There’s a misconception by many people that being a Big Brother requires a large time commitment and this is often cited as the reason men choose not to volunteer. This new series of advertisement by Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver – all of them less than ten seconds long – is designed to tackle these misconceptions. Following the launch of the ads, visits to the volunteer page on the organization’s website increased 64 per cent, and volunteer applications rose as well. Intrigued by the advertisements, I too visited the volunteer website. In relations to the sweet and short ads, the volunteer positions also specify time commitment and activities, thus the applicants would know what to expect.

The campaign is tailor-made for social media, where attention spans are limited and ads have to make an impact quick in order to get people to look at them. These concise ads show that being a big brother could be as simple as teaching a young boy to use appropriate language, answering his question of whether “rodeo clown” is a viable career choice, or encouraging him to choose books over technology.

In addition to these advertisements, Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver launched a social media campaign using the new hash tag #bigbroments. The ideas encourages Big Brothers volunteers, participants and sponsors to share heartwarming Big/Little Brothers moments.

Big Brothers’ marketing strategy allows the audience to connect with the charity on a more personal level by capturing heartwarming moments of mentorship. The short ads communicate the charity’s vision of providing guidance in every child’s life. Unlike traditional advertisements, this series raises awareness through its memorably concise style. It successfully encourages people to add value to their lives by taking a small part of their busy day to help others.

Link to Big Brothers: http://www.bigbrothersvancouver.com

Read the original telegraph article here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10425137/Online-alcohol-marketing-encourages-culture-of-intoxication-in-young-people-study-suggests.html

Through the platform of social media, alcohol brands have become an integral part of young people’s lifestyle, reinforcing the widespread culture of intoxication. For instance, alcohol companies (including Corona, Heineken, Smirnoff and Jack Daniels) are using Twitter to attract a young and potentially underage audience, prompting calls for stricter regulation of social media.

Here’s a photo Corona published via its public Twitter account of 8752 followers. Posts like above associate drinking with positive themes by reinforcing that drinking is about fun, socialising and pleasure. Alcohol brands primarily targets young audience. These cumulative exposure might encourage underage viewers to engage in risky drinking behaviors.

According to Brian Vandenberg, Victorian Cancer Council senior policy adviser, young people are bombarded with positive images of alcohol which encourages them to start drinking at an earlier age. The younger people start drinking, the more likely they are to drink at risky levels, and have alcohol problems later in life, including the cancer risks

Furthermore, social media is not the only poorly regulated platform utilized by alcohol brands. Other “below the line” marketing strategies include sponsorship of football shirts and festivals. While young people may not always recognize these marketing strategies, it is indisputable that the government should reevaluate its current framework of regulation.

On the other hand, the current health promotion has been outmoded. In my opinion, while corporate practices and online alcohol marketing strategy need to be examined, the health organization should also take advantage of the same channel of communication to establish safer drinking initiatives.

Read KISSmetric’s original blog here: http://blog.kissmetrics.com/7-strategies-apple-marketing/

In 2010, Apple made headlines when they surpassed Exxon Mobile as the world’s most valuable company. In the last decade, Apple has released many unique products that revolutionized the technology industry.

So the question on everyone’s mind is, how did Apple do it?

How did Apple go from being on the edge of bankruptcy to the most profitable retailer in the entire United State?

Their secret lies within their marketing strategy. KISSmetric outlines seven strategies Apple adapted to achieve its success:

1. Ignore your critics
2. Turn the ordinary into something beautiful
3. Justify your price
4. Communicate in the language of your audience
5. Extend the experience
6. Build a tribe, and
7. Become “the name”

With these strategies, Apple manages to sell its products on value and not price. “iPhone was not the first phone, but they engineered it to be so unique that you couldn’t help but think it was”, my favorite quote from the blog, shows the essentials of Apple’s phenomenal success and what separated Apple from any other business. By creating a product customers would want, the company allows consumers to connect with the brand at a core level.

This Mac vs. PC ad had gone viral upon its release. This series of ad interested me in particular, not only because the ad highlights Mac’s uniqueness, it also personifies the brand to demonstrate its market value.

As an iPhone owner, I think Apple has truly gone above and beyond to build a product that is effortless and innovative. Apple has made me a loyal customer by dedicating their product to my needs and educating me through extensive marketing strategies on the irreplaceability of their product. Today, not only does Apple own dominant market share, Apple made incredible contribution to the industry by being the definition of creativity.

Read Matthew Marshall’s original blog post here: https://blogs.ubc.ca/matthewmarshall2/2013/10/08/cisco-takes-social-media-seriously/

Cisco, The Human Network (1)

In effort to gain better knowledge of their customer base, Cisco launched a Social Media Listening Center at its headquarter in October 2012. With the establishment of this listening center, Cisco had a 281% return on investment over a 5 month period.  Moreover, staff productivity was improved: They processed customer inquiries and concerns in a efficient and timely manner. Furthermore, Cisco recognized the value of social media and its remarkable ability to reach out to a large audience.

The transformation of Cisco’s marketing strategy heavily adopts principles of  inbound marketing, a practice of online marketing that uses various social media channels, and blogs to publish content that people will easily find and engage with. The industry giant of 67,000 employees and an annual revenue of $48.6 billion, monitor over 70 company related Facebook pages, 100 Twitter accounts. With over 5000 daily social media mentions, Cisco successfully reaches enterprise goals by incorporating online content production into their brand building.

In my opinion, Cisco’s heavy investment and emphasis on inbound marketing is an excellent low-cost solution to touch base with its large customer base. The company is able to convey its customer-centric brand value through their content. Inbound marketing is also an incredibly personable approach as it allows customers to share content, engage in materials produced, and be in direct contact with the company. Like the message in the commercial above, inbound marketing allows Cisco to make intimate connections with its consumers in a seemingly large world.

References:
(1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DarN3jvzP94

Unilever, the third largest consumer goods company, owns over 400 brands. If you have never heard of Unilever, you have definitely used their products. However, with an abundance of brands under its umbrella, Unilever fails to keep its brand value consistent among its subsidiaries through its advertising strategies.

Dove, a Unilever subsidiary, prepositions itself as an esteem-strengthening brand with a vision to enhance women’s natural beauty. In September 2004, Dove launched The Campaign for Real Beauty boldly featuring women of all sizes, shapes, ages and colors.

In addition, Dove established the Dove Self-Esteem Fund that targets primarily pre-teen girls. The program handles workshops to help youth build a healthy self-image. It appears Unilever supports positive body image in real women, and rejects unrealistic stereotypes the beauty industry portrays. However, despite Dove’s social mission, Unilever also owns Axe, a male line of hygiene products, which is made famous by overtly sexualized commercials like this one and print ad like this one.

In sharp contrast to the women in Dove’s campaign, the Axe commercial features women who represent the typical beauty ideal. With slim body and unproportionally large breasts, the women in Axe commercials are objectified in a sexual manner.

Several important questions have are raised: Is Unilever truly concerned with modern women’s body image issue, or is it just exploiting women’s desire for such an inclusive message through its marketing campaign? Is it ethical for these two conflicting brand messages to coexist under the Unilever umbrella?

From a capitalist perspective, it is undeniably clever of Unilever to efficiently capture different target audience using distinct marketing strategies; However, with polar-opposite values advertised, Unilever delivers a confusing, hypocritical brand image.

Image References:
(1)http://pamemichelle.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/doverealbeauty.jpg