Month: November 2010

There is a fine line between getting peoples’ attention and irritating them, and this is something that marketers more than anyone else have to be accutely aware of. This post on Jim’s Marketing Blog discusses this issue.

I’m sure we’ve all been a victim of this: you receive a promotional email from some company which you can barely, if at all, remember signing up for. Then, days later, you receive ANOTHER email from the company. Are you more or less likely to open this second email? Did you even open the first email at all?

Althought his problem has been garnering significant attention, and thus slowly rectifying itself, in recent years, I’m sure we can all remember the days when email spam was just part of life. For some reason, marketers were falsely convinced that if you bombard consumers with the same message or promotion over and over, the response rate will increase. On the contrary, you will likely damage your company and brand image for good by pestering people with unwanted emails.

Jim’s blog post stresses “doing the right thing correctly”. Email marketing is a very viable tool for certain companies; however, abusing email will only lead to annoyance and possibly distrust from valued consumers. Email is now moving towards a more targeted approach in which promotions and messages are tailored to different types of consumers, ensuring that the right message gets to the right person to maximize the frequency of the message actually being absorbed. This is good news for us, as that means that the days of unwanted spam are coming to an end!

Advertisers are continuously looking for new and innovative ways to reach customers. As our world is becoming quickly more and more plugged in to the Internet and electronics, consumers are paying less attention to print, radio and tv advertising. This shift requires quick development of new online marketing techniques; case in point: paid product promotions by Youtube Beauty Gurus.

So what is a Youtube Beauty Guru? These are girls that spend a great deal of time filming everything from makeup tutorials to product reviews to clothing purchases and putting them on their Youtube channels. An incredible amount of teenagers and young women watch these videos daily for fashion and beauty tips. And a new trend has started among these beauty gurus: sponsored product videos (click here for an example).

In my opinion, this was a genius move on the part of cosmetic companies, as they spend an extremely low relative price and reach a huge market of specific, targeted consumers. By paying these beauty gurus to feature their product, or simply sending them the product itself for free, companies ensure that many young girls are able to watch these beauty gurus (who are often their idols) use the products and give positive reviews about them.

As this trend picks up steam, I can only imagine the placing that marketers will find to place products…..there’s a world of possibilities!

When Henry Angus first opened after the first stage of the new renovations, the CA Hall was a new and beautiful space for students to explore and enjoy. There was plenty of room to sit and chat at the Sauder Cafe or chill out on the black couches in the hall. But this space didn’t remain unexploited for long.

This is likely due to our business minds, but it wasn’t long before students realized what the central hall offered them: a high traffic area to aggressively promote clubs and events. Although I am all for involvement at Sauder, its my opinion that this oversaturation of information and opportunities is actually hindering ticket sales and student interest.

By crowding the promotional channels with too many messages and pressures from all sides, Sauder initiatives are actually catching themselves in a sort of prisonners’ dilemma: all inititatives are worse off if they all advertise, whereas they would be better off if neither advertised in this manner (in my opinion). Students are beginning to find these booths a nuisance and just a plain obstacle in their way, as opposed to being interested by them.

If clubs and conferences were to engage in more diversified promotional campaigns, focusing more on electronic communication, word-of-mouth and strategic placement of promotional material, I believe they would all be better off.

As The Marketing Blog discusses in this post, come the Christmas season, companies take an almost universal approach to marketing, one that plays on our feelings of warmth, love, and Xmas cheer. Rife throughout November and December advertisements are symbols that everyone, no matter their demographic, relates to christmas:

• The colours Red and Green
• Symbols like the xmas tree, baubles, wreaths, holly, turkey, christmas crackers (and the list goes on)
• Warmth
• Family
• Yuletide cheer

Companies incorporate these symbols into their promotions in a push to take full advantage of our feelings of giving and generosity during the season. This targeting is unique as it is not directed at a certain demographic or location, it is directed at a general human feeling.

Condoms are one of those shopping goods that are required by basically all men on the planet, and thus it seems that spending time and money designing and using unique and strategic packaging is not a good use of resources. Although there are several different types and sizes to choose from, condoms are pretty standard items and sell themselves for the most part. However, a relatively new company on the scene, One Condoms, has taken a unique approach to condom targeting and packaging.

One condoms “are the leading choice for fashionable, socially conscious individuals who crave maximum pleasure and expect their purchases to do good in the world around them”, states the company’s statement of strategic competitive advantage. Along with this targeting of the more social and status conscious individual, One has developed a unique packaging strategy which includes round condom wrappers and sleek metal carrying cases. Each condom in a pack of twelve features one of dozens of wrapper designs in bright colours and displaying witty, clever sayings.

By developing a unique approach to condom design and marketing, One will catch the eye of individuals looking to differentiate themselves in the world of the standard condom.