Month: February 2011

Earlier today I read a blog post by Pumasell, World Famous Brand – Breitling Watches Canada. The post talks about how exclusive, and high-end  Breitling watches are. Breitling watches are designed with features that make them appealing to pilots and pilot wannabes all over the globe. Myself, still trying to figure out if I am a pilot or just a wannabe, was not sold on these watches. I have a Citizen watch, quite a bit cheaper, but still pricey ($700-800), the only reason that I have this watch is because I got it for a graduation gift from my parents. Other then a few top secret trademark features, and the metals they are made of, there is few differences between these high end watches and a knock off version you would buy from a mall vendor. I saw these inflated prices ($2000-5000 for some Breitling watches) as more brand equity, then true performance of the watch.

Then I remembered a watch that a co-worker had told me about. So after some research I found the watch! The Breitling Emergency, a plain looking Titanium watch. But it isn’t about what this watch looks like or the name on it, the watch has a built in ELT(Emergency Locator Transmitter).

In a plane crash, the plane will have an ELT inside of it, but what if for some reason you have to start walking away from the plane and you can’t take the plane’s ELT with you? Simple you have one built into your watch! This made me reconsider some of the products that I viewed as over priced, strictly because they are a brand name, maybe there are hidden functions to many products. I would be willing to pay a premium if it meant getting rescued in the event of an emergency!

Many people say that a healthy breakfast is the most important meal of the day, the only problem is in today’s busy lifestyle many people don’t have time for breakfast. So, many people choose the next best thing, a greasy breakfast sandwich. Breakfast sandwiches are the 2nd most popular breakfast item in Canada, next to coffee.

This rather large market has been long dominated by McDonalds and their McMuffin line up. Two recent additions to this competition, Starbucks and more recently Tim Hortons, have greatly cut into McDonalds dominant market share.

With this added pressure McDonalds knew they had to do something, and came up with a new idea. The last addition to the Mcdonalds breakfast menu came in 2003, with the introduction of the McGriddle. In 2011 McDonalds decided to modify their breakfast line up, adding the option of substituting the English muffin “bun” on their McMuffins with a newer biscuit style “bun”.

To promote their new product McDonalds launched a TV commercial (see below) and other web and paper based ads. Another very effective method of promoting the new biscuits utilized by McDonalds, was on February 9 & 10 when select stores gave away free samples of the new product. We have seen McDonalds use this method before in late 2010 when they gave away free coffee.

The sampling method may cost McDonalds a lot up front but it is very beneficial in the long run. For example when McDonalds coffee was offered for free I would go there almost everyday, once the promotion was over I realized that I actually enjoy their coffee and now regularly purchase it. But some customers may not be instantly hooked so I would expect McDonalds to offer discount coupons as their next promotional step in the coming weeks.

Vancouver’s Harbour Air Seaplanes (HA) prides itself on being the World’s Largest all Seaplane Airlines, and more importantly the first Airline in North America to achieve Carbon Neutral status in both corporate and flight operations.

Flying has always been known as a quick and convenient method of transportation, but has been boycotted by many due to it’s harmful effects on the environment. To counter these effects, HA charges passengers a small fee (around $2 per flight), which is used purchase “Carbon Credits” from Offsetters. Offsetters, is a Canadian company who “offsets” its clients carbon emissions by implementing programs that reduce atmospheric C02.

HA started this program with hopes of reducing their large carbon foot print, but Carbon Neutrality, has turned out to be a very good marketing strategy aimed at the “Green” consumer. This strategy helps to relieve customer’s environmental concerns, and brings in customers that wouldn’t have previously considered this means of transportation. When HA first started this program in 2007, it provided them with a significant competitive advantage, the only problem was it was fairly easily replicated by their competition.

Now a days, different means of offsetting carbon emissions are used by many of the major airlines. I believe that this is an excellent marketing strategy and just the right thing to do, HA has excepted its weakness (carbon emissions) and gone out and done something about it. In a time where it seems like there is a lot of talk and little action about fighting climate change, I believe that Harbour Air should be praised for leading the way in reducing carbon emissions.

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As Evan Flater pointed out in his post Creating Value for sponsors-Global Marketing through Cycling-Pt. 1 cycling offers some of the best ‘bang for you buck’ as far as marketing goes. As a company you could choose to pour your marketing budget into 30 second TV ads, or you could receive a season of exposure from being one of the main sponsors of a Professional Cycling Team. Riders are like moving billboards, and if a rider manages to break away from the peloton, this could mean a few hours of TV time for you company.

One of the major misconceptions surrounding cycling is that it is a European sport, and is not big in North America. In recent years the Cycling craze has begun to build in Canada and the US, thanks to a select group of riders who have preformed at high levels in the recent years, one of these riders being Lance Armstrong. I am sure that most of you, even if you don’t know much about him, have heard of Lance and his record 7 consecutive Tour de France wins. Lance and these other riders have opened the door for more and more North American teams and sponsors. A recently formed Canadian based team with many Canadian sponsors, Team Spidertech is beginning to make waves on the professional cycling circuit and already have set goals of qualifying for the Tour de France in 2013.

Cycling is already big in North America, but will continue to grow as North American teams and rider continue to put up results in big races. I believe that this is an excellent opportunity for companies, because cycling teams are very valuable and provide many benefits to their sponsors.