Claudia Chung's Blog

I was reading my classmate Jacqueline Lee’s blog post and came across something really interesting.

In Jacki’s article, she talked about google’s new innovation “Gmail Motion.” As Jacki said in her post “With “simple intuitive action” you can now check your email without old-school technologies such as the keyboard and mouse! It’s like a practical Xbox Kinect console!”

While I was watching this video, I couldn’t help but laugh at how silly the demonstration looks. Google is so CREATIVE for coming up with this idea. The image of someone doing these actions in the library popped into my head. I would burst out laughing if I saw someone doing this in a public place. In my honest opinion, although I find this innovation very interesting, I most likely wouldn’t use Gmail Motion. It seems that going through the trouble of memorizing the actions and acting them out would in turn take more time than just clicking buttons and typing out words.

This video went VIRAL on the internet. Little did we know… this was Google’s April Fool’s joke for the year. Yes, very clever and convincing!! Although Gmail Motion is said to be only a joke, I do see the possibility of it becoming real in the future. Maybe Google is trying to test the market’s reaction of this innovation and collect feedback!

Nonetheless, I found the video very entertaining to watch. Just the image of people jumping around and doing these actions in a room is enough to make me laugh. I would be too embarrassed to do this in front of others. PROPS to Google for coming up with such an idea!

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I came across Gabriel Wong’s blog post about Nintendo’s soon to be released 3Ds gaming system. Gabriel did a fantastic job of analyzing the marketing mix for this new product. He mentioned that he would place this product in the Introductory stage of the PLC and I agree with him. Even though the gaming system industry has been around for more than 10 years, gaming consoles that are 3D is completely NEW to the industry.

Gabriel mentioned that in the article he read, the company realizes that there may be a segment which may not use the 3D feature, and I agree with Gabriel’s opinion about Nintendo not having to be concerned about this. In my opinion, Nintendo has also been one of the leading innovators for gaming consoles. Its evolution of portable gaming consoles has made such progress and every single one of its new gaming consoles were successful; I believe the N3Ds will be as well. It could be said that gamers are trend followers and are unafraid to take risks in trying new products.

Since Nintendo is producing the first gaming system that will go 3D, there is a hype the comes along with it. Although consumers will not be happy about having to buy new games to support the 3D function of the console, gamers eventually will buy new games, just so they could experience the 3D affect. However, the main point is, with Nintendo being such an established company, many trend followers/ gamers are loyal to Nintendo and have trust in its innovations. Having this new gaming system would essentially make the buyer and user “cool” and “trendy” because they own something this amazing!

Nintendo has nothing to worry about. As long as the N3Ds comes out with no bugs or defects, I think that consumers will find this new product worth the purchase.

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It has almost been a weeks since Japan has be shocked by it’s 8.9 magnitude and tsunami. People around the world is acting fast to get help and donations. I was browsing TrendHunter-Marketing when I came across the ‘Broken Flag Advertising‘ article (more pictures can be found at link). The article displays different ads of the simple Japanese Flag. However, the red circles in the middle are either broken or distorted in some way. Some ads have simple writings such as “Pray for Japan” or “Help Japan.” Some ads don’t even need any description for viewers to know what it’s for.

The article talks about how these different ads are uniquely different, but at the same time equally effective.

I personally really admire these ads because they are so straight forward and meaningful. The message is clear and in general, really effective. These ads really proves that pictures are worth a thousand words.

These are only some examples of the many different Japan disaster related campaigns out there.

People around the world are doing different things to try to raise money for Japan, including the use of social media!

As a well known Vlogger on YouTube, Ryan Higa made a creative way donate money to RedCross. As it shows in the video, him and his friends stood around the street holding signs asking people to Honk for Japan. For every honk $10 dollars will be donated. In the description box of the video, Ryan explained why he decided to post a video instead of just directly donating. His response was:

The purpose of this video was not only to support Japan myself, but to encourage others as well. I could have easily donated the money and not made a video about it, but I think its a lot more important to get support from all over the world. I personally can’t donate a million dollars, but if millions of people watch this and decide to chip in, it is possible… I’m just trying to help in the best way that I can.

The donations go up as the views on youtube go up. So far Ryan has donated $2625. It touches my heart to know all the support people are giving around the world. Make a donation today at http://www.REDCROSS.org and contribute!

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I came across this interesting article from the Times about McDonalds in Hong Kong. Since January 2011, McDonald in Hong Kong has added Wedding services called “McWedding.” McWeddings can be held in up to 3 different locations in HK.

McWedding is very different from any usual wedding. Instead of a fancy banquet, it offers a carefree and happy environment. McDonald M.C coordinate different games while waitresses deal out hamburgers. They hand out goody bags filled with McDonald character plush toys. Helium balloons replace the lack of liquor at the event. Instead of a elaborate wedding cake, the couple gets a stack……. of Apple Pies. In my point of view McWedding seems more like a birthday party more than a wedding!

Although McDonalds have been under attack for the unhealthiness in their food products, they are still standing strong by finding different ways to show a different image of itself. As the article mentions, McDonald has established itself as a family place where children and adults will have fun and can find at least one thing they like to eat. By introducing McWedding, McDonald has further strengthened this image. As the couple in the article explains, they often went to this McDonald when they were growing up and it holds a sentimental value to them. In effort of directing people’s attention about the negative points of McDonald’s, it tries very hard to establish the fact that McDonald’s bring people together.

This affordable wedding plan is the start of an evolutionary change in weddings. Fast food chains which has usually been seen as unhealthy food that’s not high class is beginning to make its way into important events like weddings. Although McWedding isn’t exactly receiving positive reactions from the general public, they have definitely grasped people’s attention and disbelief!

But the question that I am most curious about is how many couples are actually willing to hold one of their most important days of their lives at McDonald’s?

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Back in 2007, British designer Anya Hindmarch launched the “I Am Not a Plastic Bag” line. The objective to this launch was to promote eco- friendliness. Essentially, it promoted the idea that reusable shopping bags can be a fashion statement as well.

This bag is just a simple canvas bag with “I Am Not A Plastic Bag” in large print on it. Personally, I do not find it very appealing. However, other people beg to differ. This limited simple designer bag for only $15 at the store, was sold out with its high demand. Some lucky people who got their hands on these bags put them on ebay and actioned them off for up to $400 each! As different models came out the amount of money people were willing to pay to get one of these bags increased. Some were selling online ranging from $700-$2000.

When I first heard about this bad, I did not understand what this hype was about. I saw it as a very plain and simple bag that you would potentially get for under $10. It did not exactly appeal to me either, which made it hard for me to understand WHY people were willing to pay so much for this bag.

I think this links back to BRANDING. These bags were very popular because it was designed by a famous designer. Consumers do not mind that other people are carrying around the EXACT same bag. They just want to be seen as one of those people who were privileged enough to own this exclusive bag.

If the exact same bags were being sold as a no name brand before Anya Hindmarch launched this line, people would not pay much attention to them and definitely not spend as much money on them.

This product is another example of how important branding is. Since this product was so simple, it is very easily likable. However, I believe rather then buying the bag because they really, really like it, they bought it for the brand itself.

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I’m a person who enjoys listening to variety of music, and lately, I have been particularly fond with Korean pop (KPOP) music. Named the “Hallyu Wave” KPOP is becoming increasingly popular around the world despite it being in another language other than English (universal language). I came across this video(starting at 10:54) covered by Monocle on Bloomberg. This video explores KPOP’s global expansion through the help of social networking.

The video mentions how with internet and social networking, there are no boundaries. Hence, there is only one music market, which is the global market. A particular point that really stood out to me is how Koreans are very successful in BRANDING their artists. When they mentioned this point, I realized that PEOPLE get BRANDED as well. They discuss how the artists in the industry are their own brand, and they are competing with other artists of their own brand. They are styled to be visually appealing to entertain the public. The public is not only seeking for good quality in the music, but for the sentiment through visual appeal.

This picture is one of Korea’s hottest nine member girl group called Girls Generation, that the video referred to. I can understand why males would like to watch them dancing in short shorts.

In COM 296 lecture today, Tamar introduced to us the importance of branding in marketing. When people think about marketing, they tend to link it to a product or service. However, I find it interesting on how marketing can be done on people as well. When the general public see a celebrity, they tend to look at what they may be wearing or using.  We automatically think, “Oh is she endorsing this? Is it a new trend?” However, I think most people don’t see it from the different perspective that celebrities are actually trying to brand THEMSELVES and appeal to the public eye.

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When I came across this article on Cool Hunter, it immediately caught “my eye”. This is the first time I have seen such an artistic and creative setting for an eyewear store!

Located in London, England, Kirk Originals Eyewear recently opened this unique flagship store. Unlike the typical eyewear stores, Kirk created a simple environment with black and white palette. Mounted on the wall are so called “heads” for glass frames. The 187 “heads” each have different eyes. Their rough finishing and lack of furnishing was designed the way they are so that customers would focus more on the eyewear. Located in the front display of the store are graphics of large winking eyes to attract attention by passersby.

credits to Cool Hunter

By looking at the pictures, there does not seem to be a setting for eye examinations and fitting. To keep their main display place clear, they hold these other two services in the basement.

In my opinion, if I were to walk by this place not knowing what it sold, I could have easily mistaken it as an artistic gallery of some sort. Its distinctiveness creates a competitive advantage over their competitors and brings customers a sense of fascination when they walk through this place.

Yes, it may be creepy having so many pairs of eyes staring out at you, but perhaps that is the way the designer intends to captivate their potential customers.

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As learned in class, marketing evolved throughout the century. I came across a very well written article on Business Journal, which highlights one of the most ingenious post World War II campaigns.

Titled “Volkswagen ad campaign was far from a lemon,” Business Journal wrote about how Volkswagen was a step ahead of the game and how their Beetle Ad changed ‘marketing’ as a whole. The Beetle was viewed to be an unattractive car that was manufactured in a plant built by the Nazis in Germany. Everything about this car screamed “DO NOT BUY!” Contradictory to the era why would consumers buy such small car that would not be enough to hold their rapidly growing families, when there are readily available big cars in the market? Volkswagen had to win consumers hearts.

Volkswagen Beetle ad campaign moved away from the typical boring, information based advertisement which lacked creativity. Their simple ads were able to capture consumers on the emotional level while at the same time express the benefits of a product in a way those consumers can relate to.

— Not exactly related to what I was writing about. But Volkswagen just came out with a new commercial for Superbowl!! Extremely cute!

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This past fall, I attended the International Business Conference 2010 and had the opportunity to hear the opening keynote by Gord Meyer. Gord is a Director at Proctor & Gamble and he leads all of the commercial category teams in the company’s Canadian Market Development Organization. Before listening to Gord’s speech, my knowledge of P&G was very low. I was aware that it is a very large corporation that produces many different products. In the speech, Gord showed us various advertisements by P&G. Being an internationally known company, P&G customizes advertisements suitable for the region they are targeting. In particular, there was a commercial that caught my attention.

This advertisement is for Always, a feminine hygiene product, which is targeted towards women in Africa. When Gord played this video, many people found it humorous; myself included. However, there is a much deeper meaning than we perceive. As stated at the beginning of the video, 90% of women have to use tissue or cloth during their periods. They have to constantly check, making them very self conscious and bringing discomfort to their daily rhythm.  This commercial shows happy, carefree school girls dancing and singing to rhythmic music. P&G is showing that if you use Always, you only have to check every 8 hours instead of every hour. Relating to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, through this commercial, P&G satisfying these women’s physiological and safety needs. African women perceive that by using Always, despite getting their monthly period, they can now feel safe and feel carefree.

From listening to Gord’s speech about P&G, I came to a conclusion that P&G is more than just business. It’s a company that CARES. Through the different products it owns, this company tries to satisfy their consumers’ needs in every way they can. Most importantly, they care about sustainability and they support causes that give back to the community. P&G has gained my respect!

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So, who is Santa Claus? Santa is seen as a big, chubby, old man with a white beard, in a red suit. Some people may wonder, where exactly did this image arise from? This image was created none other by Coca Cola back in 1931. Before Coca- Cola shaped the image of modern day Santa- Claus, he was only an undefined mythical character with looks ranging from a tall gaunt man to a petite elf. Different religions and cultures had different interpretations of Santa and his reasons of existence.

Coca- Cola successfully linked their image and Santa Claus with Christmas. By incorporating Santa in its advertisements, Coca-Cola was able to attract children into drinking Coke. They printed ads with Santa drinking Coke instead of milk when he delivered presents.  It implies, “ Santa Claus drinks Coke, so should you.” Through these ads, the story of Santa Claus slowly evolved throughout time. For example, Santa became a popular image in children’s books. Authors took the figure of Santa and wrote Christmas stories featuring him as the protagonist. A perfect example is “Rudolf the Red nose Reindeer” written by Robert L. may.

As you can see, Coca- Cola created one of the most successful advertising campaigns in the world. Its ingenious campaign has a great impact on modern day Santa Claus and the evolution of Christmas. Although the true existence of Santa Claus is still questionable, Coca- Cola’s affective campaign made an important mark in history. The image of Santa Claus will continue to carry its legacy in the future years to come.

In this image, it shows that Santa is drinking Coca- Cola instead of milk.

Cr. Coca- Cola Company Official Website

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