Dan Ross
http://danross.info/
Showing posts with label branding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label branding. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Ed hardy past hip now?
When Ed Hardy sweatshirts are found at Sams club they are clearly no longer "exclusive." Does this damage the brand name due to the retailer selling them and making the product affordable ? Is exclusivity part of the brand? I think so but what are your thoughts?
Dan Ross
http://danross.info/
Dan Ross
http://danross.info/
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Starbucks failing forward? A busted business decision?
Tonight, while coming home at 9:20 p.m., I stopped at a Starbucks with my girlfriend and noticed a car in drive thru, lights out at the store and workers walking out the front doors at the same time. Since we wanted to stop for a hot coffee & hot chocolate to enjoy while watching some rental movies we decided to go to McDonalds and enjoyed lower prices (reasonable) and a good product. Now, in our opinion, McDonalds is a more viable option as we had a pleasant experience with their hours/product and it was cheaper to boot! Starbucks new hours encourages people to try McDonald's McCafe coffees. I believe other consumers will agree with us on this.
Has Starbucks strayed from the image of their brand as a consumer friendly coffee hangout to one of "corporate coffee?" Will they end up with a new brand image and just be relegated to "that expensive coffee store" and will their brand get re-shaped by the competition via press/P.R./buzz. So far I haven't seen a big negative effect but I think there should be a high degree of concern.
The reason Starbucks ran into problems was due to cannibalizing sales from other stores, ridiculous overexpansion, not measuring store profitability, etc.
Longer hours may have hurt profitability but it helped them connect with their customers, some of whom read books, met with friends, etc. Now Starbucks is playing defense. They are no longer the hunter; they have become the prey. Customers are being met by dark stores and late night lattes are no more....Every choice has consequences and I think Starbucks EXTREME focus on profitability may have swung the pendulum too much towards short-term profitability vs. long-term success.
What are your thoughts? Has the profitability pendulum swung too far at Starbucks and have their recent decisions risked future profitability too much? Have they alienated any customers with their hour changes?
Dan Ross
http://www.DanRoss.info
Has Starbucks strayed from the image of their brand as a consumer friendly coffee hangout to one of "corporate coffee?" Will they end up with a new brand image and just be relegated to "that expensive coffee store" and will their brand get re-shaped by the competition via press/P.R./buzz. So far I haven't seen a big negative effect but I think there should be a high degree of concern.
The reason Starbucks ran into problems was due to cannibalizing sales from other stores, ridiculous overexpansion, not measuring store profitability, etc.
Longer hours may have hurt profitability but it helped them connect with their customers, some of whom read books, met with friends, etc. Now Starbucks is playing defense. They are no longer the hunter; they have become the prey. Customers are being met by dark stores and late night lattes are no more....Every choice has consequences and I think Starbucks EXTREME focus on profitability may have swung the pendulum too much towards short-term profitability vs. long-term success.
What are your thoughts? Has the profitability pendulum swung too far at Starbucks and have their recent decisions risked future profitability too much? Have they alienated any customers with their hour changes?
Dan Ross
http://www.DanRoss.info
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Brand Bubble + Recent news story on brand name sales
http://www.myfoxdfw.com/myfox/pages/Home/Detail;jsessionid=4E1E77C72548923BC7582A4842D109F8?contentId=7818663&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=1.1.1&sflg=1
1) Don't mess with the toilet paper
2) Double digit growth in store brands vs. name brands
3) Store brands are an average of 46% cheaper
4) Many people are beginning to feel that name brands are "overpriced or overrated." In a declining economy and one where there is abundance of options vs. before have brand margins gotten out of whack with reality?
The authors of recently published book "Brand Bubble" seem to think that tough times are ahead for major brand labels. These folks work for Young & Rubicam, part of the largest ad agency holding company in the world, WPP Group.
Dan Ross
http://www.BetterBizBooks.com
1) Don't mess with the toilet paper
2) Double digit growth in store brands vs. name brands
3) Store brands are an average of 46% cheaper
4) Many people are beginning to feel that name brands are "overpriced or overrated." In a declining economy and one where there is abundance of options vs. before have brand margins gotten out of whack with reality?
The authors of recently published book "Brand Bubble" seem to think that tough times are ahead for major brand labels. These folks work for Young & Rubicam, part of the largest ad agency holding company in the world, WPP Group.
Dan Ross
http://www.BetterBizBooks.com
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Small Business Tips for Success
Learn from Inc 500 companies & Their Tips
Do what you know
No surprise here. Cash is king, ESPECIALLY in today's environment
Management Strategies & Overhead <--key for today's environment.
Differentiate Your Product (key for branding/marketing). Don't be a "me too" company
Dan Ross
http://www.BetterBizBooks.com
Do what you know
No surprise here. Cash is king, ESPECIALLY in today's environment
Management Strategies & Overhead <--key for today's environment.
Differentiate Your Product (key for branding/marketing). Don't be a "me too" company
Dan Ross
http://www.BetterBizBooks.com
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Branding of Presidential Candidates and the Impact
Interesting take from
http://www.thebrandbubble.com/blog
What is interesting about the book is that these guys work for Young and Ribicam Group and have a HUGE vested interest in branding. In an age of overabundance to brand values decline? Do you put as much of a premium on Starbucks vs. McDonalds? I think it is one of a market decline.....
Dan Ross
http://www.BetterBizIdeas.com/
http://www.thebrandbubble.com/blog
What is interesting about the book is that these guys work for Young and Ribicam Group and have a HUGE vested interest in branding. In an age of overabundance to brand values decline? Do you put as much of a premium on Starbucks vs. McDonalds? I think it is one of a market decline.....
Dan Ross
http://www.BetterBizIdeas.com/
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
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