Word of Mouth

You stop by here every morning, (sometimes even in the afternoon), you feel guilty because it seems to be eating up your bank account, yet you just can’t get enough of it. Yes, you guessed correctly, Starbucks. With the holiday season creeping up on us, Starbucks has, once again, brought back it’s cute little holiday cups and its famous holiday gingerbread, eggnog and caramel brulee lattes.

This year though, Starbucks introduced something new, something that didn’t exist before and something that, I know made my life, a whole lot easier.

STARBUCKS VIA:

“Not instant coffee as you know it, rich, flavorful, starbucks coffee in an instant.”

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Starbucks has now introduced their very own instant coffee. All you have to do for this great cup of coffee is add a little water, and there you have, the coffee you know and love. They are selling this product, under the premise that, during the holidays, everyone is busy, everyone is in a rush, and the perfect way to grab and go, is to do it with Starbucks VIA. Interestingly enough, they introduced this product right before the holiday season, sending people the message that it’s GO time and this is the perfect way for them to be caffeinated during this immensely busy season.

As I was reading a classmate’s blog, I noticed she had written about a program at Sauder, and she had directly related the marketing STP to it. As I was reading her blog, I noticed, not only is STP incorporated into this program, but it seems to use its very own promotional strategy as part of its main mission.

Even though the term “promotion” generally refers to how you can promote a product, and market it in such a way so that it seems attractive to customers, it can also refer to raising awareness or peaking their interest about a particular topic. An excellent example of this, is a student-run program at Sauder, called the Campus Ambassador Program, or CAP for short.

This program has been running for approximately three years, and comprises of student presenters who go to various highschools in the lower mainland and lead presentations about the Sauder School of Business. The goal of these presentations is not to tell students the grades they need to get in, or guide them through their supplemental application step-by-step, but it is to explain what life at Sauder is really like. These presentations are meant to leave students with information about how they can get involved, the Sauder curriculum and what they can do with their BCOM degrees once they graduate.

If this isn’t a form of marketing promotion, then what is? Essentially, we are telling students who are about to make a very important decision in their life, that Sauder should be the path they choose for a variety of reasons. We are telling them that Sauder is the cream of the crop, and selling it to them as the one of the best business schools in Canada.

Be honest, how badly do YOU want to be in Sauder now?

The marketing “P”, Promotion, is marketers’ main chance to communicate the key benefit of the merchandise to the customer, in order to make it memorable and unique in their minds.  A section in the promotional mix is “sales promotion”, which refers to short-term promotion, in order to further drive sales.

An excellent example of this is McDonald’s recent two-week campaign, in which they are giving away free small coffees at all of their locations. This campaign goes on 24-hours a day and is from November 15^th-28^th. This promotion makes McDonalds seem very generous, in that, they are giving coffee away for free for two whole weeks, all day along. However, the cost of coffee for McDonalds is extremely low, and by promoting it in this way, they seem generous, when really, it isn’t costing them much.

By offering customers a commodity that most people enjoy almost every morning, for free, they are allowing consumers to try out their product (if they have not before), or simply enjoy something they have to pay for, for free. This is their “thank-you” to their already loyal consumers, and also, an offer to attract new customers to their fast-food chain.

Social status is all around us, and it seems to be becoming a growing trend. Individuals are no longer satisfied with a simple cup of coffee, brewed at home, or rain boots that are manufactured because of their function. No, these days, people seem to be more interested in buying the famous glossy Scottish “Hunter” boots, or drinking their skinny vanilla latte from “Starbucks” every morning. Gone are the days where people bought for function, purchases are now made for status, brand, image, and confidence.

I can understand shopping at Holt Renfrew, getting your haircut at Toni & Guy, and only purchasing your handbags from Louis Vuitton can gain an individual confidence and social status. What I can’t seem to wrap my head around are characterizing condoms as a specialty good. Yes, I said condoms. Last week, as I was reading a classmate’s blog, I noticed she had written about “One Condoms, the leading choice for fashionable, socially conscious individuals who crave maximum pleasure and expect their purchases to do good in the world around them”. So now, people need to use condoms that make them feel confident too? With “One Condoms”, essentially, you’re saying goodbye to regular condoms in their boxes and wrappers, these special condoms come in sleek metal tins, with over 200 designs on round wrappers. And how are they designed? By their loyal customers. This is an excellent example of co-creation, why should it only be for M&M’s? Or Nike sneakers? People should be able to design everything they use. Even this little necessity that is often overlooked, the condom.

What is real beauty? It’s beauty that isn’t characterized by slender, tall women, with gorgeous faces and bodies. It’s inner beauty, beauty in the way someone acts, their personality and attitude, and the way they feel about themselves. Let’s be honest, since when does that really matter though? In the past decade, all anyone seems to care about is physical appearance.

In 2004, Dove, by Unilever, started a worldwide marketing campaign, called the Dove Campaign for Real beauty, to reposition the definition of beauty. The principle behind this campaign is to celebrate every woman’s beauty, and inspire each and every individual to have the confidence to be comfortable with themselves. No matter what the stereotypical views of beauty may be, all women should feel beautiful, no matter what shape, size or race they are. This campaign uses real women (NOT models), of various shapes and sizes to debate the meaning of true beauty. In order to market this campaign properly, Dove uses various billboards, events, charity funds and discussion groups where women can come together and share their views with women from around the world about beauty.

This campaign was a great success, and since then, Dove has expanded its marketing by starting the “Dove Self-Esteem Fund” and has also ordered a series of very successful short online films to promote this concept.

Does it make sense that people pay over 1500$ for a pair of shoes that aren’t even comfortable? Let me introduce you to Christian Louboutin, the person who started it all. Louboutin’s trademark glossy red soles are said to give customers an instant stamp of fashion excellence. The designer’s motive is to “make shoes that are like jewels”, and each and everyone of his designs represents unparalleled quality and sultriness. These shoes vary from sky high pumps, to slingbacks, to even boots, and for most women, Louboutin is the go-to brand if they want to make the ultimate fashion statement.

So why would someone choose Louboutin’s? Instead of say, Hush Puppies? Or even Birkenstocks? Which are expensive, but, at least they’re comfortable! The answer lies in personal gratification, which is a psychological need that all consumers have. In order to satisfy this inner need, consumers turn to the hottest shoe on the market, worn by celebrities such as Sarah Jessica Parker, Nicole Kidman, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and the list goes on and on. When there’s media attention, the consumer sees value in the shoes, then the purchase will be made. At the end of the day, it’s about the consumer being happy, so what if a pair of shoes is going to cost a whole month’s rent?

With midterm season in full swing, I’m starting to notice students popping “caffeine” pills and drinking energy drinks such as Red Bull, Monster and Red Rain like there’s no tomorrow. What exactly is it with these drinks? Do they actually fulfill us college students’ need for an energy boost after staying up studying the whole night?

This new trend has boosted sales for the Canadian energy drinks sector and, energy drinks have provided a new category in the beverage sector. Instead of simply buying a soft drink, a coke, or a 7up, adolescents go for something that will give them double benefits, a refreshment with an energy booster. Energy drinks are the new “bright lights” in the beverage sector and are showing and are an area of immense potential for marketers.

How healthy are they? Well, in small amounts, no, the health effects are not worrisome. However, athletes and students who increasingly consume large amounts of these energy drinks may suffer from dehydration, tremors, heat stroke and heart attacks. So what to do during those stressful exam weeks when you’re exhausted? Go to sleep. And if not, drink water, you’ll never crash.

Every Christmas or birthday, my parents don’t even have to ask me what I want. They know full well. I always want something from Tiffany’s. From their cute little blue box, to their creamy white ribbon, I can safely say almost every teenage girl wishes for that little blue box on her birthday, or under her Christmas tree.

Is this a new trend? Tiffany and Co, as they claim, have been around since 1837, and have always been known as a luxury jewelry retailer. So why is it that, in the last ten years, their main customers are teenagers and tweens?

In the 1990’s, Tiffany’s tried to reposition its image, by expanding its product range, so that it could appeal more to the middle class, following the trend of “affordable luxury”. They introduced their well-known “Return To Tiffany’s” line of silver jewelry, and their sales skyrocketed, not for long though. Soon after their new release of products, there came complaints from their older clientele who thought their beloved Tiffany’s was now a common brand, selling jewelry as cheap as $110.

So what’s a company to do? Reposition and enjoy a boom in sales? Or stick to its original plan and keep those affluent customers?

Vitamin water, by Glaceau, is a 750 ml bottle of either XXX, fruit punch, lemonade, berry acai, green tea, apple raspberry, or pineapple is infused with vitamins and minerals, that leaves its consumers feeling refreshed and energized. Vitamin water’s main target market is celebrities, soccer moms, teenagers and athletes. It is known as a stylish product, due to its bright and cheerful labels filled with anecdotes and jokes.

Recently; however, vending machines have started to show up containing only this product.  Normally, vending machines contain various snacks or drinks, even ice cream, however Glaceau has designed vending machines that are very unique in their design, and that only carry Vitamin Water. Apparently, these vending machines also take credit cards, and have “taken the best of both worlds and put them into one machine”, according to this Blog. In creating these eye-catching vending machines, Glaceau is trying to attract a larger audience and is differentiating it’s product by placing it in its very own vending machine. Since when does one product get its own vending machine? Since Glaceau decided it needed it.  Last year, Glaceau was told to expand their target market, to come up with something new, and boy, did they fill those shoes.

Research in motion, one of the biggest telecommunication companies in Canada, best known as the developer of the well-known “Blackberry” is said to be “losing market share”. How could this be? It seems like, these days, everyone is using BBM and exchanging pins, so how could this company be collapsing?

Easy answer: APPLE.

Research in Motion’s competitive positioning in the “Smartphone” market is diminishing because of the iPhone. RIM is slowly losing market share, because of its target market. RIM targets its products to business professionals, whereas Apple targets individuals of all ages. As a child you can play with your I-Touch or I-Pod, grow into the I-Phone and later take your i-Pad to business meetings. Apple has iTunes, apps, as well as an appearance that is alluring to everyone, whereas Blackberries are simply known as “business phones”. With its wifi and 3G network capabilities, Apple is slowly converting not only children, teens and adults, but even business professionals are beginning to switch over. In order for RIM to stop losing out, it has to bring something innovative to the market, something Apple hasn’t thought of yet, otherwise, simply selling its Smartphone products in the market definitely is not good enough. Google has recently released its version of the Smartphone, “The Android”. Now with another Smartphone in the market, the chances of RIM completely losing its market share are increasing, and soon enough, we’ll be asking ourselves, “Research in ….. what?”