Advantage Card

We all have keychain cards from the stores we frequent. I have so many that they have their own designated ring separate from keys (but still part of my set). I must say that I am not biased and I do sign up for the reward card program in every store in which I shop if it is offered. You may, or may not, learn a little bit about me when I tell list my keychain reward cards.
• Giant Eagle Advantage Card
• CVS Extra Care
• American Eagle All Access Pass
• GNC Gold Card
• Office Depot Worklife Rewards
• Petco P.A.L.S.
• PetsMart PetPerks
• Got Used Bookstore Membership Card

Of them, I’m not sure that I could tell you the benefits of each of them. Giant Eagle’s is probably the one we are most familiar with. Everyone wants the Fuel Perks. But hey, why not if you are going to shop there any way? But how about the people who have a different preferred grocery store? Will they switch, and if so, how many have done so in order to save on gas? The ultimate marketing question is does the Advantage Card really help Giant Eagle acquire and maintain customers? I think that the grocer was the first to offer a free rewards/membership card. So, back when the price of fuel wasn’t so steep, I don’t know if it would have played such a role in consumers’ grocer choice. But now, customers are looking for discounts so the Advantage Card may be more appealing.

I know that GE does a lot of market research and analysis and have found the Advantage Card beneficial to their business. But as consumers, we must not over look the bottom line. Are we really saving money by shopping at Giant Eagle just to save money on gas? There are various factors that impact where customers shop including prices/promotions/sales, location, store aesthetics, service, products, etc. For example, one may go to Wal-Mart because their prices are lower and someone else might never step foot in the place because they are turned off by the size and layout. In this area, location should not be a compelling issue for choosing Giant Eagle there are many alternatives in Pittsburgh including Wal-Mart, Target, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, and Aldi. The product and price are probably more important.

If the Advantage Card is the reason people shop at GE, I don’t think it determines whether customers are smart shoppers. The ones that have calculated a cost benefit from the 10 cents worth of Fuel Perks for every $50 spent will continue to shop there. Those of us (myself included) who have abstained from figuring this out might shop at Giant Eagle either for other reasons or because they just don’t give a damn. So good for you, Giant Eagle, I guess you’ve outsmarted us with the little card on a keyring.

Technology is running our lives

I took particular interest to our conversation in class about WiFi, 3G, etc., and the importance of technology to society. It entered my mind again tonight when we had an event at school and the microphone failed in the presence of more than 500 guests. Of course the room was equipped with innovation, having the microphone and power supply incorporated right into the podium. Yes, this is nice for the speaker because they don’t have to hold it, nothing is in front of their face, and it never has to be adjusted. However, when it failed, there was no immediate fix. We couldn’t simply replace the microphone or battery and the problem delayed the program for a significant amount of time. The solution turned us slightly back in time to the wireless microphone. It wasn’t subtle and the speaker had to hold it, but at the moment, the elder was a life savior.

Facebook

I think that Facebook and other social networking website are the “now” of marketing and offer a more personal way to gain business. When you think about it, everyone who has Facebook account is marketing themselves. We post pictures, make groups, and schedule and invite people to events. In turn, we are promoting who we are, our interests, and things we like to do and want to make others aware and attract them to these as well. So why not market businesses in the same way? An even bigger advantage to advertising on social networking websites is that money can be spent targeting specific customers that are more likely to buy your product. Using limited search criteria and terms related to the product, the ad will only appear to the people that fit. TV commercials do this to a certain extent by showing them on channels that are thought to be watched by prospective customers. For example, Cialis commercials overwhelm the ESPN during March Madness because men are probably watching basketball more than women. But the ad is useless and a waste of money anytime that a woman sees it. On Facebook, however, the viewers profile contains everything a marketer needs to know about the customer. And because the user has provided this information, the business doesn’t need to rely on market research or trends to know who will see the advertisement and can be confident that the people they hope will see it actually are.