P. Dillard's Mac Cosmetics 2nd post

Mac Cosmetics uses celebrity endorsements as a way to entice customers to their brand. Fans of celebrities such as: Nicki Minaj, Rhianna, Janelle Monae, Kelly and Sharon Osbourne may possibly purchase the Mac brand specifically because they are fans of those celebrities that wear, openly endorse and look great with the makeup and other beauty products Mac sells. Additionally, Macs website is full of color and graphics that provides a desire to click onto certain pages to see what else they have to offer.

Mac uses videos called instant artistry that customers can view on their official website and on Youtube. These videos provide ideas on makeup looks, shades and mixing color palettes so that customers can create looks to enhance their natural beauty.

In addition Mac has an Aids fund, (M·A·F) was established in 1994. The fund was developed to support people who are living with HIV/AIDS worldwide. As well as donating funds to communities that offer services and help to and prevent the HIV/AIDS through educational programs and services (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_AIDS_Fund, 2014).

Although celebrity endorsements itself does not personally entice me to purchase products or services from Mac Cosmetics or any other company. Seeing celebrity makeup looks and the social media video that Mac distributes does help those that aren’t extremely savvy with makeup applications.  Therefore, I can see how some people will become customers to the brand. I have purchased plenty of Mac products before but not because of the endorsements.  I became a customer from browsing their makeup counter and appreciating colors they offer.

Nevertheless, other individuals that are into social media campaigns and communicate via social media outlets can easily become aware of Mac and see their advertisements and become loyal customers to their brand. 

P. Dillard's Nike Technology

Nike uses a Marketing Strategy that entices its customers to continue to purchase new and updated items. For instance, Nike uses emotional marketing tactics to continuously bring in new business by creating a lasting relationship and by also providing loyalty perks to customers. Nike uses emotional branding techniques of heroism to encourage amazing customer loyalty from all over the world which also creates strong customer relations.

The Nike advertising strategy such as taking the everyday hero story and turning it into an inspiring story is what customers want to see again and again. Seeing sports heroes in commercials and showing them in versatile elements creates an illusion to the everyday customer. As an example, Nike uses the emotional aspects of human nature to draw in its customers. Customers see commercials and print advertising they can resonate with. Seeing those particular advertisements creates a subconscious desire for customers that are perhaps already Nike, athletic and performance wear customers to once again make purchases and take advantage of sales and loyalty perks.

This is turn helps Nike by increasing revenue and enabling them to provide more and more products and incentives to customers that will remain faithful to their products and services.

Nike also involves their customers in 2.0 technologies by incorporating the usage of PHOTOiD which allows customers an opportunity to choose their instagram photo, choose their shoe style, check out and share their design. This feature is another form of 2.0 technology that involves the customer and gives them the feeling of being involved in the NIKE brand.

https://photoid.nike.com/home.htm;jsessionid=F07E25CB089D3DA0057C22D9F40E00F0?lang=en_US

Consequently, Nikes Marketing has identified what works to drive business upward and has used the inspiring stories and events to encourage timeless customer loyalty by way of Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and other social media outlets.

Small - Post 2: Expedia

If you are a busy person like me who looks forward to the opportunity to wind down and take a few days off of work, but who doesn’t have time to plan the vacation, then you are in luck.

Expedia.com is a full service vacation planning website that helps you to book air travel, hotel stays, car rental, cruise ships and even has package deals that will accommodate your every need.  Formed in 1996, the company has managed to stay on top of the on-line travel business.  The convenience of booking your vacation through Expedia takes the stress out of shopping online for individual hotels, car rental or airline websites, and makes travel planning stress free.

 Through its social media efforts, Expedia reaches thousands of customers through Facebook ads and their Twitter accounts.  Weekly specials for vacation packages are posted on Facebook page every week, encouraging people to take the time off and travel.  Who would want to resist some of the loveliest and most beautiful places on earth like San Francisco, Vegas, Houston, Florida and Mexico.  Feedback from customers is also found on Facebook and Twitter, some positive while others are complaints.  Expedia addresses these comments in a personal and professional manner.  It definitely has my vote as a company who is utilizing the tools of social media to attract customers, while also saving money on big box advertising.  I will continue to use this site in the future, especially since I am planning to take a big trip next year and look forward to the discounts that Expedia will help me to find.

Chloe & Isabel . . . reinventing direct sales

On Thursday, July 17, 2014, the Wall Street Journal featured an article entitled, "Direct Seller Crafts Its Own Sales Model."  Since taking this course, my eyes jump directly to anything newsworthy that relates to establishing a business presence through the Internet.  You might find the story of Chloe & Isabel an interesting, and encouraging one. Below are excerpts from the article.

"Chloe & Isabel" was among the first of a recent wave of startups using technology and social-media tools to reinvent direct sales, a $32.67 billion-a-year industry according to the Direct Selling Association.

Named for hypothetical best friends with oppposite tastes--trendy versus classic--today the company has 80 full-time employees, including a team of jewelry designers who source and produce hundreds of styles, such as $42 cushion-cut cocktail rings or $28 "retroglam" crystal earrings.

The New York-based direct seller built proprietary software that allows its independent sales associates, known as "merchandisers," to create their own customized Chloe & Isabel Web boutique and tap their social networks for customers.  The company currently has nerly 5,000 merchandisers who start by purchasing a starter kit, comprised of 18 pieces of jewelry for $175.

The sales associates earn commissions, typically 30% of their own sales.  Chloe & Isabel collects 60% to 70% of the merchandisers' earnings.

For Chloe & Isabel, every single boutique is entirely unique and every single Mechandiser creates her own collection.  She's a micro-entrepreneur." 

Second Post

Good news for all the people living in the Chicago area. There is a new way to pay for parking in the streets of Chicago. A new app that can be downloaded to your smartphone called Park Chicago. Customers would need to to set up an account and link it to a major credit card.

Chicago first launched a pilot program to ensure its popularity and it sure has not disappointed. 1, 600 drivers have signed up for ParkChicago within the weeks of the pilot program. Park Chicago is expanding to other areas.

I am thrilled Chicago made this app called Park Chicago. Having to get out of the car, walk to the paying meter then walk back to your car and put the paying sticker in the cars dashboard was time consuming. I will definitely take advantage of this new technology once it is available in my neighborhood.

Blog Post 2

The Ruth M. Rothstein Community Awareness Program (C.A.P.) is using Web 2.0 technology to showcase their work in the community and help raise awareness about HIV and other STIs.

The C.A.P. program provides free rapid HIV testing and health related community workshops throughout Chicago. This program is using Web 2.0 technology like Instagram and Twitter to promote community events and broadcast healthy messages regarding safe sex and accessing reproductive health services.

@corecentercap shows the world first hand what community based work looks like. The Instagram feed provides a colorful and proactive message of safe sex and self care to the receiver. These posts are continually shared throughout the social media networks, allowing the message to be received by an even bigger audience.

For more information about the Ruth M. Rothstein CORE Center: Community Awareness Program look them up on the Twitter and Instagram: @corecentercap

Juan Ortega

Blog Post 1

Social media apps like Twitter and Instagram have allowed the public health industry to spread their message. 

Recently, I was part of a national collaborative called “Step Up. Get Tested.” Our goal was to raise awareness about HIV and encourage people to get tested. One of the key objectives of the collaborative was to host several mobile testing events throughout Chicago. 

The collaborative launched www.stepupgettested.com which includes a list of participating agencies, an events calendar, and can link users to local public health facilities. The collaborative used Twitter and Instagram to promote mobile testing events in advanced and encouraged people to share the post with their own social network. Social media posts were tagged with the hashtags: #sugt14 and #nhtd. During the mobile testing events the collaborative would also use social media apps to check in “live” at neighborhood health facilities that were offering free testing services. These social media posts were an easy way to gain exposure for the events and draw traffic towards the testing event. 

While drafting the right post might take a little time and effort, if executed correctly, social media posts can help any organization to spread their message without spending a dime.