Monthly Archives: November 2021

by | Wednesday, November 24, 2021 · 7:40 am

Hertz Bets Big on EVs and Tesla

Has the time for electric vehicles (EV) finally arrived? After all, EV automobiles are not a new concept and have been sold for many years by a number of auto manufacturers. But they have not yet taken off into a mass consumer market.

But now, EV sales are certainly growing with a large purchase of 100,000 Tesla cars by Hertz for a reported price of $4.2 billion. Showing support for the purchase is Uber, which committed to renting up to half of that order for its drivers. Consumers often state that a positive rental experience made them consider purchasing the model as well. The market for Hertz is not only current Tesla owners who want to rent Tesla when they travel, but also consumers who have wanted to test drive an EV Tesla for an extended period of time.

Current global market estimates are that EV market growth will go from roughly $246 billion in 2020 to $1.3 trillion by 2028. The growth is fueled in part by  the requirement to lower carbon emissions, as well as increasing fuel prices. However, a limiting factor is the low number of charging stations; mileage between charges continues to be a factor impacting sales.

A bonus for Tesla (aside from a sticker-price buy) is the advertising that Hertz will do for the rentals. Hertz is planning an advertising campaign with quarterback Tom Brady to promote EV rentals. The company will also install thousands of EV chargers at it locations globally.

Tesla famously does not purchase advertising, instead relying on its store-fronts, word-of-mouth, and the strong social media presence of Elon Musk  who has 54 million followers on Twitter.

Hertz also gains from the deal. It filed for bankruptcy in May 2020, but emerged from bankruptcy a few months ago, just as travel started to grow again in the U.S. After shedding old inventory during bankruptcy, the company is now poised to be one of the newest and most relevant car rental agencies.

Ready to rent?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. View the Hertz news release: https://newsroom.hertz.com/2021-10-25-Hertz-Invests-in-Largest-Electric-Vehicle-Rental-Fleet-and-Partners-with-Seven-Time-Super-Bowl-Champion-Tom-Brady-to-Headline-New-Campaign
  2. A news video is available: https://youtu.be/gr6nLPUqzW0
  3. Discuss how to build and use a SWOT analysis grid: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (internal and external factors).
  4. For Hertz car rentals, break students into teams and have each team build a SWOT analysis grid.
    1. Strengths: What is the company good at?
    1. Weaknesses: What needs work?
    1. Opportunities: What is going on in marketplace?
    1. Threats: What should company be wary of?
  5. You might repeat the SWOT exercise using Tesla. What are the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
  6. Based on the analysis, what are the issues and risks that might occur for Hertz with its purchase of Tesla cars?
  7. Same question for Tesla: What are the issues and risks?

Source: Assoc. Press; CNBC; Fortune Business Insights; New York Times; Tech Crunch; Wall Street Journal; other news sources

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by | Thursday, November 18, 2021 · 7:31 am

2021 Top Global Brands

As marketers, we know that brands influence consumer purchasing decisions. But really, what is a brand? Does a brand have a financial value? Does it drive growth?

These are critical questions that drive the strategic marketing decisions of corporations around the world. In general, marketers define brand as the position that a company/product holds in the minds of the consumers. It follows then that if the brand holds a position in consumers’ minds, then it would definitely translate into a financial value for companies.

Each year, Interbrand does a financial analysis that seeks to define, in dollars, the value of a company’s brand – the result is the annual Best Global Brands ranking. In order to be included in the report:

  • The brand must be global – it must have successfully crossed geographic and cultural boundaries.
  • At least 30% of revenue must come from outside the brand’s home region.
  • The brand must have a significant presence in at Asia, Europe, and North America, as well as geographic coverage in emerging markets.
  • There must be sufficient publicly available data on the brand’s financial performance.
  • Economic profit must be expected to be positive over the longer term, delivering a return above the brand’s cost of capital.
  • The brand must have a public profile and awareness above and beyond its own marketplace.

Interbrand’s brand valuation methodology seeks to determine, in customer and financial terms, the contribution of the brand to the company’s business results. There are three key components in the methodology for the valuations: analyses of the financial performance of the branded products or services, of the role the brand plays in the purchase decision, and of the competitive strength of the brand.

Brands in the top five include Apple (number one for the ninth consecutive year!), Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Samsung. Tech leads the top 10 brands and the top three account for nearly a third of the total value.

Top risers from 2021 are Tesla, Salesforce.com, Nintendo, PayPal, Nike, Zoom and Adobe. Sephora (at number 100) is the only new brand entrant this year.

How many did you correctly guess?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Ask students to define “brand.” What is it? Does it have value to a company?
  2. Have students take out a piece of paper. Ask them to choose what they thing are the top 10 most valuable brands in the world.
  3. Then show the top 10 list from the Global Brand report: https://interbrand.com/best-global-brands/
  4. How many did they get correct? What surprised them?
  5. Show the video explaining the report: https://interbrand.com/best-brands/
  6. Show a video on the methodology used to evaluate brand value: https://youtu.be/tK2ozWQ0HA4
  7. Show students several of the sections within the site and view the videos as a class.
  8. Divide students into teams and assign each team an industry category to examine: automotive, apparel, beverage, electronics, energy, etc.
  9. Have each team present key findings from the industry sector they examined.
  10. How can these findings be applied in marketing strategies?

Source: Interbrand.com; PR Newswire

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by | Sunday, November 14, 2021 · 12:29 pm

Socks are Hot

We long for comfort and style in our dress. Sometimes the stylish fashions are not comfortable, but when it comes to socks, we can have both style and comfort now. Why settle for boring old dark dress socks when you can instead wear vibrant, colorful socks that express your personality and fashion sense?

Indeed, socks are booming right now. As people return to the office (and school), their clothing choices have changed. Comfort is more important the fancy dress. And not only have socks become fashionable, many companies also embrace a social mission with purchases.

For example, companies including Bombas  and London Sock Co. donate socks for every purchase made. Company MERGE4 partnered with the San Diego Zoo on a special edition that gives back to wildlife conservancy. And, Cicada uses its socks to raise awareness of environmental issues such as ocean waste and animal poaching.

Socks are a way to make a statement  without being garish. While these socks are more expensive than the mass-market white athletic socks, they are a low-cost way to stand out.

What’s on your feet?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Ask students to look at their feet. What are their socks? Athletic, dress, fashion?
  2. Show sock websites: Bombas: https://bombas.com/
  3. Cicada: https://www.cicadasocks.com/
  4. London Sock Co: https://www.londonsockcompany.com/
  5. Boardroom Socks: https://boardroomsocks.com/
  6. Merge4Socks: https://merge4.com/
  7. Divide students into teams. Have each team review a different website selling socks as well as the company’s social media presence.
  8. What is the messaging for each company?
  9. How can these sites be differentiated and marketed?
  10. Have each team develop a social media marketing campaign for their company.

Source:  Ad Week; Footwear News

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