In this Customer Insight’s class, I was very excited to learn that the group project we would be working on all semester would actually be interesting and fun (most of the time). I loved how Professor Walls let us take the reins for the bulk of the project like choosing who are segment is, what our prototype would be, and how we wanted to present it. Most other classes have such structured group project that it takes not only some of the fun out of it but also so much of the learning. In most classes in the business school, professors encourage group projects because that is a lot of what we will be doing in the future in our careers but then they put so many guidelines on the group project that you forget about how it actually pertains to a real business group project. This is not the case with Professor Walls’ Customer Insights class. From day 1 we were, my group was a little apprehensive because we wanted more guidelines and instructions on picking our segment that we would use the remainder of the semester. However, Professor Walls just told us to have fun with it and explore any options we had in mind. Finally, we decided on Stay-at-Home Dads, and while it was difficult to find several to interview later in the semester, it ended up being a worthwhile segment that we learned a lot from. Towards the end of the semester, we were given a project update where we had to organize and analyze our data collected from interviews and surveys we performed on our segment. Given the template in class, our group sat around and tried to fill in the questions but kept having difficulties. Some of our data just did not seem to match how Professor Walls wanted it organized on the template and this was very frustrating to us. After we kept asking what certain terms meant and seeing our frustrations, he told us that we did not have to organize our data exactly the way it was written on the template. We all let out a huge sigh of relief until we realized that we would have to determine how to organize all of the data ourselves and this seemed to scare us a little bit. We were so used to following the templates exactly that we were pretty nervous about having to make up one on our own. However, as a group we sorted out all of our data and found a sufficient way to organize the data for our segment that was different that Professor Walls’ template. We then created our presentation that was very informative of all of our findings and in return received an A on the update. Ultimately, I think it is not only helpful and beneficial that Professor Walls gives us minimal guidelines, but it is also fun and exciting.
Another skill I learned in this group project is the willingness to be flexible. At the beginning of the semester, our group decided to target Stay-at-Home Dads as our segment, and we all felt very confident about this unique group. However, later in the semester as we were researching we found it difficult to find this target segment. Our group had written out specific guidelines that we wanted to follow such as must be between the ages of 30-45, live in a city or suburban area in Texas, have a household income of $100,000+, and not work at all. This proved to be almost impossible to find for our group. We had to learn to be flexible by knocking down these guidelines and letting ourselves be open to anyone who qualifies as a Stay-at-Home Dad regardless of income, age, location, and even if they work from home or part-time. It was difficult at first for us to realize this, but in the end made it much more worthwhile as we were able to receive lots of helpful data. This is definitely a learning skill that I need to take with me not only in group projects but in other areas of my future career also. I may have a set list or a way I want to do things, but I need to be open to flexibility to allow certain things to change if it will result in a better outcome. Overall, my group was wonderful in allowing flexibility in our project when it was needed. We saw the need for flexibility not only when trying to research our segment but also when organizing times to meet and trying to build a prototype.
Several emotional reactions took place throughout the semester regarding our group project. Our group experienced an emotional high at the beginning when we first decided on our target segment of Stay-at-Home Dads. We felt this was a creative and interesting segment that was growing rapidly and one that we were sure no other group would have. Later as more and more updates were due we started getting overwhelmed trying to finish them on time. It was difficult trying to coordinate meeting times because everyone was in so many other group projects or extra-curricular activities. At the end of the semester, we were definitely stressed trying to decide on a prototype and then how to build it. However, on the last day when we were creating our prototype and making our power point presentation all of the stress seemed to go away because we all felt confident. We knew that this was the best prototype for our segment, we built it in an efficient and inexpensive way, and our power point summed up the whole semester. I have never had a group project run so smoothly where we were not up until 3 am trying to finalize last minute details. Professor Walls was also helpful throughout the whole process by letting us bounce ideas off of him for our prototype and as I mentioned earlier by letting us explore with minimal guidelines. Usually, I am not a fan of group projects, but in this class, I feel it was very beneficial because we could use our creativity and our ideas for almost the whole thing. It was also fun to see the process of finding a target segment, researching them through various means, and then creating an actual new product for them. I know this will be very helpful in my future, not only in other classes with group projects but also in my career.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Travel & Tourism in the Recession
For my reflection blog, I decided to read and critique Lacey Elick’s blog about her final paper. She had decided to do her paper over the travel and tourism industry which is something that really interests me. However, she is primarily focusing on how they are striving to keep customers and stay alive during these tough economic times. Companies, families, and people are cutting back and a nice summer vacation to Mexico is one of the first things to go. Lacey is also looking at how luxury resorts are going to maintain their exclusive status on a smaller budget while still attracting their customers who want the prestige luxury.
One of the first things Lacey mentions that is dependable for the travel industry are corporations hosting company retreats. While many companies may still plan on having a yearly retreat, I believe they will decide to stay in house to do so. I think that all companies are having to watch their costs at this time and an overnight or weekend retreat would be the first thing that would cut. Instead, most companies are bringing in leadership groups and key speakers into the company buildings and just setting a Friday aside to do these activities. It is key for marketing communications representatives at these travel retreat hot spots to stay well connected to their loyal corporate customers. I also agree with Lacey on that these travel retreats should try to create a great package specifically designed for the companies for the retreats. By providing transportation, catering, entertainment, and any other retreat needs, companies will feel better about spending their money on a well planned and beneficial retreat.
Another target market Lacey mentions that travel destinations should focus on is upper class retirees. I think the research and information she found backs this up entirely. Retirees want comfort and ease in a vacation along with relaxation and pampering. This is a perfect segment for travel destinations to target on instead of the usual young family with two kids. Retirees are also not going to pay for extravagant activities such as white water rafting or snow skiing so the luxury vacation hot spots need to aim their marketing at this group. However, this market segment are professionals at traveling and vacations by now and will want things to run smoothly and exactly their way. This means that customer service needs to be top notch so that these people can plan and enjoy their vacation hassle free. For instance, my parents have not retired yet, but will in the next 2-5 years so are pretty close to this market segment. They are planning a vacation for this summer to go on a cruise through the Mediterranean and Greek Islands. My parents have been on multiple cruises and vacations so have the system down and are ultimately looking for great customer service and help with planning and booking this trip. My dad faced problems when buying plane tickets which caused him to almost cancel the cruise all-together and settle for a vacation at the Fredricksburg Bred & Breakfast instead. These travel destinations need to focus in on this market and make their vacation enjoyable so they will keep coming back year after year no matter what the economic condition may be.
Overall, I thought this blog was researched very well and I think it will turn into a great paper. I know in the past my family has had to downgrade certain vacations to lower ones but no matter what we always have a wonderful time. This industry is developing facing a difficult time in this economy and therefore, should focus on a particular market segment. With a good marketing team, they will be able to have their destination packed by summer!
One of the first things Lacey mentions that is dependable for the travel industry are corporations hosting company retreats. While many companies may still plan on having a yearly retreat, I believe they will decide to stay in house to do so. I think that all companies are having to watch their costs at this time and an overnight or weekend retreat would be the first thing that would cut. Instead, most companies are bringing in leadership groups and key speakers into the company buildings and just setting a Friday aside to do these activities. It is key for marketing communications representatives at these travel retreat hot spots to stay well connected to their loyal corporate customers. I also agree with Lacey on that these travel retreats should try to create a great package specifically designed for the companies for the retreats. By providing transportation, catering, entertainment, and any other retreat needs, companies will feel better about spending their money on a well planned and beneficial retreat.
Another target market Lacey mentions that travel destinations should focus on is upper class retirees. I think the research and information she found backs this up entirely. Retirees want comfort and ease in a vacation along with relaxation and pampering. This is a perfect segment for travel destinations to target on instead of the usual young family with two kids. Retirees are also not going to pay for extravagant activities such as white water rafting or snow skiing so the luxury vacation hot spots need to aim their marketing at this group. However, this market segment are professionals at traveling and vacations by now and will want things to run smoothly and exactly their way. This means that customer service needs to be top notch so that these people can plan and enjoy their vacation hassle free. For instance, my parents have not retired yet, but will in the next 2-5 years so are pretty close to this market segment. They are planning a vacation for this summer to go on a cruise through the Mediterranean and Greek Islands. My parents have been on multiple cruises and vacations so have the system down and are ultimately looking for great customer service and help with planning and booking this trip. My dad faced problems when buying plane tickets which caused him to almost cancel the cruise all-together and settle for a vacation at the Fredricksburg Bred & Breakfast instead. These travel destinations need to focus in on this market and make their vacation enjoyable so they will keep coming back year after year no matter what the economic condition may be.
Overall, I thought this blog was researched very well and I think it will turn into a great paper. I know in the past my family has had to downgrade certain vacations to lower ones but no matter what we always have a wonderful time. This industry is developing facing a difficult time in this economy and therefore, should focus on a particular market segment. With a good marketing team, they will be able to have their destination packed by summer!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Outline
I have a few concerns with my thesis, I know it may need to change and I'm still trying to figure out a better way to restate it for the conclusion paragraph. After further research and writing I will be able to reword it so it sums up my paper nicely. Also, the areas where I have quotations is the research I have done on the certain topic so far and what I really liked and want to go off of. I hope this is okay. I would love love love any feedback though because my writing skills and overall paper organization talent is not up to par. Thanks so much!
I. Introduction
A. Thesis- College sports marketing is comprised of three marketing objectives that the University of Texas Athletics captures in each Longhorn fan using various marketing techniques that vary among the men’s and women’s sports.
I. The three sports marketing objectives and how each relates to University of Texas Athletics.
II. Customer experiences based on each particular fan at sporting events: students, alumni, families, and corporate sponsors.
III. Men’s college sports marketing compared to women’s college sports marketing within the University of Texas Athletics Department.
IV. My recommendations and insights for overall college sports marketing at the University of Texas Athletics.
Body:
I. The three sports marketing objectives.
"Texas, long a marketing dynamo, is exploring its own TV network. A first for an individual school, it would fill a statewide cable channel and various Internet outlets with UT football, basketball and other sports."
"Since the beginning of 2007, a total of 37 schools have guaranteed themselves more than a combined $1.7 billion by bundling and selling their multimedia rights. On the other side, rights-holders such as IMG work to recoup their investment by making as many corporate sponsorship deals as allowed by the schools."
A. Marketing sports as entertainment. (1)
"Host Communications, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Bull Run Corporation and major player in the collegiate sports marketplace for 26 years, announced its line up of on- and off-campus marketing initiatives designed to promote college football in cities across the U.S. during the football season. Host produces, distributes and oversees advertising sales for these broadcasts. These four `kick off` games were broadcast to approximately 150 stations across the U.S., although more than 300 stations are expected to be on the network by the end of college football season."
"Our company remains dedicated to the college football fan and to delivering the best possible game `over the airwaves`. Our audience is those who hold a unique affinity for a particular school, and we’re committed to providing them with the highest quality of programming." (James Host, CEO of Host Communications, Inc.)
B. Building sport participation. (2)
"For college football fans who prefer to learn about their favorite team or NCAA Football over the Internet, Host has recently redesigned NCAA Football’s home web site, http://www.ncaafootball.net/, where students, fans and alumni can access the latest information about any of these national initiatives and site visits. "It’s second nature for us to want to better our collegiate initiatives year after year to reach as many people as possible. "We anticipate looking back at the end of the 2000-01 college football season feeling great about the programs we produced to bring more exposure to collegiate athletics and more fans to the games." (Host)
C. Marketing products and services through sports. (3)
“The NCAA insists college players not be used as sales tools, though the task force further recommends guidelines governing the use of their names and likenesses be loosened as long as it ‘does not portray the student-athlete in a manner as promoting or endorsing the sale or use of a commercial produce or service.’”
“The NCAA cleared the campaign, explaining it's not a Pontiac promotion but rather a big-play promotion that happens to be sponsored by Pontiac.”
“Video games are another concern. EA Sports' NCAA Football 09, for one, is licensed by the NCAA and prohibited from using current college players' names. But critics such as attorney Pete Rush maintain that stars' identities are scarcely hidden.”
He points to Florida's Tim Tebow, a senior-to-be who won football's Heisman Trophy in 2007 and helped the Gators to last season's national title. In the video game, Rush says, "The quarterback for the Florida Gators is left-handed (as Tebow is) and wears Tim Tebow's number ... and runs many of the same plays that Tim Tebow runs."
(However, I plan to alter this to describe how Vince Young was on the cover of video games after our Championship game.)
"Players, he says, already are sensitive to entrepreneurs co-opting their images for unlicensed T-shirts and posters, . He says he senses less concern about how far schools and the NCAA might take things and even opens the door to pulling athletes further into their commercial efforts. For a price, that is.” (Rush & Morgan)
II. Customer experiences based on identified market segment (various fans and attendees).
“Schools can't continue to raise ticket prices, particularly as fan and alumni bases are feeling their own economic pinch. Donors are squeezed, too. And universities are reluctant to further underwrite athletics when endowments and state appropriations are shrinking and overall budgets are being slashed.”
So programs have turned to emerging revenue sources such as stadium and arena signage, naming rights, trademark and licensing fees and digital media rights and advertising. “Brand first endorsed a more aggressive commercial approach three years ago and has made the issue a priority for the NCAA and schools. Sports is business, he says, and making money is part of it.” (NCAA President, Myles Brand)
A. Customer experiences for a Longhorn student or athlete.
“Part of the appeal of college sports (that's different) from the NFL, Major League Baseball and the NBA is the fact that the players are students in college. It draws a different kind of interest, a different kind of fan support.” (Morgan, Steve)
B. Customer experiences for Longhorn alumni
C. Customer experiences for families
D. Customer experiences for Corporate sponsors
"It's a contentious debate within the NCAA and its more than 300 Division I schools:
How far should the NCAA and its members go to boost revenue at a time when the nation's fiscal crisis is weighing on college athletics? “Many schools, with the blessing of NCAA President Myles Brand, are courting an increasingly varied array of sponsors and advertisers and creating some discomfort in the process.”
III. Women’s college sports marketing compared to Men’s college sports marketing.
A. Men’s marketing strategies
B. Women’s marketing strategies
C. Recommendations for improving/expanding current Longhorn women’s sports marketing.
IV. Recommendations and my insights for college sports marketing for the University of Texas Athletics.
Conclusion:
- Restate thesis: College sports marketing is comprised of three marketing objectives that the University of Texas Athletics captures in each Longhorn fan using various marketing techniques that vary among the men’s and women’s sports.
A. Learnings from this study
B. Re-examine my insights and recommendations
C. Application of overall customer insights with sports marketing at the University of Texas.
I. Introduction
A. Thesis- College sports marketing is comprised of three marketing objectives that the University of Texas Athletics captures in each Longhorn fan using various marketing techniques that vary among the men’s and women’s sports.
I. The three sports marketing objectives and how each relates to University of Texas Athletics.
II. Customer experiences based on each particular fan at sporting events: students, alumni, families, and corporate sponsors.
III. Men’s college sports marketing compared to women’s college sports marketing within the University of Texas Athletics Department.
IV. My recommendations and insights for overall college sports marketing at the University of Texas Athletics.
Body:
I. The three sports marketing objectives.
"Texas, long a marketing dynamo, is exploring its own TV network. A first for an individual school, it would fill a statewide cable channel and various Internet outlets with UT football, basketball and other sports."
"Since the beginning of 2007, a total of 37 schools have guaranteed themselves more than a combined $1.7 billion by bundling and selling their multimedia rights. On the other side, rights-holders such as IMG work to recoup their investment by making as many corporate sponsorship deals as allowed by the schools."
A. Marketing sports as entertainment. (1)
"Host Communications, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Bull Run Corporation and major player in the collegiate sports marketplace for 26 years, announced its line up of on- and off-campus marketing initiatives designed to promote college football in cities across the U.S. during the football season. Host produces, distributes and oversees advertising sales for these broadcasts. These four `kick off` games were broadcast to approximately 150 stations across the U.S., although more than 300 stations are expected to be on the network by the end of college football season."
"Our company remains dedicated to the college football fan and to delivering the best possible game `over the airwaves`. Our audience is those who hold a unique affinity for a particular school, and we’re committed to providing them with the highest quality of programming." (James Host, CEO of Host Communications, Inc.)
B. Building sport participation. (2)
"For college football fans who prefer to learn about their favorite team or NCAA Football over the Internet, Host has recently redesigned NCAA Football’s home web site, http://www.ncaafootball.net/, where students, fans and alumni can access the latest information about any of these national initiatives and site visits. "It’s second nature for us to want to better our collegiate initiatives year after year to reach as many people as possible. "We anticipate looking back at the end of the 2000-01 college football season feeling great about the programs we produced to bring more exposure to collegiate athletics and more fans to the games." (Host)
C. Marketing products and services through sports. (3)
“The NCAA insists college players not be used as sales tools, though the task force further recommends guidelines governing the use of their names and likenesses be loosened as long as it ‘does not portray the student-athlete in a manner as promoting or endorsing the sale or use of a commercial produce or service.’”
“The NCAA cleared the campaign, explaining it's not a Pontiac promotion but rather a big-play promotion that happens to be sponsored by Pontiac.”
“Video games are another concern. EA Sports' NCAA Football 09, for one, is licensed by the NCAA and prohibited from using current college players' names. But critics such as attorney Pete Rush maintain that stars' identities are scarcely hidden.”
He points to Florida's Tim Tebow, a senior-to-be who won football's Heisman Trophy in 2007 and helped the Gators to last season's national title. In the video game, Rush says, "The quarterback for the Florida Gators is left-handed (as Tebow is) and wears Tim Tebow's number ... and runs many of the same plays that Tim Tebow runs."
(However, I plan to alter this to describe how Vince Young was on the cover of video games after our Championship game.)
"Players, he says, already are sensitive to entrepreneurs co-opting their images for unlicensed T-shirts and posters, . He says he senses less concern about how far schools and the NCAA might take things and even opens the door to pulling athletes further into their commercial efforts. For a price, that is.” (Rush & Morgan)
II. Customer experiences based on identified market segment (various fans and attendees).
“Schools can't continue to raise ticket prices, particularly as fan and alumni bases are feeling their own economic pinch. Donors are squeezed, too. And universities are reluctant to further underwrite athletics when endowments and state appropriations are shrinking and overall budgets are being slashed.”
So programs have turned to emerging revenue sources such as stadium and arena signage, naming rights, trademark and licensing fees and digital media rights and advertising. “Brand first endorsed a more aggressive commercial approach three years ago and has made the issue a priority for the NCAA and schools. Sports is business, he says, and making money is part of it.” (NCAA President, Myles Brand)
A. Customer experiences for a Longhorn student or athlete.
“Part of the appeal of college sports (that's different) from the NFL, Major League Baseball and the NBA is the fact that the players are students in college. It draws a different kind of interest, a different kind of fan support.” (Morgan, Steve)
B. Customer experiences for Longhorn alumni
C. Customer experiences for families
D. Customer experiences for Corporate sponsors
"It's a contentious debate within the NCAA and its more than 300 Division I schools:
How far should the NCAA and its members go to boost revenue at a time when the nation's fiscal crisis is weighing on college athletics? “Many schools, with the blessing of NCAA President Myles Brand, are courting an increasingly varied array of sponsors and advertisers and creating some discomfort in the process.”
III. Women’s college sports marketing compared to Men’s college sports marketing.
A. Men’s marketing strategies
B. Women’s marketing strategies
C. Recommendations for improving/expanding current Longhorn women’s sports marketing.
IV. Recommendations and my insights for college sports marketing for the University of Texas Athletics.
Conclusion:
- Restate thesis: College sports marketing is comprised of three marketing objectives that the University of Texas Athletics captures in each Longhorn fan using various marketing techniques that vary among the men’s and women’s sports.
A. Learnings from this study
B. Re-examine my insights and recommendations
C. Application of overall customer insights with sports marketing at the University of Texas.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Political "Customer" Experiences
I’ve been interested in politics since I was a little kid. My parents are pretty involved and we would have fundraisers at our house or they would take me to meet our various representatives at their offices once elected. When I graduated high school, I moved to Washington DC for the summer to work as an intern for my US Congressman and became even more in love with the political scene. It is fast pace, lively, and at times very intimidating but I enjoyed every second of it. Once I came to Texas that fall, I tried to stay up with the current events of campaigns but in your first year of college it can be difficult. A year later, I got an internship in downtown Austin for a political fundraising, marketing, and consulting firm. I have worked there for almost two years now and this has shown me what I really love about politics: the marketing, “getting in the consumer’s mind” part of it.
This political marketing reminded of the film, The Persuaders we watched for our last blog. There was a whole chapter in the film focused on how people’s minds/perceptions change based on just certain words and how politicians have now targeted in on this strategy. I thought the study Michael did was so interesting when he had participants sit in a room and listen to a political speech. Participants were told to turn a dial based on their likeness/dislikeness of certain parts in a speech. With this experiment, Michael was able to capture the key words that participants really liked and even particular words that they disliked. This is key for politicians!
We especially saw how important it was to use key words to grasp the minds of people in this last presidential election. Even those who were not Obama supporters knew he had a talent for giving incredible, insightful speeches, ones that truly captured minds of young and old. This can make all the difference to politicians and therefore have taken on Michael as a consultant. He found the way to target in on what words or phrases people really like and then those that politicians may think sounded good but really made no difference to people. A strategy that will most likely be used more and more in upcoming political campaigns.
I would love to do something more like this at my job. While we do offer consulting (I do not as an intern), we do not do anything as in dept as this. We work with many candidates ranging from US Representatives to State Senators to even a potential Governor candidate. This new strategy is something that is becoming more and more popular but still a lot of candidates have not caught on to and therefore can still be very effective. Voters (consumers) love a candidate when they hear what they want to hear and if you can get into what exactly it is that they want, the rest is fairly simple. President Obama did just this in his campaign. He knew what people wanted to hear and told them, thus beginning his super star image.
We also work with public policy groups, non-profit organizations, lobbyists and coporate PACS (political action committees). With these groups, we coordinate their annual conventions and plan all the operations from registration and hotel logistics, to speakers and meal options. Many of these groups are suprisingly very different and so therefore need different arrangements. For example, one of our clients has a small organization of about 100 people, with the youngest being in his late sixties. These people need hard copies of every agenda, respond better by telephone and want their dinner to be over by 8:00pm. However, another group we have holds conventions with over 1000 people and many of the attendees bring their spouses and families. For a group like this we must book a large hotel, communicate via email, and offer a variety of meal options always with an open bar. A lot of times with groups like this we also plan various excursions in that particular city as an afternoon or latenight activity. This is just another way of how politics can relate to customer insights and experiences in which you have to know exactly what they want and how to deliver it to them.
This political marketing reminded of the film, The Persuaders we watched for our last blog. There was a whole chapter in the film focused on how people’s minds/perceptions change based on just certain words and how politicians have now targeted in on this strategy. I thought the study Michael did was so interesting when he had participants sit in a room and listen to a political speech. Participants were told to turn a dial based on their likeness/dislikeness of certain parts in a speech. With this experiment, Michael was able to capture the key words that participants really liked and even particular words that they disliked. This is key for politicians!
We especially saw how important it was to use key words to grasp the minds of people in this last presidential election. Even those who were not Obama supporters knew he had a talent for giving incredible, insightful speeches, ones that truly captured minds of young and old. This can make all the difference to politicians and therefore have taken on Michael as a consultant. He found the way to target in on what words or phrases people really like and then those that politicians may think sounded good but really made no difference to people. A strategy that will most likely be used more and more in upcoming political campaigns.
I would love to do something more like this at my job. While we do offer consulting (I do not as an intern), we do not do anything as in dept as this. We work with many candidates ranging from US Representatives to State Senators to even a potential Governor candidate. This new strategy is something that is becoming more and more popular but still a lot of candidates have not caught on to and therefore can still be very effective. Voters (consumers) love a candidate when they hear what they want to hear and if you can get into what exactly it is that they want, the rest is fairly simple. President Obama did just this in his campaign. He knew what people wanted to hear and told them, thus beginning his super star image.
We also work with public policy groups, non-profit organizations, lobbyists and coporate PACS (political action committees). With these groups, we coordinate their annual conventions and plan all the operations from registration and hotel logistics, to speakers and meal options. Many of these groups are suprisingly very different and so therefore need different arrangements. For example, one of our clients has a small organization of about 100 people, with the youngest being in his late sixties. These people need hard copies of every agenda, respond better by telephone and want their dinner to be over by 8:00pm. However, another group we have holds conventions with over 1000 people and many of the attendees bring their spouses and families. For a group like this we must book a large hotel, communicate via email, and offer a variety of meal options always with an open bar. A lot of times with groups like this we also plan various excursions in that particular city as an afternoon or latenight activity. This is just another way of how politics can relate to customer insights and experiences in which you have to know exactly what they want and how to deliver it to them.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Persuading America
I thought that The Persuaders film was very interesting in a marketing aspect as it captures all the “mind games” that marketing plays on consumers. I especially liked the quote at the beginning, “Am I in a pinball machine?” because that is how many people feel in this growing world of advertising. I was in New York City just last summer and I was so overwhelmed by all the billboards, music, and lights in Times Square. However, one of the points they made in the film was that you cannot stop or the competition will eat you alive. If you even back down from the mega-marketing you will not survive against all the other businesses trying to create more and more gimmicks and new ideas for advertising.
Dr. Rapaille is an outrageous marketing guru who Fortune 500 companies flock to for his sharp three-stage method. These businesses will spend millions just to hear his thoughts and ideas and use his services year after year. His three-stage method involves a focus group psychic process. The three stages include:
1) The “Cortex”, 2) Emotion, 3) Primal Core.
The first stage, The “Cortex” starts with the rational aspect of the participant’s past experiences. In the film he asked participants to think of words that describe luxury. They quickly shout out words such as money, expensive, reliable, while Dr. Rapaille writes them down on a poster. He asks a few other easy questions which all of the participants answer bluntly. By this point, everyone is feeling confident with how well they could answer all of the his questions.
The participants come back into the room after a short break to start the second stage of the process, Emotion. This stage involves a more creative, storytelling portion targeted at the limbic brain. Dr. Rapaille asks participants to tell a story as if they were explaining it to a five year old from another planet. This is a little more difficult for the participants because they want to sound intelligent and knowledgeable but in order for a five year old to understand them, they must use basic words. I thought this stage was interesting because many of the Fortune 500 executives found it hard to not use an extensive vocabulary when describing a story.
After one more break, the participants convene back into the room only to find no chairs this time, only cushions and pillows. The third and final stage is the Primal Core, or as Dr. Rapaille calls it, The Reptilian Heart Button. Participants lie down on the cushions with dim light in the room so they can relax as they are asked to recall their earliest memories. He asks them to remember their very first experience with things such as coffee or cars. This stage is the most important for Dr. Rapaille as it “allows him to tap into what he calls the ‘lizard brain,’ a center of primal impulses, needs and memories that he calls ‘imprints.’” He explains that many people relay the word coffee back to the memories of their mother brewing coffee in the mornings. This last stage explains how “coffee” is the mental code or highway to “mother.” Overall, this final stage is so critical as it truly shows us, marketers, what consumers really want in products or services. When it comes to decision-making, we may offer excuses from the cortex, "I want a car with great safety features", but what really motivates us are the primitive emotions of the lizard brain "I want a car that makes me feel free and strong".
I love the idea that Song airlines is trying to create with their new airline. I think it is something no other airline has tapped into and is one that needs to be targeted- women! However, I also can see why they are struggling because women who are flying most of the time are doing so with their husbands and most husbands would rather fly with their loyalty miles or on another reputable airline. The target of women flying by themselves or with other women is just so few that it may be difficult to get Song airline up and going. While I do love their overall appearance and ideas, today’s economy may not be the best time for them to get going on such a new idea. Even their top competitor, JetBlue has been struggling lately as people are not flying as much as they used to and the ones who are, are using their loyalty miles or going for the overall cheapest fare. I would love to fly Song, it seems so enjoyable but after this film and researching them a little, it does not look like they will stay afloat much longer.
Dr. Rapaille is an outrageous marketing guru who Fortune 500 companies flock to for his sharp three-stage method. These businesses will spend millions just to hear his thoughts and ideas and use his services year after year. His three-stage method involves a focus group psychic process. The three stages include:
1) The “Cortex”, 2) Emotion, 3) Primal Core.
The first stage, The “Cortex” starts with the rational aspect of the participant’s past experiences. In the film he asked participants to think of words that describe luxury. They quickly shout out words such as money, expensive, reliable, while Dr. Rapaille writes them down on a poster. He asks a few other easy questions which all of the participants answer bluntly. By this point, everyone is feeling confident with how well they could answer all of the his questions.
The participants come back into the room after a short break to start the second stage of the process, Emotion. This stage involves a more creative, storytelling portion targeted at the limbic brain. Dr. Rapaille asks participants to tell a story as if they were explaining it to a five year old from another planet. This is a little more difficult for the participants because they want to sound intelligent and knowledgeable but in order for a five year old to understand them, they must use basic words. I thought this stage was interesting because many of the Fortune 500 executives found it hard to not use an extensive vocabulary when describing a story.
After one more break, the participants convene back into the room only to find no chairs this time, only cushions and pillows. The third and final stage is the Primal Core, or as Dr. Rapaille calls it, The Reptilian Heart Button. Participants lie down on the cushions with dim light in the room so they can relax as they are asked to recall their earliest memories. He asks them to remember their very first experience with things such as coffee or cars. This stage is the most important for Dr. Rapaille as it “allows him to tap into what he calls the ‘lizard brain,’ a center of primal impulses, needs and memories that he calls ‘imprints.’” He explains that many people relay the word coffee back to the memories of their mother brewing coffee in the mornings. This last stage explains how “coffee” is the mental code or highway to “mother.” Overall, this final stage is so critical as it truly shows us, marketers, what consumers really want in products or services. When it comes to decision-making, we may offer excuses from the cortex, "I want a car with great safety features", but what really motivates us are the primitive emotions of the lizard brain "I want a car that makes me feel free and strong".
I love the idea that Song airlines is trying to create with their new airline. I think it is something no other airline has tapped into and is one that needs to be targeted- women! However, I also can see why they are struggling because women who are flying most of the time are doing so with their husbands and most husbands would rather fly with their loyalty miles or on another reputable airline. The target of women flying by themselves or with other women is just so few that it may be difficult to get Song airline up and going. While I do love their overall appearance and ideas, today’s economy may not be the best time for them to get going on such a new idea. Even their top competitor, JetBlue has been struggling lately as people are not flying as much as they used to and the ones who are, are using their loyalty miles or going for the overall cheapest fare. I would love to fly Song, it seems so enjoyable but after this film and researching them a little, it does not look like they will stay afloat much longer.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Kenna's Dilemma is everyone's dilemma
I thought this chapter, “Kenna’s Dilemma: The Right and Wrong Way to Ask People What They Want” was completely accurate in describing the decision making process. This chapter focuses on how judgment is made within people’s minds. Now, not too scientifically of course, we are not in a biology class but it really captures people’s thought process when they need to make a decision- easy, hard, critical, or basic. Just last week in my marketing research class, we performed a blind taste test between Coca-Cola and Pepsi using five students in the class. Exactly as it was mentioned in this chapter, four out of the five students chose the Pepsi over the Coca-Cola after their “sips”as their favorite. However, before they even tasted each soft drink, our professor asked which one they preferred if they were to purchase one over the other at say, a grocery store. All five students said that they are Coca-Cola drinkers, more so than Pepsi. So why did four out of the five choose the Pepsi instead of their obvious favorite? After much discussion, it came down to that with only a few sips, Pepsi is sweeter and tastes better, but if drinking a whole can or bottle Coca-Cola would be the favorite choice most of the time. Now, in class we did not extend our discussion to the various flavors that you must take into account with a whole can/bottle versus sips but it proved exactly what the article proves. You must take into account a few sips, or a whole can of a product.
Malcom Gladwell also goes on to say how different the results may be if you do a test in a normal environment setting versus a laboratory focus group setting. This is an especially critical lesson that marketers, specifically those in research should acknowledge. Last year, I did several marketing studies in the marketing research labs on campus. They ranged from watching videos to picking out product packages but because I was in a computer lab with huge headphones and wooden walls all around me like a cubicle, I immediately felt like a science rat. I felt like I needed to pick the exact package they were wanting me to pick, or listen for a particular noise in the video, all the while I’m not in an actual setting where I could actually choose more accurately. I feel these tests would be much more correct if they were to just come into a random classroom or even stop by students’ dorm rooms to conduct the marketing studies. By performing studies so uptight and out of a natural setting, your results will ultimately be skewed. Procter and Gamble have mock grocery stores that look identical to the real thing so that consumers (research participants) can come in and purchase items while researchers can observe and then ask questions at the end about why they chose one product over another. With this natural setting of a real grocery store, these researchers are able to obtain accurate results on how most people really do shop for products.
One of the other lessons that Malcom Gladwell talked about in this chapter, and is my favorite is the decision process with packaging. Consumers may spend over five minutes trying to choose a product based solely on the package appearance. I thought the study that was performed on the margarine compared with the butter was hilarious but also really opened my eyes to how much people rely on packaging and rarely the taste itself. Today, many people do not even know there is a difference between butter and margarine, let alone believe that margarine is colored and even packaged like butter because of marketing. However, this is probably one of thousands of products that must be packaged like its competitor to increase sales and overall likeness among consumers. What I think is even more interesting is how product packaging changes over the years within product categories. For example, packaging on power bars five years ago were bright and colorful with big block letters but today they have neutral colors with a mountain scene in the background. My thought for this is because of the growing trend for natural ingredients and healthy choices but overall the ingredients have not changed one bit. However, when showing the five year old bright box compared to the earthy natural box to consumers today most would probably choose today’s box. This is just another lesson that marketers must remember to gain insights on their target market. Packaging is not just important for kids or impulse shoppers but even those consumers who they think know all about a particular product.
Malcom Gladwell also goes on to say how different the results may be if you do a test in a normal environment setting versus a laboratory focus group setting. This is an especially critical lesson that marketers, specifically those in research should acknowledge. Last year, I did several marketing studies in the marketing research labs on campus. They ranged from watching videos to picking out product packages but because I was in a computer lab with huge headphones and wooden walls all around me like a cubicle, I immediately felt like a science rat. I felt like I needed to pick the exact package they were wanting me to pick, or listen for a particular noise in the video, all the while I’m not in an actual setting where I could actually choose more accurately. I feel these tests would be much more correct if they were to just come into a random classroom or even stop by students’ dorm rooms to conduct the marketing studies. By performing studies so uptight and out of a natural setting, your results will ultimately be skewed. Procter and Gamble have mock grocery stores that look identical to the real thing so that consumers (research participants) can come in and purchase items while researchers can observe and then ask questions at the end about why they chose one product over another. With this natural setting of a real grocery store, these researchers are able to obtain accurate results on how most people really do shop for products.
One of the other lessons that Malcom Gladwell talked about in this chapter, and is my favorite is the decision process with packaging. Consumers may spend over five minutes trying to choose a product based solely on the package appearance. I thought the study that was performed on the margarine compared with the butter was hilarious but also really opened my eyes to how much people rely on packaging and rarely the taste itself. Today, many people do not even know there is a difference between butter and margarine, let alone believe that margarine is colored and even packaged like butter because of marketing. However, this is probably one of thousands of products that must be packaged like its competitor to increase sales and overall likeness among consumers. What I think is even more interesting is how product packaging changes over the years within product categories. For example, packaging on power bars five years ago were bright and colorful with big block letters but today they have neutral colors with a mountain scene in the background. My thought for this is because of the growing trend for natural ingredients and healthy choices but overall the ingredients have not changed one bit. However, when showing the five year old bright box compared to the earthy natural box to consumers today most would probably choose today’s box. This is just another lesson that marketers must remember to gain insights on their target market. Packaging is not just important for kids or impulse shoppers but even those consumers who they think know all about a particular product.
Monday, February 23, 2009
My 2 Interests: Sports + Marketing
Sports have been a part of my life since I was little, not necessarily the playing of sports, but the watching and following of sports teams. My dad and older brother would create fantasy teams and watch games together so I would tag along but after awhile it really interested me too. I especially love college sports: baseball, basketball, and football are the ones that I specifically follow closely. While I am kind of embaressed, yet somewhat proud to admit, this is a huge reason I decided on the University of Texas for my college of choice. I have been attending Texas Longhorns’ sporting events since I was three and I cannot imagine cheering for anyone else. Now, by combining my major of marketing and my other passion of college sports, I figured this is the perfect profession for me: sports marketing.
Sports marketing, in general, can be a very broad topic so for my research paper I need to decide how to narrow it down to a more concise study. In the book, “Sports Marketing and the Psychology of Marketing Communication”, it states how the phrase “sports marketing” refers to three very different marketing objectives. One is marketing intended to sell sport as an entertainment. The second marketing objective is concerned with building sport participation, and the third has to do with using sport to sell non-sport products or services. Because each of these are different but are still a part of sports marketing, I need to research each of these objectives to better understand which part of sports marketing I have the most interest.
Last year, I was offered an amazing opportunity to work for the University of Texas’s Athletics Director, DeLoss Dodds as his student assistant. This opened up my eyes to even more potential in the sports marketing network. I also was an assistant for our Women’s Athletics Director and the head of marketing for the athletics department, Chris Plonsky. She works closely with everyone in the marketing world and has shown me all it takes to put together just one basketball game loaded with promotions and marketing for various companies while on national television. While sports marketing is very exciting and popular, college sports marketing must vary slightly from professional sports marketing. I hope to research this more and see what the true differences entail as I love watching and following college sports more, I may enjoy the marketing aspect of professional sports. I also want to learn more about the smaller sports, such as soccer and swimming that are not as publicly broadcasted and how they are marketed compared to the larger sports like football and basketball. Another interest of mine is to see how women’s college sports marketing compares to men’s college sports marketing. We have a great women’s basketball team but they do not get much recognition compared to the men’s basketball team. These are some of the issues in sports marketing that I would like to further research.
A setback for this topic is that it is hard to gain actual customer insights for sports marketing as there are no actual “customers”. With college sports marketing, the product is not a new ipod or laundry detergent, but a sports team. On the other hand, the target market with college sports marketing is easy to identify: students and alumni of the college, most men ages 16-60, and other sports fanatics. A connection to customer insights can be the experience of attending a basketball game or even watching the Fiesta Bowl football game on TV. These experiences are different for everyone based on if they are watching it with friends on TV at a bar, with family on the couch in the living room, or with a date at the actual event. My experiences of attending Texas Longhorn’s football games when I was ten are very different from how they are today as a student. When I’m with my family at a game, we usually arrive thirty minutes before the game, sit most of the time in the shade surrounded by middle-aged men and young families. However, when I am with my friends at football games, we arrive at the start of kick-off, stand the whole time in the sun while surrounded by drunk fraternity boys who yell curse words at the referees the whole time. These two experiences make up the ultimate college football game, but are completely different. While researching more about college sports marketing, I hope to learn how marketers can capture both of these experiences at sporting events.
Sports marketing, in general, can be a very broad topic so for my research paper I need to decide how to narrow it down to a more concise study. In the book, “Sports Marketing and the Psychology of Marketing Communication”, it states how the phrase “sports marketing” refers to three very different marketing objectives. One is marketing intended to sell sport as an entertainment. The second marketing objective is concerned with building sport participation, and the third has to do with using sport to sell non-sport products or services. Because each of these are different but are still a part of sports marketing, I need to research each of these objectives to better understand which part of sports marketing I have the most interest.
Last year, I was offered an amazing opportunity to work for the University of Texas’s Athletics Director, DeLoss Dodds as his student assistant. This opened up my eyes to even more potential in the sports marketing network. I also was an assistant for our Women’s Athletics Director and the head of marketing for the athletics department, Chris Plonsky. She works closely with everyone in the marketing world and has shown me all it takes to put together just one basketball game loaded with promotions and marketing for various companies while on national television. While sports marketing is very exciting and popular, college sports marketing must vary slightly from professional sports marketing. I hope to research this more and see what the true differences entail as I love watching and following college sports more, I may enjoy the marketing aspect of professional sports. I also want to learn more about the smaller sports, such as soccer and swimming that are not as publicly broadcasted and how they are marketed compared to the larger sports like football and basketball. Another interest of mine is to see how women’s college sports marketing compares to men’s college sports marketing. We have a great women’s basketball team but they do not get much recognition compared to the men’s basketball team. These are some of the issues in sports marketing that I would like to further research.
A setback for this topic is that it is hard to gain actual customer insights for sports marketing as there are no actual “customers”. With college sports marketing, the product is not a new ipod or laundry detergent, but a sports team. On the other hand, the target market with college sports marketing is easy to identify: students and alumni of the college, most men ages 16-60, and other sports fanatics. A connection to customer insights can be the experience of attending a basketball game or even watching the Fiesta Bowl football game on TV. These experiences are different for everyone based on if they are watching it with friends on TV at a bar, with family on the couch in the living room, or with a date at the actual event. My experiences of attending Texas Longhorn’s football games when I was ten are very different from how they are today as a student. When I’m with my family at a game, we usually arrive thirty minutes before the game, sit most of the time in the shade surrounded by middle-aged men and young families. However, when I am with my friends at football games, we arrive at the start of kick-off, stand the whole time in the sun while surrounded by drunk fraternity boys who yell curse words at the referees the whole time. These two experiences make up the ultimate college football game, but are completely different. While researching more about college sports marketing, I hope to learn how marketers can capture both of these experiences at sporting events.
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