In the blog post “Food or Facebook? The Philanthropic Face-Off”  on LinkedIn by David Sable, the possibility of technology being able to save the world is discussed. David writes that although Mark Zuckerberg believe that building a consortium of tech companies will effectively allow everyone around the world get easy access to the internet and help narrow the disparity of the rich and poor,  Bill Gates doesn’t think it is a well-thought idea. He doubts that if it is meaningful for poor people to use internet technology when they can not even afford food and medical treatment.

David, however, tries to integrate Mark’s and Bill’s ideas. He states that social service infrastructure can be provided via apps so that people can get access to medical, agricultural and educational resources. Although I certainly agree with David’s idea, I think there are some issues that should be considered. Firstly, there are areas around the world where people can’t even get access to the internet, let alone apps and websites that provide useful information. Secondly, in countries like North Korea, the government’s surveillance power is so strong that its citizens can hardly be exposed to internet.

For sure, the above poverty and political issues will require the effort of the whole society to solve. Technology, especially the internet, might not be able to save the world now, but it will definitely add petrol into the society’s engine for growth. And maybe the first step for the consortium of tech companies would be to help build internet connection in poor areas.

Reference:

Sable, David. “Food or Facebook? The Great Philanthropic Face-Off.” World’s Largest Professional Network. LinkedIn, 16 Nov. 2013. Web. 16 Nov. 2013.

Choney, Suzanne. “North Korea’s Internet? What Internet? For Most, Online Access Doesn’t Exist.” Nbc News Technology. NBC News, 29 Mar. 2013. Web. 16 Nov. 2013.

In a blog posted by Berfu Apaydin,  the importance of humor in advertisement is emphasized, and is backing up by an example of  the video ad “Baby&Me” of a mineral water company.  I think that the author has made a good point by saying that ” Firms need to be customer-orientated while they are marketing their products. ” Surely, if companies use humor in ads to appeal to customers, the value propositions and points of difference of a particular product will be delivered to potential buyers and investors in a more efficient way.

Berfu also states that it is hard to make sure that the sense of humor is what the customers enjoy. I believe that it is important for companies to know their customers and target a specific segment of customers with their ads rather than try to appeal to all and have no focus. However, in the example given by Berfu, the mineral water company called Evian has broad customer base, so it has to come up with a kind of humor that appeals to as many people as it can. As a result, it used “babies”, which most people find cute, and most people will enjoy seeing an ad like this.

Funny ads can make customers remember the brand, and hopefully can also make them choose the product in supermarkets, where they will recall “Oh, this is the brand with the lovely ads!”

Reference:

Apaydin, Berfu. “Berfu’s Blog.” Funny Ads Make Brands Stronger. N.p., 08 Oct. 2013. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.

Mckee, Steve. “Funny Ads Make Brands Stronger. No Joke.” Bloomberg Businessweek. Bloomberg.com, 03 June 2013. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.

Yesterday, I took part in an event called the Impact Lab which was hosted by UBC Global Lounge. There, Vanessa Chase, the founder of  Philanthropy for All, focused her speech on the importance of storytelling in terms of crowdfunding. After this event, I feel that storytelling is truly about communicating value propositions to your target audience sincerely and dramatically. It is about drawing a beautiful and genuine picture of the future of your business in your audience’s mind. When people can relate to your story and see the value of your business, they will do things to help.

A case study posted on the Globe and Mail can better explain the importance of storytelling. In this case, Energy Aware Technology Inc., a small business located in BC, has reached its 30-day fundraising goal for its new product “Neurio” in just two weeks using crowdfunding on Kickstarter. It is important to note that usually half of the projects on Kickstarter will not get funded. However, Energy Aware successfully “beat the Kickstarter odds” by telling good stories—before their Kickstarter launch, they shared their brand story through niche bloggers, and made sure that “the timing of these outreach activities was meticulously planned to achieve maximum impact”.  Good storytelling has  helped Neurio market its value, and has become a catalyst for Energy Aware’s fund raising.

Reference:

Cubbon, Paul. “How a B.C. Tech Company Beat the Kickstarter OddsAdd to …” The Globe and Mail. N.p., 08 Nov. 2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

Chase, Vanessa. “What Is a Story and Why You Need To Tell Them.” Philanthropy For All. N.p., 30 Oct. 2012. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

Chase, Vanessa. “Meet Vanessa Chase.” Philanthropy For All. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

A blog called “Confessions of a Lululemon Addict” revealed that employees in a store in Massachusetts responded to the complaints from customers on the sheerness of yoga pants by wearing underwear on top. Before the company could recover from the sheer yoga pants scandal this spring, Lululemon  Athletica Inc.  is raising eyebrows again: according to today’s CTV News, Chip Wilson, the founder of Lululemon, says that  the piling of some pants is not due to quality issues, but because  “some women’s bodies just actually don’t work for it”.

From bottom employees to top management people, it seems that few have shown their determination to maintain good customer relationships. These incidents will turn some of the loyal customers to anti-fans and will certainly damage Lululemon’s brand image. The company could have done better by showing concerns about customers’ feelings and make sure that every employee in the company is prepared to address the issues properly. Chip could have been more willing to take responsibilities, or at least be careful of his words in public. And the company can name the sheer pants “Sheer Nirvana” to form a new product line, where pants are designed to make women look more sexy. This way, the threat could be turned to an opportunity, and Lululemon would be better-off.

Reference:

“Confessions of a Lululemon Addict.” : Lululemon Mocks Customers. N.p., 22 Mar. 2013. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.

Mulholland, Angela. “Lululemon Founder Says Yoga Pants Don’t Work with ‘some Women’s Bodies'” CTVNews. N.p., 07 Nov. 2013. Web. 07 Nov. 2013.

Roose, Kevin, and Charlotte Cowles. “New York Magazine.” Daily Intelligencer. N.p., 21 Mar. 2013. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.

In a blog posted by Clement Kong, the main issue regarding the new phones released by Apple last months (Iphone 5S and 5C) is the lack of point of difference (POD) compared to previous Iphones and phones from other competitors. The author argued that only a few new features that are not so attractive can be found—new colors, polycarbonate phone cases, new fingerprint sensors and A7 processors.  This lack of POD, along with increasingly fierce competition within the industry, has posed a threat on Apple’s market share.

Apple has certainly disappointed many of its fans who have been waiting for the release date, expecting something different and creative from Iphone 5S and 5C.  As for screen size, Apple is trying hard to make itself special by offering elongated phones rather than altering width.  But though it has differentiated itself from its competitors, the POD compared with its previous phones has been ignored. Improving POD is really a big deal in the smart phone industry, and those who grasp its importance is likely to gain competitive advantage. For instance, Samsung has launched smartphones with curved display screens in South Korea according to BBC news. This shows Samsung’s ambition to further improve its POD which contributes to its domestic market share. Apple should certainly watch out and learn from this.

Reference:

Kong, Clement. “Clement Kong’s Blog.” Clement Kongs Blog. UBC Blog, 06 Oct. 2013. Web. 05 Nov. 2013.

Kelion, Leo. “Samsung Launches Smartphone with Curved Display Screen.” BBC News. BBC, 10 Sept. 2013. Web. 05 Nov. 2013.

IKEA, the well-known Swedish furniture retailer, has sold 150 million meatballs, bringing in nearly 2 billion in annual revenue. This food division of IKEA is not the same as those restaurants we see every day—the strategy is to keep the restaurant and menu simple.

The managers in IKEA apparently have a clear vision about what IKEA has to offer the customers. After walking in the big store for the whole morning, customers want to sit down and have something to eat. If there is a long menu with a variety of food, it may take a relatively long time for customers to hesitate about what to choose. IKEA knows that customers come to shop for furniture, not for food, so the menu it offers contains only 5 items at reasonable and inexpensive prices.

IKEA’s restaurant has found its point of difference among so many restaurants in the world, which is providing limited items on the menu. But this point of difference is not mainly used for competing with other restaurants. Rather, the restaurant of IKEA is like an accessory of the furniture shop. It provides customers with a better shopping experience. With its own restaurant embedded in the furniture store, it ensures that customers stay as long as possible since they don’t have to drive to other places for meals.

Reference:

Hansegard, Jens. “IKEA’s Path to Selling 150 Million Meatballs.” The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal, 17 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Oct. 2013.

“IKEA.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Oct. 2013.

BlackBerry is facing a lawsuit due to the misleading information it has disclosed to shareholders about its financial position. Recently it has reported a loss of 965 million operating losses and a decision to lay off 4,500 employees.

The shining moment of BlackBerry has definitely become a history. And the fact that it is eclipsed by Apple and Google is irrefutable. However, regardless of its failure of technological innovation, it could have be honest and more accurate about its statements for investors. Instead of “making a series of materially false and misleading statements and omissions related to the Company’s business and operations,” BlackBerry should have informed investors about its financial decline.

Why would BlackBerry conceal the truth? One reason might be that managers in BlackBerry were under big pressure from expectations of shareholders. But this doesn’t justify their dishonesty. Lies in business are dangerous enough to ruin a company. And although this is not the case for BlackBerry since it is already in decline, being honest could have saved it the money used in settling the lawsuit.

Avoiding pressure by lying can only make problems last longer. Those managers in BlackBerry should have known that truth is better than lie.

Reference:

• Reuters, Thomson. “BlackBerry Hit with Shareholder Lawsuit.” CBCnews. CBC/Radio Canada, 05 Oct. 2013. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.
• Hesseldahl, Arik. “BlackBerry’s Busy Weekend of Shareholder Lawsuits and Buyout Chatter.” AllThingsD. AllThingsD, 06 Oct. 2013. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.
• Gustin, Sam. “Business & Money.” Business Money The Fatal Mistake That Doomed BlackBerry Comments. Time, 24 Sept. 2013. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.

 Molson Canadian, a beer company, has launched an advertising campaign devised by Rethink Toronto in selected places in Europe. In this campaign, red fridges with free beers inside are placed across cities in Europe, and the door will unlock only if someone scan a Canadian passport.

Along with the tagline “I am Canadian”, this campaign succeeds in telling people where the company comes from. Also, it undoubtedly boosts Canadians’ national pride when they are called upon to open the fridge. They would be proud as they insert their passport into the scanning machine, and locals are also be happy because of the free beer that the whole crowd sample together. Potential European consumers involved in this campaign will be intrigued and thus will remember the brand better.

However, there might be some concern about whether this campaign discriminates in terms of nationality. Such concern might be unnecessary, because even if only Canadians can open the fridges, people from other countries can all taste the beer.

Other than the marketing in European countries, this campaign can also attract potential Canadian customers who watch the promotion video posted online and hear “I am Canadian” resonating in their ears.

Reference:

• YouTube. Dir. MyMolsonCanadian. YouTube. YouTube, 21 June 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.
• Hutchings, Emma. “Beer Fridge Only Opens By Scanning Canadian Passport [Video] – PSFK.” PSFK RSS. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.
• Nudd, Tim. “Molson’s World-Traveling Beer Fridge Can Be Opened Only With a Canadian Passport | Adweek.” AdWeek. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.
• Szondy, David. “Molson’s Beer Fridge That Only Canadians Can Open.” Molson’s Beer Fridge That Only Canadians Can Open. Gizmag, 01 July 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.

Line, a mobile massaging company from Japan, has reaped great profits through selling stickers, or emoticons. These are fully delineated cartoon characters that help users express their feelings and send their massages in a playful and funny way.

This success shows Line’s human-centered focus on the desire to express feelings in a more efficient way. Typically, apps like Line profit from advertising of discounted coupons and games. These streams rely on the additional functions of Line rather than the basic function of massaging. Stickers store, on the other hand, are more relevant to users and more related to its basic function. Also, it constantly updates the stickers store with classic or trendy cartoon characters. Apparently, Line is accepted as a “smartphone life platform” by most customers, and in this virtual platform, stickers contribute a lot to the fun of users’ real-time sharing and chatting.

The success of stickers reminds app designers of a big business potential in the social media market. Emoticons have existed for a long time, but it seems that the idea of selling them hasn’t been noticed for a period of time. Being the first ones to grasp this opportunity will definitely generate great profits for companies like Line. Business is about people, and Line has for sure practiced this notion.

Reference:

• Fitzpatrick, Michael. “The Japanese App That Is Storming the World.” Fortune Tech Technology Blogs News and Analysis from Fortune Magazine RSS. CNN Money, 29 Jan. 2013. Web. 04 Oct. 2013.
• Bea, Francis. “Line Is a Messaging App Meets Social Network Headed for the U.S. Market – Here’s What to Expect.” Digital Trends. N.p., 29 Jan. 2013. Web. 04 Oct. 2013.
• TNW. 2013. Untitled. [image online] Available at: http://thenextweb.com/asia/2013/09/13/lines-web-store-lets-you-buy-stickers-and-virtual-goodies-without-a-credit-card-via-a-computer/ Web. 04 Oct. 2013.

There are these companies that are so ethical that they are not satisfied with being law-abiding, but also voluntarily take social responsibilities, just like Chiquita, an American firm.  It is hard for companies to decide to what extent should they be ethical, because there are pros and cons regarding each sides.

In the case of Chiquita, an American firm which is one of the world’s biggest suppliers of bananas and other fruit, being ethical is giving itself a difficult time. Chiquita tried to be ethical by avoiding fuel from Canadian tar sands, but enraged Canada’s oil industry. It tried to boost gender equity, but didn’t end up attracting more big retailers because of that.

So in conclusion, being ethical can help companies generate goodwill and gain a good reputation (which itself doesn’t sound ethical because it’s in effect interest-oriented). Also, some proprietors of companies may truly have such conscience that they want to contribute more to the society. But on the other hand, creating an ethical brand image may not generate so much profit as they expect. And using money from the companies may impose unsolicited charge on employees, etc. Other times, just like Chiquita, companies will infuriate some stakeholders and cause unnecessary conflicts. Maybe companies can leave their social responsibilities to the society and government, or maybe they can take small responsibilities instead of going too far. To be or not to be— this is still a question.

Reference:

N/A. (2012). Going Bananas. Available: http://www.economist.com/node/21551500. Last accessed 10th Sept 2013.