October 7th, 2013 § § permalink
The advertisement below showcases a small company selling $1/month subscription based razor-blades. Take a look for yourself:
DollarShaveClub.com – Our Blades are F***** Great
“Alejandra, what were you doing last month?” “Not working.” “What are you doing now?” “Working.”
After only 2 days after that video was released, 12,000 orders were lined up at Michael Dubin’s door.
Nostalgically reminiscent of Old Spice’s commercials that went viral last year, Dublin successfully utilized social media to target a mass consumer base. The company’s humorous but bold message that “simple is all you need”, derails many larger company’s (Gillete’s) value proposition.
Customers could easily watch the video and choose to buy any sort of cheap disposable razors, but instead they were encapsulated by the cool and authentic looking life-style that the company offers, a brand image that relays more than just a cheap razor-blade. This product differentiation is bound to increase the rivalry in the mens-hygiene industry.
Thanks to social media, which lowered the barrier of entry, companies such as the Dollar Shave Club are able to utilize another option to enter the industry. The success of such a small but out of the box video advertisement leads us to realize how fast marketing is changing.
Resources:
http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/porter.shtml
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/11/business/smallbusiness/dollar-shave-club-from-viral-video-to-real-business.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
October 6th, 2013 § § permalink
With Apple recently releasing the new iPhone 5s and 5c, one can only wonder when the revolutionary company will move on to their next big hit. After all, every product has a life-cycle; sooner or later Apple’s going to have to release something new. However, Robert Cringely, a blogger, suggests that Apple is far from being finished with the iPhone.
The Future?
Just like how Apple reinvented the music player, smartphone, and tablet, Cringely believes that Apple is trying to do the same with the desktop. The new IOS7 recently released by Apple allows the mobile device to run a productivity software similar to Microsoft Office. On top of this, with the emphasis by CEO Tim Cook that the new iPhone 5s runs a processor that incorporates Bluetooth support for both keyboards and mice, one can soon see how the company is beginning to blur the lines between smartphones and desktop P.Cs. Although not publicly stated, Apple could very well be re-positioning and changing the consumer’s mindset on the importance of desktop P.Cs
Yes, every product does have a life-cycle. However, unlike Microsoft, it seems that Apple has already begun to make the jump towards the other side.
Resources:
http://www.quickmba.com/marketing/ries-trout/positioning/
http://www.cringely.com/2013/09/19/the-secret-of-ios-7/