Bonus Survey

Please take a few minutes to complete the linked survey (http://kochdata.ba.ttu.edu/ss/wsb.dll/rjillapalli/teach.htm). If you complete the survey, you will receive 10 bonus points for Marketing 3352. The survey closes on April 2 at 7 p.m.

Disposable Consumption

Apple has come under attack by consumer groups for the environmental damage caused by users throwing away their Apple computers. Why single out Apple? Why not Dell or Hewlett Packard, whose innards cause as much environmental damage as Apple? Does it stem from Apple’s association with Al Gore as Leander Kahney suggests? How should users dispose of their personal technology once it is obsolete?

Blowing in the Wind

Community based web sites appear to proliferate like so many dandelions in the yard. As venture capitalists and now corporate money blows over the field, ever more community based web sites sprout. If you have not gotten your MySpace page up or linked in on Facebook, do not worry because a new community based web site for Tech students has taken root.

Change of Deadline

The deadline for completing your comments for the customer behavior blog has been changed. Instead of April 6 as previously posted, the deadline is April 20. The follow up survey about the blog and the online quiz will be distributed shortly after the April 20 deadline.

Bite Size Media Consumption

A recent survey said that 45 percent of New York University students rely on blogs as a source of information This response comes as a bit of surprise considering NYU’s calling card program is in journalism. Newspapers’ overall penetration of American households has been declining for the past 30 years. Broadcast television executives consider any show that grabs 14 million viewers a breakout hit. Twenty years ago, those same executives would cancel the same show with the same 14 million viewers. Media diaries show consumption patterns that mirror these patterns. Is there really a change in consumption patterns? Do Americans consume more media, or do Americans consume media differently?

Customers Wanted V: A Tale of Two Car Companies

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us…

Charles Dickens wrote his now famous introduction to describe Paris before the French Revolution. The Victorian period writer’s quote appears quite applicable to Volkswagen Group, which builds and markets among several brands, Volkswagen and Audi.

Daylight Savings Starts Sunday

Thanks to an act of Congress, daylight savings time starts Sunday, Mar. 11. Please, do not forget to set your clocks one hour ahead. What will you do with an extra hour of daylight in the evening hours?

Lubbock’s Heart Condition

For this posting, assume your efforts to change attitudes about alternate forms of transportation were successful. With a change in attitude came a change in behavior. Further assume for this posting that, thanks to your marketing campaign, one out of two Lubbock residents switched from driving alone in a personal car to car pooling, biking, riding a motorcycle or scooter, taking the bus, etc. What would be the effect on Lubbock’s economy? How would the city look, feel, and sound different?

Problem Picture

Does anyone see a problem from this Chevrolet print advertistement?

Brewing a Cup of Problems

A memo written by Starbucks chairman Howard Schultz wondered about the possible loss of the Starbucks essence. Yes, machines make the coffee brewing process more efficient. Schultz concedes that Starbucks may have given up effectiveness, or value, to gain efficiency, or reduction in cost. In turn, customers no longer get the true Starbucks experience.