I first saw this commercial a few weeks ago in Hong Kong, and was instantly captured by the diamond panther in the beginning that suddenly broke into action. As a consumer, I have always been ignorant to commercials and actually switch the channel when one comes on. However, I was immediately captivated by the shattering of jewels, and stayed wide-eyed throughout the entire commercial. In the beginning with just the panther, I had no idea what the commercial was about which peaked my curiosity even more, until the classic Cartier jewels were shown. I thought, “Classic Cartier, so beautiful.”

This is an amazing advertisement that effectively communicates Cartier’s value. It builds on Cartier’s history, brand exclusivity, and reminds its target audience the legacy of Cartier. The message is executed by creating a fantasy around the brand and it is done beautifully. The most interesting aspect is that the commercial is actually 3:31 minutes long, and takes up the entire slot of advertisement breaks in TV shows. People hardly watch commercials for even 15 seconds, and yet, Cartier is able to capture the audience for the entire 3.5 minutes. Some critics are saying that this is the path commercials should turn to. Instead of creating short, uncreative commercials, companies should take time to think about their advertising objectives, and actually produce something valuable that consumers can admire. Cartier’s Odyssey 2012 commercial lasted two years with a budget of 4 million euros. Bernard Fornas, CEO of Cartier, said, “We’ve set the bar very high for other luxury brands who would like to emphasize their “legend”, if they have one naturally.”

No doubt about it, Cartier has definitely succeeded this with its epic commercial. The “Behind the Scenes” video is even more interesting as we find that Cartier actually used a real panther to shoot the commercial. In addition, the crew travelled to different places with the panther, used a real elephant, and even had an orchestra play for them. It is absolutely amazing to see how much thought and effort the marketing department put into this, and really emphasizes creativity at its peak. With this commercial, there are no questions as to why Cartier is one of the most luxurious brands in the world.

When I read Vivien Lee’s blog post “marketing to kids”, I was instantly reminded of marketing ethics, especially controversies that have been raised throughout the years. In Canada, advertising to children is carefully controlled by the CRTC’s Broadcast Code for Advertising to Children, and monitored by other organizations. However, some marketers may not have intended the products to be consumed or bought by younger generations.

For example, Victoria’s Secret targets its Pink line of sexy clothing to young adults and mainly college students. However, it is now a popular product to girls as young as 11 years old. Companies need to be socially responsible for their targeting and marketing techniques yet how can unintentional spillover be controlled?

On the other hand, some companies have no intention of being socially responsible. For example, in 2005, Abercrombie & Fitch launched a line of t-shirts which women claimed to contain sexist messages.

Not surprisingly, social groups such as the Women and Girls Foundation of Southwest Pennsylvania launched a protest and received national coverage, causing A&F to pull the line from stores. Products such as these are definitely poor marketing techniques as they lead to negative press. In addition, marketing often subliminally affects the way people think, especially children and young adults. Therefore, having such taglines on t-shirts are definitely unethical, and send an improper message to youth. In addition, up to this day, A&F continues to have sexually implicit advertisements and catalogues. A few other stores have also utilized this approach such as Calvin Klein which brings a good point to ponder – Is it really acceptable for companies to use these sorts of marketing techniques? Is it considered unethical or simply good target marketing? Reality is, there really is never a 100% right or wrong in marketing as all parties are subject to their circumstances and situations.

This is a response to Timmy Cheung’s “New Money” blog post.

Being a “Hong Konger” myself, I was quite shocked and unhappy when my mom told me about the discriminatory acts from Dolce & Gabbana towards Hong Kong residents. Being a store located in Hong Kong, you would expect sales people to have spectacular service towards Hong Kong residents. Instead, D&G’s target market turned out to be people from Mainland China due to the influx of tourists that keeps the business thriving. When the controversy regarding the photo ban first came out, I thought, “Well, there is nothing we can do about it. Mainland-Chinese tourists are wealthier and it makes sense to provide better service to them.” Contrary to my belief, over 1000 Hong Kong residents actually protested outside the store and forced it to close early.

This is truly a classic example of various publics that affect the microenvironment of marketing. The rally was organized on Facebook, Hong Kong newspapers such as Apple Daily ran consecutive articles regarding the protest, and even posted a video of security guards asking people to stop taking photos. In addition, various blogs and comments regarding the discrimination had been detrimental to D&G’s brand. (http://blogs.wsj.com/scene/2012/01/09/dolce-gabbana-photo-ban-sparks-protest/tab/comments/)

For example, we see comments such as, “Those who shop at D&G are fools” and “Go buy the knock offs, they are just as tacky as the real thing.” It shows how powerful media and citizen-action publics can be, and how harmful it can be to a company. I understand that almost all stores do not let people take pictures of merchandise or the store in general. However, only banning Hong Kong residents from doing so, and not people from mainland China or foreigners is Dolce and Gabbana’s insensitivity to equality and quality customer service. D&G failed the most basic marketing rule – to bring value to customers, create customer experiences, and build customer relationships. Also, it took Dolce and Gabbana over a week before making an official apology to Hong Kong. These are truly such disappointing actions from a world class brand.

I never realized how big of an impact Facebook Timeline could have on your life until one day, a friend suddenly re-added me on Facebook, claiming that Timeline has stripped him of all privacy and that he wants to start fresh, with nothing in the past to haunt him. To be honest, I thought he was exaggerating quite a bit until I came across marketing blogs that repeat the same sentiments such as http://fusemg.com/articles/the-night-i-deleted-83-of-the-people-from-my-life

With the emergence of Google Plus, and old competitors such as Twitter, and Tumblr, I suppose Mark Zuckerburg really needed something new to market his social platform. In order to build long term relationships with users, or in Zuckerburg’s sense, customers, he created new value for customers through the new Timeline Facebook layout. Whether customers are satisfied with the result and treat it as a superior value is a completely different story. As the author of the marketing blog stated, many Facebook users hate the new layout since anyone can dig up the past with a simple click.

What interest me though, are not people’s emotional reactions, but rather, their physical actions to counter Timeline. Instead of switching to other social platforms, users are actually accepting this change by deleting so called “friends” off Facebook, and spending hours of precious time to reset all privacy options regarding past posts, photos, and virtually anything found on Timeline. Some even shut down their old account and created new ones to embrace Timeline. One would think that people would shut down the account and end their relationships with Facebook. However, the simple truth is that regardless of profile changes, consumers still like the service and their social existences. Even if you, yourself, want to delete Facebook, all your friends are still advocates. As long as they remain, you would be the one left out. In consumers’ eyes, there is still nothing that can replace Zuckerburg’s genius creation as it already offers the precise value that customers want – to be able to connect with friends no matter where you are, and to listen to their stories through Newsfeed.      

I have yet switched to Timeline because I really do not want to see my past but who knows.. maybe one day I will jump on the bandwagon too.

This is a rather difficult topic to blog about because many times, you just absorb and do not realize what you have learned even though you have grown a lot. If I had to pick one important thing I have learned, it would be resume writing. In resume writing, I was able to break down the different things I did for volunteering organizations. I realize that the things I did actually had a lot more results and impact than what I originally thought. It brings great satisfaction to be able to see everything I have achieved.

After some thought, I suddenly had an epiphany. I actually learned a great deal about myself through Strengths Quest. I was able to identify my five strengths – Achiever, Competition, Significance, Focus, Strategic. It helped me a lot because I am able to apply it in resumes, cover letters, and most importantly, interviews. With applicable examples, it gives me more depth to work with. It is definitely one of the most important things I have learned about myself in all my classes this term.

The greatest lesson I learned is to stop ruminating. I did not even realize that I frequently ruminate until one day, a close friend said, “Stop thinking about the past. It’s not going to change.”

A little reflection is good because you learn from your past mistakes but if you cannot stop, then it becomes a hassle. It stops you from moving forward. Instead of wasting time to become mentally stressed and worried, use the time to look towards the future. In order to be successful in life, it is essential to look forwards, not backwards. Get rid of those negative thoughts – “I should have done this” or “What would have happened if I did this instead.” No matter how many times you replay the situation, you cannot change the past so just move on. Life is not a smooth path. There are always going to be obstacles in your way but it is up to you to decide how to continue along that path.

Lego’s problems began in late 1990s when management stopped focusing on design. Instead, it focused on brand growth and company expansion. The Galidor line was launched in 2002 but it lacked the tradition of Lego construction as action figures could barely be taken apart and reassembled. Due to this line, consumers’ perception of the brand was changing as Lego no longer focused on the freedom and creativity of construction.

To re-establish creativity, management allowed designers to do as they wished with no limits, and accepted every component that was designed, increasing supply costs. However, designers had the wrong target market in mind. The designs were appealing to adults but kids hated them. To solve this problem, designers worked with the marketing department. Marketers researched the types of products that kids wanted, and guided the product developments. Also, instead of manufacturing every piece that designers came up with, a voting system was created where only the pieces with the most votes would be produced. Interestingly enough, instead of allowing absolute freedom, having component limits steered designers in the right direction to come up with successful products. Empowerment may be essential to employee satisfaction, but management needs to show them the ropes to success first.

source: http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jul2010/id20100722_781838.htm

What is motivating us to be in business school? For many of us, it is to acquire a job that has a decent salary. So after getting a job, where does the motivation come from? Is it still money, or is it something else?

Money can often attract skilled labour but often, that is not enough to make the employees stay. For example, bonuses or raises can make employees happy for a few months yet they may not remain productive in the long run. A lot of the motivation comes from job satisfaction which ultimately derives from a happy workplace. In specific industries, such as restaurants and retail, employee satisfaction is the key to profits. A disgruntled employee may offer terrible customer service, driving away potential customers and consequently, revenue. Therefore, management needs to ensure that employees enjoy their work, and the organizational culture. To motivate employees, management can offer flexible work hours, team-building events, and company-wide recognition for excellent work. Money does have its importance, but after a specific amount, it no longer sustains employees’ engagement with the company.

Bottom line: Through other motivational means, a happy, unstressed, loyal employee is a highly productive employee.

Business opportunities can really be found in every corner. Take for example, Canadian John Hardyment who decided to put a spin to the addicting Asian game, Mahjong. He saw the success of World Series Poker in Las Vegas and decided to adapt Mahjong into the same kind of event. He started the mahjong tournament, World Series of Mahjong, in 2007 and has managed to make it into an annual event at Macao (except 2009 due to the financial meltdown). The tournament spans for 3 days in a single-elimination format and the cost to register is US$650. A total of US$1 million is to be shared among 32 winners, with the top winner receiving a US$500 000 check. Being such a famous game loved by all Asians, it undoubtedly attracts many players per year. Aside from the annual event, throughout the year, there are events of a smaller scale that people can participate in, as well as online tournaments. The beautiful aspect is that marketing costs are low because it is the biggest official Mahjong Tournament that players can participate in. John Hardyment definitely hit gold with this venture.

source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/your-business/grow/alexandra-seno/canadian-adapts-poker-strategy-to-world-series-of-mahjong/article1686650/

The creativity of automobile commercials has been decreasing as Advertising Standards Canada (ASC) banned depictions of unsafe driving. Without shots of cars speeding, skidding, and drifting to show off their high-performances, how can marketers attract customers? To counter the ASC rules, the companies’ creative teams have found a loophole within the rules. As long as it is clearly fake, they can show unsafe driving. Therefore, new campaigns have been using animation to sell cars.

Such as the Nissan Juke commercial, each advertisement is shaped like a movie trailer. Also, it vastly resembles a video game, taking a whole different approach. Since many people in their target market are avid gamers, these types of commercials are rather attractive. Even to people like me who are not especially interested in cars, the advertisements are captivating because it feels as if I am watching a movie. As well, having such a unique approach allows the commercial to linger in consumers’ minds. However, to make sure that the campaigns do not violate the new guidelines, they cannot be shown on TV or in cinemas. Therefore, they utilize mechanisms on the internet such as YouTube (Nissancanada). YouTube definitely lowers advertising costs, and reaches a larger audience as anyone around the world can view it. Since consumers can offer feedback through comments, it leads to better communication and companies can also acquire a better sense of demand and consumer wants.  

source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/marketing/adhocracy/car-advertisers-animate-their-way-around-the-rules/article1786222/