Marketing for dummies : Winter sports

Final Post

2005-05-04T04:07:00.000-07:00

kiss
Originally uploaded by dens41.

This final post is a summary of my impression about this blog project.

What you learnt from this project?
Iâve learnt a new way of information on the internet that Iâve just âlisten sayâ until I discover it on English course. This is very easy to use this website and to post some blog but itâs quite hard to search others blog and more if there is no site feed. Iâve too discover a mean to place my pictures on internet for free with flickr and to include them on my blog. Iâve give these information to five friends who are traveling and now they can present their trip with pictures.

What difficulties you had ?
The main drawback with Blogger and Flickr is that you canât place easily more than one picture in the same post as you can see in the Salomon post. An other problem with Blogger is the often cut of the server and his bugs which can cancel your last posts.

Your feelings about the project?
Itâs a good project which allows to discover a new easy way of communication on the Internet but which ask time.

The best way to the fortune

2005-05-04T02:51:00.000-07:00

kotler
Originally uploaded by dens41.

We've see different type of communication across the most famous websites of the winter sport sector. This is very important to promote your product on the net because this way of information is accessible to a large number of people who doesn't have time to go to board dealer of travel agency. Moreover, it is one of the cheapest means to promote your product. But you must don't forget that if a good website practical and illustrated with pictures and movies can help you to increase your sale, a bad one can made it decreasing. A good mean to know if your brand is well known is to realize regularsmarket study (with the ESC Le Havre for example).
The website promotion is not enough, you must show the name of your brand during great events or by sponsoring sportsman/women. It's too useful to use the media (TV, radio and posters) if you have a bigger advertising budget.
Now that your name is become well-know, you have to verify that you product can be found is the principal retailer shops (for the board) or in the principal travel agencies (for the ski resorts) at acceptable prices compare to the others brands.
Finally, the reputation of your product depends to its quality. It is useless to sell a quality product at the launch of the product and let it decrease in the next year. It's better in the consumer mind to adapt the quality at the price and keep them in the time.

I hope I've help you to have a good mind of how a market can work but if you really want really launch a new product, I advise you to read the Philip Kotler's and Duboi's books which are very good writing with a lot of example.

L'Alpe d'Huez

2005-05-01T10:06:00.000-07:00

alpe
Originally uploaded by dens41.

This is a picture of the top of the resort at 3000 meters. You can see the cable car going over the cloud see.

Communication : L'Alpe d'Huez website

2005-05-01T09:57:00.000-07:00

Now that you have your equipment, you have to find a place where you can use it and more especially a ski station.
To choose a resort, you can use different ways like leaflet or go directly for several days. But, the first solution doesn’t show precisely the environment of the place and is not very practical and the second one isn’t very accessible for every people.
So the only solution which show the best a resort is it internet website.
Let see an example with one of the better website of the world (for me): www.alpedhuez.com
This website is very easy to use with the flash technologies which allow to create clear sections and to show a lot of pictures.
This site show first the two aspects of the resort: The winter and the summer
With the first section “Prepare your holydays” you can learn everything about available accommodations, ski passes, maps, ski school and book online!
If you want to see where you go and the ambiance, the second section “Webcam / Weather” show more than thirty slide shows about different subjects. Moreover, you can see the weather and slopes conditions (with the avalanche risk) and finally the must: A webcam in direct live at the top of the station.
With the three others sections (ski, station and events), you will discover the resort (situation, access, shops …), the different activities (not only ski) and the great shows set in the Alpe d’Huez. Like we’ve see with Salomon, l’Aple d’Huez use a lot the great event to increase its reputation. For example there is each year one of the stage of the international ski championship, the Free ride Mountain Bike week, the Red Bull Free ride challenge, the International Festival of the comic movie or the International Ice Hokey Tournament.
That’s why these resorts is known around the world and show the effectiveness of this communication.

Advertisement : Salomon

2005-04-19T07:48:00.000-07:00

Each brand has his own view of the advertisement in the winter sports market.
For example, Salomon just use the specialized mag and base his campaign on the movies.
In the winter sports environment, Salomon's advertising are knows as the betters.
Let's start with some pictures by John Humphries:

href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/27128146@N00/9935234/" title="photo sharing">
1
Originally uploaded by dens41

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2
Originally uploaded by dens41

href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/27128146@N00/9935238/" title="photo sharing">
5
Originally uploaded by dens41

For the movies the producers came from Hollywood or are well known around the world.
A part of the movies are available on the the Salomon web TV inside the website and you can see the others in the board shop or at retailers shops or during the Salomon's nights everything around the world.

Let's see these movies:
http://www.salomonsports.com/us/SalomonTV.aspx
You can see different type of movies (ski, snowboard, freeride,...)

In addition Salomon has a big culture of sponsoring. The brand is represented in all famous event such as "Le mondial du ski" or the Crossmax

Whats more, Salomon offer free try of all their products (just ski because Salomon don't built snowboard) to decide the potential customers to buy.

Personal presentation

2005-03-10T23:59:00.000-08:00

Grenoble
Originally uploaded by dens41.

Basis of the marketing

2005-03-10T06:22:00.000-08:00

The most reliable means to approach the marketing is to take a dictionary and read the definition:
American dictionary's Definition of Marketing
The commercial functions involved in transferring goods from producer to consumer.

American Marketing Association Definition
The process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives.

Marketing Definition from MSN Encarta Dictionary
The business activity of presenting products or services to potential customers in such a way as to make them eager to buy. Marketing includes such matters as the pricing and packaging of the product and the creation of demand by advertising and sales campaigns.

A simple summary will be: Movement of products (goods and/or services) between two people and every action which can promote it.
The most important aspects of the marketing are symbolized by the famous 4 P of the marketing: Product, Price, Place and Promotion. But some famous teachers of marketing like P. Kotler or P. Dubois have added other Ps who must be as well study: Packaging, People and Presentation.
For example, to sell a swowboard, a company must approach:
- The performances of the snowboard with new technologies: the new composite for example.
- The price don't should be too much expensive but profitable for the company.
- This snowboard must be sold by a dealer.
- In this sector, it's important to promote the snowboard in great events.

Personal presentation

2005-03-04T00:07:00.000-08:00

Hello everybody !!!!
My name is Romain Deneuville. I am a student in Le havre Business school in second year.
That is my first post and others one will come.
So lets start with a little presentation:
I come from Grenoble (south of France) in the center of the Alpes. So my favorite sport is ... Snowboard yes !!
On my Blog, I will explain the marketing for the people who don't know anything about it with example.
I hope that you enjoy this Blog and if you have any question, don't hesitate to post a message with your questions and I will answer it as soon as possible.

Tchao