Category Archives: Uncategorized

In Seth Godin’s Who’s responsible for service design? he argues that too often bad customer service is put on the person who delivers the service. When in actuality it is the “architecture of service” that is to blame for the poor service. He continues by saying that this architecture rarely changes, for the complaint never makes it as far as the executive who originally employed the poor architecture of service. He then list 3 initiatives that executives can take in order to have proper architecture of service. They are:

1. Require service designers to sign their work. Who decided to make it the way it is?

2. Run a customer service audit. Walk through the building or the software or the phone tree with all the designers in the room and call out what’s not right.

3. Make it easy for complaints (and compliments) about each decision to reach the designer (and her boss).

As someone who has worked at well-known restaurants in Vancouver, delivering excellent customer service is no easy feat. As Godin has pointed out, it is especially difficult when you try to deliver top-notch customer service under a poor service structures in which I had no input in implementing. All I asked, the next time your meal is cold or wrong, just remember that it is not always the person who delivers the food.

Summer is soon upon us and we all know what that means. No deadlines, no stress, no exams, and lots of partying. If anyone who is an acquaintance of mine knows anything about me, it’s that I love going to The Roxy on country night. Nothing is better – beer, country music, and girls. Too bad this has absolutely nothing to do with marketing…or does it? After all gentlemen, when we seek to make a new female friend, are we not subconsciously conducting an STP analysis? I think so. So here is my STP analysis of the male mind when trying to make a new acquaintance at any club.

Segmentation: for any guy, we segment our new found female friends into 3 categories based on an out of 10 point system.

1-5: these women are wonderful in their own ways, however, the male does not feel that their “personality” is consistent with his. These women are easier to talk to and approachable.

5-7: I like to call these girls the ones that are batting in my league. Our “personalities” are consistent, they are a little more difficult to approach, however, not impossible.

7-10: this segment is better known as next to impossible. These are the alpha females of the club. Extremely hard to talk to and definitely not approachable.

Target: once the gentlemen has done a quick lap around the club and has segmented his audience, the next step is to target a segment in which he thinks would be most beneficial to him. Personally, I’m more comfortable to target the “5-7.”

Positioning: once the target has been set, you need to position yourself in a way that will capture your target away from the competition.

So thank you Elaine and Scott for teaching me valuable marketing tools that I can apply in everyday situations!

In Briana Long’s Consumer to Consumer Marketing, she goes into goes into detail of how Youtube has become a channel for “experts” to put their two cents in and teach Internet users how to perform various task (for instance, I recently “Youtubed” a video on how to write a marketing blog). She informs that since these people are seen as experts, when they use products in their videos these products are regarded as the best in the market. Long further explains that this is especially apparent in make-up and fashion tutorials where the “experts” go as far as even disclosing the price of the products. Long then gives an example of a company, Lancome, who has given products to one “make-up expert,” Michelle Phan, to recommend to her followers.

I think this is a great way to advertise at a lower cost, but it’s not very original as Long makes it seem. Since its inception in 1998, Lululemon has been a low-cost marketing innovator. They earned brand recognition from endorsing local yoga instructors, making them a walking billboard. However, not every company can endorse local experts like Lululemon has done, especially Lancome. The thriving make up company has to look to Youtube to get their brand out there since their product cannot be easily identifiable and distinguishable. A pretty good idea.

So what does this mean? Well as I sit in front of my computer waiting for my instructional video on “how to tie-a-tie” (during which I will be brain wash to buy the tie that the “expert” suggests) to load, I first have to sit through a 30 second advertisement on a car that I apparently cannot live without. Perfect, more advertisements. Just when you think Google cannot squeeze in any more advertisements…

With the NFL lockout not looking like it will be resolved anytime soon, players are looking for a new career. For example, the Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver, Chad “Ocho-Cinco” Johnson, is thinking of becoming a professional soccer player. Yes, the prima donna receiver has decided to hang up the shoulder pads and tried out with the Major League Soccer organization, Kansas City. As I was watching this on Sports Centre late one night, I couldn’t help but think that maybe Ocho-Cinco is on to something. After all, companies reposition themselves all the time. So here is how I think Ocho-Cinco, after conducting a proper marketing mix, can be successful in signing with a MLS team.

From Football Player...

To Soccer Player?

Product: This is obviously Ocho-Cinco himself. He needs to make sure that managers see the benefits in him as a player – fast, agile, and naturally athletic.

Price: Here is where it becomes difficult. Ocho-Cinco has become infamous in the past for arguing that he doesn’t get paid enough. If he can market himself as an athletic player at cheaper cost, he might have a chance signing with a team.

Place: Since Ocho-Cinco has never played soccer professionally, the best way to get signed is to go with a team who had a poor record in the 2010 season. This is a two-fold benefit for the organization that signs him. One, Ocho-Cinco could shock everyone and be the next best thing to the MLS since David Beckham. And two, it could shake things up for the organization and increase ticket sales to see the former football player.

Promotion: The art of influencing buyers to purchase the product. How can Och-Cinco do this? I think the best way to promote Ocho-Cinco is to showcase his soccer skills by posting videos on Youtube.

To Chad: you’re welcome.

Logo’s help consumers recognize companies and associate those companies with their products or market. When a company makes a drastic change such as changing their logo, they are taking an extreme risk in losing recognition from their consumers. This was an issue that was brought up in regards to Starbucks changing their logo during our marketing presentations on Tuesday, March 29^th. The question was is Starbucks’ consumers attach to their logo and will changing it have any drastic effects?

Before

After

As I was sitting there listening to this questions (in relief that I was finally done my presentation!), I couldn’t help but try to compare it to the company that I was doing, Lululemon. I felt that Starbucks can do whatever they want to their logo, and it wouldn’t increase or decrease the amount of customers they serve in a day. However, if Lululemon changed their logo, I think they would lose a lot more customers than Starbucks would because their customers wear their logo. When people purchase clothes, for the most part, it’s about how they look in the clothes and how unique the design of the clothes. That piece of clothing is going to last that person months, so the logo needs to be consistent and recognizable. In contrast, when a person buys a cup of coffee, it’s the contents that are behind the logo that is of what’s the consumer’s interest. In my opinion, the right answer to Elaine’s question is that Starbucks’ customers are not attach to the logo, and by changing the logo slightly, there would be no drastic effects.

30 seconds. That’s all companies have for their commercials to attract their target audience, inform them of their product and its benefits, and convince them that this product is better than the competition’s. There have been some epic commercials, like this one…

which captures my eye and entices me to use their product, like a wolf! However, there are a lot of bad commercials. You know the ones. The type of commercials where you sit there absolutely baffled that there’s someone who is that dumb to think of it. So here it is my top 3 worst commercials ever made.

1. Starting things off with a bang we got Smart for Life Cookies with their innovative weight loss cookies who people claim have lost 50-100 pounds by eating these miracle cookies.

I’m sorry, but if people are that happy about eating a cookie then there has got to be something in there that’s not 100% legal, and 100% available on every street corner in East Hastings.

2. Excel shows how there long lasting gum can get rid of your bad breathe seconds before your hot date.

After being an avid Excel user, I immediately switched over to Dentyne Ice after watching this commercial. How could anyone do such a thing to those cute little characters?

3. Here it is number 3, the worst commercial that has ever been made.

Enough said.

In  Anoushka Patel’s Always, she informs that there is a high absenteeism in school among young women in East Africa during their mentstration cycle due to a lack of knowledge of this issue and resources for sanitary protection. Patel praises Procter & Gamble (P&G) for taking initiative and teaming up with “The Girl Child Network” and creating a campaign for young women to “Always Stay in School.” According to Patel, P&G provides 15,000 girls with enough sanitary protection to last 2 years and provided $200,000 worth of women hygiene products and $4 million to educate young women. Patel also highlights the fact that P&G understands the social responsibility they have towards their consumers.

As someone who actively participates in community service programs (member of the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Greater Vancouver), and who has gone on mission trips to third world countries (built homes for 2 weeks in the Philippines with ‘Gawad Kalinga’), I feel that there is hope for the less fortunate in the world when big companies like P&G make an effort to contribute to society. However, I can’t help but feel that the P&G has a hidden agenda. Are they trying to raise awareness of the issue that affects young women in East Africa? Or are they trying to boost their image to their consumers? Or is it both? I would love to hear what you think! Please leave a comment below.

Hot wings? Check. Wide variety of chips? Check. Way too much beer? Check. A grocery list that is only fit for an occasion like the one that will take place this Sunday at 3:30PM. Yes, Super Bowl Sunday XLV is finally here. With the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers as the main event, it sure will be an enjoyable game to watch. However, that will not be the only thing that will have my attention this Sunday. As a student of marketing, I know I will be watching the commercials from a more critical approach. One thing that I will be asking myself this Sunday is who are these ads targeting?

With about 95 million viewers (www.msnbc.com), playing your ad during the Super Bowl will surely get your product noticed. But the real question is who are watching these ads? It has been reported that Super Bowl viewers are actually made up of more women than men (www.msnbc.com). I found this kind of shocking considering most of the ads that I can remember from past Super Bowls seem to target men. For an example:

“With a price tag of up to $100,000 a second” (www.forbes.com), companies can’t afford to neglect a major portion of the viewers. As I relax in front of the TV this Sunday with some of my closest friends, it will be interesting to see this year if companies put a more feminine spin on their ads. GO PACKERS!

The tobacco companies have been the leading causes of lung cancer, heart diseases, and many deaths for decades. A close friend of mine, and an avid smoker, would suggest that it is a huge contributor to the U.S.’s Gross National Product (GNP), and that “we should smoke our way out of the recession.” As comical as this may be, my friend is not far off. Back in 1996, it was estimated that the tobacco companies generated $51.5 billion of the U.S. GNP, and employing over 680,000 people along the way (Tobacco Institute, 1995; 3-5). So is the government’s anti-smoking campaign harming the economy more than they are saving lives?

This was a question that I asked myself after hearing what my friend had to say about smoking. As someone who has recently quit smoking, I do not need any reason to go back to the bad habit. After conducting further research, it is apparent that the tobacco companies are a major contributor to the GNP. However, its contribution does not compare to the money spent on medical expenses associated with the treatment of tobacco-related illnesses. In 1999, it was discovered that “$53.4 billion was spent on smoking related diseases in the United States” (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1763946/pdf/v008p00290.pdf).

From a marketing perspective, are these ads limiting the victims of smoking? Clearly not. What these ads try to do is scare young adults away from smoking, but for the most part fail. I saw the ads. I still smoked. The government needs to find another way to sway tobacco users away from using it.

As a student who lives on his own, pays bills, and basic living expenses, budgeting can be overwhelming for a “first-timer.” I remember when I was in first year of university: I lived in a 2 bedroom apartment with my older sister, and I had no idea how to cook. Between going out with friends and frequent fast food meals, I accumulated a debt of over $2000 in my first term. I knew something had to change, but with fluctuating hours at my restaurant job I had no idea what my pay check would be and how much I should be spending, saving or paying towards debt.

Enter BMO. BMO online banking has just introduced a new product, “Money Logic.” It’s an online application that shows you exactly where you are spending your money, and how much you need to put aside to meet your financial goals. The easy to understand pie chart breaks down your expenses for you (so I know when I’ve spent 79% of my pay on fast food and-ahem-beverages.) This is a great product for young adults who have troubles budgeting their money, and makes keeping track of expenses effortless.

Even though budgeting can seem daunting, BMO’s commercials really make it seem easy and fun. Throughout the commercial, they show a wide variety of customers from young adults to grandparents. It is clear that BMO is trying to cater to a wider target market, unlike some other banks, like CIBC, who show older adults. CIBC’S marketing campaign excludes the younger market and makes banking seem like an older person thing.