luke1366-blog

[luke1366-blog]

Aha digital marketing moments

There have been many aha digital moments that have been intriguing to read about. I found the most fascinating information from this class in how each generation responds to advertising in general. Digital marketing is certainly the future, especially for Gen Z and Millennial's. The attention span from Gen X to Gen Z is down to 8 seconds! I think that shows how much information is available in digital format and how quick younger generations can use technology to make decisions. The fact that YouTube and Tik Tok are websites that are favorite for younger generations, the fact that short video advertisements are so popular is fascinating.

Gen Z and Millennial's both value experiences and it is exciting that brick and mortar retail stores have a strong future with this generation. I really enjoy the fact marketers can use digital material to get people into stores and then use in-store digital applications to enhance the customer experience! I utilize this all the time with home improvement stores. Half the time I don’t know exactly what I’m looking for, so it’s nice to research on apps at home. Find the right item and the Home Depot or Lowe’s app will tell you right where it is in the store, as well as offering suggested add-on sales. I think this is so smart! I can see this format working well with retailers for years to come. With how fast technology changes, the competition to create a fun in store experience will be exciting to watch!

[luke1366-blog]

APPS, WHAT’S ON YOUR PHONE?

Wow-I have too many apps to list, but I’ll try and summarize them as best as I can. My cellphone is a work phone, so I try and keep content as organized as possible. My apps fall into the following categories: weather, business and utilities. For work and school, I tend to use iBook’s and Chrome as much as possible. I love the fact I can take documents from my personal or work computer and have them accessible on a mobile device. Some of the social media apps I utilize the most are Facebook, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram. I try to avoid screen time as much as I can, but the screen time widget usually shows a number much higher than it should be :/

Some of the other apps I frequent the most are the following: Maps, notes, GroupMe, Gmail, LinkedIn, and RadarScope. I travel a fair amount for work, so I try and plan my travel strategically based on weather and road conditions. I can’t explain how valuable the 511 apps are for planning safe travel! I don’t use these a ton in the summer but rely on them religiously in the winter. I cover six different states for travel so sometimes focusing on a certain area based on the weather is key to play it safe. I would recommend these to anyone, even if you download your home state. Many of my coworkers have used Waze instead of the Maps app. This has useful information such as where crashes are and where police officers are located (not that anyone is speeding…)

The only paid apps I utilize, and value is RadarScope, which is a weather app. There are obviously many others that are free, but this app has incredible data and tracking for storms. I believe it has a one-time fee of $9.99 and I feel there is value there. Everything else that I have is free. Many of the apps I have on my phone promote advertisements for other companies or premium services if the app is free. One example is Solitaire. Free app for gaming but they promote ad-free options for a charge and other games the company offers for a fee. I don’t spend a ton of time playing games, so I don’t particularly get bothered by these advertisements. Facebook advertisements have really picked up on my timeline and can be perceived as a nuisance from time to time. Overall, apps make our lives so much easier!

[luke1366-blog]

Week Two Blog

Is there a bigger black hole than useful electronic devices? One could spend all their money on cool gadgets to entertain themselves. Thankfully, the iPhone and Android phones can do practically anything. My personal inventory of electronic devices is quite limited, and many of these are hidden from my three kids. My list is quite short, only including an iPhone 10, laptop, family iPad, and a Nintendo Switch, which we will be gifting our oldest children for Christmas (yes, I’ll admit, I like to play it with my spare time too). Electronic devices are great and it’s amazing what will happen with our children’s future. Will textbooks become almost obsolete and will learning change going forward? It’s fascinating to say the least.

As far as social media is concerned, I don’t do much outside of Facebook and Instagram. I try not to fall into the political powers that take over social media but just enjoy it to frankly catch a laugh and connect with friends. My fear regarding social media and the use of smartphones is we lose that all important personal connection and use of human emotions. I feel there is so much value in face-to-face connections and being in-person with those you enjoy. In contrast, I do feel social media connects us all together and the lines of communication are always open. My only hope going forward is people are more concerned with being kind to one another than simply presenting their “best” version of themselves online. I’m probably sounding more like my dad than myself in this blog 😊

There such a great way to connect and learn from one another on electronic devices. Take Concordia for example-many of us are getting a quality education and never stepping foot into a classroom. My first go around in college, I didn’t think it was possible a university could have ¾ of their students in an online format! Crazy to think what will happen going forward. Looking forward to week two with ya’ll!

[luke1366-blog]

Welcome to my Blog

With graduation on the horizon for myself, I cannot help but to be ecstatic. I’ve spent two and a half years to get to this point and have been fortunate to take some quality classes from Concordia. My day-to-day job is a sales manager for a cabinet company, and the business major through Concordia has been a solid fit. With a few extra classes needed, I was able to squeeze in a marketing minor. I’ve worked directly with our marketing department on many occasions and I’m fortunate to have the opportunity to pick up more information on how a company markets themselves. Many of the classes have been fun, but I haven’t looked forward to another class more so than this one. Why? E-Marketing and Social Media is the now (and the future) as it pertains to marketing!

I’m excited for many reasons. How does a company gauge success in this category? How does a company budget their marketing dollars for social media? And how does a company separate itself from competitors within the same industry when everyone is pushing for e-marketing? All these questions I hope to have answered at the end of this seven-week course. In the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, companies jumped on e-business like it was a gold rush but many of them were not profitable. As late as 2003, only 60% of companies were profitable. Jeff Bezos started Amazon in 1995 and did not become profitable until 2001! A company needs to look at all their options and see what the impact will be on each possibility.  Finding out the best option may be the most difficult question of them all.

I’m a big fan of e-marketing and social media. I love the personal interaction with each company and be able to follow content that I’m into. Some may feel the use of their data is an invasion of privacy, but if done right by a company, I feel is a higher level of service. New experiences, products, and services make this current state of marketing the most exciting. I’m excited for this week and to learn more about blogging as well, since this is my first experience 😊