Rubin Chernenko's Blog

Who knew shooting and editing a video could be so fun! This term, the last part of our final project entailed a short seven minute video discussing our analysis and recommendations for the powerhouse clothing company Zara. The video project was given rather than an in class presentation. Personally, I was against the idea at first until actually sitting down and starting to film the video.

Our group bonded so much over the day of filming, from laughing because of the hundreds of screw ups, to crying when we realized we missed shooting a huge portion of our video. I feel as though the bonding experience between our group was far more than could of come from preparing for an in class presentation. Rather than going through the routine of practising and memorizing our scripts, we were given an actual opportunity to show off more of our creative side in a video.

Continually, not only was the filming a blast, but  I feel as though we all learned a whole bunch of new skills through trying to figure out how to edit the video. Sure, it was frustrating at times but when the final product was finally completed the joy and sense of accomplishment was overwhelming. It was a great Way to end a great semester!

Edit: Reflection/feedback: I viewed getting feedback and constructive criticism from my fellow peers to be extremely useful and through provoking. A lot of their feedback where on things I did not even think about, and they really gave me a chance to reflect on our overall video project. I will definitely internalize a lot of the suggestions made and implement them in future projects. Thank you everyone for taking the time to respond and this process should definitely be repeated to future comm 296 classes!

link to our video :

“Some woman’s bodies just don’t work for it” Said Lululemon’s CEO, Chip Wilson after a massive recall on their best selling black yoga pants. Customers claim the the popular yoga pants were see through when exercising, exposing them for everyone to see.

In attempt to combat the flaw of the pants, Willson ended up insulting his loyal customers rather than take charge for the malfunction of the pants. Personally it enrages me that someone could blatantly insult the very customers that bring him all of his success. Its exactly like a child blaming another sibling for the broken vase in the living room. However, Willson did make a public video apologizing to his customers, and actually seeming very sincere and sorry.

In conclusion, it is better to take action for your failures rather than pointing the finger elsewhere. It is going to be very interesting to see what happens from here on outward in regards to the sales of Lululemons products. Will the apology video be enough to reconcile the hurt faced by the thousands of upset women, or will sales plummet as individuals turn away from Lululemon.

link to apology video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeFMeBtNRp8

Zara truly has become one of the most popular and powerful clothing brands in the world. With their chic and high quality clothing, and insane delivery speeds of exactly what consumers are demanding through their top of the line supply chain, Zara has truly become one of the elite.

However, after reading Joey’s blog there was one thing that she mentioned that particularly stood out to me. She argued that Zara can “increase their sales and brand exposure” with more “flashy advertisements [like their] competitors.” Personally, I could not agree more. Currently Zara’s philosophy on advertising is just to “let their clothes and company’s success” sell it self. However, I feel that expanding the companies advertisement presence like commercial advertising during huge TV shows like Pretty Little Liars would bring in an ample amount of new customers that may have never even heard of Zara.

Zara could also improve their social media presence as a means to improve their advertising tactics. For example during television shows (like Pretty Little Liars) have #zara somewhere on the screen getting people to tweet at them, giving comments on the outfits that the actors are wearing.

In conclusion, Zara still continues to dominate the clothing industry, however if they want to improve their global presence, I do strongly believe that Zara could benefit tremendously from implementing more “flashy” advertising.

link to Joey’s Blog:

https://blogs.ubc.ca/jojoluoo/

link to used sources

http://fashiongear.fibre2fashion.com/brand-story/zara/advertisements.as

Walking into a store like Walmart and seeing the vast array of products you can choose from, its often easy to take for granted the amount of work, organization, and communication it took for these products to be where they are. Learning about supply chain management in my marketing class really gave me a new appreciation for huge organizations that have hundreds of products stocking their shelves because no one really does see what goes on in the background.

Digging a little more deeply into supply chain, today I wanted to focus on Walmart, and their approach to be more environmentally sustainable in their supply chain. Walmart has just recently added a new transportation truck known as the “Supercube.” This new truck has an over 30% increase in storage space that will allow for more efficient transportation of goods. Continuing along, Walmart has also reported an increase in use of Sustainability index(SI). Advertising that more than 60-70% of its products sold in the united states will be used from companies that use the SI. Mike Duke, Walmart’s president and CEO wants to improve sustainability in communities of China, making its supply chain more efficient and decreasing the amount of energy used in doing so.

Through these changes it is evident that Walmart is taking a step in the future in both its supply chain, and as well as trying to make this world a better place to live through their changes in sustainability. Walmart being a corporate leader has taken a few steps forward for humanity, let us hope that companies look towards Walmart’s example and follow in their footsteps.

sources:

http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.display/id/24279

http://www.thegreensupplychain.com/news/12-10-29-1.php?cid=6377

Everyones been sucked into watching thousands of mind numbing TV ads while trying to simply enjoy our favourite television shows. However, what if you were to hear that marketing has started to adapt a new approach in in regards to brand positioning?

Microsoft has developed a new advertising system for its Xbox 1. This new hands on approach known as “NUads” is the first of its kind to allow players to interact with advertisements from companies like Toyota, Rogers and Subway. Players are given the opportunity to answer poll questions as well as give their opinions on different products produced by partnered companies. This gives companies like Rogers and Subway a direct view into the mind of the consumers, and gives them an opportunity to reflect on what products are working or not as well as what consumers value. This is crucial in brand positioning, because it gives companies the opportunity to make their most valued customers opinions be viewed as important as well as an opportunity to improve certain aspects that seem to not be working.

Microsoft is truly taking brand positioning to a new level with “NUads”, and competing companies should look to their example and try and adapt a method in which they can keep the minds of consumers focused on them. However, this begs to ask the question if consumers are feeble enough in their minds to fall to the tactics of these powerhouse companies?

Below is a link to a video explaining “NUads”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hJxcZ6LqDQ

Back in May, Pepsi Co. alongside with Tyler The Creator ( a rap artist who is often know for pushing boundaries) released a very controversial  online advertisment  advocating Mountain Dew. The advertisement entailed a beat up white woman, who was asked by a Caucasian police officer, to distinguish the criminal who had roughed her up from a group of four African Americans and a talking goat.

The ad had been accused of promoting both racial discrimination against African Americans, as well as condoning violence of women. Despite Pepsi Co.’s public apology and immediate removal of the video, damage had been done to both the the companies reputation and individuals who were offended.

It is important to understand that peoples feelings, beliefs, culture, and physical appearance all have to be considered when trying to market anything to a group of people. What some perceive as a harmless jokes (Tyler’s intentions), can be viewed completely differently by others. The consequences of not being aware of these factors when marketing can lead not only to the loss of customers, but to the overall degradation of your companies values based off how society now looks at your company as a whole.

In conclusion companies should really take the time to make sure their ads are not going to be perceived in any sort of pejorative manor. It is okay to often push the boundaries, and think “outside the box,” however it is important to be tasteful and aware in your tactics.

Link to video here: