Week 3 EOC: My Demographics

The millennial category that I fall into is a vast population of racially diverse individuals born between 1977 and 2000.  Some characteristics from my millennial generation that I found include:

 2.5x more likely to be an early adopter of technology. I’m not surprised in the least bit since we seem to be the most tech-savvy amongst the different generations. We are mostly responsible for the rise of social media and the digital revolution.

80% of millennials want brands to entertain them. I generally agree that brands that catch my attention are ones that generate some sort of buzz on social media sites or through word-of-mouth from friends. More importantly, brands that pique my interest     

Millennials value experience over things.  Though I agree that I value sites like Yelp, which shares different people’s experiences of a restaurant or hotel, I still find myself sacrificing experience for the sake of budgeting and finding the most affordable products in the market.

Skeptical at heart. According the Cuker Agency, “Millennials can be a bit mistrusting of businesses and corporations. They are more trusting of peers and information they find on the internet and social media.”  This is a pretty accurate representation of my though process. I usually rely on reviews and a little research on the company before I purchase products from them.

World travelers. Millennials tend to feel that ideas from abroad shouldn’t be take lightly. We tend to be a lot more open-minded from previous generations and embrace change a lot better than generations such as the baby boomers.

Social consciousness. According to my research, Millennials tend to respond better to a product or service that makes a world a better place. A brand with a social cause tends to reflect better in the eyes of my generation because we buy into the brand and it’s mission statement.

Week 3 EOC: Making Money For Good

Toyota TogetherGreen Initiative

Toyota has partnered up with conservation-based company Audubon in developing local community projects that aim to benefit the local environment. Within the TogetherGreen Initiative are three major components that drive the initiative to local communities around the country:

LeadGreen

“A Conservation Fellowship program to recognize and nurture diverse individuals who will become environmental leaders who can serve as role models in the community”

(http://www.toyota-global.com/sustainability/social_contribution/environment/overseas/togethergreen/)

GrowGreen

“Innovation Grants to support creative projects that contribute to significant gains in habitat, water and energy conservation and engage diverse communities.”

(http://www.toyota-global.com/sustainability/social_contribution/environment/overseas/togethergreen/)

GoGreen

“Volunteer projects at sites across the country to create a call to action for real conservation impact in diverse communities.”

(http://www.toyota-global.com/sustainability/social_contribution/environment/overseas/togethergreen/)

Environmental issues are a hot topic amongst social causes, so I thought it was great that a major player in the automotive industry such as Toyota has taken the initiative to address an issue that plagues their industry. They’ve taken strides these past couple of years to create environment-conscious vehicles, so this initiative is the next step that ensures that local communities become more aware of environmental issues and that steps have been taken to confront these issues.

I was particularly impressed with their GoGreen and GrowGreen programs because it allowed people of all ages to come together and mutually invest their time in environmental causes. The only prerequisites needed were that volunteers much show an appreciation for environmental causes and a commitment to engaging conservative action. For the even more serious conservationists, the fellowship program offered by Toyota and Audubon nurtured diverse leaders and served communities on an even grander scale.  Projects included the creation of an urban forestry program in Florida as well as the installation of solar panels for urban students.. No matter what age you are and no matter what kind of education  you received, Toyota and Audubon have made it possible for you to turn your passion of addressing environmental issues into a reality.

Week 2 EOC: Boston Consulting Group - Video Games

Due to the latest hardware and software innovations, the videogame industry has maintained a constant flow of revenue this past year. In 2015, free-to-play as well as multi-player made the biggest splash, while mainstays like Sony and Microsoft continued to cash in due to the release of widely anticipated games.

Stars – “The big moneymaker in absolute dollar terms was PC-based gaming, which includes free-to-play titles, subscription-based games, social games like "Farmville," and other downloads. Games on the platform pulled in $32 billion in 2015.”

(http://www.cnbc.com/2016/01/26/digital-gaming-sales-hit-record-61-billion-in-2015-report.html)

“The shift to digital is well under way, but physical persists. By 2019, global digital distribution of traditional games will generate revenue of US$12.89bn, or 19.6% of traditional gaming revenue. “

(http://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/entertainment-media/outlook/segment-insights/video-games.html)

Free-to-play as well as online multiplayer games seem to the major players in the videogame market right now. Games such “Farmville” and “League of Legends” generate billions of dollars in revenue, and it’s potential is unknown. I believe the rise of social, the flexibility of this market, as well as positive word-of-mouth guarantees massive streams of revenue for years to come.

Cash Cows –“While the ESA did not break out hardware sales in its 2015 figures, January 2016 saw an 8% drop in sales of eighth generation consoles (the PS4 and Xbox One).” (http://fortune.com/2016/02/16/video-game-industry-revenues-2015/)

Eighth generation consoles such as the Playstation 4 and the Xbox One, as well as the Nintendo Wii currently continue to generate huge revenue due to the popularity of games such as “Call of Duty”, “Destiny”, and “Fallout 4”. It reached its peak back in December 2015, but it’s ceiling is highly dependent on the releases of popular games, limiting it’s potential to when a highly anticipated series comes out.

Question Mark – Nintendo continues to play second fiddle to Sony and Microsoft in the video game market, and there isn’t a sufficient pattern that suggests that it could suddenly be worth investing in. The Wii console has taken a backseat to consoles offered by Sony and Microsoft, although it’s seen a slight uptick in hardware sales back in 2014.

Dogs – Seventh generation consoles such as the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 saw a steep decline in sales, falling by a dismal 81% in early January. Due to the availability of newer generation consoles, it is safe to say that its best days are over.

Week 1 EOC: Great Customer Service

"Satisfied customers buy again and tell others about their good experiences. Dissatisfied customers often switch to competitors and disparage the product to others."

When trying out a new eatery in town, I used to rely on review websites like Yelp to try out new eateries in town. While it's not necessarily wrong to use these sites as a resource to make well-informed decisions, I learned the hard way to not solely rely on the site itself. I wanted to try new sushi places in town, so me and friends looked online to find a nice sushi bar with solid reviews. I was going to UNLV at the time, and there just happened to be a sushi joint a few blocks away from campus called Yama Sushi, which was great since I wasn't driving at the time. It had generally positive reviews, ranging from good affordability to great-tasting sushi with fast service. What I neglected to do was to ask around campus to get word-of-mouth advice from other students who'd already tried the place out. Yelp didn't bring to my attention how crowded the place gets, so I ended up walking with my friends over to the spot, only to be told that the wait time would be 30-45 minutes. I just happened to have a class later on that day, so we ended up turning back disappointed. When I finally asked around, I noticed that other people had similar experiences as well. They discouraged me from Yama and re-directed me to another sushi joint close by with less people and faster service. Moral of the story: don't be one-sided. Get other mutual friend's experiences as well instead of the opinions of complete strangers. I'm not saying I won't go Yama ever again, but thanks to friends, I found my ideal sushi joint.

Week 1 EOC: My Voice

Words can’t ever really express what music has done for my life. Growing up around a family of musicians, it was easy to take it all for granted. I have always had a fascination with a great song’s ability to touch the hearts of its listeners, which led to me spending countless hours of listening to great tunes in search of that magic formula to a timeless song. But what started out as a fascination quickly turned into a lifelong passion of creating sounds that touch people on a personal level. Throughout my time at AILV, I’ve learned that making a great song doesn’t rest squarely on the musician. I fell in love with the technical aspect of audio production, in particular the recording and mixing techniques used by audio engineers which shape the sound of the song just as much as the musician itself. The ability of a sound engineer to interpret the musician’s ideas and make it a reality is an art form vastly overlooked by the general listener, but one I have come to greatly admire. Music is a universal language that brings people together, so as an aspiring sound engineer, I want to be able to contribute to great music that inspires and uplifts its listeners the same way I was inspired growing up.