After reading classmate Christopher Matthews blog about “Destructive Advertising Mediums” I got to thinking, is there such thing? Most individuals in the entertainment industry would argue that no publicity is bad publicity, is this principle present in the marketing world as well? I would say it is as long as the advertising portrays the company in good light. Perhaps youtube ads may drive some people crazy, but the chances of a consumer registering an advertisement they are forced to see rather than one on the sidebar of your internet browser is much more likely. Anything that gets consumers talking about their product is positive advertisement. Youtube has also responded to the complaints of youtube fanatics by creating a skip function on most advertisements, meaning that after a few seconds of the commercial an impatient individual can skip to their video. I think this is also a good compromise as it incorporates advertising but allows for consumer choice. If I were a CMO and trying to decide whether to invest in TV advertisements or YouTube advertisements, I think my initial decision would be the latter of the two!

After reading fellow classmate Kelsey Ingham’s blog “A trip down memory lane with K&S Homeworkers”, I really began to think about the importance of adding value to a product to influence consumer choice. Although Kelsey and Sara clearly had the determination to succeed, what they lacked is value for their target market. Perhaps by introducing such tactics as bundling or discounts on a continuing basis they could have increased the loyalty of their customers.

One company that has undeniably created value for their consumers is TOMS. Not only are their shoes affordable, stylish and comfy but they also create another sort of added value through their One for One campaign. This not only appeals to activists who would like nothing more than to sport a stylish pair of TOMS while providing footwear for someone else in need, but also to the general public who see it as an added benefit to buying shoes they are already wanting. They create a sense of community that provides consumers with an interactive experience. Although they cannot identify themselves as a non-profit organization, the way they market themselves and the feeling a consumer achieves after buying a pair, makes up for it.

As one of the largest generations ever grows older, they are constantly looking for ways to fufill the last of their life goals before health or other variables prevent them from doing so. The question is, are marketers paying enough attention to this potentially profitable demographic? Lina Ko, writer for the Canadian Marketing Blog highlights the increasing focus that companies are placing on this aging population. In her blog post “Marketers Targeting Boomers Poised To Benefit,” she identifies several different areas in which marketers should be focusing. The one I will discuss is “Rebranding for boomers.” The principle behind this marketing strategy is to suggest to the boomers to “reinventing themselves” through youthful activities and fulfilling objectives that they have not yet had the chance to do. A perfect example of this strategy is the following Coca-Cola commercial which tells the story of an old man who drinks a coke and immediately sees the potential he has to “reinvent himself” and try new things.

I agree that marketers should cater to the baby boomers population, as they are still a large portion of the worlds population and are undoubtedly looking for youthful and creative ways to spend their retirement years.

The automobile market is one of complexity. It deals with numerous demographics, most apparently separating consumers based on wealth and age. Kia’s new marketing campaign is targeting their customers by just that. The Kia Soul has been around now for a few years, and is a lower end vehicle catering to a younger demographic that is looking for a low cost, “hip” vehicle. Kia has definitely catered to their target market through the advertisement above. With it’s futuristic look, simulating what most sci-fi video games look like it appeals to the young gaming audience. It then brings in “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO, a popular pop song as well as dancing hamsters to appeal to a whole different pop culture target market. Their target age range is apparent as not many individuals over the age of 30 would know the references. They then further segment their audience at the end of the commercial when an overlay announcing a price of under 14k appears, obviously appealing to consumers in the low end automobile market. Overall, I would say that Kia’s new marketing strategy for the Soul is effective in promoting the vehicle for  their target market.

COMM 299 was undoubtedly a class that everyone took for granted at the beginning of the year, because it was only 1 credit and for myself awkwardly placed on Fridays, I too fell into this assumption. However, as the end of the second term, likewise my first year of Sauder comes to an end, I can confidently say that COMM 299 has helped me immensely in preparing for my future as a business professional as well as having a better understanding of my strengths and weaknesses.

The greatest lesson I have learned was through resume writing. The first shock came as we took a glimpse of Phillipe’s extraordinarily long and intricate resume. We all thought to ourselves… uh oh. After the process of reconfiguring and “juicing up” out resumes, I can confidently say that I feel not only more confident about myself, but more importantly am able to analyze my previous work and volunteer experiences in depth, appreciating every aspect of them. I am happy to confirm that I have landed my first marketing job due to my new resume and I can only thank COMM 299 for this feat.

My greatest lesson learned from someone else is undeniably my self confidence. I learned this through two individuals who have had a continuous effect on my life; my grandfather and my first acting teacher.

If there is one person who screams “I am proud of who I am” it is my grandfather. His life contained many of the same struggles I face, the most important being a common split interest: sport and the arts. My grandfather was a high level soccer player but also loved playing music. In the end he decided music, but he told me that no matter what I choose to do with my life, to know that it is for a reason and that no regret of an alternative can surpass the feeling of success that should be gained from the choice that was decided upon.

The second person who taught me to be proud of who I am and to not accept defeat is my first acting teacher. Acting has been the greatest gift of my life, teaching me to be confident and to not be afraid of being who I am. This lesson was brought forth by my teacher who first told me to join the theatre program at our school and to explore myself as an individual.

Ford, the original automobile maker has fallen under many stereotypes throughout its existence. Once being the monopolizing company in the industry and now better known for unreliable and cheap cars. However, It seems that Ford is attempting to re-establish itself as an innovative company in the automobile industry with its new marketing plan. Fords head of product development said that Fords new production plan will include a faster turnover rate, surmounting that of all of its competitors. It plans to release a new version of each model every three to four years. This means an increase in innovation, creating the opportunity to gain an advantage on its competitors. Although the time frame is much more extended then that of Zaras, it follows the same fundamental idea, being that both companies want to give their consumers what they want.

Click on the picture to read more!

Another focus for Ford in the future is weight reduction on all of its vehicles. This is to increase fuel economy benefiting the consumers and the environment, providing Ford with a globally responsible perception. The decrease will be any where from two hundred pounds or more and will be implemented by 2013.

The new vision of Ford is undoubtedly impressive and will have a positive effect on the companies returns, and it’s future as an automotive giant.

Money laundering is the practice of engaging in financial transactions to conceal the identity, source, and/or destination of illegally gained money. In a non-definitory meaning, money laundering is the gain of money through an illegal act. Unfortunately, this occurs fairly regularly in the business world, quite often without the company themselves knowing that it’s occuring.

An example of this was a case in Germany where three Hewlett-Packard employees were charged guilty with money laundering. The group of individuals involved were illegally delivering millions of dollars worth of computing equipment. Although the men were ex-Hewlett-Packard employees, the company itself was not investigated as after research, it was proposed that the men were even stealing from their own employer. This is a prime example of a company not knowing that millions of dollars are being stolen from them. HP has since been working with the German Government to try and identify where and how these illegal acts were being made as well as where the 9 million dollars in kick back are located.  To read more bout the case follow this link.

It is important as a business student to understand the cause and effects of money laundering as the reality is, it could happen in any of our businesses. Even when security is at its most prestigious state, corruption is possible and it is therefore important to identify the warning signs before millions of dollars are lost.

Kick Back : A kickback is an official’s share of misappropriated funds allocated from his or her organization to an organization involved in corrupt bidding.

When evaluating the level of entrepreneurship of a company, the key  component to analyze is the level of change brought due to an innovative idea. This is exactly the case with “Grass Roots Soccer,” a non-profit organization that teaches african children about aids prevention by sending professional soccer players to not only accompany them on the pitch, but also in the classroom where they teach classes on the disease. Ethan Zohn, the winner of Survivor: Africa is the mastermind behind this idea for positive change. As well as AIDS awareness, Grass Roots Soccer also has an extensive research team that is helping fight AIDS. The magic behind this idea is that it gives african children a reason to want to learn about the effects and prevention of AIDS. Professional Soccer players act as not only liaisons to HIV prevention, but also as role models to the children, giving them a new sense of optimism. Ethan managed to come up with a new idea that resisted to challenge other AIDS initiatives, but rather compliment them in a way that helps a different aspect of the problem. Grass Roots Soccer is without a doubt an organization to watch out for in the future.

Click on the Image to find out more about the organization!

The importance of market research is often overlooked as it there are many accusations that it doesn’t take into consideration the correct factors or in not enough detail; such as future trends. Contrary to this belief however, it is extremely important to understand and analyze the the history of a specific market or product as well as investigate the needs of consumers.

An example of successful market research is in the cell phone market. An article by Information Week highlights the results of the “ABI Research survey of the handset market” which was recently conducted in the United States. The results of the survey show that there has been a 20% increase in cell phone sales over the past year with most of those sales in the Smartphone market. They proceed to identify the reasoning behind the increase in smartphone sales and bring forth the notion that the recession played a large role in this shift of consumer purchasing. During the recession consumers were buying cheaper phones(usually not smartphones). This trend allowed for market analysts to accurately predict the fact that once the economic crisis came to an end, people would be more likely to increase expenditure on Cell Phones, more noteably in the smartphone market.

This article demonstrates how Market Research can help companies predict where to allocate their resources to maximize profit, in this case it happened to be the smartphone market.

Click Here to read the article on Information Week.