Classical Conditioning and The Five Senses Within Body Combat

Classical Conditioning and The Five Senses Within Body Combat

Bobbie Atkinson April 2016

Body Combat has been rated three stars, this is as a result of how often the techniques are used. There is potential for these techniques to be much more successful if used more frequently, also as there hasn't been a way of measuring the success the rating cannot be any higher than three stars.  

Snapchat and the hours of fun that comes with it!

Is Gamification used more than we know?

Bobbie Atkinson April 2016

 Gamification also known as adversing is when an online game is merged with interactive advertisements. It is a very clever way of advertising something without the consumer realising they are consuming it. Since technology has improved so have mobile phone applications, we can transform consumers faces into their friends and families, swap faces with animals and even turn themselves into animals such as dogs and rabbits. 

It is such a simple application, but produces hours and hours of fun, which are then shared across other social networking sites such as Facebook and twitter which only promotes the applications further. The first application spoken about within this blog is Snapchat, created in 2011 where consumers could take photos of themselves in their day to day lives, add text and send to their friends within seconds. This application has grown over the years and now has options to transform your face into images such as the ones below. 

Snapchat has become one of the most used applications, as it consists of everything from messages, setting stories of consumers days with videos and images, allowing users to send private images, choose the amount of seconds it lasts on the receivers phone and the text that goes with it. The application has grown so that users can see if anyone screenshots their messages as well as secret emojis next to their friends name which categorises them depending on how many messages are sent back and forth. As a result of this, the application can also link with the schema of the audience and the self concept as it is directed at young people allowing them to portray themselves in whatever way they want, and allows them to get up to all sorts of mischief young people enjoy.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Companies are tapping into the popularity of Snapchat and are

using it to promote themselves. Now and again as well as the options to turn consumers faces into animals and other characters shown above, there are also options to change into characters from new upcoming films, this is a short game for the consumers which includes the advertisement of the film. If consumers then share this image to their friends on the app, as well as on other social networking sites the new film will get even more free promotion.

Snapchat also has a discover section, which includes many television channels such as Sky News, Comedy Central and the Daily Mail. Consumers can click on these icons and a series of advertisements for that channel will appear. The list of television channels is shown to the right of this blog post. These ads are updated regularly therefore these channels are being shown to millions of people on a daily basis. This will then encourage viewers to then turn on their television and watch the shows instead of just a short video on their phone.

Advertisers are gaining many benefits through this, any news or products that the company or show wants to reach certain audiences can be promoted everyday, as most snapchat users are on the app everyday. This application also has a live

section, this is were mega events or international occasions are shared to millions. For example the Olympics and any other major sporting event will be shown live on snapchat, where consumers can capture themselves at the event and add it to the live Snapchat stream for millions to see. This gives the consumers the chance to get involved and show themselves to the world as well as the companies getting free promotion across the world.

The second application that has followed Snapchat and is slowly growing is MSQRD. It is a similar app that allows consumers to capture themselves in images or videos as characters, also from new films in order to link the advertisement. Users can then save their images and share them across social networking sites. The new upcoming films included in MSQRD are shown below with the film logo in the corner of every photo taken. On each photo the MSQRD logo is also in the bottom right hand corner, so that when they are shared and other viewers see them; they also know how to download the application to join in with the fun.

As technology carries on improving so will gamification, more and more companies will tap into the gamification side of advertising and the social networking world will be full of advertisements made by the people viewing them.

This form of marketing has been rated five stars as social media is flooded with these images and videos, and are shared across millions of people each day giving these applications free promotion on a daily basis. It is an extremely clever use of experiential marketing and is sure to continue growing more and more. 

The Sacred and Profane Consumption of Scarborough

The Sacred and Profane Consumption of Scarborough

Bobbie Atkinson April 2016

This example of experiential marketing has been given a four star rating as Scarborough is over flowing with sacred aspects that results in thousands of tourists each year. The only reason it has not reached five stars is the fact that certain things have become profane which is spoken about within the video.

This video includes recordings taken by the author and Jonny Rowe who has been assisting the author with her graphic design. a few images shown where taken from another source due to timing of the video, the sources have been identified below.

Reference listDelcampe. (2000). Scarborough Postcards. Retrieved from http://www.delcampe.net/page/item/id,150946673,var,SCARBOROUGHZOOANDMARINELA NDMULTIVIEWOLDPOSTCARD, language,E.html.Flickr. (n/d). Scarborough. Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/24842486@N07/3826282981.
Geograph. (2011). Rock pool near Pace Hill, Seahouses Harbour. Retrieved from http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2401242.JanaSays. (2016). Rocks. Retrieved from http://janasays.com/wpcontent/uploads/2012/05/rocks.jpg.
Nottingham Contemporary . (2011). Wayne Burrows. Retrieved from https://wayneburrowsnc.wordpress.com/2011/02/14/appropriationsi/.
Robinson, D. (2014). Daniel Photography. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/photographedbydan/.
Rowe, J. (2015). Dust and Bone. Retrieved from http://www.dustandbone.com/.
Wallpaperinside. (n/d). Seashells. Retrieved from https://wallpapersinside.com/404/.Scarborough Yorkshire. (2013). Scarborough Fair William Street Coach Park 2013 [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qC8q8Z6ZpM 

New Campaign Idea For Kodak

Capture your memories this summer

Bobbie Atkinson March 2016

Kodak is a well known American technology company which focuses on imaging products, and was founded in 1888. The company has had many marketing campaigns in the past such as the 2009 year long "It's Time To Smile" campaign which included Kodak Konga Line, Kodak Smile Meter and the Kodak Smile Maker ( Kodak, 2009). The campaign gave consumers the opportunities to create community photo albums and share them with their friends and family, to send smile messages to cheer up a friend where the smiles will be added up using a smile meter and also to add smiles to their favourite photos using an Iphone application which can then be shared to family and friends (Kodak, 2009).

As much as this campaign was a fantastic idea there are different ways of having a marketing campaign that can also

benefit the company whilst the campaign is being made. Marketing campaigns can be very expensive especially when they are held over a long period of time. A new idea the author of this blog has come up with is a marketing campaign called "Capture your memories this summer". This campaign involves the consumers throughout which will result in

Kodak having a full television advertisement made for them by their customers. This way the public are getting involved and feel a part of something, whilst the company are spending less money than they usually would on an advertisement. A positive of this is that a marketing campaign and an advertisement can be accomplished in one.

This campaign will consist of an online competition where viewers will be asked to send in photos of them enjoying the summer holidays with their family and friends, making memories they want to capture. Chosen images will then be made into a television advertisement showing viewers how Kodak can help them capture the most precious memories from their summer. To ensure consumers want to be involved any person who's picture is chosen to be on the advertisement will receive a free Kodak camera so they can keep capturing those fantastic memories. The slogan for this campaign would be "Don't miss out on re living those special summer memories".

Culture is extremely important when coming up with a marketing campaign as certain products and marketing techniques can appeal to some cultures but not all. A culture is a societies personalty, as this marketing campaign is going to be worldwide it will reach all different cultures therefore it is more difficult to ensure no one will be offended or uninterested. Many factors can affect cultural changes and behaviours, one factor that

has definitely changed human culture is technology. Technology has influenced culture in the past just as much as culture has encouraged advances in technology, it is a very complex relationship which involves a vast amount of influences (Burley, 2010). Social media and sharing memories online to family, friends and even strangers is extremely popular worldwide. Most people are either on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or another of the many social media sites. Taking pictures and sharing them online has become the new trend worldwide and this is why the new campaign for Kodak would be so successful. People take pictures and share them online everyday, so who wouldn't want to do that and have the chance of being on television as well as winning a new camera. Celebrity culture also influences consumer decisions, therefore having the chance to be on television and have a famous moment will definitely ensure people will want to be involved.

This also relates to how people want to be seen by others which can be classed as consumers ideal self which is part of the self concept theory. On social media everyone wants to be seen by others as happy, successful and living a great life. this new campaign will give people the opportunities to smile, be happy and show off to the world how great their summer is.



This new marketing campaign idea has been given a five star rating for the pure fact that similar things like this have been done in the past such as Coca Cola's share a coke campaign. They have always been extremely successful as consumers love to get involved. Also as this campaign can relate to many different cultures and benefits Kodak so greatly it deserves a five star rating.

Reference list

Burley, A. (2010, November 20). Technology and Culture: A Circle of Influence [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://nuglobalstudies.wordpress.com/global-studies/gls_499-2/.

Kodak. (2009, October 28). Kodak Launches New Integrated Marketing Campaign: It’s Time To Smile [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://designtaxi.com/news/29262/Kodak-Launches-New-Integrated-Marketing-Campaign-It-s-Time-To-Smile/.
All Images below to the author of this blog and have been used as examples of what photos would be included in the advertisement. 

Dust and Bone Sensory Experience

Dust and Bone new marketing idea

Bobbie Atkinson March 2016

Dust and Bone is a clothing Brand owned by Jonny Rowe, the graphic designer who has been supporting me, Bobbie Atkinson with my branding of Rating Marketing. This blog is going to be discussing Dust and Bone, and presenting new ideas to market the brand. This blog is going to be written in first person, as the ideas discussed are my ideas that I have given to the owner of Dust and Bone.


Dust and Bone was first founded six months ago, it is only a new business and its success is growing through promotion using social media and the website in which the clothing is sold. Jonny Rowe has purely been promoting his business by posting photos of the clothing on Instagram and Facebook, as well as designing his own website with his art work shown on the site which gives it a personal feel. The negative points of Dust and Bones marketing techniques is that the brand is not getting promoted enough to stick in people's minds, and no theories have been used within the marketing in order to reach specific aims or goals.

The theory that my new brand idea relates to is Sensory Marketing and the Perceptual Process and also the Schema of Dust and Bones audience. Our senses are what dictates what appeals to us, this can happen through the following senses being stimulated; vision, smell, hearing, touch and taste. Perception comes after the senses are stimulated and is how the senses are selected, organised and interpreted. This is where the new marketing experience comes in, as this can control how the senses are interpreted in order to make Dust and Bone more successful. Not all the senses will be focused on throughout the sensory experience as not all are relevant, however touch and hearing will be the ones that will be stimulated the most. Vision will also be focused on as every task the consumers take part in will have exciting and eye catching designs to look at.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                              It is extremely important to differentiate a brand from the competition, and to think of

ways of repositioning the brand that other companies have not thought of ( Cobos, 2012). This way traditional schemes can be broken, and marketing can be taken to a whole new level ( Cobos, 2012). This is where sensory marketing can be used as it is the use of senses through stimuli which can be designed to directly relate to a specific brand ( Cobos, 2012).
This brings us on to our final theory which relates to the schema of the audience, as how the senses are interpreted is based on the schema. The "schema" of an audience is a set of beliefs that they have, for example the schema of Dust and Bones audience is to have freedom to express their inner thoughts through art. This is why all the art work on the clothing is very unique and all have hidden meanings created by the designer Jonny Rowe. 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

As Dust and Bone has only used traditional marketing techniques I have come up with a sensory event experience located in Dust and Bones studio which will ensure Dust and Bone will be remembered by many. Research has shown that when a consumer has the opportunity to touch a product and be more involved, they have a more emotional connection to the product and will result in them being more likely to buy the product than if they just looked at it. This is why a sensory exhibition of Dust and Bones products, linked with a master class workshop of drawing and designing would be the perfect opportunity to get consumers involved in everything that Jonny Rowe does. This would also be a free event as it would not cost the owner very much, and would ensure more people would turn up.



Within the studio there are three different rooms, this way the event can be ran like a circuit spending half an hour in each room; all consumers can move from

one room to the other to ensure they have experienced everything and their senses will have been stimulated. The first room will consist of a drawing master class, this will include a small group of people being taught by Jonny, they will all get the chance to design a t-shirt and the winning idea will be put on a piece of clothing and then be sold on the Dust and bone website. As the consumers are totally involved in this experience and also have the chance to sell their art, they will have more motivation to be involved. The second room will be an Illustrator and Photoshop master class, During this workshop the owner will teach the consumers how to use the design they have just made and transfer it onto a t-shirt online ready to sell. 

The final section of the exhibition would be where the consumers have the chance to look, touch and try on all of the Dust and Bone products. This way they will have a more emotional connection to them as they can see what they look

like on, and if they are pleased with the outcome they will find it more difficult not to purchase them. Jonny Rowe can then take photos of the consumers wearing the products to use for future promotion. As the consumers have been through the full process of designing, making and trying on the products the emotional connection will be extremely strong and the brand will definitely stick in their minds.

Jonny Rowe's talents do not stop their, he also produces music. Therefore to stimulate the hearing sense of his consumers, his own music will be played throughout the exhibition to create an atmosphere that will influence their mood and also responsiveness to their senses being stimulated; in the hope it will result in more products being sold. the sense of smell will also be stimulated throughout the whole exhibition as the studio has a very rustic feel and is an old building the natural smell is like a museum and links in to the rest of the event to create the ambience.

As discussed before the schema of the audience is young people that believe they should be able to express themselves through art, this event is perfect for this type of audience as by designing their own clothing with their own feelings and expression they have as much freedom as they want.

A link to the Dust and Bone website is below:
http://www.dustandbone.com/

Here is the star rating for Dust and Bones marketing techniques at the moment:

This star rating has been chosen as a result of the traditional marketing techniques used and basic use of social media. However with the new ideas proposed within the blog it could easily be increased to a five star rating.

References used

Cobos, H. (2012, April 13). SENSORY MARKETING AND BRANDING: THE POWER OF THE SENSES [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://morethanbranding.com/2012/04/13/sensory-marketing-and-branding-the-power-of-the-senses/.

All pictures have been given by Jonny Rowe the owner of Dust and Bone

Only the Brave and the Brand Experience

Can a person be a brand?

Bobbie Atkinson March 2016

This blog will be focusing on brand experience, and how a person themselves can be a brand. It is going to be written in first person, as I have recently attended an event where the event manager has created a brand for themselves through continuously running events within their home town.

A brand is not just a logo, or combination of colour that is visually attractive, every experience we have with a brand gives us insight into that company or person (YouTech&Associates, 2015). Consumers can be overwhelmed by choices when it comes to different brands, this is why it is important to use your imagination in order to compete with the competition ( YouTech&Associates, 2015). The individual who I will be discussing today has asked to remain anonymous, I will be referring to him as Mr X throughout this blog. Mr X is very well known in a small town called Scarborough, for his community spirit and outdoor music events that he has been putting on for the past six years. His first event that he held was called Beach Jam, which was a festival on the beach where anyone could join for free, listen to music, sit round the camp fire and socialise.

Mr X purely started these events for the social aspect, however he did not realise what a success they would become. Beach Jam was held many times throughout the year, everyone attended without fail and became very loyal to Mr X's free and non profitable events. A brand promises to achieve certain results or to deliver a certain experience and that is just what Mr X did, and this is why people kept attending and looking forward to these events. The main reason I believe Mr X has made a brand of himself is the amount I hear people speaking highly of his events, you can see how loyal they are to him and how much support he has no matter how small or large the event is. The impact he has on social media is fantastic, even when people cannot attend the event they show their support massively over social media and you can see how much they wanted to attend the event if it was possible.

Recently Mr X has tried to make his brand grow, and put on different types of events instead of events only located on the beach. I myself have never attended Beach Jam, but when I heard about Only the Brave, his most recent event I wanted to give it a try and see what everyone had been

speaking about. Only the Brave was a rave in the woods, with professional DJ's, illuminated lights in the trees and a large camp fire where everyone was able to camp out for the entire evening. My expectations for this event where very high as I have only heard fantastic things about the events that have been put on in the past. The event page on Facebook was filled with excited people, many of which are my friends. When initially arriving at the venue, I was in ore with the beautiful lights and loud music I could hear without actually seeing any people. There are many different sensations a brand can stimulate, I could hear the music, smell the camp fire and see the bright lights in the trees and already I couldn't wait to get to the event.

The event was a massive success, it was everything I expected. Throughout the whole event you could see how loyal everyone was, shaking Mr X's hand, telling him how fantastic the event was, and also people helping control the music, gather wood, all wanting to make the event as successful as possible. After the event everyone shared their experiences on Facebook, posting photos and videos on the page. Mr X thanked everyone for making the night special, and already everyone was working together to plan the next event they could share with the brand. Before leaving the event attendees even helped clean up the venue to show their appreciation of Mr X and his hard work.

Brand equity is " a measure of the brands ability to capture consumer preference and loyalty", this can include brand quality, brand awareness, brand image,  brand trust, brand reliability and brand loyalty. People may usually associate these things with large brands such as Coca Cola or Adidas, however Mr X has achieved all of these things by using every interaction with his consumers as a chance to promote his events, and to find out what they are expecting so that the expectations can be exceeded ( YouTech&Associates, 2015). All of his events have been at the highest of quality, as he is the brand himself, therefore it gives him the chance to show off his personality and make not only his attendees proud but also himself proud. Since running these events his awareness has grown, as everyone knows that these events are ran by him without his name being promoted in any way.

He attracts the same audiences, knows exactly how to put on these events single handed, meets everyone expectations and has the most loyal consumers you could imagine. It is much easier for a person to become a brand than a company, as people find it easier to become emotionally connected to a person rather than a logo. Mr X needs to be very careful as if one event is not successful this could break up the consumer-brand relationship, however as the loyalty is so strong they may still stick by him.

Here is a quote from one of Mr X's loyal fans Jazzminn
who I spoke to after the event:

"I love all Mr X's events, they really don't ever fail to deliver. Always such a wonderful atmosphere and I have been going to them for years. So much so that I travel hundreds of miles to attend them and I have recently made a vlog on the event for my YouTube channel ChillingwithPJz".

Jazzminn has kindly given Rating Marketing a shout out on her vlog as she enjoyed reading "Only the Brave and the Brand Experience" so much, the link is below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRyDDd5HWmg&feature=youtu.be

I am now going to end with a quote from Mr X, explaining his expectations and how successful he thinks Only the Brave was:

"Only the Brave was my first time running an event out of town, in a location that was difficult to get to, I have ran hundreds of events on the beach each year, however getting people to be loyal enough to show up in the middle of nowhere was always a gamble. At 20:00 I was worried that no one would show up as a result of the change in location, by 21:00 the place was jumping, a complete success and it has paved the way for future events just like it".

This rating has been chosen as Mr X has done a fantastic job at becoming a brand however there is still room for improvement to become even more well known and to be recognised in other towns and cities.

References used

YouTech&Associates . (2015). The Importance of Brand Experience . Retrieved from http://youtechassociates.com/the-importance-of-brand-experience/.
All photos were given by Mr X for this blog.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

The Self Concept being used through experiential marketing in Star Wars:
The Force Awakens

Bobbie Atkinson February 2016

This blog is going to be written in first person, as I have personal opinions about this topic. I have also only recently been a viewer of this particular film and I am extremely pleased with what I have seen. I have never been a fan of the Star Wars films; however, I had always been under the impression women were portrayed in quite a strong way.

The "Self Concept theory" is used very often in marketing, it can be categorised into four different types which are the self-image, this is how consumers see themselves, the ideal self-image, which is how consumers would like to see themselves, the social self-image, which is how they feel other people see them and the ideal social self-image, this is how they would like other people to see them. One reason this is a great theory to use within experiential marketing is because of how women have been portrayed and perceived in other films. I do not believe it would be a shock to anyone to hear that in many films it is seen that a majority of men prefer women to be helpless and unintelligent yet attractive. Having very beautiful, thin and unintelligent women in films usually attracts men to watch them.

I do not believe this is how women want to be perceived, as some women are much more intelligent, independent and strong than most men. This is why I think that the new Star Wars film has successfully used the self- concept theory, in order to show women, they can be their “ideal self” and that men and people all over the world also see them as their “social self- image”. Right from the beginning of the film a women named Rey is shown as an independent young woman, living on her own working each day just to feed herself. Throughout the film she is one of the main characters, she continues to be strong helping others and even helping big male characters in the film through certain near death experiences.

Rey is also perceived as extremely intelligent throughout the film, she is able to fix planes, fly a plane and by the end of the film realises she is a Jedi and holds more power than most men in the film. Rey is not the only woman in the film to be shown in this way, there are no damsels in distress during the new Star Wars film and women characters are shown to be strong, smart and powerful. In my opinion, this is a fantastic use of experiential marketing as any women seeing this film is going to feel like they can be their “ideal self” and their “social self-image” will be seen by others. This film is showing not only women, but all genders and ages that women are just as strong and powerful as men in whatever they do. I also believe the film will give women more confidence to be their “ideal self” women will now understand some men do prefer strong and independent women appose to just attractive women. As this was the first time I have seen a Star Wars film, in my opinion as women are shown in such a fantastic way, I do believe the use of marketing will result in the series of films being much more appealing to women.

This rating has been chosen because as well as what is spoken about in this blog, the film as a whole is promoted in a great way and is extremely popular and loved by many.

References used

• Gration, D., Raciti, M., & Arcodia, C. (2011). The role of consumer self-concept in marketing festivals. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 28(6), 644-655. doi:10.1080/10548408.2011.603631