E-tailers

Assignment 5-1: Weekly Written Analysis 5

July 30, 2011

Julie Williamson

E-tailers

The truth of the matter is that retailers are suffering because of their online competition (Gittins, 2011). The old saying goes if you can’t beat ‘em join ‘em, right?! Online retailers make up only 4% of total retail sales (Gittins, 2011). However, this is an increase of 2% since 2005 (Gittins, 2011).

There are some down sides to online shopping. You cannot try on or visual examine the items you are preparing to buy. You purchases are not instant; meaning you cannot start utilizing the product immediately. If you have a problem with the item that you purchased it can be difficult to return. You cannot go find a sales associate in order to inquire about the item you are interested in.

The positive aspects of online shopping are obvious. You do not have to fight with other shoppers at the store for sizes or stand in the checkout line. You can shop twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, three hundred sixty five days a years; weekends and holidays. You can sit in your pajamas on the couch and shop all day if you wish without getting the first bit tired. (Well maybe your wrist and your pointer finger!) You can utilize online sorting tools that help find bargains as well as the perfect size, color and style. Online tools also help you compare items side by side (Click and Mortar, 2006). Online stores have also incorporated live chats into the shopping experience to be available to help answer questions.

How do you maintain the positives while fixing the negatives? Became an e-tail store. These are stores that have physical retail stores yet gives the customers the option to view and purchase items online as well. This is the best of both worlds. Having retail stores allows the customers to become familiar with the products, sizes and quality. Once they become familiar enough with the products offered they will be willing to utilize online shopping. They feel confident in purchasing because they know if there is a problem after delivery they can return the item to the store. You can also shop online and pick the item up in the store. Some of the top rated examples of e-tail stores are Old Navy, Barnes and Nobles, and Target. As an e-tailer it is vital to have a user friendly appealing website in order to make the shopping experience for your new and returning customers enjoyable.

Have you ever utilized an e-retailer?

References

Gittins, R. (2011). Mouse is mightier than the store. National Times: Society and Culture. Retrieved from http://www.smh.com/au/opinion/society-and-culture/mouse-is-mightier-than-the-store-20110531-1free.html.

Retail vs Online Shopping (2006). “Click or mortar”: retailers posing as competition to “pure-play” etailers. Retrieved from http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~rls/retailonline.index.html.

Julie Williamson
July 21, 2011
4 -1: Weekly Written Analysis 4

In 1989 a television phenomenon was debuted. The Simpsons (did you hear it in melody in your head?). We were introduced to a family that made our families look normal. The family consisted of Homer (Dad), Marge (Mom), Bart (son), Lisa (daughter), and Maggie (baby daughter). Each family member fully equipped with an extremely exaggerate personality.
The Simpsons is now on its twenty-second season including more than three hundred episodes. The DVD sales of each season are soaring (Nixon, 2004). The fans are hardcore and willing to purchase the DVD’s just to watch reruns of their favorite episodes.
It is interesting to watch as Bart and Lisa mature mentally but not physically and Homer and Marge haven’t aged a bit. This family has stretched to the limits of satire and pushed the envelope of some very controversial topics. Every star who was somebody has done a cameo on The Simpsons (Nixon, 2004). The writers of The Simpsons have been given the name of “pioneers of quotationism” (Nixon, 2004). The one liners of Bart’s ended up on t-shirts and in the mouths of adolescence kids. I can remember we weren’t allowed to wear them in my school in the early nineties.
The Simpsons has a famous cast of voices. They include but are not limited to Hank Azaria, Conan O’Brien, and Phil Hartman (Nixon, 2004). Every star who was somebody has done a cameo on The Simpsons (Nixon, 2004).
The Simpsons has been the anchor show for several other animated prime time shows. For example: The Family Guy, King of the Hill and Futurama. But none have had the success of The Simpsons.
The Simpsons starred in the own motion picture a few years back and some say this ruined their image. Some say that The Simpsons has reached its creative peak (Nixon, 2004). The fans disagree.
The awards that The Simpsons have received in the past tell us that they did something right. How long will The Simpsons show run….I guess we’ll have to stay tuned and find out.













Reference
Nixon, G. (2004). Mmmmmm pop culture. The Simpson Archive. The Silhouette. Retrieved from www.snpp.com/other/articles/popculture.html.

Online Dating
The people in today’s society are too busy with their careers to worry about the traditional dating scene. Online dating hit the scene around the mid 90s (Love at a Distance, 2005). It has come a long way since its conception.
Online dating cuts the guess work out of compatibility. The online dating services provide their members with in-depth questionnaires that reveal information about a person’s personality, dreams, career, accomplishments, ambitions and much more. These questionnaires will help identify who is looking for love or just a casual date and match them accordingly (Best Dating Sites, 2011). Traditional telephone or face to face conversations have been replaced with online chat rooms, virtual winks, email, and video messaging (Best Dating Sites, 2011). Some services even offer a “blind date” feature by remaining anonymous until you are ready to reveal your identity.
These online date services are not used solely by one type of person. They are diversified with different races, sexual orientations, ethnicities, etc (Best Dating Sites, 2011). Match.com has approximately 25 million plus members. They have an equal number of men and women (Best Dating Sites, 2011).
These sites do charge their members monthly fees. These fees range from $29.95 per month and up. Sites like Match.com make over $750 M a month in subscription fees. These sites have become more trustworthy in the eyes of the consumer so therefore they are willing to pay a fee to find true love.
References
Love at a Distance (2005). Online dating: how it all began. Retrieved from http://www.loveatadistance.com.
The Best Dating Sites of 2011 (2011). Retrieved from http://www.consumer-rankings.com/dating.

Assignment 2-1: Weekly Written Analysis 2
July 7, 2011
Julie Williamson
Nintendo
Nintendo is a pop culture artifact that has maintained main stream attention since 1985. When Nintendo was released it sold over sixty million units. I remember that my dad bought me a Nintendo in 1987 for $109 from ToysRUs. In 1987 that was a substantial amount of money. Nintendo released a portable gaming system in 1989. This system was called a Gameboy. The Gameboy was the most prosperous video gaming system every released. Nintendo sold over 150 million Gameboy units. Tetris was the game that was sold in the Gameboy bundle. This game was an addiction to many. Nintendo released the Super NES, Nintendo 64, and the Game Cube. Each system had increasingly better processers and graphics. The Game Cube was the first system to use discs as an alternative for game cartridges. The portable Gameboy got released in several different versions also. The Gameboy got smaller in the Pocket Gameboy version. The Nintendo DSi comes with WiFi connectivity and a camera built in. Now the newest Gameboy has 3D gaming technology. The Wii is the newest home gaming Nintendo system. The Wii uses motion sensitive remotes. You are able to “get in the game.”
I am excited that I can play games that I enjoyed as a child with my children now. They don’t quite understand the simplistic graphics but they enjoy the games never the less. I hope that Nintendo continues to release new games or gaming systems. My family and I will continue to buy them. We thoroughly enjoy our family game night.


References
Company History (n.d). Nintendo: Corporate. Retrieved from http://www.nintendo.com/corp/history.jsp.

ICONS

Assignment 2-2
Icon Analysis
At first glance I did not think that it would be difficult for me to identify three contemporary icons that were somehow personal to me; I was wrong. It took a lot of thought and some interviews of my close personal friends to identify what I consider to be icons. After much deliberation I identified the following:
• The Twilight Saga
• Disney
• NASCAR
The Twilight Saga is a series of books written by Stephanie Meyer. There are four books in the series. They are Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Down. The books were turned into movies featuring Rob Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, and several others. These books/movies have a cult like following. They include groups like the Twierds and the Twilight Moms.

Disney is the creation of Walt Disney. Walt was first and foremost an animator. He won his first academy award for a Mickey Mouse cartoon series in 1932. Walt Disney had a dream to create a place that families could come for total family entertainment. His ideas and imagination came to life in 1955 in California. After Disneyland was erected he realized that he didn’t like the idea of being land locked. Walt purchased over 27,000 acres in Florida using multiple dummy corporations. Today Walt Disney World is the biggest tourist attraction in the United States. There are multiple Disney Worlds all over the globe. The movies keep flowing from Disney’s Studios. Some of the latest are the Pirates of the Caribbean Series, The Game Plan, Cars 2, etc.

NASCAR is the racing circuit that originated in Daytona Beach, Florida. This sport has some of the most loyal fans in the sports industry. This sport was made famous by drivers like Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace, and many others. The current NASCAR crowd cheers for Dale Jr., Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne, and Tony Stewart just to name a few.

All of these icons are very specific to me. I am a huge fan of horror movies and in December 2008 I begged my husband to take me the new vampire flick that just released in the theaters. Needless to say he refused because he loathes horror movies. I was able to confidence by best friend to take me. We were surprised to see that this movie was no horror movie at all but a hopeless romantic chick flick. Works for me; I am such a hopeless romantic. When I got to work the next day another friend told me that there was a book about the movie. I bought it while on lunch. I read during every break from work, at lunch, at home, in the bed. Needless to say I was hooked. I read all four books. I went to the midnight showing of New Moon and Eclipse. I was a the midnight DVD release for all the movies and I can’t wait for Breaking Down to be release on November 18, 2011.
Disney was a onetime family vacation destination when I was four years old. When I met my husband I was pleasantly surprised to find out that his parents vacation there once a year. Disney is a magical place where anything is possible. It is definitely the happiest place on earth. Disney has it all figured out from the family movies, to the theme parks, to the water parks, to the other vacation destinations all over the world. You can visit one park and visit several countries from all over the world. Disney is both educational and entertaining at the same time. We frequent Disney with our children at least once every other year but we watch the Disney Channel daily and stay current on what’s going on in the world of Disney through blogs and chat rooms.
NASCAR has been in my life as long as I can remember. My mother didn’t allow you to talk when the race was on TV. She has always had her favorite drivers. I was very happy a few years ago when I was able to afford to pay to send my mother to a race for the first time. Luckily I have been able to make this a yearly tradition for her. This year she took my daughter with her. I guess the tradition continues. Luckily my daughter has a TV in her room.

Video Conferencing

Video conferencing is not something new it has just taken some time to catch on due to the cost in technological advances. In today culture the typical off-the-shelf computer has the capability to conduct video conferencing. Most video conferences can be conducted via the world-wide web. There are several reasons why companies have introduced the idea of video conferencing.

The travel expenses associated with face-to-face meetings with international clients are very costly and can reduce the opportunity for advances in business. It limits a companies opportunity to within their local market. The studies show that businesses are saving two-hours per week by video conferencing. Travel time is eliminated even for local meetings.

Businesses have been able to increase their competitive advantage over other companies that do not video confernce. Global markets are able to openly communicate with United States businesses. Video conferences are easier to organize since it is possible for these meetings to be mobile, on-the-go, via tablets or even smart phones.

Businesses who are looking out for the well-being of their employees realize less travel is safer. There is no risk involved in video conferencing. Stronger relationships are built when managers take the safety of their employees into consideration.

Video conferences are definitly a sign of the times. They are new, they are now, and they are inventive in developing business while reducing cost.

Key Points

What is popular culture, and what does it mean to you?

Popular Culture is the "right now". The music that is coolest, the movies that are the most watched. The technology that has been newly developed. The widespread acceptance of things that are now. The majority of the world knows about them...if they have't been living under a rock.

Why is an understanding of popular culture relevant to you in a business environment and in your present and future career?

It is good to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to professional development. Those that are interested in advancing their careers have to be well versed in the advances of society. Managers of employees have to keep up with the trends in order to relate to the multiple generations of employees that might be reporting to them.

What would you consider to be an example of pop culture artifact? And why would your choose it?

Virtual meeting are a popular culture artifact. Skype mobile also made the virtual conferencing a reality for cellphone users outside of the business environment. Virtual meetings are amazing for conducting global business ventures across the seas. You can communicate with someone from China like they are sitting at the conference table beside of you. The abilty to share spreadsheets, and files is effortless.

E-Readers

Green Eggs and Ham, The Bible, Nicholas Sparks's novels, textbooks, cookbooks, magazines, and newspapers physically might be a tangible item of the past. These books will still exist but they will be in a digital format. Students will no longer have fifty pound book bags stocked full of five or six two-hundred page textbooks. They will have an e-reader. This e-reader will consolodate all their textbooks into one easy to carry digital device.

When e-readers were first put on the electronics radar they were very expensive (Dignan, 2010). This is typical for new technology. Article reports are guesstimating that e-reader sales will soar when they enter the $150 price point (Dignan, 2010). I was just given a Nook Color for my birthday in June. I know that my husband paid $250 for it. I am totally satisfied with this present even at that price.

E-readers can replace your daily subscription to your local newspaper and can even open your current events to other locations newspapers, national papers, and specialized papers (i.e. USA Today, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, etc.). Magazines that you will receive in the mail can be a thing of the past. You can download them each month straight to your e-reader. These e-readers also have the capability of reading to your children their favorite children's books. This is definetly a sign of the times. Parents in our culture have less time to spend reading their children to sleep. This device fills the absence of the parental nightly ritual.

E-readers are kind of like Nascar. Each of the popular e-readers has sponsors. The Nook is sponsored by Barnes and Nobles. The Kindle, Amazon. The iPad, Apple. The generic product market has even gotten on the e-reader band wagon. You can find knock off brands that claim to deliver the same product but remember, you get what you pay for. E-reader sponsors have partnered with wireless carriers in order to give their customers the ability to download with and without WiFi connections. WiFi is also an artifact in our current popular culture.

During a survey of households it was determined that 12% of them possess an e-reader (Willington, 2011). This is an increase by three times since last year (Willington, 2011). It is obvious in our culture the more mobile a device the better society likes them (Willington, 2011). This is a direct reflection of our on-the-go culture. Our working class society never sits still; even our stay at home moms can use e-readers in the line at the grocery store. I think the e-readers will develop to represent the technological advances of the future but they are here to stay.