Jeremy Stickland's Blog

It really is a shame the marketing project was done this way… I feel it is unfair to people in other classes who were not fortunate enough to be able to partake in such a rewarding and interesting project. This project supplemented ideas from class very well and allowed me to understand them better through trial. The video aspect gave me not only a new skill but a new respect for technology, such as cameras and editing software, and the work and understanding it takes to operate it fully.

The first parts of the project were just as much about coming together as a team as they were developing a macro-environmental analysis, SWOT, and position for our chosen company. These parts also happened to combine many components of class lectures and put them into use. It helped me understand things like why a SWOT would be done after the environmental analysis or the process in which one goes through to develop a positioning statement. It was rewarding to watch these SWOT diagrams, target markets and all the rest of the hard work we put in all semester tie into one final video project that was left up to our creativity with few guidelines and restrictions.

For the video portion of the project, my group mates and I were fortunate enough to have an experienced cinematographer and editor in Mark Smith which made learning about the technology much easier. The video idea was definitely new, but with a group like ours we were bound to take off running with it. After our first meeting about the video our team was convinced we wanted to do a music video to express our creativity. However, we realized with the amount of work it would take and the little time we had, we changed our idea to what it is today. This is where I felt I took the most out of the project because not only did I learn about filming and editing I learned about, the time and work it takes, what equipment you need, and how it does not just all come together easily.

This project was very rewarding and I would recommend the marketing department use it for all Intro Marketing courses.

This Blog is in response to Ge (Lucy) Liu’s blog. Link:

https://blogs.ubc.ca/geliu/2013/11/09/marketing-blog-4-sure/

Deodorant is an interesting industry when the marketing aspects are analyzed. Every brand smells good, has some kind of a cool graphic, has multiple types such as antiperspirant or a gel, deodorant is one of many product lines, and for the most part they seem to target either men or women but not often both. With so many competitive brands with so many similar features product differentiation and promotion becomes even more difficult and important.

Looking at the men’s market leaders Axe and Old Spice you see two companies with almost identical products. What differentiates these brands is their incredibly creative advertising campaigns. Axe has captured males’ attention using its ladies “magnet” campaign with numerous commercials and Old Spice with it’s creative and humorous “Old Spice Man” promotions. Its clear that promoting is how companies gain market share in the deodorant industry.

As Lucy mentioned in her post Sure is trying to reposition itself in an attempt to regain market share. Narrowing down their target market to women is a good start for Sure, but it is not narrowed down enough. This will not compete with Dove and their “Real Beauty Campaign.” In order for them to make a legitimate come back they need to continue to position themselves through promotion like other company’s in the industry do.

In an industry with so many similar products, promotion becomes a very important tool. Success will not necessarily follow those with the best product. This makes it important for firms like Sure trying to reposition themselves to allocate resources to this instead of product. If this is done they will make a name for themselves for Sure!

Toms Shoes, quite possibly the world’s most famous social enterprise, employs a one for one gifting model with the slippers they sell. This concept is genius when it come to marketing because it taps consumers’ affective attitudes. When deciphering this business plan it becomes quite evident that it could be applicable to many other products if executed properly. Out of the many possibilities, however, I would not expect it to apply to real estate. Pete Dupuis and Sid Landolt, two individuals I am fortunate enough to have personal relationships with, thought differently, and that is how World Housing was created.

The founders of World Housing took the Toms business model and applied it to housing. A system has been implemented where developers can get in contact with World Housing and organize a plan where a house is given to a “dump dwelling” family in a third world country for every condo the developer sells. This is a desirable tactic for developers because the housing market is so competitive that any advantage should be used.

World Housing effectively uses integrated marketing communications to convey its unified message of using first world real estate to help the less fortunate in the third world. The different mediums this company markets through have contributed to its growth to date and will surely continue to as the company continues to gain popularity.  Certain tactics that are employed are features such as the ability to view the house being put up and given to the family, and a rapidly expanding Facebook page, just to name a few.

What really strikes me about world housing, however, is not the marketing aspect of the company or the intelligence of the business model; it’s the commitment of the company to making a difference in the lives of those that need it most.

Please check out the World Housing Website and Facebook Page!!

https://www.facebook.com/WorldHousing

http://www.worldhousing.ca

An example of the houses World Housing provides.

Living conditions at the Smokey Mountain Landfill in Manilla, Philippines.

The Stung Meanchey Landfill in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

All images from http://www.worldhousing.ca/media/#

When all my friends gather to watch Canada play in The World Juniour Hockey Championships, celebrate Canada Day, or cheer Canadian athletes on in the Olympics there is no doubt in my mind everyone will be drinking Molson Canadian. This clearly is not a coincidence.  Molson has effectively positioned themselves as the beer of Canada through naming, patriotic commercials, and relevant promotions.

The most recognizable and arguably the most effective form of Molson’s patriotic marketing is the name, Molson Canadian. It is literally named after this country; it really does not get more patriotic than that. And if for some reason it was not clear to you where the beer is from after reading the name, the beer also features a maple leaf on it’s bottle/can (pictured below).

Picture Link: http://www.molsoncanadian.ca/en/Index.aspx

Branding is a major component for a company such as this, and to maintain brand equity they produce commercials such as the beer fridge commercial below. This commercial taps Canadian audiences by making them feel proud about their nationality with a fridge,  which opens only with a Canadian Passport. People in the commercial are heard yelling, “Is anybody from Canada?” Next, it takes that proud feeling and relates it to their product when the fridge opens to a bunch of Molson Canadian Beer. It creates an identity for the beer. Promotions such as this create subconscious ties between the consumer and producer which arise largely during patriotic situations like Canada Day or a big Canadian hockey game.

Molson Canadian Beer Fridge Commercial

When seen by a foreigner, Molson Canadian may be seen as just another Canadian beer, but to a Canadian it is much more than that; it’s a national icon. Molson has positioned itself into Canada’s beer, through creative commercials, branding and many other promotional tactics.

In reply to Rohit Bhargava’s blog.

Link: http://www.rohitbhargava.com/2013/10/smoothies-whiskey-and-the-art-of-secondary-marketing.html

Lately, I have been pondering business opportunities and more specifically starting my own business. Ideas seem to be abundant but quality ideas with a solid point of differentiation are few and far between. Although Rohit’s blog post and the form of marketing discussed do not necessarily apply directly to this situation, it exposed me to a whole other form of product differentiation, which in fact does apply. I was really intrigued by his smoothie example of secondary packaging in which the company sells bottles with miniature “knit winter caps.” When I read it, I immediately wanted one, and as guilty as I feel saying it, it had nothing to do with the charity implications they bring. There’s just something about free things that entices me. I would assume this is not just a sample size of one, seeing as it is a reoccurring theme in retail and it is mentioned in Rohit’s blog. When given more thought, it’s pretty clear that these caps are useless for everything besides maybe a Barbie. Yet there’s more value to a smoothie with a cool hat than no hat at all, for a reason I have yet to decipher; maybe it’s the material goods that consumers seem to be chasing non-stop these days? Whatever the reasoning is, it seems to be an important development for not only myself, but also my quest to be an entrepreneur with a unique idea or product.

This bottle of Crystal Head Vodka includes crystal head shot glasses in the secondary packaging. http://uponamidnightdreary.com/gifts/gifts-for-skull-lovers-2010-edition/8675

The other day, while mindlessly surfing Facebook I came across a questionable advertisement by Diesel, an Italian Clothing Brand. The ad shows a tattooed woman dressed in just a Burqa head dress, and in bold writing it states beside the image, “I AM NOT WHAT I APPEAR TO BE.”

Burqas are traditional Islamic attire worn by women to cover their bodies. The ad combines a Western and Islamic image which is something that has not been done by such a large brand. Some may see the idea as a creative original brand promotion but others, especially those of Islamic faith, may find this very offensive. The whole purpose of a Burqa is to cover the skin of a woman for religious reasoning, but Diesel intentionally shows the whole side of the woman’s body. When bringing religion into marketing and appearing to mock it, it brings ethics into the conversation.

Is it appropriate for one of the world’s more famous and recognizable clothing brands to portray a religion like this? No. Diesel should know better as a company. They should not only have enough expertise but also enough experience in advertising to realize that this is not acceptable. Today’s world promotes diversity and despite the view a small portion of Western society has of Muslims, people are generally accepted for who they are and not judged by religion or beliefs. Diesel has shown disrespect towards Muslims and should face consequences. It is possible that the public opinion of the brand could change negatively due to negative reactions to their unethical marketing techniques. I hope people see these and do change their minds about buying Diesel products but I do not think that it will happen. I think people will look at the ad as any other Diesel promotion unfortunately. Which makes me question is any publicity good publicity?

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burqa

http://www.mtvdesi.com/diesel-burqa-ad-fashion-faux-pas

http://www.diesel.com

D.K.’s blog post about the way of measuring poverty was interesting because it was something I had never really thought of before. When Poverty was first measured it was determined by asking for income. Mr. Duncan Smith has proposed that this does not truly measure how poor a person is. Smith theory says that to judge if someone is truly below the poverty line or not you need to take more into account than just income. You should include things like “worklessness”, education failure, and drug and alcohol dependency.

I agree with this statement I think that poverty is much more than just an income it is a lifestyle. If being poor is a lifestyle then I feel that money is not the only thing that influences a lifestyle. This to me is another case of people measuring things in units that cannot and should not be measured in this way.

http://www.economist.com/news/britain/21566691-government-sets-out-redefine-what-it-means-be-poor-end-line

I agree with Ryan’s views about Target. The blog post that he wrote about Target’s Canadian takeover of Zellers caught my eye because I feel for Zeller’s employee’s, being a retail employee myself. Target plans on only keeping employees that fit their company’s image and is not guaranteeing jobs for former Zeller’s workers. This issue is completely unfair but there really is nothing that the employees can do about it. I don’t understand why target plans on doing this. Like Ryan said both of these companies are department stores, I would go as far to say that Zellers was even the Canadian equivalent of Target. This makes it even more unjust for the company to come to Canada and fire all of their employees. Target is already starting off on the wrong foot here and I personally hope for the sake of all the employees who lose their job that Target has a poor reputation to start off in Canada and their sales reflect that.

I disagree with some of Luna’s views on putting a casino in downtown Toronto. I think that it would benefit the city of Toronto to have a high-end casino especially with its potential location right in the heart of the city. I do agree with what Luna said about it being a tourist attraction, it will become a desired location for people visiting the city. The casino will run primarily on revenue from tourists. I feel that since a majority of the casino’s money should be coming from tourists than social issues such as a gambling addiction should not be as big of an issue as Luna predicts it to be. With the casino located so close to the Rogers Centre (the Toronto Blue Jays’ baseball field) it will also be a place for baseball fans to go before or after watching a game. Toronto building a casino in the middle of the city will provide a major boost to the local economy by providing jobs and bringing tourists. Contrary to Luna’s opinion I believe that the social issues that come along with a casino will not override the positive effect it will have on the local economy.

Japan’s economy has been under the spotlight ever since their relations with China deteriorated several months ago. The country relies heavily on China; they have invested 6 billion dollars into China in the last year and have almost 30 000 firms located in the company. Many of these firms’ sales have gone way down due to what has transpired in the last few months. Some companies have decided to keep pressing in China despite diminishing profits but most are beginning to back out. This makes me wonder if China will still be a hotbed for production 20 years down the road. The Chinese vandals may have done more damage to their country than first thought. Their country known to house production factories for many multinational supply chains, may be gradually losing that reputation due to wages rising, the economy slowing, and these recent stirrings with the Japanese.

I think that the Chinese have really shot themselves in the foot with this. They have not only damaged relations with Japan on a political scale they have damaged relations on an economic scale as well. For China to preserve their status in the global economy they cannot do anything more to hurt their already sore standing.

http://www.economist.com/news/business/21564891-businesses-struggle-contain-fallout-diplomatic-crisis