Assignment #3 was, by far, the most difficult project that I worked on throughout this semester. Our team consisted of only 3 members as opposed to 5 or 6 for the other teams. From the beginning, we knew that the three of us would have to take on a large workload to complete the project.

We began our brainstorming process full of many ambitious ideas. Our ideas were perhaps beyond the limits of our time, abilities, and budget. Unfortunately, we did not come to this realization immediately. As a result, there was a long period of time that was spent without a clear focus.

Once we had a better idea of what we were capable of, we decided to search online for tips and suggestions. One online marketing blog, Inbound Hub, provided me with one article that was especially useful. The blog post entitled “How to Create a Compelling Explainer Video” gave some great tips on how to structure the video. One issue we faced was trying to refrain from overloading the video with information while also providing all the necessary components required for the assignment.

Unfortunately, we were not able to produce the quality of video that we envisioned at the beginning of this assignment. However, it was definitely a good learning experience. Personally, I learned a lot about the video making and editing process. As a team, we would have benefited greatly from concentrating our focus a lot earlier in the process.

This blog is in response to an earlier post by Hongdou Li that addressed the crisis management that is currently taking place by Malaysia Airlines. As his blog post explains, the period following the well-publicized loss of flight HM370 has been a very delicate one for Malaysia Airlines.

Expectedly, MA will continue their losses through a large decline in business after this shocking event. A BusinessStandard article reveals that “nearly 15% of travellers have cancelled their bookings on the airline for the summer vacations”. It’s important for the correct steps to be taken right away to minimize the damage to their entire business. As Hongdou also explains, there are three R’s that need to occur when a crisis has occurred: Regret, Reason, and Remedy. The airline company has already taken the appropriate steps to implement all three of these, however it will still likely face an uphill battle to recapture their previous image.

The situation speaks volumes about a company’s image, and how easily it can be completely damaged in the eyes of a consumer. British Petroleum (BP) is a clear example of how much of an impact a negative image can have. In 2010, BP was centre of a worldwide storm when it leaked huge amounts of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The spill caused many adverse effects on the environment and as a result, BP’s entire reputation was ruined. BP was blamed all over the world, including an official statement from the White House. Barack Obama stated: “Make no mistake: we will fight this spill with everything we’ve got for as long as it takes. We will make BP pay for the damage their company has caused.”

Without a doubt, BP has still yet to recover from the event. This simply emphasizes how greatly negative press will affect a company. Only time will tell if Malaysia Airlines can recover from their recent crisis.

For many years, Mastercard has used an advertising campaign that is very recognizable. Their commercials have used “priceless” moments in our lives to promote the use of their credit cards. The term “priceless” has become part of Mastercard’s identity. Now, as this article from the Globe and Mail explains, they are seeking to further emphasize this by randomly surprising Mastercard users with random, unexpected, and “priceless” rewards.

The new approach by Mastercard is attempting to gain the support of customers by employing celebrities and athletes to surprise fans. The marketing strategy is definitely not the authodox way of gaining exposure. However, in a world where traditional marketing methods are slowly becoming less and less valuable, the need for creative marketing is at an all-time high. The cost of this unique way of marketing is inevitably high. However, the advertising expenditure is something that Mastercard feels will benefit them greatly in the long run.

By utilizing a costly method, Mastercard are ensuring that they provide customer service excellence. Many companies in the past have strived off of this strategy and ultimately it has led to greater customer loyalty. For example, Nordstorm is a company that focuses a lot of attention of customer service. By doing so, customers are more likely to return to the store of multiple occasions and continue the business relationship.

For Mastercard, competition is fierce. Competing for market share with Visa is a long struggle that Mastercard will continue to face. However, by setting itself apart through focusing on the customer, Mastercard may have found the key to attracting and retaining the majority market share for credit card users.

Recently, it appears that Wal-Mart is beginning to open a number of small convenience stores across America. Traditionally, Wal-Mart has been synonymous with huge stores that offer everything that a household needs. The size of Wal-Mart’s stores is part of its identity. However, Wal-Mart’s new plan sees them talking a step in the complete opposite direction.

Later this year, Wal-Mart plans to open around 300 smaller convenience-style stores. Although the decision may seem strange at first, it is important to look at some current trends in our society. More so than ever, we are a time-poor society. We find ourselves always at a lack of time and as a result, we want things as quickly as possible. The scarcity of time has led to increases in certain products. Microwave meals, for example, have become increasingly popular as opposed to the traditional approach of cooking meals from scratch.

The use of convenience stores is just another example to emphasize our lack of time. Instead of spending our time strolling through the many aisles of a full-size Wal-Mart, many would prefer to quickly go in and out of a smaller tightly packed convenience store. Ultimately, Wal-Mart’s decision makes a lot more sense when we examine current trends.

Without adapting to the changes in the trends of society, businesses will inevitably lose their relevance to a consumer. Although Wal-Mart stands high above others in terms of success in the past, it knows that a successful company must grow and evolve. As consumers continue to seek out more and more convenience, Wal-Mart’s traditional structure offers less and less value. Convenience style stores will likely prove to be an unorthodox yet successful venture for Wal-Mart.

A recent article regarding Victoria’s Secret growing emergence in mainland China provides great insight into the concept of global marketing. For many years, consumers in China have viewed Victoria’s Secret’s products as functional items. They would buy underwear simply for its purpose, as opposed to viewing the item as a luxury. However, as this mindset is changing among the Chinese, Victoria’s Secret is adapting also. The exploration into the Chinese market is a prime example of a company’s ability to capitalize in overseas markets when the time is right.

However, deciding upon whether the time is right or not, is often a difficult task. Previously, many successful North American companies have failed to make the transition to Asian markets. Best Buy, for example, tried to apply the same strategies that worked for them in North America. This meant securing large locations for big stores. However, this proved to a big very expensive strategy given the high-cost of land in densely populated areas like Shanghai. Inevitably, Best Buy closed down all their stores in Asia in 2011. The failure of Best Buy goes to show that different markets require different marketing strategies.

In the Victoria’s Secret example, they are strategically starting out with special Beauty and Accessories stores. Given that $50 sweatpants and provocative lingerie will not likely be in high demand in China, this is a logical approach. It is important to adjust marketing in terms of the economic, political, and cultural differences between regions or countries.

At some point in the near future, you may be paying more for any random product than one of your friends. At the same time, however, you could also be paying less for a different product. This is the surprising reality of a new pricing strategy being employed by countless companies today. It is called personalized pricing.

This form of price discrimination sparks from the need to withstand the competition of the low-pricing Amazon. Instead of attempting to match the low prices of Amazon, companies are attempting to use customer information to charge them the prices in which they’re willing to pay. Punit Kulkarni, director of marketing at Symphony Analytics, describes it as “moving away from low prices to relevant prices”.

The questionable aspect of personalized pricing is the manipulation of customer information. For instance, when you’re shopping in the store for salsa, you might receive a coupon for tortilla chips right at that instant. The use of in-store cameras and other strategies to evaluate individuals’ needs is considered by some to be unethical. To many individuals, this is an invasion of their privacy.

The need to compete with other companies is inevitable and price discrimination seems logical. However, customers may find themselves drawn away from certain companies because of the privacy concerns.

In today’s world, an ethical company is an attractive company. Certain businesses that decide to use personalized pricing will likely face backlash from consumers. With this in mind, the attractiveness of individual pricing should be overlooked due to the ethical concerns associated with it.

As I approach the end of my first set of university courses, I’ve learned that number of hours spent working doesn’t always correlate with the amount of work completed. With this in mind, Vivian Ho’s blog post entitled “Work Hours Versus Work Efficiency” especially caught my eye. The blog explored the dilemma outlined in a New York Times article that many law firms are facing. Due to the fact that employees are paid per hour as opposed to per case, the employees’ productivity is lower.

The Academy of Management Executive article, ‘On the folly of rewarding A, while hoping for B‘, explains the problem. While law firm management hopes to have as many cases solved as possible, they are ultimately rewarding their employees for the number of hours spent on a case. There is a lack of incentive for employees to work harder on each case and be more efficient.
As Vivian correctly suggested in her blog, it would be a good idea to pay employees per case. It’s important to make sure that employees are rewarded for activities that bring the company closer to reaching its goals. Hoping for one outcome but rewarding another leads to inefficient workers.

As a young student, one of the best ways to impress future employees is through valuable experience gained through internships.  It’s a great way to experience the working world by offering your services to companies who are in need of fresh, ready-to-learn students. Unfortunately, there are occasional concerns that interns are taken advantage of. There are some accusations that companies abuse the cheaper, and maybe even free, labour. A recent article in the Globe and Mail explores this debate and shows why interns are valuable for companies. The story of Just-Eat Canada’s internship programs outlines why treating interns the right way leads to benefits for all involved. The following video gives a greater understanding of Just-Eat’s opportunities as an intern.

Through seeing the enthusiasm of Just-Eat interns and reading about companies like Zappos, it is clear that culture within a company is a very important component of success. Many of the most successful companies, like Google, warrant their success to a great sense of community among their employees. The company’s togetherness is something that must stretch from the most powerful in the organization to those who have just started. This basic Organizational Behaviour knowledge shows that treating interns the right way will have positive impacts on the company as a whole. A recent article in The Globe and Mail provides further proof of this concept.

At Just-Eat, interns are given the responsibility that an fully paid employee would. They are challenged to execute the ideas that they propose. As many interns go on to become full-time employees, establishing the right relationship with interns is crucial to building a healthy team environment within a business.

I came across Stephen Gates’ blog rather by accident. As I was researching how to be creative when making presentations, I read a post called Presenting Creative 101. The lesson was split into three parts and each provided valuable tips and suggestions on how to improve presentation skills. Along the path through a business education and career, presentations will become more and more frequent. Learning how to captivate an audience and effectively present is a fundamental skill. I highly recommend the post to any student who wishes to become a better presenter.

Although the specific post attracted me initially, I soon started exploring the rest of Gates’ blog. Gates is a brand designer and creative mind that works in the world of marketing. His blog posts reflect his career and he often offers interesting opinions. His “My Weekly Inspirations” section offers links to some really fascinating stories from the past week. Stephen Gates’ blog is an good read for anyone interesting in marketing.

Supply chain management is a procedure that can be very beneficial for a company. However, the recent Hurricane Sandy highlights the need for businesses to ensure their supply can survive unpredictable events.
The New York Times article shows that many businesses in New York and New Jersey are facing a bleak fourth quarter due to the effects of Sandy. Road closures have prevented the transportation and delivery of goods, while flooded warehouses have resulted in a loss of merchandise for many companies. As businesses are entering their peak season due to Christmas orders, this is a problem that will be hard and almost impossible to overcome.

The events in New York bring forth a lesson that can be learned about supply chain management. It is often understood that keeping a large inventory of goods is not advised due to the possible changes in demand. Hurricane Sandy adds another reason to avoid a large backup of goods. Companies with weeks of supply stored in a single warehouse have loss an enormous amount of money due to a single natural disaster. The companies with a smaller inventory turnover will have avoided the magnitude of losses.
Many companies will be heavily impacted by Hurricane Sandy due to the effect that it has had on the supply chain. The impact further emphasizes the positives of short distribution channels and lower inventory turnovers in an unpredictable world.