Week 10 EOC: What are the benifits vs the features

"A market-oriented firm defines its business in terms of the benefits its customers seek. People who spend their money, time, and energy expect to receive benefits, not just goods and services" (Chapter 1 pg 10). One benefit of getting my product would be the mixture of taste between chocolate and whatever beverage the customer puts into the mug. Mixing chocolate with a drink such as milk has primarily been loved by the American society. This product just makes it easier for my customers to mix chocolate and their drink, plus it gives them even more chocolate to eat. Additionally, the drink that doesn't leave the sides and bottom of the cup would continue the mixed taste even as you eat the cup. "Consumers usually buy a shopping product only after comparing several brands or stores on style, practicality, price, and lifestyle compatibility. They are willing to invest some effort into this process to get the desired benefits" (Chapter 10 pg 176). Another benefit is the lack of dishes that need to be done. Nobody likes the hassle of constant dishes, after using my product the customer will have at least one less dish to do, along with the treat of eating chocolate. One more benefit out of many is the fact that my customers get to eat their entire cup and enjoy the chocolate that they pleasure. "Promotion includes advertising, public relations, sales promotion, and personal selling. Promotion's role in the marketing mix is to bring about mutually satisfying exchanges with target markets by informing, educating, persuading, and reminding them of the benefits of an organization or a product" (Chapter 2 pg 28)

Week 9 EOC; Creative Content

My plan to showcase my creative content is to create an holiday-themed website. I'm going to upload a screenshot of the homepage in my blog post. There will be options on the bottom to see my fundraisers, locations to buy my products at, and more things you would typically find on a website. I will also put down a link for my company, where anybody can see information about us or even apply for a job, and a merchandise link so customers can buy clothing or bags about my brand. I'm going to make it holiday themed so it appeals to today's audience, since almost everybody is getting in the Christmas spirit. I'm going to have my product stand out, but also incorporate a "Best-Selling Items" list on the page that won't draw as much attention, but since the Chocomug is new product I want sold the most I'll be sure customers see them both. The Chocomug will take up about half a page and have a border around it, and I will also have it especially Christmas themed. I want customers to begin acclimating the cup with their holidays, so I will promote it towards their holidays. I'll also put down the name "Chocomug" and the price of the mug in Christmas colors. I need to make an advertisement that has the perfect mix of detail and quality that will keep the customers interest, and that informs the public about my product. My only challenge will be finding that t mix, but I know I will do it and make a successful and informative website.

Week 7 EOC: The Pitch

My product will be called Chocomug, a combination of chocolate and a glass of milk. Except instead of glass, it will be a mug made out of chocolate. It will be a holiday delight like hot chocolate, and my customers will be able to eat the cup after they use it to drink milk, hot chocolate, or any other beverage of their choice. It will cost around $10 for every chocolate cup, and will be available in most retail stores across the United States. My target audience will be everybody, as the Chocomug is a nice holiday commodity that everyone will enjoy, just like all ages enjoy things such as candy or hot chocolate. Everyone will be able to eat this, so I will target every age group, every ethnicity, every American citizen. It can also be bought when it is not holiday season, but this is the season approaching and this is when my cup will get its most sales. Corporate priorities will to get things sold at a reasonable market value while to maintaining a positive and strong work ethic. We will also give back to society as much as we can while still making a reasonable profit, so we want to keep our marketing team working good enough to get our products sold fast. "Central to any society is the common set of values shared by its citizens that determines what is socially acceptable. Culture underlies the family, the educational system, religion, and the social class system" (Chapter 5 pg 73). My company prides ourselves on our contributions to society and the environment, so we do what we can whenever we can. I will promote the product on social media, both through uses of my page, my company’s page, and my friends’ pages. We will also post advertisements on different social media platforms to show people the product and to show how much people enjoy having and eating the chocolate. "Social media have changed the way that marketers can communicate with their brands—from mass messages to intimate conversations" (Chapter 19 pg 366).

Week 5 EOC: This is what has my interest

https://twitter.com/davidconner1031/status/785475840398155777   
    This tweet interests me because it talks about different modern trends in marketing. My major is Marketing and Entertainment Management, so most things involving marketing management or entertainment management relate to me. I first learned about relationship marketing here, a marketing style based on the customers having a good relationship with the company. It also discusses business marketing, otherwise knows as industrial marketing, which is when a business sells its merchandise to another company for resell or to be part of their products. The last thing it describes is the current trend of societal marketing, which is a company that focuses on the needs, interests, and wants of its market better then its competition. It's important for me to know the differences between each of the marketing types and the direction each type of marketing is heading.
https://twitter.com/davidconner1031/status/785865598907613184
    This article describes changes in the way entertainment and media is used today. Companies are adapting to what the consumers are starting to want, like phone companies such as AT&T and Sprint are emphasizing the fact that they have unlimited data. Companies are also using social media more to release news, since customers are most likely on there and will definitely see it, instead of the greater possibility of people missing the news by releasing it on television. Its useful for me because it lets me know how rapidly trends can change, and how adept you need to be at changing with them. I also know that social media is even more important then I realized, and I'll need to become more accustomed with it if I really want to be successful in my field.(272 words)
https://twitter.com/davidconner1031/status/786921766253895680
    This article is useful because it shows me mistakes other have made, and what I need to learn from. I know not to make the same mistakes they did, and to use their experiences towards my own knowledge of my field and future..

Week 4 EOC: There's an app for that

One good app for people would be a good place to store pictures that you do not want other people to see. Everyone has pictures on their phone that are just for them and/or a friend. There are some people with a lot of private or personal pictures and some people who don’t have many. Everybody does, however, have at least one picture that is either personal to them or they are embarrassed of it and do not want other people to see it. An app to store all these pictures would be perfect for a mass audience, as most people would be happy to quickly obtain it. It should also be able to store videos as well, and it would make the app that much more appealing to the market. Price it at around $.99 and it would be certain to be a hit. Those people that have videos as well as pictures that are personal would be even more inclined to get this app. You would be able to store whatever picture or video you want and it will be for your eyes only and whoever you want to show it to. The name of it should sound secure so people have more of a reason to trust it. If it does not sound secure, there is no reason why people would trust that the app itself is actually secure. The app could be a major hit in any phone’s app store and would be on most people’s phones.

Week 3 EOC: My Demographics

Some of the stuff this book says about teens does relate to me. I do enjoy being on twitter, social media, and just using things electronically. I am also part of the 98% that do not " have Tumblr accounts". I also do agree that new social media apps such as "Snapchat, Instagram, and Tumblr are growing in popularity among teens". I don't relate, however, to the statement that "shopping has become a social sport whether online or at the mall, though most teens prefer to shop in stores instead of online". I do relate to most of this stuff, like the food we eat and what we value more then what we should value, but some things just do not describe me at all. I do know people who it would describe however, as this is a very vivid picture of my generation. Also, I do like being involved whenever possible, being a part of the action. I agree this is a good way to market towards me and my generation. Interactive contests and voting challenges are also things that I would very eagerly be involved. I do like to be part of the action or whatever is happening, and get very curious whenever something seems at all interesting towards me. Products like the Ipod marketed towards me very well because it is convenient to have music in your pocket, and the Iphone marketed even better towards me because I like always feeling like I have the internet and a way to contact someone. Overall this page describes my generation very well.

Week 3 EOC: Making Money for Good

The Coca-Cola company is the biggest beverage company in the world. You can find their drinks almost everywhere, and they've delved into other ventures as well instead of their signature soda. There's new variants of Coca-Cola. They sell Fanta soda, Sprite, juice, and several more beverages. This company has gotten so big that over 90% of the worlds population recognizes their logo. However, instead of letting the fame make this company selfish, they choose instead to give back to the community. They always give back at least one percent of their company's annual income. They support a lot of community programs like arts and culture, community and economic development programs in the United States. They also do their best to support HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness programs in Africa and Latin America. In 2015, Coca-Cola gave back over $117 million to nearly 300 different organizations across over 70 separate countries and territories. They've awarded over $500 million to support global sustainable community initiatives, including water stewardship, community recycling, active healthy living, and education. The Foundation was established in the U.S. as a registered 501 charitable organization. Coca-Cola supports programs offering scholarships, school drop-out prevention projects, and access to educational programming. This very large and successful company does what they can in order to help better the community. They give back wherever they feel necessary and however they can.

Week 2 EOC: Boston Consulting Group - Video Games

The biggest dog in the video game industry is the Wii U. "The Nintendo console is destined to go down in history as a commercial misfire that flopped harder than King Hippo after a knockout blow" (http://whatculture.com/gaming/9-reasons-why-the-nintendo-wii-u-was-a-commercial-flop). The question mark in the industry is the Virtual Reality Headset, , because it is unknown exactly how well this product will do. It could be a major success but it could also be a major flop.  "There is talk about using nanotechnology as a means of allowing us to push beyond the boundaries of the human body and enter into the digital world" (http://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality-games/future-expectations.html). The cash cows are the Xbox One and the PS4, the two consoles currently dominating the video game market. They are coming out with a new and better version of the Xbox One as well called the Xbox One S. "Compared to the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, the PS4 and Xbox One are up on a double-digit percentage basis compared to where the last-generation consoles were over the same period of time"(http://www.gamespot.com/articles/why-sony-thinks-ps4-is-a-massive-success/1100-6432902/). The star is the games on devices such as tablets and cell phones. Everbody downloads the free games and a lot of people buy things off of the apps, and some people even pay for games on their devices. Games on cellular devices are easily the star of the gaming industry.

Week 1 EOC My Voice

My name is David Conner, and I am a college student trying to achieve my goal of graduating with my major of Marketing and Entertainment Management. I am still open to different options after I graduate, but I would prefer something more in the entertainment industry. That field has always interested me much more then just being a manager of some fast food restaurant, retail store, or grocery store. I prefer to chase the bigger opportunities with bigger rewards, and I will rarely settle for what's being given to me. My goal is to always get better and to continuously become more successful then I was the day before, whether that is in the entertainment industry or in another large market. There will always be more to learn, so I will never pass up the opportunity to gain more knowledge about my field. Marketing has always peaked my interest and I've always wanted to be good at this subject, it is a major component to being a good businessman and managing a successful business. I'm always chasing better things, and when there's an opportunity to further my education and my skills, I'm going to go after that opportunity. I have a strong motivation to be successful.

Week 1 EOC Great Customer Service

The day before my high school graduation, I went to Red Robin with my family. The lady who was chosen to serve us our food did it with exceptional customer service. I asked for the Clucks and Fries meal and a side of barbecue sauce with fries as an appetizer. The waitress made sure all the food we received was freshly cooked and prepared, and was even sure to bring us extra sauces. Not only did she do what was expected of her and bring us the food, but she also exceeded our expectations. The waitress came by multiple times with refills asking if we were in need of anything else, and she also asked to make sure we were enjoying the food. She brought out extra coloring materials for my nephews when my nephews finished coloring their kids menu's, as well as making sure my little brother and sister were enjoying themselves. I feel that going out and spending time with my family has always been a time to relax and bond with them, especially the ones that are only visiting and we rarely get to see each other. You might not realize it but the server is a big part of that experience. She was so nice and welcoming that we had such a great time catching up, but if she was rude, gave off a negative attitude, forgot our orders, or brought out cold food we wouldn't have had such a pleasant experience. When we were ready to leave she heard I was about to graduate and congratulated me and that made me feel even better about my experience. That day at Red Robin with my family is a day that I truly hope I never forget.