Dae Spradlin

     Distribution: the process of getting your product or service to the consumer. It's usually a pretty straight forward process when it comes to products and tangible goods, but what about when your business is a brick and mortar service? If you manufacture and sell a tangible good, your distribution process can be direct, indirect, or a mixture of both. You can sell directly to your customers over the internet or in your own store front, you can place your products in retail stores, or you can use a combined approach. If you offer a good or service like a restaurant, coffee shop, or salon, however, the distribution process is a little different. Usually your customers have to come to you, so marketing your product in a manner that will make your consumers feel that making an effort to come to your business will be worth it. However; many of these types of businesses like restaurants and florists have taken up deliveries. Is this an effective form of distribution? If ap...

     We all know the slogan "the customer is always right" (thanks Harry Gordon Selfridge), but is that actually the case? There is a fine line between satisfying your consumers and improving customer relations, and then allowing some customers to take advantage of your service. In many cases, if you make right of a wrong, then that will help improve your business's image and improve customer morale. However, if you're too lenient with your customers and give out free services and products like Oprah, then you only end up hurting yourself in the long run. Being a previous employee in the service industry, I saw many instances where orders were made wrong, or they weren't quite what the customer was expecting. In these situations it should be expected for the business to make things right and fix the problem with a smile. This makes the customer happy and will improve their chances of returning. On the other hand, I have also seen many instances where the customer ...

     A couple of years back, I worked as a fashion and editorial model. I used to travel to a lot of big cities like Atlanta, Nashville, and New York to do editorial shoots and runway shows. I worked with a variety of different designers and companies that all had their own vision in mind. As I'm sure you know, there are thousands of girls biting at the bit to get jobs in cities like New York, and a lot of them are willing to do things they may not otherwise do, but they will do it for that opportunity. Models are treated as disposable, so if you say no to something, there is always another girl just waiting to take your place. However, I wasn't someone willing to say yes to everything. I had many designers who wanted me to do shoots in settings or clothing that I found inappropriate. As I was underage at the time, my mom came with me on many of my jobs, so not only was I uncomfortable with some of these situations, so was my mom. When these situations arose, we star...

     We all know about demographics: the more statistical and factual aspects of a population. These include the age, race gender, income, etc. of a group of people. Demographics are extremely important in studying the people in a certain area and helping to determine what products would go over best and how to market them; however, they don't tell you everything you need to know about a population. What they don't tell you is what people's hobbies, interests, and aspirations are. That's where psychographics come in. Psychographics study and help to classify the more individual characteristics of people. This includes anything from peoples everyday lifestyles and hobbies to the genres of music that they enjoy. The reason why psychographics are so important is because while you may have two 40 year old women that both make $40,000 a year, they may or may not have any of the same interests or hobbies. One may enjoy pottery and attending her child's soccer games, and t...

     Sure, most of us have all heard about Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs: physiological, safety, belonging,  self-esteem, and self-actualization needs. Usually we think about it in terms of science and psychology, but we don't normally consider the everyday implications of the theory. In reality it is used everywhere, especially in marketing. That commercial you saw about health insurance? Safety. That Coca-Cola commercial with a group of friends hanging out sharing a drink together? Belonging. The hierarchy of needs falls in, well, a hierarchy where one level can not be addressed unless the prior levels have been satisfied.      The first level is physiological. Those are the fundamental needs that we all have that will keep us alive: food, water, shelter, sleep, etc. These are the needs that we seek to fulfill before anything else. When marketers choose to target this need, they emphasize how important their product or service is to your basic necessi...

Sure, we all have places we have to go out of necessity, like to pay bills or buy gas, but we don't go there because of the friendly service, but instead we just go because we have to. On the other hand, the reason you keep going back to your favorite mom and pop restaurant isn't just because of the great food, but also because of the kind smiles and personal interactions. When you have a business that you frequent for pleasure, such as a restaurant, cafe, pub, etc., the service usually plays a big part in why you continue to go back. More often than not, when you are offered or are giving a restaurant suggestion, you usually mention whether the service was good or bad. That's because in today's service based society, we expect good service, and if we don't receive it, then we won't go back. Bad service results in consumers venting to their friends and associates through their favorite outlet: social media. This can spread like wildfire and result in a drop in t...

In today's market, it's so important to be able set your business apart from your competition. The main way that a lot of businesses do this is not only through product differentiation, but also having a unique brand image. Consumers are no longer interested in the traditional advertisements of the past. They want to see more genuine, relatable content. Some choose to do this through their social media presence or the use of user generated content. Through social media, companies such as Wendy's, Taco Bell, and Denny's have created a sassy, sarcastic image that consumers love. Whenever these brands respond to tweets or comments with a creative response, users are more inclined to share these comments with their peers which is exactly what the brands are aiming for. Interacting with your customer base through social media helps garner a loyal customer base by presenting your brand as more than just a company but also as a "friend." Creating a unique image will ...