#HASHTAGS

Posted on October 30, 2015 by Queeny Tran

#ilovecomm101becauseihavethebestestprofessorsinthewholewideworld

The “hashtag” is denoted by the symbol ‘#’ and is used on many social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and many more.

This post by Dylan Kissane articulates very clearly how companies can “improve engagement with hashtags.” Dylan shows us 4 tips on how to do just that:

Align Hashtags with Your Brand
Choose Hashtags Carefully
Take Your Hashtags Offline
Introduce Variety with Hashtags

Generation Y, the generation of computers.

Having access to technology all throughout my life, I felt that the majority of the information is already in the back of my head. This kind of “Hashtag Etiquette” is common knowledge for those (like myself) that spend countless hours scrolling through Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and etc. Even though this post doesn’t contain much new or groundbreaking information to me, regardless, I think that this post is still very handy to fall back on. This post is especially useful for those that are rather new to social media and are not as warmed up to the idea of hashtags just yet.

#sources

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/4-ways-to-improve-engagement-with-hashtags/

https://www.rivaliq.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/How-to-Use-the-Power-of-Hashtags-in-Your-Social-Media-Marketing.jpg

Manly Marketing…for Men

Posted on October 14, 2015 by Queeny Tran

I came across this post in the summer and at the time I thought it was absolutely and ridiculously hilarious. I didn’t realize how genius these companies were until I started my education in Sauder. We recently learned about the the “Gains and Pains” of different customer segments and how companies can find ways to relieve those pains while creating gains. ~~Brilliant~~ Companies like Qtips, McDonalds, AXE and many more companies have successfully created products to relieve pains that “manly-men” face with products such as:

Qtips- Men’s Ultimate Multi-Tool

McDonalds- Sausageness-Baconess-Manliness

AXE- Detailer, apparently men are cars now?

Absolute horrid and painful pains that only manly men face, such as pains that come along with using regular Qtips, eating regular burgers and using regular loofahs.

Honestly, I can’t tell if this is brilliant or if this is completely ridiculous. From a business perspective, this is genius! Being able to target a narrow customer segment and cater to their needs while making money is BRILLIANT. However, from my rather “equality-for-all” perspective, this type of marketing is sending our society decades into the past.

We’re taking one step forward, and one hundred steps back by continuing to buy products that are specific to genders when in reality, most, if not all products don’t need to be separated. (How ironic, coming from a business student.) This argument is the same for products targeted to males just as much as it does to females, for example:

Gilette Venus

Bic- for Her

Equality for all burgers. Equality for all pens.

Equality for all.

(Disclaimer : My intent is not to insult anyone, but rather point out some of the satires in our society.)

(Edit: Check out Hafu’s response to this post! http://blogs.ubc.ca/hafu/2015/11/09/buying-manliness/)

source: http://www.buzzfeed.com/lukebailey/masculinity-is-strong-and-powerful#.vaOKGBNzL

photo sources:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CGMLoynWIAI3eWE.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CEpi8FuWgAAJz5p.jpg

http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=https://boots.scene7.com/is/image/Boots/10101538%253Fid%253DKMRaH1%2526fmt%253Djpg%2526fit%253Dconstrain,1%2526wid%253D504%2526hei%253D548&imgrefurl=http://www.boots.com/en/Gillette-Venus-Spa-Breeze-Razor-with-Blade-Refill-and-Shower-Holder_1042807/&h=548&w=504&tbnid=P5TakdIG2_Lt8M:&docid=ETzN5Vm19JFw_M&ei=yKozVqS0E4GqjwOq146ACg&tbm=isch&ved=0CFkQMyg2MDZqFQoTCKS4vIXe6sgCFQHVYwodqqsDoA

https://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCOOz-8Pe6sgCFU7OYwodBFYAdw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.adweek.com%2Fadfreak%2F10-dumbest-products-marketed-women-148886%3Fpage%3D5&psig=AFQjCNG-0Q5m-vJRVvcYJQTCVeaT-ekXhw&ust=1446313145600985

RE: Walmart Workers Demand Minimum Wage Increase

Posted on October 2, 2015 by Queeny Tran

Vancouver Metro October 2, 2015

This morning, I stumbled across an article in the paper, “Debate over minimum wage rages on campaign trail.” The article reminded me of my friend Chris’ blog and I decided to write about it.

Upon reading Chris’ blog about increasing minimum wage and the repercussions that could come along with it, I found myself agreeing with his arguments, but disagreeing with his general statement that, “Society as a whole would not benefit from this increase.” I agree with Chris that businesses will have to start laying off employees due to the increase in variable costs, and that the demand for minimum wage jobs would increase. However, I believe that there are more benefits for the individual worker and society than not.

Individuals that receive a higher wage are able to live on it and save it for the future. An increase in wages leads to a healthier lifestyle, as people tend to stray away from unhealthy, cheap and fast foods. This results in a lesser of a burden on our health care system. The standard of living also improves as people would be able to afford better housing and living areas. But in the end, one should not be too quick to say that and increase in minimum wage is good or bad as we do need to weigh the economic benefits of doing so.

sources:

http://blogs.ubc.ca/christopherserban/2015/10/01/walmart-workers-demand-minimum-wage-increase/

http://www.metronews.ca/news/canada/2015/10/02/debate-over-minimum-wage-rages-on-campaign-trail.html

http://www.livingwageforfamilies.ca/

Outdoor Voices; Lulu Lemon for Hipsters

Posted on October 2, 2015 by Queeny Tran

Lulu Lemon

Outdoor Voices (OV), “the young, chic athleisure brand launched in 2012 and has since been gaining traction and attention.” Although Lulu Lemon is a more established brand, having been selling yoga wear since 1998, Outdoor Voices has the potential to become Lulu Lemon’s competition.

Women’s Wear – OV

According to Porter’s generic strategies, Outdoor Voices implements the “Differentiation Strategy.” Though the idea of selling yoga wear is not new, the products offered are unique and trendy. “With its high-wasted pants and tiny crop tops, the company appears to be targeting young hipsters,” the 26 year old CEO of OV, Tyler Haney, is able to sell their trendy products. Furthermore, the design team for OV features designers from brands such as Calvin Klein, Alexander Wang and Lulu Lemon. This corresponds with the internal strength of “highly skilled and creative product development team,” in a Differentiation Strategy.

OV has a lot of potential, however, I don’t believe that the company is going to reach the heights of Lulu Lemon anytime soon. In spite of it’s uniqueness, in terms of style and trendiness, OV’s products can be substituted and imitated easily.

sources:

http://www.businessinsider.com/outdoor-voices-wants-to-be-the-next-lululemon-2015-9

http://www.forbes.com/profile/chip-wilson/

http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml

pictures sources:

http://shop.lululemon.com/home.jsp

https://www.outdoorvoices.com/

Beauty is Pain

Posted on October 1, 2015 by Queeny Tran

“Beauty is pain.”

-Frenchy (character) from Grease (1978)

French manicure and pedicure | Getty

May of 2015, The New York Times, uncovered the realities that many manicurists faced in New York in the article, “The Price of Nice Nails”. “The New York Times interviewed more than 150 nail salon workers and owners, in four languages, and found that a vast majority of workers are paid below minimum wage; sometimes they are not even paid.”

Living conditions for Xue Sun | Nicole Bengiveno/The New York Times

Many store owners viewed themselves “as heroic, shouldering the burden of training workers and the risk of employing people who are not legally permitted to work in the United States.” Sona Grung, owner of Sona Nails denied not paying her employees minimum wage, yet she defended the practice of underpaying beginner employees. According to Friedman “If you work in a nail salon for $35, it’s very good.” said Grung. After The New York Times posted “The Price of Nice Nails,” awareness of the hardships that these women face are brought to light and many workers are taking action against these store owners.

The problem is that people are willfully blind to the situation at hand and letting unethical business owners continue to exploit their workers. One may argue that not supporting these businesses means that we are taking away these women’s source of income. What is the solution? Taking action, raising awareness and being aware of all the wrong that is around us.

sources:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/10/nyregion/at-nail-salons-in-nyc-manicurists-are-underpaid-and-unprotected.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=span-ab-lede-package-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=1

http://www.thefrisky.com/2015-05-07/heres-a-shocker-your-10-manicure-isnt-actually-ethical/

picture sources:

http://charismaspalounge.com/nail-menu/

QUEENY TRAN'S BLOG

Monthly Archives: October 2015

#HASHTAGS

Manly Marketing…for Men

RE: Walmart Workers Demand Minimum Wage Increase

Outdoor Voices; Lulu Lemon for Hipsters

Beauty is Pain