Lively Holiday Cups!

Everyone LOVES when the holiday season rolls around and Starbucks finally ditches their regular coffee cups. Whether customers flock to the coffee shop for the holiday inspired lattes or for the cheerful red cups is up for debate. It seems to me that coffee just tastes better when it comes in a red cup with pictures of snowflakes or christmas trees.... but that's just me. My Starbucks holiday drink of choice is the Peppermint Mocha... I look forward to it every year! I also end up getting Starbucks 10 times more often... TEEHEE! 

This year, however, Starbucks holiday cups are even MORE awesome.

They're interactive!

Everyone has an iPhone or Droid (poor Blackberry), and Starbucks is using this technology trend to its advantage. In November, Starbucks launched an innovative augmented reality app, called Cup Magic, which lets customers animate their coffee cups with their smartphones! By pointing the phone's camera at the holiday cups (and other select Starbucks products) the app brings the characters to life! The engaging app highlights 5 holiday characters: an ice skater, a squirrel (Don't they hibernate during the holiday season?), a boy, a sledding dog, and a fox. 

The following video explains it all. Check it out.

The app also includes traditional and social sharing tools -- Duh. They'd be silly to forget social media! That's not all -- apparently there is also a prize at stake... incentivizing consumers to try to animate all 5 characters -- and buy more coffee!

There's still time to download the app and get your hands on those red cups! Now... if only I could get my hands on an iPhone...

POGS,

AKtually Ashley

Quotation Rotation 12/24/11

Seeing isn’t believing.

Believing is seeing.

-The Santa Clause

Great quote from my favorite Christmas movie! Happy holidays!

POGS,

AKtually Ashley

Why We Leak Money During The Holidays

The mystery has been solved! I always wondered why my pockets always seem to have holes during the holiday season. I "lose" money like it's my job! Thanks to this article, I found out why! Stores manipulate us, and these 5 tools reveal how they trick us into buying that sweater we never needed... and that ornament... and candy... and those slippers.


Retailers play on consumers' senses to encourage them to buy more, which ultimately helps boost sales. It's a competitive world out there... so I guess I understand why they need to play with our minds to steal our money get our business.


1. The smell of a store can really influence positive consumer perceptions, increase the time spent perusing the merchandise, or make consumers hungry (particularly helpful for stores selling food items).


2. Playing music (mixing holiday jingles into the regular store playlist) may lighten moods, keep consumers in the store longer, and influence purchasing decisions.


3. Free food samples. Obvious and extremely effective. No one turns down food samples! If the product is good, there's a good chance a purchase will follow (even if it originally wasn't on the "to do" list). 


4. A spacious store layout ensures consumers don't get annoyed with the hustle and bustle of crazy holiday shoppers. No one likes to feel claustrophobic while shopping... or get butt-bumped... or have to move every 5 seconds for other shoppers passing through. Similarly, allowing customers to interact with products may help influence purchasing decisions. Free trials, without the inconvenience of some sort of contract, allows consumers to connect with products on a closer level in the store. 


5. Color makes all the difference! I'm not only referring to a red scarf vs. a green one, but also the store's color scheme. Most agree that oranges and reds make customers feel excited, while greens and light blues have calming affects.


SO -- there's 1 more day to Christmas shop (for all you procrastinators), so keep these little tricks in mind in order to manage whatever money you have left! Good luck!


POGS,
AKtually Ashley

Intoxicating Holiday Tree

Lynchburg, Tennessee. This post could end right here... BUT due to a recent holiday and whiskey-fueled event, I will continue! Jack Daniel's has taken its holiday celebrations to a new level in building the Jack Daniel's Holiday Barrel Tree! The tree, made almost entirely out of 187 hand-selected whiskey barrels, stands 26 feet tall in the center of Lynchburg (the whiskey purveyor's hometown).

Now, I know what you're thinking: free whiskey for Lynchburg, TN! No, no. Though the barrel tree was definitely a gift to the town, the whiskey was not included. The barrels were emptied before they were transformed into a sparkling symbol of Jack Daniel's holiday spirit. The whiskey from these barrels was used for the company's specific holiday line called Jack Daniel's Holiday Select, and is said to have the perfect balance of oak and vanilla character. Sounds like the perfect Christmas holiday blend to me!

The Holiday Barrel Tree is part Jack Daniel's larger holiday campaign (created by the ad agency Arnold Worldwide). The campaign includes a TV commercial, an interactive website, and a Facebook game. 

The commercial promotes the whiskey and the barrel tree, and exudes the holiday spirit of gathering together as friends and family.

The Facebook game, Jack Daniel's Barrel Bandits, can be accessed only if you "like" the Jack Daniel's brand page (of course). The premise of the game is to protect the barrel tree by chucking snowballs at bandits (labeled as close friends of yours -- they pull the information from your profile). I'm usually pretty good at computer games (nerdy, I know), but I had some difficulty smashing the bandits with my snowballs. The angels, on the other hand, were snowball magnets. Oops! Needless to say, the barrel tree festivities were spoiled by my criminal friends.

Very modern and beautiful campaign! Jack Daniel's used online marketing perfectly and repurposed content from the actual Holiday Barrel Tree magically. I'm sure they made their hometown proud! Wooden barrels, decked with garland and lights, and topped with a star -- never would have believed something so simple could be so gorgeous!

POGS,

AKtually Ashley

New "New Coke" Crisis?

It all started with Coca-Cola's great idea: This holiday season we should make the cans WHITE to represent our beloved polar bears, which have been the staple of our holiday advertising campaigns for so many years. Unfortunately, Coca-Cola discovered their "great idea" wasn't so fabulous after all... and we all know this was not the company's first experience with failed product (or packaging) launches. 


For the first time in 125 years, the company ditched its classic red can used to signify "Original Coke". The campaign, which launched in October and was supposed to run through March, pledged to raise up to $3 million for the World Wildlife Fund. Clearly, Coca-Cola's "great idea" had deeper significance with meaningful aspirations. The campaign's philanthropic goal to protect endangered polar bears is extremely admirable, but the "disruptive campaign" aimed to grab consumers' attention actually ended up attracting a different sort of recognition.


According to ABC News, consumers complained that Coke's white can was easily confused with the Diet Coke's silver can. Understandable! An honest mistake! Usually the bright red can of Coke is easily distinguished from its low-calorie counterpart. Who cares about a few extra seconds taken to read the label? Consumers! While an accidental purchase of Coke instead of Diet Coke (or vice versa) may be an issue of preference for some, it can be a health risk for others (ex. diabetics) due to the difference in sugar content. 

Photo from The Coca-Cola Company

Additionally, some consumers expressed their discontent on websites like Twitter and YouTube. Various unsatisfied customers claimed the actual soda had a different taste in the white can. DUBIOUS. Either way, no matter the color preference, confusion, or taste issues, Coca-Cola finally realized they made another mistake and had underestimated the importance consumers place on a classic (red) can of Coca-Cola.


As I mentioned before, this is not a new lesson for Coca-Cola. In 1985, the company swapped its classic Coke formula for what they believed would be a more popular, and sweeter,  "New Coke". Their faulty market research resulted in a crisis, filled with boycotts, complaints, and violence (well... not violence, but you get the gist). Coca-Cola's original recipe and its classic red branding create an American symbol that consumers identify with. The same thing goes for Coke's red can! It's evident that consumers are comfortable with what they know (Remember Gap's new logo? It's OK if you don't, it didn't last long). 


A company that relies on brand loyalty should gauge the potential negative effects of making changes (even if it's just the packaging). Its image (physical and perceived) is extremely important to the success of the company, its shareholders, and the overall happiness of its consumers. ABC News makes a good point: "Would the Golden Arches sell as many burgers if they were blue?"


I personally don't drink regular coke (Diet Coke fanatic!), so maybe I don't fully understand, but I thought the white cans were pretty creative (and awesome). They definitely caught my eye. So, Coca-Cola, your marketing tactics were successful for some consumers... just not the ones that would have made your campaign successful.


POGS,
AKtually Ashley

The Holiday Season Has Officially Begun

It's official! The holiday season has arrived! 

How do I know? Because the excessive, beautiful, glamourous, etc. etc. etc. holiday windows in New York City are up once again! Holiday windows happen around the world, but NYC is the city I connect this annual, cheerful tradition. High-end luxury stores like Saks, Bergdorf's, Barneys, and Bendel's, promote their excitement for the upcoming increased sales holidays through various, elaborately-designed windows. This isn't your average "dress up the mannequin in a festive red gown and place it next to an overly-decorated christmas tree" holiday window. This is artwork. A show. A historical event. Each year, stores try to do better than their windows from the past... and of course do WAY better than each other. They strive to be THE BEST holiday window in the city! 


It's extremely hard to choose which window "wins", but Refinery29 has chosen the 7 best holiday windows in NYC. Since I'm currently in Boston, I'll have to take their word for it until I can judge the windows myself. However, I am certain of one thing -- pictures do not do these windows justice.


Here are a few of my favorites:

                     Barneys New York, 660 Madison Avenues (at 61st Street)

Bergdorf Goodman, 754 5th Avenue (at 58th Street)
I love the contrast of colors here.
It really highlights the dress

Bergdorf Goodman, 754 5th Avenue (at 58th Street)

Henry Bendel, 712 5th Avenue (at 56th St)

The Radio City Rockettes were present for the store's

holiday window reveal! The aim of the store's windows

this year is to pay tribute to New York City.

If store windows aren't your thing, what about light shows? Saks Fifth Avenue's annual holiday light show at the 5th Avenue store location is a must-see. This year, Saks teamed up with the agency Iris to create the ultimate, 3D light show that runs for 5 hours every night until January 6th! Did I mention the light show is also accompanied by music? A 3D light show timed perfectly with music on the facade of a building... what's next?!

Just as I said about the holiday windows, it's MUCH better when you see it in person! I'm dying to go!

POGS,

AKtually Ashley