The Case of John Smith
Should John smith sell the names? (Be sure to answer the poll to the left of this post.) Also, Does the AMA Statement of Ethics address this issue? Go to the AMA website (American Marketing Association) and look at their Statement of Ethics. What in the Statement relates to John Smith's dilemma?


No, John Smith and his company should not sell the names and information. The people who took the survey need to be confidential and protected according to the AMA and their stand on ethics. The people who took the survey most likely do not want their information give out to other companies. John Smith would damage his own reputation and his employees if he were to sell the information just for a little money. He not only would be breaking trust with future customers but also going against the code of ethics. Although he is in a tough position because of money and employees he shouldn't sell any of the contact information.


How could John Smith use the survey to his advantage without going against the code of ethics??

Is Your Employer Taking Advantage of You?

http://career-services.monster.com/yahooarticle/is-your-employer-taking-advantage-of-you-hot-jobs#WT.mc_n=yta_fpt_article_employer_taking_advantage

An article I found on Yahoo poses the question if your employer could possibly be taking advantage of you. It seems jobs these days seem more strenuous than ever causing us to be more on edge and more likely to dislike our job. With this being said we look for people to blame other than ourselves for our problems at work. Although many people do not always like their boss it doesn't always mean that their bosses are out to get them.

In the article it discusses how to approach a situation if you think your boss is taking advantage of you. I felt this article to be a little ridiculous because a simple conversation with your superior could dismiss any concerns you might have. Although many corporations have been known to run employees dry, you shouldn't always think it's happening to you. Also the job you wish to obtain won't always be as easy as you think. By researching the company before hand or the job title itself you can save time working for a business hat might not be for you. THis will allow you to work at a place you can see yourself and it can even save your own time and sanity. 

Working in a business can be hard and it can cause your boss to seem uptight when they are actually just trying to get down to business. The stress of finding a good job is more than people can bare and it causes us to get any job just for the money. I personally think that this is not a good idea because working 40 hours a week at a place you hate just seems like torture. Being at a job you do not mostly enjoy can cause personal problems and even problems to your health. People think that the money they earn is all worth it at the end of the day, but is it really?? Why do people work at jobs they hate??

In Response to Kristen

At the end of Kristen's Post about Face book she asked the question: Have you noticed these new types of advertising on Facebook? Would you be more likely to react to an advertisement and use a product or go to a place that you know your friends have been to?


I have noticed that Facebook has been increasing it's use of free-economics by using its ads on majority of it's pages. Since Facebook has been quite successful lately it makes sense for them to be a popular place for companies to want their ads promoted. 

Personally I feel ads online at any site aren't very convincing because they just seem like pop ups. Every experience I've had with them just led to dead ends or scams that you require you to pay. However some ads led consumers to think a certain way and use their product, but you can't always rely on that happening.


I feel I would most likely use a product I have heard learned about online or thru others. It's very easy to see a product online and think that it works, but we all know many of them are misleading. With this said getting first hand information and reviews of the product give you more insight to if it's worth purchasing. Word of mouth seems to be the best way because its the truth of the product that you learn about rather than what the company wants you to see.

Obese students struggle to fit in their desks.

When we were in school our biggest worry was what was for lunch, or if I studied enough for my math exam. Students today face a whole other obstacle which includes trying to fit into their desks in the classroom. Students are more obese than ever and it's creating much difficulty to get them to even find a desk that fits them. Not only does this raise health concern for young children, but causes the student to be more self conscious in a learning environment. 

CNN ARTICLE http://www.cnn.com/2012/02/15/health/bigger-kids-bigger-sizes/index.html?hpt=us_t4

In an article from CNN it states that 17% of children are obese, this rate has tripled to the point where no weight charts are capable of monitoring their weights. One student in class even had to request a table and chair to sit at because he was unable to fit in a desk. Not only was this embarrassing for the student, but it raise many concerns for the younger generation and their health. This article also goes to talk on about even clothes and other furniture can be hard to find for someone who is considered obese. 

It seems the reason for our poor health is linked to our habit of consuming. We are told by our parents, commercials and friends to consume, consume, consume. I feel many people think by consuming products, food or whatever we will be happier because we get a surge of pleasure from buying something. However just because you buy something doesn't mean it will give you anything positive. For example fast food might taste great, but do you get anything out of it?? No we just want things now and don't think about the outcomes.

With many things in our society we want things at an instant because we are impatient which makes being healthy a bit harder. We see convenient places like fast food joints as easy, quick and cheap. When people get home from work, they are too tired to cook for their families so they order out. Habits like are passed onto younger consumers because they don't see it as a bad thing. This leads more and more kids and children to become obese because our habit of constantly consuming is slowly killing us. 

DO YOU THINK ALL OF OUR PROBLEMS ARE LINKED TO CONSUMERISM ?? WHY/ WHY NOT????

In Response to Rebecca...

At the end of her post Rebecca posed this question, Do you think this commercial was political? If so, do you think it should have been allowed to be aired during the Superbowl?

I watched this ad and have to agree that it is a political commercial. Although it may of not settled with watchers well, the message was strong. I felt this commercial was trying to keep in mind our current economy and that things will get better. Clint Eastwood spoke in this ad, and I felt he was trying to inspire the average american to make changes to better their own lives, and economic well being.  He brings up the term halftime, which relates to our current lives being at a stand still. And I felt from the commerical it was saying we are capable of doing two things. One we could keep going the way we are going and dig ourselves more into debt, depression and chaos. Or second change the way we are living and fix it.

On the other hand however, its hard to ignore that this commerical was always tied back to car company and that I'm sure corporate funding and ideas had a say in this ad. Not to say that it's always a bad thing, but it can create a lot of commerical and ads to be biased and to almost "brainwash" consumers giving them the wrong message.

I absolutely think this commerical should be allowed to air during the Superbowl. The television itself is a popular distraction from our worries of everyday life. On the Superbowl instead of getting sucked into funny dog commercials, drinking beer and yelling at the television, we take a step back and actually see the world we are living in. Regardless of who won the Superbowl or much money you placed on a team to win tommorow we still face all these problems in our society. Commercials like this should be allowed because they bring people back to reality and the actual problems we face. It's a commerical that doesn't prompt consumerism because buying that new car can't bring the economy back.

Do you think that commercials and other distractions are shielding people from all the problems our country is facing? If so, who is at fault??

Keene State College just named one of the top most Socially Awkward Colleges in US.

 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/06/colleges-for-the-socially_n_1256435.html#s665511&title=Keene_State_College

In a recent study by the Huffingtonpost, Keene State College along with 45 other colleges were labeled "socially awkward". Apparently not only is the various technology we use daily getting in the way with our social, but also the college we attend. This article discusses how our lack of communication like small talk and fear of social gatherings creates us to be awkward. 

I don't agree that this study has strong enough sources to label certain schools as awkward, but I do agree that each generation seems to be losing social skills leading them to come off as awkward.

We live in a world where we don't have to leave our house to go shopping or to send a gift. We have the whole world in our hands with our smart phones, computers and tablets. Although it may be very convenient it comes with a price. Instead of creating relationships through face to face interactions, we do it through the computer. We use sites like Facebook and Craigslist to talk to one another and become "friends". We rely on technology so much that when faced with real life with real people we become awkward and don't always know how to act. When faced with real people we don't have all the time in the world to think of that perfect thing to say, like we do when texting. We also fear rejection and become self-conscious when talking to others which is another reason we use computers. With computers, you avoid the outcomes in a face to face interaction and can escape. It seems we almost hide behind our computers and wouldn't know what to do without them. 

On the other hand technology has helped us advance in various areas, but it seems we need to learn moderation. If we don't we lose meaningful relationships and our social skills.

Another thing to consider is emotions. No matter what someone is sending through a email or text, we lose the true emotion behind it. We read into text messaging, give it our meaning based on it's context. To sum it up you can't capture emotions in a text, and it belittles our own feelings that are better expressed in person. We are starting to create relationships with others based on words, from there we give it meaning based on how we feel. With this being the new way to get to know somebody, we lose communication skills. We create a human connection thru a screen hoping its what we want. People often forget though that on the internet your able to be whoever you want to be. Next time your walking down Appian way, take a second and notice how "busy" everyone is on their phones.

Do you think our generations and younger generations rely too much on technology??

In Response to Emma Mchugh

Emma at the end of her post posed the question: Can you think of the last product or service you really enjoyed and may have told your friends about? Do you think marketing by word of mouth has a big impact on sales?

Yes, personally I feel marketing by word of mouth is very powerful. It allows a relationship to form between the seller and the consumer building trust and a potential sale. Since it's a promotion of a certain product thru their own personal words, the seller is placed in a pickle of whether to lie or tell the truth. Although the sale is important, their reputation is just as crucial to keep intact.

I personally as a consumer would want to here the pros and cons to the product so I know exactly what I am buying. the consumer in this case will also be able to ask questions because it's a face to face interaction, making it that more personal.

The last service I used was recommended to me by a friend. I had heard of the service StumbleUpon before, but never had used it. She explained to me the various sites and music you could access and told me how easy it was to use. I had no idea you could customize your stumble to your interests and I soon was using it daily. I found her promotion of the product was definitely the reason I start using the site. Word by mouth of anything espcailly a product can hurt or help a product/service tremendously.

Do you think word of mouth for a product is more helpful or harmful??