This Week in Marketing: March 6, 2011

This week's highlights (with applicable teaching topics and links to discussion below):

 

Sentiment Analysis: Listening to Customers

  • The articles: Sentiment Analysis Gives Companies Insight into Consumer Opinion and Brand Passion (video), both from Bloomberg Businessweek.
  • The facts: Both sources talk about sentiment analysis, in which consumers' posts on social media sites are used to research consumer attitudes toward brands. The "Brand Passion" article has a three-minute video offering examples of unusual insights about brands gleaned from social media.
  • Classroom uses: A contemporary example of online consumer research, although it's important to talk about concerns about representativeness of the comments posted. You might ask students how they would use the insights in the article and video in marketing one of the brands discussed.

The Global Private Label Report

  • The article: The Global Private label Report: The Rise of the Value-Conscious Shopper, from Nielsenwire.
  • The facts: This report from Nielsen discusses a global consumer survey of attitudes toward private label brands. Nielsen sees consumers increasingly purchasing these brands, though more in some countries than others (the US sits just about in the middle of the country-by-country data). They propose that the primary losers are small to medium-sized brands that get squeezed out of shelf space by private labels.
  • Classroom uses: It's right around the time of the semester to discuss branding, and this article is unusual in that it shows global attitudes toward the topic instead of just focusing on US consumers.

New Outlets for Books

  • The article: Publishers Look Beyond Bookstores, from The New York Times.
  • The facts: With traditional bookstores shifting focus to e-books or falling on hard times, book publishers are looking elsewhere to find retail outlets for their products, often providing books related to the retailer's core business. Urban Outfitters, Bass Pro Shops, and Coldwater Creek are among the stores adding or expanding book offerings.
  • Classroom uses: An example of firms in an industry needing to adapt their strategy related to retail partners due to the realities of the market. You could ask students what kinds of books they might expect to find in different retail stores.

Taco Bell Employees Beef About Their Beef

  • The article: Taco Bell Employees Beef About Their Beef, from BrandChannel. (Includes a sample video ad)
  • The facts: Taco Bell has been aggressive in combating the allegations about the composition of its beef contained in the ongoing class action lawsuit. You might have seen its full-page "Thank you for suing us" ads in major newspapers back in January; now, the chain has launched an ad campaign in which its employees speak up for its products. The campaign is reportedly based in part on Domino's Pizza's campaign to improve its image.
  • Classroom uses: In addition to providing an ongoing example of handling a public relations issue, you could use this example to discuss persuasion and source credibility. Are the employees a more credible source than the company?

Ronald McDonald Doesn't Drink Lattes

  • The article: Ronald McDonald Sidelined as Chain Touts Lattes, from Bloomberg Businessweek.
  • The facts: McDonald's is de-emphasizing Ronald McDonald, its long-term spokesclown, in order to move its image away from its fast-food origins.
  • Classroom uses: A good example of repositioning. You might want to ask students how successful they think McDonald's can be in this effort, and whether or not they have noticed any of these changes.