In Response to Kevin MacArthur's consumer buying process

Interesting topic to blog about Kevin. I am all for new technology and the newest and best gizmos, however I will not be waiting in a line to buy a brand new product. I feel that it is always better to wait for the "second generation" product, for example not buying the IPAD, but the next version that is more troubleshooted and that has consumer feedback. Sometimes, you will never win though, especially with phones and computers. Lots of companies like apple, Sony and LG make new products just so people want to be able to be the first one to own this technology. It is always more expensive for a new technology and if it is/was successful then there will almost always be a "second generation or version" of it. That is why I am interest in seeing if the new 3-d TV by Samsung or Panasonic is going to be successful. I would never buy a new technology like this because there is no way to really use it, even though it would be cool to say I own a 3-D TV. So to answer your question, Yes. I plan my purchases to buy a TV or a computer after the first generation has come out or if a slightly different technology is available to lower the price of my purchase.

What would be the single most influencial marketing scheme Panera can do?

After pretty much finishing up our marketing class, we now have the tools to analyze a company and help dissect what their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats are. With that information, we can then formulate a plan to help them capitalize on their strengths. With this in mind, I feel that from what I have seen and what I have researched about Panera Bread Co. is that they need to increase their advertising/promotional budget. Their competition, Dunkin Donuts, McDonald's and Starbucks all have large advertisement campaigns and they have a stronger brand recognition than Panera. Panera needs to play to it's strengths, promote their healthier food and convince the public that they are better off eating a Panera meal than their competitors. What do you think? If you had to choose one weakness to have Panera focus on what would it be?

What influences you the most?

While reading the chapter, I starting thinking to myself what influences me the most to buy a product. I starting thinking that the product itself is the most important to me but then I looked around my room and at my personal belongings and saw that I had a lot of brand name products. I realized that I would normally spend the extra dollar or so to buy the snack, item of clothing or whatever it was if I felt that it would differ from a different product? Do you do the same or does the packaging or the actual product itself move you the most?

In response to the Blackboard scenario

Questions: Should John Smith sell the names? Does the AMA Statement of Ethics address this issue? Go to AMA website; look at their Statement of Ethics; write a blog posting on what the AMA Statement of Ethics contains that relates to John Smith’s dilemma.


This situation is really a judgment call and it is up to John Smith to choose what to do. If he chooses to sell the names and hurt the consumers then he will hurt his company and the well-being of his 75 employees. Personally, I do not think that it would be very unethical to sell the names to the car dealer, but according to the AMA and their statement of ethics, one point clearly states " Seek to protect the private information of customers, employees and partners." Depending on how John wants his company portrayed and viewed in the Marketing industry he has a tough choice to make. Again, "Reject manipulations and sales tactics that harm customer trust." So by selling the names of the 2,000 people ready to buy a car in the next year, they might give marketers a bad name in the future.
Personally, I would sell the names if I was John Smith, but I would feel guilty doing so. It is clearly unethical, but it could also save 75 FAMILIES economic hardships and I feel that would be enough for me to sleep fine at night. Does anyone know if there could be any legal repercussions for selling the consumers names unwillingly and without their knowledge? Also, if you would not sell the names and let your company go under, how could you justify having a chance at saving 75 jobs and not take it?

In response to Chad Browns Sherwin Williams Target Marketing

I really have no background information on Sherwin Williams other than the fact that they sell paint. I feel that it is good for any company to target the younger generations for the sole fact that they will hopefully be consumers for life. How they will target and attract the younger crowd I do not know. But having a few Facebook groups will do nothing to entice people to buy their products. They need to offer something to younger people that will get them to come back, like maybe on the first of every month they offer a class for a different style of painting and you can receive a free gallon of paint. They need to find a way to differentiate their product and create a brand loyalty that Home Depot or Lowe's can not mimic.

Is social media worth it?

After spending time in class focusing on social media platforms and doing blogging and similar things, I am wondering if any of this stuff really affects anyone? Personally, I feel that all of these platforms and websites are pretty stupid except for the rare occasion. I have heard many horror stories with Facebook and employers and schools, sexual predators on Myspace and now drama everyday with some stupid comment that athletes or movie stars make on Twitter. Do the benefits ever outweigh the problems that these services cause?

Response to the Two articles

What are some of the benefits of direct mail compared to electronic means of marketing? Bar codes (addressed in one article) seem so promising, but what are some of the possible concerns with their use? Do you think e-marketing techniques will replace traditional forms of marketing (direct mail, phone calls, newspaper ads/promotions)? Besides the types of business and examples that are mentioned in the article, what are some other companies who would benefit from direct mail efforts? How would they benefit?


Personally, I hate to receive electronic mail, and I rarely read it. Direct mail might cost more, but it is much more personalized and if the mail was created properly it will catch someone's eye and let them know that a company is thinking about them and trying to start doing business or retain their business. As William Kapas, president of J.C. Kapas Real Estate Co. said, "I think it's easier to delete the electronic junk mail without taking a second look." Unless I am expecting an e-mail from someone or it is from an e-mail I know I usually delete it. Plus, when people receive mail it usually is unexpected while I know that every day I am going to have spam mail in my in-box that I am going to have to delete and it becomes bothersome.
On the subject of bar codes in magazines to help identify items, those are never going to work. The technology is available, but I highly doubt that anyone is going to take the time to read a magazine and if they find an item with a bar code that they want, take out their phone, buy/download an app, take a picture of the bar code and wait instead of just googling the product or going to the companies website. Remember that Americans are really lazy and desire to do as little work as possible? I do not believe that there are going to be enough people with subscriptions to these special magazines who also have a smart phone and are willing to pay for this new service, because lets be honest this is going to cost money either through the magazine or through the cost of the application.
E-marketing will never replace the good old mail system. Sure, e-mails have taken a chunk out of the bulk and spam shipping's, but having a physical letter or flier will always trump an email, even when companies have a small budget. As said in the second article that we read, Ms. Settle noticed that she "started hearing from customers that they never got their 'reminder' in the mail." People definitely take notice to changes like this and they do not want to be shortchanged or stiffed just so a company can save a few thousand dollars.
Some companies that would benefit from direct mail efforts would be companies like JCPENNY, Sears and Staples where they send out catalogs to their customers and can physically see what the company is offering and what the prices are. Some companies that would benefit from increased mailings would be any graphic design company producing advertisements, any shipping company and any paper or stationary company.
Lets think of this idea from a different angle, with the huge boom in cell phone usage, why have people not switched or turned off their landlines? It is the same idea that they want a physical and direct connection to the source, and what happens if a satellite gets destroyed and there is no more cell phone reception? It all has to do with the paradigm of people liking what they are use to and everyone is use to mail. I'm sure that in the future mail might become obsolete, but it will take a long time for people to get use to their bills being sent through an e-mail as opposed to a letter.