Business and management articles | Cooler Insights

Eureka! Its Australia’s Golden Moment.

November 8, 2009 • Blog • 3 comments

Eureka Circle with the emblematic Southern Cross located at the Eureka Stockade Gardens

What is the most significant moment in Australia’s history?

In the hearts of many, such a moment is represented by the Eureka Stockade, a bloody rebellion of miners against their colonial government oppressors in November 1854. Happening in the gold mines of Ballarat, the tale of the Eureka Stockade is one peppered with values of hardship, courage, determination, and the fight for freedom. What began as a drunken fight leading to the death of Scottish gold miner James Scobie ended up triggering a major skirmish between 276 British military police and soldiers against some 150 men who fenced themselves in with a man-made stockade.

Freudian Slipping (Warning: Long and Disturbing)

November 6, 2009 • Blog • 1 comment

Courtesy of OxfordSEOBlog

As a current student in humanities, I have generated an interest in its various fields like sociology, psychology, anthropology and geography. Being a marketer and communicator, my focus is to see how these wider fields in social sciences influence the outcomes of consumers and markets. By understanding the various dimensions of human behaviours in individual, group and community settings, I hope to devise strategies and tactics that can match those characteristics.

After viewing the blockbuster exhibition Liquid Desires featuring Salvador Dali at the NGV, I learnt that much of his art was influenced by ideas which stemmed from Sigmund Freud. Being curious to learn more about Freud’s theories and influences – without going too deep into the intricacies of psychology – I picked up a slim volume titled Introducing Freud by Richard Appignanesi and Oscar Zarate. Heavily illustrated in a highly whimsical fashion, the book described the life of Freud as well as his major contributions as the father of the psycho-analytical movement.

Making Money from Minority Markets

November 2, 2009 • Book Reviews • 1 comment

Courtesy of Christopher Pattberg

Considered one of the most multi-cultural country in the world, the United States of America has one of the world’s most culturally and ethnically diverse population. Presently, it has some 305 million people out of whom 68% are non-Hispanic whites, 15% are Hispanics, 12% are blacks and 5% Asian American.

While white Americans currently dominate the American marketplace, some of the country’s most profitable segments actually hail from the other segments. Projections by the Census Bureau show that by 2050 when the US population grows to about 439 million, non-Hispanic Caucasians will only make up 46% of the country’s population. By then, the population of Hispanics (the fastest growing group) will swell to 30%, with blacks growing to 15% and Asian Americans swelling to 9%.

When Old Can Be Gold

November 1, 2009 • Business and Management • 1 comment

Not all seniors are frail and embittered (courtesy of ACE)

One of the biggest mysteries about contemporary marketing is this.

Why are such an overwhelming proportion of companies in the world only obsessed with advertising or selling to the young?

Don’t they know that the youth market is going to be shrinking in the years to come, or that seniors will dominate the world’s population, especially in developed countries?

Remembering the Fallen

October 30, 2009 • • 2 comments

One of Australia’s largest war memorials, the Shrine of Remembrance located at King’s Domain on St Kilda Road was built to commemorate the valour and sacrifice of Australians who died in both World War I and World War II. Built in the classical architectural style reminiscent of the Tomb of Mausolus at Halicarnassus and the Parthenon in Athens, the memorial served as a reminder of the heroism of soldiers who fought for their ideals amidst the then oppressors. Every year, it is the site of two significant ceremonies – ANZAC Day on 25 April and Remembrance Day on 11 November.

Like many wartime memorial sites, the shrine was serene and peaceful, providing a quiet place for reflection and contemplation. It was an oasis of stillness and introspection, where the woes of war are remembered with a fervent commitment not to ever let such atrocities overtake mankind ever again.

This lone “soldier” guarded the path to the memorial, standing proud against a wall.

Divine Marketing

October 24, 2009 • • 4 comments

As I was walking along Russell Street in Melbourne’s CBD area, I saw the above banner perched high up where it is visible to all. Quite a novel way to seek spiritual sustenance don’t you think?

Applying Integrated Marketing Communications

October 23, 2009 • Blog • no comments

Transe Express Performing Mischievous Bells at Festival Opening

It is currently the season for the Melbourne International Arts Festival, which is the city’s most internationally oriented showcase of its vibrant and diverse art scene. Major roads in Melbourne’s city centre are festooned with its characteristic purple and white banners, flapping on flagpoles in the wind. At many of the busy street corners like Swanston and Flinders Street, one can also find the festival posters pasted on billboards, tram-stop shelters and other public places.

By adhering to a strong thematic design aesthetic that is woven through all elements of the festival’s brand touchpoints, the Melbourne International Arts Festival has embraced the principles of Integrated Marketing Communications or IMC. Through this, it is able to reinforce awareness, recognition and interest across multiple platforms by applying a consistent message through both visual and textual means. This is important for a short-lived (17 days) event, and requires significant investments to gain the greatest amount of visibility in the most cost effective way.