BOBCAT Football Marketing for MSU

Tomorrow night the BOBCATS will host Sam Houston State in the quarterfinals of the FCS college football national championship playoffs.  This is a huge game for the BOBCATS and a huge opportunity for MSU.  The game will be shown on ESPN2 making it the first ever nationally televised game from BOBCAT stadium.  In marketing we always talk about the importance of a first impression.  Being in the national spotlight is a chance for MSU to make millions of first time impressions.  

GO CATS GO!

How To Kill a Mustache

I stumbled upon a hilarious video online a couple days ago, telling a man how to properly dispose of his mustache.  Besides being absolutely hysterical I thought this video was relevant because Movember just ended and that Rhett and Link, the creators of the video, have been successfully able to market and make a profit off of their viral internet videos.  For those of you who don't know Movember is where men grow mustaches during the month of November and raise money for mens health issues, specifically prostate and testicular cancer. 

Of course this video is not a good representation of how Rhett and Link have been successfully able to turn their brand of humor into a living but check out their website http://rhettandlink.com/ 
They have some cool brand collaboration products and utilize advertisements really effectively.

The Rise of the Fake Apple Store

As marketing students we have spent time in a number of different classes discussing Apple's successes in creating demand for the newest most technologically advanced products.  One way Apple has been able to maintain its prominent stance within the industry is the use of their unique and revolutionary Apple Stores.  We all know how effective Apple Stores are.  They have the highest sales per sq foot of any retailer in the United States and boast a revenue of $437,000 per employee, which is more than double the industry average of $206,000.

I found an article in the New York Times discussing how lately their has been a rise in fake Apple Stores.  When you are an industry leader you are always susceptible to copy cats and this is something Apple has dealt with in the past.  Apple's products are so sought after that some electronic makers actually create fake replicas of iPods, iPhones and Mac computers, which are sold in electronics stores and online marketplaces. 

Interior View of Apple's Fifth Avenue Store in NYC

Now Apple has to contend with a new genre of copycats, those who are actually replicating Apple Store retail locations and setting up shop around the world.  The main problem with these stores is that they are selling actual Apple products.  At first glance these stores look so real that it's hard to determine if they are knockoffs or are actually owned by Apple.  The store itself has the same wooden tables as standard Apple stores; traditional branded posters and signs cover the walls. There is also the winding staircase and concrete floors you see in real Apple stores.  "The most amazing part of the fake stores in China have to be the employees. These employees actually believe they work for Apple. They wander the store assisting customers and wear standard Apple T-shirts, which are bright blue with a clean white Apple logo across the chest. Dangling from lanyards around their necks are Apple employee identification cards that say "Staff.""

Interior View of Apple Store in Paris

Is it unethical for companies to set up fake Apple Stores?  What if they are not selling any Apple products?  How can Apple to continue to differentiate their retail stores from copycats in the future?

Internet Trends in Holiday Marketing

Cyber Monday began in 2005 and has turned into the biggest online shopping day of the year.  Each year more and more marketers focus their holiday advertising efforts on the internet to reach their customers.  I found an interesting graphic that shows facts on the current trends in internet holiday marketing.  Specifically that email marketing is not dead and that many companies plan to increase or use the same amount of email marketing, the importance of using social media to spread your message, and using mobile optimized websites and applications.  

Black Friday shopping sets spending record

As we all know Black Friday is the busiest shopping day in the country.  But black Friday is also turning ever closer into dark grey Thanksgiving night. Which is insanity if you ask me?!!!

Thinking about Black Friday I started wondering how certain retail stores did this year and the industry as a whole.  I found an article in the online version of the Milwaukee Sentinel Journal entitled, Black Friday shopping sets spending, e-commerce records.  Here is a link to the article

The articled stated numerous facts on how Black Friday is trending later in the evening on Thanksgiving and also how more and more people are choosing to spend money online.

Here are some interesting facts:

• An estimated 35 million people had shopped (in line) in stores or online by midnight on Black Friday, up from 29 million last year, according to the NRF.
•  E-commerce spending reached well over $1 billion on Black Friday, making it the biggest online spending day in 2012. That's up 26% compared with last year
•  The average person spent $172.42 online this weekend, according to comScore. About 40.7% of customers' Black Friday dough was spent online, according to the NRF, up from 37.8% in 2011

The numbers don't include cyber Monday sales which can show greater increases for internet sales.  With less people doing their Black Friday shopping in stores how can marketers focus their efforts on snatching up some of the increased internet sales??? In the future will we even need to go to the store to shop on Black Friday, or will we be able to do it from the comfort of our own homes????

No plans to market pot in Steamboat Springs

As we are all aware on November 6th, both Colorado and Washington became the first states to successfully pass laws regarding the legalization of marijuana.  It didn't take long for some Colorado ski resorts to comment on their plans and stance on marijuana in response to the recent passing of Amendment 64 in Colorado. 

I found an article online from Steamboat Today entitled, "No plans to market pot in Steamboat Springs" addressing the resorts future stance on marijuana.  Here is a link to the article:
http://www.steamboattoday.com/news/2012/nov/09/no-plans-market-pot-steamboat-springs/

The article goes into detail about how many marketers for ski resorts in Colorado don't see the passing of Amendment 64 as a positive or negative for the ski industry.  They predict the same amount of people who will come to Colorado ski resorts because the amendment passed will be about equal to the number of people the amendment will turn away.

Colorado State officials have said they have no intentions of marketing Colorado for its friendly stance on pot. Neither does Steamboat.  According to the CEO of the Steamboat Springs Chamber Resort Association Tom Kern, “I don’t see us utilizing the decision that was made by the voters of Colorado in the marketing or public relations of Steamboat."  Kern said he thinks the Chamber would treat marijuana similar to how it treats alcohol.  “We don’t market alcohol as part of our marketing message in Steamboat, so I don’t see why we would market marijuana.”

Kevin Fisher, co-owner of the Rocky Mountain Remedies medical marijuana dispensary in Steamboat, said“If they want to mix skiing and cannabis, that’s something we need to embrace."
 
While Amendment 64 might allow guests to let their hair down a little more during vacation, ski resort officials are quick to point out that the Colorado Ski Safety Act prohibits people from skiing while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Little Baby's Ice Cream

Ice Cream Is a Feeling!

There are a number of different objections for a marketing campaign to focus on.  Some can focus on creating awareness for the brand while others can focus on the ultimate goal of increasing sales and revenue.  Recently in another class we watched a couple a commercials for a company called, Little Baby's Ice Cream.

Little Baby's Ice Cream is a small ice cream manufacturer located in Philly, PA.  According to their website, "Little Baby’s Ice Cream is a Hand-Made, Small-Batch, Super-Premium Ice Cream company. We specialize in unique and surprising flavor combinations with additional emphasis on providing Non-Dairy and Vegan options to suit every kind of open-minded and convivial citizen. Ice Cream is for everyone."  Here are some unique flavors they currently produce: Pizza, Balsamic Banana, Earl Grey Sriracha and Cantaloupe Creamsicle. 


They have very unique ice cream flavors and some even more unique commercials.  I included a couple of their commercials below.  Watch at your own risk.  May be viewed as creepy, scary, and or just plain uncomfortable by many!!!

 "This is a special time"

 

"Love Lickers"

I'm not sure about you but I will probably never forget Little Baby's Ice Cream brand and these commercials.  I don't know if these commercials increase my willingness to buy (if I lived in the Philly area) but I believe they are extremely effective in creating a lasting memory with consumers.

 

Ice cream is a feeling!  Of sheer terror?????