(Chnook.org)

If the United Nations was fully funded why would we need the Arc or social enterprise”?

The Arc Initiative and the United Nations serve similar purposes. Although they both lean towards connecting and maintaining harmony among different countries, the Arc Initiative focuses on something rather unique that the United Nations have not done – sharing knowledge on business fundamentals. With this, I feel that the Arc Initiative aids others on a more personal level, bringing knowledge one-on-one, seeing as they provide workshops in the underdeveloped countries.

These two organizations also differ in size, therefore, differing in the type of aid. The United Nations was established in 1945, while the Arc Initiative was a a rather recent project. The United Nations focuses on a large group of people, however, I feel that the Arc initiative is more effective as it puts a more personal focus, developing relationships with individuals.

The United Nations, despite their size, cannot aid underdeveloped countries alone.  I believe the Arc Initiative is just as beneficial to individuals as the exchange of skills prove to help them tremendously.

(Photo Credit: sendgrid.com)

In June 2014, Facebook users were in for a shock when they discovered that they were the guinea pigs of an experiment that was carried out in 2012. Users’ news feeds were manipulated, with the purpose of examining behaviours from the addition of more positive or negative content.

Robert Klitzman from Columbia University expresses his anger towards the experiment, strongly believing it violated research ethics. While I do agree with him and understand his point of view, I believe it can be justified and also that it was a strategic way to conduct easy market research.

One of Klitzman’s points include, “What if a depressed person became more depressed?” A large variety of people use this popular social-networking website, and there could have been many people suffering from depression. If a consumer with this condition was exposed to more negative posts, their health could have potentially worsened. With people’s emotions being negatively impacted, this is a major con from the experiment.

However, creating a Facebook account WAS one’s choice. Each person who created an account DID agree to the terms and conditions, which had included letting Facebook use personal information for internal operations and research/service improvement. 
As consumers of this free service, we essentially agreed to take part in this research.

While this experiment was certainly not very ethical, as users were not notified of the process, Facebook was able to utilize this inexpensive and smart method to conduct market research.

(Photo credit: listerine.ca)

In response to Purevsurenn’s post, she poses a thought-provoking question – In a market that is constantly changing, is it necessary for Listerine to innovate despite only really needing 4 simple ingredients?

The main obstacle with mouthwash is, that there’s only so many things you can do to change it. Adding new flavours will attract the adventurous consumers, while adjusting the formula to add more benefits will attract the health-conscious consumers. This is something they have already done.
Like Puresvurenn has mentioned, when looking at mouthwash, I feel that the only change Listerine could make is in the packaging. Perhaps a more convenient, useful package will be able to attract more customers. But is that really going to make a great difference?

I believe that a brand like Listerine doesn’t need to constantly adapt to the changing market. There will always be long-time and loyal users who will continue to use the brand, simply because the product works exceptionally well in their eyes. Perhaps, instead of changing the product itself, they could change marketing practices. Because it is a necessity to certain consumers, there is no need for the brand’s products to change due to the influence of new markets.

(Photo Credit: Tangoo.ca)

In Class 18, we were fortunate to hear pitches from three alumni who had become entrepreneurs. Without a doubt, the one that impressed me the most was Tangoo. The concept of a “pocket concierge” caught my attention, so I took initiative to visit the website. As someone who often plans meal outings with friends, I waste a lot of time worrying about locations and prices.

Reading through Tangoo’s blog post and website, I realized that I was actually a part of their customer segment. Tangoo’s value proposition was clearly defined to meet my needs of saving time. The blog post connects with its readers using powerful sentences; Paul relates to the customer and their needs, mentioning how time always appears to be an issue when making decisions. 

I found myself nodding my head and agreeing to many of the points, such as “Too often we settle for the familiar option because it is easy, and finding somewhere new takes up too much of our time”. It’s almost as if they took these words right out of my mouth; this was my exact problem.

Tangoo is an app with a clear target market and with its established value proposition,  I can actually see myself using it for the next time I go out for dinner with friends. Its innovative and attention-grabbing concept is unique and I believe it will reduce the amount of time I spend for the next time I plan a social outing.

(Photo Credit: UBC)

In response to Nodoka Hashimoto, her blog post regarding the alumni visit is very accurate in terms of how I felt about that class.

I completely agree with her thoughts, especially in the sense that we were able to see a part of the business model canvas in action. It wasn’t just reading and looking up things online, or hearing Paul and Jeff explain the concepts to us – this time, it consisted of real life examples telling us THEIR actual story.

Clearly, the course content of Comm 101 was linked to real careers. Seeing the Sauder alumni made me view the business model canvas in a different perspective. Their pitches reminded me to think outside the canvas and helped me realize that each section is applicable in real-life businesses. I noticed that heavily mentioned areas included value propositions, customer segments, and key activities.

I do believe, as well, that passion is one of the major criterion in becoming a successful entrepreneur. As long as one has passion, one can go as far as they want to. Along with perseverance, these qualities were demonstrated through the alumni’s pitches, from the tone of their voice to the convincing expressions on their face. Overall, I found Class 18 to be very inspirational and it made me contemplate a lot about my own future.

Image taken from Uber‘s Website

On Halloween night, a woman from San Diego was unknowingly charged $92 for a mere 2.7 mile taxi ride, thanks to Uber. Their excuse? Surge pricing was in effect, a rate increase that only occurs during busy times. Her excuse? She wasn’t notified, contrary to the company’s promise. After this day, this once loyal customer, had ended her 2 year relationship with Uber.

In articles like these, there are often two sides of the story, and it is difficult to determine who’s at fault in this case. 
To argue against the woman, she could have simply missed the notification, or was not paying attention. On the other hand, it could have been a technical error on Uber’s part. Their app could have had a bug, thus, resulting in zero alerts to the user.

Either way, I believe it is of great importance for Uber to make this surge pricing information vividly clear, especially if they want to retain customer loyalty.  In order to maintain a good customer relationship, it is necessary to establish a close understanding with the user. Otherwise, misunderstandings occur and the company’s promises appears like a fraud (for example, Uber’s reputation has been tainted by the “F” rating “The Better Business Bureau”).

News of bad customer relationships spread much quicker than good customer relationships. Uber’s next steps? They must compromise with the woman through a refund, as well as further adjustments to their app, making sure bugs are fixed. Another unsatisfied review could potentially disrupt more customer relationships, making consumers switch to another taxi service app.

When was the last time I decided to have a cup of coffee? Just this morning.
Did I have to debate on getting my coffee from Tim Hortons, Starbucks, or McDonald’s? Of course.

(Image Credit: 2brains1storm.com)

In Canada’s coffee market, competition is perfect. Nearly everywhere and anywhere, one is bound to pass by a Tim Hortons, Starbucks, or McDonald’s (just think about the UBC Campus for starters).  As popularity for this sought-after drink rises, these businesses find themselves trying to outdo one another. What is the problem? Coffee is coffee – there are too many points of parities.

The points of parity for each company are to provide the mass market with a take-out cup of coffee to get their day going. Because each company sells coffee, it is essential to have clear points of differences. Just what exactly makes each of these companies unique? Ultimately, it depends on what customers value the most.

Focusing on Tim Hortons, it is evident that they are the only Canadian company of the three, so it is no surprise that patriotic consumers would prefer to buy coffee from there. Along with a relatively cheaper price, patriotic consumers would enjoy a Canadian taste rather than an American one. They also promise to focus on fresh ingredients, another value consumers appreciate. Because of these points of differences, Tim Hortons are able to retain customers who have believed the company has met all their needs.

What’s irrelevant to one group, may be something cherished to another group.

(photo credit: Artizans.com)

Taseko’s controversial copper-gold project, New Prosperity, strives to create significant economic and social value.  While the key highlights of the result include a federal government revenue increase by $4.30 billion, it may at first seem that only benefits will come out of this project. However, it is a different story for the Tsihgot’in people, as the project proposes to use their land. For these individuals, preserving their land means protecting a history of tradition. When one believes in protecting something they highly value, it becomes an obstacle to the company destroying that value. The Tsihgot’in people’s protest becomes a key external factor to Taseko’s vision, who now have barriers to their project.

Values that can only really be understood from the Tsihgot’in people’s point of view, are the tribal park’s cultural, heritage, and ecological values. While companies see it as just an ordinary piece of land, it is certainly not “just” a piece of land for the First Nations. They believe that it contains life, ranging from wildlife to salmon spawning areas, that must be protected. With the mine being created on this land, they believe their values will be destroyed.

Similar to Enbridge, the Northern Gateway to them is a $2.6 billion revenue and job generating project. To the aboriginal communities, this project only calls for potential accidents that could disrupt the land they treasure. Land is precious and once an accident occurs, the effects are irreversible.

The conflict between the First Nations and their adversaries turn into a battle of cultural values and profits. Are the profits and economics benefits from the project enough to overthrow the precious values of the First Nations people? Is bringing in economic benefits a valid reason to demolish something cherished by another?

Did you say Blackberry? What is that again?
Their latest creation, the Passport, may be a creation that was just a little too late.

This once extremely popular brand has slowly died down over the years. Its notable competitors, Apple and Samsung, have been taking over the cell phone/electronics market, lowering the popularity of Blackberry. The big touch-screen trend has not failed to appeal to a large variety of the mobile user market, ranging from teenagers to adults of all occupations.

While these companies have made a value proposition of creating a convenient, large touch-screen phone for anyone of all ages, Blackberry concentrated on the customer segment of business workers. What has Blackberry been doing wrong? Nothing, really. When the touch-screen trend was occurring, the company could have made major adjustments to their products. By focusing on the big touch-screen trend, they could have jumped onto the bandwagon and brought in extra profits. At the same time, they would have had to figure out how to turn that point of parity into a point of difference, as touch-screen phones have been and are still quite similar to one another.

(image from Yahoo)

However, because their brand promise is to provide phones with quick emailing and texting service meant for businessmen and businesswomen, focusing on touch-screen phones was not entirely necessary. Blackberry is positioned in many consumers’ minds as a business phone, and integrating a focus of touch-screens into their phones could have possibly lost customers. By introducing this big screened Passport now, is it too late for Blackberry to defeat their competition?

(image from TopVogue.net)

If there was one word in particular that stood out to me while reading this article on Nike’s success in sales, it is the slang term “athleisure”. What is athleisure? The purpose of athleisure apparel is to provide comfortable clothes while suggesting a sport-centric lifestyle. Meaning, one doesn’t have to be sporty to wear fashionable workout gear.

This trend was one of the prime reasons why Nike saw success in their sales. Athleisure clothing is a trend that isn’t something particularly new to me, as I have undoubtedly witnessed this trend during my early years of high school. From Lululemon yoga pants to Nike track pants, they were abundant in the hallways. Everyone – especially non-athletic people – wore them.

Only approximately 30% of my high school of 1400 students were involved in sports, and yet I had seen at least half of my peers wear some sort of athletic clothing everyday. From my experience at school, it’s no surprise that Nike gains most of their sales from athleisure clothing. Recognizing this trend allowed them to concentrate on a particular customer segment. By targeting people who wish to look athletic and fashionable simultaneously, Nike experiences growth in sales.