Responding to Aisylnn's blog on Apple

Today, Apple is a huge player in the technology world. Apple product's are the most expensive things on the market. Not many people own them and if you do its the coolest fad!! I have a Mac Book Pro, but no I phone. Apple is a cool thing to have today they are very fast and easy to use. I will never go back to a Dell or anything. Ever. Apple products are full of quality and thats why they can get so much for them. Apple is the best!! And everyone is should and will have one in the next 20 years. Apple will continue to grow and do better!

MBL!! Hit 100 Members!!

On the last day of class, Presentations on ways to make MBL a better entity went very well for everyone! Before even presenting MBL had hit there summit of 100 members which they hoped to hit by the end of this year. In the class presentations and all the proposals to MBL, they will find themselves growing in ways they never thought possible. Just want to give a shout out to the class and congrats on all the great ideas that everyone brought forward to help A GREAT LOCAL MOVEMENT!! Congrats!! BUY LOCAL!!! After all the hard work and research will you guys be buying more locally?? I sure do.

Conspicuous Consumption

In the American society we are always trying to emulate the upper class. As we have discussed in class we saw many views of people trying to buy the latest and the greasiest products on the market. But, today all that has changed since the resent recession many have had to cut back on things they own because they got caught up in the last bubble that popped, many get caught up in the borrowing aspect with the large house, nice car, and best clothing but it was all done with  borrowed money. This caused so many to crash and burn when things got bad and the market tanked. Many lost there jobs, owing on there credit card, there houses and cars. Many who tried to sell there houses owed more then it was worth!! Not good. Speculation played a huge role in the recession and many jumped on the bann wagon to make an extra buck, but it resulted in financial ruin for many and people who had something now have nothing and are stuck owing others. But there's always that class of people trying to be something there not, which ultimately ruins them financially greed never got anyone anywhere. Do many of you have credit cards? Do you use them a lot or do you have a limit? How much do you save?

Responding to Ethan Gages PC and smartphone race.

Its amazing to see that Smart phones are selling more or faster then PC's. Its very surprising to think that someday the PC will be extinct and well all have hand held smart phones as computers. I think it will be a while before PCs will go out and smart phones will take over. I think some people will always work off a computer But smart phones are really coming along will see. Ill give it 20 years. Better buy an Iphone.

prices are going UP!

Reading a Time magazine Article, Which stated Prices are going up! Its starts out how a stay at home mother is starting to scream about Food prices rising. Many prices are rising due to the fact that oil is going up causing gas to rise then transportation gets more expensive. When will they be to high before we can sustain a normal life style? As many of you know I drive a yellow Smart car which is TINY and great in gas, but it is very impractical for a family with kids and a dog. So many people won't drive them, as a result what will they drive? But it will take very high gas prices before we change our behavior! It will interesting to see what happens to see when gas gets to $5 a gallon will we all be driving or walking? http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,842702,00.html

Responding to Chris Belands Facebook IPO

In my opinion the face book IPO will do very well, its a huge market and so many people world wide use face book. I don't think its alright that people can buy stocks before there on the market. But face book will do very well with stocks to see to the public. No different than Apple Inc, its an nitch market they have great products and are able to really get people sold on Apple. Its a high end piece of equipment. Face book is a nitch market and its excelling in this market and will do very well.

Promotion Pros and Cons.

When using promotional schemes, you have the choice to use as much money as you want. Or you can do it as cheaply and as freely as you want. One way to promote your product, is by writing an article which involves lots of time and creativity. Online articles are a way to write articles online and promote your products relatively cheaply. When doing this there pros and cons, The pros are you get to be as creative and its free and there a chance it really could take off by people reading it! The cons are it is very time consuming and may not get lots of traction. You never know. So when doing things on the cheap doesn't mean that you instantly going to make money. Would you spend tons of time to promote a product for free? Or would you work with someone and spend more money for you public imagine? http://www.clickbank.com/help/affiliate-help/affiliate-guides/common-ways-to-promote-products/

Kraft Attempting to Rebrand International Image responding to Chris Belands

Its amazing to see how Kraft is wanting to change its international name after all these years. Its in every house hold around the world. There know for the Mac and Cheese made in seconds. I'm not exactly proud of them changing there name, you say Kraft and everyone knows exactly what your talking about. MAC AND CHEESE. So I think that its going to be hard for many people around the world to move to another name that is as common as Kraft. I don't think its going to work.

Buy Local gains Traction!!

Many people who spend money need to know where to spend it. Also where they spend there money matters to many local businesses! In these hard economic times many small businesses have closed there doors, and the ones that can remain open are pulling together to try and gain "A local movement" Many are trying to get everyday shoppers away from the chain stores, where the lower prices and connivence are key. Would you shop Locally in Keene? Do you already?http://www.nuwireinvestor.com/articles/buy-local-movement-gains-traction-58355.aspx

Responding to Aislynn Sherry's ESPN for women.

I think ESPNW is hitting the right age, 25 +. This  is a good start it will be a growing trend as more and more women get into watching this channel. Over time there will be more, or even a separate channel for women sports. Its a great idea in my opinion it will have a lot of progress as sponsors get into it and make the channel stronger. Its good. Im surprised this didn't happen sooner.

Nissan looks at Target Market for new Datsun brand.

Nissan is revamping the Datsun brand under Nissan, they are up against intense competition with other Japanese motor companies such as Honda and Toyota. The New Datsun models will be tailored to people as stated "The offerings will be tailored for each market, including price and engine size, targeting the burgeoning market of first-time car buyers in countries such as India, Indonesia and Russia, where Datsun will be introduced from 2014, he said". So they are looking to brake into other markets and sell an affordable car for the first time car buyer in other countries. It seems be a great idea. Datsun was around the United States for a while in the 1960's until they changed the name and became Nissan. Nissan is a striving brand over here in the United States today. The Target market for Nissan is the younger traveling families whether they like a SUV, Van, Truck or cross over it satisfies all types. The Nissan Leaf is for those who want to conserve also. So Nissan and its sub brand Datsun have covered alot of ground over the years and plan to cover even more in other countries under Datsun. Would you buy a Nissan? Do you like the models they offer?  Are you part of there target market? 

Responding to Aislynn Sherry's Campaigns

Which campaign do you think is more successful? Or will be more successful? Do you think these ads are useful and preventative at all? 


There was a national campaign which talked about not doing drugs and staying away from doing bad things. Then the MTV add which presents Not wasted weekend. In my opinion MTV campaigns is more successful because its watched by many teenagers and doing something like this will show them the effects that drugs are bad.  These ads are very useful because there are all kinds of teens that see and it doesn't hurt to reinforce this issue. Many teenagers want to party but MTV can help them find better trends to do and get into. 
The national campaign is also a good preventive measure and it covers more area and can help deter many teens from partying and doing bad decisions. 


In my final decision MTV is the better campaign because it focuses on a still large area of teens that may be focused to more dangerous entertainment. 

Much snow this winter?

Many who rely on snow removal are hurting financially this winter season. Last winter there was so much snow and they couldn't keep up in the removal process. But this is not the case this winter. Even though many stocked up ready for a winter and ready to turn over profits and sell stock. One hardware owner which is a friend of mine stocked up his hardware store full of inventory he spent a $100,000. But now as March rolls around he has to cut back profits and try to mark down the items and turn them over, or stock them away and take away from another area of spring inventory. One man states “It’s probably going to take us a few more seasons to recoup some of our investments,” This is a huge burden for many business owners in New Hampshire and the northern regions. If you were a hardware store owner would you stock heavily before winter started? Or any season or wait for that season to start before you order huge inventories?

Responding to Chris Belands, Apple Worth a half trillion dollars.

Do you think they will sustain thier growth further? or do you think they will slip back down like the other 4 companies that reached that half trillion market cap? Apple has grown very big very fast. They have had many great products and features to please the market. Since the passing of Steve Jobs and the transplant of a new CEO apple seems to be doing O.K. They have the market in the best products lap tops and Ipods which are the best of the best. It will be interesting to see how well they hold in the future, my question is how many more products can Apple produce that the market will go crazy over and buy at the most expensive price. I think well find Apple to keep competing in the market and will always hold good market share. They make great products that many people like. I don't know what they will produce next but it will have to be good to keep us buying. 

Gas Climbs For 20th Day. At a National high of $3.70 a Gallon.

Only a month ago the national average for a gallon of gasoline was $3.41. But it is more then $4 a gallon in some spots like Alaska and Hawaii. Most gas prices are just under $4 dollars in Connecticut and Washington D.C. and the lowest prices are in Wyoming and Colorado with $3.20 a gallon. Its amazing to see how just a hick hop in the middle east can cause such chaos he for us on the United States. The gas prices have been rising on the back of the oil prices, which have risen nearly 10% in the last month due to the tension in Iran and the tightening of supply. The rising of economy and stock market have also played a major role in the rising oil prices. With all the tension of rising gas prices, many politicians are speaking out on how they would lower gas prices. Newt Gingrich stated in a debate "he would get gas prices down to $2.50 a gallon" this sure sounds nice Newt but good luck implementing such a thing. Newt who is struggling to stay in this political game will say anything he needs to gain a vote. With the rising gas price would you change you driving habits? Buy a car thats better on gas efficiency? During the spring and summer months I drive the yellow smart car that you see in my blog profile. Its a great little car and sure starts a controversy in a minute. people yell out "are you scared of me" as they drive by in there Toyota Tundras. What do you think of Smart Cars?

In response to Aislynn Sherry's Blog

How do you feel about a driverless vehicle? Would you be an advocate for this type of technology?

Aiylynn's article was about designing vehicle to vehicle communication so cars can drive on there own and communicate with each other. The technology would be so good that you wouldn't have to drive the car. You sit there and its does all the work for you. The biggest issue there having right now is reliability and safety. Because if they design a car to drive completely on its own and it crashes liability will stir, no different then the Toyota issues. I would be skeptical to get in a car I had no control over. But it is a interesting idea, they say that most accidents can be avoided, so if this technology works then I'm all for it. But it would take me a while to get used to that technology. I like control while driving. 

Foxconn and low wage chinese employees.

Foxconn technologies one of the worlds largest technology producers in is hot water. They have been pointed out for unethical behavior towards there employees. Giving them very low wages and dangerous work environments. Apple is a big player in this situation and has many products produced by Foxconn and employees mainly in China. Now that they have been spotted for doing this type of behavior another big issue has risen. How much to pay the Chinese workers? The chinese economy is very equal people are all equally poor, but the gap is getting bigger between the rich and the poor so many are getting upset over this unethical situation. The chinese government is very strict on how they pay employees and how its spent. So the simple answer is not so simple, by paying the Chinese workers more it will change the whole persecutive of the economy and will hurt what the Chinese governments purpose. It would help the average chinese employee over all with living standards and such but will change things also as a result. If you were Foxconn would you be this unethical? Would you give lots back to the employees? Why or why not?


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/technology/pressures-drive-change-at-chinas-electronics-giant-foxconn.html?ref=business

How reliable is the news your reading?

When you read the news or some newspaper do you think about the truth behind the story? Many of us pick a newspaper and just start looking at articles that interest us. Or we look at the newspaper to see what's going on in the world around us. When I read the news paper I'm always reading further into them then necessary not thinking about if the article is true or not, but always thinking how bad was that situation or just to intrigued. I was looking at some facts and ratings on how truthful many new sources are and the ratings weren't overly high. Well known newspapers like the New York Time only has a rating of 8%. The Wall Street Journal has a 7% rating. I found these to be on the lower side due to how much public awareness they get. Do you read the newspaper much? If so, do you think of truth behind the story? Is it really true?

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/02/60minutes/main6454361.shtml  

In response to Chris Beland's question on Should Starbucks sell Beer?

If starbucks was selling Beer in there coffee Shops it would take me alittle while to adjust to this new expansion. It sounds like a great idea for places out in California where its warm and beer and wine looks good in the warm weather. Also Starbucks is a high class coffee Shop where many people with class and money shop. I cant imagine seeing coffee shops around here serving beer and wine with a coffee, or even serving beer or wine. It sounds like a risk taking on the alcohol aspect into the coffee scene where they have been so successful for the higher class. But like I said it could work out in the warmer weather areas for the wealthily mothers to go and have a glass of wine and chat instead of a coffee. I wouldn't find myself buying a beer or wine from starbucks I don't even buy coffee from starbucks around here. I find it to be hard to find a location and also the price of the coffee is on the high side, so as a result ill just go to another shop or DD. It will be interesting to see what happens as a result of exploring something completely different from coffee.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters

After watching the video clip on Green Mountain Coffee Roasters in class last week I was intrigued. So I decided to look a little deeper into what there all about. Green Mountain Coffee is all about “revelation in every cup” and getting the coffee “from the tree to the cup” in the most efficient way possible. They have over 600 employees and are expanding at a rapid rate. For such a large business and so many decisions being made there organizational chart is relatively flat.  Many employees have the chance to get in touch with the CEO if major issues arise, and communication is key in this business and is what makes them so successful. When questions arise the employees are able to make the decisions and control the work as needed, this is another key aspect to the company. People all work in their best interest of the company and make there own decisions as a result this helps cut down on meetings and lost time off the job. Green Mountains sales have really increases due to the fact of the Keurig coffee maker and the K- cup addition. There net sales are up 102% this year compared to last.  Looking at their balance sheets and income statements they’re looking very good in the coffee industry compared to others. This new invention with the Keurig has put Green Mountain on the map. How may of you have Keurigs? Do you drink Green Mountain Coffee? I have a keurig and enjoy a nice cup of GMC in the morning. 

In response to Brooke's grocery store marketing Scheme

The question was have you ever fallen for the grocery store scheme, on placement of the items that catch our eye and how the things we need are in far places, have you been fooled? So many stores have this scheme and its amazing how we all have fallen for it at some time or another. I sure have, I go into the store trying to buy the simple gallon of milk and come out with a whole carrage full of useless cheap food. I stroll through the store and even with my blinders on its hard not to stop and look and all the items. The grocery store is a money pit, i shop there and always buy more then i need. I try never to go on an empty stomach or ill just buy two of everything. Bad Idea. So i have fallen for this scheme and it gets me every time.

Facebook IPO, Wednesday. Would you buy?

Facebook is looking to go public Wednesday with its first IPO. It will be the first time the web user site will be selling stock to the public. IPO means the first time a company starts to sell shares of its company to the public through the stock exchange. It seems to be a real great idea. How much would you all be willing to pay for a share of facebook to become an owner? Do you think there's money to be made here? How much would you all buy? I know that facebook is a real great site and so many people use it, but an example of a an IPO a couple months ago was Groupon and they were also very liked by the public and many people used it. It went public selling shares and two weeks in the shares of the company began to loose value and not do well at all. Do you think this kind of thing could happen to facebook? Check out the site:

Walgreens shows increase off advertising.

Walgreens and many other competitors are struggling for business through out this economic downturn. The have sent out document to people asking how they like certain things and there experiences. Walgreens spent as much a 164 million dollars on media in 2011, thats alot of money to keep business strong. With all that money spent they showed a 6% increase in 2011. When the consumers wallets get thinner with money the stores around do also. They are also trying banners, online videos and blogging. With these hard times that were in what would be your ideas on advertising and marketing walgreens? Would you spend that much money on advertising? Do many of you like to shop at walgreens as your drug store? Its amazing to see how everyone is cranking down and becoming so restless to stay alive during such hard times.

Marketing, Advertising and Propaganda

Marketing, Advertising and Propaganda

What is the difference, in your opinion between marketing, advertising, and propaganda?

From my perspective, marketing, advertising and propaganda all branch from the same concept but each more specific than the other.  I think marketing consists of both advertising and propaganda where as advertising consists of just propaganda. Every company has a marketing plan that definitely consists of advertising but not all companies may include propaganda in their plan as it is an amplification of the information versus marketing being strictly factual. 

Marketing, I believe, is a business concept used by most if not all companies in multiples aspects of their work. It is the direct link of communication to the public and it is usually "spot on" and completely factual information in order to better themselves as a company. 

Advertising is a little more specific, it is a message delivered to the public by either TV, radio or billboards in order to persuade the viewer into purchasing what they are trying to sell. Sometimes it could be an exaggeration but most often because it is in relation to a marketing plan, it is factual and accurate.

Propaganda is the most extreme of the three, it is a hyperbole of information sent to the public by different forms of media (like advertising) but definitely more exaggerated. This type of advertising would be used in desperate measures or to receive attention from audiences and get the point across quickly! Some companies may intend for this to be a specific part of their marketing plan while others might stick to the facts!

In my opinion, within any company there needs to be a focus on marketing and advertising, propaganda is not a necessity in order to thrive, sometimes it may even be the down fall. What are some examples of marketing, advertising and propaganda schemes we see daily?