Bieber's Debit Card for Teens

Found within the Advertising section of the New York Times was an article about Justin Bieber. Who this world famous celebrity who makes millions of dollars, but he remains true to his humble roots. Even though he has so much money his goal right now in life is to promote budgeting money for teens. He has just recently signed a deal with a debit card company called SpendSmart card which is owned by Mastercard. This debit card is a line solely designated to teens to teach them to budget money and make them learn that they cannot spend more than they earn. The credit card company thought who better to promote this teen debit card then the biggest pop teen out there. This move was extremely smart and savvy because teens idolize Justin Bieber and want to follow his every move. If teens see him backing this card they are obviously going to get their parents on board and make them sign up for the SpendSmart debit card. It was also a savvy move because this pop star came from a rough background with money and is the perfect celebrity to preach about smart spending.

Do you having Justin Bieber backing this project was a savvy business move?

Response to Drew's Post

After reading the blog about brand marketing I know that I am one of those people who shops sometimes and looks for specific logos that I know are trendy and popular. At this school we even notice that many college students wear the same things based on brands and logos. Almost everyone has a North Face jacket and almost every girl on this campus has a pair of Uggs. We all have purchased these pieces of apparel because we all wanted to fit in and go with the crowd and wear what is popular. A company having a logo attached to it, it a fantastic idea because it makes the customer links the logo or symbol to the company. This makes them recognize the brand everywhere they go which in my opinion is a phenomenal strategy.

Louis Vuitton Model

I think that everyone is well aware of the one of a kind designer Louis Vuitton. The fashion accessories that this designer puts out are amazing pieces that are sported by celebrities and highly wealthy individuals or at least that is how the company use to be perceived. Now this luxury designer has all accessories made in highly automated factories that literally pops out hundreds of the same bag. This company has lost that hand made feel to simply satisfy the needs of the public. One company that has stuck with the hand crafted model is Hermes. This company is known for designing luxurious scarves and handbags. This company takes the time to individually make each scarf and bag for the customer that is going to purchase it. One bag takes around 13 hours to make. That right there shows commitment to a customer because this company clearly cares about the quality that they put out. Hermes refuses to use highly automated factories to produce their products because they do not want to lose the status of their company name.

Do you think that Hermes is making a smart business decision in not using an automated system? Do you think that them not using the automated system could potentially make them lose money?

In Response to Haley's Post

Whenever you walk into a Barnes and Noble it is standard that a person will see a Starbucks located in it as well. The two are very closely associated with one another because it is the perfect situation who wouldn't want to go browse for books with a nice hot cup of coffee in their hands to sip on. The marketing strategy behind this is fantastic because it seems both companies are benefiting from this relationship. The only thing I  can think of in today's day in age is that Barnes and Nobles has recently had scares of closing because many electronic book devices are taking over, but as long as they can push through both companies will be fine. Another relationship that is similar to Barnes and Nobles and Starbucks is Target and Starbucks. Every single time I come across a Target store a Starbucks is located right inside. It seems that Starbucks is on top of their marketing techniques because they try to reach a variety of people everyday and keep them satisfied.

Public Relations

Public Relations is an element apart of the promotional mix that helps identify issues that may be of public concern and execute programs to gain public understanding and acceptance. Marketing managers are in charge of setting up solid public relations campaigns that target certain markets. Many of these campaigns are designed to make the corporation appear positive to the public. Many corporations do publicity through press releases especially when they are about to launch a new product or open a new store. Having the proper and savvy publicity can take a product or a service to a better level. There are a variety of public relation techniques used and they consist of product publicity, corporate communication, public affairs, and crisis management. One that I find extremely important is public affairs which is building strong ties with your local community. By doing this local people would be aware of the company and want to support it because they put an effort into getting to know their customers.

Would you agree that public affairs is the most important form of public relations?

Response to Drew's Walmart Post

After reading Drew's blog about Walmart and it pricing strategies I thought about how I do not know how society would function without this store. People of all different wealth's shop at Walmart because they can receive name brand product for less money than other retailers. I believe that Walmarts pricing strategy is working well and doing a fantastic job of supply needs and wants to customers. Of course people are all about saving money these days because of our economic standing so even the littlest price cut is beneficial because every penny counts!

Why are they able to knock cents off the products?

Supply Chain Management

A upcoming form of management that many companies are starting to adopt is known as Supply Chain Management. This is a system that coordinates all the activities performed by supply chain members into a seamless process. This form of management seems to be highly beneficial because it helps managers see efficiency and strengths and shows where improvement need to be made. This process is customer driven because it can immediately respond to supply and demand issues. Many companies that participate in this form of management see lower inventory, transportation, and packaging costs. These companies also see high revenues coming in. By incorporating this process into a company it is a better way of staying ahead of the competition this is due to the fact that this process always is putting the customer first.

What companies out there are using supply chain management?