According to Seth’s article, the cost to acquire a new customer is “vanishing close to zero”(Paragraph 1). I agree with Seth, the cost to build and maintain customer relationships is declining as the Internet revolutionizes.

As the Internet grows and becomes a commonplace for customer research, it will no longer be essential for companies to go out and directly market to their consumers. Advertising over the Internet is much faster, cheaper and less time consuming than direct marketing. Although online marketing is not a supplement for direct marketing, it is advantageous for some companies to partake in online marketing.

Many firms are now realizing that many consumers resort to the Internet as a means of information, and are now beginning to advertise through this medium. Many companies have had great success in creating awareness and offering various promotions for their products through this online channel.

Given the growing success of online marketing, it seems like all companies should adopt this new way of advertising; however, this is not the case. Some goods or services, like insurance or cars, require more personal selling than goods such as clothes or electronics. Having said that, it doesn’t harm a car dealership to showcase and promote their cars through the online medium to attract consumers to their lot in order to make a sale, but the majority of the selling process takes place face to face.

Online marketing also enables companies to focus on their target market. For example, a company can better relate its advertisements over the Internet as they may have some background information on the consumer or consumer groups they are trying to target. In doing so, the company is able to directly target its main consumers and is not wasting time or money on consumers who show minimal interest in their product.

The rapid growth of the Internet and online market has opened a new door to advertising and has proven to be a success for many companies. I believe this medium will increase in popularity among organizations and will become a vital asset to a company’s marketing campaign.

I agree with “Seth’s Blog” in that marketing a product varies greatly from manufacturing a product. Although companies take customer wants and suggestions into consideration when producing a product, the company must ensure customers are aware of the fact that their new products encompass the desired features. The above is done through effectively marketing the product. A company can produce a product that meets all customer needs; however, if the product isn’t effectively marketed, it will not sell.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b31569e201543351ed71970c-500wi.

The above image, taken from “Seth’s Blog”, illustrates that a product must pass a certain point to yeild a profit. Many companies introduce new products to the market and soon realize that the products don’t generate enough revenue and must be removed from the product line.

In order for a product to be considered a success, it must pass the threshold (see above diagram). Furthermore, every product will pass the treshhold at a different time; for example, if a product is hyped up enough before it is introduced to the market, it will reach the treshhold earlier than a product that takes a while to gain customer value and become established in the market.

A common misconception is that the faster a product reaches the threshhold, the more successful it will be. Just because a product intially captures consumer attention and creates buzz in the marketplace, doesn’t ensure success. If the product is not as desirable as originally anticiapted, sales will decline rapidly and consumers will find competing products that better satisfy their needs.

On the other hand, if a product takes to long to reach the treshhold, companies have limited choice and should discontinue or modify their product. Although a firm may believe their product is superior to the others in the marketplace, if the product takes to long to reach the treshhold, chances are it will never cross that point. Furthermore, it is expensive to keep producing and marketing a product that could very well be a”failure.” Given this, companies usually cease production of such products.

Given the above analysis on new product implementation, it is apparent that companies must put a lot of thought into marketing new products to ensure that they portray customer value and reach the treshhold in a reasonable period of time. Companies may have to develop various strategies for different products and must be aware that there is not one method to success: each situation requires a different approach.

I agree with Daniel Kim on his post regarding Abercrombie and Fitch (permalink) as well as have some additional insight on the matter. Abercrombie and Fitch is a premium-clothing brand that specifically targets adolescents aging between 18 and 22. Given this target market, the company gears its advertisements toward this demographic by associating its product with “sexy” and “good-looking” models. Majority of the advertisements depict “good-looking” men and women with nice bodies as depicted below.

Although this approach has resulted in great success for Abercrombie and Fitch, it portrays an unrealistic image. As consumers, we are constantly bombarded with advertisements that make us feel we should look and act a certain way. Moreover, these advertisements tend to dictate what is attractive and cool and what is not. Given this, I disagree with the persona Abercrombie and Fitch as well as many other clothing companies portray.We consumers always observe advertisements with “pretty” and “skinny” people, but who is to say these images are accurate or even attractive? Everyone has their own definition of attractive and possesses their own preferences.

Adolescents buy Abercrombie and Fitch because they feel by wearing the brand; they can be “sexy” like the models. Having said that, the company itself is determining what is “sexy” and what teenagers should aspire to look like. Furthermore, these companies are creating an idealistic image that many teenagers seek to compare themselves to. This flawless image places stress on many teenagers as they feel they must look a certain way when really this “perfect image” is unattainable for majority of the population. I disagree with the above methodology and feel that companies should take a more realistic approach and create a brand that portrays an image that majority of the population can relate to.

McDonald’s is one of many large corporations that is refocusing its marketing strategy. The company is altering its marketing objective by expanding its target market. McDonald’s is renovating majority of its locations and making them more aesthetically pleasing. For example, most McDonald’s have nicer, more comfortable seats and are trying to create more of a “sit-down” atmosphere.

Furthermore, the company has expanded its menu. McDonald’s still offers the traditional cheeseburger and other signature burgers; however, now has healthier option such as salads and grilled burgers. When I was a child and my parents took my brothers and me to McDonald’s but never ate due to limited choice. With the new menu, health conscious parents and children have more selection and can enjoy the product McDonald’s has to offer. The company now offers various breakfast and snack items such as their fruit smoothies and yogurt parfaits. Furthermore, McDonald’s is also growing their desert selection and now offer sundaes and Mc Flurry’s in various different flavours. These deserts are nicely complemented by the numerous hot beverages the restaurant offers.

This new strategy is and will work well for McDonald’s as they are adding to their target market as opposed to changing it. The restaurant still offers unhealthy foods in timely matter; however, is also adopting to a more casual, sit down place for families to come and eat.

Overall, I think this new concept will work well for the company and more customers will eat at the restaurant. The above will inevitably generate more business and yield more profit for the McDonald’s.

Below are some resources that explain McDonald’s strategy as well as reinforce some of the information stated above.

• http://www.goodfoodworld.com/2010/12/is-fast-food-going-healthy-mcdonalds-to-roll-out-oatmeal/
• http://www.goodfoodworld.com/2010/12/is-fast-food-going-healthy-mcdonalds-to-roll-out-oatmeal/
• http://www.forbes.com/2008/03/10/mcdonalds-consumer-closer-markets-equity-cx_cg_lal_0310markets38.html

Hi Commerce 296, Section 104,

My name is Arman Panjwani and I am second year transfer student from the University of Western Ontario. Although this course is mandatory, I find some aspects of marketing very interesting and am excited to be enrolled in this class.

I don’t have much direct marketing experience; however, I am a Pro-shop Attendant at Westwood Plateau Golf and Country Club. Some of my job requirements are to successfully endorse promotions as well as to try sell various goods to customers.

Although there are many effective advertisements, some that I find particular interesting are those between Audi and BMW. In the numerous advertisements, the two companies are constantly competing and trying to get one up on the other. See links below for clips.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_f85Pf0gU14. This video shows each of the company’s billboard advertisements in Santa Monica. As you can see, BMW did an excellent job of responding to Audi’s initial billboard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHN3HnYWBfI. This video is a clip on European television. Once again, Audi attempts to illustrate that its product is superior to BMW’s.

I would like to consider myself to be interesting. Some hobbies I enjoy are playing hockey and golf. Not only do I play these sports for leisure, but I also participate in various tournaments throughout the respective seasons. One of the reasons I like sports is that I find it a great way to stay active and meet new people. Furthermore, I enjoy investing and trading in the stock market.

I hope you have learned a little about myself as well as some of my interests. I look forward to getting to know all of you throughout the semester.