Was the marketing plan too much work? Possibly. But was it worth it? Definitely.

The business we chose: Research in Motion (RIM). Aka Blackberry. This was a great company to analyze, as people seem to believe that Blackberry is on the verge of an early funeral. However, it is not entirely the case. Contrary to popular belief, it was really interesting to learn that Blackberry is actually thriving in other areas of the world, specifically emerging markets and corporate environments. Moreover, it is really inspiring that Blackberry is a Canadian company, and was arguably at the pinnacle of the mobile phone market only a few years ago.

Going into the project, I wasn’t expecting to learn all too much. But oh how I was wrong. I learned a lot of relevant skills, such as,

• Analyzing a company
• Performing thorough research to learn about a company from the ground up
• Video editing skills – Adobe Premiere and iMovie
• Creating a marketing plan, and researching the different environments
• The importance of being thorough and displaying the information in an appealing and easy to read manner

All of these skills I will be able to utilise moving forward and apply them to real life situations that I encounter.

Aside from the technical aspects of the project, it was a really fun overall experience. I got to meet some great people and had a good time filming some scenes for the video. I feel that our team came together as a group, which made it easy to work in a team and collaborate, and made it all the more worthwhile.

3D Printing is a seemingly futuristic technology in which awareness is slowly increasing. People think it is something out of movies and is only fictional, such as in the new Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol movie, Tom Cruise wears a 3D printed face mask to imitate someone and sneak into the enemy’s headquarters. Similar to this:

However, this technology is very real. As Olivia Joe has written in her blog, it is in the introductory phase of its product life cycle. For the most part, awareness is only in the corporate world, but within the next few years, it should increase dramatically for consumers. Prices have decreased significantly and 3D printers can now be bought for $500.

I think 3D printing is on the verge of penetrating the growth stage in a BIG way. I agree with Olivia that there is a huge potential to expand the target market by communicating and advertising to average consumers. With an effective ad-campaign, it could push the product over the edge and revolutionize the market.

The possibilities are truly ENDLESS. From mimicking a face, to fixing a fence post, to building toys, to building a trophy for a competition… the 3D printer is capable of anything.

Although Olivia talked about the beneficial products that can be made, there is “another side of the coin.”

In recent months, a 3D-printed gun – capable of firing real bullets – was created by printing parts and assembling them together. This is a serious safety concern, as gun control will be near impossible. This period in time is especially crucial, as there have been numerous tragedies involving shootings in the past few years. This video displays how the gun was assembled:

Consumers may not be ready for 3D printing, but the technology is already upon us.

As I remember, “honesty is the best policy” was drilled into my head by my mother when I was very young. It is a simple guideline on how to behave that has stuck with me for my whole life.

Now why is it so difficult for some companies to follow this childish guideline?

The answer is: profits. The growing trend of money-hungry corporations is consuming the Americas. The line between “doing business” and deceiving consumers is becoming blurred, and the question of where to draw the line needs to be taken into consideration.

The general rule is that advertising cannot be deceptive. It should be fair and consist of only the whole truth. According to the FTC’s Deception Policy Statement, it is considered deceptive “if there is representation, omission, or practice that is likely to mislead the consumer…”

In recent news is the Johnson & Johnson drug-marketing scandal. It is a prime example of marketing campaigns that mislead consumers.

Johnson & Johnson sold several drugs – which they paid pharmacies & physicians to recommend and prescribe – that were marketed for uses/ disorders that were not FDA approved and could be harmful to consumers. Their marketing targeted vulnerable consumer demographics, including young children, the elderly, and the disabled.

It is evident that Johnson & Johnson have placed profits above consumers’ health and well-being. These types of marketing/ company behaviours corrupt medical decisions made by health care providers, jeopardize public health, and ruin the brand image and consumer perception of the company.

In today’s society, the rising trend of being ethical is becoming increasingly important. Engaging in deceptive marketing not only ruins the brand image, but is also a monetary detriment to the company. It is important for companies to acknowledge and take this into consideration for future decisions.

Tesla is currently in the early growth stage according to the product life cycle model, and within only a few years, it has become the talk of the automotive industry. What’s extraordinary about this is the amount of capital Tesla has put towards marketing their company and their products: $0.

As Andrew, founder of Great Dane Coffee, stated, Tesla focuses solely on their product. The car maker is fundamentally about building cars at the pinnacle of research and engineering. Tesla is real life proof that “a good product will sell itself.” Word of mouth marketing has been the main marketing technique used. Their hype and publicity has been trail blazed by consumer support and talk, and the media reporting on their many awards and achievements – such as, repaying the $465 million government loan, 2013 Motor Trend Car of the Year, and receiving the highest safety rating in history.

As Sherry Lamoreaux wrote in her blog, Tesla’s showrooms are unique among car makers of the world. They are not located alongside the main roads or highways, they are in shopping malls. With this marketing model, rather than having a hundred potential consumers looking for cars on their lot (like other car makers experience), Tesla has thousands of people walking right past their showroom every day.

The situational factors for consumers change dramatically, and many sales come from consumers that had no interest of buying a car in the first place, until they saw Tesla’s showroom. The psychological factors are also affected as seeing an extraordinary looking car up close and seeing people gather around the car is intriguing. Moreover, the small showrooms allow for consumers to look at cars more closely and talk to representatives in a more comfortable environment.

Marketing is a substantially powerful influence in the world. It is often underestimated and forgotten about, as it is such a routine thing in our daily lives. However, I would like to alleviate people with an example on the more extreme side of the marketing spectrum: Propaganda during WW2.

During World War II, wartime propaganda and advertisements were escalated to one of the greatest heights in history. It played a significant role during the war, as it helped accelerate development of the war hastened tensions between countries. Moreover, as the Axis and Allies engaged in battle, it was important for both sides to motivate their populations on the home front and increase production.

Propaganda targeted everyone in the population and capitalised on people’s fears. The advertisement objectives varied in the different countries, but focused on psychological and situational factors. They convinced people that they were in immediate danger and that war was necessary by stimulating nationalism and taking advantage of their fears.

Propaganda involved encouraging people to buy war time bonds to support their soldiers, women to get a job and support the war at home, and to conserve materials, such as, oil, paper, and grease.

The ads above illustrate who their target audiences were and stimulate emotions with pictures of children and mentions of their husbands. These psychological factors are very powerful and easily target specific individuals. The extreme situational factor of war also contributed to the influential power of the ads.

“People, Planet, Profit – The future of business is to be socially responsible, environmentally friendly, and make money” – Arlene Dickinson, Dragons Den.

To me, this quote describes the increasingly common trend in the business world of incorporating sustainability and measures to positively impact the environment into business models. I think Ten Tree is a prime example for this framework of sustainability.

Ten Tree is a clothing company, in which their business model is centered around the idea that for each item that is sold, they will plant 10 trees. In partnership with the non-profit organization, WeForest, they plant trees across Canada, as well as in developing countries such as, Ethiopia, Haiti, India, Madagascar, Philippines, Senegal, and Tanzania.

The planted trees contribute to a variety of aspects within the surrounding communities, including: increasing income for farmers, decreasing carbon emissions in the air, providing materials to build homes, and producing food for people and livestock.

In just 3 months, Ten Tree has generated $120 000 in sales and their apparel is sold in over 30 retailers across Canada.

I think this accurately displays the significance of ethics in the business world, and shows how ethics and marketing are intertwined. Moreover, I believe Ten Tree is a model for the growing trend of sustainability. Their business model enlightens us of the willingness for consumers to spend more on goods and services that support an ethical cause and better society.

 
Sources:

http://business.financialpost.com/2012/10/15/dragons-see-the-seeds-of-a-good-company-in-ten-tree-international/

http://www.tentree.com/ca/tree-facts