kernk6 - Tumblr blog

[kernk6]

undefined

Is COVID-19, otherwise known as the Corona Virus, a beneficial asset to the streaming industry as a whole?

COVID-19 is a tragedy that is not only plaguing the American People, but the whole world. Within the United States specifically, state governments have been mandating total lockdowns leading to the shutting down of all nonessential businesses and leading to a mass wave of layoffs for citizens across the country. Unable to go to work, school, and most public places, the American people are left locked within their homes, trapped and in fear of catching the virus. Although most companies and industries have taken a massive finical toll due to crash of economy and state lockdowns, those within the streaming industry have a unique opportunity in front of them capture as many people locked in their houses and bored.

Of all the streaming companies, Netflix has easily had the most success of all the streaming companies, as “Tiger King” has become a cultural icon for all ages. Netflix has sparked one of the biggest questions of the decade, “Did Carole Baskins kill her second husband and fed him to Tigers”. By sparking this debate, Netflix been successful in bring in new viewer to view the series so they can weigh in on the subject. The vast majority of American’s that have viewed the series believe that Carole Baskins has killed her husband, fed him to her tigers, and stole his vast fortune. This part of the story alone has compelled many to view the series. Those who do not already have the streaming platform have to then pay for the service so they can see this series sweeping the nation and having everyone continue to ask this huge question. It has even gotten to the point that the sheriff’s office in Florida has opened the cold case of Don Lewis (her second husband), and many have theories that she is responsible for the death.

Netflix’s success comes from a combination of two things. The first is their environmental analysis of strategic uncertainty. Releasing the documentary at the start of this pandemic was the perfect step for Netflix to take. All quarantine, my conversation with people have involved either the virus or Carole Baskins potential involvement in her husband’s disappearance. This quarantine has had both a high impact and high immediacy for all companies in all industries, but Netflix was smart in both their analyze of the situation and execution of their strategy of releasing new content. The second thing that aided in the success of the Tiger King for Netflix was the cultivation of sub-markets within the streaming industry. For a while, Netflix has been producing documentaries and series for their true crime investigation sub-market. The cultivation and targeting of this sub-market helped for it to explode at the start of the pandemic.

The debate of whether or not Carole Baskins killed her husband is the essence of Netflix’s success so far during this pandemic. Although the events have been uncertain, Netflix was smart in putting content into the market that would allow for their consumers to become highly consumed. It is important that other streaming services follow the lead of Netflix and cultivate sub-markets withing their platforms. By doing this, they can work on producing top quality content and continue to grow the streaming industry.

Without a shred of doubt in my mind, I do believe that Carole Baskins fed her husband to tigers.

[kernk6]

To what extend do companies need to monitor and incorporate pop culture into their brands?

Since launching, “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness”, the series has held the number one spot show on Netflix’s platform and has been enjoyed by millions across the country. At the moment, it is hard to get on any social media platform without seeing one or more references to the show. With such great popularity, it is no surprise that companies are trying to get in on this action to help promote their brands and engage with their respective communities. The above article by Ad Age highlights the importance for brands to use relevant pop culture trends to both boost their marketability and stand apart from their competitors.

Regardless of what stage a company or product is in for the product life cycle, the integration of popular pop culture references is important, and it is at its most useful during the growth and maturity stage of the cycle. During the introductory stage of the product life cycle the product or brand is only just getting introduced into the market. The use of pop culture references via social media and integration into the actual product will help compel consumers to purchase the product, as they can easily relate to the reference. During the decline portion of the product life cycle, using pop culture integration can help to further slow the rate of deterioration in terms of sales and revenues. The most important stages for pop culture integration are in the market growth and market maturity stage. In market growth, companies are flooding the industry to try and obtain as much revenue and market share as possible. In order to be successful, it is important that they make a product that they can stand apart from the competition. One industry that is still in the growth stage of the product life cycle is the hard seltzer beverage industry. Anheuser-Busch, the company that produces Natural Light Seltzer, tweeted out the following, “Carole Baskin drinks White Claw”. In an attempt to gain market share, this company used a humorous tweet to attack the top product in the industry. This tweet is funny and will resonate with consumers. Of the four stages, I believe the execution of pop culture integration is most important in the market maturity stage. In this stage, many companies that entered the industry have left and only the top brands remain and are fighting for both market share and revenue. Of the companies that have use Tiger King to promote their brands, my favorite company to execute this in a mature market was Four Loko. Four Loko made a new design for their cans specifically for the show to stand apart from their competition (an image can be found in the article above). In a market where revenues are so heavily fought for, introducing a unique design such as what Four Loko did can help the brand stand apart from the remainder of the competition and gain revenues from consumers, even if it only a one time purchase from someone who do not normally purchase the brand.

Pop culture is involved in a large majority of the American peoples lives. It is important for all companies and brands, regardless of what stage they are in for product life cycle, to integrate pieces of pop culture into their brands. Companies that can successfully do this will help to further their brands and generate more market share and revenue.

[kernk6]

undefined

Are outrageous publicity stunts a viable marketing method to maintain long term success?

From Felix Baumgartner becoming the first person to break the sound barrier for Red Bull to Joe Exotic running for president of the united states and then for governor of Oklahoma, companies are always looking to find ways to stand apart from the rest of their competition. In the short term, I do believe that publicity stunts are an effective way to bring in new business. It allows for interest to build in new customers that have not yet tried a product or service and it allows returning consumers the ability to be reminded of what your company or brand has to offer. Regarding Joe Exotics political career, I view this action purely as a marketing stunt, rather than a serious attempt at a real political run for office. Joe Exotic’s campaign for both governor and president brought about a great deal of content that was shared all across the country. One piece of content ended up on “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” a popular late night television show, only helping to promote the G.W. Zoo brand across the country. As stated above this was a perfect way to generate short term interest as a way to build new customers, as people who have never heard of his establishment were exposed during this time.  

In order for a publicity stunt to be both well executed and well received by perspective and returning customers, it is important that companies preform a thorough customer analysis. Businesses should be looking at their clienteles closely to see who their biggest and most profitable customers are and how this stunt will directly affect the likelihood of purchase after the stunt. When doing this analysis there are two components that are essential: Customer motivation and Unmet needs. In regards to customer motivation, companies need to look and respond to questions such as, “What element of the product or service do customers value most”, “what are the customers objectives and what are they really buying”, and “What changes are occurring in customer motivation and customer priorities”. Specifically for Joe Exotic, his consumers are looking for a show and something that will keep them entertained. The videos produced for Joe’s campaign helped to give his consumers a small taste of what the G.W. Zoo has to offer. This stunt was effective in further making potential consumes want to visit the park. Additionally, when preforming a customer analysis, it is important to look at unmet needs of consumers. The question, “Why are some customers changing brands or suppliers” can be applied to this specific example. Americans are always looking for the next coolest thing that they can experience. G.W. Zoo can fulfill that unmet need by providing an entertaining and thrilling experience by experiencing actual big cats in real life.

Overall, in the short-term, publicity stunts are an effective marketing tool that can be used to bring in new revenues. They are most effective during the actual time of the event, but as time goes on, people tend to forget about the stunt. If an event or stunt is to repeated several times over the year, it may help to better increase long-term revenues, but one time stunts can only have a short term impact on revenues and brand success.

[kernk6]

undefined

When discussing modern marketing, the conversation would be incomplete if digital market and search engine optimization (SEO) were not involved. Per day, there are over 3.5 billion unique searches on Google per day and about 1.2 trillion unique searches through this platform per year. Google alone has a near monopoly in the search engine industry as they have 90.46% of the total search engine market share worldwide. With all of these unique searches happening all at once, it can be a highly powerful asset for companies to be ranked number one within their industry when searched. Being the top organic search result can be important for a lot of companies, because this is free advertising that they do not need to pay for. Additionally, being the top ranked search result on the first page, give companies access to more potential customers, as searchers are more likely to click on the top ranked search result. Most individuals will not look past the first several organically ranked searches and even more people will not venture onto the second page of search results, meaning companies unable to achieve higher rankings will lose out on many potential customers.

In the clip above, although it is briefly talking about the power of SEO in relation to the big cat zoo industry within America, there are also connections that can be made to various models used withing the marketing industry. One model that I think is subtly highlighted is Michael Porter’s model of competitive advantage. More specifically, the above clip highlights the importance that search engines offer in terms of both “competition among existing firms” and “threat of substitute products. Specifically, in relation to the clip Carol Baskin’s big tiger sanctuary, Big Cat Rescue, was consistently ranking number one for searches in relation to the exotic zoo industry. This means that Joe Exotic’s zoo, Greater Wynnewood (G.W.) Zoo, would always be looked at second to the top organic search result. For Big Cat Rescue, SEO is a big competitive advantage for them, as consumers will be more informed on that zoo before they have a chance to read about any of the other exotic animal zoos. Finding ways to stay ahead of competitors within your industry is crucial, and SEO is another tool that can be used to do this. Furthermore, SEO allows for consumers to be shown substitute to what they may be looking for. In the above example, if the searcher was looking specifically for Big Cat or exotic animal zoos, Big Cat Rescue would be the top choice. There may be some consumers; however, looking for aquariums or other animal experiences. In generalized searches, being the top search allows for a better edge over substitute products that may be one the market. SEO for companies as they work to maintain standing within their own industries as well as to keep their standing against substitute products.