Love Comes in Every Shade

This past holiday season, the Gap launched a new ad campaign called "Love Comes in Every Shade". The campaign was created to advertise the bright, fun colors of the holiday collection at the Gap stores. However, it also created a buzz about one of today's most widely discussed issues: equal rights.

The Huffington Post Article 

In the above link, the Huffington post describes the ad campaign in full. It also shows the different photos the campaign used and what they represent. There were eight kinds of "love" depicted in Gap's ads: true love, married love, puppy love, fatherly love, sibling love, modern love, best friend love, and in love. These advertisements showed different celebrities, for example Michael J. Fox and his wife for "true love". What was interesting is that the ad for married love captured musician Rufus Wainwright and his husband Jorn Weisbrodt. In addition to that, they ran an ad for "modern love", starring the cast of NBC's hit show The New Normal, a show about a gay couple and the modern sort of family they create with the surrogate mother and her daughter.

According to the article above, Gap's Global Cheif Marketing Officer, Seth Farbman, told PR Newswire that "Their [the celebrities in the ads] personal relationships help remind us that every family is unique and often goes beyond just those we're related to--it also includes the people we share our lives and deepest passions with. This campaign celebrates these diverse, optimistic views on family and the many forms love can take."

Personal political opinions aside, do you think it was a smart move for the Gap to run an ad campaign that showed their advocacy for gay marriage, or do you think it is something that will hurt them in the long run. Why?

In Response to Kerri's Post

Do you think these new groups are an invasion of privacy or beneficial to Facebook users?
Why or why not?

As long as the information they're using isn't information the user has privacy settings on, then I think that it's fine that Facebook uses this tactic. For example, if they just use their age and the things they like then it actually is pretty helpful that the ads on their Facebook page would only be ones that were tailored to their needs. 

Pricing a Product

In order to price a product, it's imperative that you understand the target market to which you are trying to sell the product. There are a lot of factors that go into this understanding. For example, if the product is directed towards kids, is it reasonably priced? Will they be able to afford it on the five dollars a week they receive for allowance? If not, is it something their parents will find worth spending their own money on? 

You also need to take into account if the product is something the consumer needs or wants. If there are other competitors out there that the consumer can go to for the same product, and many other factors. 

What do you think is the most important part of pricing? Why?

In Response to Haley's Post

Have you ever noticed what persuades you to purchase a certain movie?

As an avid Netflix user, I find that the thing that makes me chose a certain movie or TV show is the "recommended for you" section they have. Marketing wise, it's a really great idea. Instead of just having the consumer watch one movie that they heard about from somebody, it creates this endless list of movies they would most likely watch. This keeps them wanting to keep coming back for more, and spending more money on them by keeping their account and paying each month. 

Eco Friendly Companies

With today's society being extremely focused on clean energy, recycling, and being eco friendly in general  som companies are now taking a stand and focusing on creating more green ways to operate. Much like Gap Inc's Water Quality Program that I posted about earlier in the year, companies are focusing more on creating a cleaner environment. And many times, they end up using this as a way of advertising.

While there are many companies that practice green marketing, companies that are passionate about a green environment and a green product, there are some companies that may use this as a means of gaining more customers. How many times have you seen an add, or commercial on TV, where a company uses the "green marketing" in a way that made you think they weren't being legitimate? Some car companies use it to get more people interested, even when the specific car they are advertising doesn't help much with creating a greener environment. "Going Green" has become a phrase that some companies think will bring in a larger consumer group, not understanding that the phrase only goes so far.

Do you think there are any companies that use their "going green" attitude as a means of getting more customers?

In Response to Sam's Post

Who is your favorite artist sponsored by?
Are you more likely to buy that product?

I don't think I even know who my favorite artists are sponsored by. I guess that means either I don't pay enough attention, or it isn't extremely noticeable to me. However, with few that I can think of, it doesn't really make me want to buy their items. It's just something I notice and move on from. 

Email Promotions

At most businesses, especially retail businesses, we are often asked to give our email address for coupons and other promotional information. It's a good idea as far as marketing goes. The more coupons or sale information a customer gets, the more likely they are to shop at the business. But how often do we really read these emails? I myself have signed up for a few business email lists, but when I get these emails I usually just delete them before I read them. Part of me thinks that it's great they're having a sale, but I'm sure I'll get another email next week with information about a different sale. These emails usually end up in the deleted folder pretty quickly, so how affective are they really?

Do you pay more attention to the emails you receive from companies? How affective do you think email promotions are?