Marketing: It's more than just ads. It's a mix.

        Hi my name is Arianna Aquadro.  I am twenty years old and am a junior at Saint Michael's College near Burlington,VT. I am majoring in Business with a minor in Spanish. I am currently taking a Marketing course, which is what this blog will mainly focus on. Both blogging and marketing are new to me, so hopefully I will be able to bring these two together to share what I am learning in a somewhat fun and different way.
       So far the first two weeks of class have gone well. I definitely have high expectations and goals for myself when it comes to my schoolwork and for this course it is no different. I hope to take a lot out of this course. Ultimately I want to leave with a better understanding of all the factors that go into marketing and how to apply them.
       Many people who are interested in marketing, including myself, are attracted to the creative aspect. It is an area in business that offers an opportunity to be more free and out of the box. However, when many people think of marketing they immediately think of creativity and advertisements and stop there. Although ads are a huge part of marketing there is so much more that drives this area than just choosing which bright colors, logos, and text to use and who can have the funniest commercial- not complaining about funny commercials because who doesn't like those?
       Yes, catching people's attention is a very important part of marketing, it can be what makes or breaks a business depending on their ability to do this, but so is keeping the attention. So far I have learned the best way to do this is to always keep in mind and use something called The Marketing Mix.  (You can find a more in depth explanation of what it is linked here.) If you followed the link or maybe you already know, there are four VERY important P's in the world of marketing- those 4 P's being product, place, price and promotion.
       I was first introduced to the terms "4 P's" and the "marketing mix" last semester in an intro to business course that touched on marketing as well as finance and management. Although this was my first time learning about these terms I have been seeing examples of them everywhere. Everyone sees examples of them all day, everyday, for the most part. The logo on your best friend's hoodie, the convenience store down the street from your house, and the buy one get one half off sale at your favorite shoe store are all just a few examples of what we see on a daily basis that have undergone decisions based on the 4 P's and marketing mix.
        Although marketing is more than just ads, one of my first assignments in class was to choose any ad I wanted and reflect and analyze it in more depth to how it related to the 4 P's.  I thought I would share the ad I chose and a little bit about my presentation. So here it is...

The assignment and my brief presentation

• Which 4 P's
• Product
• The product is the Audi S6, but this commercial is more for the Audi brand in general because it was not specifically mentioned in the commercial that this is the specific car it was advertising. 
• Place
• The ad takes place in a city setting. 
• The ad also take place during a prom. By making it a prom setting it can appeal to adults who have gone to prom and have them reminiscing, but also to teens who are waiting to go to prom some day. I think by doing this it makes the car more universal because even those in rural areas have a prom and this car can still appeal to them.
• Price
• Though price was not specified in the commercial, the car is owned by a two parent family with two children, making it seem like a general, average middle class family.  In my opinion by putting the car in a family setting it makes it seem affordable for couples and families, even if you have kids.  
• Promotion 
• "Bravery. It's what defines us."
• "Truth in engineering."
• "#BraveryWins"  Using the hashtag trend that has become popular on social media such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc.
•  The effectiveness of the ad 
•  The choices and actions of the teen boy make it seem like owning or even driving this car can give you the bravery or confidence one needs in life.
•  The music choice definitely has an effect because it adds to the atmosphere of the whole commercial and is in good pace with adrenaline the boy is experiencing and the dramatic pause is a nice touch.
•  The city scape during the night time and the lighting choices in the ad all showcase the car's design. It somehow makes it seem sleeker in my opinion.
• The target market
• Teens/ Young adults
• Going to prom
•  Who are going to get or already have their license
• Parents
• It's the dad's car
• Parents might see this and think it can give their kids confidence or that it might be a good car for them.
• People who need a little bit of bravery and/or confidence in their life
• This car seems to give this insecure teen in the commercial the bravery he needs to do things he really wants to do, but probably otherwise wouldn't...like kiss the prom queen.
• The intent or focus
•  You can be brave by owning or even driving this car. It will help you go where you want and do what you want. Even if your bravery doesn't turn out having the best results...like getting a black eye, it will still have been worth it. 
• "Bravery in design makes us who we are..." can relate to the Audi brand, but also people as humans. 
• The intent is showcasing the cars design and how it can affect us and make us better if we own it. 
• Its success/failure and why 
•  This ad is successful because it does a good job of appealing to a large audience.
• Humor from the little sister and with the black eye at the ending
• Showcases the product well and sends a message while doing it (this product can make you brave).
• Teens will see this and want the car or want to be the kid from the commercial and do the things he does.
• Parents will see it and either want to own the car themselves or will think about it for their children
• Makes the car seem like a higher scale car and like a privilege drive by the dad letting the son drive the Audi to prom
• Why you chose it  
• I chose this ad because I think it is very well made. It has aspects of humor with the little sister's comment and the ending with the black eye.  Personally, I enjoy ads that tell a little story and this ad does a great job of doing that. It was entertaining, showcased the product, and creates a desire for the product. This ad makes me want an Audi.

To wrap things up the following link was suggested to me to the making of a different type of Audi commercial from the Audi Australia S Line. This type of commercial is still creative, but goes in a different direction than the one I chose for my presentation, focusing more on the design/exterior and how the car drives as opposed to sending a message through the brand. It also shows how they focus on music and imagery.

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