341 Research assignment

Hi marketing students!

Click here to access the instructions + a few examples for your group research assignment.

Click here to look at more examples.

Good luck and have fun!

Weekend fun

"People don't know what they want. They only want what they know."

Does this collection of awesome inventions prove or disprove this statement? Which are your favorites?

I really wish the Flying Platform and the Illuminated Tires (and the Dog Restrainer, pictured above) were available in stores!

PostSecret at YAM

Hi everyone,

Check out what's opening today in Billings -- the traveling PostSecret exhibit.

It runs through mid-January, so I hope everyone who wants to gets a chance to see it!

Oct. 1 -- office hours

Greetings to all!

I'll only be in my office this afternoon until 3:00 pm.

I will be in tomorrow afternoon, from 12:00-3:00, if you need to see me.

And as always, you're welcome to make an appointment if there's another time that works better for you.

Contesting an answer on an exam

Hi 341 students!

From the syllabus, the correct way to contest an answer on an exam:

"If you believe I've made an error in grading or recording an assignment you've completed, please give me a written request for review, providing a full explanation and referring to specific wording in the text or course materials to support your request....

Example: "On Thursday's quiz, 'A' was listed as the correct answer for question #5. However, according to the book on p. 344, 'C' could also be considered correct because..."

***

In other words, if you want me to reconsider particular questions from Exam 1, your appeals must have more support than simply, "I think..." statements.

(Therefore, everyone who has submitted an appeal so far will need to revisit the issue(s) a little more diligently.)

Thanks, and good luck!
Graham

Love story assignment -- consumer behavior

Hi CBers,

You've got a 1-2 page essay due on Tuesday -- don't forget!

Please describe something that you would run back into a burning building to save, something that is or has been priceless to you. Did you buy this special item or was it a gift (or a find…)? Is this item still in use, a thing of the past, or something you could use in the future? If you don't have it anymore, tell me what happened to this item. Most importantly, WHY is this item so meaningful for you?

Please DON'T write about your first girl/boyfriend (or your current gf/bf), your mother, or your dog. I don't doubt you have much love for all of them, but the point of this exercise is to dig into how consumers interact with inanimate objects, and to examine why certain items become so important to certain people.

Having said that, and knowing how much people looooove their computers (me too!), please DON'T write about your computer, either. It's sort of like claiming to love your brain, i.e., a given, and not very interesting to think or read about.


Finally, you all need to find, print, read, and be ready to discuss Russ Belk's 1988 article entitled "Possessions and the Extended Self," published in the Journal of Consumer Research. This is homework, so be prepared! It's a long article, but interesting and well written, so be sure to budget adequate time to go through it and digest it.

Good luck, have fun, and have a great weekend!

BUS 341 classes

I've posted the segmentation assignment instructions here and in the sidebar of this blog.

Above, you can see segments of grandparents in the UK, from research conducted by SAGA.
These researchers used geographic, demographic, and psychographic variables to segment the market in to clearly identified groups.

We'll discuss this assignment in class on Tuesday, but I know some of you wanted to get a head start.

Good luck and have fun!