Promotion in the Internet Marketing Mix

Wal-Mart reviews advertising strategy

2006-05-03T23:20:00.000-04:00

Article Title: Wal-Mart reviews advertising strategy

Rollback that Advertising plan--Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has decided to review its $578 million advertising strategy, as it works to revamp its marketing image. According to an online report by Advertising Age, Wal-Mart as the world’s biggest retailer plans to re-evaluate this half billion dollars.

Verifying Wal-Mart’s media review were officials at Omnicom Group Inc.’s GSD&M and Bernstein-Rein. Specifically, this move has been in the making, since “former Target Corp. executive John Fleming became Wal-Mart’s chief marketing officer last summer.” Having previously worked with Walmart.com, Fleming “begun shaking up the discounter’s ad strategy in an effort to get its well-heeled shoppers to buy more merchandise beyond food.”

In efforts to build its brand image, Wal-Mart has expanded to and introduced higher-quality apparel and merchandise. Most notably, within the last year Wal-Mart has “run ad campaigns in Vogue magazine, and has de-emphasized its trademark Smiley in TV ads, which is linked to its low price mantra.” A spokeswoman for Wal-Mart, Gail Lavielle, said “the company wants to ‘have the very best resources to make sure we have consistent messaging’ across all its marketing efforts.”

Both Omnicom Group Inc.’s GSD&M and Bernstein-Rein who have worked with Wal-Mart for many years, claim that they plan to “defend their established business with Wal-Mart” no matter which direction they head after their move. Chief operating officer at Bernstein-Rein, Steve Bernstein adds to this point stating that “They are going through a lot of marketing changes, and so this is something that we have been anticipating.” Having worked with Wal-Mart for 32 years, Bernstein said “Sam (Walton) chose us, and we have always treated it like a test.”

On the flipside, GSD&M said “they have created ads for Wal-Mart for 19 years, developing the ‘Always Low Prices’ campaign.” Also, the agency worked to create the Wal-Mart ad campaign in Vogue magazine.

The process of a review, “involves the company hiring a consultant to study a number of ad agency clients, which are then narrowed further and then assigned an advertising project.”

This advertising move will thus affect all facets of the Wal-Mart division, both offline and online. As its online sector is essential to Wal-Mart’s profit base, it is important to recognize the impact this strategy will have from the “clicks” perspective. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s number one retailer and largest corporation by sales, launched its web storefront (www.Walmart.com) initially in June of 1995. Having re-launched a second and third time, both in July 1996 and the fall of 1999, the store’s website ultimately seeks to “serve customers in a way they want to be served where they want to be served,” as stated in our text. Striving to integrate the online storefront with the offline store, Walmart.com hopes to position itself as ecommerce for the masses. This bricks-and-clicks business, implements channel cohesion giving it a considerable advantage over its competitors. By using its name recognition, this multi-channel retailer has used its clout to expand and tailor to international markets, both online and offline.

While I think Wal-Mart’s move is great, as they seek to implement a new target market into their customer base, I do feel they may have some difficulty building their brand image to the liking of an upper class. Because of the already established preconceived notions of this business and its “lower class” image, transition into the world of high-quality clothing may be a stretch. In today’s society so many people are focused on “labels,” where things are purchased for the name and the price association that comes along with it. Thus, saying you bought your clothes at Wal-Mart may be hard for some established people to accept and further say.

Personally, I enjoy Wal-Mart’s low prices and convenience. I look forward to seeing their new move put into action. My only hope is that Wal-Mart will not loose the low prices we all have come to know and love!

Best of luck to Wal-Mart and its new advertising move!

For more information, see related article: Wal-Mart Puts $578 Million Account in Review

Photo Source: Wal-Mart

Home Depot's Web Improvement

2006-04-27T10:50:00.000-04:00

Article Title: Home Depot's Web Improvement

Handymen & women worldwide-- Home Depot announced on April 25th, 2006 that “it will acquire Home Decorators Collection, an online and catalog retailer of furniture, rugs, and lighting.” As the world’s No. 1 big-box home-improvement retailer, Home Depot has decided to make this move as means to place an increasing emphasis on the Web. While the retailer did not provide figures regarding this matter, it claimed that “Internet sales doubled in 2005 after it expanded the assortment of products sold online that aren’t available in all of its stores to include electronics and furniture.”

Having launched two speciality catalogs (10 Crescent Lane and Paces Trading) last year, Home Depot has shown its efforts of "cozying up to the Web." These catalogs, which are targeted at affluent women both have their own respective Web sites as well. Beginning in the summer of 2006, Home Depot will continue its stride towards Web improvement by offering “streaming video of online commercials from vendors such as LG electronic as well as customer reviews of products."

Bob Nardelli, Home Depot’s CEO, states that “the goal is to achieve $1 billion in Internet sales by 2010.” In response to Nardelli’s comment, Harvey Seegers, president of Home Depot Direct (the division that handles online and catalog sales) claims that “based on the size and momentum I see today, we will not only be able to achieve but exceed the ambitious goal set by our CEO.” Additionally, Seegers feels “that the online market for home-goods shoppers is big—and likely to get bigger.” This rests in the fact that nearly 60% of U.S. households are set-up with broadband Internet capability and that “home décor Internet and catalog sales in the U.S. amount to some $18 billion annually, with 20% annual growth expected.”

Having become aggressive with regards to Internet sales within the last year (12 to 18 months), Nardaelli says “we really embraced that technology in a meaningful way,” and is eager to get its share of the annual growth. But for now, only 3% of the overall home-improvement market accounts for online sales. This is primarily due to the fact that “many of the products are bulky and difficult to perceive online,” as stated by senior analyst at Jupiter Research, Vikram Sehgal. He also added that "people like to figure out how a furniture looks or how a certain color would look in person." More often than not, home-improvement consumers prefer "hand-holding, advice, and knowledge offered by sales associates at retailers such a Home Depot and Lowes."

There is talk, however, that if Home Depot were to implement an in-store pick-up model (used by electronic companies such as Circuit City and Best Buy) that business will boost; especially since “sales of housewares and appliances on the Internet grew 38% last year.” There are critics though, who aren’t as optimistic towards Home Depot, such as Research firm Mintel Intl. who claims “that rising interest rates and the concurrent slowdown in home sales will affect overall home-improvement sales.” Similarly, David Strasser, an analyst at Bank of America, “estimates that online sales make up less than 1% of Home Depot sales.”

To end on a better note, “Home Depot’s latest acquisition will not only add 65,000 new products to its Web sties, but it will also give the retailer new technology that will help it run its own business.” Home Depot's use of the web as a promotion delivery channel, is an excellent “pipeline for delivering marketing promotions to target audiences” (according to the text). On a similar note, the book continues by stating “companies use the Internet to create buzz, encouraging word-of-mouth communications whereby consumers communicate among themselves about products.” Home Depot has most certainly created a buzz, as it made headlines in Business Week. I personally am not sure how I feel regarding Home Depot’s web motives, I personally wouldn’t order anything off the web from this particular company, but I can see how it would be useful to research products prior to entering the store. Therefore, I would more or less prefer the in-store pick up model which would provide an excellent service to customers. In general, I feel Home Depot has done a good job Integrating Marketing Communication (IMC) which according to the text “requires a planned, coordinated, integrated campaign with more than one promotion tool that has one voice, one look, and one feel.” Their main communication message at this time is: “You can do it. We can help.” I look forward to seeing Home Depot’s advancement and the outcome of their new web improvements.

Best of luck to Home Depot and handymen & women worldwide!

Photo Source: Home Depot

EXTRA CREDIT-GOOGLE TALK

2006-04-26T13:27:00.000-04:00

Extra Credit-Google Talk:

On Monday, April 24th 2006, Nikola Jevtic, a software engineer at Google Inc. was present at the University of Delaware. Nikola has been working at Google for the past year, after receiving his Ph.D. at UC San Diego and has a close relationship with the CISC Department here at UD. In his lecture, Mr. Jevtic spoke of Google’s mission to “organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.” Specifically, he explained how Google indexes many billions of web documents. Google catalogs more than three times the amount of pages of its competitors, holds more than two billion documents and more than thirty-five million non-HTML documents. Stating that Google built a basic computing platform with low cost, Jevtic shared insight on Google’s data analysis system, claiming that “many large data sets we use have a simple structure.” Due to the fact that analyses of data tend to be simple, data is generally a sequence of records from which one examines one record at a time.

Beyond that of Google’s infrastructure, Nikola spoke of the variety of Google applications including Google Maps (which are dynamic and readable) and Google’s automatic machine translation capabilities. As an employee at Google, he explained how one will find comfort in the extensive benefits and flexibility offered. From having weekends off to working in small teams of three-five people, Google employees have the freedom to explore their own ideas (80/20 rule). Specifically, 80% of an employee’s time is put towards an assigned project, while the remaining 20% is invested in projects and ideas particular to one’s own interest.

An interesting question from the audience pertained to how Google acquires its revenue. The response rested in the fact that “thousands of advertisers use our Google AdWords program to promote their products and services on the web with targeted advertising, and we believe AdWords is the largest program of its kind.”

Overall, the environment Google withholds is one that is known for its fun atmosphere and entertaining employees. Whether it’s writing a complex algorithm or playing a game of pool in the office, Google works to make its work setting one that is enjoyable. On behalf of the University of Delaware, I’d like to thank Mr. Jevtic for his time and wisdom! Best of luck with your career at Google!

For more information regarding careers at Google see: Jobs at Google
For information on Google Ideas, Demos, and Experiments see: Google Labs

Photo Source: Google

Online ad revenues grow for third consecutive year

2006-04-20T18:42:00.000-04:00

Article Title: Online ad revenues grow for third consecutive year

Three’s a lucky number—On Thursday, April 20, 2006 it was announced that “U.S. online advertising revenues grew for a third consecutive year.” Most notably, are keyword ads that are used to target specific search queries. Specifically, the Interactive Advertising Bureau said the online advertising industry set an all time high of $12.5 billion dollars in 2005 (which was a 30% increase from 2004’s $9.63 billion).

Accounting for 41% ($5.1 billion) of the figures for 2005, are as mentioned previously, searches. Following in second place with $3.6 billion were Internet ads, which saw a 34% increase from 2004. Greg Stuart, chief executive of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, claims “Interactive advertising continues to experience tremendous growth as marketers experience its overall effectiveness in building brands and delivering online and offline sales.”

Opportunities in Internet-based television, online games, and broadband video, are expected to boost interactive advertising as well. As an example of online ad opportunities and their success, Time Warner Inc.’s AOL unit “opted to make most of its features available for free through its ad-supported sites, rather than keep it exclusive to its paying Internet access subscribers.”

While Internet advertising does show impressive record revenues, it only represents 5% of all U.S. advertising revenues, says PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), who conducted a survey for the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB). Earlier this month, however, Lauren Rich Fine, a media analyst for Merrill Lynch “estimated spending on Internet ads this year will increase 27%, surpassing magazines and the Yellow Pages—both more established media markets.”

Overall, searches have been the “big driver” for online advertising. At Google Inc., searches account for “virtually all the revenues.” This “helped pioneer the format in which text ads are displayed alongside regular search results, customized to the subject on which a user is searching.” The second-largest category was banner and other display ads (21%) and online classifieds (17%). Other categories consist of consumer-related ads (drugstores, retail stores, etc.) that consisted of “half of last year’s revenues.” Finally, financial services and computing each respectively made up about 12% and telecommunications accounted for 7%.

According to our class text, internet advertising is “paid, nonpersonal persuasive messages by identified sponsors.” As mentioned earlier, banner ads, sponsorships, paid searches, and other rich media ads are the most visible type of Internet promotion. Specifically, “internet ads are commercial and sometimes noncommercial messages distributed on the public Internet, and/or extranets, primarily on websites and via email and email newsletters.” The message of the sponsor is most often included in the host web page and is clearly recognized. In support of the article presented above, the book states “unlike static offline advertising, online interactive advertising (like traditional direct advertising) can quickly stimulate sales.” One method, search engine advertising, which is “paid inclusion advertising on search engines that is designed to drive traffic to a website, has no direct offline equivalent and is currently the hottest form of online advertising and promotion,” as one witnessed specifically in the article above.

As one can see, interactive advertising has proven to be successful, most notably over the past three years. With innovative and creative staff members, advertising agencies marketing to both online and offline markets have the opportunity to growth even further. Through a variety of media advertisements and search engine mechanisms, the potential is unlimited. Specifically, as our text notes on page 317 “It is important to remember that Internet advertising, just entering its second decade, is still expecting growing pains. Advertisers are sorting out what works and what does not, and inventing new forms in the process.” As advertisers are continuing to experiment with different formats including banner ads, sponsorships, interstitials, minimovies, websiodes, webcast ads, blogads, instant messaging, and paid search ads, marketers are learning their negative and positive aspects. Regardless, Internet advertising is taking the world by storm!

I see great things for online advertising in 2006! Best of luck!

Photo Source: Interactive Advertising Bureau

Learning To Love The Dreaded TiVo

2006-04-13T11:15:00.000-04:00

Article Title: Learning To Love The Dreaded TiVo

Attention all TiVo subscribers—Ad agencies are currently experimenting with DVR (digital video recorder) technology to see if it can “draw consumers into a deeper involvement with ads.” Specifically, they are working with TiVo Inc., a technological system that holds 4.4 million subscribers and currently extends their interactivity beyond what the typical cable options offer, such as Time Warner Cable Inc.’s interactive TV and Comcast Corp., which is unveiling their DVR technology shortly.

Vice President for national sales at TiVo, Davina Kent, says “Advertisers are simply trying to increase the amount of time consumers spend in their branded environment.” Take for example, Sony Corp., who next month plans to run ads for its “Bravia flat-panel TVs that let viewers, if they have TiVo, choose among different endings whether they’re watching live TV or a recorded program.” Here, five seconds into the commercial, the viewer has the option of choosing between two on-screen choices—“one aimed at men and one at women.” The “male” endings particularly revolve around “picture quality and size” while the “female” choices “focus on the TV’s aesthetics.”

CEO of the agency McKinney & Silver LLC (who’s creating the Bravia campaign), Brad Brinegar, says “[this] smart use of interactive TV could bring about an advertising renaissance. If you provide viewers with a worthwhile experience, they’ll absolutely stay engaged and if you don’t, you’ll die an expensive, painful death.”

Currently, the article claims “TV ads are the media equivalent of mosquitoes” and “the digital video recorder (DVR) is a bug zapper on steroids.” Thus, in attempt to cater to consumers, TiVo is releasing “ads on demand” in May. Some call it crazy, but TiVo executives say the demand is there. Most notably, are the “Consumers [who are] about to spend big money on cars, travel, [and] new kitchens.” In studies, these clients have shown interest in watching a video about the stuff they plan to buy and therefore, TiVo and cable companies wish to offer “that content more conveniently and on viewers’ terms.” On a promising note, TiVo has linked to the Net, thereby allowing a viewer’s TiVo screen to connect with their Yahoo! homepage. This is “seen as just the beginning of full-blown convergence between the TV and the Internet.”

As one can most likely attest commercials aren’t exactly the highlight of watching TV and thus, “getting viewers to watch ads the old-fashioned way is plainly getting tougher.” It is predicted, by Nielsen Media Research that by yearend 18% of households will have DVRs and 39% by 2010. Consequently, according to a survey done in March by the Association of National Advertisers, “70% of advertisers believe DVRs and video-on-demand will ‘reduce or destroy’ the effectiveness of 30-second spots.”

Due to this scare, in late February, KFC Corp. tried “a new tack, a 30-second ad that contained a hidden message when viewers played the ad in slow motion on their DVR.” As a form of promotion, a coupon for a free Buffalo Snacker sandwich stood as a reward for solving the secret message. As a result, KFC’s website attracted 2.75 million page views over the week (which was 40% more than usual). Despite this hit, “gimmicks could wear thin pretty quickly.” Specifically, Maria Mandel, director of digital innovation at Ogilvy Interactive, says “If consumers are signaling they want to skip ads that don’t interest them, we’re not interested in tricking them.”

Gimmicks such as this, however, still exist as primary means of marketing communication, specifically as incentives. As the authors of our text note, incentives are “short-term inducements to move a target audience immediately toward a purchase.” It is most ideal to deliver this message “where and when it is most relevant to the audience.” The KFC gimmick, since delivered through their DVR, is a one-to-many distribution process, in which the “same message or incentive is delivered simultaneously and unchanged to a mass audience.” Here, “coupons are the most highly visible sales promotion,” “that are a temporary incentive designed to move an audience quickly toward a desired action—principally a purchase.” On the other hand, as a promotional delivery channel, TiVo stands as an “electronic mass media” (television). Either way these promotional means can “stimulate word-of-mouth communications, or buzz.”

While it’s true to say that the majority of television viewers dislike commercials, advertisers efforts should not go unnoticed as they still have a job they need to keep! Even though the “old-fashioned way” of watching ads is quickly phasing out, their innovative modes of keeping their markets informed is something to make note of—as it takes much creative insight. Whether the experiments with TiVo will prove to be successful or not, it remains as an excellent form of trial-and-error in attempt to keep marketing alive!

Best of luck to all advertisers!

Photo Source: TiVo

Every Click You Make, They'll Be Watching You

2006-04-06T12:44:00.000-04:00

Article Title: Every Click You Make, They'll Be Watching You

"Would you trust a company enough to let it follow your every click online?" The answer is yes, according to Claria, a company that was once known for its pop-up advertisements displayed across the Internet. Scott VandeVelde, chief executive of Claria, announced Monday that the company is releasing PersonalWeb, "a service that will let people download a piece of tracking software and receive a home page filled with news stories and other information tailored to their interests."

It is an individuals PersonalWeb home page that will then reflect the interests of one's past downloads and searches the next time he or she visits the page. Not only will this page reflect newer headlines regarding the topic of interest but it also may feature ads from particular companies that the individual is concerned with.

Specifically, "Claria says that because those ads are so closely aligned to the user's interests and recent behavior, marketers will be willing to pay more than they might on other sites for the ability to reach PersonalWeb users." This point stands as convincing grounds for analysts as well as privacy advocates who are reassured with the fact that "Claria will stand by its pledge to track only the computer (whose owner it does not identify), not the personal information of the user."

However, the question at hand is whether or not the consumers will actually make use of this service, thereby providing the uncertainty of audience participation for marketers to pursue.

Siding with the apparent issue of lack of audience participation, Kenneth Cassar, an analyst with Nielsen/NetRatings, claims that "[He's] not convinced that consumers will place enough of a value on personalization that they'll be willing to download a piece of software and change their home page just to try it."

As justification to this point, Mr. Cassar said "that very few people even changed the default home page that came installed with their browser, and relatively few people created personalized home pages on services like Yahoo, MSN, and Google." Going alongside that point, ComScore MediaMetrix, an online consulting firm, states that "14% of Yahoo's 27 million visitors in February had a customized home page, and Yahoo's service was by far the most popular of its kind."

Countering this point, Scott VandeVelde, "argues that because PersonalWeb requires little work and delivers more relevant information than, say, MyYahoo, it should enjoy an advantage over competing services." He claims that "the ideal home page is one that always changes with your interests and over time, this gets even smarter about serving you content you're interested in."

However, let's go back to the basics on how PersonalWeb's technology actually works. Initially, the service "gathers information about all the users on the service, then ranks the pages they read according to how many other people visit those pages and how long they stay, among other things; people can suspend the tracking." Consequently, after this takes place, the next time someone searches or surfs for a "specific category of information, Claria, will identify relevant pages that the user didn't find, and post them on a PersonalWeb home page."

PersonalWeb consists of nearly 600 topics, each of which you can seed your home page by choosing from this extensive list. However, if you do not feel familiar with customizing your own page, fear not; "simply wait until the service knows enough about [you] to serve up similar suggestions."

So, be on the lookout starting this month for advertisements regarding this service online, as it will be marketed to other online publishers as well. While Claria, has not yet made relations with United States publishers, it has "set up a joint venture with Yahoo Japan to possibly implement the technology there.

Overall, this is a wiser move from their original motives as the "Gator Corporation," which "helped spawn the pop-up advertising trend online." However, backlash and "balking" have not let up from contesters. For example, Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, an advocacy group says "Claria's likely to make a lot of people uneasy when they realize how much of their personal life is exposed through their Web surfing."

Other companies are gaining "considerably more interest in personalizing their sites for consumers than they were a few years ago" but still are "stopping short of asking consumers to expose their complete surfing habits." In return, this "helps companies like Yahoo, America Online and others personalize the products or content they show to consumers."

The point of the matter is: companies need to find the right balance of displaying advertisements and personalization motives, because if something is wrong, the consumer will more likely than not tune out. This is more or less kept in balance by following the marketing communication process as described on page 304 of our text book: “Marketers use promotion to send a message—that is, communication contents, including words, images, sounds, and symbols encoded by a sender, conveyed through a channel to a receiver, decoded by the receiver, and either acted on immediately or stores in the receiver’s memory for later use.” Hopefully, if the consumers are tuned in they’ll provide feedback—or “comments and actions related to the message, channel, or product that can be used to refine the message and/or alter the channel or product.” From this marketing communication the sender hopes to give an incentive or “a short-term inducement to move a target audience immediately toward a purchase.” So, it’s up to you as the consumer to make a decision—you’re in control!

Keep your eyes open, they're watching you!

Photo Source: Claria

Designer fashions flourish online

2006-03-22T19:26:00.000-05:00

Article Title: Designer fashions flourish online

To Fashionistas Everywhere--You will be glad to hear that there are now plentiful offerings of your favorite designer labels found on luxury stores' Web sites. From Gucci skirts to a Michael Kors handbag, "retailers are finding a flourishing designer business in cyberspace."

According to Margaret Forehand, a Florida resident, this is a big change from "all the basic clothing" that she found online a mere four years ago. Having turned to cyberspace and its world of shopping, Forehand noted that the designer selection was previously limited. Now, however, she has a re-established faith in the cyber shopping experience as she spent $5,000 on designer products. Visiting sites such as neimanmarcus.com and saks.com, the Florida resident says her only suggestion now is to be able to create an outfit online; “I would like to be able to put a dress with a handbag and see if it goes together.”

This may soon be very well possible, but in the meantime, Forrester Research, “a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Internet research company,” investigated current luxury sales (including jewelry and designer fashions) and witnessed that they “rose 28 percent to $3.2 billion last year from the previous year.” The research company also notes that it “was faster than the 22 percent increase in total online sales, excluding travel, which reached $109 billion in 2005.” Specifically, Sucharita Mulpuru, a luxury analyst at Forrester Research says “looks like right now everyone is winning.”

With a focus on younger customers, store executives see their Internet business as the perfect outlet to target this population. Saks.com has revealed that their average age of an online customer is in her late 30s, whereas the average is 48 or the “store shopper.” Seeing as though 40% of Saks Fifth Avenue’s online customers are from outside the trading area, Internet business stands as a huge inlet for the company’s market share.

In attempt to keep building sales, department stores world-wide are jumping on the bandwagon and “expanding their selection online as they try to attract new and younger customers.” As an example, Net-a-porter.com and yoox.com are “global luxury players…offering more cutting-edge designer labels and special services aimed at their biggest spenders.” Take for example, Saks Fifth Avenue, who last fall added top names including Michael Kors, Marc Jacobs and Giorgio Armani to its newly launched “incubator,” or creations which are not sold at its 55 department stores. Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom are following the trend as well.

Some major designers (including: Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermes International), however, “still refuse to sell their clothing on department store Web sites, worried that they won’t have control of their image.” Yet, this “resistance from designers is subsiding,” and more and more designers are turning to sell their brands online. As a result, “luxury sales are expected to grow even further.”

As a self-proclaimed fashionista-wannabe, I think the idea of designer goods online is fabulous! Having the ability to “click” through various purses, dresses, accessories, or what have you—gives easy access to those who are not capable of visiting a store location. Not only is this convenient, but it also gives the consumer a quick reference guide of how much they may be paying for merchandise of such high quality.

A potential downfall, however, is the inability to actually “touch and feel” what you may be investing your not-so-little amount of money in. Some customers may see this as a disadvantage, as they are not able to get a hands-on feel for what they are purchasing and thus, are less inclined to purchase something of such expense. Though, I imagine those who have a large disposable income, are less likely to take this cost into consideration, especially seeing as though the ‘big spenders’ are tailored to by department stores, as they “keep rolling out new services and new categories to keep customers interested.”

Obviously these new additions to the web are geared towards a specific “consumer.” As page 312 of the text states, “Target markets are consumer and/or enterprise audiences that need or want a product and have the authority to make a purchase, as well as an acceptable payment mechanism to complete the exchange.” As promotion is geared towards specific audiences, it further directs consumer’s behavior. Page 313 of the text states “Promotion makes an audience aware of brand or product. After simple awareness, they develop product knowledge through repeated exposures to product messages. Then, the advertiser hopes, the audience develops liking, a preference for the brand, and conviction that it is the best one for them, which leads to a behavioral intention. All things being equal, intention should lead to purchase and repurchase.”

However, regardless of money, the implementation of designer goods available on various department stores Web sites, is not only convenient but an exciting new outlet to research and purchase these rare goods! I look forward to watching the store’s sites and services grow and expand in profit!

Best of luck to the designers & department stores!

Photo Source: Gucci

NCAA games tip off at iTunes

2006-03-16T21:15:00.000-05:00

Article Title: NCAA games tip off at iTunes

Attention all NCAA basketball fans—Look out because as of Tuesday, March 14, 2006 you will be able to “indulge [your] passion.” From a deal that was announced between CBS sports and Apple, “the 2006 NCAA men’s basketball tournament games, which are distributed by CBS Corp.’s College Sports TV, will be available in condensed form at Apple’s iTunes Music Store for $1.99 each.” Also, according to the article, all 63 games can be purchased as a “Season Pass for $19.99.” This choice automatically delivers each game to the purchaser’s computer the day following the game.

Eddy Cue, Apple iTunes executive said “full-length versions of this year’s semifinals and championship games also will be available for purchase at the iTunes store.” As a bonus feature, “buzz beaters,” also known as the memorable championship games and upsets from tournaments passed will also be available on the online store. This feature will be provided by CSTV and Thought Equity, a content licensing and management company.

Due to the fact that advertising and halftime breaks will be removed, Eddy Cue estimates that “each full-length game runs about an hour.” From the success of NCAA football’s Bowl Championship Series: the Rose Bowl and Orange Bowl (both top sellers for several weeks), the deal was announced to promote the NCAA basketball tournament as well.

Specifically Cue notes “the response from customers has been that they love watching it on their iPods or their computers.” Because of this desire, consumers now have the ability to purchase highlights from games such as “the classic 1992 Duke-Kentucky game as well as Michael Jordan’s game-winning shot for North Carolina against Georgetown in 1982.”

Cue added to the article stating, “people definitely want to relive these great moments and keep them and watch them over again…what matters is having the right content at the right price.”

First, let me start out by saying what a fabulous form of tri-parted promotion for the NCAA tournament, CBS, and iTunes. Not only are basketball fans given access to historical accounts of their favorite games but they are also given the opportunity to live in the moment with the current 2006 NCAA tournament at a relatively low cost!

Not surprisingly iTunes has been innovative in their addition of features and offerings. The decision to add sports video has undoubtedly opened an extensive target market for iTunes and retained as well as gained many consumers. Since iPods have become almost a necessity in today’s world, as the article states “you see a lot of folks in gyms now that instead of watching the big TV are watching their own choice on an iPod, and kids watch in the back seat or on their laptops in their bedrooms.” Thus, the market for this type of material is currently booming!

This form of sports promotion has as the book states on page 332"stimulat[ed] word-of-mouth communications, or buzz." Specifically, this hot topic hit headlines immediately. Every effective promotion requires planning, which I don't doubt that much effort went into planning for this. I think it's a wonderful opportunity and idea and I feel it will have much success. With a society that places much emphasis on sports, I don't doubt that there will be a market for this particular type of sports promotion.

To sports fans everywhere, I encourage you to look into the offering made available to you by iTunes & CBS as they work to provide you with either the moments you missed or to relive the excitement of the 2006 NCAA tournament!

Good luck to all the teams participating!

Photo Sources(s): NCAA & Google Images

Google settles 'click fraud' case

2006-03-09T23:18:00.000-05:00

Article Title: Google settles 'click fraud' case

Bet you haven’t 'Googled' this…
On Wednesday, March 8, 2006, Google Inc. proposed a settlement of $90 million in response to a lawsuit filed by Lane’s Gifts and Collectibles. Specifically, this suit alleged that the online search engine had “overcharged thousands of advertisers who paid for bogus sales referrals generated through a ruse known as 'click fraud.'” While the proposal is still waiting for final court approval, it is designed to essentially refund all advertisers in Google’s network over the past four years. Thus, any site “showing improper charges dating back to 2002 will be eligible for an account credit that could be used toward future ads distributed by Google.”

However, the total value of the credits available to advertisers will be significantly lower than $90 million, as part of the settlement will be used to “cover the fees of lawyers who filed the case last year in Arkansas state court.” Remaining a very sensitive subject to the Internet marketing network, both Google and Yahoo Inc. (which is the second largest marketing network) are working to clear their names from this controversy. Yahoo, which was also noted in the suit, claims that it “intends to fight the lawsuit’s allegations."

Generating all of its revenue (approximately 11.2 billion in the past four years) from “text-based advertising links that trigger commissions each time they are clicked on,” Google has not only been “enriched” but advertisers have also witnessed huge sales boosts and “increased traffic from prospective buyers.” On the downside, however, this ‘California-based’ site hasn’t always dealt with the most lawful citizens. Take for example, “mischief makers and scam artists [who] repeatedly click on specific advertising links even though they have no intentions of buying anything.” This malicious activity is known as ‘click fraud’ and is essentially ruining a company’s attempt to successfully advertise as they “end up paying for fruitless Web traffic.”

It has been claimed that Google allegedly “conspired with its advertising partners to conceal the magnitude of click fraud to avoid making refunds.” Already, the company has seen a drastic impact on the stock market, as its shares fell $10.57. Also, analysts are worried that their profits “will later falter if it turns out to be a huge problem.”

As a frequent visitor of Google's search engine, I'm saddened to see they have fallen into the trap of Internet scammers. Also, I think their proposal of approximately 1% (90 million) of their generated revenue over the past four years, is an insignificant figure to offer advertisers as compensation for their troubles. While legal issues have of course been a hot topic amongst the media, specifically 'click fraud' has taken over the news by storm. With direct relation to online promotions, web advertisers have taken a beating from scammers and various forms of malicious acts.

I do wonder though, how does one get 'pleasure' from scamming the Internet and repetitively clicking on various ads? First off, who has the time of day? And secondly, why do it in the first place? I don't see how they personally benefit from these actions besides maybe the "rush" that they're doing something technically 'wrong.' Regardless, the issue at hand (in my eyes) is that of the click fraud participants. Yes, Google was wrong in concealing material...but are they the ones creating the mischief? Technically, it appears not.

Hopefully, in the end...all will fair well for everyone.

Best of luck to both Google and the advertisers in their network!

Photo Source: Google

Say "Cheerio" to Jeeves

2006-03-02T12:28:00.000-05:00

Article Title: Say "Cheerio" to Jeeves

So long butler, hello new face! At least that’s what the former AskJeeves.com is saying, as just four days ago (February 27th), the search site made the final touches to revamp their site from the “search engine with a human face” to simply Ask.com. As part of their new “visage,” online patrons will no longer see the friendly face of the butler greeting their webpage or even that of the original URL. One may be asking: why the change? Initially, the signature butler image was used with permission by the estate of P.G. Wodehouse, a British novelist famous for his series involving “the adventures of the butler Jeeves and his master Bertie Wooster,” back in 2000. Growing out of this image association and the engine’s original phrase-a-question search mechanism, Daniel Read, vice-president for consumer products at Ask.com, claims “those days are over.”

The new Ask.com, which is a part of IAC Search & Media (a unit of IAC/Interactive, who also works with such sites as Bloglines.com, Evite.com, and MyWay.com), states that the reason for its change of name was with regards to an internet concern in which, “the old name hearkened back to what we were five to seven years ago and not what we are now. And while we found there were some customers who were loyal to the AskJeeves name, most of our users were ambivalent about it.” Thus, the site, which first launched in 1996, dropped their “Jeeves” counterpart and quickly phased out their old question approach, which they believe “worked for a few years.”

However, once acquiring Teoma.com, a search technology—once considered a “Google-killer,” back in 2001, AskJeeves.com made the decision to change its business model. Interestingly, Jeeve’s so-called “retirement,” as deemed by the article wasn’t so much of a surprise as it has been said over the past year that the “character would be phased out.”

Ultimately, with the hopes of making their site more appealing, the new Ask.com aims towards promoting their site in a more effective manner. This customer-support website has used their “new name and identity [to] coincide with a simpler, streamlined home page and the debut of a new feature known as the Ask.com Toolbox.” Here, visitors of the site can use this toolbox to access shortcuts to “more than 20 different specialized search tools.” Also competing directly with Google Maps, Ask.com has infiltrated a new and improved maps service for one’s convenience.

While their reconstruction stands as a vast improvement, Ask.com still stands as Daniel Read says, “…the underdog in the market.” Of course, he’s speaking in comparison to “search giants” Google, Yahoo, Microsoft’s MSN Search, and Time Warner’s AOL Search engine. Specifically, Ask.com accounted for “only 2.3% of search queries in November of 2005, according to Nielsen NetRatings.”

Though, this does not seem to be of concern to Daniel Read, as he states “we have about 20 million unique users in the U.S., and that’s not like matching the market share of Yahoo or a Google, but it is building on the market share that we have.” Therefore, by focusing on their “target market users” per se, Ask.com hopes to not only retain their current users but also that their new website presentation and features will draw in more visitors!

The unveiling of Ask.com on February 27th, also changed the familiar Ask Jeeves for Kids search engine to “Ask for Kids.” On their site, they explain “where’s Jeeves,” with the following “after ten years of dutifully helping kids answer questions for their homework, learn more about their world, or just to be able to help them answer the eternal 'Why?' Jeeves decided his work was done.”

While it will be sad to no longer see the cheerful butler’s face, I can imagine that this change will only be for the best for the search engine. With fierce competition as mentioned above, it was necessary for this website to “revamp” and update their features so that they can better sell their services to everyday online users. It is my belief, that while I was never a particular user of AskJeeves.com, that this remodeling will be beneficial and successful in building a larger market share, compared to their current standings. I know that I now I plan to add and use Ask.com as a search engine of choice.

Its new sleek image and improved search mechanism will allow a user to seek out inquires more successfully and thus, encourage repeat business. I encourage everyone to take a look at this “underdog” and give them a shot! You never know what you can find until you try. As for the butler, Jeeves, “cherrio”-- and may you live happily in the adventures of you and your master. Best of luck to Ask.com and their new remodeling, may it bring you much success!

To view the Ask.com blog with information and pictures detailing their celebration party for their new launch--Read: Code Red Party Recap

I’ll leave you with this quote to ponder:

“Don't talk to me about aesthetics or tradition. Talk to me about what sells and what's good right now. And what the American people like is to think the underdog still has a chance.”
-George Steinbrener

Photo Sources: Ask.Com & Napsterization

By Sacrificing Its Catalog, Will Disney Spoil Its Internet Business?

2006-02-22T18:49:00.000-05:00

Article Title: By Sacrificing Its Catalog, Will Disney Spoil Its Internet Business?

[May require FREE sign-up on NYTimes.com]

Attention all Disney fans: Do you enjoy cuddling up on your couch with hot chocolate and the Disney catalog in hand? Well, sorry to say but as of April 2006, Disney-adoring households will no longer find the catalog gracing their mailboxes. After appearing on tens of millions of coffee tables for the past decade, the Walt Disney Company has decided to stop catalog circulation and instead plans to gear its focus to a “web-only initiative,” as deemed by the article.

The decision to embark through online commerce, as said by Paul Gainer, vice president of Disney Shopping, was basically spelled out for executives as “Customers almost dictated this to us…Once they go online we just don’t see them going back to the phone,” as mentioned in the article. Beyond that of customer preferences, last years catalog sales were not up to par, as there was a whopping 45 percent drop in telephone orders. Thus, the $18 million that was used to mail 30 million catalogs essentially went down the drain. On the upside, there was a dramatic increase in those who responded to e-mail and other online marketing means. Taking this as a lead, Gainer said “I think it’s time to focus just on e-commerce, and see how great we can be.”

Apparently jumping on the bandwagon, the Walt Disney Company along with other catalogers such as Land’s End, have adjusted their business to center around the Internet. Specifically cutting back on mailings, companies such as Land's End, in 1999, cut its catalog distribution by 9 percent. Soon thereafter, however, the company saw an 18% drop in revenue, proving that catalogs are more effective and “critical to driving Internet sales than they may appear,” says the article’s author.

All in all, Disney hopes to save a significant amount of money by cutting catalog mailings, closing a call center in Kansas, and removing staff positions. Gainer claims, “2006 is a much different selling environment online,” for instance, high-speed Internet connections and search engines have attracted and increased online buying customers. However, in attempt to consider the decision appropriately, Gainer and a team conducted and “tested various catalog mailing approaches in the last six months” to ultimately decide if catalog distribution should stay or go. The results showed that no matter the angle taken, online orders proved to be more successful, whereupon “more than 80% of Disney Shopping’s sales now come online.”

In order to promote their store, $18 million will be put towards online marketing, which will be facilitated through search-engine advertisements, email campaigns, and the role of third-party sites. It is from this goal that Mr. Gainer predicts a “consistent double-digit sales growth.”

But can we be so sure? While online marketing approaches are vastly growing in popularity, I have some hesitancy in saying that all will fair well. To some degree, I agree with Donna L. Hoffman, professor of marketing at Vanderbilt University, when she says “I think this is really short-sighted.” Personally, I feel many customers still enjoy snuggling up on the couch and perusing through a catalog in hand, without out the click of a button or mouse. Apparently realizing customers desire for catalogs, companies like “RedEnvelope, Ice.com, Amazon, and eBay…have gotten behind the concept and distributed catalogs in recent years.” It’s almost as if it is more life-like or attainable, in comparison to viewing a product on a computer screen. Then again, I, myself am more of a hands-on person and prefer to buy my merchandise in the store—so that I get a better feel for what I’m investing my money in.

I can however, see how the rising postage and printing costs are deterring many companies from producing and mailing catalogs. While I can see how the younger generations may be more adept in ordering online, which is apparently where this company’s target market stands, I still wonder about grandparents or even parents who may be purchasing a gift for a loved one and may not be as proficient or knowledgeable of online commerce. Will this decision deter older customers? Or will customers simply follow the company’s lead and adjust their previous habits to suit the present situation?

From my experience, catalog distribution, especially in my household was a central mode of entertainment for us as children as well as for my parents who subscribed to various other companies’ catalogs, such as Sears. Needless to say, I do not think it is wise to completely drop all forms of print materials and switch to a web-only initiative. However, Gainer does claim that “[we] may see print materials in the future, a postcard or something, but it will only be to drive traffic online.” I’m just not so sure this sufficient. The company’s long standing tradition of colorful animated pages will sadly be thrown out and talented catalog expertise will have to soon be redirected. What a slap in the face, if you ask me. My sympathies go out to them.

In all respects, regardless of Disney’s decision, I hope it will fair as Gainer says “our marketing will be much more efficient online than with print.” Best of luck to the Walt Disney Company!

I'll leave you with this Disney Quote:
"Arise and seize the day." - Disney, Newsies, Seize the Day

Photo(s) Source: The Walt Disney Company Homepage

MySpace's the place online

2006-02-16T13:55:00.000-05:00

Article Title: MySpace’s the place online

Question I consider: Is this form of web promotion safe?

Who knew the word “social-network” would take on a completely different meaning when the idea was launched out to the World Wide Web. Only two years ago, MySpace, a social-networking site was introduced to the Internet age and has rapidly found its way to the 13th ranking spot among all websites visited (Nielsen/Net Ratings.com). Surprising to many, this site has generated more than 2 ½ times the web traffic compared to Google Inc. With customizable features such as profiles, bulletins, private/public messages, photo albums, classified ads, and web journals (blogs), many Internet users are finding this site not only to be socially entertaining but a convenient form of self promotion.

Take for example, striving musicians looking to simply let the world know what they’re all about—maybe with the ultimate hopes that they’ll become a famous rock star or merely as a means to express their emotions to the public. Either way, what better than a FREE outlet to promote your talents? Due to this cheap, easy, and public form of self promotion, “music is what [has] made MySpace special,” deems the article. Specifically, the article shares comments from the members of the Michigan-based band Great Lakes Myth Society; Where they feel it is the perfect mode to inform fans of upcoming gigs. As a whole, MySpace users have easy access to discovering talented independent artists and can instantly hear the band’s music through a built-in player where the only thing they have to do is press ‘play.’ Yes, you heard me correctly, no downloads, no mess; Rather it’s simple—easy—and quick.

Such success has allowed MySpace to even create a recording label. You may be asking, what could be next? Well, with the intentions of expanding internationally and adding features such as video-sharing, MySpace hopes to promote openness and extend more self promotion abilities “to filmmakers, comedians, and fashion designers,” says Chris DeWolfe, MySpace’s chief executive.

Regardless of one’s particular intentions, “MySpace (in general) gives you more freedom to express yourself,” says Zlatan Stannkovic, a 21 year-old MySpace user. However, I can’t help but question: Is this form of web promotion safe? Quite frankly, I have been leery of online social networks such as: MySpace, Facebook, and Friendster. Personally, I believe it is a dangerous way of revealing private information to the public.

After learning not only about “MySpace’s darker side,” as mentioned in the article but also the numerous accusations of online predators and threats, much fear and concern has been instilled in me. With regards to this form of promotion, I wonder is it really used by others in a positive fashion or is it more or less used to subject members; Specifically by those who may be using the site as a way to violate someone either physically, verbally, or what have you. My trust simply is just not at that point. Thus, I personally have chosen to remain off the network. This however, is not to scare one from using such means of socialization and advertisement but rather to provoke thought. I know many who are happy with their MySpace accounts, especially my musician friends who have had much success with further endorsing their bands.

I will say, my curiosity was sparked after reading this article and I visited the site to further gain insight. It is rather interesting and does seem to have a lot to offer the public as a social-network. I invite you all to visit the site to make your own judgment. Best regards to everyone and especially those of you who have a MySpace account!
Be safe!

Photo Source: MySpace Home page

Personal Selling: All About Myself

2006-02-14T22:27:00.000-05:00

Welcome All,

I invite you to join me, as I, a Junior Marketing Major/Psychology Minor at the University of Delaware examine the role of the Internet with regards to issues revolving around online promotions, advertising, and email marketing. It is here, that I wish to further explore my understanding of the fundamentals of marketing promotion and share my thoughts and views with my fellow blogosphere members. All comments, opinions, and thoughts are warmly welcome and very much appreciated. I look forward to gaining insight to the fascinating world of: Promotions in the Internet Marketing Mix. Happy Blogging!