Friday, July 29, 2016

Will you visit Subway and buy Dasani for a good cause?



Subway and Coca-Cola are partnering on a clean-water initiative.  For every bottle of Dasani sold in participating Subways by August 31, Subway will donate 30 cents to World Vision - up to $125,000.

In order to humanize the effort they are telling people that a 30-cent contribution is enough to supply clean drinking water to one person for one month. 

The dedicated site for the program http://freshwater4all.com/tallied $38,000 in donations in the first 24 hours, and was up to $45,673.08 at posting. (Lukovitz, 2016)

Will this promotion motivate you to visit Subway and drink Dasani?  Will it motivate anyone else?  And, what happens when they reach their goal?  Will they inform people still coming to the stores that their donations are now being made to Subway and Dasani?  Why cap the effort at all?  Is it misleading that they do?  Will it affect your participation?


Lukovitz, K. (2016, July 26)  Subway, Coca-Cola Launch Clean Water Cause Marketing Campaign.  mediapost.com.  Retrieved July 29, 2016, from http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/281110/subway-coca-cola-launch-clean-water-cause-marketi.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline&utm_campaign=94987

Friday, July 22, 2016

Who needs a human when there's Watson?



Macy's is partnering with IBM to use Watson to answer customer questions in the store.  So the next time you visit you can just ask your smart phone - where is the ladies restroom?  And if you are in Miami, you can ask in Spanish. 

Meanwhile Lowe's is experimenting with OSHbots that roam the store and North Face is using the technology to generate a list of shopping suggestions based on customer responses to a series of questions. (Mahoney, 2016)

So what do you think?  Are you ready for more in-store technology?  Will it enhance your experience?  Will you start shopping in department stores again?  Will anyone else?


Mahoney, S. (2016, July 20)  Macy's, Watson Offering AI In Stores.  mediapost.com.  Retrieved July 20, 2016, from

Friday, July 15, 2016

You go girls!



The Olympics are rapidly approaching, and marketers are ready.  Word has it that the women will be winning most of the American medals.  And sales to women are driving the profits of sportswear companies, so it's no surprise that they are mounting a major effort for the event.

Here's Simone Biles for Nike...




Ronda Rousey for Reebok...




And, Allison Schmitt for Adidas...



So, what do you think?  Do any of them make you want to buy something?  Will they make anyone else want to?  Which one?  Why?


Mahoney, S. (2016, July 13)  Reebok, Nike, Adidas Unleash Mighty Women.  mediapost.com.  Retrieved July 14, 2016, from
http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/280178/reebok-nike-adidas-unleash-mighty-women.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline&utm_campaign=94626

Friday, July 8, 2016

Does Chipotle's new video make you want to eat there again?



After a series of food contamination incidents that began last summer and extended through this March, Chipotle's same store sales for 1st Q were down 30% and its stock was down 35%.

In May they started offering freebies after realizing that their heavy users weren't coming back.  Here's the blog I wrote then...


I haven't heard if it's working, but this week they released a new four minute video that they are hoping will help.  Development of the video began 18 months ago, before the problems started.  It goes back to the brand's initial positioning and message -- the superiority of Chipotle's fresh natural ingredients over typical fast food. (Lukovitz, 2016)

If you haven't seen it yet, you can check it out here...

 
 



I have mixed feelings about Chipotle's past video efforts.  I voted their introductory ad, which aired on the 2012 Grammy's best ad of the year.  It's a great example of superior storytelling and since it persuaded even me to give them a try, it's no surprise that sales increased by 23% in the first half of that year. 

Here's the blog and video...


But, I thought their Scarecrow video, released in 2013, was an epic fail since it reminded me of Soylent Green and made me never want to eat again. 

Here's that blog and video (the link to the video still works) ...


So, what do you think?  Does the new video work?  Is it successfully conveying the brand positioning?  If you stopped eating at Chipotle, will it make you want to start again?  If not, what will?


Lukovitz, K. (2016, July 6)  Chipotle Releases New Video; Faces New PR Challenge.  mediapost.com.  Retrieved June 7, 2016, from http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/279709/chipotle-releases-new-video-faces-new-pr-challeng.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline&utm_campaign=94424