Yahoo News

Lately I have been shocked by the news headline I see on my Yahoo home page. To me, a lot of the information shared is not “news” but that does not stop me from scanning through the headlines and reading particular articles each day. Most of these headlines are depressing accidents or missing persons but some are light and gossipy. It grabs attention of readers with headlines such as, “Topless photo of…” with a beautiful celebrity’s name, which no photo is provided. I feel a lot of the time the articles are posted before the facts are know so they will then continue to update with new information by creating a new article.

A lot of there articles even have spelling and grammar errors. This takes away validity of the article and seems less professional. But I still continue to read them along with many others. It seems they want Americans to stay uninformed of the facts and not be as intelligent as there is dating advice and polls about celebrities outfits, things that are fun sometimes but irrelevant in the long run. It makes me think who chooses what to write about and if they are paid to cover certain topics, people, etc.

Do you think yahoo news is a marketing tool for publicity? Do you think yahoo has the right to publish information in an unprofessional way when thousands are exposed? Why do you think or how do you think yahoo chooses the content of their articles?

Response to Sean's Question: Does the brand name standing for something affect whether you like and/or buy the product?

I agree with Sean that Bud does not have a brand that stands for something due to so many variations. It can be confusing always seeing a new product and having various options, unsure of how they will taste when they are incomparable to the rest of the brand. Sometimes this will impact the brand if they are not an established brand, however that is not the case with Bud.

I do not think the brand name standing for something affects whether a consumer will buy a Bud product. Like Sean said, because he likes the product taste he will continue to purchase the product. I think Bud does a good job expanding their brand rather than scattering the brand name and what it stands for. Bud has taken the opportunity to make a higher alcohol content beer, which for what you are paying for is a better value for the higher content of alcohol and adds a little more class to beer trying to get it closer to liquor rather than a canned alcohol. Also the Bud Light Lime Lime-a-Rita is targeting women who typically are not beer drinkers.

Do you think more companies should add variety or is it better to have concrete products that stand for something? Is either more beneficial to the company or the consumer or both?

Response to Sean's Question: Why are businesses so popular marketing in New York?

As Sean had mentioned in his post, New York is filled with life. Not only is the state large, the population with in New York City is dense. Every person in NYC is chasing something, whether it be an acting or modeling career, a place on Wall street, or just trying to make it in the city. It is the job of marketing to target all those people. Social media helps marketers reach mass amounts of people in such a short period of time. It is efficient and very effective. Everyone wants to be clued in on the latest fashion or the newest thing, everyone is trying to reach the top and out do the others to stand out. Marketers can take advantage of that want people have to sell their products. By people wanting to exceed others they will spend money and be on alert for what is trending in the social media.

            It just makes sense popular businesses would market in New York due to the factors I listed above. By targeting such a broad range of people, using limited resources to reach millions will save the business money but will gain so much due to the large target market. A lot of people in New York are either wealthy or trying to appear as they are succeeding in the city life, so typically money isn’t an issue. This will also be good for businesses because they know people have money to spend on the latest products they are trying to sell. It is their job to get celebrities to back their product and everyone will follow their lead.

Do you think it is right that people care so much about what celebrity’s own/wear? Do you think our society would focus on more important things if they weren’t so focused on material possessions and money?

AMA Should John Sell the Information?

The AMA statement of ethics does not out right say it is not allowed to sell information from the survey. It eludes that is may not be considered ethical or responsible but nothing is mentioned about selling the information. The statement mostly focuses on not telling false information and not being racist, sexist, etc. basically just acting in an ethical way but at the discretion of who is making the decisions.

I voted that John should sell the information. As long as on the survey he did not state that the information would not be given out, I think it is fine to sell the information. I would have a problem however, and the AMA definitely would, with John selling the information if he had told those taking the survey that the information would not be sold or used elsewhere. That would be unethical and the people taking the survey would feel betrayed and would not trust the company again. I also think in a tough situation people usually push the limits on what is “ethical”. By selling the information John saves the company and does not have to lay off members of his business. To me, that is more beneficial than not selling the information as there is nothing stating it is illegal.

I think this is a common dilemma. People want information and money. I think people will try to sell the information they have for money, even if it is not the right thing to do. I often wonder how I get phone calls from blocked numbers wanting me to buy certain things that relate to items I have bought online. Sometimes I think companies sell my information to other companies if I express an interest in a particular type of clothing.

Do you think it is beneficial for companies to sell information? Do you think the backlash of selling the information out weighs the benefits? 

Response to Sean's Question: What's the best way retailers can achieve a healthy profit margin?

I agree with Sean’s post. When I purchased clothes I never thought about the stores profits or how they attained the price they post on the tags. What I think about most is if a price is too high or if it is a good deal. This is how most shoppers determine if they will purchase a product, based on satisfaction and perceived value.

I think the best way retailers can achieve a healthy profit margin is not to begin with too overpriced items. This way more customers will be willing to purchase the items at full price and will be less likely to wait to purchase the item when it goes on sale. Typically stores still make a profit even on sale items because other customers have purchased the product previously and the markup is so high there is still room for profit. However, like Sean had mentioned this is not a healthy profit margin to only rely on discounted sales and the previously made sales. Stores need to find the perfect balance so most of their inventory is sold at few price and the leftover from each season is sold at a discount so the retailer still earns a healthy profit margin.

What if all retailers stopped marking up their prices over 200% from what it costs to produce them? Do you think the industry would benefit from this or in the long run be damaged? 

Producing your own Product Line

While working on my marketing project I have thought about how much easier it is to produce a line and sell it in already existing stores than to open your own store. When opening a store you have to find a convenient location where people will see the store and be intrigued to come in, pay the rent, renovate anything that needs to be fixed or changed to suit your business, and pay salaries for those working in the store. If you create a line you take out all of those costs. What you need to worry about is keeping the price low enough because what I learned from the store in downtown Keene they markup prices 50% from what you sold the products to them, and what they sell them as on the shelves.

I think more people should try to start out with lines and work their way up to a store. By doing this I feel there is less risk, fewer businesses will close, and the entrepreneur will have less debt. I think people take on too much when they believe in their idea, which is not always a bad thing, but in a tough economy it is better to play it safe with finances. But with only having a line and going through another person there is less chance of gaining higher profit. This is an option the entrepreneur will have to decide for themselves to see which is better for them.

Do you think it is better to take the risk and open up a business right away? What would be other problems with only creating a line or opening a store?

Response to Parker's Gold Fish Jingle

I think jingles and slogans are one of the most important aspects of marketing. To have a memorable product can sometimes make the difference between decent sales and an immense amount of sales. For instance, if I was walking down the grocery store and saw gold fish I would instantly remember the commercial and its signature jingle. This would make me remember how delicious they looked in the commercial, making me purchase the gold fish over the unrecognizable pretzels next to it. To answer Parker’s question, the gold fish company came up with the ultimate marketing tool. Everyone loves gold fish though.

Do you think having a standout/recognizable, catchy jingle could make a poor product sell better? What makes a jingle successful versus too corny?