Are companies taking advantage of the recession?

It has definitely being a while since I last wrote something... but things have been pretty crazy lately. With that said, there are a couple of really good articles/thoughts (at least I think) that I will be sharing soon.

So, lately all we hear about has the words "recession," "economic downturn," "stimulus," "job loss," .... etc.

I know that I am definitely not the only one that has thought of the following thing...

"we've all heard that during an economic downturn, companies tend to lower/cut their advertising budget, but it should be the other way around.... right?"

Well, for today, I'm not going to talk about advertising, but about Human Capital. As I was leaving my apartment, I was overheard the newscaster say "The SA Express is thinning the newspaper, making it two inches wider but leaving the font same size... oh yes, and its increasing the price, oh and they are cutting 120 people."

So... I was thinking, how many companies are just cutting people off because this is the time to do it. Not everyone is on the same boat as GM or Chevy, where it seems like they HAVE to cut people, but due to certain regulations they really can't.

From a company's side it makes sense, make it while the market permits it. Keep only the best!

I'm not saying that this is wrong or right, but just felt like sharing. Thoughts?!

Comments

Necessary Brand Extension?

As the yogurt wars continue to strengthen, brands are needing to find a stronger point of differentiation and go after stronger niches. While reading something online a couple of days ago, the above ad came up and left me thinking; is this right? Let me begin by saying that I love yogurt and in fact have it for breakfast most often than not. To be quite frank, I have never being a big fan of Yoplait - it's too sweet for my taste. This could very well be the fact that I grew up in Mexico, where yogurt is sour, so in my mind, the more sour it is the more natural. So you might be wondering what brand of yogurt I buy - well it is actually Greek, Fage, and I have to say that I love it. With that said, and given my inquisitive nature, I began asking people if they would buy the Yoplait Greek. Interestingly enough, of those who are currently buying some sort of Greek yogurt, not necessarily Fage said that they wouldn't buy it. Those who consumer Yoplait said that they would definitely...

KFC's Interesting Ad Buy... Is this right?

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Is this not a bit too intrusive?!

I know that good marketing is supposed to catch you a bit off guard and make you think about the message but this is just too much... Why? Because, 1) although it in fact was unexpected, it crossed the privacy line (which by today's standards is pretty low). 2) it's not creative, and 3) lacks authenticity... Which is the last thing you want if you deal with money. Thought?!

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