All posts by bronsontat

Crisis Averted

November 20, 2014Uncategorizedbronsontat

And here I sit, blindly thinking that Beats by Dre has never had any sort of controversy. After a little investigation, I was proven to be very wrong. Back in 2012, during the Summer Olympics in London, athletes on the British team were seen wearing a special addition of Beats by Dre that sported their nations flag. This may not seem like that big of a deal but, by rule, according to Olympic organizers and committee members, no company that is not an official sponsor of the Olympics may “ambush advertise.”

Moving further within the conflict, the Beats company essentially let their athletes fight their fight for them. A couple of the athletes that used the Beats product lashed out against the Olympics expressing their extreme disappointment in the fact that they were being told that they can’t use a certain headphone.

I feel as though the Beats company completely avoided crisis. By allowing their athletes that endorsed their product fight their battle, Beats set up a bullet proof wall. Instead of taking hits, Beats fired first! In my opinion, this was an ingenious idea, whether it was on purpose, or by chance, this crisis could not have been avoided any better. On the other side of that, to save the future of their relationship with the Olympics, I would have suggested that they release an apology or some sort of statement that shows that they didn’t completely understand the rules and/or will work with them to resolve any future problems that they may have.

Picture Credit:

Let Me Take a Selfie…. With My Beats

November 7, 2014Uncategorizedbronsontat

To confront this beast known as the social media strategy for the Beats by Dre. company, I think it is especially important that I draw your attention to the featured image of this particular blog. In the photo we see a very clear profile picture of a very recognizable Beats by Dre. logo. This is very hard to miss which is essential in a strong branding company such as Beats. The other thing in the photo that I would like to draw your attention to is the cover photo. In this photo, we see the very popular Lebron James wearing a pair of the in-ear headphones that Beats makes. This is also essential for the branding of the company because they are using an idol to back up their product.

Furthermore, by scrolling down the timeline of the Beats page, we are drawn to the many endorsers that are featured on the page. We are introduced to stars such as, P Diddy, Jay-Z, Taylor Swift, and Big Sean. By scrolling down just a bit more, we find a picture of one of the over-the-ear headphones with a caption that explains that the Solo HD version has won the award of “Best of the Year” by USA Today.

In the Twitter atmosphere, we are confronted with the same profile picture and cover photo. The major difference between Facebook and Twitter is that Twitter contains more music videos where Beats is featured and being used. With that being said, there is also a lot of pictures with some of the endorsed celebrities in studios using the product.

What does all of this add up to? Well, in investigating the social media sites of Beats, I would not stray to say that celebrity endorsements is crucial in the social media strategy of this company. Buyers will look to these outlets to keep up with their favorite celeb.

Videos:

http://www.vevo.com/watch/kendrick-lamar/i-(Official-Video)/USUV71402554?syndicationid=bb8a16ab-1279-4f17-969b-1dba5eb60eda&shortlink=CjpStY&country=US&referralurl=http:%2F%2Ft.co%2F7d6MBhynny

All About That Bass

October 11, 2014Uncategorizedbronsontat

Since the beginning of time, there was Beats – just kidding. But in all seriousness, I think it is important that we first take a look at the transformation that the Beats company has gone through since it’s inception. From the start, Beats headphones were seen as sub-par over-the-ear headphones. Since then, the company has graduated to studio quality headphones with an abundance of bass. Beats has also dipped toes in the car audio market as well as computer audio. Beats has made a stand in the marketplace by using gaudy looking headphones that stick out and high profile celebrities and athletes to represent the brand.

As for the use of imagery in their marketing strategies, Beats is genius. By using some of the most reputable athletes in today’s market, Beats has set a new standard for the marketing of audio equipment. Beats, over the last couple years has used athletes and high profile celebrities such as Richard Sherman (cornerback for the Seattle Seahawks), Colin Kapernick (quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers), and Lady Gaga. Beats also launched a series of promotional images that showed world class soccer players wearing Beats during the recent Fifa World Cup. On a side note, it will always help to have your product endorsed by the one and only Dr. Dre.

As for the most influential campaign used by Beats, the release of “The Game Before The Game” is a very strong media marketing tool. In the video, you will notice soccer players, who will be competing in the Fifa World Cup, practicing their pregame rituals before competition sporting their Beats by Dre. Pregame is considered the mind game, hence, the name of the campaign. I also included another visual piece at the top of the blog that was used in the campaign as well. That is just one of many.

Blog by:

Bronson Tatham

Link to the Fifa World Cup Campaign: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_i3Lcjli84

Photo Credit:

https://www.google.com/search?q=beats+by+dre+world+cup+ad&biw=1366&bih=657&tbm=isch&source=lnms&sa=X&ei=HHw4VPaGBIaWyQT84YHgBw&ved=0CAkQ_AUoBA#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=Fxhddm-lrtmKEM%253A%3Bc5x1Oto2arC3IM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fi.dailymail.co.uk%252Fi%252Fpix%252F2014%252F06%252F05%252Farticle-0-1E7FB29000000578-68_634x353.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.dailymail.co.uk%252Fsport%252Fworldcup2014%252Farticle-2649835%252FNeymar-leads-star-studded-cast-new-Beats-By-Dre-World-Cup-advert.html%3B634%3B353

Speakers Going Hammer

September 13, 2014Uncategorizedbronsontat

When thinking of an iconic brand to research and study for my blog, I can’t help but to think of one of the most popular brands in music history in this era. The brand I am thinking of is the Beats by Dre Corporation.

In 2008, a company known as Beats would take the music industry by storm. The company was co-founded by hip-hop producer, Dr. Dre and Jimmy lovine. Since the start of the company, Beats has sold their rights and joined forces with apple. In May of 2014, Apple announced its buy-out of the Beats Corporation worth over three billion dollars.

In my opinion, just the net worth of the company makes Beats a reason of study. The aspect of the brand that really draws me in is the simplicity of the logo. The log itself is a lowercase b surrounded by a red circle which is very recognizable. I am also drawn to the brand due to its celebrity endorsers that include: Derrick Rose, LeBron James, and Richard Sherman.

In my investigative research I have found nothing that directly correlates with the core values of the Beats Corporation. In a way, Beats has been seen as a money hungry company. There is no community connection or even a foundation in which they support

With that being said, I did find that the co-founders set up an academy at the University of Southern California for students called the Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young Academy for Arts, Technology and the Business of Innovation. The academy is for those to follow in similar footsteps as the founding fathers of the academy.

To really get into the juicy details about the Beats by Dre company, I am going to have to do a lot more digging.