Thursday, January 28, 2010

Trendspotters

In my opinion I think brands locate trend spotters by watching what is currently popular. Most brands already know what is current or popular, so it is easy for them to search out a young adult or anyone that already has somewhat of a social status that may have an impression on others. By this I mean if they find a young adult who is in with a good crowd and has influencing power over their peers this attracts them. Again in my own opinion if they find this particular kind of person they may seek them because they are already buying into the brand status. It is important to be able to understand and identify with the audience because then brands have an idea what is current, popular and desired by their audience. This gives them ideas to create new things and be able to sale the items. If brands or marketers know what their audience is interested in they can market towards that. They conduct their research with surveys, observation, and probably even checking their competitors. If they keep up with the economy status they can also know how to market their items and get them to sell but still make money. Teens are the most powerful sector because they are easily manipulated and do not necessarily have a budget of their own. They also are well aware of what is cool or socially accepted and fell the need to keep up with what is accepted. When I was in my teenage years it was common to know who was popular or considered cool by everyone. I did not personally try and keep up with everyone else but I seen the jealousy that one would cause another by coming in with the newest style of shoes, hairstyle, or even jewelry. In the boys it was hard to tell them apart at times because everyone dressed the same and had the same clothes, shoes, and hats. Now that I am older I can look back and pick out the people who would have jumped at the chance to work for a marketer without pay, and just for the clothes or the social status. I think trend spotting is good if you are into keeping up with what is new, updated or even considered cool. I don't think it is something I would personally ever be interested in but now days our world is somewhat based around fashion and style. With that being said I think trend spotters may potentially give young adults a sense of reality about have a real job and the work it may take and also may help someone who is actually seeking a career in this field.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

My name is Melissa Castro and I am twenty-seven years old. I have one daughter, Reayez, which is three. I decided to attend Missouri Western about a year ago simply to be able to support myself and my daughter. I am majoring in Biology but my goal is to become a game warden for the conservation. I am on my fifth year of remission from having lymphoma cancer. My cancer is one of the things that prevented me from attending college sooner. I hope to graduate and be set in a career before my daughter is to far into school.
In my spare time I enjoy fishing, camping, and spending time with my family and friends. I am very family orientated and get great security from having them. We have a lot of family BBQ's and go to the lake with each other.
In this class I hope to get grasp on the whole blogging thing. Blogging is not something I have ever done and I am a little unsure how it works. I would also like to take something from one of the books that I can look back on and remember. I
In five years I would like to be finished or close to being finished with school. I would also like to see my daughter doing well in school and being able to provide anything she wants. In ten years I would like to be building a home on the property I currently own or buying a home. In fifteen years I would like to be at the same job for the previous ten years. I would like to see my daughter growing healthy and strong. I would also like to have one more kid.
The one thing I would like to get out of the whole college experience is a successful education that I can apply to daily life and a profession that I enjoy.