This Week in Marketing: March 26, 2011

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

 

How Carrots Became the New Junk Food

  • The article: How Carrots Became the New Junk Food, from Fast Company.
  • The facts: Tells the story behind Bolthouse Farm's "Eat 'Em Like Junk Food" campaign for baby carrots.
  • Classroom uses: I covered this campaign in a post last fall; however, this is an excellent article about the genesis of the idea and Bolthouse Farm's plans for the future. This is one of the most intriguing examples of a repositoning campaign I've ever seen.

Back to the Future

  • The article: Is retro marketing the way to sell?, from Drew's Marketing Minute.
  • The facts: This blog entry discusses new "retro" can designs for Mountain Dew and Pepsi, and the potential appeal of retro designs to both baby boomers and teens.
  • Classroom uses: Times are a bit tough for soft drink marketers. Sales are down overall, and high fructose corn syrup (a commonly-used sweetener in soft drinks) has gotten some bad press. Note that in the case of the Mountain Dew can, it isn't just the design but also the formulation ("made with real sugar") that are throwbacks to the past. This example points out the challenges of a changing marketing environment.

20 Best Company Facebook Pages

  • The article: 20 Best Company Facebook Pages, from Inc.
  • The facts: Offers examples of 20 companies using Facebook pages in innovative ways.
  • Classroom uses: If you don't follow too many companies on Facebook, it might be hard to find examples to show in class of how firms can use Facebook as part of an integrated marketing strategy. This article offers several examples to choose from. Only a couple of them are well-known brands (Zappo's and Old Spice).

Mobile by the Numbers

  • The article: Mobile by the Numbers, from Mashable.
  • The facts: An infographic integrating a variety of statistics on mobile computing now and in the future. Among the predictions is that mobile internet access will exceed desktop internet access within three years. (Although the stat that amazed me most was that with a world population of 6.8 billion, there are supposedly 4 billion mobile phones in use.)
  • Classroom uses: If you want to talk about trends in marketing, these stats point out why so many analysts are emphasizing the growing importance of mobile marketing and commerce.

Mobile Barcodes Come to the Home Depot

  • The article: Mobile Barcodes Come to the Home Depot, from Mashable.
  • The facts: Home Depot is experimenting with in-store use of QRcodes, allowing mobile phone users to scan the two-dimensional bar codes and access a broad array of information, ranging from lists of accessories to how-to videos.
  • Classroom uses: As a companion to the mobile infographic discussed above, this is a good example of a new technology being adopted by retailers.