Week 4 EOC: There's An App for That

As a challenge, I was told to develop an app. Think of whatever comes to my mind and write it down. I’m not sure why, but I thought of an app that will help you choose your wardrobe each day or help you with what fashions look good on you. This is something I’ve always had trouble with, and I think it’s because I grew up in a small town and in a house that wasn’t trendy when it came to clothing. After this idea for an app came to mind, I researched to see if there was anything else out there like it, and there are a few. They don't exactly help you with what fashions you should buy for yourself as much as I would want it to, but it does help you choose from what you already have. On all that I found, you have to actually photograph each piece of wardrobe you have. If you are a woman like me, then you know that this could take a while. It then organizes everything for you and you can see easier what everything looks like from a different view point instead of looking at what's hanging in a closet or lying in a dresser.

So what is an app? “An app is a piece of software. It can run on the Internet, on your computer, or on your phone or other electronic device.” (www.google.about.com)  The first company to come out with an app for a smart phone was Apple.  “Few brands engender such intense loyalty as that found in the hearts of core Apple buyers. Whether they own a Mac computer, an iPod, or an iPhone, Apple devotees are granite like in their devotion to the brand.” (Marketing: An Introduction for Education Management Corporation, p. 135).With all the loyalty from Apple’s consumers, it is no wonder that the App became so popular. “Every app you download from the App Store makes your iPhone do even more. And with hundreds of thousands of apps to choose from, we mean a whole lot more.”(www.apple.com)

Week 3 EOC: Making Money For Good

In our society today, everything seems to be me, me, me. Fortunately there are people who have bigger hearts and are willing to take what they earn and make it into something big. One company that does this that a majority of society knows is TOMS Shoes. Other companies do actually exist, but the word about them has not come across as loud and clear.  

The first one I found is bodoblankets.com. They are very similar to TOMS in that they have someone purchase a blanket and then they will donate one to someone who needs it. They specialize in baby blankets, throws, photo blankets, etc. They are also organic. They use organic and recycled yarn to produce the blankets. There core values are; “1. Charity: For every blanket purchased, we donate one.
2. Green: We are committed to the use of environmentally friendly organic and recycled yarns for our production. 3. Domestic: Bodoblankets believes in the concept of creating and maintaining jobs in the USA.” (bodoblankets.com)

With no surprise, Starbucks has joined in on helping out people in need. They created the Ethos Water fund. “Ethos® Water was created to help raise awareness about this terrible crisis and provide children with access to clean water. Every time you buy a bottle of Ethos® Water, you contribute 5 cents to the Ethos® Water Fund, part of the Starbucks Foundation.” (starbucks.com)

The final one I found is truly amazing to me. A group of 3 high school boys began crocheting their own hats and ended up selling them also. They are called the Krochet Kids. One day they decided to bring that knowledge to women in Uganda. They bring the materials to the women and the hats are sold in the U.S. and the profit goes to women in need in other countries. “Krochet Kids’ handcrafted accessories empower people around the world to rise out of poverty. Each purchase helps to provide jobs, skills-training, and mentorship to women in developing countries.” (krochetkids,org)

Week 3 EOC: My Demographic

Along with being a Caucasian woman, I am considered to be a Millennial (also called Generation Y or the echo boomers). I was born in 1985 which falls between the years of this demographic. “This group includes several age cohorts: tweens (aged 9–12), teens (13–18), and young adults (19–32). With total purchasing power of more than $733 billion, the Millennials make up a huge and attractive market.” (Marketing: An Introduction for Education Management Corporation, pg 73)

There are several things that identify the Millennial demographic. "One thing that all of the Millennials have in common is their utter fluency and comfort with digital technology. They don’t just embrace technology, it’s a way of life. The Millennials were the first generation to grow up in a world filled with computers, cellphones, satellite TV, iPods, and online social networks." (Marketing: An Introduction for Education Management Corporation, pg. 73). I would agree with this. My life wasn’t filled with a  lot of digital technology until my teenage years except for the use of a Television, but this did not slow me down at all.  I think this is true of most people my age.  We obtained it when our minds were young and still adapting to everything around us and now we are still the ones that marketers reach out too. This is because of the fact we grew up with it and we are accustom to it. 

Another fact about being Millennial is that we are on the web. "A recent study found that 91 percent of Millennials are on the Web, making up 32 percent of all U.S. Internet users. According to another study, 77 percent of Millennials frequent social networking sites and 71 percent use instant messaging."
(Marketing: An Introduction for Education Management Corporation, pg. 73). In this day in age I think that is true of all demographics, but yes, I am on the web almost the majority of every day. Even before Facebook, I was on the internet constantly because everything is literally at the click of a button. I am thankful to be a part of this generation for these reasons, but there are other things that worry me. Although it is a good thing also, the main reason is that in order to work you must have a college degree now. I think this is bad because many of my generation are not able to afford this. You essentially need money to make money. I am curious to see what more trends will come from my demographic in the years to come.

Week 2 EOC: Boston Consulting Group - Video Games

In 2009, there was a decrease in sales for the video game industry. “The video game industry tends to have its own cycles, which are somewhat separate from macroeconomic patterns. That is because the industry’s ebbs and flows track closely with the introduction, adoption and obsolescence of new hardware platforms…But the growth slowdown in such a critical month as November may well indicate that the rapid downturn in the economy is taking its toll on the industry.”(nytimes.com)Everyone was feeling the hurt of the failing economy. People were not buying video games or consoles because they could not afford them. They would wait until the prices dropped. During these times companies are forced to lower their prices in order to make some sort of profit. “Console manufacturers slash hardware prices to boost volume sales especially during lean off-peak season. This is likely to affect console hardware sales in terms of value. However, manufacturers expect to recover losses on hardware from greater console software sales.” (prweb.com)Some people still enjoy video games, but there are many that don’t want to sit around for hours at a time anymore playing them. This is all because of games you can now get on your phones. They are cheaper, you can play them anywhere you are, and they are all at the click of your fingertip. At first people didn’t think that this would become popular, but they obviously were wrong. “In 2011, the world video game market (equipment + software) will total EUR 52.1 billion, up from EUR 51.9 billion in 2010. The slight improvement (+0.4%) between 2010 and 2011 is explained by the dynamic performance of the market segments for online games and games for mobile phones, which is compensating for the decline in revenues from the home console games segment.” (www.prnewswire.com)With a rise in people owning smart phones, there should be an increase in sales next year also. Below I've added a BCG analysis of the video game market in my own views.

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