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Chapter 7/ Business Marketing

Vans is a company that markets itself as a "reckless" and "exciting" brand immersed in skateboarding culture. It's clothing is sold in approximately 70 countries globally and in events like The Vans Warped Tour and The Vans Downtown Showdown.

The Vans Warped Tour is a concert series that markets to teenagers in the summertime before they go back to school. The company attracts teenagers by featuring their favorite bands on tour dates and giving away free shoes and clothing during tour stops. When the target audience goes back to school after a summer at the Warped Tour, they will most likely pick Vans as their pair of "back to school" sneakers. http://vanswarpedtour.com/

The Vans Downtown Showdown is a skateboarding competition that targets teenagers after the "back to school" season to generate sales of sneakers, apparel, and accessories. The company features skateboarders and especially Vans sponsored skateboarders like Tony Trujillo to teens while they are in school. Athletes like Tony Trujillo compete and are featured at the event to generate sales of their Vans sponsored sneakers. http://www.vans.com/events/38128/downtown-showdown/

Chapter 8/ Segmenting and Targeting Markets

Vans markets to audiences that like the skateboarding culture and youth from kids to young adults. Vans uses it's visual effects of it's website, brand and product presentation to attract these audiences. The brand markets its products as edgy, carefree and reckless. Vans also reminds it's target audiences that it is a vintage brand that's been active since 1966. Vans has many ways it markets to it's consumers:

In this promotion, Vans wants to target consumers and develop trust in the brand so consumers will buy classic Vans shoes. Fans are encouraged to post pictures about their favorite Vans classic sneakers and the story behind that picture. Vans is actually showcasing their target audience in these pictures by showing what kind of customers they want to attract when selling their products.

http://www.vans.com/classictales

Vans also uses skateboarding promotional videos like this to show that the brand is still current, cool and up-to-date with their target market. This commercial also wants to market that Vans is always current and in the midst of skateboarding culture.

Chapter 11/ Developing and Managing Products

Vans builds their business around making various products for their target consumers. The company knows that they can target youth audiences buy making products that their professional athletes wear in skateboarding, surfing, snowboarding, and other sports. Also, Vans markets their products to the music and art culture industries which are featured with the links on their home page.

Vans Music Page: http://vansmusic.tumblr.com/

Vans Art Page: http://vansart.tumblr.com/

Vans has a long list of products they market to audiences:

Vans Classic Slip-ons

http://shop.vans.com/catalog/Vans/en_US/style/eyeori.html?categoryId=65120&colorCode=EYEBWW

Vans Classic Era

http://shop.vans.com/catalog/Vans/en_US/style/eraori.html?categoryId=65120&colorCode=EWZW00#variation-3

Vans Classic Old Skool

http://shop.vans.com/catalog/Vans/en_US/style/d3hori.html?categoryId=65120&colorCode=D3HNVY

Product Anyalysis:

Geoff Rowley SPV

http://shop.vans.com/catalog/Vans/en_US/style/nli.html?categoryId=23606

One of Vans new products is the Rowley SPV. This product is an addition to Geoff Rowley's product line in Vans. These sneakers are designed to be different from all his previous shoes with a hollow interior, low cut gum sole and lightweight construction. The SPV in Geoff Rowley's words is "the lightest, lowest, grippiest shoe that you could possibly make." It is an idea generated by the employees at Vans and the athlete himself to make a shoe that is on the cutting edge of skate shoe design and comfortable to the athlete himself: Geoff Rowley.

Product Website: http://www.vans.com/microsites/rowleyspv/

New Vans x Yo Gabba Gabba! Collection for the Holiday Season!

Vans x Yo Gabba Gabba! Back for Holiday Season

Posted 2011-09-26 12:52:05 by Kelly

Back by popular demand, Vans once again joins forces with The Magic Store and W!LDBRAIN Entertainment for a new Vans x Yo Gabba Gabba! collection just in time for the holiday season. Whether its story time, dancey dance time or making funny faces, the Vans x Yo Gabba Gabba!collection features four new styles and will fit the whole family. Brobee, Foofa and Muno are featured in a full character color Slip-On along with one style that includes all the beloved faces of the Yo Gabba Gabba! crew.

This collection represents the fun of both the Vans brand and the Yo Gabba Gabba!series. The packaging is designed with Vans skate culture and Yo Gabba Gabba!flare. Customers can interact with their favorite characters by coloring the box to make it their own. Even character details are showcased in the shoe designs. Brobee, the only character who changes facial expressions, is mimicked in the shoe style with one shoe featuring a happy face and one with a sad face.

The new styles will be available in toddler (4 – 10), kids (10.5 – 4) and adult sizing (3.5 – 13) retailing for $32, $37 and $50 respectively. Vans is excited to team up with the popular series for another very colorful collaboration that is sure to be a hit for all ages. The collection ships October 1st, 2011 and will be available at Vans retail stores, Vans.com and other dealers found at vans.com/yogabbagabba. Look forward to another collaboration short from Vans and the Yo Gabba Gabba!cast this season.

Source: http://www.vans.com/news/item/1796501/vans-x-yo-gabba-gabba-back-holiday-season

Chapter 16/ Integrated Marketing Communications

Vans uses promotion so the target market can know about products such as sneakers, apparel and ultimately to buy products. The company makes sure that their potential customers and target market has them in mind when shopping for products. Vans has many ways in which they use promotion to encourage customers to buy their products:

Vans uses advertising as a form of paid promotion to make sure the audiences knows about their products. Advertising like the one in this magazine is expensive but the cost per contact is worth the expense if, the target market consumers buy the product. This is an example of persuasive promotion because the ad wants to appeal to the senses so the target audience will buy the product. In the AIDA concept, this may be used in the desire stage to attract consumers over competing products.

Vans uses its Facebook & Twitter pages to create good publicity with its consumers. It uses these websites to interact with the consumers and to find out how many might be willing to buy their next product. Social media websites are good public relations tools.

Vans uses sales promotions like the “Vans Classic Tales” promotion to encourage consumers to buy their classic sneakers like Vans Slip-ons, Authentics or Eras. On http://www.vans.com/classictales/ the company asks consumers who have had great memories of wearing Vans shoes to tell a story about one of those memories. This sales promotion is also to encourage potential consumers to buy and trust classic Vans shoes.

The social media and “Vans Classic Tales” examples are reminders for consumers to keep Vans products and brand in mind. Vans is vigilant in reminding audiences that Vans is a classic brand that cares about it consumers. In the AIDA concept, these examples would be in the interest stage. Vans uses its social media pages to spark interest once the target audience is on the page. The Vans Tales promotion is made to create interest by showing many stories about how experienced customers are satisfied with Vans.

Chapter 10/ Product Concepts

When it comes to products, Vans offers its consumers a very large selection. The company has classic shoes for men, women and kids, helmets for skateboarding and action sports, clothing and apparel for everyday wear, accessories like watches, backpacks, hats and keychains. Vans even specializes in extended size sneakers for people with shoe sizes of 14-16. The company has a host of tangible products.

Vans also has an intangible appeal of being cool and hip to consumers. When a consumer buys Vans shoes, he or she can be sure that the product is widely popularity. In the last decade, the Vans brand has increased in popularity not just in action sports culture, but beyond. The brand can be seen throughout pop culture and has enormously increased its fan base from recent years.

An example of a product item is the “Greetings from Hawaii” Tee. It is a specific t-shirt that is unique from all other Vans products.

http://shop.vans.com/catalog/Vans/en_US/style/mhc.html?vcategoryId=CatZone&cm_vc=CatZone

An example of a Vans Product line is "The Vans X Yo Gabba Gabba" line. This collection has a variety of items based on the popular children’s show.

http://www.vans.com/microsites/yogabbagabba/

All Vans shoes are consistently packaged in a recognizable Vans shoebox. This shoe box helps protect the shoes from possible damage or harm when not in use and adds to the overall look and appeal of the shoes when opened. The box features a banner that states "Since 1966" which encircles it, and brings attention to its classic image.