Through LinkedIn, I recently stumbled upon a post reiterating the meaning of the word “culture.”

To briefly summarize, the passage explains that the culture in a work environment is determined by actions. It lists and asks questions regarding how many times one has done something empowering or inspiring. In contrast, it also inquires situations where one has acted condescendingly. Basically, I interpreted the fact that a company’s culture is considered “healthy” if leaders are able to carry out their commitments, take their staff’s insight into consideration to allow ideas to bounce off of them, and if there is an honest environment.

In COMM101, we have pondered over the ideas of ethics, value propositions and brand positioning, market research, performance management, and most recently, organizational behaviour . These points form a primary basis for the culture of a company and how they are perceived. So what makes a company “good?” My belief is that internally, the staff must work effectively and efficiently. I presume that when one is working with their peers, they must take empowering measures and motivate the team with open mindedness rather than creating tension. Getting “good results” doesn’t simply mean maximizing profit. A positive culture of a company must take its employees into account. The benefit of creating a geniune culture is that workers will often translate that similar behaviour when they are interacting with customers, which ultimately leads to a stronger brand name for the company as a whole.

That is how every company should manage their work force.

Works Cited:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20141010023547-2236432-your-company-s-culture-is-you?trk=object-title

As a frequent online consumer myself, I have decided to respond to my classmate Alfred’s post regarding the growth in the demand of products between the late night and early morning time span.

The innovation of technology grants effortless access for individuals. Whether we like it or not, consumers are getting lazier. Why would one go to a store if they can simply type in a link on their browser at any time of the day and make a purchase? Personally, I’ve had incidents where I have talked myself out of going to the store to buy a product due to the lack to time I have during a given day. This is one of the “pains” that brands can integrate and relieve. Like Alfred stated, “burnt out parents” tend to complete their online shopping for their children during late nights after work when their kids tend to be asleep.

As explained in my classmate’s article, expanding hours is an effective idea. However, to reduce costs, companies must take advantage of the online channel. Essentially, it is crucial for companies to add an addition channel and revenue stream where shoppers can purchase their products online in addition to the store or else they will not grow with the economy. This is why video stores are rapidly shutting down. People are naturally using online resources instead and in order for a company to continue to stay in business, they must address customers’ mindsets and how they rapidly reshape.

Works Cited:

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/oct/10/internet-online-shopping-30-per-cent-rise-midnight-6am-john-lewis

Picture source: http://zarrtech.net/the-ins-and-outs-of-the-online-shopping-experience/

The “Shaytards” may appear as a prominent word to many. This family of seven has been posting daily videos on YouTube broadcasting their lives for over five years. The father of the family, Shaycarl, has astonished me with his ability to integrate the world of business within this hobby of his, which undoubtedly has become his career.

If one rewinds back to half a decade ago, they would have learned that this family tried to fulfill just the bare necessities in life. To many, posting videos on YouTube seemed like a terrible alternative to getting a “real job” and Shaycarl, an entrepreneur himself,  is the epidome of the so-called risk taker we have discussed in COMM101.

The YouTube channel’s creativity has allowed Shaycarl to make use of his fame and display the positive effects of working behind with a team of people: his family, his co-workers, and his online audience. As an integral part of founding Maker Studios, a corporation that helps with the production and distribution of videos, in 2009, this has triggered the news of Disney buying the company for 500 million dollars earlier this year. Shaycarl is getting part of those shares, of course.

With the support system that he has had, companies selling products including but not limited to food, athletic apparel, and audiobooks have been striving to get the “Shaytards” to let their items appear in their vlogs for promotional purposes.

It’s unbelievable how a single camera can prompt such a massive alteration in one’s life.

Picture source: http://www.hlntv.com/video/2014/02/19/shaytards-youtube-stars

The amount of revenue a sports team can generate for a local economy is anything but a shocking statement. Recently, the city of Vancouver has announced that they have the capability of adding a professional basketball team. I believe that the sold-out Raptors vs Kings game in Vancouver in early October validated the fact that there is a large portion of basketball fans residing in Vancouver.

A news report demonstrating the effect that a sports market, such as hockey, has on local businesses proves that not only does the sports organization itself strive, but so do local bars and restaurants broadcasting games to its customers as well as sports apparel stores merchandising jerseys. Yes, there is no doubt that this is a big investment. Adding a new sports team will involve increased facilities to accommodate all the professional sports teams in the city. However, I am certain that the pros outweigh the cons. This relocation could potentially generate various external opportunities that can enhance the franchise. Economically, there will be more jobs in the work force for those working at bars and restaurants or selling concession. Socially, it is clear to me that this is a sports city. Vancouverites take pride and joy in cheering for the Canucks, Whitecaps, and the Lions.

“Spectator sports employ 93,500 people across Canada, about 0.5 per cent of the total workforce. That directly contributed $4.5 billion to Canada’s economy in 2010.”

An additional sports team in Vancouver can initiate similar statistics.

Picture source: Google images

If you’re a female, it is highly likely that you have searched up “How to” tutorials on YouTube within the category of makeup or fashion. With that, I have decided to comment and elaborate on Stella Cho’s blog post regarding this subject. In this day and age, a majority of the population with access to the internet frequently find themselves navigating through YouTube videos. Being guilty of it myself, I can see how companies selling beauty products could use the digital media world to gain more of a competitive advantage. My fellow classmate Stella outlines the partnership between YouTube’s “beauty gurus” and companies. It is clear that a large portion of cosmetic and fashion companies’ target market consists of young women. YouTube stars undoubtedly have a significant impact on what adolescents are purchasing. I can accurately assume that they act as role models to many. Let’s say that a company wants to promote their new line of cosmetics. In this era, all they have to do is develop a business partnership with one behind a YouTube account. After a few videos displaying their usage of the product, consumers will be eager to make the purchase. With fashion, a couple of the ever-so-popular “lookbook” videos on YouTube will suffice.

Ultimately, establishing a cooperative agreement and expanding their marketing campaign to the social media world will spark a powerful and positive change in consumer interest.

It is clear that in Canada, the First Nations community plays an integral role due to its history. A Vancouver Sun article outlines the BC Government’s goal in reducing conflict with First Nations people. Though history cannot be altered, the current relationship can be restored. I stress that it is extremely important for companies to take various First Nations groups into account when a company is conducting their affairs. They should not go against them and diminish their lifestyles but rather work alongside of them to advance their corporation.

A great example would be Port Metro Vancouver. As a gateway for trades, it has shown the significance of First Nations by expressing that their land and waters “intersect with the traditional territories of several First Nations.” With this in mind, they have developed a recent strategy in collaboration with the Canadian government as well as Tsawwassen First Nations (TFN.) Because the Port notices that in order to make use of new facilities, they must cross some of the Aboriginals’ territorial land, I believe it is an intelligent move for them to increase their partnership with TFN which will ultimately allow for employment opportunities for its members.

A large portion of our demographic consists of Aboriginals. In conjunction with the PESLE analysis, if a company is able to develop their business model by using them as one of the external factors, it will enhance the company economically, with new infrastructure, environmentally, as well as socially, by triggering a position attitude within the First Nations communities.

Sources:

http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Premier+urges+cooperation+more+litigation+government+natives+reach+fork+road/10194776/story.html

http://news.gc.ca/web/article-en.do?nid=769139

Details have emerged regarding Samsung’s imminent release of its Galaxy Note 4 and it has allowed for increased tension between Samsung and Apple with its iPhone 6 Plus.

The popularity of both brands has triggered the companies to strive towards gaining a competitive edge. What has captivated me the most was Samsung’s attempt at marketing their product by mocking its rival through social media. In fact, the joke regarding the iPhone’s ability to bend has caused many companies to jump on the bandwagon.

In a recent COMM101 lecture, the topic of the tool of positioning triggered an interest for me. The scheme of “Getting Into the Mind of the Consumer” links to the incident between Samsung and Apple to a great extent. It is no surprise that Samsung has the goal of trying to display their brand as number one through its latest marketing antics by relating itself to its contender. In reference to Al Ries’ and Jack Trout’s article, “repositioning the competition” may involve displaying advertisements to allow consumers to see the rival company in a constrasting way. Samsung is doing just that.

Not only that, but just over a week ago, Samsung announced that it will release its Galaxy Note 4 “ahead of schedule.” It is stated that Samsung’s decision to sell a product in China prior to other markets is a first. In my opinion, this will allow them to advance themselves against Apple, whose iPhone “is not yet available in China.”

All in all, it seems as though the friendly competition between Apple and Samsung may allow for more technologically-advanced products in the future.

Sources:

Curved. Not bent. #GALAXYNoteEdge pic.twitter.com/OTPIYlI07f

— Samsung Mobile (@SamsungMobile) September 25, 2014

http://news.yahoo.com/samsung-curved-not-bent-mocks-apple-iphone-144529246.html%20

http://www.cnet.com/news/samsung-unlike-iphone-our-galaxy-note-4-wont-bend/

http://www.quickmba.com/marketing/ries-trout/positioning/

http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-samsung-launches-note-4-phablet-ahead-of-schedule-2014-9

A local Vancouver-based company by the name of Routific provides delivering companies with the opportunity to discover the most efficient route that reduces time and money. The mastermind behind this tool, Marc Kuo, utilizes his academic knowledge and experience from consulting to generate a system where his business ensures that delivery companies are able to optimize their service using the online route-planning software presented by Routific.

Routific’s target market includes companies that may not have the tools to create “sophisticated…route-optimization systems.” With this goal in mind, my belief is that this is very appealing to small-scale businesses who are just starting up with very little experience. There are a lot of businesses that are in need of a boost such as this one.

What intrigues me is Kuo’s ability to use innovative technology to minimize his customer’s workload. He recognizes that operations managers often need to plan their delivery schedules through producing spreadsheets and the time consumption behind this approach is fairly severe. With the constant improvement of technological advancement, this platform builds a strong foundation to allow delivery companies to work more effectively and efficiently. The company also utilizes the environmental factor to attract its customers stating that this tool lowers emissions and improves the planet due to the reduction of time usage.

In my opinion, this provides Routific with an edge against its competitors in the sense that they are only charging $29 each month for every vehicle with the flexibility to opt-out and unsubscribe if one is not satisfied.

I’m very interested to continue to hear about the progress of this idea.

Sources:

http://www.vancouversun.com/business/technology/Vancouver+startup+gives+drivers+more+efficient+drive/10215322/story.html

http://superbcrew.com/startup-routific-optimizing-delivery-routes-around-the-world/

It has been no surprise that the lack of progress by the Vancouver Canucks has been a threat when it comes to the franchise’s goals of selling tickets for the 2014-15 season. What was once an avid hockey market has declined when fans have been skeptical about purchasing tickets to games due to the inadequacy of performance by the team and the failure to make the post-season last year.

I suppose that the franchise has taken positive steps to improve their team with changes to their management staff as well as their roster. However, it is clear that the team is still in “rebuild” mode and must think of other ways to engage their fans beyond the Canucks’ execution on the ice. My belief is that this is where their marketing team needs to step in. The fans are still out there. Essentially, they simply have no motivation to pay a large sum of money to watch their favourite team lose time and time again.

In my opinion, sufficient tactics could include an improvement on the arena’s food and concession and upgrading their promotion behind it. By enhancing a fan’s experience during the game, such as reducing the cost for its food and beverages, it will draw fanatics to be motivated to attend a game.

Social media has also done a terrific job with contests to provide hockey devotees with the opportunity to attend games. Although free tickets disables a team from making profit, free single tickets will allow fans to purchase a ticket for a friend or a loved one to accompany them.

The bottom line is that, they may need to reduce their prices on tickets or at least, provide free incentives for each fan who has purchased access to the game.

Source: http://www.thescore.com/nhl/news/577035

Reports of scandalous activity in several parts of Asia among some of the world’s most famous restaurant chains have made various international headlines. Common restaurants including but not limited to McDonalds, Burger King, Starbucks, and Papa John’s have been “accused of selling expired beef and chicken” through their supplier Husi Food Co. in Shanghai, China. The shocking news is that this controversial incident was originally discovered when video evidence of “workers handling food with their bare hands” scattered across the internet. They were spotted to have been picking up meat that has touched the floor and placing them back to their respective machines in order to continue the processing procedure. To make matters even worse, it has been witnessed that workers have been repeatedly repackaging their meat and altering the expiration date tags.

My personal insight leads me to believe that this unethical activity allows the common day-to-day consumers to be hesitant to purchase their meals from these restaurants. I assume it is no surprise that the amount of customers eating at these locations has decreased drastically and has left a permanent strain on the companies. After all, we know that news travels rapidly in modern day society.

R. Edward Freeman stresses that a company’s success depends on the “value for customers, suppliers, [and] employees.” With another disastrous occurrence that may potentially severely affect the health and well-being of individuals in society, I suggest that food corporations, especially those who represent a strong brand name must be more meticulous when deciding who their suppliers are and who they are aligning their brand with.

I conclude that the most frightening point is that often times, buyers are completely oblivious as to what they are consuming.

Isn’t that sketchy?

Works cited:

http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/29/world/asia/explainer-china-meat-scandal/

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/china-tainted-meat-scandal-widens-to-burger-king-starbucks-1.2714333

http://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/china-meat-scandal-spreads-starbucks-burger-king-n162286