Tag Archives: trends

by | Thursday, March 16, 2023 · 7:19 am

Tik Tok Interns

Do you use TikTok? If so, you are a part of a community of 1.5 billion monthly users around the world!

TikTok was launched in 2016 by Chinese tech company Bytedance.  In 2017 TikTok went global and has since grown to become one of the most popular social media apps in the world. Downloaded more than 3.5 billion times since launch, the app regularly garners 500 million additional downloads each quarter, and was the most downloaded app of 2022!

TikTok may have started with a young audience of teens, but it is far from being just a teen app.  In the U.S., the age range of 25-34 year-olds accounts for nearly 25% of its users, an important demographic for brands and advertisers. And, 18% of all Internet users use TikTok. TikTok is available in 154 countries and 90% of its users access the app daily.

TikTok is so valuable to brands that many companies are now hiring TikTok ‘interns’ to help them reach users. Job sites have listings for “TikTok content creators.” These creators are being asked to both make and appear in videos promoting various products and retailers. Companies hiring this expertise include Claire’s, Whole Foods, Travel Pro, and even Rosedale Mall located in Roseville, Minn. Brands are hiring college students and other young people to help them successfully navigate TikTok, and create an impactful campaign.

What will you create?  

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Show TikTok in class: https://www.tiktok.com/
  2. You could also show a specific company/brand. (Ex: Fenty Beauty: https://www.tiktok.com/@fentybeauty )
  3. Poll students: How do they use it? When? How long? How influential is it on their behavior?
  4. Have students uploaded their own videos? If so, show several of their videos in class.
  5. Divide students into teams. Have each team select a brand/company and analyze the company’s TikTok campaigns.
  6. Make sure students first identify the target market including demographics, psychographics, behaviors, values, etc.
  7. [Additional assignment: Have each team create an original TikTok video for a product or company they would like to work at.]
  8. Show TikTok’s career site: https://careers.tiktok.com/campus/project/internships

Source:  Maheshwari, S. (14 February 2023). Wanted: Interns who can make TikTok hits. New York Times.

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by | Thursday, March 2, 2023 · 7:36 am

Consumer Electronics Show 2023

If you love technology and new gadgets, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is the place to be. CES is one of the largest and most influential showcases in the world for introducing innovative technology products from around the globe.

This year the Las Vegas-based show brought in 115,000 industry professionals, making it the largest audited global tech event since 2020.  With more than 3,200 exhibitors, including 1,000 start-up companies, CES 2023 gave us new innovations in mobility, health, transportation, sustainability, and more.

A diverse group of companies from around the globe showcased the latest innovations in the technology industries to attendees from more than 140 countries. In all, 60% of the Fortune 500 companies were represented.

The show also provided looks at products in the marketplace as well as products-yet-to-be-launched highlighting key trends such as:

  • Human security for all
  • Automotive and mobility
  • Electric vehicles
  • Digital health
  • Sustainability
  • Web 3 and Metaverse

New products demonstrated how technology can conserve energy, increase power generation, address food shortages, create sustainable agricultural systems, power smart cities, support access to clean water, and improve life for people with physical challenges.

The last category – physical challenges – may be one of the most innovative as companies worked on technology to improve lives of people who may often be overlooked. Some of the highlights include power wheelchairs, augmented listening, new earbuds, speech amplifiers and more. It’s one of my favorite categories.

What’s your favorite innovation from CES?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:  

  1. Discuss the purpose of CES show and how innovation fits into it.
  2. View the CES Web site: https://www.ces.tech/
  3. Also discuss the use of trade shows and exhibits as part of a marketing plan.
  4. Show a video overview of CES 2023: https://youtu.be/fAJ1LCO4cV4
  5. Show a summary video covering new innovations for accessibility: https://www.wsj.com/video/series/dalvin-brown/ces-2023s-most-innovative-assistive-tech-jabra-whispp-and-more/F7DEC067-2116-4C51-A173-E0A071E28EEA
  6. Divide students into teams. Have each team select a product featured at CES.
  1. Scewo Bro: https://www.scewo.com/en/  (Power wheelchair)
  2. L’Oreal Hapta: https://www.loreal.com/en/articles/science-and-technology/hapta-ces-2023-lancome-innovation/  (For beauty lovers with limited hand and arm mobility)
  3. Xander Glasses: https://www.xander.tech/  (Augmented listening for people who are hard of hearing)
  4. Jabra Enhance Plus: https://www.jabra.com/hearing/enhance-plus?gclid=Cj0KCQiAiJSeBhCCARIsAHnAzT_SGnooIY_nEW554M23GwsvGWKrIKnazpnbsvmc1Rh1Gi87YUm8kQsaAhwGEALw_wcB##21879090  (Earbuds for enhancing your hearing)
  5. Whispp: https://whispp.com/?lang=en  (Speech amplifier for people with a voice disorder)
  6. Instruct students to research the products online, and define a target market for the product?
  7. Which ones do they think will be winners in the marketplace? What products miss the mark?
  8. Discuss the use of trade shows and exhibits as part of a marketing plan.

Source:  C/NET; TechRadar; The Verge; Wall Street Journal; other news sources

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by | Wednesday, November 23, 2022 · 7:43 am

McDonald’s Offers Adult Happy Meals – Complete with Toy

We’ve discussed the impact of nostalgia on marketing. (Nostalgia is when someone longs for a different time period when they were happy.) We usually think of nostalgia as being an older person longing for an earlier time period or event. Perhaps it is caused by seeing or wishing for something that happened when a consumer was younger.

Marketers know how to use those desires. For example, Mattel recently brought back several older toy lines to gain more adult buyers. And now McDonald’s appears to be following suit by launching a limited edition of “adult Happy Meals” that include not only food, but older versions of collectible toys.

Why the adult meals? Well, that’s easy. McDonald’s hopes to lure back older consumers to the fold by reminding them of the pleasures of toys and burgers (or chicken nuggets). For a limited time, when ordering the adult Happy Meal, one gets slightly warped figures of Grimace, the Hamburglar, and Cactus Buddy (new figure).

The collaboration with Cactus Plant Flea Market for the toys is a little unusual for McDonald’s as CPFM represents younger designs and apparel for a streetwear market.

The meals have different packaging and higher prices. Adult Happy Meals range from $14.09 to $17.99. Demand has been high with most franchises sold out of the meals. And buyers are already flipping their toys on resale sites such as eBay with reports of sellers pricing the toys for thousands of dollars (although a recent search show much lower prices).

Don’t you feel like a kid again?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Have students define the target market for McDonald’s. Then have them define the adult Happy Meal target market (demographics, psychographics, etc.).
  2. View ad: https://youtu.be/sYdNnkz1bik
  3. View brief video story: https://youtu.be/p5ZfSlwMz8g
  4. Have students do a search on social media for the toys. What had the response been on social media?
  5. Also have students search resale sites for the toys.
  6. Divide students into teams. Have each team identify a product that could be revamped for a different market segment.

Sources:  Gallagher, J. (13 October 2022). With adult Happy Meals, McDonald’s sparks a collecting frenzy. Wall Street Journal.  

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