Weekly Blog (3/27/18-4/2/18)

Weekly Blog

March 27th, 2018 - April 2nd, 2018

I was super excited to have another mentor visit this week. After having to postpone for rain for a couple weeks we were finally able to go on a “mini market tour.” Going in I had no idea that market tours were actually a “thing” in marketing. Going into various stores and observing first hand advertising is a very practical way that marketing can be learned. Furthermore, my mentor stressed the importance of observation when going to grocery stores and convenience stores. One of the other surprising takeaways from the market tour was how intentional every placement, flyer, and display are in retailers. I was also informed on the importance of marketing in the corporate world. Outside of simply “getting the word out” marketers play a fundamental role in producer- retail negotiations. For instance my mentor explained this with a hypothetical ice cream example. The nogotionation could be that Blue Bell gives Kroger an exclusive flavor for a new display in the perimeter of the store. This is more complicated than it may seem as this could upset other retailers Blue Bell sells in such as Target or Walmart who are not receiving the exclusive flavor. Overall, I feel that going in and actually experiencing marketing first hand was extremely helpful. I am so thankful to be in the ISM program and have a mentor so dedicated to helping me learn things I definitely could not learn in the classroom.