In response to Tom Jennings

Do you believe that the Domino’s Focus Group commercials were affective?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgwPw59iqhw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t23sgF4Bl7c&NR=1

In some ways, I do think that the Domino's commercials were effective, but first you have to know that Domino's, as a company, has been doing really well lately. The deals that they have recently (in the past year) put out there, have resulted in much higher sales. In my opinion, the more deals they offer, the more they increase sales.

The focus group commercials were a lot about the improvements they made in their pizzas, but of course the deal was stuck at the end of the commercial -- two mediums for $5.99. Also, I added two youtube clips (sorry about the sound on the second one). One of them talks about the milk from in domino's cheese and the other talks about the tomatoes that they get from California and how their website shows where they got every ingredient.

Either way, the commercials lead you to act -- go to the store or go online to check out where we get our ingredients... then order a pizza.

Were they actually effective? I'm sure they were just because people were hearing the name Domino's. At the same time, I think some people felt the actual way they filmed the focus groups were kind of weird (the walls moving), and didn't say much except that they brought unknowing consumers into a room and showed them that they were actually at a farm.

Have other companies adopted this strategy? Would they?

Green Marketing

http://sbinfocanada.about.com/od/marketing/a/greenmarketing.htm

Many companies have chosen greener paths, but are they truly green if they market themselves in a green way? I think before reading this article, I felt that the little factoids about being green vs. not being green were less of a marketing strategy and more of an environmentally thoughtful education of customers.

However, I do believe now that companies should use green marketing whenever possible. People should feel responsible for the ups and downs that are a result of their decisions. This doesn't necessarily end at education of social responsibility/green-ness, but it also may benefit companies who utilize green marketing. If you think about it, customers will likely remember the company that seems socially responsible - I know I do - and will be more likely to be repeat shoppers. Anything that a firm can do to differentiate itself from its competition will lead to a positive result.

My only question is whether or not this article really describes green marketing or whether it describes green washing. Is it more about preserving the environment or about marketing to people? I understand the concept of showing that the firm is "green," but by replacing plastic bags with paper bags, how much help are you really giving? I feel that you need to be green in all that you do as a firm, but you can take little steps to achieve the goal of being green.

Is the article really "green" or is it "greenwashing"?