Guy wants a job in advertising on Maddison Avenue, puts an advert on Google Adwords with the names of the top creatives in the header so when they Googled themselves they got his message. As Polly Becker on WallBlog noted:

Boy did it work! All but one of the ad agencies he targeted called him back and Ian Reichenthal and Scott Vitrone at Young & Rubicam offered him a job.

He should probably stick to copywriting though, as his video editing almost sent me to sleep. Soft transitions should be used with extreme caution!

Checked into my university account on Thursday 17th in the evening expecting a 2.1 and had to log out and back in again making sure the below image wasn’t an error!

Thank you to everyone who helped me make it happen!

'Your degree classification has been confirmed as First Class Honours'

Indeed searching through Gizmodo’s excitable (and long) article you’d be hard pressed to find any concrete details about what the phone can do. Given that Apple bricked up the phone remotely, shortly after the person who found the phone began using it, it’s difficult to determine much. Technical specifications missing which would be really nice to know are: processor speeds, drive capacity, battery life, screen resolution (materials used to produce the phone) all a little odd, since you’d think Gizmodo’d be able to do tests to find some of that out.

Either way, one thing looks fairly likely, given the lack of plastic and faux shiny metal of pervious models, along with their range of MacBook Pros it seems they’re going to position the iPhone as ‘green’, getting rid of the plastic and going for the either glass or ceramic back. This is a good move if they want to be targeting the ethical/green consumer.

A further thought worth considering perhaps, because this form factor is so different, I wonder whether this will mean that they will stop using the previous model as a cheaper alternative for customers and go back straight to the one model, now that we’re slowly creeping out of recession. However, given the pattern of the iPad’s launch, it seems quite likely that a lesser model of this new form factor may be the cheaper option (e.g. with less drive capacity) for those still less willing to splurge.

As with most Apple stuff, it’s always controversial when it first comes out, you have to hold it, touch it and play with it before you can make a real decision about it. It’s an interesting form factor, new and exciting because it’s different to previous models. It definitely seems to exude the Apple sense for simplicity in design which has been especially successful for them.  However, as regards their OS, it seems that their simplicity has gone too far towards restricting developer control regarding developing languages used on their apps. A further problem: OS 4.0 seems to be too similar to previous OS versions (bar the controversial ‘multitask’) although keeping it simple for consumers, it’s getting tired, Apple really haven’t ‘innovated’ or pushed the boat out as most expected or wanted. I think OS 4.0 may let them down.

Whether this was an intended leak or not, it’s great publicity and has gotten everyone talking.

So what was it all about?

My dissertation originally sought to understand the reasons why consumers purchased an Apple product. Was it because of the brand? Or was it because, functionally, they really did just do things in a better way?

Questions which arose were:

• What was it that attracted their consumers?
• What was it that detracted their prospective consumers?
• Were Apple consumers from the same backgrounds?
• Did they have the same purchase habits which extended to other products?
• How does this affect Apple as it continues to grow?

My research looked at two opposing schools of thought, that of Stephen King (1970) and that of Wally Olins (2008).

In his seminal essay, ‘What is a Brand‘, King explains that:

‘… if we are really honest with ourselves, we must surely admit that on the whole the non-functional pleasures that we ourselves get are more intense and meaningful than the functional’ (King, 1970)

Indeed, the contemporary research which he collects and presents to readers in his essay propose seemingly strong arguments for branding as the sole motivator of consumption, applicable to all products.

Despite this, he does not display any awareness of critical factors such as different cultural and subcultural attitudes, age, gender, economic constraints and product type.

Olins, however, builds on this by presenting a thorough argument for a brand being based on four ‘vectors’ or points of awareness. These four are, communications led brands, product led brands, environment led brands and behaviour led brands. He posits that Apple is undoubtedly a product led brand, stating that:

Although everything, from the instruction literature, to the website, to the advertising, to the stores and the behaviour of the people who work in them, all help to support and sustain the Apple brand, the prime vector through which we perceive the Apple brand is the Apple product, (Olins, 2008).

Although everything, from the instruction literature, to the website, to the advertising, to the stores and the behaviour of the people who work in them, all help to support and sustain the Apple brand, the prime vector through which we perceive the Apple brand is the Apple product, (Olins, 2008).

Olins builds upon the groundwork put forward by King by arguing that certain brands, depending on their product type, are led by one of the four vectors.

Although Olins is able to differentiate between different product categories and product types, he still does not consider the varying backgrounds of consumers: their cultural or subcultural attitudes, age, gender, and economic restraint.

I tested both theories in general, and then looked deeper at respondents’ backgrounds to find patterns.

Tests I performed

I conducted a variety of ethnographic, qualitative and quantitative research, each type providing their own benefits and uses.

These were:

• A survey – an online self-assessed survey with 103 respondents explaining their purchase motivations, designed to base research conclusions on real a quantitative scale and scope
• Observational participant research whilst employed at Apple using archival material
• Apple staff interviews – a private set of three of my former colleagues’ accounts on Apple and their consumers’ purchasing motivations
• For comparative purposes, an interview with the brand owner of Dr Martens
• Consumer interviews – a set of 22 individuals’ own accounts of their purchasing habits around Apple products
• Focus group – a set of activities with 9 respondents designed to stimulate ‘real’ responses rather than those edited self consciously

Results from activities in focus group session I conducted

Conclusions from the research

The research revealed that younger consumers, up until the age of 35, were most likely to purchase products, particularly Apple products, with two motivations in mind, brand image and product functionality. Whereas older consumers preferred purchasing products based on their functional ‘utilitarian’ benefits, without much interest in branding.

An important finding was the critical awareness of brands and advertsing consumers had. Although some preferred brands more so than others, consumers on the whole were very ‘savvy’ and analytical of the branding and advertising they were consuming. Both focus group and interview research revealed a growing scepticism for Apple’s brand, with one respondent echoing others’ views, of Apple as having ‘whored itself out’ the more it grew and lost its original focus and attention to customer service. It seemed that the ubiquitousness of Apple’s products, rather than actually being an attractor, detracted consumers desire for an independent identity.

Interestingly, this also depended on certain cultures which had a lower standard of living and a dependency on economic status through the acquisition and social display of expensive products, such as Apple’s. It was also suggested that lower standards of living, or a previous history of this, also meant that the consumer culture was less sophisticated, with consumers less able to critically evaluate products, choosing them for their brand image rather than anything else.

Gender played an important part in that it was suggested in various qualitative accounts that males were more likely to choose a dull product for its brand over a good looking or good quality product without a brand. Although in the self assessed online survey males seemed adamant that this was not the case. A possible self editing process at play?

The final discovery was that there were no ‘Apple clones’ which bought the same things for the same reasons. There was no association at all between owning an Apple product and purchasing another, non related product for either its functional or brand image benefits. Rather, purchasing a product for either its brand or functional benefits did depend upon the product itself, whether there was much of a difference between itself and competitors, and whether it was so necessary to invest much in a brand if it was a highly consumable object, such as toilet paper.

Limitations of the research

Having said this, because of time constraints I wasn’t able to conduct more research into older consumers and their purchase motivations. For example, much of the focus group research, designed to investigate respondents’ implicit desires, was conducted on younger respondents.

Further, due to economic restraints, not enough quantitative research was conducted into different cultural attitudes of people from different cultural backgrounds.

Recommendations of the research

Brands must realise the subtle differences and interplay of consumers’ backgrounds that affect their motivation to purchase. They simply cannot assume a ‘one size fits all’ attitude, as consumers are becoming more and more savvy about the branding they consume, and in some cases, using this knowledge against brands.

For brands to be successful on a small scale, comprehensive research must be conducted into their consumers’ backgrounds coupled with an acute understanding of how their products and their competitors’ are currently being received and adapt the positioning accordingly.

With its ever expanding consumer base, and further plans to expand globally, Apple must eventually ask itself, ‘is further expansion actually good? How can we reach out to our new customers? Do we risk alienating our original customers who bought us for our original boutique appeal and attention to detail?’

Lina Pio Apple, Brand or Product

Funny thing is, I’m still discovering new things about the site. In fact I’ve only just discovered that you…

…can now embed a book into your website or blog for your readers to flip through. It’s such simple idea, but I’m impressed!

After news emerged that reams of stock owned by hedge funds were sold to Kraft for a £12 billion deal, it seemed galling that the short termism of hedge fund managers, recently bailed out by governments in the financial crisis on both sides of the Atlantic, won out – despite the UK government’s wan intervention (see the Grauniad’s excellent article) back in November. An unfavourable decision understandable for Cadbury’s board under UK take-over law, it does not diminish its reprehensible quality to those interested in things other than cash cows.

Like the Mini, Jaguar, Rolls Royce and Rover and every other British icon we’ve ever cherished and let go (though this list seems awkwardly too auto based) it’s a sad reminder of British industry’s sell out.

One thing is more or less certain, this is one wallet on legs which wont be emptying to line those of investors across the pond.

In writing my draft dissertation a few months back I put together a roadmap of my methods to be used. Within this I described in detail how a large part of the methods would be devoted towards online interviews through IM client software. The benefits of this were obvious: more accurate recording of respondents’ views, reducing the chance of my mis-interpreting their comments, anonymity: whether the respondents chose to remain anonymous throughout or they just felt more comfortable writing rather than speaking in person, and flexibility: the interviews could happen at any time in any place without the need for time wasted travelling, easily being slotted into anyone’s busy diary/schedule.

And so the benefits abound do they not? No they don’t. Or they don’t at least if you don’t explain them carefully in full, covering your back. On further discussion with my supervisor of my draft, he was wholly mystified by my addition of IM interviews forming a core part of my research. It appeared that my proposed methodology was highly non traditional, involving the internet (a questionable subject for academics) and therefore highly suspect as a methodology. Apparently it would be invalid research as I would be automatically  ignoring those respondents without access to the internet. Ah, that old chestnut.

What I had not explained in my research, it emerged, (what I thought obvious) was that, given the focus of my research was based on looking at reasonably tech savvy consumers with enough disposable income to debate what operating system to buy: Macs or PCs, ‘Netnography’ was therefore a ‘culturally relevant’ form of research methodology to adopt, and that more and more companies are now beginning to adopt Netnography methods. A mere one sentence on this would have saved me marks.

What’s clear is that although it may be catching up in the outside world, out there under piles of books and library dust abound a few academics still too suspicious to broach the internet, something still too new.

Vivo et disco – I live and I learn.

So what is it about? With all the ‘I’m a PC’ and ‘I’m a Mac’ adverts either gratuitously slandering each other or equally gratuitously advocating their ‘pivotal’ role in influencing Microsoft’s decisions, I set out to find out what it meant to be a Mac or a PC. My research is focussing on what motivates Apple and non Apple users to buy what they do, specifically when it comes to electronics. The aim is to understand whether there is such a thing as a Mac or a PC person. Is there a correlation in consumer behaviour, suggesting a possible culturally/sub-culturally united mindset?

Having spent a small fortune on facebook ads – (499 clicks, but barely 5 respondents) I decided to look for other ways of advertising my research. What a better place to find devoted consumers than forums built around these products, sites which see users spending vast amounts of their time either moving the earth to help each other to blast the latest technical issue with their device or insult everything about another user – down to the very keys they type on.

After carefully wording my posts requesting permission to publish my questionnaire, on a variety of forums dedicated to different platforms, and explaining the reasons for my research, the results came through.

PC and non Apple smartphone forums
After posting the requests on 2 sites, XDA developers and Tech PC Forums, I quickly realised a ban was in place on both my accounts, despite having only asked for permission to post my questionnaire!

Apple forums
A mixed response. A Macworld admin gave me a highly positive welcome. No welcome from MacRumours admins, however, a lot of interest from users. After explaining my uncertainty about posting the questionnaire, I was prompted to ‘private message’ users who’d given permission. However, a rather cold reception followed after explaining my lack of knowledge regarding ‘private messaging’.

Android forum
Perhaps not a fair reflection since I only attempted to use one forum Android Forums, however, despite the very warm receptions from forum admins, a rather frosty uncertainty  was soon received from users, accusing me of spamming them, asking me to reveal my identity… which I promptly did.

Does this reveal an interesting insight into the painfully paranoid nature of PC users with years of experience of viruses, spam and bugs? Has this framed a whole community mindset? Does it also suggest that Android and Mac users, striving to broaden their community and find friendlier alternatives, are .. well friendlier people?

Oh well, too many questions. And with that in mind, please answer my questionnaire! It’s 2 pages but only 5 minutes at most. As a thank you for kindly helping me to complete a quarter of my degree, I’m offering you the chance to win £50 vouchers to a retailer of your choice.

‘But is that all?’ I hear you ask… well no, there is more.

Cadbury’s achievements go beyond the shareholder moral fibre. People love it for its national heritage and its strong values. I love it for not being afraid to embrace new ideas and new technology. In doing so, Cadbury has survived the transitions of consumers’ lifestyles, in particular the development of the internet and a growing awareness of fair-trade, which have left traditional FMCG brands trailing far behind.

Why purple is best.

With the refreshingly different ads it released in collaboration with Fallon creative director Juan Cabral over the past 2 years, such as the ‘Gorilla’ viral back in 2007, Cadbury’s not been afraid to be creative. Nor has Cadbury shied away from creatively engaging with its consumers. The reintroduction of Wispa, after demand from 14,000 Facebook users, led the way in openly involving and interacting with consumers in their brand. It demonstrated an original response and a precocious understanding that the internet is redressing the power-balance between brands and consumers. Now pushing the brand further with the ‘Cocoa Partnership’, donating 70% of funds to improve the lives of farmers, its clear that Cadbury is a brand which isn’t afraid to move and question itself on a huge scale.

Cadbury has rightly gained its position as one of the nation’s best loved brands. If it stays this way, Kraft keep at bay, and it keeps its factories in Britain, Cadbury’s future as a best love brand is secured. However, despite its merits, the clouds still remain over the future.

For now though, this is one happy customer!

As part of a university group project, I’m looking into people’s attitudes towards hmv. I want to know what YOU think.

So please, have your say. It’s 10 questions, 5 minutes (same time it takes to make a cup of tea).

All I ask is that you are resident in the UK and are between the ages of 18-32.

Click here to take the survey

Update: The project is now complete and was a fantastic success. If you participated in it, I’d like to thank you very much. If you’re interested in what we found, you can find the final report here

or even just here…

HMV Jack of All or Master of None