HE’S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU BUT HE’S INTO TECHNOLOGY!
What would Valentine’s Day be if we didn’t watch some sappy chick flick right? Well, we watched He’s Just Not That into You and I got to say, that movie hit the Generation Y article smacked dab in the face. If you read my blog 1 post, you can see that I agree with the Generation Y article and podcast very much of how courting through technology has become a very common thing. However, I never stopped to think about how technology also has the power to break off a romantic relationship just as quickly as starting one. Not many people talk about breaking up through technology because it seems taboo. To me, breaking up is something that needs to be very personal where face-to-face contact is absolutely crucial! This movie just really made me see that my ideas of delicate breakups are long gone in the past.

The one quote that sums it up brilliantly is said by Drew Barrymore’s character, “I had this guy leave me a voice mail at work, so I called him at home, and then he emailed me to my BlackBerry, and so I texted to his cell, and now you just have to go around checking all these different portals just to get rejected by seven different technologies. It’s exhausting.”

1. The place was super packed with college students and it took a good 10 minutes before I was able to place an order.
2. The restroom had only one square of toilet paper left so I had to use it sparingly!
3. They got my order wrong and put tomatoes and sour cream in my Nachos Bellgrande!
4. I had to hear my boyfriend complain about not being able to drink what he really wanted to.

After eating at this particular Taco Bell location, I went home and got on the internet. Several of my friends instant messaged me asking me how my Valentine’s Day was. I told everyone and I quote, “The Taco Bell on Guadalupe sucks! Don’t ever go to that one again!” I told at least 6 people of this incident and I will probably reach more people because of this blog. Like I mentioned earlier, we ALWAYS go to this particular Taco Bell. I’ve never had a real problem with them before and I usually am very pleased with the service, physical environment, and food. So how, just how could I have such a change of heart? I’ve learned several times in my marketing classes that we are more likely to tell more people about our bad experiences instead of telling a lot of people about our good experiences. This was just very evident in this case. I mean, I’ve always made my purchases at this one Taco Bell. I’ve never had a problem with them before and I’ve actually always been very satisfied with the restaurant. Out of all the times I had been happy, I couldn’t ever remember telling anyone about my good experiences with this place. So why, why did I just get so crazy and tell so many people about my bad experience even though it only happened once?

COKE VERSUS PEPSI
In case you haven’t read the article True Colors by Malcom Gladwell, it talks about how two big easy do-it yourself hair dying brands (L’oreal and Clairol) have evolved in the past and built up strong associations for their consumers. Although the two have very similar products and services, the two differ greatly in brand images. History has shown that L’oreal has a sort of trendy, glamorous, busy, and celebrity like feel to it. On the other hand, Clairol has become this classic, girl next door, family oriented, and laid back product for their consumers. We discussed in class how you were either a Clairol Girl or a L’oreal Girl. I think it’s very clear that being able to identify with a brand is super important, but I feel like this idea can only be applied to certain products. Don’t quite feel that way? See if you can relate after reading about my example in the next couple of paragraphs.
As I mentioned earlier, my boyfriend complained a great deal about Taco Bell not having Coke to go with his meal. As an alternative, he was told to purchase a Pepsi in the place of the Coke. Guess what? He didn’t even drink it! He just gave it to me instead. To me, the drinks taste so similar that I wouldn’t care if I drank one or the other, but it was a huge deal for my boyfriend. I asked him why he had such a problem with the substitution and he said, “I don’t like Pepsi. It's just so stupid, too hip, and doesn’t taste nearly as good as Coke.” This one opinion/statement automatically brought me back to the True Colors article. I further probed my boyfriend for his thoughts about the two products. I asked him, “Well, what do you think Coke and Pepsi stand for or what do you think when you hear the two brands?” He answered with the following:

Coke: Classic, All American, Fun, Laid Back, Easy Going, For the Family, Loved, Relaxed

Pepsi: Trendy, Modern, For the Hip, Lustful, Celebrity Endorsers

So then I asked him, “What’s wrong with Pepsi? Those things that you mentioned aren’t necessarily bad.” He then had to explain to me that he couldn’t picture himself as a Coke Man. That Coke was much more superior brand that he felt like he could relate to. He said that Coke made him feel like a real American man unlike a random teeny bopper that was just trying hard to be trendy and cool. This felt unreal and sounded like something straight out of a textbook. Could we really feel like there is such this great need to be like the brands that we so often purchase?

These incidents also raised another question, “Do we feel this way about all products we buy or just really big name brand things?” I know that there are materialistic people out there who only buy Gucci, Versace, Louis Vuitton, Armani, Burberry, etc. in order to appear more luxurious, fierce, and rich. It makes sense to me why people would care a great deal about being able to be identified with a brand when it comes to fashion because their actual physical appearance is being enhanced by their clothing and accessories, but I don’t feel like consumers need to feel this connection to products when it comes to buying a simple household item such as soda or any other item that can be easily and quickly disposed. Holding a Coke can or bottle does not make it an accessory! I don’t care about what a person consumes in their body! I just can’t see how food can be felt so strongly by some people. When I see people choosing one drink brand over the other, I don't automatically make assumptions about their characteristics. I would just think that they preferred one TASTE and not one IMAGE over the other.

I NEED YOUR OPINION
In the end, I need opinions after writing this blog:

1. Do you agree that breaking up is something you should be able to do via email, texts, instant messaging, voice mail, cell phone call, or fax?
2. Do you find yourself complaining more about things than praising other products?
3. Do you really think that switching from Pepsi to Coke or vice versa will change others’ perceptions about you?

Let me know your thoughts!!