Jane's Blurbs

Ikea has launched an experimental haven for men in Sydney, Australia. For four days, over the course of Father’s Day weekend, this particular Ikea location set up a “play area” for men called Manland. The more I think about this idea, the more the concept turns from something ingenious and humourous, into something sexist and offensive.

Much like it’s counterpart for children, Smaland, wives that drop off their “whining husbands” at Manland receive a buzzer with a timer for thirty minutes, so their spouses will remember to pick them up while they are busy shopping tension-free. Young, attractive females in jeans and skirts go around offering men snacks such as hot dogs and nachos. The space is filled with foosball tables and TVs playing non-stop sports, among other stereotypical manly activities.

While this may have been Ikea’s way of trying to lure in men who avoid shopping altogether, the only thing they have been successful at is being sexist. Manland has reinforced gender roles and stereotypes in a negative way. They are stating that a man cannot be bothered to shop for a home that he lives in, and would rather play games and watch TV. Meanwhile, they assume women prefer shopping at Ikea and disregards the fact that there are many other things they could be doing too (such as relaxing at home!)

At first glance this contraption looks like something straight out of NASA or some kind of futuristic device. In fact, you may not be that far off. Introducing the new generation of heaters, the Dyson Hot is a stylish fan that also utilizes advanced technology. With its innovative design and incredibly hefty price tag, the Dyson heater seemingly shares a few things in common with one of the world’s most powerful brands – Apple.

In every aspect of marketing, Apple is a strong leader. From its groundbreaking new products matched with its exceptional customer service and warranties, to its effectively high priced lines, Apple has it all. Dyson has been the leader in vacuums and fans for years. To consumers that recognize the name, the brand commands respect and guarantees that you get what you pay for with Dyson products.

Despite the fact that not as many people would line up for hours to buy a vacuum, or consider it a terribly personal item – as they would a phone or laptop – Dyson is taking household appliances to a whole new level. They are no longer selling just a product, but focusing on what the consumer wants and on long-term profitable relationships. By considering the wants of a consumer rather than just their needs, Dyson transforms a vacuum from a product that just simply “sucks” into a stylish and convenient one that anyone would be proud to use.

The world is filled with many talented people. Then there are the celebrities that make you stop and wonder, “How are they famous?” These stars market themselves – and whatever it is they do – extremely well. Take Kim Kardashian for example. According to Jessica Guo’s blog post, Kim made an estimated $10 million in profit from her wedding. 

Thanks to the media and the internet, it has become easier for almost anyone to become famous and to build their own brand. Tamara Ecclestone is a billionaire heiress and socialite. Wanting to be financially independent, Tamara stated, “I want to build a brand and I want to think I’ve inherited my dad’s business mind.”

Tamara was determined to have her own reality show – following in the footsteps of her friend Paris Hilton. Her brand image is essentially a rich person that leads a glamorous lifestyle. People who are interested in keeping up with the rich and famous, can tune into her show and live vicariously through Tamara.

With the publicity Tamara gained when her new reality show aired, she also expanded her fanbase. The next step in building Tamara’s brand empire was, of course, merchandise. Famous for her always perfectly styled hair (which she has done three times a week), Tamara wanted to launch her own line of hair products. However, her plans to call it “Formula One” after her father’s multi-billion dollar brand ended in a disaster. It’ll be interesting to see how her brand is doing in a few years!

Over the summer, I was in need of some comfy flats and narrowed my options down to two brands: TOMS or Vans. Both brands are roughly in the same price range, and offer a variety of different styles and colours to choose from. After trying to decide which one to buy, I realized that TOMS had a unique aspect that set it apart from other shoe brands: charity. As Angela clearly identified,

“One of their primary goals is to provide footwear for underprivileged children; however, their ultimate goal is still to make profit.”

The TOMS One for One Movement is a highly effective marketing strategy because it has ingeniously aligned the company with a charity. By simply donating a pair of shoes for each pair sold, TOMS has provided a way for consumers to feel good about buying their brand.

While TOMS is one example of a brand whose products have become extremely popular thanks to its charity initiatives, other brands such as Dawn, a company that produces dishwashing detergents, have been doing something similar long before TOMS was around. Their Dawn Saves Wildlife commercial showed animals that were caught in oil spills. They were then cleaned up using Dawn soap and transformed into extremely adorable and happy animals. By buying Dawn soap, consumers could feel like they were helping out these unfortunate animals, which also gives the brand a competitive advantage over other dish soaps.

Think back to a time someone made a promise to you… and didn’t keep it. Were you happy? Did you believe them the next time they promised something? maybe… Probably not. Most likely, the person lost credibility in your eyes and you didn’t believe another word coming out of their mouth.

Now remember the last time you saw a new product. Its packaging promised something that you wanted, and you bought it expecting the product to work. After you’ve used the product, either one of two things could have happened. Your expectations could have been satisfied and you would have pronounced yourself a loyal, converted customer… OR, you could have been thoroughly disappointed by the promises the product and its marketing campaign had made.

For me, I was browsing the aisles of Sephora looking for a mascara. This may sound like an easy task; however, with dozens of mascaras that come in even more dozens of colours and sizes all promising the same thing – it’s actually pretty difficult. I would rush home super excited to try my new mascara only to be disappointed by my mirror image sporting clumpy lashes. After throwing the item in the trash, I would denounce the whole brand, go on blog sites to post a scalding review and deter my friends from purchasing it until the end of time.

As told on Drew’s Marketing Minutes – marketing is entirely based on satisfying expectations. A promise. It’s not really all about the fancy packaging or which celebrity had endorsed the product (most of the time). The important thing is whether or not the product had delivered what it had promised and what you had expected.

*Statement may not be shared by all readers and is subject to each individual’s opinions.

Continuing on last year’s success, Mr. Sauder is back and better than ever with a fresh new crop of gentlemen.  Showcasing only Sauder’s brightest, most talented, and exceptionally good-looking young men, this combined talent and entertainment show is also for charity – all ticket sales and donations go to the Canadian Cancer Society. Mr. Sauder is truly THE EVENT of the year – a night of entertainment and laughter,  all for an affordable $5 (although you’re more than welcome to donate more). Judges include the gorgeous Mina Kim and former CUS President, Conor (naughty) Topley. This fun-filled night is only two weeks away, on Tuesday, November 23, 2010, 6:30 PM at the Normandy Theatre in the SUB. However, this won’t be your final destination – the after party is at the Gallery for karaoke fun and a pitcher or two. Consider buying our newly-crowned Mr. Sauder a nice cold beer. You seriously won’t want to miss out on this epic event so look out for ticket sales in the CA Hall! If any of you sexy Sauderites think you have what it takes to be the next Mr. Sauder, visit our ‘SoCo’ group on Facebook and sign up!

An entrepreneur can be “anyone who wants to work for himself or herself.” Which would explain why Kim Kardashian calls herself an entrepreneur. On the other hand, anybody who assumes the risks of a business are also considered entrepreneurs, which includes millions of small business owners. However, according to A Definition of Entrepreneurship, there are distinct differences between entrepreneurial ventures and small businesses. Jim Treliving fits all of the criteria of an entrepreneur based on the article.

He started out as a RCMP officer. There was security, good pay, and Jim would have enjoyed a comfortable life had he stayed with the police force. But one day he ate at a restaurant known as Boston Pizza, and after seeing how busy and successful it was he thought, “Why don’t I go into that business?”

Treliving took a risk and left the RCMP to open his own Boston Pizza franchise. This franchise turned into 17 more franchises, which eventually led to Jim and his business partner buying out the whole company. After the bumpy beginning, the company began to generate immense profits and expand rapidly. Amount of wealth creation and speed of wealth creation were satisfied. Although the idea of pizza and restaurants weren’t new, the way Treliving ran the business and provided the service was innovation.

I bought a pair of boots from Nordstrom in Vegas a few months back. Unfortunately, the leather was ruined, most likely from the infamous Vancouver rain. All I wanted to know was how I could restore my beloved boots back to their original condition, so I called up Nordstrom for advice.

I blurted out, “There’s something wrong with my boots…”

“We’ll exchange them,” interrupted the sales associate before I could explain what was wrong, or the fact that I didn’t even want to return them. I tried to ask how to fix the leather; however, the only advice the associate could offer was “exchange” and “return.”

At that moment my mind flash-backed to the article Happy Feet from Comm 101. Zappos’ lenient return policy and outstanding customer service cost them nearly all of their revenue. It clearly shows in the numbers: their gross sales were over a whopping $1 billion but their net profit was a mere $10.8 million.

I wondered, “How does Nordstrom, the massive retailer that boasts the legendary tire return legend, achieve profit growth and continously growing revenue?” One explanation may be word-of-mouth. If most consumers are anything like myself, they shop at Nordstrom not to take advantage of the nonexistent return policy, but because they enjoy receiving genuine customer service- something that’s becoming extinct. (Holt Renfrew anyone?) And unlike some people, I become way too attached to my clothes to return them.

According to data courtesy of NPD, sales of Apple’s trademark iPod were down 17% in April. Before you assume the world is ending and dash to sell your stocks, consider this word:

Cannibalism.

The actual definition may not be pleasant but in Apple’s case, it is. To understand why, we have to think about where the loss in sales went. Are people buying extremely generic and boring Sony MP3 players instead of an iPod? Absolutely not.

It’s safe to assume that in today’s market, music devices don’t simply just play music, but include billions of other features. So instead of buying a relatively cheap iPod, people are considering the iPhone and iPad for a marginal extra cost. If consumers pay more for these “luxury” products, Apple is laughing all the way to the bank.

“Given the [average selling price] (4x) and margin profile of the iPad, we see this as a net positive for Apple’s business,” wrote Gene Munster.

Similarly, with the introduction of the iPad there had been initial concerns about them cannibalizing Macbooks. However, Apple has successfully made these two products distinctive enough that they do not cannibalize each others sales. In fact, Mac sales have increased an estimated 39% in April.

What does Burt’s Bees and The Body Shop have in common? They are both “green” companies that were bought out by not-so-green companies.

Millions of oblivious consumers who want to take a more natural, greener approach in life peruse the drugstore aisles and immediately reach for a product with the words “Organic” and “Natural” plastered all over it, such as Burt’s Bees. They are praised for their environmentally friendly practices and natural ingredients, and who wouldn’t want to support that? But do these consumers know that Clorox, the company who promotes using toxic bleach for anything and everything, now owns Burt’s Bees?

The undeniable trend in the market today are eco-friendly products. Major companies know this very well. Instead of doing the near impossible task of re-positioning their brand image, they simply take over a company with an already well established green image. If you truly care about a company’s values and mission, I urge you to do your research and confirm what the company’s (or their new executives’) real motives are. With sales in the eco-friendly market showing no signs of slowing down, look out for buy-outs of a natural brand near you.