Week 2 EOC: Boston Consulting Group - Video Games

When it comes to video games, hardcore gamers are willing to purchase a brand new game at full retail price the day it is released to get started on the missions or leveling-up as quickly as possible. With drops in consumer satisfaction (redundant story-lines, character limitations, and very little improvements on prior games) people tend to shy away from getting the newest releases the moment they get on the shelves. When the CEO of Activision, Eric Hirshberg, was working on Call of Duty: Ghosts, he had to also put efforts in that companies cash cow “Spyro the Dragon.” GameInformer said “while Call of Duty became a juggernaut before his entry into the industry, Hirshberg was critical to the launch and subsequent wild success of Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure in 2011.” - http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/09/23/feeding-the-cash-cows-activision-39-s-approach-to-game-brands.aspx

So even though the company was working on exciting new titles for consumers, they also had to appeal to the loyal fans of their already established brand.

The biggest part of the BCG approach to me is the question mark. This is where companies are trying to predict what the consumer wants or will become popular. They hope that this item will in-turn become a cash cow. However not every product in the question mark category will become profitable. An established game “Mario Party” has been a great series throughout Nintendo’s past. However when “Mario Party 10” was released it seemed like a recycled game. Forbes magazine said “After a few games, there wasn’t much content left that didn’t feel repetitive.” -http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2015/12/22/the-15-most-disappointing-video-games-of-2015/#6751deef1ce6 The series has been tarnished due to this bad game and will have to work hard in order to get the customer loyalty back.

The dog section of the BCG is where ideas or products go to die, either because of subpar quality, wrong timing for the product release, or an array of other things can cause a product to perform way less than expected. “Dino Crisis 3” is an example of that to me. The first two games in the series made me loyal to the game series but when they released the 3^rd game it fell short of expectations. Usgamer.net has said “Capcom Production Studio 4 tried to do something different with Dino Crisis 3, but their execution fell far below their hopes and dreams.” - http://www.usgamer.net/articles/10-games-that-killed-a-franchise

They should have tested the games in a bigger demographic to see if the last game in the series would be as appealing or not. Due to their lack of planning the franchise has failed.

Week 1 EOC: Great Customer Service

When I moved to Las Vegas I had to make a little money go a far way. Moving from a house in Tucson, AZ to an apartment here made it harder to wash my dogs since I no longer had a backyard. My dogs were pretty dirty from traveling so I found coupons for a dog wash place up the street called Dirty Dogs Dog Wash. I no longer had a vehicle since I returned the rental car and couldn’t transport my dogs on my motorbike. I called the place and explained my situation and asked if they had a mobile way to come to my place to wash my dogs, they unfortunately said no. As I thanked them they stopped me and recommended a place they refer clients that have mobile dog washing capabilities. I told them I was planning on using a coupon to cover some of the costs and they asked if they could contact them on my behalf to see if they would honor my coupon. After a few minutes on hold they patched me through to a mobile dog wash service that could meet my needs. I never thought that a company would go as far to refer my business elsewhere but it happened just like that. They even agreed to honor the first business’ coupon! When I had the chance in the future to transport my dogs for a wash I had no other place in mind other than Dirty Dogs Dog Wash because of the great customer service I received even without directly giving them my business. It was the best customer service I’ve ever received. As CEO Hsieh of Zappos.com said “we’re willing to lose that sale, that transaction in the short term. We’re focused on building the lifelong loyalty and relationship with the customer,”¹ and I believe this is more important than just making a sale.

¹ Armstrong, Gary, and Philip Kotler. Marketing: An Introduction. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2000. Print.

Week 1 #EOC: My Voice

Sound has always been very comforting; every type of music has a welcoming ear with me. In my adolescence I’d get lost in deep feeling from the different types of musical genres that I came across, it seemed every radio station I tuned into and song that played would take me to a new place. I didn’t quite understand the emotions that were associated with it but as I grew older I began to learn of the impact that music had in my life. I left no musical note unplayed, even the sharpest and dullest of sounds had to be explored. I began by making noise on a guitar and finally made something I like after playing more wrong notes than pleasant ones. From there my passion flourished and I began playing drums to see what I could do with percussion. Learning drums was difficult at first but with determination and practice I was able to create unique beats that matched my friend’s guitar style. I used free recording programs to capture some of the original material we were creating and that moment helped me make my decision to pursue a career in sound. I plan on pushing myself to excellence by learning all that I can and then making a name for myself in the music industry.