Dr. Peper 10... Not for Women?

Over the years, the cola and soda market has been doing a great job of coming out with new products to adapt to the market.  Recently, people have been turning away from sugary drinks such as soda and have been on a sort of health kick, and the soda companies have been adapting accordingly coming out with drinks under the names "zero" and "diet" with lower calorie counts.   However, now there seems to be a new trend of products that are not zero calorie...but have only 10 calories. Dr. Pepper 10 is a soda that claims to be "for men.  This seems completely ridiculous to me that 10 calories would make the difference between a successful product and an unsuccessful product in the eyes of the marketing world.  I asked my boyfriend what the big deal is with the calories and he answered that "diet" sodas are seen as something for women only because it suggests preoccupation with body image.  I was completely unaware of this flaw in the soda market.  Do you think that soda companies do a good job accommodating the beliefs that "diet sodas are unmanly?" What do you think of this 10 calorie idea?

Marketing Turned Mass Murder

This past summer Oslo, Norway was the site of horrible acts of violence done by Anders Behring Breivik.  92 people were killed in the attacks when Breivik bombed government buildings in Oslo and gun massacred a local summer camp for left-wing teenagers. This is a horrible act to commit by any persons standards.  Mass murder and violence never seems to have a point.  However, to Breivik it was completely justifiable.

Breivik admitted to planning these attacks with a motive, but what exactly could that be?  It was simple to him; Marketing.

Breivik is an extreme fundamentalist with hatred for multiculturalism in Europe who desired to create an "idealist" society free of all kinds of cultural diversity and progressive ideas.  In particular Brevik was antifeminism, Islamophobic and ultranationalistic.

His ideas were documented in an extremely detailed manifesto of his beliefs which was then emailed out to citizens of Oslo minutes before the attacks.

When questioned in jail about what his motive was for these horrible acts... He answered that he simply wanted to market his manifesto.

Upon reading this I was shocked.  Firstly because of these events, but also because of the extremely violent measures used for marketing. Breivik hoped that his Manifesto may go viral post-attacks and cause some revolutionary behavior throughout Europe.

It really had never occurred to me in the past that someone could use such tactics to gain attention to a cause or in this case, manifesto.  Sure, riots and attacks have happened in times of revolution and uprising but I had never heard of a situation where many were killed in the hopes of a document going viral and gaining popularity.  September 11, 2001 does come immediately to mind when I think of this situation.  However, the terrorist attacks that day were done to hurt and create extreme tension whereas Breivik used attacks to draw attention to his Manifesto... Not only just to hurt.

What do you think of what happened in Oslo?

Paula Dean... Diabetic?

There is something that many Americans and others around the world can forget: Celebrities are indeed human.  They get sick, they sleep they have parents and believe it or not, they do not usually look that good.  However, when a celebrity is diagnosed with sicknesses such as cancer or heart disease, they can become a strong activist for awareness of their illness and can use their celebrity influence to help to find a cure.  Now, this seems very positive right? Who doesn't love a credible and eye catching spokesperson for their cause?  However, there is one celebrity whose recent health revelation has placed her in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons.

Earlier this year, Southern Cooking Queen Paula Deen revealed she has Type 2 Diabetes.  

Known for her excessive use of butter and disregard for calories, Paula Deen became famous for her Southern style comfort food recipes on TV.  Deen has been receiving bad reviews for the health of her cooking for years, but has chosen to ignore the critics, continuing to cook and eat in the same way.  Unfortunately,  this has led to her type 2 diabetes.  Now, the cooking queen is stuck eating her words.  How would you think this announcement will effect Paula Deen's image in the cooking world?  Do you think she will change the way she cooks and reinvent her image as a successful cook living with Diabetes?  Do you think Paula will continue cooking the same way she does, giving recipes to an already obese USA, which can lead to diabetes?

London Goes Green

There is no doubt that around the world various countries are trying to cut emissions and "go green."  The United States has been making efforts to encourage recycling and inspires people to take public transportation instead of driving everywhere.  These efforts have sparked a considerable amount of change in consumer markets.  Products have been popping up with more eco-friendly characteristics, like water bottles that use less plastic and cleaning products that are natural to help save the environment.     However, the United States still has an incredible carbon footprint, second only to china making up 18.11% of the annual pollution. This past week I went to London and was very surprised by the green efforts abroad!  I had been under the impression that the United States had been leading the global reform for emission cuts but I found London was doing a much better job of involving the public in their efforts.  The market for cars in London seems to be completely different than that of the United States.  SUVs are extremely rare, and I could not find a pick up truck anywhere!  Instead, the streets were clogged with tiny cars such as the fiat and the smart car.  Taxi cabs proudly boasted of their newly improved cars that were more fuel efficient and many cars even had bumper stickers promoting the green efforts.  Many more people rode bikes in the city and were equally accommodated for with bike paths and many rentable bikes on many corners.  Television commercials also encouraged the public to be green, often showing commercials on how to be more green and explaining the many changes the country is making to cut emissions.  2012 is a big year for England!  There is the summer Olympics this year, as well as the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrating 60 years on the throne.  Such big events really seem to boost nationalism and the country is definitely capitalizing on this fervor to inspire those to help to save the environment of the country they love so much.  Do you think the US has a strong campaign for the environment?  Does European culture contribute more to the success of such campaigns?  What do you think of the reform efforts?

A totally "Green" Car! the compact size is rare in the United States... Some of the brands are not even available in the US

A McDonnald's.  They are promoting the use of local foods to help save the environment by helping the economy and needing less gas to ship the goods. 

A typical car in England.  I have never seen this brand before in the US! It is really interesting how these cars are marketed heavily in the UK but nowhere in the US!

Note the bumper sticker promoting "The Tube", London's underground public transportation system

Product Placement is Everywhere!

Okay, so I this all began when I needed socks.  As many people know... The SMC washing machines eat socks.  So after trying to make due with my mismatched socks, I decided to wander into Kohls and buy a pair.  Found the socks and then decided to look around since I have never shopped at a Kohls before and wanted to know what kind of clothes they sold.  So... long story short, I found the "LC by Lauren Conrad" collection and Rock & Republic jeans and walked out two hours later with a new wardrobe.  The customer service there was excellent! The store was very neat and clean and the cashiers were very helpful.  My cashier was very friendly and even gave me a 20% discount!  With all the sales and discounts going on I ended up saving over $150! I left Kohls without guilt and very satisfied with my experience.  After I got home I decided to look up this "Lauren Conrad" collection.  I love to read fashion blogs and read up on the latest styles and Lauren Conrad has been credited as a definite "it girl" in the fashion world today.  So I found her website and it was full of fashion tips! I was in heaven.  It was interesting to see, many of the outfits she put together for her readers were made from her two collections.... the "LC by Lauren Conrad" collection featured at Kohl's and "Paper Crown"which is sold in high-end boutiques and department stores.  I really liked the outfits... but I thought it was sort of cheesy that every outfit she made had clothes from her own lines... I suppose thats expected... but it is some form of product placement as well!

Artists "Only Popular Until After You're Dead"

February 11, 2012, the world lost an icon.  Whitney Houston was found dead in her Hotel Room at which she was staying while visiting Los Angeles.  Whitney's wonderful voice brought her to the highest of fame, and also the lowest points in her life through drug abuse and instability.  In her life, Whitney's career earner 415 out of the 562 awards in which she was nominated for.  Due to her personal troubles, Whitney took a backseat to the fame to deal with personal issues surrounding scandal and drug abuse. After her death, her success seemed to go off the charts again with an outstanding resurgence of popularity. Her greatest hit "I Will Always Love You" originally written by Dolly Parton has climbed the charts and her record sales have soared.  Michael Jackson also showed extreme popularity post-mortem, despite his infamous public scandals, bringing in 8 million dollars in the United States and 20-30 million world wide.  Both artists will always be remembered for their unbelievable talent, however in their last years they had slipped out of the public eye.  The media has been on a frenzy, constantly blowing up tabloids of the singer's death and speculated causes of death and making thousands off of photographs.  It is interesting to see how this trend will effect the music market in the future.

"..And Who Are You Wearing?"

Late winter, early spring... A time of cold, snow and clothes.  It is a time that sends the fashion world into overdrive.  Designers' collections transform from garments into art and from art into promotions.  Celebrities unknowingly become spokespersons as the world observes their every move.  New York Fashion Week and the various entertainment award events are the pinnacle of every designer's year.  A fashion show is, quite literally a giant advertising opportunity for the fashion industry.  Buyers from all over the world, fashion magazine editors, other designers, stylists and celebrities are among the guests invited to view the collections at fashion week.  Buyers are looking for the next fashion inspiration to stock their racks with, fashion editors are looking to find the next big trend to announce to the world, other designers view their competition while stylists and celebrities preview their potential wardrobes.  Fashion week is an actual event created for designers to forecast trends and show their creations, but is the world realizing that it is also a huge marketing ploy? Over 100,000 people attend, and at least 4000 are with the press the world fashion markets are changed to reflect the styles displayed.  With each new trend comes a new twist to the market, think Ugg Boots, leggings and skinny jeans.  Before these were deemed "stylish" at one time or another there was virtually no market for them.  Since then there have been hundreds of Ugg-inspired designs, shirts made for paring with leggings and the end of the "boot cut" era was marked by the beginning of the Skinny Jean age.  The fashion market is constantly changing, and is fueled by New York Fashion Week.
Secondly comes the various entertainment award ceremonies like the Grammys, Academy Awards, Tonys and the Oscars.  The Red Carpet transforms into an advertisement platform as celebrities enter the event and are asked "Who are you wearing?" with every one hoping to be named "best dressed".  However, it is not really the celebrity who wins the title, but the designer.  In that moment, each celebrity becomes an unpaid spokesman for that designer's collections be it vintage Jean-Paul Gaultier or Christian Seriano. The Red Carpet manages to achieve what so many companies around the world wish they could do.  It secures a genuine high quality promotion with use of a familiar face that people would relate to, all for free!  What other industry do you know that a celebrity could genuinely endorse a product they are fond of without compensation?  There clearly is more than meets the eye going on in the fashion world today.