Society goes about their day
differently than in decades past. A near
necessity to stay socially connected at all times has been created by the
incorporation of new technology. People
are more conscientious of what others around them are doing and thinking. Mobile devices have created a way in which an
individual can stay connected to almost any website they may be engaged with at
all times.
The
increased awareness of an individual’s connection to the rest of the world has
allowed for some industries to develop and expand at much faster rates than in
years past. Technology is constantly
evolving, which in turn can have positive and negative effects on different
industries.
It is easier than ever before to do
many creative things that were once only financially available to professionals
– recording music in a studio, creating digital art, and editing and assembling
movies. Consumer computers are powerful
enough to carry out such projects, and the resources needed are becoming more
affordable each day.
Creative mindsets are required in
today’s fast-paced world. The easier it
becomes for anyone to network and spread word about new ideas, the more
difficult it becomes for businesses to stay popular and noticed. Because society processes such a vast amount
of information every day, only some elements will end up remembered. There is a constant struggle to stay
noticed. New and old businesses alike
must find new ways to stay successful and popular, as today’s world continues
to thrive on instant gratification. The
amount of time people spend on a single web page continues to decrease as the
amount of information available increases.
A lot can be overlooked, which prompts businesses to attempt staying a
part of one’s life in all aspects.
Alternate means of revenue must be created in order to satisfy society’s
need for instant gratification, as well as to create a venue for more exposure
to more people.
Higher impact when worn
Merchandise allows for businesses
to do both of these things. People can
purchase an item that is not related to the service or product offered by the
business, but still includes their identity. The general public’s purchasing of
merchandise does two things for a business – creates financial benefit, and
allows for a business’s name to appear in situations not possible by only
selling the service or product they claim to fame. As society’s attention span decreases, merchandise
becomes increasingly essential to a business’s success. The abundance of advertisement on the
Internet has become less effective, as people have learned to ignore elements
of a page that come off as advertising. Merchandise
allows for a company name to be out in the world in a traditional way that
cannot be ignored. The individual will
always process a hat or t-shirt with a company logo. People wear a business’s merchandise because
they want to be supportive, which in turn allows for a positive environment in
which the name can be advertised. One’s
individual choice to wear another company’s name creates a personal connection between
people and businesses, which is the major downfall of advertising online. On the Internet, advertising feels as if
there is no concern for that personal connection, which leads to many businesses becoming overlooked.
No matter what kind of business, there can be benefit
Businesses, music artists, brands,
and sports teams all require merchandise.
It is a promotional tool that also can serve a purpose, such as a simple
shirt or a custom-printed water bottle.
A business’s need for merchandise usually results in seeking out
locations that will design, print, and ship various types of merchandise with a
company logo or similar promotional idea.
One such business that specializes in custom merchandising is Nightmare
Graphics. Since the 1980’s, they have
helped satisfy the needs of local and national businesses looking to attain
custom merchandise. They are able to
produce large amounts of shirts, stickers, and embroidered products at their
single Columbia, Maryland location. Nick
Kaminski, a printer at Nightmare Graphics, discusses some of their clients and
recent orders, and how merchandise can benefit all types of businesses.
Although many aspects of developing technology allow for people to start new businesses more easily, companies like Nightmare Graphics still are imperative to creating a successful business model. They handle shipping and preparing products, and do so at rates that attract large and small businesses alike. Their services allow businesses to reach out to a demographic that would be unavailable otherwise. Merchandise can help boost a company’s reach, while offering an affordable product that creates a personal connection with customers.
Overall I think this post was very interesting to read and well written. However the titles and headings are a bit weak, as you can not get a real feel of what you'll be reading about. They're too general and don't necessarily focus on the topic of the post. The actual content was informative and brought up excellent points about how important merchandising still is in a world like today where technology seems to be running every industry. The video was very well edited and interesting to watch, there were some really great shots of t-shirts actually being printed and such and the interview was pertinent to the message of the post. However the two other graphics, while easy to understand, did not really correspond with the rest of the post and seemed a little out of place.
ReplyDeleteThe graphic about the decline of music sales was never directly mentioned. I think the graphic was trying to show that society is evolving and it is starting to change its values. As a result of the shift towards more accessible entertainment like music, music sales are declining.
ReplyDeleteThe subheadings are too short-At first glance, I thought there was a mistake and the rest of the subheading was cut off-especially with this one-"No matter what kind of business, there can be benefit". A good tip from Prof Yaros that this blogger should have used is "take the best sentence from the paragraph and use it as your subheading." I see the connection between the subheading "Higher impact when worn" and the text of the next paragraph-but it a weak point. It is not very interesting or profound that when merchandise is worn, it has an impact on sales. To me it is sort of like a secondary detail.
It seems like a lot of the paragraphs have a lot to say and it is difficult to pin down the key points. Sometimes, this might be a good style for blogging, but the subheadings did suffer. Maybe, next time, write out an outline planning the paragraphs to ensure the logical progression between graphics and text-which I felt was lacking.
The youtube video looks great. It is well edited and has music and subscripts. It looks like a lot of effort was put into the youtube video, but the subheadings were done "last minute". The rule of thirds was correctly applied. Maybe distribute the effort less on the video and more on the rest of the blog. The highlight of the blog was the youtube video-but the rest of the post was lacking.