[9] Anti- Anti- Anti- Anti- Antimovement

Luxury brands just don't know what to do.
In the old days, a luxury brand was luxurious. Luxury as in "not really necessary, but comfortable". Or: expensive. Or both.
In the last few years there has been an anti-movement. Luxury brands move to the mass market. Since this is where most people are, combined with the luxury overload (bling bling?) this is not an unexplainable decision. A lot of brands have created brand extensions, like Armani Casa (domestic products) and Viktor and Rolf, who put their collection in the H&M.
But, of course, an anti-anti-movement has started again already, although the anti-movement hardly has its feet on the ground. Luxury should, once again, be luxurious, sophisticated, expensive and classy.
Proof for this movement?A waiting list for an 81.000 dollar Hermes crocodile leather purse, decorated with diamonds and gold.
I guess it's just a matter of time before the anti-anti-anti-movement starts and the luxurious goods will become mainstream again...



Source: www.marketingonline.nl

[8] How to make a woman feel good

Research done by the University of Groningen (RUG) shows that women who are not satisfied about their body (which would be... 90% of all the women?) feel even worse after they've looked at a skinny vase. Remarkable is that unsatisfied women apparently not just compare themselves with other women, but also with objects (which suggest bodyshapes). Women who looked at a non-slim vase didn't feel any different about their body afterwards.

Today in marketingland it is very important to know who your customer is. So for all you vase-producing companies who want to make women feel good, I hope you've learned your lesson:

Create non-slim vases!

<-bad vase VS good vase->

Source: www.nu.nl

Inspiration

Online inspiration:
www.bright.nl
www.coolhunting.com
www.houtlust.nl
www.popgadget.net
www.geenstijl.nl

Other inspiration:
Travel TVshows/ surfing/ spinning/ photography (like world press photo)/ books (snoecks, photography, travel, historical/ cultural novels etc)

New to the World

Everything is possible in the United States of America.
So I was not surprised when I heard about this 'new to the world'- product:
A birth control pill which stops women from menstruating. On the contrary of any normal birth control pill, this one doesn't have a stop-period; the period a woman usually starts menstruating.
Lybrell, as the pill is called, will be available for women in the USA from half July. The American Health department has already assured that this pill is not dangerous for ones health.
I 'm always a little bit sceptical about these kind of products which disturb natural processes. Of course it sounds wonderful to never have a period again, but how can this be healthy? This can not be how it is supposed to be meant, by whoever created a womens body. If so, he or she would have made it function like that him or herself, knowing that having a period is not the most fun part of the month. And if this is such a new invention, how do they know this will not harm our health on the long term? Well, they don't, some sources say. But medical experts say: "There are risks that come along with any oral contraception." What a relieve. What happens to the hormones? Since every woman reacts so differently to menstruation and other birth control pills already, how do they know for sure that this one does not make things worse? Again, they don't. "About half the women enrolled in studies of Lybrel dropped out, said Dr. Daniel Shames, a deputy director in the FDA's drugs office. Many did so because of the irregular and unscheduled bleeding and spotting that can replace scheduled menstruation." Great! What an invention.



We can expect Lybrell in the Netherlands in the year 2008.

Seth Godin - This is broken

Wat is er vernieuwend aan zijn visie?
Wij vinden deze visie niet bijzonder vernieuwend omdat we (sinds onze lessen Interaction Design) altijd om ons heen kijken naar ‘broken’ elementen in onze omgeving. Dat is een way-of-life geworden voor ons. Als we iets zien wat we niet logisch vinden reageren we daarop.

Merk IKEA:
One disappointed customer is worth ten delighted ones.
Er wordt altijd veel gezeurd over de kwaliteit van IKEA producten, maar toch blijft men er kopen.

Low price is a great way to sell a commodity. That’s not marketing, though, that’s efficiency.
De lage prijs is een efficientie, de marketing van IKEA speelt meer op gevoel waarmee de producten uiteindelijk verkocht worden.

Making promises and keeping them is a great way to build a brand.
IKEA belooft en verkoopt altijd eerlijke, vernieuwende en goed geprijsde producten.

Products that are remarkable get talked about.
IKEA veel producten die nergens anders te krijgen zijn, zoals vernieuwende meubelstukken en accessoires en speciale etenswaar.

People all over the world, and of every income level, respond to marketing that promises and delivers basic human wants.
IKEA houdt zich bezig met het aanbieden van een zo breed mogelijk assortiment functionele woonartikelen van een goede vormgeving, tegen zulke lage prijzen dat zoveel mogelijk mensen in staat zijn deze artikelen te kopen

Good marketers tell a story.
IKEA legt vaak uit wat het verhaal is achter de producten, en wat ze betekenen in het leven van de koper.