Indoctrinated by Starbucks Coffee and the love of fine things, Trader Joe's (fondly named TJ's by some locals) has gained a solid reputation for providing the middle class consumer with adventurous products sometimes considered luxuries by most who I think may not hold corporate, stereotypical Silicon Valley jobs.
I got to thinking recently about the possible correlation between sugar/caffeine and impulse buying. I read an article somewhere that has gotten lost now in the massive spider webs of the internet that mentioned that Christmas shoppers were more likely to spend money if they had consumed something containing sugar, like candy canes, hot chocolate or mochas. 
Did you know that Trader Joe's offers free coffee and orange juice while you shop in their grocery store? They do this on a regular basis and let's face it, we all know what orange juice tastes like. It's more of a service to customers that they provide and they attract you to the sampling counter with some yummy new goodies to try. And if you're hungry, samples whet your appetite and increase your impulse to buy things you don't need.
But if you think about it--and if the likelihood that people buy more when they have something sweet in them is true, then TJ's has a good strategy going.
Same goes for your local Starbucks or Peet's Coffee and Tea, although just from working as a barista, I know that many people don't buy products beyond coffee and tea so much because the pricing is way too high for this middle-class market that perceives $3 as a good deal and doesn't realize how much they are spending in a month as a daily latte drinker.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Never a Trader Joe's that Tastes as Sweet
Thursday, January 10, 2008
French Drama
Wow...not much else to say that it's been said that the Sarkozy divorce was one of the more open stories of human relationship in politics.
On Yahoo! Buzz today, rumor has it that Sarkozy has a mistress that may have had something to do with the divorce.
It just goes to show that everyone is human and people like stories about human conflict, especially if they can relate. Not sure how this would affect Sarkozy's rating as president though...
Murdoch Shackles Media
On Mashable.com today, blogger Paul Glazowski discusses Murdoch's business strategy and how Murdoch attempts to revamp the Wall Street Journal in the coming months.
I say pony up, Murdoch. Quit stalling. Just give us the stories, and stop asking for our credit card info when registering accounts. Yes, we know, you like making the most money you can. But as we all know, news on the Net is now news without fees. Give in, dude. Now. Or at least soon. There’s simply no point in holding out any longer.
Well, the internet is definitely taking over the media and a lot of paper-based models, like the Wall Street Journal, are going to have to ways to cope. Certainly, a lot of odd-ball pricing models are going to make their way out especially if media companies want to try to avoid the advertising revenue stream as their main pricing strategy.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Get on the Ski Bus, Gus
Yesterday, I talked about the importance of authenticity in business relationships, which aren't as casual as with your friends, where you can wear what you want and they probably follow the same fashion trends (or lack thereof).
Well, friends are part of your network, too. Yesterday I got into this referral program for a ski bus that takes you to Lake Tahoe and back all in one day. It got me thinking about how smart these ski bus people are. They combined some really important elements of referral marketing (sometimes negatively called the pyramid scheme) and utilized secondary relationships through their ski bus members.
To be more specific, the ski bus solves time, money and efficiency problems that alpine lovers hate. Normally, I don't get suckered in to the things like this but money is an issue and I don't want to sacrifice the snow season either. Here's an imagined conversation with said ski bus company.
Me: I am a snowboarder and I have friends who snowboard. We carpool together and share motel rooms and we've done the whole quick, dirty, cheap snowboarding trip thing. It's not that great, because we spend our first day of the weekend driving! This is why: Driver A thinks it sucks because he has to stay awake while everybody is napping. Then, we stop on the side of the road for gas, and Driver A switches with Driver B so that Driver A can take a nap. Then somebody absolutely has to go to the bathroom, especially the girls who have small bladders, and another wants a snack from the 7-11. We spend more time driving than snowboarding!
Ski bus says:No problem. We'll hire someone to drive, have no stops, keep a lavatory on the bus for emergencies and everybody can take a nap on the way to the slopes.
Me: I just updated all my gear--boots, bindings and board. I don't want to pay for a lift ticket and your bus ride. It sounds like it will be more expensive.
Ski bus says:: You can ride our bus for the same price as a lift ticket with transportation included, because we reduce our costs by not advertising. Instead, what about YOU do our marketing for us? Tell your friends about us and we will give them SKIBUS dollar discounts if they sign up and also, you'll get more discounts if they tell their friends.
Me: Yeah, I would totally refer my friends because I will do anything not to pay my entire year's salary just to have some fun and I know my friends don't want to pay huge amounts either. Not only that, but I'll keep using this service since I get discounts through them and don't spend all my time trying to drive up to Tahoe.
***
The only thing that is a bit annoying about this site is that they have an e-mail address called "typos at skibus dot com" because who ever is doing their copy doesn't know how to spellcheck their work. They know that us snow people are the types who say "Will do anything for snowboarding/skiing" and they really employ high level participation to the max. I mean, typos--that's not our job to notice things like that. It's yours.
If you want a $5 discount to go snowboarding, just comment to let me know. Like I said, if it works on me, it'll work on any ski bunny. OK, I admit, it is a sort of plug for said ski bus but think of it more as me glowing in admiration.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Relationship Marketing
I heard the oddest piece of advice yesterday in regards to office politics. The advice was: "Don't worry about it." It was an awfully simple thing to say but perhaps the most true.
There should be a large distinction between using tact in your business relationships and worrying too much about your reputation because the latter can create too much distance and perhaps mar the quality of those relationships. Too often, we think too much about the money at stake and this can create barriers in developing strong, authentic relationships that build for example, your customers' loyalty to you and your brand.
The same goes for networks. If you're at a networking event, it's better to stay positive, exhibit confidence and show interest in both your specialty and shared interests with your counterparts. In other words, be your best self and don't worry so much about what other people think.
I've been thinking a lot about this lately because when I was in Montréal, Quebec, people in general seemed to converse more naturally than we do in Silicon Valley. They are less distracted by Blackberrys and a glass of wine and good food is enough to inspire conversation. Again, I know I am generalizing, but what I've learned from Montrealites is that they don't acknowledge you as a business contact or a social contact but simply they acknowledge you as a person and stay self aware of the subjects of conversation.
Before I start to lose focus on all this, it is food for thought. We have a lot to learn from a traditional culture that still values face-to-face communication and interaction. When things revolve around money and politics, the world gets to be quite odd. So maybe that is why art and humanities exist in the world--so we can remember we are human beings after all.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Ocean's Twelve in the Office
Here's a perspective on Ocean's Twelve that got me really excited. I'm not sure if the screenwriters meant to write it as an office culture and interpersonal dynamics sort of movie, but it's a cool twist on a conventional action/thievery film. Some say that Ocean's Twelve abides by the "Sequels usually suck" principle but I disagree.
Maybe it's more obvious for anyone who has worked a full time office job. George Clooney and Brad Pitt did an awesome job of playing two company CEOs of a professional thievery consultancy but really the thievery could be a metaphor for any company since we're all rooting for Ocean's Twelve when we watch it. You've got all the aspects of business involved.
Barriers to Entry: Catherine Zeta-Jones is the talented detective Lahiri who wants to prevent Ocean's Eleven from succeeding at their task
Competition: Thanks to the talented and arrogant young thief, Francois Toulour, Ocean's Eleven can't get to their objective without Toulour attempting to get at it first.
Partners: You've got your business partners, and in this case one guy who makes their holographic egg.
Stakeholders: Terry Benedict plays the sinister stakeholder who wants his money and fast, so he is as invested in Ocean's Eleven's success as much as they are although their motivations are different.
International relations: There's international business travel, Shen as a rather talented business consultant, and the scene itself in Italy and France. Also, they know a ton of people, have a huge network and worry about their reputations so that they can continue working in the business.
Rookie/Entry-level thief:
My favorite one is the portrayal of Linus Caldwell, the rookie. He's new to the game, wants to play a larger role, stammers when he begs Rusty Ryan for more responsibility. He's got the skills, the motivation and a new-generation respect for morality. It's so comforting to get to know Linus in Ocean's Twelve, because I can relate to him and know that anyone in business is going to be embarrassed once in a while. I loved one of the beginning scenes where they meet Matsui for a job because it is so true: when you go to a business meeting for at least the first few times, everyone else might as well be speaking a different language. That changes, of course, once the rookie is acclimated to the industry language. The movie is awesome and great inspiration on how to run a good business, but mind you, Hollywood is the only place where they can use thievery as a metaphor for corporations.
I'll post a few lines of the movie soon that really hint at the business culture slant of this film.
