In reponse to Chad brown 4/10/10 blog

I believe that non-price competitors can be successful at certain times. In the sense of Abercrombie vs Aeropostale, I have shopped at both of these stores. In recent years, I have began to start shopping elsewhere, not necessarily because of the prices, but because of the style. As a young teenager Abercrombie was very popular, a brand I wore alot. Their prices were very expensive but at the time it was something I liked to wear. Now a days, I cannot find any logic in paying the prices for their clothes. Not only do I think Abercrombie clothes suck and their style is outdated, but their ripped jeans and tiny shirts are way over priced. When you purchase any type of clothing from Abercrombie, you are paying solely for the name on the front of the shirt. The quality of their products can be matched at any other retail store in the mall. I belive unless Abercrombie changed something in their marketing scheme, their brand will become less and less popular. They are still marketing the same style of clothes I saw in middle school and high school, but now they are more expensive. In my opinion, Abercrombie sucks.

The New Tiger Woods

For the past couple months you couldn't pick up a newspaper or turn on the news without hearing the name Tiger Woods. He is arguably one of the most recognized athletes on this planet. He single handedly is responsible for the success of Nike's golf department. But after reports of his sex scandals arose in November 2009, it was difficult to tell how this could affect Nike. After these allogations, many sponsors began to immediately drop Tiger from their companies. Nike chose to stay loyal to their golf superstar/ most popular athlete. Even as Tiger chose to take a break from the PGA tour and competitive golf for nearly 5 months, Nike still stood by him. As it turns out, during this period, Nike golf sales remained the same. The 13 weeks after the scandal matched their golf sales the 13 weeks before the scandal. Now that Tiger is back in action, after recently completing his first major tournament at Augusta National, one can only begin to imagine how Nike can reap the benefits. Tiger's first tournament at Augusta was arguably the most anticipated comeback on any athlete...ever! Since golf sales were unaffected during his time of absence, it sets the stage for a huge comeback. It is inevitable that Tiger will soon enough return to his old self, dominating every tournament he plays in and pleasing millions of fans across the world.
How do you think the future success of Tiger will affect the sales of Nike golf products? Do you think if Tiger fails to win a tournament this year, Nike golf sales will drop? How has Tiger's actions affected the way you view him as and will this impact your future purchase of Nike products?

In response to Chad Brown

I think many types of coupons go unused. I personally do not use coupons that much. I feel most coupons go unused at supermarkets. I have never used coupons at a supermarket in my life. I like the idea of e-marketing but there needs to be more efficient ways of using these coupons. I think it would be great if one day we can scan a barcode with our phones, save the barcode, and then be able to re-scan it at the given location. I would definitely take advantage of coupons if all I needed to do was have them saved in my phone. Most people carry their cell phones with them everywhere so this would be very convenient. Until technology progresses to this point, I still think traditional marketing is the most effective. It makes a more personal relationship with the customer, especially with customized coupons. It is to very easy to ignore certain e-marketing techniques. I think e-marketing will one day be more effective, but for now, traditional marketing is a better approach.

Mail Marketing vs E-Marketing

With the growing uncertainty of the economy in recent times, many companies are trying to cut costs left and right to ensure their continued prosperity. One way companies have been doing this is by cutting their direct mail costs. Instead, companies have tried an e-marketing approach where many coupons and advertisements are sent through e-mail or via advertisements on the internet. This arises the question of how successful e-marketing can really become.
There are certain benefits of traditional direct mail that cannot replicated with the e-marketing schemes. First, direct mail ensures the best opportunity for the reader to actually read and respond to the mailings/advertisements. It is too easy for someone to simply delete an email in their overcrowded inbox, often known as "junk" mail. These often go overlooked and essentially, do nothing. Second, companies are coming out with new creative ways to enhance their direct mail advertisements to the needs of the customer. These new methods will better relate to the customer and ensure the best possibility of them making a purchase. When you can customize an advertisement to the readers interests, it becomes very beneficial. All to often an email with a boring subject line will be deleted at moments notice, without the reader thinking twice about clicking the link.
With the increasing technology in cellphones, now comes the possibility of being able to read these bar codes with our cellphones that brings us to a direct link. This approach has some benefits and detriments of its own. First off, by being able to place these bar codes in magazines, you will be able to advertise to your precise target market. For example, a women's clothing company can place many of these ads in a fashion magazine geared at women. This is very valuable because almost everyone reading this magazine may be interested in the clothing offered by this company. However, there are also some negative features of this as well. First, only people with the required "smartphones" or those with the correct apps will be able to benefit from this feature. For those without the proper phones, this will basically be useless for them. They will still have to turn to their old, traditional ways of shopping.
I believe that direct mail is the best approach for marketing at this current time. With the uncertain economy, I believe it is important to focus mainly on your best customers and target market and influence them in the most unique, creative way possible, as seen with the more personalized mail approach. A personalized direct mail will influence the consumers better than any e-marketing approach. Some companies that can benefit from these possibilities would be those who have seen a decline in their target market. By sending a personalized mail to their house, they will begin to realize the business' new approach and new creative style, which will influence their decisions to buy this product. A personalized advertisement also shows the customer you care about them and their interests. By standing out from the competitors, this goes along way in creating a loyal group of customers in the future.
How do you think the economy plays a role in the e-marketing schemes? Even though direct mail costs more initially, the influence it has on the customers greatly outweighs that of e-marketing. How do you think the availability of smartphones plays a role in this marketing? When the economy begins to prosper again, will an increase in smartphone sales lead to a larger role in e-marketing? How do you think e-marketing will play out in the future as newer technology begins to come out? Also, do you think the direct mail approach should ever be abandoned?

Microsoft Targets Phones

The once supergiant Microsoft Corp. has certainly fell off from the top as rivals like Apple Inc have come to the stage with newer and faster technology. Microsoft has recently come out with their new Windows 7 software in an attempt to compete with Apple Inc. Now their next aim is targeting cell phones. They plan to reveal their new mobile software in Barcelona today. This new mobile operating system is said to resemble Microsoft's zune HD player. Microsoft accounted for 10.5% of global shipments in the first nine months of last year, compared to 13.7% for Apple. Microsoft also has a seperate plan to design a cell phone aimed at teenagers. This phone is expected to emphasize social-networking applications.
Top Competitor's like Google and Apple have taken full advantage of the mobile app industry. For Microsoft to be able to compete with these competitors, they will need to have many comparable apps on their mobile phones. Mobile applications have been a big seller for these companies, so Microsoft will have to match their output.
It seems Microsoft is trying to re-image themselves by start making quality products that live up to quality of their competitors. Do you think that companies like Google and Apple already have enough loyal customer base? Do you think the new windows mobile 7 program can help Microsoft get back to the top? What kind of effect do you think this new software will have on their competitors?

Environmentalism in Marketing

Environmentalism is a social movement that seeks to influence the political movement by bringing awareness to our environmental concerns. Environmentalism is very important in marketing because it effects certain products being produced. With the increase in environmentalism, people are changing their old habits and supporting products that are save for the environment. With this change in public perception, companies will need to adapt their products to fit this lifestyle. For some companies, they might need to re-evaluate their marketing scheme. For others, they will need to invest in new research studies and products to meet these demands. Environmentalism helps with the marketing for these companies because it allows them to completely alter their previous marketing style. By learning the new demands of the public, companies can abandon their otherwise weak marketing schemes and start new ones based on exactly what their target market is looking for. Now only does environmentalism create more product for a company to sell, but it also helps by creating exactly what people are looking for. Marketers can use their 'new' image to focus their products on a new customer base. Environmentalism helps marketers by being able to align the goals of a company with the goals of the public, as well as creating a new, loyal customer base for that company.

Do you think the effects of environmentalism can make a company that was once not eco-friendly, and re-image themselves as an eco-friendly company? Also, do you think a company can maintain their previous, loyal customer base, while aligning their new values to trigger a new target market? How will these factors play into the success of a company in the future?

4 P's Marketing Mix

In the job market, I am the product trying to sell myself to a company. The other 3 P's involved are: Place, Promotion, and Price. As the product, there are certain qualities that appeal to certain places. It is important to use these qualities in the right channels to get involved with the right companies. When the place is right, you then want to promote yourself within that place. This happens by expanding your resume and work experience. It's important to be qualified in many different areas. Once you're comfortable with your place and promotion, you settle on a price. There are many factors that help decide a price to settle on. Some companies might offer initial average salaries, but potential for much higher wages in a couple years. This might be very appealing for people, especially ones who are very competitive. Each of the 4 P's are valuable in the job market.