All Posts Tagged With: "marketing campaign"
More strange indicators of the economy
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Tue, Sep 29 2009 | 2 Comments
I’ve talked about it in the past week or so; little indicators of the economy’s health. Well, here is a list from Time that compiles some of the more strange indicators of the economy and what they mean.
1. Hikers. When times are hard and unemployment is high, people tend to have a lot more free time on their hands. This means there is a spike in the number of people going for hikes in national parks and other places as well.
2. Immigration into the United States. For a while now, like decades, the number of immigrants coming into the U.S. has been rising. However, now with a bad economy, the number has slowed down and even stalled a bit. It seems like our country isn’t as attractive as it once was.
3. Men’s Underwear. I talked about this one in a post I wrote last week about ties. I think this one is just silly. But, the idea is that men buy more underwear when the economy starts picking up. When the economy is down sales of men’s underwear drops dramatically.
4. Fewer babies are being born and planned. In a recent survey of women, 44% said that they were going to wait to have kids until the economy starts to pick up. This means that the sale of birth control items should be up, right?
5. More attractive waitresses. This is another silly one in my opinion. The idea behind this “index” is that attractive women don’t have a hard time finding work being models or working for some kind of marketing campaign when times are good. However, now that times aren’t so great, they are finding themselves working at restaurants. And restaurant owners are more than willing to hire the pretty girls to be waitresses so it will bring customers in.
Like I said, the whole thing is kind of silly. I mean, you can also look at more reliable sources to tell you how the economy is doing like unemployment as well as sales figures. I always thought that if sales in some industries were up then the economy is probably doing better than if sales are down.
The economy is one of those things that have many indicators ranging from the very silly to the very serious. Hopefully most of the indicators are pointing to the economy starting to pick up and maybe we’ll start seeing some growth soon.
Related posts:Are bright colored clothes a sign of the economy?
Strange things that Wal-Mart has banned
Tags: national parks, attractive women, immigrants
Pringles may be the next to go :(
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Sun, Jul 12 2009 | 5 Comments
Procter and Gamble Co. has done something that only a desperate company does to a product: releasing a plethora of new flavors, shapes, sizes, and a new marketing campaign. Procter and Gamble decided to do this to the brand Pringles, and speculation is going on now that the crisp manufacturer may be the next brand to be sold off by P&G.
It’s not just consumers speculating that the company may be sold off but professionals also. The company has also given some hints that they are ready to move on from the food business altogether:
“More and more, we’re hearing from Procter & Gamble that the food business doesn’t fit in with the rest of their portfolio,” said Ali Dibadj, an analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein.
So far, Procter and Gamble has sold off Folgers, Jif, Crisco, and Sunny Delight. This makes Pringles the only major brand left for the company.
When P&G sold Folgers in November, the $3 billion sale was one of the largest consumer products to ever be sold. It was also among many moves that P&G made to focus business on higher growth potential like beauty and grooming items. It has acquired Zirh, a men’s skin care line, and The Art of Shaving grooming line in the past few months.
A.G. Lafley, P&G chairman and CEO, stepped aside July 1, but before he did, the told analysts that this year the company would “continue to prune” some brands while looking for larger positions in some other businesses and industries.
Of course, there is the loyal fans of the chip to worry about. There are several benefits to the Pringle’s chips versus other potato chips, such as:
Pringles are sold in cans, so the bags won’t get crushed. There is a flavor of Pringles for everyone
Pringles travel well (see reason 1)
P&G’s business plan leaves some brands out in the cold too, not just food, but brands like Braun and Duracell, both billion dollar brands. So, it is unlikely that these brands may be sold off.
Related posts:J.C. Penney has taken the Liz Claiborne line from Macy’s
The 10 Most Environmentally Friendly Brands In The United States
Today’s Ebook – Branding Your Way to Success
Tags: loyal fans, crisco, pringles
Marketing Minutes with Jennifer – Steps in Account Planning
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Sat, Jun 27 2009 | 1 CommentWhen coming up with an advertising/marketing campaign (as I have mentioned before) account planning is the first step. Here are the steps to take when looking into account planning in outline form as prepared by my advanced campaign professor:
1. Situation Analysis
a. The company – include company performance over the last three years. The product – provide a description of the merchandise the store/dealership carries.
b. Retail footprint – where are the stores/dealerships located in U.S.? Provide map
c. The environment
a. Industry trends
b. Social, economic trends
d. SWOT - ½ to 1 page chart of what you believe the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats are.
e. The competition – list who the main competitors are and who the indirect competitors are.
2. Target Market Research Overview:
a. Secondary research
Provide an explanation of databases you searched for insights on the target market.
Describe what clusters the target market belongs to from Claritas, Tapestry, etc.
Simmons results, provide a detailed explanation of what you searched for and found in Simmons data base.
b. Primary research -
a. Methodology – who did you ask and how did you collect data?
b. Provide summary of results from each question
3. Key insights (from both primary and secondary)
a. Inside the targets’ mind – who is this person?
b. Pull direct quotes from target market interviews, relevant articles.
4. Target market profile
a. Primary market
b. Secondary
Related posts:Is T-Mobile Planning “Project Dark”?
Today’s Ebook – Estate Planning
Tags: target market, marketing, advertising
Starbucks launces ad campaign against McDonald’s
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Sun, May 03 2009 | 2 CommentsAs Starbucks looses market share to McDonald’s, who has been offering espresso drinks at a much lower price than Starbucks, the coffee giant has created an ad campaign to target the “discount” chain.
Starbucks had a “sneak peek” of a new marketing campaign on YouTube recently.
The youtube “sneak peek” shows the upcoming full page ads that Starbucks will take out to compare it to competitors.
Make your own coffee at home
Tags: starbucks, youtube, market share
Heinz gets rid of the pickle
Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Sun, Jan 18 2009 | 0 CommentsAfter 110 years, Heinz is getting rid of the pickle on its label and replacing it with a single tomato on a vine.
From the AP:
Playing up ketchup’s natural roots also feeds into consumers’ growing desire for more wholesome, natural foods, analysts and the company said. The new label includes the tagline “Grown not made.”
Heinz is also planning its largest marketing campaign since the 1980’s to get the news out about its new slogan.
Related posts:Organic and healthy don’t equal each other and other grocery myths
Tags: consumers, marketing, msnbc
