1 Quarter, 7 Classes!!?!

We recently tracked down Noah Yeh to tell us more about the 4 classes he’s taking and 3 classes he’s auditing. This is what he had to say…

“I’m certainly not the best student to write on this topic – many of my classmates have a much deeper understanding about what we are learning right now. The only reason I’m writing about this is that I am taking way too many classes (Nishant said that they should charge me double for my tuition)! Anyway, there are both good and bad sides to taking so many classes. I’ll try my best to talk about all the classes I have attended, and since I’m not a journalist, it’s just going to be my personal perspective. Hope it helps!”

Branding and Advertising Decisions
This class is one of my favorites. I think Professor John Greening did an excellent job in explaining all the branding concepts and took us through real cases to make sure that we understand how to apply the concepts to the real world. Branding is inevitably vague, and according to the professor, he intentionally made it unclear so we can think through all the concepts ourselves instead of being limited to one single format. Also worth mentioning is that there were a lot of great speakers who came to our class and talked about their companies’ branding concepts. It’s a great opportunity for both learning and networking. A guy from Google came to talk just a few days ago. Though I have heard the same stuff several times, Google still has the ability to amaze me over and over.

Customer Loyalty
Professor Paul Wang is from Taiwan and his class has been very interactive and dynamic. Every student in this class has to lead the discussion of one of the cases in our course packet, which is a very good opportunity to practice logical thinking and presentations. The professor said that the class really is not about customer loyalty but about making sound judgments for us to face future marketing or business challenges. Professor Wang is extremely energetic and funny, maybe one of the most passionate people I’ve ever seen (Professor Greening also included). Although he prefers small classes, I still strongly recommend this class for future students.

Law and Ethics
This is a required class.

Marketing Mix
Professor Martin Block is a rather interesting person. As an international student, I really have a hard time understanding if he is telling a joke or being serious. According to the professor, this class should be the core of IMC. The cases and practice problems should be very helpful for people who are doing database in the future. There is also a real case for the final. Even if you don’t want to do database in the future, I personally think this class is still worth taking because if you have someone else do data analysis for you, at least you will know what to say to them. Strong evidence and data to back up marketing decisions will be extremely important in the future. The class also gives you an overall understanding of the relationships between manufacturers and retailers.

Marketing Modeling
Professor Randy Hlavac is a very patient teacher. This modeling class is about what database marketers do before and after all the data analysis and SPSS. This class really gives us a direction about, besides all the statistical stuff, how we make the models right and how we get the results we want. I remember hearing Professor Hlavac say that it’s not the neural network or the regression model we have to focus on. Rather, he focuses on taking us through each step of how to do the research right. I also think the projects the students are doing with Professor Hlavac are very interesting; if you are taking the analysis and insight concentration this is one class you cannot miss.

Media and Integrated Marketing (Kellogg)
I have learned so much from this Kellogg media management track class. Professor Bobby Calder really bridged the gap between Prof Greening’s branding class and the media introduction class (at Kellogg) from last quarter. I learned how to communicate my branding concept with the right kind of media. There is no doubt the media environment has been changing drastically, making this a very interesting area to study. The professor gives really good insights and examples close to our lives, including American Idol and the new James Bond movie. If you are interested in media, applying for the Kellogg media management track will be a really smart choice.

Analytic Skills
I also attended Professor Ed Malthouse’s analytic skills class – it’s basically advanced statistics. Professor Malthouse is a really good professor and very passionate about statistics. If you are very interested in stats, he is the best role model to follow.

……….Noah Yeh

Brand You

“Stylish, elegant, wine (and beer…).” These are the words my classmates associate with me, how they perceive me. I wanted to be perceived as a crazy genius, but it is just not possible because, as we learned in our branding decisions class, PERCEPTION IS REALITY.

What about you? What is your favorite brand? Oh, and what is a brand anyway? If you want a sneak preview of the “Branding and Advertising Decisions” class taught by Professor John Greening, here is the answer: A brand is a promise kept; it lives in the consumer’s mind.

Welcome to the brand communications track. To choose this concentration, I’ve come a long way. I completed two required quarters (fall and winter) struggling with numbers – statistics, finance and database marketing (of course there are other courses as well). Coming from a long advertising agency and brand management career background, I wanted to cultivate the data-driven, quantitative marketing tools to analyze the data and measure marketing effectiveness. Although dealing with SPSS and statistic significance was painful for me, those classes were really helpful. In the end, I decided to over-invest in my strengths and to sharpen my brand communications skills further. I am taking Branding and Advertising Decisions, Customer Loyalty and Practicum: Marketing and Communications Research this spring quarter.

Elective Courses for Brand Communications:
• Branding & Advertising Decisions (required)
• Marketing Public Relations
• Crisis Management
• Global Marketing
• Entertainment Marketing
• Word-of-Mouth Marketing
• Investor Relations
• Internal Communications

What I like about this track is that I acquire knowledge not only by studying, but by doing. I have three Harvard Business School cases every week as well as real-time client-sponsored projects for the classes. Case studies help me analyze diverse business problems and come up with solutions for managerial decision-making. Client-sponsored live cases help me stay up-to-date with the marketing environment outside school and push my limits as I try to discover the consumer insights. I have to be a supportive teammate and a good leader in order to for my team’s projects to succeed.

Seth Godin, bestselling author of Permission Marketing and Purple Cow, firmly believes that in the age of Google, MySpace, YouTube and blogging, everyone is a brand. Your time at Medill IMC is a great opportunity for you – and me – to learn from the big brands and build the brand called YOU.

……….Hye Sun (Sunny) Yang

Heading Across the World

Yesterday, a friend sent me an email made up of a single quote:

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” – St. Augustine

It was one of those quotes that you have that brief moment of connection with because it seems as if someone else spoke exactly what was on your mind, but of course, said it more eloquently or with some sort of poignant metaphor. That quote is the reason for the IMC Global Trip heading to India and Singapore this September.

The Global Trip is a way for us put our academic knowledge into a global context as we engage with business leaders from other cultures. Past destinations have included London, Paris, China, Japan, etc. This year, our class decided to head to India and Singapore.

The trip is a way for us to see how the marketing toolbox is being leveraged outside of the U.S. and immerse ourselves in the everyday consumption patterns of a different culture. I think it will be an eye-opening experience, personally and professionally. Our goal is to focus on what is relevant when doing business outside the U.S.

I’m excited to head on this adventure that will be the ultimate juxtaposition of business and pleasure. India is a land where temple elephants exist amicably with data centers. The ancient monuments paint a gorgeous backdrop for the world’s largest democracy, and industrial development has brought the country witin the world’s top ten business nations. Singapore will be quite the transition and learning experience to compare the two countries. Singapore is a dynamic melting pot of culture and business and a leader in marketing communications and innovative technology. Singapore’s strategic location, state-of-the art facilities and fascinating cultural contrasts contribute to its success in the global market.

The trip is currently in the planning stage, but the initial decisions and contacts have shown that it is sure to be the experience of a lifetime – one that many of us will never again get in this capacity outside of IMC. We will travel to Delhi, then Mumbai and end in Singapore between the dates of September 1-13. Our hope is to visit a breadth of industries with companies headquartered in the U.S., companies that are native to the regions, and companies from other countries doing business in these areas.

I cannot speak for the group, but on a personal level, I have made a list of touristy things I must do while in these countries. India: shop at a bazaar or market in an attempt to find bangles large enough to fit my Czechoslovakian wrists, see a Bollywood movie, visit a temple, and see the the Taj Mahal at sunrise. Singapore: go to the Night Safari, visit Sentosa island, eat unhealthy amounts of the different types food from Singapore’s fusion culture, and compare Little India to the real thing.

……….Carly Kouba

Now I Can Die Happy

There’s a new love in my life. He’s exciting, sleek, and has the smoothest moves. Sure, sometimes he has gas, and at present he’s sort of dirty – but he’s all mine.

He’s also a scooter. Blooter the Scooter, to be exact. I fell in love with scooters on a trip to Asia this past winter. The crowded streets of Shanghai were not ideal for a test ride, however. People had little restraint for stepping right out in front of you, taxi drivers were more like kamikaze pilots, and depending on the time of the day, the air is at times downright unbreathable.

But I was fascinated. Within my sister Julie’s apartment complex was an E-Mart superstore, China’s answer to Wal-Mart. Since Julie’s refrigerator was the size of a shoebox, we frequented the E-Mart nearly every day for fresh food. And every day, when walking through the front door, there was a veritable army of scooters lined up, their headlights as eyes, staring me down. Julie would sigh and roll her eyes as I, like clockwork, stopped to sit on some of them, play with buttons, and scheme about how I could get one of these US$200 beauties back to the US.

Next came Thailand, a scooter haven. In fact, it was the only way to get around, as Bangkok traffic was typically at a standstill, and scooting in between lanes was easy. Although I had a rather unfortunate incident involving some hot pavement and my knees and feet, I came back to the States feeling a sense of loss for having to give up my week-long scooter rental.

Chicago winters clearly aren’t conducive to scooting, so my yearning for a scooter was tabled until Spring Break rolled around. My parents begged me to reconsider: “It’s so dangerous!” “You live in Chicago, it’ll just get stolen!” “How will you get to your residency this summer?” But I was hooked. I spent the next week on Craigslist.com searching in earnest for the precise model and color I wanted. On the last day, my search ended.

The Yamaha Vino 125 in royal blue would be all mine, and I was to name him Blooter (thanks Carly). For the first couple of days, Blooter and I were a shaky pair, but as recently as last week, I drove my 5’11” roommate to Dominick’s and stored about 20 lbs. of groceries in Blooter’s tiny frame.

And so, Blooter and I will live happily ever after – at least until the next Evanston winter.

……….Kara Bogart

Campaigns to Remember

2008 will be remembered as an election year which hosted one of the most closely fought battles for the Democratic candidate nomination. Today the primaries for the final two ‘prized’ states – North Carolina and Indiana – were decided. As Senators Obama and Clinton have continued to garner support of millions of Americans in recent months, we at Medill IMC have been priveleged to be so close to the action. In fact, the races for both the Republican and Democratic nominations have been fascinating due to the increased usage of digital media by both parties. As a result, students at IMC have been able to study what roles traditional and new media are taking in these exhilarating branding campaigns.

One of the exercises we conducted for Prof. Clarke Caywood’s Communities class was to evaluate the various kinds of efforts being made through new media by potential candidates for both the Republican and Democratic parties. We examined how the nominees used outlets like Facebook, Digg, YouTube, etc. to generate mass support and campaign funds. We also made assessments of how the candidates could have improved in this regard. In addition, we were taught how candidates in the past had branded themselves and so we got to analyze how the electioneering landscape has evolved over the years. The activity was another piece of evidence of how the curriculum at Medill IMC exposes students to current practical application of the latest marketing tools.

Try visiting some of the nominees’ Web sites. You will be pleasantly surprised at how much digital media is playing a part in the build-up to the 2008 U.S. elections.

……….Ateeq Abdul Rauf