Group Project (Mid-Term Paper, Campaign Plansbook, Presentation)
MKTG 411 – Integrated Marketing Communications
Fall, 2017
The entire plansbook is written from the agency perspective. Write your report addressed to your prospective client. The purpose of the plansbook is to bid for this account. Convince your client executives to give your agency this account.
Keep in mind that your goal is to mount an integrated marketing communications campaign that incorporates advertising, online/social media marketing, public relations, event sponsorship, and/or any other relevant solutions into the overall plan.
Justify any assertions or recommendations you make in your report. Your client will expect you to be knowledgeable about the relevant industry issues, and also what the press (including trade publications) have said about the industry and/or client, competitive factors, what we know from demographic, psychographic, and behavioral research, what you learned about consumers’ salient perceptions relevant to your brand, etc. Therefore, be sure to cite relevant information (e.g., secondary sources of data you found online, your own primary research, readings/lectures from class, etc.) to back up any of your conclusions or recommendations. Cite also anything you used that was provided for you as part of this course.
WHAT TO INCLUDE: (See the “Framework for Analysis” handout for details on these sections.)
Mid-Term Paper
1. Situation Analysis
2. Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning
3. Bibliography. Your paper must include a bibliography in the back that lists all of the published sources for information cited in the paper (do not list sources that you did not actually cite in the paper). There is no need to list class lectures or conversations with outside sources in the bibliography itself, though you should be sure to cite them (see below). The format of your bibliography is up to you, but be sure that you use the same format for all of the references, and that the information for each reference is complete.
Campaign Plansbook
1. A Title Page
2. An Executive Summary. No more than 2 pgs (double-spaced). It should summarize the major points of your write up. Be sure that this summary can be understood on its own by a busy executive. Also, be sure your summary sells your recommendations.
3. A Table of Contents. It should list all the major sections of your plansbook and the page numbers on which they begin.
4. Situation Analysis (from mid-term paper)
5. Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning (from mid-term paper)
6. Message Strategy & Tactics. Note: Although your presentation should have professional-looking roughs illustrating your campaign, you will not be able to hand in large storyboards or any other materials that cannot be bound into the plansbook itself. Prepare 8.5 X 11 inch copies of these illustrative materials and attach or bind them into the plansbook.
7. Media Strategy and Tactics
8. Non-Advertising Promotions
9. Integration and Evaluation
10. Bibliography. Your paper must include a bibliography in the back that lists all of the published sources for information cited in the paper (do not list sources that you did not actually cite in the paper). There is no need to list class lectures or conversations with outside sources in the bibliography itself, though you should be sure to cite them (see below). The format of your bibliography is up to you, but be sure that you use the same format for all of the references, and that the information for each reference is complete.
FORMAT REQUIREMENTS:
Your paper must be typed, double-spaced. Number all pages.
The body of your paper should include citations to outside sources wherever appropriate. These citations should be in one of the following formats. If citing a class lecture: (class notes, October 24). If citing an article or book: (Smith, 2007). If you are quoting directly from a source, include the page number the quote came from, as in: (Smith, 2007, p. 20). If you are citing or quoting from a conversation with an industry source, give the source’s name and the date on which the conversation took place, as follows: (Ms. Susan Jones, research analyst, Jupiter Communications, personal communication, November 3).
Length: 8 – 10 pages for the mid-term paper. Maximum of 50 pages for the campaign plansbook. For the campaign plansbook, this includes the executive summary, table of contents, bibliography, appendices, footnotes, etc. The only materials that do not count as part of this limit are any art/layouts/storyboards you include. These materials can be put either in the body of your report or in the back. Either way, don’t number those illustration pages (and don’t count them in your page numbering). Example: If after page 20 of your report you include some illustrations, the next page of text after the illustrations should be numbered page 21.
Fifty pages is an absolute maximum. It is more than enough to communicate everything you need to get across.
DRAFTS:
You and your team may hand in draft sections throughout the semester corresponding to different portions of the mid-term paper or the plansbook. Feedback will be provided in the process of your planning the campaign.
WRITING:
When writing the mid-term paper and the plansbook, please pay careful attention to the grammar and writing style. he mid-term paper and the plansbook should use business language, and should contain no grammatical errors, incomplete sentences, slang, or the like. This will be an important factor in determining grades. Plan to schedule sufficient time to deal with and correct any writing problems (hand in drafts early if intended to do so) because these can be a significant obstacle in winning accounts. Here is an example of the kind of rewriting you may need to do:
Wrong style: “We want to hit consumers all around the country with xxx ads that pop.”
Right style: “Our goal is to expose a broad set of consumers to xxx through eye-catching and strategically placed ads.”
ORIGINAL WORK:
Given all the hard work you have invested, be sure to protect your team’s intellectual property from being used by any other team. Similarly, as with any work you submit, each team member needs to be sure that the work being submitted and presented is entirely your own team’s original work. Team members are individually and jointly responsible for ensuring that this is the case.
MKT 6215Global Marketing Management
MKT 6215Global Marketing Management
Internationalization
Entry mode
Market attractiveness
Eprg framework
Segmentation, targeting, positioning
Standardization and customization
Evidence for assessment:
2,500word report (50%)
International business involves any business transaction between parties from more than one couny.It includes such activities as buying and selling raw materials, inputs or finished products across borders, operating plants in other countries to take advantage of local resources, and borrowing money in one country to finance operations in a second country.
International business is different from domestic business in that it necessarily involves transactions that cross national borders while domestic business does not. Thus, at least one party will have to adjust to a different legal, economic, and cultural system; convert its currency into the other party’s currency; and make changes in how products are produced or the types of products that are producd.
A truly global firm can be:
· One that has embraced the rising growth of technology as an enabler of business across borders.
· A firm that has learned to adapt to changes in the political environment.
· A firm that maintains a ‘global mind‐set’ in terms of its supply chain, its customers, and its markets.
Please choose a foreign company / brand that is selling in the UK marketplace. Suggest the factors that made the UK an attractive market for the company / brand.
Please consider the following factors:
1. Company vision, mission and values
2. Triggers for export initiation
3. Environmental analysis (Macro, Micro, Meso)
4. Entry mode
5. Market attractiveness:
a. STP & Customer
b. Competition
c. Etc….
6. Standardization / adaption of the marketing mix:
a. Product
b. Place
c. Price
d. Promotion
7. What significant changes did the brand make in order to trade successfully in UK?
GUIDANCE ONSTRUCTURE:
Below is a suggested structure and content that you are expected to use for your project:
Title Sheet
Course title and year
Your name
Title of your Report indicating your brand name
Executive Summary
Usually written last
200‐250 words (excluding from report word count) on one page
A short summary of the report including the main features of your proposal, as well as conclusions and recommendations
Contents Page
Shows each section of the report and the page number on which it starts
List of tables/illustrations (if any) indicating all numbered tables (or charts, graphs, etc.) / illustrations and their respective pages in the report
NB: Page one comes immediately after the contents page or the list of tables/illustrations
Each section and sub‐section is numbered, e.g.
I. Introduction
1.1
1.2
Introduction
Background of your report & the company chosen
Brief history
Company profile
Findings
Main body of the report, formatted in a logical way.
Your report should not simply be subjective, but will need to clearly demonstrate your understandig of relevant theory as taught and contained in the reading list text books.
May include diagrams, graphs and flow charts if these help to convey your information concisely
Conclusions & Recommendations
Conclude your report by summarising the rationale of the launch and your marketing plan
You may make recommendations for the medium to long term marketing approach as appropriate
Appendices
Appendices should contain material/documents referred to in the main body of the report
They should be cross‐referenced
Pages in the appendices do not need to be numbered, but each appendix should have a reference number, e.g. Appendix One
Refer the reader to the appropriate appendix by its reference number
For example, ‘Research by Mintel (see Appendix Three) shows that…’
References
Include all cited publication in the text
Should follow Harvard referencing
Bibliography
Include all document/references supporting the writing of your report
Should follow Harvard referencing
-Word count: Candidates must comply with the recommended word count. Work that grossly exceeds the recommended word count will be returned unmarked and candidates will be asked to complete and submit a new assignment. Word count excludes the index (if used), headings, information contained within tables, references, bibliography and appendices.
Layout: Candidates should present their work professionally using tables and diagrams to support and/or illustrate the text. Candidates may include diagrams, graphs and flow charts if these help to convey your information concisely. You must have a strong Executive Summary and conclusion
Theory: A professional approach to work is expected from all candidates. Your report should not simply be subjective, but will need to clearly demonstrate your understanding of relevant theory as taught and contained in the reading list text books. You must show a critical appreciation of relevant literature and its use to support argument, substantiate model(s) and other aspects of the assignment. Material from a variety of appropriate and relevant sources must be used.
Referencing: You must identify and acknowledge all sources used. The candidate must use a Harvard referencing system to achieve this.
Primary research: Candidates must include clear evidence of primary research (if doing a questionnaire a minimum sample size of 30 people is required)
Language: Candidates should express their work in plain business English, using the third person (not ‘I’ or ‘we’) a good standard of English will help express the candidate’s understanding more effectivly.
Quality: It is anticipated that the outcome of the project will reflect your high standards, abilities and ambitions.
Threat Modeling-Threat Model for an ATM system
Following the directions provided by the OWASP website, Threat Modeling, model the threats to an ATM system that was the subject of an earlier assignment. Make assumptions where necessary. You will have to develop, if you haven’t already, a high-level architectural design of the ATM system. The link provides steps to execute for threat modeling analysis. Suggest mitigations for your threats. You are not required to rank the threats.
Your report should provide the information recommended by the OWASP website. Your report should be well-organized and provide references for all resources used. Deliverable You should create a word or PDF document with your report on Threat Modeling. The document should be well-written and include references for all sources you used support your work. Be sure to include your name, date and course number on the document in the title page. Be sure to include your name, date and course number on the document in the title page.
Project: Threat Modeling
Overview
This homework will allow you to demonstrate your understanding of the purpose and execution of a
Threat Model for an ATM system.
Assignment Details
Following the directions provided by the OWASP website, Threat Modeling, model the threats to an
ATM system that was the subject of an earlier assignment. Make assumptions where necessary. You will
have to develop, if you haven’t already, a high-level architectural design of the ATM system. The link
provides steps to execute for threat modeling analysis. Suggest mitigations for your threats. You are not
required to rank the threats.
Your report should provide the information recommended by the OWASP website. Your report should
be well-organized and provide references for all resources used.
Deliverable
You should create a word or PDF document with your report on Threat Modeling. The document should
be well-written and include references for all sources you used support your work. Be sure to include
your name, date and course number on the document in the title page. Be sure to include your name,
date and course number on the document in the title page.
Fatigue And Circadian Impacts
All major aviation operations (flight, maintenance, air traffic control, and airport) can induce substantial amounts of fatigue and circadian disruptions on the humans conducting and managing those operations. Select one of those aviation operations to analyze, then evaluate the sources of fatigue which impacted that operation. Include in your discussion how circadian rhythms can contribute to fatigue. Next, creatively apply the implications of fatigue on that operation and explain both how and why you believe it could negatively impact safety. Finally, propose means for mitigating the associated fatigue and improving safety in that operational field. As always, support your work with a reliable source.
(Consider flight operations)
Am I Walking My Ethical Talk? / Managing A Diverse Workforce
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Follow PART 1 & 2 and answer the questions with citation and reference NO PLAGIARISM.
PART 1: Am I walking My Ethical Talk?
On p. 280 of the text, the authors present a series of questions to ask yourself whether you are “walking your ethical talk”. Question 1 asks you to consider how you discuss the ethical implications the ethical implications of your work:
-Do I talk about the ethical implications of decisions with the people who report to me as well as with the job candidates I’m interested in hiring?
– With my peers?
-With my manager?
-How would you pose this question in a discussion with your manager?
PART 2: Managing a Diverse Workforce
Read the short case, “Managing a Diverse Workforce”, on p. 314 of the text.
Suppose that your Vice President to whom you report at Secure Bank calls you to his office and tells you to select a male member of your team to replace Julie on your sales team.
In your initial post, describe your course of action and you rationale for choosing this course (Business Ethnics).
Reference
Trevino, L.K., & Nelson, K.A. (2014). Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it right (6th ed.). NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Software Development Plan Document
Software Development Plan Document
This course is comprised of a series of individual project assignments that will also contribute to a group project due at the end of the course. Each week, you will complete a part of a software development plan, and you will share your results with your assigned group after your individual project has been graded. The group will integrate the projects into a group-developed version of the software development plan.
Your team will select a software engineering project that will cover the development process from conception to deployment. You are expected to perform the following tasks:
· Select a development methodology to plan a real-life application.
· Perform a trade-off analysis covering quality, features, cost, and time for rapid development.
· Conduct requirements elicitation and documentation for the application.
· Prepare a systems component design.
· Organize a schedule that covers build, integration, and test of the application.
· Conduct a risk assessment for the project.
Throughout this course, you will be working on a software development plan for the project that your team selects. You will not be developing the software, but you will work extensively with the concepts of good system-engineering practices during the creation of the plan. Additional information and the deliverables for each individual project will be provided in the assignment description for the project. The final deliverable is also known as the Final Key Assignment.
Project Selection
The first step will be to select a project as the target for your team’s software development plan. This project will be used as the basis for each of the individual project assignments throughout the course and should conform to the following guidelines:
· Nontrivial: The selected project should be large enough to allow reasonable exercise of the software development planning processes.
· Domain Knowledge: Students in the team should be familiar enough with the organization or software category to allow focus on the planning tasks without significant time required for domain education.
· Accessibility: Students in the team should have good access to the people and other information related to the organization or system because this will be an important part of the process.
After your instructor has assigned team members, your team should select a software development project that fits these requirements and submit a proposal to the instructor before proceeding further with the assignments in the course. Approval should be sought within the first several days of the course. Your instructor will tell you how to submit this proposal and what notification will be given for project approval.
Assignment
For the assignments in this course, your team will not be implementing the actual development project, but rather, you will be developing a comprehensive software development plan document. Your team’s first task in this process will be to select a project to use as the basis of your plan. You will also create the shell document for the final project deliverable that you will be working on during each unit. As your team proceeds through each project week, you will individually and collectively add content to each section of the final document to gradually complete the final project delivery. Appropriate research should be conducted to support the analysis in your team’s plan, and assumptions may be made when necessary.
Note: To be clear, each individual will be creating a software development plan in fulfillment of the individual project assignments, and the team will also create a software development plan in fulfillment of the group project due at the end of the course.
Team Project Deliverables
· Submit a project proposal to the instructor for approval.
· After the individual projects are graded, team members should share their results with the team. The team should then integrate the results into the team’s version of the software development plan document. There is no submission for this part of the assignment until the end of the course.
Individual Project Deliverables
· Software development plan document shell
· Use Word
· Title page
· Course number and name
· Project name
· Student name
· Date
· Table of contents
· Auto-generated TOC
· Separate page
· Maximum of 3 levels deep
· Fields of TOC should be up-to-date before submitting
· Section headings (create each heading on a new page with TBD as content, except for sections listed under new content below)
· Project Outline
· Development Methodology
· Requirements
· Design
· Development and Testing
· Project Schedule
· Risk Analysis
· New content
· Project Outline
· Brief description of the project
· List of major issues to consider in the development of the application
· Material taken from approved proposal submitted to instructor
· Project must be approved by instructor
· Development Methodology
· Describe methodology that will be used for software development
· Include justification of selected methodology and why it suits project well
· Name the document yourname_SWE481_IP1.doc.
· Submit the document for grading.
· After the assignment has been graded, share your document with your team through the team area in the classroom. Your team should decide whether documents will be shared through the Discussion Board or through the file uploads in the team area.
MGT452-FILM ANALYSIS
FILM ANALYSIS:
We will be analyzing and coaching leaders using the medium of film. Film cases are very useful in
understanding leadership because they provide concrete models of behavior for observation and
analysis.
In this assignment, you will consider yourselves as leadership coaches. Your job involves
analyzing and diagnosing a leader to determine why he or she is effective or ineffective, and
making recommendations based on leadership concepts and theories to help the leader improve
In groups, you will present your film analysis. Each student is expected to watch the assigned film
and take proper notes so you can contribute to your team’s presentation. In each film case, you
should identify relevant (and multiple) leadership concepts/theories covered in the course and
apply them to the main leader in your film. You should discuss why you feel the leader is effective
or ineffective, ethical or unethical, and that discussion should tie in those relevant leadership
concepts. You may use film clips to illustrate your points. It is also recommended that you find a
short trailer of your film to serve as an overview for the class. Effective group presentations will
clearly show how the leadership concepts from the course “came alive” within the film case. You
should also encourage a lively discussion of the topics within the class, and in turn, the rest of the
class is expected to participate fully in these discussions.
You should conclude your presentation with a list of recommendations that are supported by
research findings. If you feel the leader is effective, you won’t make recommendations, but you will
apply theories that support WHY he or she is effective.
Good sources for scholarly articles are Leadership Quarterly, Leadership, Leadership and
Organization Development Journal, Journal of Business Ethics, Academy of Management Journal,
Journal of Leadership Studies.
Guidelines: Each team will have no more than 20 minutes to present (make sure the clips you
show are brief and to the point as the time of the clips counts toward your time allotment), leaving
5 minutes for audience comments or questions at the conclusion of your presentation.
The Political, Economic, and Technological Implications for Business Working with your Zip-6 Scenario: Foreign Business Environment
MT220 Global Business
ASSIGNMENT DETAILS
Assignment: The Political, Economic, and Technological Implications for Business Working with your Zip-6 Scenario: Foreign Business Environment
Nils, the partner of Ravi and Keith at Zip-6, approached them with an interesting possibility. A fellow venture capitalist friend revealed to him that he and his partners were acquiring a large family-owned group of businesses in the South American country of Colombia. Most of these family-owned businesses are diversified manufacturing businesses in the capital of Bogota, but there is one soft drink bottling operation in the acquisition that does not fit within their venture business plan and thus they would like to divest (sell) this particular operation. Nils’ friend knew that Nils, Ravi, and Keith had extensive presence in neighboring Brazil and thought that this business in Colombia might offer Zip-6 an additional expansion opportunity in the region. Neither Nils, Ravi, nor Keith have any knowledge of this nation.
Your job in this Assignment is to conduct some basic research into the country of Colombia (a neighboring country to Brazil) and examine the most important historical events (political, economic, and technological) that might impact the country of Colombia’s business climate for the future of this investment by Zip-6. Review the full Zip-6 Scenario.
After researching the historical events in Colombia, write your analysis in an informative essay addressing all the checklist items and advising Ravi and Keith on a recommended course of action and your justification for such an approach. Be sure to reference any sources used in your work using APA formatting.
Web Resources:
Colombia:
1. Go to the C.I.A.’s World Factbook resource and search for information on Colombia
2. Go to the U.S. Department of State website and search for information on Colombia
3. Go to Michigan State University: globalEDGE™ website: http://globaledge.msu.edu/Countries/Colombia
You may also use information from other sources that are from governmental or educational sites as well. Do not use Wikipedia!
Checklist:
1. What events (political, economic, and technological) are the most important in recent years that might have impacted the business culture in Colombia?
2. Do you feel that the Colombian economy today is sufficiently robust to support the growth of the sports drink industry and Zip-6’s entry within the country and why?
3. Write your original informative essay in Standard American English. Please be sure to include an Introduction, Body (addressing all the checklist items), and Conclusion.
· Pay special attention to correct grammar, style, and mechanics.
· Respond to the checklist items in a complete manner.
· Ensure that your viewpoint and purpose are clearly stated.
· Demonstrate logical and appropriate transitions from one idea to another.
Your paper should be highly organized, logical, and focused.
Draft your response addressing these points in a minimum of 500 words or more in APA format and citation style and submit the file to the Unit 3 Dropbox before the close of the unit.
Name your file: Your FirstName_LastName_Assignment_Unit#.
ZIP-6 Scenario
This is the link to the scenario
https://kapextmediassl-a.akamaihd.net/business/AB220_MT220_1403C/Unit1_Reading/html/index.html
Essay Question "When Companies Embrace A Powerful CSR Cause And Are Truly Passionate About It Then Business Success In Many Forms Will Surely Follow” Discuss
Essay Question “When Companies Embrace A Powerful CSR Cause And Are Truly Passionate About It Then Business Success In Many Forms Will Surely Follow” Discuss
CASE STUDY Levi’s /
This article appeared in Contagous issue Twenty Four.
Contagous is an intelligence resource for the
global marketing communiy focusing on
non-tradiional media and emergng technologes
www.contagiousmagazine.com
For more information please contac the team on
+44 (0) 20 7575 1998 or sales@contagiousmagazine.com
1st Page.indd 1 12/08/2010 17:37
This article appeared in Contagous issue Twenty Four.
Contagous is an intelligence resource for the
global marketing communiy focusing on
non-tradiional media and emergng technologes
www.contagiousmagazine.com
For more information please contac the team on
+44 (0) 20 7575 1998 or sales@contagiousmagazine.com
1st Page.indd 1 12/08/2010 17:37
case study / levi’s /
get to work
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get to work
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 2 12/08/2010 18:10
case study / levi’s / get to work / after a tough decade, one of the world’s most famous brands has pressed the reset button, returning to its pioneering roots and pitching a new definition of what it means to work. equal parts elbow grease and empowerment, levi’s prolific new strategy incorporates csr initiatives, an overhaul of the women’s range, and a focus on digital communication as the most effective way of creating meaningful campaigns. finally, the performance sportswear of the 1870s has found a way to marry heritage with contemporary relevance – demonstrating that hard work really does pay off / by jess greenwood /
contagious 50 / 51
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 3 12/08/2010 18:10
contagious 50 / 51
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 3 12/08/2010 18:10
T here are few brands that can be described as truly ‘iconic’. coca-cola, obviously, and apple. nike air jordan, perhaps. the golden ms? when you put your mind to it, you can count on the fingers of one hand the brands genuinely deserving of the moniker. yet still, the promethean task of creating an icon keeps marketers awake at night. how do i make my brand recognisable to everyone? how do i associate it with a way of life? how do i build it into the biggest in its category?
lost in all of this is the fact that icons, like idols, can teeter and even topple. in 2005, much beloved and universally recognised denim brand levi’s was in the doldrums. following years of – there’s no other word for it – iconic pan-european advertising from longstanding incumbent agency bbh, the brand that had successfully paired all-american values with a sense of edgy sexuality had fallen from grace. ‘there was a strong feeling from myself, and others in the company, that we had lost our way. the core of the brand, what we were about, had been lost,’ explains doug sweeny, vp of brand marketing at the company.
sweeny’s feeling was more than borne out by the company’s lacklustre sales figures. the rise in popularity of the denim jean as a flexible, must-have fashion item in the late 1990s saw the brand losing market share to a host of niche, exclusive upstarts like evisu and seven for all mankind. in 1997, after years of growth, the company reported that worldwide sales had dropped by four percent from $7.1 billion to $6.9 billion. in 2003, levi’s posted record $349 million losses, with revenues of only $4 billion – far below the company’s 1996 peak. this decade of decline was only reversed in 2005 – and yet in 2010, business is steadily improving for the world’s biggest denim brand, despite the effects of the worst recession since the great depression. second- quarter net revenues had increased eight percent in comparison with 2009 to $977 million, with ‘ongoing retail expansion’ and ‘innovative products’ indicated as reasons for the growth.
‘the resurgence started a couple of years ago, on a really macro level,’ sweeny continues. ‘we started trying to wipe the slate clean.’
brand activity in the ‘lost’ years reads like a checklist of all the obvious marketing essentials for an apparel company attempting to target the fickle fashion set. an association with up-and-coming bands in the form of festival sponsorships and a ‘ones to watch’ programme. collaborations with controversial artists like damien hirst, and magazine-style content pushed out through levi.com. the sexy, stylised tv campaigns that had so characterised bbh’s work for the brand. some frankly odd viral campaigns featuring sock puppets emerging from the product’s button fly through cutwater in san francisco. however, this prolific rate of execution
on a not-insignificant marketing budget only served to highlight the absence of a resonant, organising idea through which all the creative was filtered.
‘we were very connected with pop culture, but we needed to connect with something broader,’ reflects sweeny. ‘most of the apparel category relies on aspiration, and presents an ideal of what you should be. levi’s is exactly the opposite. we’re about being who you are, and presenting yourself in a way that’s completely authentic and true to yourself. whoever you are.’
this dark period in the brand’s history throws the perils of operating as a 150-year-old brand in a sector dominated by the prevailing notion of cool into sharp relief. levi’s had been criticised by market analysts for relying too heavily on heritage, and yet new attempts to thrust the brand into the here-and-now seemed forced and awkward. however, the levi’s brand boasts a long history of organic adoption by those who dare to be different, and as such has no real need to cultivate transgression for transgression’s sake (for reference, see competitor diesel’s current ‘be stupid’ campaign which attempts just that, in the most obvious terms possible). andy warhol and the ramones were levi’s fans, and the brand has enjoyed a long, fruitful and mutually supportive relationship with the lgbt community. ‘over the years we’ve been adopted by all of these disparate communities and groups,’ sweeny explains, ‘and we feel that that’s a result of always zigging when everybody else zagged. we try to do the right thing, rather than the thing that just feels right at the time. at our core, we’re a pioneering brand. we’re for, by and about pioneers.’
New frontiers
levi strauss himself was a pioneering kind of guy, a german-jewish immigrant who headed west from new york to open a branch of his brother’s dry goods company in 1853. having arrived with rolls of rough canvas for tents and wagon covers, strauss innovated in response to consumer demand and began producing the first versions of what we now know as the iconic blue jean for the labourers flooding into san francisco as part of the gold rush. the denim came later, following complaints that the canvas chafed. (you try wearing a wagon cover as pants.)
at the tail end of 2008 levi’s us handed its creative reigns to wieden+kennedy, portland, following a pitch in which bbh us declined to participate. (the final ties between agency and client were severed in july 2010 when bbh london amicably resigned the rest of the account.) keen to avoid the pitfall of heritage in which the levi’s brand had so long languished whilst translating the pioneering spirit for a contemporary
case study / levi’s /
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lost in all of this is the fact that icons, like idols, can teeter and even topple. in 2005, much beloved and universally recognised denim brand levi’s was in the doldrums. following years of – there’s no other word for it – iconic pan-european advertising from longstanding incumbent agency bbh, the brand that had successfully paired all-american values with a sense of edgy sexuality had fallen from grace. ‘there was a strong feeling from myself, and others in the company, that we had lost our way. the core of the brand, what we were about, had been lost,’ explains doug sweeny, vp of brand marketing at the company.
sweeny’s feeling was more than borne out by the company’s lacklustre sales figures. the rise in popularity of the denim jean as a flexible, must-have fashion item in the late 1990s saw the brand losing market share to a host of niche, exclusive upstarts like evisu and seven for all mankind. in 1997, after years of growth, the company reported that worldwide sales had dropped by four percent from $7.1 billion to $6.9 billion. in 2003, levi’s posted record $349 million losses, with revenues of only $4 billion – far below the company’s 1996 peak. this decade of decline was only reversed in 2005 – and yet in 2010, business is steadily improving for the world’s biggest denim brand, despite the effects of the worst recession since the great depression. second- quarter net revenues had increased eight percent in comparison with 2009 to $977 million, with ‘ongoing retail expansion’ and ‘innovative products’ indicated as reasons for the growth.
‘the resurgence started a couple of years ago, on a really macro level,’ sweeny continues. ‘we started trying to wipe the slate clean.’
brand activity in the ‘lost’ years reads like a checklist of all the obvious marketing essentials for an apparel company attempting to target the fickle fashion set. an association with up-and-coming bands in the form of festival sponsorships and a ‘ones to watch’ programme. collaborations with controversial artists like damien hirst, and magazine-style content pushed out through levi.com. the sexy, stylised tv campaigns that had so characterised bbh’s work for the brand. some frankly odd viral campaigns featuring sock puppets emerging from the product’s button fly through cutwater in san francisco. however, this prolific rate of execution
on a not-insignificant marketing budget only served to highlight the absence of a resonant, organising idea through which all the creative was filtered.
‘we were very connected with pop culture, but we needed to connect with something broader,’ reflects sweeny. ‘most of the apparel category relies on aspiration, and presents an ideal of what you should be. levi’s is exactly the opposite. we’re about being who you are, and presenting yourself in a way that’s completely authentic and true to yourself. whoever you are.’
this dark period in the brand’s history throws the perils of operating as a 150-year-old brand in a sector dominated by the prevailing notion of cool into sharp relief. levi’s had been criticised by market analysts for relying too heavily on heritage, and yet new attempts to thrust the brand into the here-and-now seemed forced and awkward. however, the levi’s brand boasts a long history of organic adoption by those who dare to be different, and as such has no real need to cultivate transgression for transgression’s sake (for reference, see competitor diesel’s current ‘be stupid’ campaign which attempts just that, in the most obvious terms possible). andy warhol and the ramones were levi’s fans, and the brand has enjoyed a long, fruitful and mutually supportive relationship with the lgbt community. ‘over the years we’ve been adopted by all of these disparate communities and groups,’ sweeny explains, ‘and we feel that that’s a result of always zigging when everybody else zagged. we try to do the right thing, rather than the thing that just feels right at the time. at our core, we’re a pioneering brand. we’re for, by and about pioneers.’
New frontiers
levi strauss himself was a pioneering kind of guy, a german-jewish immigrant who headed west from new york to open a branch of his brother’s dry goods company in 1853. having arrived with rolls of rough canvas for tents and wagon covers, strauss innovated in response to consumer demand and began producing the first versions of what we now know as the iconic blue jean for the labourers flooding into san francisco as part of the gold rush. the denim came later, following complaints that the canvas chafed. (you try wearing a wagon cover as pants.)
at the tail end of 2008 levi’s us handed its creative reigns to wieden+kennedy, portland, following a pitch in which bbh us declined to participate. (the final ties between agency and client were severed in july 2010 when bbh london amicably resigned the rest of the account.) keen to avoid the pitfall of heritage in which the levi’s brand had so long languished whilst translating the pioneering spirit for a contemporary
case study / levi’s /
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contagious 52 / 53
‘At our core, we’re a pionering brand. We’re for, by and about pioners.’
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‘At our core, we’re a pionering brand. We’re for, by and about pioners.’
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audience, wieden’s response was ‘go forth’, a future- facing rallying cry designed to acknowledge 150 years of history and encourage consumers to explore ways of shaping the next 150. early iterations in which young americans were encouraged to ‘write their own declaration of independence’ proved moderately successful. however, the latest instalment of the campaign sees the brand celebrating the concepts of progress and hope, whilst being brutally honest about the issues facing contemporary americans.
wieden and levi’s built the entire campaign, ‘ready to work’, around the small american borough of braddock, pennsylvania. despite once boasting a population of 20,000, mostly workers at a local steel mill, the decline of the industry had seen braddock’s population dwindle to under 3,000. its young mayor, john fetterman (who has braddock’s zip-code tattooed on his arm), is encouraging artists, craftsmen and business owners to repopulate the town and revive its flagging fortunes, making the borough a showcase for urban renewal. levi’s partnered with fetterman to fund the completion of a community centre and urban farm, whilst documenting the process in a series of films and still images featuring real inhabitants of braddock, which would eventually form the advertising campaign for the brand’s new line.
‘levi’s is a workwear brand,’ says sweeny, unfashionably but truthfully. ‘it’s the performance sportswear of the 1870s. the whole point of ‘go forth’ is about translating our dna into today’s concept of work.’
‘we were inspired by the works progress administration (wpa) which was formed by the us government during the new deal,’ continues tyler whisnand, executive creative director at wieden+ kennedy. ‘people went to work to put the country back together during the great depression. with this in mind, we went looking for a place where a group of people were doing the new work in the interest of rebuilding and reviving their world.’
an emotionally-charged commercial launched the campaign on tv and online, making the point that ‘people think there aren’t frontiers anymore. they can’t see how frontiers are all around us’. john hillcoat, who had last used braddock as the post-apocalyptic background for the 2009 adaptation of cormack mccarthy’s The Road, directed the commercial and was by all accounts thrilled to be returning for more hopeful purposes. an hour-long documentary will be seeded in a series of five-minute clips online, and broadcast on the sundance channel in the autumn. aaron rose, of 2007’s Beautiful Losers film which chronicled the street art movement, directed.
‘there’s a two-year financial and legal agreement between us and braddock redux [the non-profit that governs the town’s regeneration], but the whole thing’s
become pretty organic,’ explains doug sweeny. ‘we just do what we can to help. members of the levi’s team have been down there painting walls.’ as well as lending their artistic talents, the company is donating its own office supplies to help keep the town’s library running, and its 200-strong sales team will be holding their annual meeting in the town’s new community centre. there is a palpable sense of enthusiasm amongst the levi’s team for this new direction, as much a reset of culture internally as it is externally. ‘it’s energised the entire company,’ confirms sweeny.
Meaningful marketing
go forth, and particularly the work with braddock, represents the convergence of several trends in the advertising and marketing industry. first, putting your money where your mouth is. witness pepsi’s refresh everything platform, which invites community members to submit their ideas for projects worthy of pepsi funding. go forth is a more focused, less starry-eyed manifestation of the sense that consumer confidence and loyalty is created, not through simply shouting, but by using marketing budget to make a demonstrable difference in the world. ‘we’re building on the optimism that go forth created in the first year, and putting it into a tangible reference that you can see happening,’ explains whisnand. ‘disenfranchised youth are sick of seeing ads and stunts on the internet that don’t mean anything. by being a company that makes things by hand and makes things the right way, levi’s becomes meaningful.’
the second trend lies in the prioritising of engagement over reach. the work in braddock is tightly integrated across a number of different media, with tv, branded content, online, and point of sale creating myriad touchpoints, and hopefully the sense that the regeneration of braddock is a replicable model for hard workers everywhere.
‘ready to work’ also dovetails with a number of current consumer trends. the hipster/cynic ipod generation y, relentlessly consumerist and newly in thrall to the power and potential of the internet, has had its priorities firmly realigned by two years of economic crisis and political instability. shiny globalism has been replaced with a sense of the importance of ‘local’, and community. an emphasis on tactile creativity trumps the easily disposable and ephemeral digital-witness the rise of online craft vending hub etsy, responsible for $181m in sales in 2009. oscar wilde’s cynic who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing is no longer in vogue, and the down-home earthiness of the all- american workwear brand no longer seems outdated. it’s a timely synchronisation of brand promise and zeitgeist, and the executions just keep coming, allowing
case study / levi’s /
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 6 12/08/2010 18:10
wieden and levi’s built the entire campaign, ‘ready to work’, around the small american borough of braddock, pennsylvania. despite once boasting a population of 20,000, mostly workers at a local steel mill, the decline of the industry had seen braddock’s population dwindle to under 3,000. its young mayor, john fetterman (who has braddock’s zip-code tattooed on his arm), is encouraging artists, craftsmen and business owners to repopulate the town and revive its flagging fortunes, making the borough a showcase for urban renewal. levi’s partnered with fetterman to fund the completion of a community centre and urban farm, whilst documenting the process in a series of films and still images featuring real inhabitants of braddock, which would eventually form the advertising campaign for the brand’s new line.
‘levi’s is a workwear brand,’ says sweeny, unfashionably but truthfully. ‘it’s the performance sportswear of the 1870s. the whole point of ‘go forth’ is about translating our dna into today’s concept of work.’
‘we were inspired by the works progress administration (wpa) which was formed by the us government during the new deal,’ continues tyler whisnand, executive creative director at wieden+ kennedy. ‘people went to work to put the country back together during the great depression. with this in mind, we went looking for a place where a group of people were doing the new work in the interest of rebuilding and reviving their world.’
an emotionally-charged commercial launched the campaign on tv and online, making the point that ‘people think there aren’t frontiers anymore. they can’t see how frontiers are all around us’. john hillcoat, who had last used braddock as the post-apocalyptic background for the 2009 adaptation of cormack mccarthy’s The Road, directed the commercial and was by all accounts thrilled to be returning for more hopeful purposes. an hour-long documentary will be seeded in a series of five-minute clips online, and broadcast on the sundance channel in the autumn. aaron rose, of 2007’s Beautiful Losers film which chronicled the street art movement, directed.
‘there’s a two-year financial and legal agreement between us and braddock redux [the non-profit that governs the town’s regeneration], but the whole thing’s
become pretty organic,’ explains doug sweeny. ‘we just do what we can to help. members of the levi’s team have been down there painting walls.’ as well as lending their artistic talents, the company is donating its own office supplies to help keep the town’s library running, and its 200-strong sales team will be holding their annual meeting in the town’s new community centre. there is a palpable sense of enthusiasm amongst the levi’s team for this new direction, as much a reset of culture internally as it is externally. ‘it’s energised the entire company,’ confirms sweeny.
Meaningful marketing
go forth, and particularly the work with braddock, represents the convergence of several trends in the advertising and marketing industry. first, putting your money where your mouth is. witness pepsi’s refresh everything platform, which invites community members to submit their ideas for projects worthy of pepsi funding. go forth is a more focused, less starry-eyed manifestation of the sense that consumer confidence and loyalty is created, not through simply shouting, but by using marketing budget to make a demonstrable difference in the world. ‘we’re building on the optimism that go forth created in the first year, and putting it into a tangible reference that you can see happening,’ explains whisnand. ‘disenfranchised youth are sick of seeing ads and stunts on the internet that don’t mean anything. by being a company that makes things by hand and makes things the right way, levi’s becomes meaningful.’
the second trend lies in the prioritising of engagement over reach. the work in braddock is tightly integrated across a number of different media, with tv, branded content, online, and point of sale creating myriad touchpoints, and hopefully the sense that the regeneration of braddock is a replicable model for hard workers everywhere.
‘ready to work’ also dovetails with a number of current consumer trends. the hipster/cynic ipod generation y, relentlessly consumerist and newly in thrall to the power and potential of the internet, has had its priorities firmly realigned by two years of economic crisis and political instability. shiny globalism has been replaced with a sense of the importance of ‘local’, and community. an emphasis on tactile creativity trumps the easily disposable and ephemeral digital-witness the rise of online craft vending hub etsy, responsible for $181m in sales in 2009. oscar wilde’s cynic who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing is no longer in vogue, and the down-home earthiness of the all- american workwear brand no longer seems outdated. it’s a timely synchronisation of brand promise and zeitgeist, and the executions just keep coming, allowing
case study / levi’s /
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contagious 54 / 55
‘Levi’s is the performance sportswear of the 1870s. The whole point of ‘go forth’ is about translating our DNA into today’s concept of work.’
Braddock, Pennsylvania
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‘Levi’s is the performance sportswear of the 1870s. The whole point of ‘go forth’ is about translating our DNA into today’s concept of work.’
Braddock, Pennsylvania
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 7 12/08/2010 18:10
for engagement everywhere from social networks to a local street corner.
Arts and crafts
the first levi’s workshop opened in the brand’s hometown of san francisco in july this year, developed by new york agency, sub rosa. reinventing the done-to-death ‘pop-up shop’ with a practical twist, the two-month workshop focused specifically on the craft of print-making, with a series of presentations, demonstrations and events giving attendees a chance to learn new skills and create something of their own. a second workshop, due to open in new york, focuses on photography. the san francisco outpost has so far proven wildly popular with 4,000 visitors passing through in one weekend, and levi’s is using each event to create content for social media channels and http:// workshops.levi.com.
‘wieden+kennedy’s latest offering for levi’s, ‘go forth’, nicely touches on the growing focus on live events, getting in touch with the great outdoors and feeling real rather than polished and sharp,’ explains chris sanderson, strategy and insight director at london- based trends analysts the future laboratory. ‘by using words from whitman rather than kerouac it extends the levi’s style canon rather than recycling it. we expect to see a growth in what we’re calling the rurban ideal – where the rural meets the urban – which allows levi’s the scope to develop a stylistic language that plays on
pioneering, adventure and risk in some exciting and challenging new ways. expect to see the influence of photographers such as bill henson, where the sexiness or the sense of risk-taking is augmented.’
it wasn’t only the levi’s consumer base that saw a change in worldview following the epic economic wobbles of 2008 and 2009. many marketers have taken this as an opportunity to centralise their efforts, with individual markets given the right to localise only in execution of a broader creative strategy, and levi’s is no exception. how will the go forth campaign translate its very specific brand of americana to audiences outside the us? sweeny is adamant: ‘go forth is a universal idea. it says that levi’s is a brand for people who want to get shit done, and that sentiment resonates everywhere.’ a latin american campaign for the brand focused more on artisans and musicians over physical labour, but retained the same sentiment, look and feel.
there’s no doubt that this gritty approach is representative of the current zeitgeist, but it’s in the nature of the zeitgeist to change, and it is a careless brand that rests
case study / levi’s /
levi’s WorkshoP /
levi’s WorkshoP / Printmaking /
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 8 12/08/2010 18:10
Arts and crafts
the first levi’s workshop opened in the brand’s hometown of san francisco in july this year, developed by new york agency, sub rosa. reinventing the done-to-death ‘pop-up shop’ with a practical twist, the two-month workshop focused specifically on the craft of print-making, with a series of presentations, demonstrations and events giving attendees a chance to learn new skills and create something of their own. a second workshop, due to open in new york, focuses on photography. the san francisco outpost has so far proven wildly popular with 4,000 visitors passing through in one weekend, and levi’s is using each event to create content for social media channels and http:// workshops.levi.com.
‘wieden+kennedy’s latest offering for levi’s, ‘go forth’, nicely touches on the growing focus on live events, getting in touch with the great outdoors and feeling real rather than polished and sharp,’ explains chris sanderson, strategy and insight director at london- based trends analysts the future laboratory. ‘by using words from whitman rather than kerouac it extends the levi’s style canon rather than recycling it. we expect to see a growth in what we’re calling the rurban ideal – where the rural meets the urban – which allows levi’s the scope to develop a stylistic language that plays on
pioneering, adventure and risk in some exciting and challenging new ways. expect to see the influence of photographers such as bill henson, where the sexiness or the sense of risk-taking is augmented.’
it wasn’t only the levi’s consumer base that saw a change in worldview following the epic economic wobbles of 2008 and 2009. many marketers have taken this as an opportunity to centralise their efforts, with individual markets given the right to localise only in execution of a broader creative strategy, and levi’s is no exception. how will the go forth campaign translate its very specific brand of americana to audiences outside the us? sweeny is adamant: ‘go forth is a universal idea. it says that levi’s is a brand for people who want to get shit done, and that sentiment resonates everywhere.’ a latin american campaign for the brand focused more on artisans and musicians over physical labour, but retained the same sentiment, look and feel.
there’s no doubt that this gritty approach is representative of the current zeitgeist, but it’s in the nature of the zeitgeist to change, and it is a careless brand that rests
case study / levi’s /
levi’s WorkshoP /
levi’s WorkshoP / Printmaking /
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 8 12/08/2010 18:10
on its laurels. ‘the key to our strategy and the way to stay relevant is for us to have an unprecedented level of consumer-centricity in all we do,’ says jaime cohen szulc, cmo at levi’s. ‘we are starting to invert the way we thought in the past – from “advertising to consumers” to a much stronger consumer and market-backed mentality, centered on engagement, consumer-generated content and therefore earned media. in essence, we will do the right things for consumers and if we get it right, they will carry the brand forward. the brand has a relevance that is unique to each of us. so, there is nothing more appropriate than each of our consumers to voice how they feel about the brand in their own ways.’
Americana online
elsewhere in the company, having finally found a genuine brand voice, the levi’s global team has opened the floodgates on a series of digital initiatives designed to translate the company’s pioneering spirit far and wide. these projects vary in size and scale, yet are as cohesively authentic as previous work was confused and disparate. as an extension of the braddock campaign, members of the brand’s facebook group are invited to submit their thoughts on how they might further contribute to the programmes underway. levi’s has also funded a short stop-motion film showing a levi’s clad man walking across the united states from new york to san francisco checking in at various american places of interest along the way. the film was pitched to levi’s when the filmmakers needed a sponsor, yet branding is minimal, with only a close-up on the actor’s back pocket at the end showing the iconic levi’s red tab. in one week, the film had just under 800,000 views on youtube, and a further 100,000 views of the ‘making of’ video. at time of press, the film stands at 1.7m views. http://bit.ly/leviswalk
meanwhile, two online contests in as many years have helped the brand to choose a ‘levi’s guy’ and a ‘levi’s girl’, sparky ambassadors selected from videos submitted via the company’s facebook app to serve a six-month paid stint in the levi’s hq in san francisco and share their experiences online. carolina girl turned new yorker meghan smith was selected by fans on the
company’s facebook page from a shortlist of five, and began her internship in august.
after having worked to establish levi.com and facebook as the twin pillars of the brand’s online presence, levi’s notched up a further digital first, being the first to integrate facebook’s ‘social web’ outreach into their e-commerce platform. in april 2010, the facebook ‘like’ button was integrated into levi’s online store, allowing shoppers to demonstrate their enthusiasm for a product in a way that their friends can see. ‘we’re trying to surprise people and have them experience the brand in different ways,’ explains sweeny. ‘facebook is just down the street, so we went along to see if there were ways we could work together. now, we’re on beta projects with them, they’re on beta projects with us, and the like button came from one of those conversations. it’s like an agency partnership.’ as friendly and organic as this sounds, there is business acumen rooted in the adoption of social commerce. a recent study by nielsen found that facebook users reported 6% higher purchase intent if they could see people in their social network had already clicked to signify their own support. whilst no clear path through the social web to purchase has yet been demonstrated, shopping has long been a social experience, and the relationship between ‘liking’ and ‘buying’ may yet prove fruitful. ‘we believe that our heritage is our future,’ explains kristin bannister, levi’s director of women’s and digital marketing. ‘our heritage gives us 157 years of stories, traditions and products upon which to build. this gives us a unique point of view, one which our competitors don’t have.’
in the last three months, levi’s brand activity has incorporated competitions, user-generated content, corporate social responsibility, an enormous product overhaul, interactive ipad content, a social media first, thousands of new skills learned and the regeneration of an entire town. with the definition of what constitutes ‘advertising’ changing almost daily, it seems almost poetic that the charge be led by a big brand closely associated with the age of television.
to all the other marketers teetering on the brink of a new era, we say go forth.
contagious 56 / 57
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 9 12/08/2010 18:10
Americana online
elsewhere in the company, having finally found a genuine brand voice, the levi’s global team has opened the floodgates on a series of digital initiatives designed to translate the company’s pioneering spirit far and wide. these projects vary in size and scale, yet are as cohesively authentic as previous work was confused and disparate. as an extension of the braddock campaign, members of the brand’s facebook group are invited to submit their thoughts on how they might further contribute to the programmes underway. levi’s has also funded a short stop-motion film showing a levi’s clad man walking across the united states from new york to san francisco checking in at various american places of interest along the way. the film was pitched to levi’s when the filmmakers needed a sponsor, yet branding is minimal, with only a close-up on the actor’s back pocket at the end showing the iconic levi’s red tab. in one week, the film had just under 800,000 views on youtube, and a further 100,000 views of the ‘making of’ video. at time of press, the film stands at 1.7m views. http://bit.ly/leviswalk
meanwhile, two online contests in as many years have helped the brand to choose a ‘levi’s guy’ and a ‘levi’s girl’, sparky ambassadors selected from videos submitted via the company’s facebook app to serve a six-month paid stint in the levi’s hq in san francisco and share their experiences online. carolina girl turned new yorker meghan smith was selected by fans on the
company’s facebook page from a shortlist of five, and began her internship in august.
after having worked to establish levi.com and facebook as the twin pillars of the brand’s online presence, levi’s notched up a further digital first, being the first to integrate facebook’s ‘social web’ outreach into their e-commerce platform. in april 2010, the facebook ‘like’ button was integrated into levi’s online store, allowing shoppers to demonstrate their enthusiasm for a product in a way that their friends can see. ‘we’re trying to surprise people and have them experience the brand in different ways,’ explains sweeny. ‘facebook is just down the street, so we went along to see if there were ways we could work together. now, we’re on beta projects with them, they’re on beta projects with us, and the like button came from one of those conversations. it’s like an agency partnership.’ as friendly and organic as this sounds, there is business acumen rooted in the adoption of social commerce. a recent study by nielsen found that facebook users reported 6% higher purchase intent if they could see people in their social network had already clicked to signify their own support. whilst no clear path through the social web to purchase has yet been demonstrated, shopping has long been a social experience, and the relationship between ‘liking’ and ‘buying’ may yet prove fruitful. ‘we believe that our heritage is our future,’ explains kristin bannister, levi’s director of women’s and digital marketing. ‘our heritage gives us 157 years of stories, traditions and products upon which to build. this gives us a unique point of view, one which our competitors don’t have.’
in the last three months, levi’s brand activity has incorporated competitions, user-generated content, corporate social responsibility, an enormous product overhaul, interactive ipad content, a social media first, thousands of new skills learned and the regeneration of an entire town. with the definition of what constitutes ‘advertising’ changing almost daily, it seems almost poetic that the charge be led by a big brand closely associated with the age of television.
to all the other marketers teetering on the brink of a new era, we say go forth.
contagious 56 / 57
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 9 12/08/2010 18:10
case study / levi’s /
CAreWeAr
the past two years have also seen the launch of a number of initiatives aimed at reducing levi’s environmental impact and establishing it as a good brand, for good people. in 2009, levi’s announced a partnership with the goodwill charity (brokered through bbdo san francisco) to incorporate a ‘care tag’ into every pair of levi’s, which recommends a three-step process for greener jeans; first, to machine wash cold and save energy; second, to line dry when possible; and third, to donate the jeans to goodwill at the end of their lifespan for one person, in order that they find a new home instead of heading off to the landfill.
care tag is an idea so simple it’s almost incredible that it hasn’t been done before – yet, as befits the newfound pioneering spirit of the levi’s brand, this is a first, and scooped a coveted spot on the shortlist for this year’s titanium and integrated category at the cannes lions advertising festival. this year, levi’s extended the ideas proposed on the care tag by launching the ‘care to air design challenge’, an attempt to encourage innovative and sustainable air-drying solutions for clothing. independent research into the life-cycle of a pair of levi’s 501 jeans commissioned by levi strauss & co indicates that 60 percent of the climate impact comes during the consumer phase, with nearly 80 percent of that down to tumble-drying.
Curve ID
the levi’s women division is currently a hotbed of activity, following what the company is claiming as a complete reinvention of the relationship between female body shape and jean. levi’s research suggested that buying jeans was a tortuous process, with each woman trying on an average of ten pairs before finding one that she liked, with the classic waist and leg measurement failing to describe the variation in shape of each individual body. with this in mind, the levi’s women curve id range now boasts not only style (i.e. skinny, boyfriend) and waist/ leg measurements, but a curve metric. one can select jeans incorporating a slight curve, a demi curve or a bold curve depending on how much room inside the jeans is needed. a fourth shape, supreme curve, will follow, and a september roll-out will see all levi’s retail outfits designed around the concept of ‘shape’.
‘it’s another clean slate,’ says doug sweeny. ‘there’s been an issue surrounding the design of jeans for women for years, and we were part of the problem. finding jeans was an awful experience. so we scanned thousands of different body types to create a whole new way of shopping for jeans. everything fits with no gaping. we’re finding that women love it.’
as befits such experimentation in the product line, the levi’s women team is toying with a number of different platforms as well as the levi’s girl. ‘we’re playing with qr codes in our print ads to attach video showing the jeans on real women,’ begins kristin bannister. ‘and we’re one of a handful of advertisers partnering with Glamour magazine when they launch their first ipad application. all of our outreach starts with the product – and what the product was inspired by. the message that we decide to communicate is born of the process by which we arrived at that product – so the message, more often than not, is completely media agnostic.’
care tag /
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 10 12/08/2010 18:10
CAreWeAr
the past two years have also seen the launch of a number of initiatives aimed at reducing levi’s environmental impact and establishing it as a good brand, for good people. in 2009, levi’s announced a partnership with the goodwill charity (brokered through bbdo san francisco) to incorporate a ‘care tag’ into every pair of levi’s, which recommends a three-step process for greener jeans; first, to machine wash cold and save energy; second, to line dry when possible; and third, to donate the jeans to goodwill at the end of their lifespan for one person, in order that they find a new home instead of heading off to the landfill.
care tag is an idea so simple it’s almost incredible that it hasn’t been done before – yet, as befits the newfound pioneering spirit of the levi’s brand, this is a first, and scooped a coveted spot on the shortlist for this year’s titanium and integrated category at the cannes lions advertising festival. this year, levi’s extended the ideas proposed on the care tag by launching the ‘care to air design challenge’, an attempt to encourage innovative and sustainable air-drying solutions for clothing. independent research into the life-cycle of a pair of levi’s 501 jeans commissioned by levi strauss & co indicates that 60 percent of the climate impact comes during the consumer phase, with nearly 80 percent of that down to tumble-drying.
Curve ID
the levi’s women division is currently a hotbed of activity, following what the company is claiming as a complete reinvention of the relationship between female body shape and jean. levi’s research suggested that buying jeans was a tortuous process, with each woman trying on an average of ten pairs before finding one that she liked, with the classic waist and leg measurement failing to describe the variation in shape of each individual body. with this in mind, the levi’s women curve id range now boasts not only style (i.e. skinny, boyfriend) and waist/ leg measurements, but a curve metric. one can select jeans incorporating a slight curve, a demi curve or a bold curve depending on how much room inside the jeans is needed. a fourth shape, supreme curve, will follow, and a september roll-out will see all levi’s retail outfits designed around the concept of ‘shape’.
‘it’s another clean slate,’ says doug sweeny. ‘there’s been an issue surrounding the design of jeans for women for years, and we were part of the problem. finding jeans was an awful experience. so we scanned thousands of different body types to create a whole new way of shopping for jeans. everything fits with no gaping. we’re finding that women love it.’
as befits such experimentation in the product line, the levi’s women team is toying with a number of different platforms as well as the levi’s girl. ‘we’re playing with qr codes in our print ads to attach video showing the jeans on real women,’ begins kristin bannister. ‘and we’re one of a handful of advertisers partnering with Glamour magazine when they launch their first ipad application. all of our outreach starts with the product – and what the product was inspired by. the message that we decide to communicate is born of the process by which we arrived at that product – so the message, more often than not, is completely media agnostic.’
care tag /
Levis_REVISED_Final.indd 10 12/08/2010 18:10
contagious 58 / 59
analyst insight / leVi’s / by jeremy edwards / Xtreme insight /
when nick kamen walked into that launderette, it wasn’t just levi’s but advertising itself that became trendy. everyone wanted a pair of 501s. they crossed the demographic, class and gender divides. the advertising ensured the brand stood out, keeping it beyond the reach of the usual hipster cycle. remember flat eric, an odd brand mascot so eccentric he was cool (a decade before aleksander the meerkat’s social media rise to fame)?
back in the mid 80s, agency bbh’s strategy for the brand was to zag when others zigged to ensure levi’s was never just a fashion brand and thus couldn’t go out of fashion. of course, that’s exactly what happened – not just to levi’s, but to advertising too. both were built on the same model – blockbuster tv spots with chart topping soundtracks. both were connected to the globalisation (or should that be globalization) of americana. both now face the challenge of the anti-usa and anti-global backlash. both the jeans market and the media landscape have fractured into diverse niches.
levi’s has been searching for a new direction for a few years. its go forth campaign, agency changes and renewed youth focus reflect this quest for renewal. the recent tangible focus on practical working revival in the pennsylvanian former steel town of braddock concentrates on american workers and home town pioneers coupled with new frontiers and positive, meaningful change. by putting a contemporary spin on homage to its heritage, perhaps levi’s is hoping to bring the trend setters and fashionistas back to the brand, rather than bringing the brand to them and thus entering the boom and bust fashion cycle. it remains to be seen whether consumers can be genuinely convinced that a monolithic brand can be authentically motivated by small town, local entrepreneurialism. however, levi’s current 18-month plan is thought to include a move away from television towards an emphasis on open dialogue through digital and social media – which may help to create a voice with authenticity at its core.
Jeremy Edwards is the director of marcoms consultancy and Contagious sister company Xtreme Insight (www.xtremeinsight.net)
Challenge / Following a decade of straight sales decline from 1996-2005, the levi’s brand was just beginning to find its feet again with an increasingly fickle and fashion-conscious consumer, having lost market share to a slew of more exclusive niche denim labels. efforts to aggressively target the brand at the hipster set seemed awkward, lacking in focus and out of keeping with the company’s earthy beginnings. then, the recession hit and new jeans were the last thing on anybody’s mind. how could this once revered brand leverage its heritage, both real and in the advertising world, to recapture its iconic status? /
solution / a full-frontal assault on everything from product lines to social media strategy, tied together with a reworking of the brand’s pioneering spirit for a contemporary audience. in the go Forth campaign, levi’s put its money where its mouth is by funding community initiatives in a struggling Pennsylvania town, Braddock. imagery for the campaign featured Braddock residents, and a series of urban workshops encouraged participants to spend time learning practical skills like printing. meanwhile, content initiatives conducted in partnership with Facebook supported curve id – a total reinvention of the way in which women’s jeans are shaped and sold /
results / second quarter revenues for 2010 are up 8 percent on 2009, with much of the marketing activity around the new women’s range yet to emerge. the go Forth campaign has been credited with re-energising the entire company, and Facebook fans of the brand are up over the half million mark for the first time. as global rollout of curve id continues, complete with redesign of all retail outlets to accentuate the new range, further community-based initiatives seem sure to achieve the complete reinvention levi’s has sought /
analyst insight / leVi’s / by jeremy edwards / Xtreme insight /
when nick kamen walked into that launderette, it wasn’t just levi’s but advertising itself that became trendy. everyone wanted a pair of 501s. they crossed the demographic, class and gender divides. the advertising ensured the brand stood out, keeping it beyond the reach of the usual hipster cycle. remember flat eric, an odd brand mascot so eccentric he was cool (a decade before aleksander the meerkat’s social media rise to fame)?
back in the mid 80s, agency bbh’s strategy for the brand was to zag when others zigged to ensure levi’s was never just a fashion brand and thus couldn’t go out of fashion. of course, that’s exactly what happened – not just to levi’s, but to advertising too. both were built on the same model – blockbuster tv spots with chart topping soundtracks. both were connected to the globalisation (or should that be globalization) of americana. both now face the challenge of the anti-usa and anti-global backlash. both the jeans market and the media landscape have fractured into diverse niches.
levi’s has been searching for a new direction for a few years. its go forth campaign, agency changes and renewed youth focus reflect this quest for renewal. the recent tangible focus on practical working revival in the pennsylvanian former steel town of braddock concentrates on american workers and home town pioneers coupled with new frontiers and positive, meaningful change. by putting a contemporary spin on homage to its heritage, perhaps levi’s is hoping to bring the trend setters and fashionistas back to the brand, rather than bringing the brand to them and thus entering the boom and bust fashion cycle. it remains to be seen whether consumers can be genuinely convinced that a monolithic brand can be authentically motivated by small town, local entrepreneurialism. however, levi’s current 18-month plan is thought to include a move away from television towards an emphasis on open dialogue through digital and social media – which may help to create a voice with authenticity at its core.
Jeremy Edwards is the director of marcoms consultancy and Contagious sister company Xtreme Insight (www.xtremeinsight.net)
Challenge / Following a decade of straight sales decline from 1996-2005, the levi’s brand was just beginning to find its feet again with an increasingly fickle and fashion-conscious consumer, having lost market share to a slew of more exclusive niche denim labels. efforts to aggressively target the brand at the hipster set seemed awkward, lacking in focus and out of keeping with the company’s earthy beginnings. then, the recession hit and new jeans were the last thing on anybody’s mind. how could this once revered brand leverage its heritage, both real and in the advertising world, to recapture its iconic status? /
solution / a full-frontal assault on everything from product lines to social media strategy, tied together with a reworking of the brand’s pioneering spirit for a contemporary audience. in the go Forth campaign, levi’s put its money where its mouth is by funding community initiatives in a struggling Pennsylvania town, Braddock. imagery for the campaign featured Braddock residents, and a series of urban workshops encouraged participants to spend time learning practical skills like printing. meanwhile, content initiatives conducted in partnership with Facebook supported curve id – a total reinvention of the way in which women’s jeans are shaped and sold /
results / second quarter revenues for 2010 are up 8 percent on 2009, with much of the marketing activity around the new women’s range yet to emerge. the go Forth campaign has been credited with re-energising the entire company, and Facebook fans of the brand are up over the half million mark for the first time. as global rollout of curve id continues, complete with redesign of all retail outlets to accentuate the new range, further community-based initiatives seem sure to achieve the complete reinvention levi’s has sought /
Psychological Assessment Report
Psychological Assessment Report
Psychological assessment reports are written by psychology professionals who work in a variety of settings. In addition, professionals in many different subfields within psychology, education and health must be able to read, understand and apply information provided in psychological assessment reports in order to effectively serve their clients. For your Final Assignment, you will demonstrate your knowledge of psychological assessment by applying the information you have learned throughout this course in the interpretation and write up of a psychological assessment report. Your Final Project will be based on one of the case information/data tables that have been provided in the course. The three cases consist of one adolescent assessment, one adult assessment, and one geriatric assessment. It is expected that your Week Five final project case will be the same case that you selected in Week Two and that you incorporate feedback provided to you by your instructor on the Week Two assignment when developing your final project. To complete this assignment, you will choose the client from the list below which you chose for your Week Two assignment.
Timothy Childers (Adolescent Male)
- Butcher, J. “Contemporary Use of the MMPI-2 in Forensic Assessment”, Continuing Education Course presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, August 2014. ABS 300 Week Five Sample MMPI-A School Adolescent Male Interpretive Report Timothy Childers
[PDF]. - Kennedy, N. & Harper, Y. (2014). ABS 300 Week Five Final Paper Adolescent Male Case Study Timothy Childers [PDF]. College of Health, Ashford University: San Diego, CA.
Mr. Kyle Jones (Adult Male Personal Injury Case)
- Butcher, J. “Contemporary Use of the MMPI-2 in Forensic Assessment”, Continuing Education Course presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, August 2014. ABS 300 Week Five Sample MMPI-2 Adult Male Personal Injury Interpretive Report Mr. Jones (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.[PDF].
- Kennedy, N. & Harper, Y. (2014). ABS 300 Week Five Final Paper Adult Male Personal Injury Case Study Mr. Jones [PDF]. College of Health, Ashford University: San Diego, CA.
Mr. Jeremiah Smith (Geriatric Male Case)
- Butcher, J. “Contemporary Use of the MMPI-2 in Forensic Assessment”, Continuing Education Course presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, August 2014. ABS 300 Week Five Sample MMPI-2 Geriatric Male Interpretive Report Mr. Smith [PDF].
- Kennedy, N. & Harper, Y. (2014). ABS 300 Week Five Final Paper Geriatric Male Case Study Mr. Smith [PDF]. College of Health, Ashford University: San Diego, CA.
As you write up your assessment report you will be taking on the role of a clinician who is conducting an assessment and providing treatment recommendations for the client that you choose from the list provided. You must use the information provided in case history and identify the most salient information that belongs in each section. Do not simply copy and paste the information provided. You must make a professional judgment about which information is the most important information to include in the psychological report and where to include that information in your report. Your assessment report must follow the format below and it must include each of the sections and their headings listed below:
I. Identifying Information
Within this section, you will record basic information on your client including the person’s name, sex, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, handedness, and occupation or grade level. For the purposes of this assignment, you are free to create any relevant demographic information that is not explicitly stated in the case scenario. All information you create must be consistent with the information provided and any conclusions you draw in subsequent sections of your paper.
II. Reason for Referral
Within this section describe the referral source and the purpose of the assessment. The information you provide in this section must justify the decision to conduct a formal psychological assessment based and must model ethically and professionally responsible assessment practices.
III. Current Symptoms/Presenting Concerns
The information in this section of the report would typically come from an interview with the client and family (if applicable, e.g., if the client is a child or person with suspected dementia). You must use the information provided in case history to identify the most salient information that belongs in this section. Choose information to include in this section based on the consistency with the reason for referral and purpose for testing. Here is where you will apply your methodological and theoretical assessment formulations of the client that will justify the decision to conduct a psychological evaluation on this client.
IV. Psychosocial History (complete each of the sections below based on the information in the case you selected)
- Educational history
- Occupational history
- Medical history (including substance use/abuse)
- Psychiatric history
- Social history
V. Interpretation of the Results
In this section explain your interpretation of the results in the data table provided for the case you selected. Utilize the information available and create appropriate subheadings to organize the results. For example, if your data table contains information on intelligence and achievement, then you should create appropriate subheadings to organize your findings in this section of the report. Create a sufficient number of subheadings to allow you to provide interpretations for all assessment instruments administered. If you have more than one measure of a particular psychological construct (e.g., personality and emotional functioning), present your interpretations of all measures that apply to that construct under the same subheading.
VI. Diagnostic Impressions
Based on the history provided and interpretation of test results, use the DSM-5 to provide a diagnosis (or diagnoses) for the client in a manner that demonstrates the ethical and professional use of assessment results. You must justify your diagnostic conclusions based on your knowledge of the validity and reliability of the assessment instruments. If there are multiple potential diagnoses to consider, then these must be explained and justified as well. Also include information about alternative diagnoses and why these were not chosen.
VII. Recommendations
Within this section, provide treatment recommendations for the client based on the diagnosis and information about the client’s current living situation. Develop recommendations that are evidence-based and include peer-reviewed articles that support your choice(s).
The Assignment:
- Must be 5 to 7 single-spaced pages in length (not including title and reference pages).
- Must include a separate title page with the following:
- Title of assignment
- Student’s name
- Course name and number
- Instructor’s name
- Date submitted
- Must use at least 5 scholarly sources, including a minimum of 2 peer-reviewed articles published in the last 10 years from the Ashford University Library.
- Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
- Must include a separate title page and reference page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.