Designs by Jess

Week 7 EOC: The Pitch

2012-02-20T22:43:00.001-08:00

Anyone can make brownies, you go to the store and pick up the box and the eggs and make it home in your oven. But they’re generally all the same with some slight variation, right? With chocolate chips or double chocolate and even some that are gooey. But have you ever had brownies with chili powder? Made with the finest chili powers from Mexico and India combined with the richest of cocoa, the sweet and spicy mix will warm you from the inside with every bite. The exotic taste will have you coming back for more.

Packaged in orange and brown boxes, the name “Spiced Cocoa” will be surrounded by cocoa beans and chili peppers to give it the feel of the countries where the chili’s from. The brownies inside will be cut into bite sized cubes to help with the warming after effect with each piece.

Week 6 EOC: Me x 3

2012-02-13T15:58:00.000-08:00

What three products do I think define me? First, I believe my shoes help to define who I am. I love vans shoes. They’re comfortable, great for your feet and they last forever before wearing out on me. And I’ll wear my shoes until they die on me. I prefer the look of the men’s vans better; they’re darker colors and to me, seem a lot simpler in design. They have built in arch supports which I totally love since my feet tend to lean inward. I think when people look at me when I wear them and they’ll see that I like to feel comfortable. And you can’t be comfortable if your feet are killing you.

Secondly, I have my Arizona jeans. They fit me just right; they come long enough for my legs and with different style cuts. I’m always comfy in my jeans. With the right shirt you can get so many different looks and outfits with jeans. Dress down, with nicer ones you can dress up. I even have black ones so I can look a little more formal when I need to. I have always felt more down to earth when I wear them, other than other kinds of pants.

Third, I think my dice say a lot about me.

I love gaming, I have for years. It's a great way for my to relax and de-stress from my week and I get to hang out with my closest friends every Saturday. I've played DnD since I was 18 and I've gone through several characters but my dice stay the same, even when I add a few new ones when I find a really cool one. I may be into fashion, but gaming is my true love. I just couldn't game for a living, I worry it'd make me hate in after a few years.

Week 5 EOC: Social Networks and Job Hunting

2012-02-06T15:27:00.000-08:00

It can be very hard to find a job in these times. I know I’ve been looking; yet I don’t have not been hired. Through social media and jobsites, it can be a bit easier if you know where to look and which sites to trust. But how do you find a site to trust? That’s only found through research and word of mouth, I’ve found. I normally won’t look at craigslist.com but I’ve known a few who have found some jewels on the site. Like becoming a brand ambassador for companies. A lot more companies are looking for brand ambassadors to promote for them. I find the ambassadors are quite special. “It’s the value of having someone there who wants to talk to you about the product and the features,” says one brand ambassador. “It’s not really about sales; it is about sharing of information. If you go about it in a way that is positive and relatable, it’s a positive experience for [both parties].” (Armstrong & Kotler (2011) Marketing: An Introduction. page 15 of 59 — printed page 143) The next time I see one, I’ll walk over and listen to what they have to say. They know what their talking about and not just trying to get you to buy, they want you to know what they know.

What I’m not so sure about is jobs hiring through Facebook.com. It’s kind of weird. That’s where I go to keep in touch with friends and family as well as play games to distract myself from homework. And yet, it seems more places are starting to facebook as a way of hiring. “But if current growth trends continue, Facebook could rival traditional job boards in 2012” (Job Recruiters Turn to Facebook to Find Candidates). Very interesting stuff.

Week 3 EOC: There’s an app for that.

2012-02-01T08:37:00.000-08:00

Don’t you hate it when you’re out at a store and you see THE shirt that you came to get, only you’re running short on time or they don’t have it in your size? I know I hate it.

I’d like to design a new app for your smartphone, where you can try on new clothes, without having to change! All you’d need to do is take a full body picture of yourself, front and back. Using the app, you take a picture of the shirt you find in the store and using the touchscreen, put it on you like a paper doll.

It won’t be that hard even. You can stretch and lengthen the new clothing so that it fits your body. It’ll take into account the curves of your body, the way it folds and falls around you. And it’ll do more than just shirts. It’ll accommodate pants, dresses, and shoes, any article of clothing!

Week 3 EOC: My Demographics

2012-01-23T21:49:00.000-08:00

Being only born in ’89, I am a part of the Millennials Generation. I am proud of when I was born. I grew up in the ‘90s with some of my favorite cartoons and TV shows. I grew up with the NES. And by the time I really got to dress myself, big hair was out of style! Though, I did get stuck with perms for picture days at school. When I have thought about my generation before I didn’t think I fit very well into it when I compare myself with the teens of today who are only a few years younger than me. Now that I have read the section about the Millennials Generation in my textbook, I can see how I do fall into. I can’t imagine living without a way to talk to my friends who live in other countries. In fact, without internet, I wouldn’t have friends from other countries. I wouldn’t get very good grades on papers due to my dyslexia if I had to hand write everything out either. And of course, my video games. What would I do without them? When I was younger I avoided any book I could and sat in front of the family TV for hours playing Tetris and Super Mario World 3. I also wouldn’t be able to know when a new book is coming out from my favorite authors so I could pick them up at the library. (I love reading more than I love my video games now that I’ve gotten past my struggles.) I also wouldn’t know much about fashion with the internet. I’d be stuck with what I could only learn through growing up and going to stores where I may get incorrect information. I do try to keep my dependency on technology as low as I can. There are just some things that aren’t the same on screen as it is in person.

Week 2 EOC: Boston Consulting Group - Video Games

2012-01-23T21:20:00.000-08:00

While everyone has their own personal favorites, it can be hard to fully define the “best and greatest” of a certain subject. But with some looking around and reading up on the subject, one can make a pretty good guess. I’ve looked around and found one site that made its own list of top 25 consoles, where “Each console on the list … was selected for its influence on the industry and the gaming culture as a whole, with special consideration for their benchmark titles, peripherals, monetary success, and total hardware sold.” (http://www.ign.com/top-25-consoles/) The list of consoles came to end with the NES as their number one. It brought back games at home after the video game crash in 1938. “This is the system that turned every child into a gamer in the mid '80s. The NES not only had one of the largest libraries in gaming, but one of the most varied: action, sports, RPGs, shooters, and more were all well represented.” (http://www.pcmag.com/slideshow_viewer/0,3253,l%253D251235%2526a%253D251237%2526po%253D9,00.asp?p=n) At pcmag, though, the NES was listed at #2. Again, no matter where you look, you’ll find different top consoles based off the opinions of the ones who formed the lists.

Using the BCG analysis, I’ll need more than just the number one of all time. The NES is almost as old as I am, and graphics and game systems have come a very long way. Now we have the PS3, the Wii and the X-box360. I’ll be picking these four consoles for my BCG analysis.

The Star: Being the high growth with high market share, The X-box360.

Why?: The 360 won’t be going anywhere for some time. It has poplular games and an easy to use online gaming experience. While I may not like the X-box, I can see that it’s doing pretty well for itself.

The Cash Cow: The low growth with high market share, The PS3

Why?: The PS3 brought Blue-ray to the gaming world. But that doesn’t seem to be enough to keep it at the top. It’s online playing is a little hard to use when it can’t find anyone to join with. The games offered are still slight compared to the PS2 with had an abundant list.

The Dog: The low growth and low market share, the Wii

Why?: The Wii brought motion into gaming, though its graphics and gaming selection leave a bit to be desired.

The Question Mark: The NES.

Why?: It’s not making any new games, it’s graphics are poor in comparison. But the games it does have are numerous in variety on top of simply having a ton of games for it. And When the other three consoles fail you, you can always go back to it and relive your youth with the classics.

Week 1 EOC: Great Customer Service

2012-01-09T22:38:00.001-08:00

As a consumer, customer relations are a big driving force behind why I return to the places I shop. If I’m treated poorly or simply ignored, I won’t want to go back to store or place of business. When I treated well, I make plans to return when the need arises, and sometimes when I wish to see the working there again. The place I get my hair cut, the Subway I eat at and the Albertsons I shop at are all places I go to, even if they are out of the way or not the closest one to me, because I enjoy the workers there. My best experience though has been at a bank I don’t even have an account with, yet. The Credit Union in my Albertsons will be the place I go to when I have the funds to open an account; simply because of the people working there. I started getting to know the tellers though a friend who uses the bank. I was greeted and talked to that first day and I slowly stopped feeling shy and over time I came to get to know each person there. Even though I don’t have money with the credit union, they still talk with me every time I wonder over to them; I even play Words with Friends with one of them. How they make me feel keeps me returning and think of only one place I would trust my money with, with them. “The overall process of building and maintaining profitable customer relationships by delivering superior customer value and satisfaction.” (Armstrong & Kotler (2011).

Marketing: An Introduction. Page 18) I can only hope that someday I have the same relationship with my own clients.

Week 1 EOC: My Voice

2012-01-09T21:25:00.000-08:00

With a dream of working as an Image Consultant, I am building my plans for my future. Working on my degree in fashion, I am building a network of people within the LGBT community of Las Vegas. I’m looking forward to being more active and helping to make fashion more accessible in the community. I stay on track with fashion through sites like stylesite and womensweardaily, I also attend events geared toward the LGBT community to better understand the needs and wants of the people within so I may better take care of my future customers. It’s very important to me to have clothing opportunities for everyone. I strive to create equal footing for men, women, gays and lesbians but most importantly those in the Trans community.

My planned business will be geared mostly toward the Trans community; helping pre/post op individuals find the clothing that work best for them, with the style they desire. Since finding clothing on their own can be quite difficult, I hope to be able to provide a safe way for those who are transitioning to be able to be comfortable with fear of rejection from stores.