Matthew Morrow's blog

            After today’s class I realized the numerous and collective decisions that we as individual’s make when purchasing products. While I had previously been introduced to consumer behaviour in economics, this lesson broadened my perspective on the topic. Certainly this concept is highly important in our decision making process, therefore even more important on the marketing and market research side of business. As a result I began to recall recent purchases I had made in the past, additionally considering my underlying reasons for these specific purchases. In considering a purchase I made last year on a pair of baseball cleats I decided to analyze my overall reasoning motives behind the purchase. While a cultural level perspective virtually had no say in the decision, social and personal preferences were determining factors. Considering a social influence the majority of my teammates had already purchased a pair of Nike Hurricane cleats, and seemed quite content with their decision. However on a personal level I felt I need something different and unique. In the end my personal preferences landed me on Jeter Jordan’s, whose product backing by Derek Jeter, sleek style and unbelievable comfort sealed the deal.

            There are several POD’s which make Kayotics Skmboards unique in their market. Firstly unlike other companies, Kayotics main purpose is to present themselves as a “rider-owned” company. Essentially this shows consumers the excessive amount of pride and high quality craftsmanship that is put into each of their products. Additionally the shape of Kayotics boards is different from any other on the market. Specifically their “lemon drop” shape distinguishes the company’s uniqueness and originality, in comparison to the classic “surf” shape which is still commonly used by other competitors. While uniqueness is important, their boards also enable riders to ride the board much more easily. In correspondence to the shape, their product line includes different series of boards. While most other company’s do offer a similar presentation of their products, this product line offers consumers to not only choose between traction and non-traction boards, but also select boards with specific size and artistic designs. Although other competitors do incorporate design into their products it is no where close to the extent that artistic flare is utilized by Kayotics in appealing to buyers. Therefore through these POD’s Kayotics Skimboards has distinguished themselves as a leader in the Skimboarding industry.

http://kayotics.com/2KX/showcase.html

After class seven I was intrigued with the finance segment of business and its crucial role in supply and demand markets. In reviewing numerous articles I came across one which pertained to finance and was close to home. This particular article dealt the sale of shares in Whistler Ski Resort. Specifically this article discusses Fortress Investment Group’s plans to sell assets in two ways: direct purchase from a corporate buyer and in the unpredictable IPO market. Since the company’s purchase in 2006 its financiers have been looking for a way out of their “assumed debt,” and selling shares in Whistler may be their way out. From a corporate buyer’s standpoint incentives for purchase were decreased because Whistler is not growing a whole lot. However while the sale of stocks in an IPO market is presumed to be risky, the recent Olympic craze surrounding Whistler could prove to be beneficial for Fortress. Additionally Whistler’s high reputation is more than enough to convince the public for sale. While these factors are highly appealing especially to individual investors, I would first consider a statistical approach to ensure a safe return on my investment. Read the article and ask yourself would you invest?

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/fortress-hopes-olympic-lure-sells-whistler-shares/article1742386/

  As a craze for energy drinks ahs emerged in the last 2 decades, numerous consumers have turned to such products as an alternative to the natural energy source of coffee. While the consumption of coffee is still high, more and more people have turned to energy drink products like monster or red bull. However with an increase in consumption, the community began to question possible healthcare issues, in correspondence with these products. Research findings were soon posted all over online articles, blogs and forums which enabled consumers to discuss the numerous healthcare effects of such products. Websites such as globalhealingcenter.com note these negative effects and allow users to bash energy drink companies by discussing their product’s negative side effects. Undoubtedly this bashing proves to be bad for business. In this way social media has harmed this particular industry, and could possibly decrease the demand for their product. However while there is little way for company’s within this industry to counter these negative remarks, the energy drink companies can still utilize their promotional strategies, and rely on consumer addiction to keep them afloat.

http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/the-health-dangers-of-energy-drinks/

Position in Consumers Minds

As the skim boards industry began to evolve Kayotics skim boards established themselves as one of the first new-era company’s who changed the face of the sport. Specifically with the combination of surf culture, “smooth rail-riding” of snowboarding, and the “pop” aspect of skateboarding they positioned themselves as a leader in a legitimate action sport industry. Essentially they differentiate themselves from other company’s by making a priority out of pushing the limits of what is possible in the industry, therefore displaying themselves as a front-runner in the industry. Additionally in relation to its brand name, Kayotics takes great initiative in positioning themselves as pioneers in developing skim board culture. Moreover the uniqueness of “Kayotics Skim boards and Lifestyles” brand name contrasts the simplicity of competitor’s names such as DB skim boards (dashboard skim boards), whose uncreative name derived from their hometown beach and additionally falls victim to the no-name trap.

http://kayotics.com/2KX/