How Bloggers Foster Word-of-Mouth Marketing

Word of Mouth Marketing (WOMM) is a method of transferring knowledge about products and services through social networks. Companies are moving toward using social media marketing methods to encourage their messages to spread into difficult to reach groups. A study of bloggers by Kozinets, et. al. (2010) shows how social media communication works within groups cultural norms. The character of the blogger takes on a new form of endorsement or criticism of products. 

In 2008, companies spend $1.54 billion on WOMM initiatives and the amount is expected to increase to $3 billion in 2013 (PQ Media, 2009). The market has a positive impression of independent bloggers and social media users who promote or reject products based upon their unique perspectives. 

The types of blogs vary depending on their personality. Some blogs focus on one concept in a niche market while others focus on multiple concepts. The different being the topics of interest to bloggers and what they find interesting enough to write about.  The process of writing on a blog has become known as “Identity Projects”.

Bloggers fit within a social network based upon their interests and vantage points. People interested in similar ideas, concepts, and products read blogs in order to understand and obtain additional information. 

The collection of likeminded individuals in a social network helps companies sell products and ideas. The same process that exists in face-to-face communication is similar in the online world. Bloggers become opinion generators that foster or squash products in their social network. 

Word of Mouth (WOMM) in online media is a secondary but significant source of developing opinions about products and services that can have an influence on public opinion and purchasing behavior. The researchers found in their study of 80 bloggers that they are not only social networks that use communal vs. commercial norms but they also become opinion generators based on trust, friendship, and alliances.  Bloggers as opinion generations can 1.) communicate the message; 2) stake reputation on the marketing message; and 3) convert the message into language, substance and tone that their readers understand.

Kozinets, R. et. al. (2010). Networked narratives: understanding word-of-mouth marketing in online communities. Journal of marketing, 74 (2). 

PQ Media (2009). Exclusive PQ Media Research: Despite Worst Recession in Decades, Brands Increased Spending on Word-of-Mouth Marketing 14.2% to $1.54 Billion in 2008 retrieved from http://www.pqmedia.com/about-press-20090729-wommf.html.

Ocean Beach Pier Offers Bait Shop and Dining Catches

San Diego has plenty of great piers to throw in a line and catch your dinner. Pier fishing is a common activity by San Diegans who love the fresh air, crashing waves, and warm California sun. Ocean Beach Municipal Pier is one of my favorites and provides a choice location to station your bucket and pole after a long day’s work. As the world’s longest concrete T-shaped pier there are ample spaces to find a spot. 

“Fishing  is much more than fish. It is the great occasion when we may return to the fine simplicity of our forefathers.” –Herbert Hoover

Ocean Pier may be a simple and cheap way to go fishing but there are a few luxuries that you won’t find in other places. If you don’t get lucky and end your trip without a catch you can always take a seat at the Ocean Beach Pier Café. Their menu offers seafood at prices that beat out many of their competitors. Not hungry? Order a coffee or smoothie and go back to fishing. 

Likewise you may need some live bait, fishing hooks, or new line. Next to the café is a bait shop that offers the necessities to ensure that you have what you need. No point in going back home when you just got there. The entire fishing process is easy at Ocean Beach Pier and it is a great place to spend a few hours with family, friends, or by yourself. 

The water is around 25 deep with significant sea life such as kelp and seaweed. It is best to use a 20 pound line to ensure that heavy chunks of sea debris doesn’t snap your line. Different types of fish are regularly caught that include bonito, perch, halibut, lobster, sea bass, and mackerel. I caught a rather small croaker. Not enough to make much out of it. Enjoy your fishing trip!

Ocean Beach Municipal Pier

1950 Abbott St
San Diego, CA 92107

The Changing of Military Honor through Societal Eras

The concept of the warrior and officer has changed over the centuries based upon the needs of their time. Honor has been a consistent theme throughout this transformation even though its application has changed with the times. Colonel Peter Mansoor who served in Iraq discusses how values have shifted overtime and creates new ways of understanding honor, courage, and duty. His work helps shed light on how different eras have brought forth new definitions. 

Ancient Codes: A defining concept of military codes of honor goes all the way back to the ancient Spartans. Their code entailed honorable conduct revolving around the ability to face death with composure and contempt. It was a way of frustrating the inevitability of death through skill and ability. 

Chivalric Code: The medieval era brought a new conception of honor that included a social instrument wrapping the warrior’s creed into a Chivalric code. Warriors believed in courage, courtly love, fairness in deciding justice, and true to one’s words and deeds. 

Gentlemanly Officers: The societal shift from a feudal system to the republic brought the gentlemanly officer who had lineage in European feudal systems. They acted with utmost social grace and protected their honor at all costs. Problems were solved through duels between two men. For example, Alexander Hamilton was killed by sitting U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr over a defamation of character issue.

West Point: The system of warrior codes took a distinctly American flavor with the maturity of the country. Honor in word and deed was important. It includes concepts of not lying, cheating, stealing and not accepting those who do. “The Captain is to be true to his country, make service his business, true honor his object."

The author argues that the Warrior and their Codes reflect the values of society. He includes a speech by the Commander and Chief at West Point that states, "We need your Honor — that inner compass that guides you, not when the path is easy and obvious, but when it's hard and uncertain; that tells you the difference between that which is right and that which is wrong." Honor has shifted toward the idea of an inner compass that allows one to draw from their own strengths and value systems even when there is no social kudos for one’s actions.

The paper does not discuss beyond the recent West Point speech what honor means in an emerging era of value globalization, robotic warfare, highly trained military specialists, cyber warriors, and shifting societal values. That conception of the warrior code has not yet been clarified but is being pushed forward with the idea of “inner compass” where multiple choices in any situation are judged by the fundamental characters of the people making them. Perhaps it is the honor of choosing something greater than ourselves even when there are no obvious options; a definition of integrity as a concept of wholeness when others are divided.

Mansoor, P. (2014). The evolution of military ethos over the ages. Phi Kappa Phi Forum, 94 (2).

Book Review: The Moral Tale of Moby Dick

Moby Dick by Herman Melville is a classical example of 1851 literature that sparks deeper levels of thinking and provides a moral story for readers. As an artistic production it is seen as one of the greatest seafaring stories ever written. It provides a glimpse of early American life through the occupational experiences of sailors.

Literature has an important function in society and transfers values and cultural beliefs. Story telling has been part of the human experience since the beginning of humanity. Moby Dick tells a moral story as much as it tells the tale of a whale hunt. Encouraging people to read such stories and think about their meanings helps to broaden their perspective. 

Some of the lessons you may encounter include:

Don’t Let Your Passions Consume You: Captain Ahab had a mission and he was going to fulfill that mission at all costs. His passions consumed him to the point that he no longer considered the other factors associated with winning. All missions should use sound judgment and reasons to balance out the decision-making process.

The Whale Represents Greatness: At this time in society killing a white whale represented wealth, prestige, and accomplishment. As one of the largest creatures known to man it was difficult to find, harpoon, and bring to market. Moby Dick came to represent man’s desire for material and social recognition. 

A Piece of American Experience: Melville used his experience as a sailor to write the story and became a sensation. The story represents how life was experienced by seafaring people in New England during the 19^th Century.  Life was different then and economies made their money from natural resources such as fishing, farming, mining and lumber.

Forms of Government: The process of gathering sailors from various walks of life is a democratic process where all members are individually judged based on their contributing skills. In a capitalistic society each member is focused on catching whales for economic purposes and has a positive contribution on collective action. Captain Ahab turns into the tyrant who fails to consult with others which eventually leads his crew to death.

The Flipping of Good and Evil: At the beginning of the story Moby Dick is characterized as evil and must be hunted down for its savage behavior. As the story unfolds you find that Moby Dick is only escaping the hunt and was never a man eater. Eventually we find out that it is Captain Ahab that failed to use sound reason and becomes the embodiment of evil in the story while he irrationally hunts Moby Dick for his own vain egotism. 

You don’t need to pay for this book. It is offered for free on Kindle. 

As an interesting side note whale attacks can still happen. In July a crew of two people were attacked tracking whales on a picture taking escapade. Following their target at 150 yards a second whale jumped upon their ship capsizing both crew members and flipping the boat. The incident occurred in the ocean somewhere off Point Loma in San Diego. You may want to watch a little of their experiences to get a feeling for the chaos of a whale attack. Fox News San Diego provides additional details (1). 

How Online Media Will Change Marketing Strategies

Is the world of marketing changing? The advent of online marketing has adjusted the basic assumptions of marketing and the way in which companies reach potential customers. A longitudinal study by Valos, et. al. (2010) looks at the perceptions of 40 senior marketing executives and attempts to understand how things have evolved. The study provides implications for future marketing strategies.

No doubt the Internet has changed the very way in which people obtain information from their environment and how they make choices between different types of products. Each purchase is based upon a range factors that includes social impression, product understanding, ease of purchase, information attainment, benefits vs. costs, and consumer personality.  

The Internet has become a new catalyst in putting these factors together in a way that leads to positive purchase decisions. Today’s advertisers are moving away from mass marketing approaches and seeking to be more exact with their marketing dollars to increase conversion rates. 

Why spend a fortune canvassing a large market when you can focus on those customers most likely to purchase? The Internet is offering the ability to customize marketing directly to motivate buyers based upon specific customer profiles. Messages are becoming more focused to appeal to core consumers.

Related research indicates that marketing will become more akin to engineering through database-driven decisions (Peltier, et. al. 2006). As marketing becomes increasingly interactive and able to reach specific subgroups it will require higher levels of analysis and development. 

The way in which companies put together their marketing mix will evolve to maximize emerging technologies. Imagine how a highly motivated market segment may be attracted to specific videos, language, graphics, key words, and displays. The way in which companies develop their marketing mix will naturally have an influence on attracting the selective attention of their most lucrative customers. 

The authors conclude that the increase in niches will make marketing increasingly complex. It will be beneficial to coordinate diverse media, marketing objectives, and marketing metrics. Personalization of marketing will likely grow and emerging technology needs to be incorporated into a company’s marketing mix. As customer touch points increases a greater emphasis is placed on using behavioral data and attitudinal data to fine tune marketing components. Mass marketing that serviced the mass manufacturing systems of the past are likely to become more expensive and be viable for certain types of businesses.

Peltier, J., et. al. (2006). Interactive IMC: The relational-transactional continuum and the synergistic use of customer data. Journal of Advertising Research, 46(2), 21-28.

Valos, et. al. (2010). Practitioner prognostications on the future of online marketing. Journal of Marketing Management, 26 (3/4).