Center for Brand and Product Management Wisconsin School of Business

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:49:00 +0000

And scene on the summer....

Hard to believe a year ago I was starting my first year of b-school. Today is the last day of summer as 2nd year reorientation and MBAs with a Heart are tomorrow and classes start Wednesday (well I only have the GBA meeting as my Wed. class was cancelled). It has only been a year, which took about six weeks, but feels like I have been here for four. Tough to explain how much different I feel after only one year. I remember talking to a 2nd year during week one last year and he said that the amount of stuff you know after year one is amazing. At the time I couldn't imagine that only one year of school would really do that much, but I stand corrected.

I spent the summer at SC Johnson based in Racine, but lived in Milwaukee. The internship was good, stressful, but good. 12 weeks flew by, but it was a great experience. I made some great friends and got a taste of what brand management really was. The only downside of an internship is that there is no summer, but I guess that is what happens in the real world. It is funny to think that I didn't have "summer" for the six years prior to school, but just assumed since I was back in school I would have it.

Soon enough you will have a new blogger for the year who will bring a different perspective on the life of a CBPMer. Just know that everybody has a different experience, but they are all rich. I haven't talked to a single person that regrets the decision of pursuing an MBA at Wisconsin.

One year down, one to go. Go Badgers!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 01:30:00 +0000

What I know now that I wish I knew then…

So reflecting back on my first year, I have put pen to paper or finger to key on a couple of thoughts to make year one a little easier.

Buy a warm jacket…now. Especially if you are in a warm climate where jackets are on sale. It will be your best friend by November. While you are at it, buy gloves and ear muffs (180s are good) too. Better to be safe than cold.

Start reading GMA Smart Brief and other marketing blogs now. I didn’t learn about these until the second week of school and I felt behind. Interview prep will start before you know it and you will be asked for good brand/brand stuff or give me an example of this. Smart Brief is a good, quick snapshot of the happenings of the CPG world.

Don't panic about money. You will blow your budget by October, but that is normal and why they invented banks and credit cards.

Discontinue Tivo for the summer. I love Tivo and DVRs as much as the next person, but it prevents you from watching ads. While ads can be boring, they are also fodder for class. Just watch and remember.

Call your family and friends a lot this summer. Come Fall, you won’t talk to them. Not because you don’t want to, but because you don’t have time. If you have a significant other in another locale, just start apologizing now.

If you see Brian Ward put a magazine back on the table, don’t pick it up.

Hang out with the 2nd years sooner rather than later. I didn’t start hanging out with the 2nd years until we got back from Turkey in February. Before I knew it, they were gone and I regret not getting to spend more time with them.

Buy an iPod or music listening device as you will walk everywhere and good music is essential. Is it a 15 block walk or three really good songs? You pick.

Be a yes man or woman. While saying no might be easier, it is not as fun. Lets try an example: Would you like to go sit on a frozen lake, drink beer, and look at a hole in the ice? Yes, it is called ice fishing and I would love to. Seriously, you are coming to grad school for two years so stretch yourself a little and do a couple of things that you normally wouldn’t do.

Go to TAPS early in the semester. It is a great chance to meet both the 1st and 2nd years. Also, come November you will be slammed with projects and won’t feel like it.

Join a club or three. We tend to get pretty Brand Center focused so joining clubs is a great way to meet other 1st year students.

Eat your vegetables. I guess that is just a general life lesson and something good to do.

Go to a football game. Even if you don’t like football or have never been, Wisconsin games are a whole different experience. Jump around at the end of the third quarter and stay for the fifth quarter. It is worth it.

Go someplace warm for Spring Break. Even pale kids need sun too.

Don’t overdo the Nitty Gritty. I think we went there once a week for the first 10 weeks celebrating birthdays and haven’t been back since.

Finance is going to be tough and you are going to get a low grade on the mid-term, but that is normal. Take pride in your 44, I know I do.

Most importantly…have fun. You are in school for two years. It will go fast and you will work hard, but this is the last time in your life that you get to do this. Go out to the bars. Make some poor decisions. Don’t study on Saturdays. Choose a good conversation over skimming another reading. Make this investment in your life worth it and something you will remember.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Wed, 20 May 2009 14:59:00 +0000

CBPM Class of 2009 Graduation

So it is hard to believe that the semester is over and even more hard to believe that the second years are now officially alumni of the Wisconsin School of Business and the Center for Brand and Product Management. I have to say graduation to me is met with mixed emotions. While the school part can get old, the life of a student is incredible. Even though I still have another year, I know that this time next year I will be ready to be done with classes, but not ready to leave my friends for the real world again.

The CBPM Class of 2009 is the largest graduating class in the history of our program, but that title will be short-lived. They have set the bar high for our class and all future classes and will be missed greatly. I do regret not getting to know them better until this semester. With everything going on first semester I was just trying to keep my head above water, but the trip to Turkey was a great opportunity to get to know them better and it only continued through the spring. I will miss their friendships next semester.

Congrats to the Class of 2009!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Wed, 20 May 2009 14:52:00 +0000

The Role of Touch in Consumer Purchasing

Marketing professor Joann Peck has recently been recognized for her ground-breaking research on the impact on touch in consumer purchasing. Click on the title of this post to read an about her work.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Fri, 15 May 2009 22:11:00 +0000

Mifflin Street Block Party

So Madison has its fair amount of craziness, but the Mifflin Street Block Party was unreal. Four blocks of Mifflin Street west of the Capitol were sealed off and the street turned into Madison's version of Mardi Gras minus the parades and beads. Lucky for us, Shannon and Paul Robinson have a house on Mifflin and decided they were up for throwing a party. It turned into a great time as 1st and 2nd years from all of the different centers showed up and hung out together.

Below are some pictures from the Fiesta.

View from Shannon and Paul's

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Fri, 15 May 2009 21:45:00 +0000

GBA Spring Ball '09--Partied like it was 1999

Some called it Prom, others Spring Ball, but either way it was a blast. Everybody got decked out in their finest adult attire and enjoyed a night of drinking and dancing. I would say dining, but I don't really remember eating any food even though I know it was there. Attendance was the highest ever, which made it even more fun as it was one of the few events that 1st years, 2nd years, significant others, faculty, and staff all attended together. While an Indian dance troop performance, speeches by Dean Knetter and Coach K, and MBA Superlatives award ceremony were highlights, the real fun didn't start until we hit the dance floor.

I know it was a good time simply because my legs were incredibly sore the next morning from the dancing. It was fun to see a different side of many of the students because they seem to be so serious in class, but you put on a little Bon Jovi and well, they can't help themselves. Post-Prom took us to Brocach for what was supposed to be a quick drink, but $2 High Lifes and a rousing game of quarters turned into a debauchery. All I know is that a crowd ended up at my apartment for pizza and Old School and didn't leave until 4:00 A.M. Quote of the night--"Greg, did you order the pizza man?"--unnamed prospective student not in the Brand Center.

Here are some pictures (that are usable) from the evening courtesy of Jess Worley.

Brian Ward, his lady friend, Joe, Jon Jones, the Pragers, and Paul Robinson (Shannon's husband).

Sam (Katie's boyfriend), Katie Daggett, the Worleys, and the Digmans (well soon-to-be).

Greg Arseneau and his admirers. Wish we had a picture of his doing the Worm, yes, I said it, the Worm.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Tue, 05 May 2009 16:08:00 +0000

Newsweek business writer does piece on WSOB

Not sure if you saw the article, but this will appear in this week's issue of Newsweek. The writer, Daniel Gross, serves as the Writer-in-Residence for the WSOB this semester in addition to being a featured columnist in Newsweek and the Business Editor. He visited campus last week and actually set in on two of my classes--Macroeconomics and Marketing Communications. Seems like a really nice guy and was very accessible to the students. Really didn't think he was going to write an article on us, but he did. The same article appears on Slate.com, which is a business website/blog.

Great to see the program getting some national attention.

Degrees of Separation
Why life is still good for some business school students.
Daniel Gross

May 3, 2009 Updated: 11:14 a.m. ET May 4, 2009

Living and working in the New York region's financial-media complex in 2009 means daily, compulsory attendance at a gathering of the glum. The economy may be shrinking at a 6 percent annual rate, but finance and media have contracted by about 30 percent. For the past year, the daily routine has meant sitting in a depopulated office (assuming you still have a job); following the latest grim news of magazine closings, buyouts, and layoffs; and commiserating with friends, family, and neighbors. And, of course, the angst extends far beyond directly affected companies. Finance dominates the area's economy to such a degree that everybody—lawyers, accountants, real estate brokers, waiters, retailers, and cab drivers—have all been affected.

Of course, one can try to get away to sunnier, more mellow climes. But the usual havens aren't offering much succor. Florida—like New York, except the catastrophe is real estate. Mexico? Um, not now. But last month, I found an unexpected haven: the Midwest. Each semester, the University of Wisconsin School of Business brings in a journalist-in-residence for a week, usually from New York. The theory: Students and professors benefit from the perspective of someone who is chronicling the workings of the world they are studying remotely.
But the benefit was greater for me than for the students. The four days in Madison functioned as a kind of detox. I left thinking the university should turn the Fluno Center for Executive Education into a sort of clinic. It could do for stressed-out financial and media types what Minneapolis' Hazelden does for the drugged-out: offer a safe, friendly (if chilly) place to escape the toxic influence of New York.

Madison struck me as blessedly detached from the ailing financial sector. Of course, Wisconsin is suffering along with the rest of the nation. Its unemployment rate in March was 8.5 percent. But Madison, with its three-legged economic stool of education, state government, and health care, is faring somewhat better. More significantly, the business school isn't having a dark night of the soul, as so many of its Eastern counterparts are.

Columbia Business School and the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton are basically satellites of Wall Street. Half the students have memorized the partnership roster at the Blackstone Group the way I once knew the lineup of 1970s-era Cincinnati Reds. An MBA from Columbia or Harvard or Wharton is basically a leveraged bet on a student's ability to make it in finance. You pay a ton of money, most of it borrowed, so that you can land a really high-paying job with one of the big investment banks or private-equity firms that visit campus. By their second year, most MBA students at Wharton are already scoping out the Hamptons for the second homes they know they'll be able to buy in a few years. But with the gilded pipeline to Wall Street temporarily shut down, the rising MBAs are suffering the kind of existential crisis more generally associated with comparative literature majors. The New York Times last month ran an article about students at Wharton who were suddenly at sea. Some were considering working for nonprofits!
But in Madison, the vibe is much different. The television in the business school's lobby was set to Headline News, not CNBC. The only mention of toxic assets was an ironic one—on a T-shirt. When I walked into undergraduate finance classes and asked, "How many want to go get a kick-ass job on Wall Street and make a ton of money?" not a single hand was raised. The students are mostly kids from Wisconsin studying the basics—management, accounting, corporate finance. Some plan to stay in-state and find a job with a small business or with one of the big local firms: Kohler, S.C. Johnson, Kohl's, Harley-Davidson. Many head to Minneapolis or Chicago for jobs with consumer products companies. The University of Wisconsin boasts of having as many alumni who are CEOs of big companies as Harvard does. Yes, Chicago has its big options exchanges. But the Wisconsin students don't seem interesting in moving money around. That happens in the East. ("Instead of being the warm center of the world, the Middle West now seemed like the ragged edge of the universe," as Midwest native Nick Carraway put it in The Great Gatsby, "so I decided to go East and learn the bond business.")

The finance graduate students I had lunch with knew about CDOs and hedge funds but mostly as academic subjects. When I met with a small group of undergrads in an entrepreneurship course, they presented interesting ideas about online businesses, not financial engineering. Private-equity magnate Henry Kravis, CNBC anchor Erin Burnett, and JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon could probably sit down at State Street Brats and chow down unnoticed and unbothered.

While the faltering economy has dampened job prospects, the meltdown on Wall Street hasn't caused these students—or their faculty—to reconsider the utility of studying accounting or corporate finance. It could be because they haven't been asked to risk as much personally as MBA students back East. At one forum, a student groused about rising tuition, much to the disbelief of the business school Dean Mike Knetter, who knows from expensive education. (He was trained as an economist at Stanford and taught at Dartmouth before returning to Wisconsin.) Knetter, a Wisconsin native, pointed out that even if it was rising, tuition here is still a huge bargain. In-state MBA students pay $11,500 per year, plus living expenses, while undergraduate tuition is about $8,000 per year. (At Wharton, by contrast, tuition for MBAs is $50,000, and total costs are $80,000.)

Compared with the costs of high-end executive detox retreats, like the one run by former Time Warner CEO Jerry Levin, Wisconsin is a bargain.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 04:16:00 +0000

My "Day in the Life": Tuesday, April 14, 2009

6:30 A.M.—Seriously? Snooze.
6:45 A.M.—Wake up, hit the shower.
7:00 A.M.—Is it cold and rainy? No, sweet, only have to wear sleeves and a light jacket today, must be getting close to spring.
7:30 A.M.—Ear buds in, iPod on (nice medley of Good Charlotte, George Strait, and the Killers). It is only a 15-20 minute walk to school, which is enough time to eat an apple and peruse the left column of the Wall Street Journal. Reading the left column means that I know enough about the world headlines to be dangerous, but not enough to be useful—story of my life.
7:55 A.M.—Hit the Brand Center to print out the agenda for the GBA (Graduate Business Association) meeting. Leave enough time to swing by the candy jar on Carrie’s desk and get a quick chocolate fix for the first meeting of the day.
8:05 A.M.—Tell the GBA board that we will wait for the President to show up before we get started.
8:06 A.M.—Yep, that wasn’t a nightmare, I am still the GBA President so we will go ahead and get started. Topics to cover—Spring Ball, On Wisconsin Weekend, Habitat for Humanity day, Spring Study Break and the creation of the tailgating committee.
9:10 A.M.—Meeting over, but catch up with Abby Ballain (GBA Secretary) and Courtney Carlovsky (GBA Treasurer) to discuss the specifics for the end of year Town Hall meeting.
9:20 A.M.—Drop my jacket in my locker; run through the econ slides in case I get cold-called; Ask Joe if he read for class, he didn’t, so I feel better since I didn’t either.
9:30 A.M.—Macroeconomics starts; we are apparently discussing the GDP and something concerning apples and bananas. I was told to never compare the two, but Professor Davis has a different philosophy.
10:45 A.M.—Class over; now realize that the apples were simply a metaphor for production, good to know. Head to the Brand Center to check email, socialize, steal Carrie’s candy.
11:15 A.M.—I find myself enthralled in naming the VH-1 Top 100 Songs of the 90s courtesy of Sporcle.com. Amy, Corinne, Greg Rose, Shannon and I are in rare form. We should really video our performance. Who knew that Greg Rose knew all of the words to Marcy Playground’s Sex and Candy.
11:30 A.M.—Let’s get serious, time to read. Have five readings for Tom O’s afternoon class and I have only read one. Luckily, one of the study rooms across from the Brand Center is open.
12:15 P.M.—Dean Knetter and Coach K are holding a end of year session to answer questions about the program. Key here is that there is free food so count me in.
1:00 P.M.—Group meeting time. Sunaina, Katie W., and I are taking care of the Management Change Project for our group. Time to divide and conquer. Apparently there is more work to this than originally thought so we have three more meetings scheduled for the next week and a half—awesome.
2:00 P.M.—Back to the Center to finish reading for my 2:30 class.
2:05 P.M.—Who am I kidding? I can’t pass up a good conversation about reality TV and the merits of fantasy baseball. Going to roll the dice that I won’t get called on.
2:30 P.M.—Brand Strategy starts. We are discussing the theory of brands as entertainment and if TV can really influence the way people perceive the world. No cold-calling today so I will implement the “Jake Abel” strategy.
3:45 P.M.—10-minute break; time to get a soda for the second half of class
3:55 P.M.—Mark, Katie, Al, and Brian are presenting their case write-up on Starbucks. They did a great job with a really tough case. Still hate Starbucks though.
5:15 P.M.—Class over a little early, not going to complain.
5:45 P.M.—Time to head home. Maybe I will see one of the kids from MTV's College Life on my walk home. Need to call the fiancé as she is out-of-town. Definitely going to work out tonight.
6:00 P.M.—Quick change and head to the gym.
6:15 P.M.—Didn’t get to see SportsCenter this morning so I should catch up on that and then I will head to the gym.
7:00 P.M.—Make dinner and watch the beginning of American Idol.
7:30 P.M.—Time to multi-task: four readings for Marketing Communications, the Rangers-Orioles games on GameCast, create a powerpoint presentation for Center Director’s meeting tomorrow, start the Management Simulation, write up my portion of the IMC plan, and prepare for Operations. With two computers, osmosis, and a gift from God, this is all possible. Instead of the gym, I will take a quick jog later.
10:30 P.M.—Well, the Rangers’ pitching imploded again so that means I still have three readings for Communications, the powerpoint to create, and a simulation to start. Maybe I can lift a couple of weights. I think they are in a box somewhere.
11:45 P.M.—So the readings are done, the powerpoint is serviceable, but the simulation will have to wait for another day. Looks like I will be flying by the seat of my pants in Operations, but what is new. I am sure I will be able to work out tomorrow.
12:15 P.M.—Off to bed. I should be asleep in 10 minutes unless I get sucked into one of those classic TBS or TNT movies that you can’t help but watch. Anchorman? Sign me up.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 00:34:00 +0000

Twitter responsible for collapse of American economy

While this seems like a headline you would read in The Onion, I believe this is partially true. Last Wednesday, the first year CBPM class participated in the world's first class ever taught through Twitter. (This could be a vast overstatement, but I am sticking with it). We have been learning about social media in Deb Mitchell's Marketing Communications class and Twitter is one of the new, up and coming tools that marketers are using to discuss their brands.

To learn more about its abilities, Deb brought in Wisconsin's own Twitter expert, Melissa Anderson, who is the Director of PR for the Wisconsin School of Business. She asked her followers on Twitter to tune into a live chat during our class and talk about how they use Twitter both personally and professionally. As Melissa talked, we interacted with individuals from all over the country. Many were PR Directors at other schools or businesses, but some were advertising execs or brand managers, heck even a celebrity (Ashton Kutcher) piped in a few times. If you didn't know, Ashton and Demi are huge Twitterers.

Honestly, I don't remember what Melissa said as I was more interested in the Twitter conversation. I was amazed that 50 or so people were active in our conversation during the middle of the day. Most were at work. Granted, Melissa invited some to join, but that was 10 people so 40 people just happened upon our chat.

So I go back to my original statement. I think that productivity all over the country must be at an all-time low if people are trolling around Twitter looking for conversations. Are people actually working? Guess not, but hey, I learned something.

If you want to see the transcript, go to tweetchat.com and type in #bizpitch. Enjoy tweeting.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 23:38:00 +0000

Spring Break UW 09 WooHoo!

So remember spring break planning when you were an undergrad..."Do we go to Padre? Or what about Destin/Panama City (Club La Vela maybe Spinnaker don't know if we will have enough time, you know what I am talking about), that was fun last year. Or wait, we could go skiing in Colorado for six days, that would be fun. Or, I know, Mexico. Two words--all inclusive."

Well in grad school, we have very similar conversations regarding spring break..."Chicago, it is drivable, I am sure we can crash on somebody's floor, I think some other people might go as well. Hey, it is St. Patrick's Day so there will be something to do on Saturday." And that is just for the first weekend.

All joking aside, spring break is different than what I remember. It is still fun to not have to go to class, but the craziness that most of us associated with vacations to exotic locales just isn't there. It could be that I am older and it hurts more or it could be that vacationing on $200 doesn't quite cut it anymore. Either way, Annette and I rocked Chicago with the Arseneaus, Worleys, and soon-to-be Digmans for the St. Patrick's Day festival. At least Chicago has a huge party for it and it wasn't like we were doing Omaha for Octoberfest.

Mark's wife Sarah and I are on the left with the Worley's on the right. I am pretty sure that Jess stole the hat I am wearing from somebody at the bar. I ended up with another hat at some point in the evening, but lost it as well.

Joe and Mark...haven't had a drink at all.

As for the actual week of spring break, it was pretty low key. A number of us got together Tuesday for the actual St. Patrick's Day and enjoyed the incredible weather (70 degrees seriously) on Memorial Terrace. Little strange to be wearing shorts and t-shirt overlooking a frozen lake, but welcome to Wisconsin!

That Thursday, we joined all of America and watched the first round of the NCAA tournament at a local sports bar. Haven't been able to watch an entire day of games since college. Apparently Joe, Al, and I thought it would be a good idea to wager on the games. Now only Joe thinks that was a good idea. We did get to revel in the fact that CBPM Bracket Organizer Extraordinaire Amy Maier lost her national champion (Wake Forrest) in the first round.

Now everybody didn't keep it local. Jamel and Mat did actually go to Mexico. They received some incredible deal online and couldn't pass it up. Apparently, they didn't realize that the "deal" was for couples. Needless to say, they received a few puzzling looks from the newlyweds...wonder why.

Probably should have left the shirt on for lunch Mat.

Jessie left incredible Madison weather for even better weather in Florida. Amy showed the Natti what is up (talk about dream spring break locales, what tops Cincinatti in March?). Jake, Amy, and Mariah enjoyed the scenery of Miami Beach.

All I can say is that the local Spring Break this year was so great that the wives have told us that Spring Break next year will involve a beach, umbrella drinks, and sun tan lotion. Guess you win some and you lose some.

Here's to my first post-college, post-Adult Spring Break, Spring Break!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 16:50:00 +0000

Update: Tom O Article

So I know I promised Spring Break conversation, but it came to my attention that the link to Tom O's article takes you to a log in page and not the actual article. Then apparently is some crazy scheme to make money and turn a profit, AdAge only lets you read the article if you subscribe (I am set up on their email distribution list so I read the stuff that is free). So I have copied the article here, please don't tell.

With Populism's Rise, Prada's Fall
Smart Brands Will Again Resolve Tensions Brought on by Social Disruption
by Thomas C. O'Guinn <mailto:toguinn@bus.wisc.edu>

From David Letterman to Jon Stewart to Mike Barnacle to the guy in the cube next to you, more Americans are sporting a simmering anger some have termed "vengeful populism." Consumers are angry with bankers, Wall Street and any other cultural elite that has stolen from them lately. Because our pain is not felt equally, class conflict is a near certainty.

While populism comes in many flavors, it is, at its core, anti-elitist, and there are plenty of elites to dislike. Income distribution in the U.S. is approaching an L-curve, with a vanishing (and angry) middle class. Because social standing is in so many ways marked through consumption, brands that are "on the wrong side of history" had better watch out. On the other hand, just as in the Great Depression, smart brands will have an opportunity for greatness.

Uneven Pain
For three decades or so we have gotten used to, even embraced, a hyper-consumer culture. As long as credit was easy and times were relatively good, class conflict was, for most Americans, an anachronism. Now, with a deepening recession spreading pain unevenly throughout the country, the need to rethink some brands' positioning and communication couldn't be stronger. To proponents of cultural marketing, the truly great, iconic brands have become so by resolving tensions brought on by social disruption: Marlboro reassured real manhood for a formerly woman's cigarette with a then unmanly filter in the rigid, gendered 1950s; Pepsi claimed the youth revolution of the 1960s as its own; and Apple introduced the "computer for the rest of us" by rejecting the Orwellian IBM work world in 1984. Perhaps this is another tectonic societal shift.

What of luxury brands? Because so much advertising and brand communication is wrapped in and flavored with promises of social aspiration, how will luxury brands deal with the clearly unequal distribution of pain in the economy? How will the branded markers of the economic elite fare? Wealth is OK with Americans, but arrogant insensitivity is not. When unemployment reaches the homes of one in 10 Americans, will it be OK to carry the $2,500 clutch? Will those trudging off to work and diminished futures -- or, worse yet, those on the streets looking for work -- find it charming to see the wealthy lined up to have tea with their daughters' $100 dolls?

Distinction for Less
A handful of smart brands such as Target have for some time understood the new social order and offered design for the masses, distinction for less. The smart management of American Girl probably knows that in the 1930s some cities actually had toy libraries where children could check out a toy for a few weeks then return it so another child could enjoy it. Hopefully, we will never reach that point, but we may reach the point where class envy strikes such categories.

While some brand managers are just catching on, some just don't seem to have a clue. Appearing in my mailbox recently was a magazine with an ad for prestige watchmaker Patek Philippe. The copy justifying the $75,000 watch said: "You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely take care of it for the next generation." Amazing. Don't you just love being reminded of the power of inherited wealth at a time like this?

In my own research, I have started to pick up the sour notes of this angry populism. One of my research subjects is the spouse of a doctor. She now "gets grief" from her co-workers when she "wears anything new." They say, "Is that new? Must be nice." She adds: "Now I just don't wear them. I told my husband to quit buying stuff like that. I can't wear that stuff to work or even out sometimes."

'Democracy of Affliction'
So what's a luxury, big-discretionary-bucks brand to do? In the Great Depression, the smart brands were very clever in the way they used Americans' ambivalence toward wealth. As the late historian Roland Marchand noted, smart advertisers pointed out that "even rich people have the same problems as you." He called this the "democracy of affliction." The smart Great Depression advertisers humanized the wealthy; they made them sympathetic characters with problems to which anyone could relate. They made even expensive brands about something, anything, other than wealth. They made their brands about commonly shared goals, problems, frustrations, values and community, not an I-have-mine-sorry-about-you arrogance. Remember, Americans love rags-to-riches stories. Other advertisers of the 1930s used this popular narrative to create brand stories about "breaking into fine society," making their brand part of your hope to fit in with the social strata above you and actually making it. The idea was inclusion, never exclusion. So, nuanced aspiration appeals are fine, but the sensitivity and humanity has to be there. The sweet spot seems to be sensitive value through things we share.

For every social upheaval there are winners and losers. This angry populism presents a big lever for the right brands. Just like Thomas Frank argued in "The Conquest of Cool," with respect to the 1960s Cultural Revolution, smart advertising and branding could now create middle-class-hero brands. Brands that get it could become the next VW, Pepsi or Apple. Remember: All "revolutions" and significant social moments need staging and costumes. At a deeper level, great brands resolve tension. This angry-populist sentiment is real -- it will most surely be with us for a while -- and you can actually feel its tension. That energy, that urge to strike blows of equality against those who have wronged us -- or show that even though we are much more fortunate than most, we are among the socially sensitive -- can be made part of brand meaning. Brands that facilitate some degree of resolution, expressed through branded consumption, will find power.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Thomas C. O'Guinn is professor of marketing and executive director of the Center for Brand and Product Management at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's School of Business. He is co-author of "Advertising and Integrated Brand Promotion."

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 14:09:00 +0000

Tom O'Guinn the Rock Star!

I meant to get this up earlier in the week, but not sure how many of you all (I will refrain from writing ya'll even though that is how it sounds in my head) saw the new guest columnist in AdAge. Our own Executive Director Tom O'Guinn was recently featured for his article "With Populism's Rise, Prada's Fall." (click on the title and it will take you to the article)

The article is a testament to the changing society we live in today. People are rejecting the consumer elitism that has propogated society and essentially rebelling against that norm. Just last week citizens were going to AIG executives' houses and protesting. When was the last time any of us did that? It is great to see both Tom O and the Wisconsin School of Business (more specifically CBPM) getting recognized in AdAge. Currently we have Tom O for Brand Strategy and will have him for another class in the Fall.

For prospective students, if you aren't going to AdAge at least once a week to see what is going on in the marketing world, you should. Hopefully we will see a little more of Tom O in AdAge in the upcoming weeks.

Next Blog Post: Spring Break Excitement!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 05:06:00 +0000

GMN Challenge Winners--Brand Domination

And the winners are...(they are above, but names are below, have to keep the suspense)

I know this is old news for most, but a group actually won the GMN Challenge. Yes, the event was held in January and I should have written about this six weeks ago, but alas, I did not. The GMN Challenge is a great event for first year students to get back into the swing of things the first week of school.

8 teams of four were given a marketing case on Thursday afternoon to analyze and were challenged to come up with a solution by Friday morning. This year the case was based on Kingsford Charcoal and the teams had to come up with a way to turn Kingsford around after five consecutive years of declining revenue.

Most of the teams worked through the night and into the wee hours of the morning to put together powerpoint presentations. Teams then made presentations to senior executives from Sears, Lands End, and SC Johnson. Two teams were chosen to make a final presentation in front of all the judges and participants.

Team 1
Amy Maier (Brand)
Jessie Miller (Brand)
Courtney Carlovsky (Finance)
Sunaina Velagaleti (Research)

Team 2
Mark Digman (Brand)
Shannon Robinson (Brand)
Greg Arseneau (Brand)
Justin Hajny (Entrepreneurship)

After great presentations by both teams, Team 2 came away victorious. Team 2's strategy was to develop self-igniting individualized bags of charcoal to drive velocity and profitability, while identifying the key insight that women don't want to get their hands dirty. I participated as well, but did not win as you can tell. It was fun and I enjoyed working with Jon Jones (Brand), Claudia Klug (Research), and Amber Schleitcher (Supply Chain), however we didn't provide enough tactics. Either way, Jon Jones is incredible on PowerPoint, that is what I learned.

On the plus, I am working with Greg, Mark, Amy, and Sunaina on teams this semester and Jessie and I were on the same team first semester so I am surrounded by great people. They might not think the same about me, but that sucks for them. I would highly recommend the GMN Challenge to anybody because when else do you get to pull an all-nighter the first week of schoool, the week before interviews start while you are still jet-lagged from Turkey.

Dinner at the Local--$9.48
65 bags of Welch's fruit snacks--$7.99
18 Diet Cokes--$5.99
Some non-descript giant bag of pretzels that Claudia brought--$.99
Getting two hours of sleep and losing in the first round--Priceless

Awesome.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 04:43:00 +0000

1st Semester vs. 2nd Semester Differences

So I have received a lot of questions about the difference between first and second semester. Well, it is really a difference between individual work and group work. Second semester is all about group work. We have group projects in Operations, HR, Economics, Brand Strategy, and Marketing Communications. Some are as easy as simply doing homework problems together, while some are as challenging as developing an IMC (integrated marketing communications, don't worry I didn't know what it meant either until the first day of class) from scratch for a client.

I would say there are fewer exams and only two midterms so that is manageable. However, getting together to meet for the group work is challenging. I spent most of this weekend going from one group meeting to another, but ultimately we are getting the work done. Since the groups are mostly cross functional (at least in the core classes), our schedules aren't always easy to coordinate. Luckily, I have a great group that works very well together and is willing to pick up the slack for each other.

Something that is specific for Brand students is the addition of a Nielsen training course for first years. Over the last three weeks, we have had three classes aimed at teaching us about Nielsen data and how to incorporate it into our internships. It all culminates tomorrow with group presentations. We have been divided into teams of four and challenged to analyze the last three years worth of data for Gold Medal Flour. The goal is to find some key insight that would lead to a marketing change for General Mills. Needless to say, this project is very difficult, but very practical. It will be interesting to see what each team comes up with.

I guess the other big difference between 1st and 2nd semester is the time that extracurricular activities take up. 2nd semester is the time that 1st years take over leadership positions in the various MBA organizations. Brand students are some of the more involved students on campus so our time is stretched particularly thin.

Brand Student Leadership positions:

GBA (Graduate Business Association): President; Vice President; Development Chair; Community Service Chair; 2nd Year Rep
GMN (Graduate Marketing Network): Co-President; Treasurer; Logistics/Communications Chair; GMN Challenge Chair
Net Impact: President; Treasurer; Webmaster; three Action Officers
Consortium Club: President
Out for Business: President

With only one week before spring break, I know that most of our minds are on warmer climates and umbrella drinks. It is only two midterms and a two group projects away.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 03:45:00 +0000

Polar Plunge 2009

In previous posts I have discussed the craziness that is Madisonites and their obsession with ice fishing. Saturday however took it to a new level. Standing on ice and fishing is one thing, but actually going into the water is another. You have to have a great reason to jump into a frozen lake. Well, that is exactly what the Special Olympics of Madison was thinking. Saturday was the annual Special Olympics Polar Plunge.

I am proud to announce that the Wisconsin School of Business MBA Program raised over $10,000 and had 44 jumpers placing in the top 5 in the state. Fellow 1st year Brander Greg Arseneau headed up the MBA team as part of his role as the GBA Community Service Chair. Going into it this year, our goal was 30 jumpers and $6000 so we killed that. Not only was it a great cause, but it was a fun time. Now I did not jump, but I cheered on those that did and participated in the after plunge activities.

Below are some pictures from the event:

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 02:27:00 +0000

MBA or Reality TV?

So I know that many prospective students are trying to determine what to do with their lives right now? Do I give up two years of salary and pursue an MBA? Or do I throw caution to the wind and throw my hat into the reality TV mix?

It is a tough decision I know. One that I myself contemplated. For me it was between The Real World and Road Rules. I know what you are thinking--pick Road Rules so that you get on a better Guantlet or Duel team. Road Rulers are always better at those competitions. However, I have a weak stomach and have no desire to bungee jump so I would have chosen The Real World. While binge drinking, crowded hot tubs, and confessional rooms might be your scene, I ask you to look at the long-term prospects.

Six months following the show, you will be the hottest thing since slice bread. You will be invited to club openings and be doing random web spots on MTV.com. You will probably meet a couple of stars and get your picture in US Weekly or People, but then what? Funny you should ask. Two groups of 2nd year Brand students were visiting a local Trek bicycle store for their product design class and asked the clerk for help. Low and behold if it was not Madison's local reality TV star--Landon Lueck from The Real World Philadelphia.

Landon is third from the left

While we might not have crowded hot tubs (unless you count the ones at Polar Plunge) and crazy club openings, we do offer fantastic full-time employment opportunities in brand management. You can get your picture in the Grainger Squire and you can meet stars of the marketing world like Tom O'Guinn, Jan Heide, and Deb Mitchell.

We just completed the Brand Guantlet (doesn't quite have the same panache as people in swimsuits in Tahiti)--8 companies, 15+ interviews, 5 days. It was a tough five days, but something I wouldn't trade for my last six years of work experience. I still have more second round interviews this week so it is not fully over, but it will be soon enough.

So when you are thinking about what to do with your life, think about where you want to be in three years. Do you want to be a year into a job as a brand manager or greasing a chain at Trek?

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 16:10:00 +0000

Warm Weather Wackiness

So Madison is suppose to be cold during February and for the first 6 days it held true to form. However, Saturday was an unexpected gift. The temperatures got into the 40s. Now I know that sounds cold and yes, in the majority of the country that constitutes a stay-at-home day, but not in Madison. The sun was out, the snow/ice was melting at an incredible rate, and people hit the streets. It sort of reminds me of a morning train ride into Grand Central in NYC. One moment the train platform in empty and quiet. Suddenly a train pulls up, opens its doors, and mass chaos ensues.

People were in shorts and t-shirts running around like it was 85 degrees. It almost felt like Turkey with the number of dogs I saw running around (side note, these dogs had leashes and owners, which is something Turkey should look into if only for Joe Worley's sake). I was actually excited to walk to the gym, which is something in itself. Downside was that I spent five hours rocking a little Cranberry case for operations, but my group blew it out and we are done.

Saturday night was even nice. A lot of people headed to the Kohl Center for the Rascal Flatts/Jessica Simpson concert. They are pleased to report that Jessica looks healthy, but not too healthy and she has retired the "Mom jeans." If you don't know what I am talking about, go buy an US Weekly or log into TMZ.com. My fiancee and I chose to grill out, yes grill out. The snow is all gone from my porch and I could actually stand out there for more than two minutes at a time.

Mariah Kottke's 21st birthday (aren't all birthdays 21st birthdays from here on out) gave everybody a reason to congregate late night at Madhatters. It was nice to walk outside sans ear muffs or gloves. Great mix of both 1st and 2nd years and specialization centers. One drink turned into two, two into, well you get the idea. Next thing I know, it is 2:30 A.M. and we are standing in line at Ian's Pizza. Been to Ian's a ton of times and never had to wait more than three minutes. This time the line was out the door and all the way to the corner. That is how many people were out and about.

I am proud that I got to see Paul Robinson (Shannon's husband) partake in Ian's for his first time. He is from London and only recently moved to the States. He could not have had a more American experience than standing in line with a whole bunch of inebriated college kids clamoring Mac N Cheese Pizza or Hamburger and fry pizza. I also think we saw Steve Perry from Journey even though he is dead. Didn't realize that long, feathered hand was making a comeback.

This morning (Sunday) it is back to being cold so it looks like yesterday was a mere mirage, but was totally worth it. If it is warm where you are, enjoy it. If it is not, there is always chance it could be tomorrow so be ready.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 16:25:00 +0000

Jon Jones videographer extradonaire!

So if this brand management thing doesn't work out, Jon has a job as a videographer. He has put together a great video on YouTube from our trip to Turkey.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgpHfKItF2E

I know that most of my blogs on the trip were company visit related so you didn't get my straight opinion on the trip. Here it is...I loved it! Never thought I would go to Turkey in my life and it probably wasn't on my top 20 list of places to visit before I die, but the trip was incredible. Turkey truly is a cradle of history from the early Christian settlements in the middle of the country to the city of Ephesus, which was one of the largest trade ports in the Greek empire. We saw the house where Mary ascended to heaven or died depending on your faith and place wishes on the wishing wall. We ate kebabs and we ate kebabs and we ate a whole fish and we ate kebabs.

We dorked it out and went to hypermarket. Only a group of brand management students would be excited to run around a supermarket for two hours. Al came away with numerous bottles of mustard and Laura bought out the Nestle candy section. I bought a loaf of bread.

I don't know where we are going next year (China/Japan is my choice), but count me in. This is why I am here. I don't do a trip like this if I am in still at my last job. I don't run around a foreign country with 24 of my friends for 10 days if I am still trying to find people work. I would approach my internship and future position in brand management different and probably worse off, if I didn't make this trip. Whatever the cost, it is merely a down payment.

Have a great weekend and enjoy Jon's video. Just think, a year from now you too can have your life put to the music of Celine Dion.

Tea Sugar and Dreams!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 17:06:00 +0000

First day of class or Obama?

So you would think that the first day of classes would be the topic of conversation amongst the students, but alas, it is not. I am sitting in the Plenary Room with 100 students, faculty members, and administrators watching President Obama give his speech. Have to say that I will remember this afternoon for the rest of my life and could not imagine being in another place than right here with my fellow students sharing in this historical event.

Professor Housch even ended our Economics class a little early so that we could see the Inaugural Address. It is nice to know that our professors realize the impact of this event and gave us the opportunity to see it.

I hope wherever you are you realize what is transpiring. Have a great day. Now I will get Ms. Maier a tissue.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 13:15:00 +0000

Day Four: Company Visit Five (Kraft)

Some of us were recovering from our first night out on the town in Istanbul, but everybody made the 8:00 A.M. shuttle to Kraft. Ironically, it is the only company that actually put its name on the outside of the building. Not sure if it is a security risk or what, but I haven't seen an American company put its name on any buildings.

Here is Jessie, Brian, Andi, Joe, and Jon in front of some Kraft advertising. I was disappointed they didn't have Kraft Mac and Cheese for us, but Tang, Patos Critos, and Milka hit the spot.

While we liked the chocolate at Nestle, I think Kraft won us over in the food category, but not in a category you would expect. Kraft doesn't really compete in the U.S. in the salty snack category, but that is the primary driver of Kraft Turkey. They have two products--Patos (essentially Doritos, but Doritos actually competes in Turkey) and Patos Critos (Buggles, which should be much more popular in the U.S.). I think we went through about 10 bags during the morning.

When you think of potato chips in the U.S., you think of eating them for lunch or grabbing them from a gas station on a long drive (Cheetos Corrine?). However, in Turkey, potato chips are typically consumed when watching television in the evenings. Chips are meant to be shared with friends and family. Turks snack, but on fruits and nuts, not chips. So introducing salty snacks is a bit of a challenge. First thing they did was combine both products under the Patos brand name. Seems pretty simple, but when you think of how much you have to change--packaging, advertising, displays, sales material--it is pretty difficult. The other thought was that they could work together as opposed to being competing products. The question though is who will consume the product.

So where did Kraft go? College kids. They created an entire campaign for Patos Critos based on the fun of consuming the 3D chips. They rolled out a significant sampling program at 20 universities across the country. They sponsored concerts and sporting events. The results were phenomenal. They grew market share from 2% to 8% in six months and even grew the Patos brand by 3%.

Kraft also did a good of explaining Turkish advertising to us. While the country is 97% Muslim and more conservative than the U.S., TV advertising is more risque and requires comedy to make an impact. Literally every commercial on TV has some comedic aspect. Here is the current Patos Critos ad running in Turkey. Yes, they did that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu4MYyAx1oA

Funny thing is that Kraft corporate initally said no. They thought it would not play well because it was too controversial. However, the ad agency and the Turkey management team petitioned headquarters and were able to run this ad, which was moderately scaled down from its initial cut. This ad even won an award for innovation within Kraft Europe. Here is another new ad for a Patos Critos line extension.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sL-leznbnoE&feature=related

Patos Critos saved Sennai as I don't think he had eaten for three days. Turkish food was not up his alley. Seriously, who doesn't like fish served with its head and tail still on? Jessie?

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 12:31:00 +0000

Day Three: Two for one (Part 2)

After lunch with J&J, we headed to Nestle's office. Out of all of the companies, we visited, I would say that Nestle had the most American style layout with open concept offices. Nestle took us through two case studies of product launches within Turkey. The first focused on NesCafe. Let me step back for a second. NesCafe is a huge product internationally, but is relatively small in the U.S. as Americans still like roast/ground coffee over instant.

Laura Hufschmidt and the Nestle team

Turkey is a tea drinking culutre. The numbers are pretty stupid. An average Turk will drink between 2000 and 3000 cups oif tea a year. They will drink only 55 cups of coffee a year. Coffee is primarily consumed after meals for celebratory purposes or with a group. Individual consumption is small. With that said, Turks know how to make a cup of tea (how much sugar and cream to add), but were unsure about coffee, which prevented many from even trying it.

To overcome this, NesCafe came up with the 3 in 1 concept, which combined coffee, sugar, and cream in powder form into individual size servings. Essentially, take hot water, add 3 in 1, and boom, you got yourself coffee. This product doesn't exist in the U.S. Closest thing we got to this is hot chocolate. Nestle rolled out three different types--Regular, Mild, and Strong. It took the market by storm and created a whole new category. As with everything in Turkey, the competition immediately copied it and rolled out an almost identical product. The competition took it one step further and started to offer flavored coffees. In the U.S., this would have made complete sense, but Nestle didn't think it would catch on. However, it did and Nestle was suddenly the second mover.

Here is Terry, Katie, and Mark showing the three NesCafe products. Looks like Mark has had about four already and Katie wishes they had given us the coffee an hour ago.

The lesson here is that you can't rest on your laurels. You must continue to innovate and stay ahead of the competition. Creating a category is not enough. Nestle is in the process of introducing a whole new marketing campaign for the 3 in 1 products and their new product--2 in 1 (no sugar). Wish I could find the new ads as there is a crazy moustache on it, but I can't seem to find it.

Something that we didn't talk about at Nestle, but wish we would have is their Maggi Mashed Potato Machine. Here is a picture.

Yep, sitting right next to the coffee machine is this device that dispenses instant mashed potatoes because there is apparently a need for mashed potatoes on the go. Did we try it? You know we did. Verdict--suprisingly good and could easily be tempted to consume mashed potatoes on the go. Now, we never saw this machine in any store, but it is only a matter of time when you are sitting on technology like this.

Yes, I will take a NesCafe 3 in 1 and a cup of mashed potatoes....tea sugar and dreams (inside joke, sorry).

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 12:02:00 +0000

Day Three: Two for one (Part 1)

If we didn't think we were tired going into day three, we surely knew by the end of the day we were in a foreign country. We were scheduled to meet with not one, but two companies--Johnson & Johnson and Nestle. J&J made a fantastic presentation as half of the presentation was dedicated to the Turkish culture and business philosophy and the other half focussed on their roll out of Johnson Baby's Bedtime product.

Most shocking revelations about the Turkish culture:

Over 70% of the country is under the age of 40

Average Turk brushes their teeth and showers 1.5 times per week

17th largest country by pop., but 67th in GDP per capita

75% of the retail channels are comprised of stores with less than 50 sq. ft.

42% of an average grocery bill is spent on tobacco products--primarily cigarettes

"Dude John...man....you are like totally on it."--KMC

This provides you with some insight into the challenges that companies face when marketing products to the Turkish population. J&J had a similar story to P&G in that brand building was not the primary concern--educating the customer is the primary concern. In the U.S. we take for granted the process of giving a baby a bath. However, Turkish mothers have a process all their own and the use of product is not typically considered--most use a very standard baby shampoo for all cleaning purposes. However, J&J is trying to roll out the Johnson's Bedtime product, which is to be applied after a bath to help the baby have a peaceful night sleep.

The problem was that mothers did not see a use for the product and could not figure out when they were suppose to use it. So instead of focusing its communication on the emotional benefits of the product, they designed a campaign around how and when to use the product. J&J scientists came up with the Bedtime sleep method for helping a baby get a good night's sleep.

1. Give baby a warm bath.

2. Gently massage the baby.

3. Apply Johnson's Bedtime before putting to bed.

Side note...I think some people on the trip tried this method to overcome jet lag. Can't confirm, but the next day everybody seemed to be in a much better mood. Question is who performed step 2? Jury is still out.

I found this interesting as it seems elementary. However, the same process has been used to educate the consumers on dental hygeine--how to brush you teeth is on the packaging of both toothbrushes and toothpaste.

Lesson is that you can't take for granted that your consumer will know how and when to use the product. J&J also designed a huge promotional campaign using the Turkish Oprah (not what you would imagine, think Mexican telenovela style actress). They were also bundling their products together to give mothers an entire bath/bedtime solution.

To top it off, they took us to lunch, which is always appreciated. It seemed like eight courses, but it was great and I would say that most thought it was one of the best meals of the trip. Best part was the brown sugar cake filled with ice cream--unbelievable.

One quick point--J&J in the U.S. talks about their Credo all of the time, but it didn't really sink in until you walk into their office in Turkey and the first thing you see on the wall is the Credo in both English and Turkish.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 11:46:00 +0000

Day Two: Procter and Gamble Visit

Day two in Istanbul was a jam-packed day. We did have our first jetlag related casualty—me. The alarm I set on my TV didn’t go off and the wake-up call never came so when we were suppose to meet in the lobby at 8:30 A.M. for departure, I was sound asleep in bed. Thankfully, Carrie had a heart and Jon gave me a call as I was only 10 minutes late. Not my best day.

We hit up the Spice Bizarre in the morning for an hour and a half of negotiating with local vendors for trinkets and such. The 2nd years were able to put their negotiations class skills to good use and Ben Lawnicki came away with a haul in the spice department. The Bizarre (yes, they actually call it a bizarre) was followed by a boat cruise on the Bosphorous River, which runs through Istanbul. If you don’t know, Istanbul is the only city in the world that straddles two continents—Europe and Asia. The Bosphorous is the dividing line so we were literally sailing between two continents. The weather was not the best—cold and rainy—but it was fun nevertheless. The P&G Turkey management team

Visiting P&G took us to Asia for the first time and what looks to be the commercial and financial capital of Istanbul. P&G rolled out the red carpet and we were given access to the General Manager over CEEMEA (Central Eastern Europe Middle East Africa), which runs from Russia to South Africa if you can grasp how big that is and the Director of Marketing, the Director of Finance, and the Director of Customer Business Development for the region. They were able to discuss not only Turkey, but the entire region, which was very interesting. In the U.S., P&G manages a ton (that is for you Amy) of brands, while Turkey has only 10. The majority of the brands are marketed under local names (for example, Crest is Ipana) because they bought local companies.

However, P&G rolled out two new brands to Turkey in the last year under their American names—Head and Shoulders and Olay. In the U.S., shampoo products typically focus on both the emotional and functional benefits of products and primarily for women, it is the color, appearance, feel, texture of the hair. However, in Turkey that is not the main concern, which is why Head and Shoulders, which specializes in dandruff prevention was chosen. Since so many women where head scarves, appearance is not a major concern for consumers, but function is.

I guess the major takeaway for me was that you really must identify your consumers’ needs. It seems like a lot of American companies in Turkey try to use the same messages that are used in Europe, but the consumers are very different.

I know this is long so I will finish up. Dinner that was night an interesting experience. After two consecutive meals of kebobs or kebaps (didn’t realize you spelled it was a p until I got here), we went for seafood, which would be fairly harmless. Except, the fish was served whole—head and tail on, bones in. For the 26 of us, I think this was a new experience for at least 20 including yours truly. But it gets better, a belly dancer (which is questionable, but that is another story) worked, I mean worked, the table. Every male had the pleasure or horror of receiving her undivided attention for 30 seconds. She would not leave until everybody paid her, well except one. She would not except coins so Joe Worley was out of look. She was a cash business. I guess that is a little piece of knowledge you can drop the next time you are in Turkey.

At least Brian didn't ask for change.

Here’s to trashy belly dancers and random ship salesmen….cheers!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 15:22:00 +0000

Kimberly Clark Visit to Turkey

The very first thing we did upon arriving in Istanbul was meet with Peter Melville, Marketing Director for Kimberly Clark Turkey. He did a fantastic job of giving us KC’s current situation on the ground in Turkey before taking us through two case studies—1) Huggies and 2) Kotex.
Granted, diapers and feminine hygiene are not the most exciting topics, Peter did a great job of relating the marketing issues each brand focused and how they were able to overcome each. In Huggies case, they faced tremendous competition from U.S. heavyweight P&G (using Prima, which is actually Pampers) and Turkish manufacturer Hyaht. What was most interesting was that KC Turkey is implementing a similar branding strategy as the U.S. focusing on fit and the emotional connection between mother and child. Seems pretty simple, but all of the Turkish diapers adds focus on happy babies doing silly things. It is also very popular for the babies to sing a song in ads. KC is the newest competitor in the market, but has managed to gain a 7% share in two years and is quickly moving towards 10%.

Kotex had a whole different set of problems. First, tampon use in Turkey is extremely small, primarily driven by the strong influence of Islam (97% of the country is Muslim). Apparently, tampon use leads to girls losing their virginity—if only that was the case. Without tampons, Kotex must focus on the maxi pad and liner markets. They are focusing their communications towards comfort and hygiene, which is currently not considered in feminine hygiene purchases. Similar to Huggies, Kotex is incorporating a lot of the U.S. communication strategy focusing on PR, online promotions, and sampling.

Mariah Kottke (2nd year), Peter Melville (KC Turkey Dir. of Marketing) and Ben Lawnicki (2nd year) Both Mariah and Ben interned at KC last summer and will start full-time in July

Now I mentioned in an earlier post about cartoon pop star Kita. I can’t go into too much detail, but what I can say is that we got see her video release with Turkish pop star Keremcem (that is a male if the name didn’t give it away) during our visit with KC. The question I pose is what if a consumer goods company could create its own celebrity? Think about the ramifications of being able to control, Miley Cyrus per se. The results could be amazing. What would the downside be? Fan pushback maybe, or it could fail. Just ponder it because come June we might have an answer.

Here is Kita’s video for your viewing pleasure…(scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the video, it is in Turkish so be prepared).

http://www.vaziyet.net/tag/keremcem-video-izle/

Here is Kotex's website in Turkey. Let me know if you see something familiar...

http://www.kotex.com.tr/

Only marketers would notice this stuff.

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Gore) — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 22:28:00 +0000

Sorry....

I know that I said I would get something up about our first visit with Kimberly Clark, but when I say we have been busy, that would be the understatement of the century.

Quick thoughts on today and I will try to backfill later:

We are in the Cappadocia region of Turkey...haven't you heard of it. Would not say it is the garden spot of Turkey, but it is very significant historically. The weather is chilly and the buildings are not much warmer. We have been flying through cash at all of the stops we have made. I think Kari Caesar has about 18 pashminas and has managed to come away with something at every stop. Michael Kirtman is already decorating the new house he hasn't bought yet.

I do have to give props to the group for not buying any rugs, but they were tempting. This evening we attended the Turkish Medieval Times--called Turkish Nights. Only thing we didn't have was paper crowns and a raven. Four of our group members--Matt Odigie, Michelle Prager, Kari Caesar, and Jamel Tingman--were invited to learn to belly dance. All did an admirable job, but one person took the cake--Jamel. I would show pictures, but I am not sure they are school appropriate. I will say this, I don't think any of us knew how ripped Jamel really was.

Other observations about the evening:

Greg Rose completely surprised the group with his dancing ability.
Turkish Nights has only one pop song it is allowed to play. Ask Amy Maier for a playback.
The Turks really like their bread.
Our hotel--where the rooms are caves, seriously--is in the middle of nowhere. I am not sure this place is on the map.

Hopefully Sedat (our tour guide) gets some sleep tonight as I think he has a little too much fun at Turkish Nights. I will try to get to the important marketing related stuff as we gathered some fantastic insight and had incredible company visits. The inside jokes and random occurences are just too funny to not write down.

Cheers....very nice!