endure many legal battles in courts proving that its food is healthy, sometimes rather laughably whether its even really or not (i.e. McDonald’s chicken nuggets apparently contain sawdust in them). This company has fortunately been able to avoid the limelight and shine when it truly matters. It has also developed a character (Andy the Manager) that many people resonate with for its T.V. campaigns, as many successful businesses have followed the same tactic (i.e. Kokanee with the Ranger and Sasquatch).

An interesting question was brought up though, considering that many students such as ourselves who attended this lecture do not own an T.V. (as we do not live at home anymore of course, and the fact that cable is expensive), what devices do we make use of the most? It’s a simple answer-LAPTOPS! Personal computers have paved the way of the future, and that requires companies to be able to have a heavy presence online if it hopes to have a shot at garnering the attention it desires from the potential target market. It was amazing to hear about A and W’s Facebook campaigns, and how they have taken advantage of this and it will be interesting to see how it moves forward in the future.

I was quite surprised to find out the truth behind statistics that Facebook provides for its believers and avid users of the social media platform. I really found Julio’s lecture interesting this past class in regards to it, and what he had to share from the information he had learned from one of the conferences he had attended was astonishing. Only 12-16% of the people who really follow you as a business on Facebook are seeing the posts you put on the website. Is it just me or is that not insane? If I have 100 people following me why shouldn’t all 100 followers be able to see my posts? If only 12-16 people out of every 100 followers I have are able to observe the status updates I provide or videos I post…then what do I do? The obvious…providing Facebook with my credit card in order for it to allow my other viewers to view the postings I have made.

From a business standpoint I couldn’t agree more that is smart on the company’s part and it is simply trying to capitalize on a huge opportunity. The social media giant understands that businesses are aware of how strong the product is, and by promoting one’s product via social media is becoming a powerful tool these days…however is is truly ethical to charge users for a service that should have already been provided? How about this for a solution…For every 1,000 followers a business gains, customers will be charged $X per month in order for the website to continue providing excellent services and allowing businesses to reach 100% of its market.

Had I not heard about this in class I’m not sure if I ever would have, but it was a very interesting piece of information to know at the least. I was surprised by the move Facebook made, but in the end I concluded that business is simply business after all; and if one knows its product is highly favoured over others and people will continue to use it then why not?

I have found through our discussions as a class and in other group projects that giving the demographics statistics importance will help companies stay relevant. A loyal consumer base is of the utmost importance for the sustainability and survival of any business, but in order to flourish and evolve into something else we must refer to the market research that provides relevance. Before carrying out marketing or advertising campaigns one must know exactly where they should be targeting. Unfortunately no one will ever know for sure where to go, but there are studies that can indicate areas in the right direction.

For instance, data may suggest that a cafe’s consumer base consists of young adults between the ages of 18-25 who have a spending threshold of $5-$10 on the average snack/food/beverage item. By utilizing information of this nature it enables a company to understand that it should be advertising on university campuses for instance, opposed to grocery stores where many students may not even go to begin. This could be because of the fact that young adolescents may still be living with their parents; or rely on campus food services to provide them their meals.

Either way, if one does not take advantage of statistics available through users that visit its website or social media platforms it is pointless in running them. I found it interesting to see apps such as Demographics Pro provide such detailed information in a matter of seconds when we observed how it operated during class time. If businesses are able to seize opportunities like this the potential seems infinite in terms of growing the awareness of a product.

It is imperative in this day and age for a business to take its social media tactics and strategies seriously. As I dwell more into this course, I have been astounded to see how poorly some websites have been designed. Quite frankly with the websites I have analyzed it appears as if it’s, “a toast of bread with no spreading on the top.” Theres simply no flavour…no spice…no excitement. The number one goal of a social media campaign or any type for that matter is to keep the consumer engaged. If one can’t grasp the attention that is needed to sustain viewership and loyalty, it will be difficult to flourish and evolve into something bigger and better.

In one of the companies we had to analyze, I was shocked to see the lack of content on the online store. For a company that is in an industry that requires constant updates in regards to the information of its product it did a poor job in terms of carrying it out. Products are not always self explanatory, and there are instances where the potential customer needs to learn more about a particular product line despite how much familiarity the typical consumer may have with a product.

In a diverse market, the target market is not always obvious. It needs to be identified by the utilization of the market research, and carefully observing the demographics of previous visits from consumers. The history is an excellent indicator of who the loyal consumers are, although this is not the case everytime, they are great statistics to refer to.

Once a company acknowledges the importance of what social media could be for them the potential is infinite. Many consumers actually choose to get their first impression of a store or company as a whole through it’s website before visiting the the brick and mortar location for the sake of convenience. There is an expectation by many that the online oresence should be just as detailed as the in store experience, and if this can be accomplished one should be in great shape.

It is is never too late to join in on the social media game, but campaigns should be started sooner than earlier than later. Industries are becoming ever more competitive, and giving a great impression online would he a great way to start for spacing out the competition and having a potential customer focus on you…

Apple’s iTunes program recently launched a controversial campaign that was heavily favoured in the direction of U2 – the world renowned band that offered fans the chance to download their latest album, “Songs of Innocence” free of charge. One question though – was it truly all of their fans? Was there even a chance of downloading it? The answer to these million dollar questions is…NO!

The album was already waiting for you in its library which was a major turn off for many consumers of one of the most highly used and reputable music platforms in the world. There are many music lovers out there who are not fans of U2, and there was much backlash in light of this campaign due to the fact that there was confusion over deleting the tracks from one’s library.

Was this publicity stunt truly a winner or loser for Apple’s PR (Public Relations) department? What I’m really wondering is, why did they not provide users of the iTunes platform the opportunity to decline the songs if they wished to? One could argue from a social media standpoint that U2 received an unfair amount of coverage and exposure by teaming up with Apple for this. Many people started raising questions as to why other bands and even individual artists did not receive this opportunity.

I recall a similar, yet very different approach from Apple’s major rival known as Samsung. It offered Jay Z fans the opportunity to receive his newly released album, “Magna Carta Holy Grail” free of charge as long as they were one of the first million customers to purchase a Samsung Galaxy device. However, the major difference in these two situations is that one had to download the album themselves from Google Play. I believe this was extremely smart on the companies part as people can change their mind sometimes, and they had the option to not have the album on their devices by default if they wished so. Another strong factor is that there are most certainly more than 1 million Jay Z fans with Samsung devices according to certain statistics and market research carried out. In case one fan did not desire to download the album, another one would and sure enough the promotion came to an end as it crossed the million mark very quickly once this campaign was announced.

From a business perspective, Jay Z was able to strike a deal that allowed him to gain even more attention in the public spotlight, while still earning revenue from any copies of his album after the million mark, since only the first million were complimentary. In Apple’s case, not only did it suffer as a company, I believe the band’s reputation in U2 took a hit as well. It will be interesting to see how both sides bounce back from this situation, but I was definitely a very frustrated iTunes user myself when I had an album already waiting for me in my library that I had no interest in hearing to begin with.