“As DVRs look to climb above 30 million households in the next three years, advertisers are finding themselves forced to reconsider their media mix,” said Josh Bernoff, Vice President of Forrester Research, who presented the survey findings at the ANA Television Advertising Forum in New York. “Television networks continue to publish research that traditional TV advertising is potent as ever, but national advertisers aren’t buying it and are seeking alternatives to enhance their budgets and move them beyond the customary 30-second spot.”

The survey results showed that:

- Almost 70% of advertisers think that DVRs and video-on-demand will reduce or destroy the effectiveness of traditional 30-second commercials.

- When DVRs spread to 30 million homes, close to 60% of advertisers say that they will spend less on conventional TV advertising; of those, 24% will cut their TV budgets by at least 25%.

- While 55% say that their top executives are closely watching changes in TV advertising, most advertisers have not experimented with advertising on DVRs (49%) or video-on-demand (44%).

- Eighty percent of advertisers will spend more of their advertising budget on Web advertising and 68% of advertisers will look to search engine marketing.

- Advertisers are also looking at alternatives to traditional TV advertising and will spend more of their advertising budgets on: branded entertainment within TV programs (61%); TV program sponsorships (55%); interactive advertising during TV programs (48%); online video ads (45%); and product placement (44%).

- 97% of advertisers agree that the TV industry will need new audience metrics – other than reach and frequency – to report commercial ratings, not just program ratings to effectively measure TV advertising.

(Marketing Today, 2010)

Television as we know it changing and this leaves advertisers challenged and having to find new ways of advertising. Advertisers now have to compete more aggressively to be able to be part of the market and attract the right target market. They have to rely on technology and the internet, such as video-advertisements and pop-up advertisements on Google, to get their messages seen and heard. Television still continues to be dominant in the marketing mix but soon advertisers will have to resort to other forms of advertising.

Curriculum Vitae of Miss Laura Trant

1. Reciprocation: a salesman offers you something for free. You then are almost forced to feel guilty and that you now owe the salesman. This urge to repay the salesman leads to you purchasing one of the products offered.

2. Commitment and Consistency: As human beings we are driven to remain consistent in our words, actions and attitudes. Salesmen have picked up on this and try to make you commit to something small, such as answering a questionnaire, and then they continue to build on this commitment and have ever increasing requests.

3. Social Proof: People are constantly looking for reassurance that buying the product or using the service is the best thing to do. Salesmen jump at this opportunity to show you lists of satisfied customers and photographs of happy customers using the product or service.

4. Liking: In order to make saying no almost impossible, like when a friend or family member tries to sell you Tupperware, Salesmen are forming relationships with their customers. They are personal and likable. They tell you a story of something you can relate to and use flattery.

5. Authority: People will always turn to experts before buying a product. Salesmen are providing customers with solid information about their expertise. Or they relate to the customer and show photographs with people who are of authority, to try and persuade the customers to buy the product from an expert.

6. Scarcity: The fear of losing out is more powerful then the hope of gain. Salesmen use this in that they give you a deadline or tell you how quick the product is selling out. This forces the consumer to feel pressured and that if they do not buy the product they are missing out on something that everyone is buying.

Reference:

Rieck, D. Six Ways to Get People to Say “YES” [Online]. Available: http://www.copyblogger.com/get-to-yes/ (17 July 2010)

A few tips on how to develop and improve your personal brand:

1. Branding

In order to get your name out there and for people to recognise what you stand for, you have to understand for yourself what you want your name/ your brand to represent, you have to understand you. Are you a leader, excellent with customers, able to work in a team, efficient and able to meet deadlines? Knowing you as a brand will allow you to differentiate yourself from competitors and project your unique attributes that are more powerful than those merely linked to a job. Once you have established what your brand is, you have to continue building and nurturing your brand you are forever improving, learning and changing.

1. Networking

Networking is a great way to meet people with similar interests and other connections that could help you in the future. Networking is also a great way to connect with relevant editors and conference organisers. You can use such sites as Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace to begin your networking and tell other people who you are as a brand. This is also an easy way for employers to see what your interests are and to communicate and connect with you.

1. Writing

Putting your brand down on a piece of paper, so to speak, is a great way to gain attention and get people to understand your personal brand. Business cards, blogs, and getting an article published are great ways to get people to notice you and for you to speak your mind. This opens doorways to other opportunities that you might not have thought possible.  

1. Speaking

Do not be afraid to speak. Nothing is less appealing than a person unable to communicate and present with and to an audience. Do not be afraid to get your name out there by telling people who you are, where they can find you on the internet, and your ideas. This also gives the feeling that you are social and can get along with people, while also continuously building you as a brand.

Personal branding is unavoidable. People form mental associations with you and label you the moment they meet you. These labels become part of your personal branding. Nowadays using technology can brand you. If you send an email, have a Facebook/Twitter account, a blog, a video resume, these are all ways that you are branding yourself.

The 1980’s book “Positioning: The Battle for your Mind”, by Al Ries and Jack Trout, was the first to introduce the concept of personal branding (also known as self-branding, self-positioning and so on). Nowadays people are constantly using this concept and even the application of their name to a product in order to be successful. For example Paris Hilton’s name has made her a celebrity from the well renowned hotels her family own. Everything that she now endorses has the Hilton name on and is automatically successful. For example her first perfume called “Paris Hilton”.   

There are many important things about personal branding. In particular it is very important in the corporate world, it differentiates you from the masses, and this is particularly useful in applying for a job where every other person has the same qualification, with the same set of skills. Personal branding allows you to gain the competitive advantage and show people and future employers your values and specific skills. Building yourself as a brand allows you to prosper and stand out in the ever changing and developing world of work. With a good personal brand you can create great first impressions, build a reputation that you wish to be known as, create recognition, and even offer more opportunities for you. It shows future employers that you have authority, confidence, skills, and communicates who you are and your uniqueness. It is also useful and important that people can look you up on the internet and only find what you have created and branded as you. This can help people understand who you are, how dedicated you are, you’re skills and abilities, your values, achievements, your capabilities to learn and try new things, and all in all view you as your own personal brand.

Raj Patel was born in Britain but is now an American activist, academic, journalist and writer. He has lived and worked in the United States, Zimbabwe and South Africa. His strong views on the economy and politics have lead to his two successful books: “The Value of Nothing” and “Stuffed and Starved”.

As mentioned in the title, Patel explores how our market society needs to be reviewed and restructured. Raj Patel opens his book with Oscar Wilde’s quote “Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing”, showing nowadays how misplaced our beliefs are, that putting a price on something is a way of valuing the world we live in. In this book, Patel widens one’s view on the damages caused by the free markets on society, politics and the environment.

Patel explains, in the first part of the book, part of the problem in our society are the theories of value from Adam Smith and John Locke, with other adaptations and input from the Chicago School of Economics and other mislead and illogical markets. This has lead to the idea that the earth’s resources are free for anyone to take however there are labour and technology costs for taking these resources. Yet what are the costs of leaving our environment damaged: holes in the earth from mine digging and polluted streams and rivers?

Patel questions the notion of Homo economicus- “a vision of human beings as self-interested utility-maximizers integral to market society’s dollar-valuation of everything”. Through an insightful discussion, Patel explores how through credit-crunch, debt, and the recession, the same market-driven ideas are being applied to everything- from the food crisis to the world’s climate. The major question that must be addressed is: “Why do things cost what they do?” Through forgotten economics and progressive neuroscience, Patel explains that the price we pay for everything- from burgers to missiles- is thoroughly warped and how the poorest people in the world now have to develop rich alternatives to market fundamentalism.

Patel insists that to understand what is happening in the present economy, we have to look at the past and a direct calculation of the flawed ideas of the market principles need to be reviewed. Patel says “What needs to be plucked out of markets, is the perpetual and overriding hunger for expansion and profit that has brought us to the brink of ecological catastrophe; what needs to be plucked out of us is the belief that markets are the only way to value our world.”

This book is very insightful and helps one understand the history of the economy, the present economy, and what changes need to happen in the future economy in order to avoid financial instability and meltdowns. Patel uses his knowledge of the market, as well as theories of others, to understand why our market and economy have hit such a downfall and how the definition of democracy needs to be redefined. Patel states his argument clearly: “Taking what we can from the sociology of the commons, a genuine democracy appears to involve changing the way we relate to the world around us, and moving beyond ownership to stewardship to commoning.”

References:

Patel, R. 2009. The Value of Nothing: How to Reshape Market Society and Redefine Democracy. Portobello Books Ltd: London

Checkers has since then withdrawn their advertisements, from both television and radio, and have not broadcasted them since March 24 2010. Checkers does however have a new advertising campaign. In their advertisements, Checkers still refer to the recession and how their prices were low enough to stay the same, and as all the other supermarkets are now raising their prices, Checkers prices remain the same, very low. Their slogan, however, has changed. Checkers new slogan is “You could be living better already”.