Month: October 2016

We are in the midst of a digital revolution, with people relying on technology more so in their day-to-day lives. Humans are becoming so addicted to technology, that they’ll believe anything they see, whether it be articles, advertisements, or pictures.

It is with this that the use of photoshop comes into discussion. Most advertisements that you see have been professionally retouched by a photoshop artist. This ‘retouching’ process makes these models’ bodies thinner, their hair more coloured, their skin free of wrinkles and beauty marks, and so much more. This use of photoshop can be seen in advertisements, commercials, and even music videos. Due to this constant retouching, editing, and the unavoidable sight of “perfection”, it gives many the idea that they are not pretty enough, providing those with negative body images of themselves that will last for years to come. It is as if these artists are trying to make humans seem perfect, but little do they know, it’s the imperfections that make us more human than anything else.

In Sukhleen Thind’s blog post ‘Beauty Has Never Been More Real‘, Thind discusses the new marketing campaign started by the brand Aerie. Aerie has enacted ‘Aerie Real’, a way of advertising their clothes without the need of their models to be retouched or photoshopped. This campaign is huge for Aerie, as many of their competitors, such as Victoria’s Secret, are known for their use of photoshop. I agree with Thind, as this has not only been a social success, encouraging women of all ages to be proud of themselves, but it has also been financially successful for the retail company. Aerie reported a 20% sales increase in 2015, proving that consumers are wanting real advertisements with models that convey the many imperfections that people may possess.

The importance of Aerie and these advertisements is that a big step has now been taken in the world of marketing and advertising. In the coming years, it will be more common to see natural-looking models, without extreme retouching or maybe even make-up free. Not only should this way of advertising be supported, but it should also be encouraged. Companies such as Aerie should see this as their Corporate Social Responsibility. It is their duty to encourage their consumers to be themselves, while also getting the benefit of increased loyalty and sales. This shared value, if properly met, can help further the fashion industry to be more than just pretty faces and thin bodies.

Now is the time for these companies to realize that being perfect is a thing of the past. If a company wants to be successful, they will have to show ones’ insecurities, and show that being true is being you.

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It seems as if with every year, a new technological advance takes place, and 2016 is no different. Virtual reality has long been talked about, but has only taken off in the last year in certain countries. In Western countries, virtual reality has been mainly used for entertainment purposes (gaming, movies etc.), however, many Asian companies have been expanding virtual reality into areas other than entertainment, with all of these companies targeting China to further the virtual era we currently live in.

China has been the country to experiment with new technology in recent years, as their population is the highest of any country, they are the leading country in terms of mobile internet usage, and their economy is vastly growing year upon year, which is soon to become the biggest economy in the world. It’s as if the Middle Kingdom was the perfect place to begin a foundation for Virtual Reality.

New purposes for virtual reality that have been used in China include educational use, real estate touring, and shopping. Not only this, but thousands of ‘virtual reality experiences’ have been set up across the country, so people can experience virtual reality firsthand. All of these reasons for consumers to invest in the virtual reality market gives no surprise that predictions for the global VR market reach up to as high as $60 billion for the year 2025.

In the United States, virtual reality progression has been rather slow, with many articles stating that virtual reality is a fad, and hype for virtual experience will die down in the coming years. I strongly disagree, as many VR companies have implemented successful programs, events, and concepts in China. Western countries have not experienced the impact that virtual reality can have on ones’ life, compared to China and many of its’ surrounding countries. Asian culture have met VR with open arms, and Western culture is soon to follow. What many of these new VR companies need to do is to set a firm following in China, and slowly expand. They must perfect these programs first in Asia, before they introduce it to Europe and North America, regardless of how many years it may take.

It’ll be interesting to see where virtual reality expands to in the next decade. As each year progresses, various companies will find new ways of incorporating virtual reality into our daily life. Stockholders will continue to invest money into this market, resulting in a massive expansion of the VR market. China is leading the world into a new age, and every country will soon be right behind them.

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Blackberry’s stocks have plummeted in the last decade, and so it is no surprise that the company has arguably made its best decision in an effort to revive the once prosperous company.

Blackberry has announced that they will begin outsourcing their phones, saving them tens of millionsof dollars every year. The mobile phone company’s shares are significantly lower than what they were eight to nine years ago; shares were once over $140.00, while current prices are roughly $10.50 in comparison. It is clear that it will take a lot of work for the company to return to a fraction of its previous share prices. This new decision gives Blackberry the opportunity o advance its company as a higher threat amongst other massive phone companies such as Apple, Samsung, Motorola, HTC, by focusing more on how to better evolve their software, while also integrating new smartphone technology within its’ phones. The plan to outsource also affects very few jobs, as the majority of Blackberry’s employees aren’t involved in the hardware aspect of the phone.

Due to the fact that Blackberry is outsourcing its phones, the consumers’ view shifts to the numerous smaller companies that will begin producing their phones. The phones will be cheaper, as there will be cheaper production costs, causing a higher demand for the product. This will result in a higher profit for the mobile phone company, even with royalty charges that will be set in place.

Is Blackberry wanting to transfer their production of devices to other companies, and instead focus on something else? The reason behind this decision is so that there will be hope for the company to prosper like it once did. They’ve dragged their own company down to the bottom, and this is the only way to regain traction. It is the best possible move for the company and its’ future, while also providing jobs to many people who will begin producing these phones. In part of this decision, Blackberry now has the ability to focus more on the marketing aspects of their devices, while also helping numerous other phone brands reach their highest potential.

It’s about time that this decision was made. It even resulted in a five cent increase in its’ sharing price. This decision should be considered an early success. Only time will tell, however, if it was the right one.

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