Response to Colin Raaberg's Post on T-Mobile

Companies that deceive customers risk getting found out which means they may have to pay back their customers, lose customers, and damage their public image. Why then do companies risk it?

Unfortunately I am a T-Mobile customer who owns a phone with an annual contract which sucks. I believe companies like this do this as part of there strategy to lure in customers. I know when I bought my phone I had to sign an annual contract which is why I have yet to switch to an iPhone.
When companies use false advertising in order to sell a product it really affects how consumers look at that company and value them as a seller. Companies risk this because they want to keep a customer base and stay competitive in the market.

Would a company such as Apple or Verizon perform a tactic such as T-Mobile?

Social Media and Marketing

Social Media has been taking over in recent years, and it seems like almost every day some new social media website or application is coming out. Facebook and Twitter are the two most prominant social media feeds but others include instagram and vine. Even games like scrabble have an app where you can chat with your friend(s) while you play. Almost everyone today uses Facebook for something whether it be connecting with old friends or trying to meet new people in your current area. Another form of social media is YouTube. This website is the largest video website there is to date and is constantly being used around the globe. Social Media has come to a point where most times I hear of breaking news its from Facebook.

How often do you use social media in your day-to-day life?

Response to Tammy Chou's question on John Smith

Do you think there is a benefit over laying off employees as opposed to cutting wages? If you were the owner of a company, would you have more than one plan? What would it be?

I think there would be a large benefit of laying off the employees over cutting wages because either way your going to effect the workers. You dont necessarily need a large number of employees. In todays world managers and owners are more likely to lay people off than to cut wages, its just the reality. If I were owner of the company Im not sure I would have a plan for such a small company. I would definitely deny the offer of selling my employees names to the car company. I think it breaks the laws of ethics.
Are ethics as important in todays business world as they once were?

Marketing Research

As explained in chapter 9 marketing research objective is the specific information needed to solve a marketing research problems; the objective should be to provide insightful decision making information. Marketing research enables companies to check how a product is faring in the market and if it needs changes or touch-ups. Because we live in such a technology dominated worl the internet plays a huge role in marketing research. More than 90 percent of America's marketing research companies conduct some form of online research. It has even replaced computer-assisted telephone interviewing as the most popular form of data collecting.

Why would online focus groups be advantageous to a marketing research company?

Response to John Smith

I believe that this is a very commen dilema in todays world. Every industry is becoming so competitive with the economy suffering. Smaller businesses are struggling to compete with the large corporations who are beginning to take over. When businesses are in need owners will go to extreme lengths to make something happen. If the business was running smoothly, I would say the owner wouldnt be doing anything wrong by selling the names, but because the business is struggling taking that money wouldnt be beneficial to these employees because eventually the business would crash. Taking the money would only create a temporary fix for the lack of revenues.

Response to Nicoles question on infomercials

I think infomericals are very annoying but I too get sucked into them most times. I find myself watching them and thinking how stupid they are but then I realize that they succeeded in trying to garner my attention. When infomercials come on I usually change the channel because I think they are a waste of time . Although they usually annoy me, sometimes the products they are selling are pretty funny.

What is your favorite or least favorite commercial?Why?

Social Media and Promotion

Promotion is a very important part of selling the product/service. There are many different ways a company can promote its product to the public. I think that social media is the most effective way because it isnt as aggressive as say a survey would be. With todays world being dominated by social media this gives companies an opportunity to connect with many potential customers on a consistent basis. People are constantly on their phones and laptops so this constant reminder of a product or products gives the companies promoting their products through social media a competitive advantage in the market. Contests are also a great way for a company to promote its product and with consumers online all the time this gives companies a chance to combine these two promotional strategies into one. This may not be as successful because for me personally when I see a contest online I ignore it, assuming its spam or some kind of virus.

Although social media is a great way to promote a product, in what ways would it be unsuccessful?