Tag Archives: public relations

by | Tuesday, December 26, 2023 · 7:52 am

Tesla Cybertrucks Get Delivered (Finally)

After more than four years since it was first announced, and two years behind the original production schedule, the first dozen or so Tesla Cybertrucks were delivered at a launch event held Nov. 30 in Austin, Texas.

Why is Tesla launching an electric truck? The truck market is considered the most profitable part of the U.S. auto market. The largest manufacturers are Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis (Ram trucks) and all three now have electric trucks of their own on the market. 

How big is the market? These three sold nearly 1.7 million pickup trucks at prices that can reach $100,000. But only two percent of pickups sold in the U.S. were electric, and electric trucks were only 3 percent of the electric vehicle market.

The Cybertruck design is a distinct departure from other trucks; it has a stainless tell body and sharp angles

Even behind schedule and with full production not yet ready to roll, Tesla has more than one million trucks reserved ($100 refundable deposit). However, the original expected price of $39,900 has increased to $69,900 with a top of the line vehicle priced at $99,990. The target market is likely to be well-to-do technology fans and collectors, not fleet operators such as construction companies or businesses that need to modify the truck bed.

Shall we go for a ride?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Show video of delivery event: https://youtu.be/cX58W4_5hmw?si=nGx35Km85ZFJfv85
  2. View Tesla Cybertruck website: https://www.tesla.com/cybertruck
  3. Discuss the importance of clearly defining a target market.
  4. For the Cybertruck product, what is the target market?
  5. Divide students into teams and have each team develop a profile of a target market for Cybertruck. Include demographics, psychographics, behaviors, values, attitudes, etc.
  6. Based on the target market profile, what makes this product unique for these customers?

Source: Ewing, J. (30 November 2023). Pickup or lunar lander? Tesla’s Cybertruck enters a crowded market. New York Times; Kolodny, L. (30 November 2023). Elon Musk hypes Tesla Cybertruck at deliveries event in Austin. CNBC; Krisher, T. (1 December 2023). Tesla delivers first Cybertrucks. Associated Press; other news sources.

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by | Monday, December 11, 2023 · 7:00 am

Rebranding San Francisco

San Francisco’s standing has declined since the pandemic. The city’s problems include homelessness, overt drug use, crime at stores, and homelessness and housing. Speaking of housing, it costs more to build housing in San Francisco than in any other city in California. This definitely impacts relocation and homelessness levels.

These types of issues certainly impact business investment, employment, and tourism. To improve the image, wealthy locals are putting $4 million into a new ad campaign to promote San Francisco’s innovation and creativity. The tag line: “It All Starts Here.” But is this enough to turn around the negative narrative?

One measure to track is tourism. This past August only 69% of the city’s hotel rooms were occupied, compared to 85% during the same period in 2019. Tourism is only one facet though – the campaign also aims to build local support and pride for the city at a time when retailers including Target, Office Depot, and Nordstrom have exited the city as crime at stores has dramatically increased.

Of course advertising and marketing alone can’t save the city. But it can focus the work and remind people of all the great parts of San Francisco and build pride.

What do you think?

 Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Poll students: Who has been to San Francisco? What attributes does it have for travelers? What are the negative aspects?
  2. Show ad and background video: https://youtu.be/fPqbtCiMEtE?si=abvj4mXJ-IkH-o4X
  3. Discuss how marketing can impact a city’s brand. What are the needed elements?
  4. Divide students into teams. Have each team select a town or city for re-branding.
  5. Discuss the various promotional tactics that can be used for rebranding.
  6. Have students come up with tactics and list all the tactics on the white board (ex: billboards, print, direct mail, etc.).
  7. For their town, have each team select three different tactics. For each tactic, explain why it was selected and how it will be used.

Source: Knight, H. (19 October 2023). San Francisco’s brand is in trouble. Can a new ad campaign fix it? New York Times; Knight, H. (27 October 2023). San Francisco has a new slogan, and not everyone is a fan. New York Times; other news sources.

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by | Tuesday, June 27, 2023 · 7:11 am

Culture Wars Impact Retailers

The world can be a tricky place for marketers and brands these days. Cultural differences can cause a big backlash when too many consumers take offense at certain topics that are endorsed by brands. It is a difficult balance that sometimes tips over to the negative.

Recently companies including Walt Disney, Anheuser-Busch, and Target have faced opposition to their support of the gay and trans communities. For example, June is Gay Pride Month and while many consumers and companies (such as Target, Walmart, Kohl’s, and JC Penney) fully support the issue, others may take an opposite view.

Target’s controversy relates to clothing, décor, and other Pride items which it was selling in support of gay and trans-gender rights. While the company has embraced the topic and products for a number of years, this year it went sideways. In some stores customers knocked down displays, threatened store employees, and posted on social media in opposition to the products.  

In response to the controversy, Target moved its Pride products away from the front of the store and pulled several products from sale, all in response to fears about employee safety. The response to Target’s move was disappointment from many consumers and organizations that supported gay rights.

How should we deal with sensitive issues?

 Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. This is a tricky topic for discussion, but one that bears examination by students.
  2. Discuss how companies can handle divisive topics.
  3. How should marketers balance messages to communities.
  4. Poll students: What are topics that are divisive and controversial? What examples have students seen?
  5. Show video about the issue at Target: https://youtu.be/AvfuoXga77Q
  6. Show Target’s website for Pride items: https://www.target.com/c/pride/-/N-5589f
  7. How should marketers address controversial topics?

Source: Nassauer, S. (25 May 2023). Target lands in culture-war crosshairs over pride month. Wall Street Journal; Reid, H. (31 May 2023). Target Pride backlash exposes ‘rainbow capitalism’ problem, designer says. Reuters New service.

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