Week 3 Part B: Developing a Brand

The idea that I had for a business is a gym in which it is a 24-hour fitness type gym but there is also Jiu Jitsu classes that are offered for free with the membership. It's a pretty simple idea but it is pretty much just combining two different businesses that I love into one. There are already Jiu Jitsu gyms that have weights and gym equipment but my idea is for it to be a large facility gym with a fee of $50 a month and an additional $30 a month for Jiu Jitsu classes. The Jiu Jitsu classes would be run in a large room when you come into the gym where people can walk by seeing everyone roll which would make more people want to sign up and try it out. 

Growing up in San Diego I did Jiu Jitsu growing up from the ages 7-19 and it quickly became my favorite fitness activity by far. It opened up my love for martial arts and caused for my favorite sport to keep up with being MMA. Once I got to high school I began lifting a little bit of weights and it become an activity I also enjoy and luckily for me my dad has a full gym in the garage. But when I lived away from home for a year and had to sign up for a gym and all I can remember was thinking how cool it would've been if the gym had Jiu Jitsu classes with high level instructors. So this is when the idea came to me that the combination of the two would be a great idea. 

I think that this is something that will start becoming a thing in the future and the only reason that it hasn't yet is because Jiu Jitsu is still a relatively new sport to America and still growing a lot with it's largest amount of gyms being in San Diego. I believe that with the rise of the UFC more and more people will begin learning martial arts in hopes of learning self-defense and Jiu Jitsu is one of the best forms of this. I think that once the sport has grown enough in other areas of the U.S. that people will begin bringing in Jiu Jitsu instructors for side classes which will eventually lead to full on Jiu Jitsu classes. 

I think that promoting a business like this and creating as much growth possible would be simple and while it would be largely based on social media a large part would also be word of mouth. People would begin spreading the word of a really high level gym with all the equipment needed and Jiu Jitsu classes constantly running. Then when people begin to research online or on social media, they would find a website promoting the business and instagram and facebook accounts all promoting the business.

Overall I think this is a great idea and something that if I don't end up doing in the future, hopefully someone else will. I have been wanting to start doing Jiu Jitsu again and I think it would be so cool if there was a full on gym that came with it that had all the equipment needed to gain strength and cardio. I believe that it would be an extremely successful business and more people would fall in love with Jiu Jitsu and training in general. 

Week 3 Part A: Aesthetics, Design, and Branding

The websites that I chose that I thought were poorly designed included the website http://gatesnfences.com/.  Now the reason that I personally disapprove with the way this website was created is because everything seems to be all over the place. The goal of the website is to build people gates and fences around their homes but when I originally clicked on the website I had no idea what it was for. I think it's important for a website to be very clear what its purpose is for. You should be able to click on the website and know what it is within seconds just from the title. This website seems to have everything all over the place and it seems to be very unorganized. I think that the website needs to do a better job of keeping the end user in mind and make sure that they make things clear on their website. I think overall the biggest thing they can fix is simply organizing where everything should go better. A good website shouldn't mean the customer is looking everywhere for something they need. It should be right there in front of them when they click on it. Another website I thought could do a much better job was http://www.roverp6cars.com/. The website sells car parts but similar to the other one, is extremely unorganized. You click on the website and it seems like it's a fake scam and isn't legit. I think they could learn something from other car websites because most of them do a great job. Similar to the other website you should be able to click on the website, feel that it is legit and find whatever it is you need to within seconds. But this website requires searching around to even understand what it is. 

Now some websites that I thought did a great job included one of them being https://artcenter.org/. It basically tells you when there are art shows in Escondido and the dates of each show and what kind of show it is. Now the reason I enjoyed the way this website was created was because it was extremely clear to me what the purpose was when I clicked on it. It has a big creative title that grabs us in and then everything else from there is quite obvious. It tells you dates of shows coming up and allows you to easily purchase tickets. Another website I enjoyed when I clicked on was https://www.apple.com/. Apple seems to be a website that other websites need to look at for inspiration. You click on the website and everything is right in front of you. It has all of the phone, computer, watches, tv, etc right there for you and a large title on the front advertising whatever their latest product is. I think this is perfect when it comes to how a website is designed and other websites should really take from them.

Overall I think it's really important to do an activity as we just did to look at how a well designed website looks and how a poorly designed one looks. I think for a lot of them it is quite obvious what's wrong with the website right away. And when it's a good website it's also very apparent right away. A well designed website has its purpose right when you open it with no confusion. It has slides on the top or side that gives you all of the options you will need and everything's basically right in front of you. Opposed to a poorly designed website that seems sketchy when you click on and you have no idea what the website is for. Or you can understand what it is but you can't find the options you need to. I think organization is the biggest factor for the websites and just making sure everything is clear and easy.

Week 2 Part B - Business Research

 #1 Lululemon - https://shop.lululemon.com/ Lulu lemon was founded in 1998 by Chip Wilson in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada with its first store opening in 2000. Now it is one of the biggest sports clothing brands in the world and they continue to grow. I recall how big Lululemon got when I was in late elementary and it seemed like I only continued to see the brand grow and now I feel like it's the biggest sports clothing that women would buy.

Their Instagram has 4.2 million followers, they are following 133, have 3,357 posts and have a very active highlight reel. Their last story was 12 hours ago and last post was also 12 hours ago. Their posts are very straight forward with short clever captions that describe the apparel in some way. Their Facebook has 2.7 million followers with 2.7 million likes as well. 

#2 Under Armour - https://www.underarmour.com/ Under Armour was founded in 1996 by Kevin Plank who was a 24 year old at the time playing football at the University of Maryland. I can remember wearing Under Armour since I was very young and I feel like it has gone very downhill since. But that may not be the case considering their social media following.

Their Instagram has 8.3 million followers, they are following 555, they have 3,542 posts and they have no active highlight reel. They have no story available and their last post was 6 days ago which consisted of a UFC ad since they have become parters. I'd say the difference of the content posted on this account in comparison to Lululemon's is that Under Armour post a lot more content with athletes they sponsor. They have 11 million followers on Facebook with 11 million likes. 

#3 Nike - https://www.nike.com/ Nike is one of if not the biggest sports clothing brand of all time and has been around since 1964. It was founded by Billy Bowerman who at the time was a track-and-field coach at Oregon and his former student William Knight with their first retail outlet in 1966 and launching the Nike shoe in 1972. 

Their Instagram has 235 million followers, they are following 143, they have 960 posts with a little bit of a highlight reel. They have no active story and their last post was 4 days ago which consisted of a Serena Williams appreciation post. Their Facebook has 37 million followers with 36 million likes. Nike seems to have the biggest following that I've seen so far from the clothing brands which makes sense considering it has been around a lot longer. 

#4 Puma - https://us.puma.com/ Puma is a large sports clothing brand that began in 1948 and has changed and evolved a lot throughout the decades. It was founded by the Dassler brothers with inspiration from their father who ran a shoemaking business. 

Their Instagram has 12.3 million followers, they are following 10, they have 3,432 posts with an active highlight reel. Their last story was 11 hours ago and last post was 18 hours ago. They have 21 million followers on Facebook and 21 million likes. 

#5 Adidas - https://www.adidas.com/ Adidas is a massive sports clothing brand which began in the 1920s. Adolph Dassler was a 20 year old who invented the shoe with spikes for track and field which eventually would morph into the company Adidas. Just like some of the other brands this is one I can recall wearing for as long as I've been in school playing with other kids at recess. 

Their Instagram has 26.4 million followers, it follows 335 and consists of 879 posts with a little bit of a highlight reel. Their last post was on August 29th which consisted of some musicians performing at the VMA's wearing Adidas shoes. Their facebook has 41 million followers with 40 million likes.

    What I'm able to take from all of these different sports clothing brands is that they have all evolved so much and have been able to take similar paths into success. They all operate differently with their social media and how their businesses operate. It seems that their following comes from a lot of high end athletes who promote the brands making brands such as Nike and Adidas some of the bigger ones. 

    Instagram seems to be the biggest platform for these companies to promote and sell their product and I think this was not at all a surprise to me. I think Instagram seems to be the most dominant form of social media that most people have gravitated towards over Facebook or Twitter or other forms. But I think it's still important to stay relevant on all types of social media as these brands do. 

    Overall I think it was very interesting researching all of these brands individually and seeing how they operate and compare what they do from one another. I seem to favor Adidas over the rest but still think they are all incredible brands and I also loved learning the history of all of these brands and how they were able to evolve into what they are now. 

Week 2 Part A: Communication Between Business & Consumer

     When looking at how businesses are run these days compared to how they were run 30 years ago is a pretty crazy concept. The biggest change would be the incorporation of social media and the internet that businesses have used to increase their growth to the maximum degree. Social media has allowed businesses to reach out to so many more people than they ever could have prior to its existence. The internet has been one of the powerful things for a business and one of the biggest examples is a company like Amazon. I can recall being a young child and only knowing Amazon to be a book company and when the internet became bigger and phones and I-pods were massive they created the kindle. The company has since evolved into one of the biggest companies of all time and changed into anything anyone needs because of the internet. 

    It is insane to think about how much the internet has allowed businesses to grow, expand and evolve as much as it has. With Amazon just being an extreme case there are so many smaller cases that have worked in a similar fashion. The internet and social media allows these businesses to expand across the entire world and allow for anyone anywhere to learn about it depending on what it is. When I researched a business I decided to look up Vuori Clothing because it started right down the street from my house in Encinitas, CA and it makes me curious how they are doing according to the internet. It's a company that began in inspiration of Lulu with the intention in the beginning of being meant for Men. But has since evolved into a similar company as Lulu but is much less available outside of California. 

    So when I researched Vuori on Yelp it gave me many reviews to look over and see how people feel about the clothing and company overall. Most of what I read was fairly positive and it seems like people really enjoy their company. It's so interesting to read what people write when they create a Yelp review because no one is forcing them to write the review so it is usually accurate to how the person is feeling. I myself have never been one to write a review on a business unless they personally asked me to in which I always write a kind note. But when I read people's positive or negative comments I find it very interesting and feel that regardless of whether they are positive or negative it is usually a good thing to have a lot of reviews. 

    I also feel that the reviews can be very important to a business because they can look at the positive comments and appreciate the great work that they have accomplished and look at the negative comments to see where they can improve their business. If a business constantly finds similar reviews about something negative with your business then that is a great way of being informed to help better your company. That is how I would treat comments if I were running a business. I would always be looking for a way to better the business and if there was a consistent amount of negative comments regarding my business then that could be a sign to make changes depending on what it is. I decided to comment on the Yelp on Vuori since I very much enjoy their clothing and simply wrote kind words regarding how much I enjoy their brand. 

Week1 B: Social Media Use Today

     When thinking about social media use in general, I have both a positive and negative outlook depending on the use of it. It is overall a very interesting concept to think about and I often think about it which makes writing about it much easier. When looking at social media from the beginning it was meant so that people could share things about their lives whether it was their thoughts on Twitter, highlights on Instagram or the community on Facebook. The idea of the of social media was created with positivity in mind that would allow people to connect with each other regardless of where they were in the world. But just like most things in life, it has its perks but also can contain negativity. 

    While social media can be viewed at as something extraordinary, the negatives come with either using it for the wrong reasons or overuse. Some of the ways that people have used these platforms is to spread negativity whether it is hating on someone or something they do. While free speech is a big component in America and being able to say what you feel is one of the greatest freedoms in the world, some people like to use that to spread negativity through these platforms which is an awful way to use them. Another negative impact of social media can be addiction. People begin to rely on it during their days and spend too much time on it. I know it is something that I am a victim of and something that I need to work on myself.

    While there are negative factors to social media, this should not take away from the amazing things that it has to offer. When I think of the biggest platform that I have used to improve my life it is without a doubt Youtube. This has been a tool that I feel has helped shape me into the person that I am. From being a small child to the age I'm at now I have used Youtube to help with my ability to learn the guitar, listening to people that I look up to and admire speak on podcasts and so many other beneficial ways that Youtube has improved my life. I use other platforms such as Snapchat and Instagram and definitely don't use those to as much of a benefit as Youtube but still enjoy having these platforms to use. Overall social media is kind of a trippy concept to think about when diving too deeply but the way I usually think about it is having its positives and negatives depending on how it's used.

Week1: Blogs I Commented On: Alexander Garza, Amy Mather, Sarah Mitulski

Week 1A: My Blog Theme

     The blog theme that I decided to choose was very simple but for myself, carries a significant amount of meaning to it. I have always enjoyed writing growing up and something that I have always wanted to incorporate into my life regardless of whether I was in school or not. The theme that I chose is simply a blank sheet of paper. This is because when I think of writing in general whether it is an essay, blog, or anything, I think of a blank sheet with endless possibilities to it and that begins to excite me. The thought of filling a blank sheet with words that came from within oneself and sharing it with whomever bestows their eyes upon is a very exciting idea to me and one that motivates myself to read and write more than I do. 

    I would assume most people would choose a theme that would describe themselves whether it was a picture of their family, pet or favorite activity. I find this to be a wonderful way of expressing oneself and showing what kind of person they are. I wanted to do the same but when I saw the photo of the blank sheet it resonated with me a lot and I thought that it was a great connection to writing a blog. Often a blog is the same thing as a blank sheet and is simply a place for one to get their thoughts out for others to see. That would be the same point as writing an essay on a blank sheet whether the purpose was for a school assignment or just for oneself. 

    Overall I am excited to start this class and be able to express our work in a different manner than simply turning it in through canvas. The idea of writing in a blog a few times a week for class is kind of exciting and makes me a lot more excited to do assignments. So when I thought of the blog and how I felt about the whole thing, I think of a blank canvas with infinite possibilities in which I can take advantage of in so many ways.