Ryan Abushinov's Blog

Roll up the Rim, Tim Horton’s ingenious campaign that started a whopping 26 years ago, has been one of the most successful marketing success stories in history. Simply printing a Please Play Again or Win a Coffee or Donut has increased the coffee and fast food chain’s sales dramatically. It gives people the incentive to go to Tim Hortons because it’s “Roll Up Time”! You can win coffee, baked goods, gift cards, even Televisions and Automobiles! With all of these free giveaways, many people have wondered “do they actually make more money”?

Yes, in fact in previous years, their quarterly sales increase on average by 5%, a huge number for such a large company (http://thebucampus.ca/2011/03/roll-up-the-rim-to-win-%E2%80%93tim-hortons%E2%80%99-most-clever-marketing-ploy/.). Though they may lose some profits due to the fact that they are giving away a lot of product, the company’s sales increase offsets this dramatically. Take students for example. As Diou Cao had mentioned in her blog titled Kraft Dinner Target Market expansion, people are becoming more frugal and also want items on-the-go. https://blogs.ubc.ca/dioucao/2012/03/11/kraft-dinner-target-market-expansion/. What is Tim Horton’s main goal of this promotion? What are they trying to accomplish?

The Answer: Expand and grow their market. Students love their coffee, many students need it to do homework, to wake up in the morning, and just enjoy to have some coffee with friends. What does Roll up do? 20 minute lineups on campus locations,  and also friends rolling up to see if they will win something.

The best part about it is the fact that it does not really matter if you lose, because you still get to enjoy the coffee/tea or hot chocolate that you purchased in the first place! An added bonus to this process is if you win you get to go through the lineup again to claim your prize (and most likely purchase more product at the same time!)

And this is not only the case at UBC, it is common at college campuses across the country http://thebucampus.ca/2011/03/roll-up-the-rim-to-win-%E2%80%93tim-hortons%E2%80%99-most-clever-marketing-ploy/.

So what is the future of Roll Up? Does it cause too much frustration? Too long of a lineup? Or does the increase in Sales and Profits offset this?As this season is slowly coming to an end, I am still waiting to see if I can win big next year!

Inspired by Isaac: http://blog.isaac.shabtay.com/2011/10/why-i-will-never-again-own-blackberry.html

Blackberry has experienced some major troubles in recent years. Even with the first mover advantage, RIM has lost a considerable amount of makret share to the Iphone, the Ipad, as well as Android devices.  With the advent of Apple’s Iphone in the explosive smartphone market, RIM has seen significant competition recently. RIM has fought with the Iphone for years now, trying to provide more value for consumers through new innovative designs, a functional keyboard and also its BBM feature.

But why is RIM losing market share?

Apple is consistently improving their products, and have a much more efficient system to meet their consumers’ needs. Apple is coming out with new and improved models often, they hold the most market share in the tablet market, and they attract some of the best computer agents in the world.RIM on the other hand has been riddled with scandals, has had several outages with its blackberry system, and does not have the quality of applications that Apple has to offer their customers.Even the fast growing Android market has shown that they can rise up and beat RIM.

The online presence of this topic is astounding; one Vancouver blogger has stated that “I will never own a Blackberry again!”. Why you may ask? He stated what many people all over the world have been stating all along. RIM has too little competitive advantage; they can’t keep up with their competitors’ innovation teams. They also do not provide enough in terms of customer service, they have too many outages, and the applications are not up to standards of their competitors.

This online presence can significantly sway new consumers in the smart phone market to buy into another competitor. When I personally was looking for a smart phone before University, I did a lot of research on the functionality of each of the big three smart phone systems, asked a lot of friends about their experiences with the phones, and therefore decided that an Iphone would be the best for me. RIM fans are increasingly being swayed away, in this process most of the people who had blackberrys wanted to get an Iphone as soon as their contracts ended.

So what’s next for RIM? What is going to be the trigger for success for them? In recent months they have been unsuccessful with the playbook, new blackberry models, and with some employee scandals. It’s time to get a grip on yourself RIM, you have a lot of cleaning up to do.

With inspiration from Hannah Martin’s Blog.

http://www.smartmoney.com/spend/family-money/do-celebrity-endorsements-work-1300481444531/

As Hannah Martin had stated in her blog, Jane Lynch is the Healthy Choice, celebrity endorsements do help companies reach out to consumers. In fact, many companies have done this; Adidas, Nike, Pepsi, to name a few have all utilized celebrity endorsements to help drive sales. And it works, to a certain extent.

As stated in a recent research study, if a celebrity endorses a product, sales will increase, by an average of 4%. Though this may not seem like much, the celebrity’s brand resonates in the consumers mind.

Take Nike for example.

Tiger Woods has long been a celebrity brand for Nike, and their products are often associated with the pro golfer. Nike has always been a big brand, but because Tiger Woods is the face of it, consumers feel the need tobe part of the “rich and famous” culture, as stated in the article.

But what if there was something that happened to the Celebrity? Say Tiger Woods is accused of being a part of some sort of scandal. What would happen? Nike knows that Tiger Woods is the most followed golfer on earth, and if something were to hurt the celebrity that endorses their products, the company must act. And quick.

Consumers do not want to buy into a brand that is associated with negative publicity. As such, Nike pulled their sponsorship from Tiger shortly after the incident had occured back in 2010. This move barely moved Nike’s sales numbers, as they acted fast and knew what to do in the market. (http://www.thestreet.com/story/10705842/tiger-woods-barely-dents-nike-sales.html)

So what is the answer in terms of celebrity endorsements? What should a company do to increase sales? I believe that Celebrity endorsement really does work, and that as long as a company (like Nike) is smart about it, they can take advantage of a large increase in sales because of it.

Forget Boston, bring it on Vancouver Pizza!  During the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Canadian restaurant chain Boston Pizza changed their logo to show support for  their Canadian team. Across the country, banners were placed crossing out the Boston name and replacing it with Vancouver, along with an extensive television and Internet campaign with their name change trying to win over Vancouver fans. This was a very interesting technique that the company used to attract Canadians to their business. As Canadians, we come together and enjoy our favourite pastime – playing and watching hockey. During the Stanley Cup playoffs, many Canadians (such as myself) went to restaurants and bars across the country to watch the Stanley cup playoffs. Boston Pizza had a huge Opportunity here, as they are known to have a friendly atmosphere with plenty of entertainment facilities. By changing their name for the duration of the Stanley cup playoffs, they attracted many people to their restaurants, as their ads stood out from the crowd; they took a big risk changing their name, and it was highly successful. Many people started supporting the “Vancouver Pizza” company as they supported a team that the majority of the country was cheering for. Not only did this bring people into their business, but it permanently increased awareness of their brand. It also made their business look like they really care about the local public in the Vancouver area and the General Public Canada wide, by targeting a wide variety of Canadians.

Just wait till the Maple Leafs make the Playoffs. Boston, Vancouver, BRING IT ON TORONTO PIZZA!!!!

Take Risks - Life has no meaning without them!

Risk-taking is often a crazy idea for some people. In fact, it was one for me just a short while ago. Yet, because of a leadership conference I attended a mere two years ago, I now utilize risk-taking on a regular basis. Though not from one particular person, a variety of speakers at this four day conference influenced me to always take risks.

Even though I now attend the University of British Columbia in the commerce program, this was not always the plan. Originally, I planned to attend York University, about a 20 minutes drive from my home. This plan was made because I was too afraid to leave home, I wanted to stay at home and live my comfortable life. However, hearing inspirational speakers at the conference as well as the experiences of many other business professionals, I was interested in experiencing new things. They, along with several other teachers at my high school always taught me to take risks; which makes life more fulfilling So, I applied to Simon Fraser University and UBC, hoping to get in and move my life from Aurora, ON to Vancouver. Being accepted by both schools, I left my friends, my comfortable home oriented life and moved to UBC, where I knew noone and had no family whatsoever within over 3000 km. Now that I am here though, I am experiencing so many new things; new cultures, new friends, and much more difficult skiing!

If it was not for these people, I may not have chosen to move here, and make my decision that Vancouver is where I want to live and work when I graduate, or learn so many valuable life lessons, living on my own (well, apart from family at least). If I had not taken a risk, I would not have been here, having the best time of my life, and getting a great education in the meantime. So, to sum up, ALWAYS TAKE RISKS!

Taken From: http://thenextweb.com/apple/2010/08/16/apple-is-doing-you-a-favor-by-managing-iads-stop-your-whining/

Apple is one of the most innovative companies of the decade. Once one of the world`s biggest technology companies, Apple fell through the cracks with the emergence of Microsoft. However, in the past decade, Apple has exhibited major changes to its company, and is one of the world`s most entrepreneurial companies.

The company takes in an enormous amount of wealth and profits, especially over the past 5-10 years. With the release of the Ipod, the Iphone, and the MacBook, the company`s profits have skyrocketed. These innovations, another characteristic of entrepreneurship are the highest priority for apple, the company is always making new and improved products to keep consumers buying their products. Consumers always want something better, and they know that apple is always improving and updating products. Microsoft on the other hand does not innovate as often, and takes the “routine” market.

They also have taken many risks, they marketed their product effectively, and they went from being just a small company that was dwarfed by Microsoft to a company that is gaining market share.

Taken From: http://www.altlondon.org/article.php?story=20091103162731209&mode=print

Main Article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/gold-sets-record-amid-currency-wars/article1790167/

Amid a world of currency wars and financial crises, investors are moving away from fiat currency and into commodities, particularly gold. Investors believe that this is a safe haven compared to currencies such as the U.S dollar, the Yuan, or even the Euro, as the well being of certain key players in each economy is uncertain.

The main question to be asked is how high the price of gold will go. The current market price of over $1400/oz is already highly inflated, and if the currency war comes to an end, investors in this “safe haven” may lose a lot of money. Other investors may move away from gold and back into currencies such as the U.S greenback, and the Euro.

Could gold be the next currency? I do not believe so, the commodity is too volatile, and it loses in some cases dozens of points or gains dozens of points each and every day.

However, in spite of this move, investors are not taking all their money out of stocks and into gold, which could mean that gold is not the ultimate haven. Investors should see how the currency war plays out before investing a lot of money into the commodity.

Taken From: http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2009/corp_093009.html

Main Article: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/cisco-named-best-employer-in-canada-2010-10-29?reflink=MW_news_stmp

CISCO Canada has ranked first on Aon Hewitt’s list of Canada’s top employers for 2011, even though this is only the second year that CISCO has participated in the survey. The list ranks companies based on employee satisfaction, and judgments made by Aon Hewitt.

Why is CISCO the top employer in the country? What makes working for them so much better than working for any other company?

The answer: employee engagement.

The company operates in a way where the organizations culture encourages employees take on challenging and engaging opportunities, take on leadership roles, and are encouraged to take on flexible work schedules.

In order to make your company a good place to work for, you must engage your employees in all ways possible. You must empower your employees, allowing them to make their own decisions, you must treat them with the highest level of respect, and most importantly, you must make the employee feel like their job means something in the organization. Making this type of culture maximized productive efficiency from the employee,  maximizes job satisfaction, and in turn, will distinguish your company as a positive work environment.

Image Taken From: http://www.howgreenworks.com/sun-chips-makes-fully-compostable-bag/

Taken From: Vranica, Suzanne. “Sun Chips Bag to Lose its Crunch.” Wall Street Journal (06, Oct, 2010): Web. 22 Oct 2010. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703843804575534182403878708.html>.

The noisy crinkle of the new sun chips bag is now coming to an end. Sun chips owner, Frito Lay, a subsidiary of Pepsi co, is taking the compostable bags off the market; replacing it with the old non-recyclable bags.

There has been a lot of negative feedback to the company, on social networking sites, and videos posted by consumers on youtube about the loud bag. Sales have decreased over 10% since this bag came into effect, and therefore the company needs to act. The company will develop a new bag that will be much quieter than the current ones, and still be eco-friendly. For now though, they will be using the 100% non-recyclable bags that was in place just a couple years ago.

I believe that the bag was very loud, however consumers should not be so overwhelmed by this. The bag was good for the environment, it  was biodegradable, and therefore it would not be sitting in a landfill for years on end. There were alternatives to the bag, bowls, or other means to eat the chips. So many bags were averted from landfills, it is not right that the company should use the non-recyclable bags.

Image Taken From: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/feeds/facebook-passes-500-million-milestone-or-mildly-horrifying-poll/2927

Taken From: “Eyes on Facebook for business growth .” Sydney Morning Herald (Oct-21-2010): Web. 21 Oct 2010. <http://www.smh.com.au/small-business/growing/eyes-on-facebook-for-business-growth-20101021-16v8v.html>.

Facebook has become one of the world’s largest social networking sites. The company is also one of the biggest new hubs for advertising in the world, as companies, for a minimum price, can convey their message/products to the consumer effectively with multimedia aspects.

Australian company Threadswap is one of many organizations using the site to convey their company’s many messages, including sales, promotions, and even corporate details.The company has stated that advertising with google got them two people registered. With facebook, the company tens of thousands of likes, which means that the messages the company wants to put forth will appear on the person’s home page.

Companies should definitely use social networking to advertise and communicate with current and potential consumers. It is a cheap way to advertise, millions of people can access your company’s information, and you will be able to convey important messages fast, cheaply, and efficiently to the consumer. Facebook is not the only channel, a company could use twitter, blogs, youtube, and many other social networking channels to advertise their company. It is going to turn out to be if a company does not use social networking, they will be less competitive in the market!