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Posts Tagged ‘Walmart’
Old Spice + Walmart = Epic Marketing Failure
November 22nd, 2011 | Added to Idiots, Morons, & Fools, Jokes & Humor | 2 Comments »
Sometimes I see something while I’m walking through the store and it makes me stop in my tracks, do a double take, and wonder to myself, “Wait… what was that?!” A few days ago when I was walking through the local Walmart I had one of these moments, though I admit the reaction was delayed by a few seconds. Take a look at this picture and try to figure out what the problem is here:
 Take a look at that picture - something ain't right about this "value..." Did you pick up on the problem with this “value” that they’re promoting? No? Go ahead, take another look.
You may notice that buying one stick of Old Spice Fiji antiperspirant deodorant will cost you $3.97. If you wear Old Spice deodorants (and I do), then you know that this is the general going rate for the antiperspirant version of the product. But wait! Look! Right next to the $3.97 stick of Old Spice Fiji is a TWO PACK of Old Spice Fiji for just $7.97! Awesome! What a deal! What great value!
Wait a minute…
Let’s go back to basic, elementary school math for a moment. If one stick costs $3.97 and two sticks cost $7.97, which deal costs less per stick? Hmmm… well one stick costs $3.97 – we know that already. Now if two sticks costs $7.97 then we’d have to divide that amount by two, which would give us $3.98 (and a half cent) per stick. Well, that doesn’t make any sense does it? Aren’t we supposed to be getting a better “value” for the two sticks? This math seems like the consumer has to pay more by getting the special “value” offered at the friendly, neighborhood Walmart.
Can’t be right. Let’s try this another way.
So we know that one stick of the deodorant costs $3.97, but let’s say that I wanted to leave Walmart with two sticks of the product. Well, this one seems simple enough right? Just grab the special “value” and go about my business. Or… wait a moment here… if I can get one stick for $3.97, then what if I bought two of those one sticks? That would be $3.97 + $3.97 = $7.94 for the two sticks.
Do you hear that, Walmart and Old Spice? Your special “value” costs 3 cents more than simply picking up two of the same product! Come on, guys! Get with the program already! How could someone let this slip through the cracks?
And I know what some folks out there on the interwebs would be thinking after reading this; they’d think, “Calm down, Joe. It’s just a simple oversight that will probably get fixed in a matter of days.” Well, that’s true, but what bothers me in this situation is the marketing team at Old Spice. Simply put – these guys are pushing the Fiji flavor of their body wash, deodorant, and body spray more than I’ve ever seen them promote anything else. I mean, take a look at the front page of their website:
 Trying to push a failing flavor much? Give it up already. How many times can they slap that wretched Fiji stench on their website before it becomes ridiculous? It’s even worse in the stores. Every Christmas box set that I see from Old Spice in Wegmans or Walmart is jam packed with the Fiji flavor. Not the Komodo flavor or the Denali flavor or the Cyprus flavor; not even my personal favorite flavor – Matterhorn. Nope, all you get from Old Spice this holiday season is Fiji.
And I think I know why they’re promoting this flavor so much – it’s just not that good.
It’s not. When you smell the Fiji flavor something just smells wrong about it. There’s the wrong mixture of… I don’t even know. Sweetness and a biting stench are the only two adjectives that I can think of to describe the smell. It’s just not that good.
So here’s hoping that the folks at Walmart and/or Old Spice catch this mistake in their pricing model and fix it before they look even dumber than they look already. And here’s also hoping that Old Spice will stop trying to push a stench that the people have clearly rejected. If they were putting Matterhorn or Komodo (or any other flavor) out there in these box sets, they’d all be sold already. But no. Instead, we get Fiji.
Gross.
The Neptune, New Jersey Walmart – An Epic Failure
May 4th, 2011 | Added to Idiots, Morons, & Fools, Local People & Politics | No Comments »
Before I write my little diatribe below, let me say that I like Walmart. I shop at Walmart a few times each week. I use Walmart for my grocery shopping, for random clothing needs (socks, underwear, jeans to wear around the house, basketball shorts, etc.), for video game purchases, DVD purchases, celebration cards and gifts – you name it. In short, I’m a Walmart shopper.
But I’m not a fool. I know when a brand or a company doesn’t give a damn about its customers. And – after my brief experience in Walmart today – I know what many of my friends and I have thought about the Neptune Walmart for some time – this store does not give a damn about its customers.
 The Walmart in Neptune Township, New Jersey does not care about its customers I’m not going to go off on a rant because I don’t have the time or the inclination right now, but let me rundown the brief series of events that I just encountered. First, my intention in going to the Neptune Walmart was to get two money orders. That’s it – I didn’t need or want anything else.
When I walked in the front door, I noticed there were about ten people in the customer service line (typical at the Neptune Walmart – where they never have enough people working on the front end). Instead of waiting in that line, I figured why not go and buy some stuff that maybe I don’t need, but that I have to get at some point anyway. With that thought in mind, I make my way to the back of the store to the automotive section and after spending about ten minutes browsing around, I picked out two Rain-X windshield wipers (the ones that are $18 a piece – I was feeling good) and some Rain-X bug remover wiper fluid (I like Rain-X). All together I had about a $40 purchase in my hands.
Then I walked up to the front of the store and literally did a double take at the cashier lines. When I tell you that each line was 6 or 7 customers deep, that’s not an exaggeration. In fact, it’s probably an understatement because most of the lines were backed up into the clothing areas.
Some of you might ask, “What could make the lines so long on a Wednesday early evening?” And you’d be asking the right question – partly. One of the major disappointments about the Neptune Walmart is that they have around 25+ cash registers, but typically only have 7 or 8 open for business. They clearly need to have more cashiers operating at all times, so why aren’t they putting more people out there? Do they think that the few bucks they save in personnel costs is worth the aggravation of their customers? Talk about being shortsighted!
After realizing that I wasn’t getting back to the customer service counter without waiting 15 to 20 minutes in line to buy the Rain-X stuff (yes, when you shop at the Neptune Walmart, you typically spend more time in line than actually shopping), I decided to leave the stuff up at the front of the store and leave. As I was walking out the door, though, I noticed that the customer service area had no customers in it, so I redirected myself to get my money orders.
And when I asked the woman behind the counter for two money orders she very politely told me that the money order machines are down and they don’t know when they’d be back up. I looked at her for half a second, smiled, and thanked her as I walked out the door.
As if that wasn’t a big enough, epic failure of a trip to the miserable Neptune Walmart, don’t forget that it was raining today. And when it rains in New Jersey, no one remembers how to drive. Apparently, my neighbors in Tinton Falls and Neptune Township really forget how to drive when it rains because those folks couldn’t figure out how to get out of the parking lot without stopping short left and right, forgetting to use their blinkers, cutting people off, etc. It was misery.
But, believe it or not I’m not that mad at the whole experience because this was indicative of a typical trip to the Neptune Walmart. They just don’t give a damn about their customers. And you know what? That’s okay. That’s their prerogative. Just like it’s my prerogative to not shop there for the next month. That’s right, folks. After today’s abysmal experience at the Neptune Walmart, I’m not going back there for a month. I spend a lot of money at the Neptune Walmart each month and I hope that the good folks at the Ocean Wegmans and Neptune ShopRite enjoy my money because after today’s experience, the Neptune Walmart is on probation.
Unacceptable, Neptune Walmart. Unacceptable.
Book Review: How The Mighty Fall
November 23rd, 2010 | Added to Book, DVD, Movie, & Media Reviews | 1 Comment »
Jim Collins is the business world’s foremost author on why good businesses are “good” and how great businesses become “great.” If you’ve been a frequent reader of JerseySmarts.com, you’ll remember how I reviewed his most widely read work, Good to Great, about a year and a half ago. Good to Great does a phenomenal job of breaking down and explaining why certain companies are able to make that leap from being a good company to a great one. And in Collins’ latest work, How the Mighty Fall, we explore what factors are at play when those “great” companies take a major tumble down into obscurity.
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In How the Mighty Fall, Collins defines and focuses on five stages of decline for a business. These stages (in order) are: hubris born of success, undisciplined pursuit of more, denial of risk and peril, grasping for salvation, and capitulation to irrelevance or death. As in his previous works, Collins uses real world examples to make his points in this book. And the story stuck with me after reading How the Mighty Fall is the story of the rise and ultimate fall of the Ames department stores.
Many younger folks won’t know about Ames and I admit that I was only in an Ames once in 2000 or 2001 (can’t remember). The store reminded me of the old Jamesway and Caldor chains, but Collins recounts how the Ames chain of discount department stores was actually the innovator in the industry before any other store brand. That’s right, Ames was the leader in discount stores before a certain Walmart was the top dog.
However, Collins tells the story of how Ames fell into the second stage of decline – the undisciplined pursuit of more. Specifically, Collins talks about how Ames’ acquisition of the Zayre department stores led to a 98% drop in stock prices and, ultimately, destroyed the company. By pursuing an acquisition/merger with one of its rivals, Ames took its focus off of doing what it did very well and eventually wound up in bankruptcy.
Those are the types of stories that you’ll find in How the Mighty Fall. The other story that really stayed with me after reading this book was a discussion brought up as Collins went over the third stage of decline – denial of risk and peril. For your understanding, this is the stage of decline where the company actually begins is descent from its high point. Specifically, the story that I remember (and which I assume most folks will remember after reading this chapter) is the explosion of the Challenger space ship in 1986.
Now, I was too young to remember the Challenger explosion, though somewhere in the recesses of my mind I seem to recall seeing some type of coverage about it on the news. My young memory was helped by Collins’ full review of the hours leading up to the launch and the reasons why certain decisions were made by NASA. What made this story stick in my mind is that there was an extended discussion regarding a certain ring/seal that was singled out as faulty in the Challenger. The discussion revolved around whether or not the seal would be able to withstand the trauma of takeoff and, eventually, the people at NASA decided to go ahead with the launch even with the knowledge that the seal wasn’t sufficient.
The rest, as they say, is history. The seal failed, the space ship exploded, and a national tragedy was created.
It’s that denial of risk that rattled around my head. And, frankly, it had me wondering whether or not the company that I work for is denying any risks at the moment and, thus, readying itself for a fall. It’s a scary thought when you read about how some of these great companies and initiatives achieved amazing success, but were ultimately unsuccessful because of getting caught in these stages of decline. If you’re a business reader or the type of person who likes to study the American economy, then I think How the Mighty Fall is nearly required reading. Although if you’re a casual reader and are interested in learning more about what makes strong companies strong and weak companies weak, then you’ll want to pick up a copy of this book and give it a once over, too. This is the type of book that will continue to occupy space on my bookshelf even after I’ve read through it two or three times.
How Can Anyone Compete With THIS Price at the Local Wal-Mart?
August 30th, 2010 | Added to Jokes & Humor | No Comments »
My local Wal-Mart recently underwent a major renovation and reorganization of the floor plan to accommodate a new grocery section. While the renovation is still in process (and annoying) you can occasionally catch mistakes around the new grocery area. For example, I was walking around the store the other day and I saw the picture below and thought, “Who can compete with that?!”
 Good grief! What a bargain!? Anyway, just some lighthearted humor to start the week. Come back tomorrow for some brief information on my staycation last week. Also, at some point this week I plan on talking about what my intentions are for next week – when I’m off from work for the whole week!
Are You Getting Into the Holiday Spirit?
December 3rd, 2009 | Added to Winter & Christmas Time | 1 Comment »
So, are you getting into the holiday spirit? Christmas is only a few weeks away with New Year’s Eve coming in close behind and we’ve already passed both Halloween and Thanksgiving. This is the time of the year that most people absolutely love with all of the holiday parties and the family gatherings, etc. But I wonder if you’re getting into the holiday spirit this year.
I think that for the first time in a long time, I’m not really “into it” yet. For me, I think there are three specific reasons why I’m not so much into the spirit yet this year. First, the weather! Maybe it’s because I’m thinking back 20+ years, but I always remembered December through March as being a vicious time of the year with respect to snowfall. Nowadays, though, if we get two major storms and a few flurries in between, that’s a lot. I think that there’s something about the snow and watching a snowstorm that makes this time of the year special. When it’s t-shirt and shorts weather, though, it’s pretty tough to get into the spirit of the season.
Second, the stores aren’t doing it for me this year. If I recall correctly, last year I would walk into the Wal-Mart and the Target and even the Monmouth Mall and everything was draped with “Merry Christmas” signs or “Happy Holidays” banners and you’d see Christmas trees set up around the store, etc. It was a very festive scene! However, this year the local stores seemed to have toned it down a bit which might be a result of cost cutting measures, who knows. I always think that the Christmas season, though way too commercialized these days, is always augmented in a positive way when commercial outlets dress themselves up in the season. On a related note, the Christmas music on Sirius XM’s channels has been so-so at best this year. They’re mixing in a lot of different stuff and I believe that the diversity in generations of musicians takes away from the overall impact.
And finally, I’ve been really busy over the last three months so I admit that I haven’t really had a chance to stop and think about presents or decorating or attending any Christmas parties, etc. Of my three reasons, this is the only one that I think I have an ability to change, but I really don’t think a change on my part is necessary since in about a week’s time all of the things that are taking up most of my free time will be over (teaching and taking a course).
Maybe next week it’ll be a little colder, the stores will put out more of their Christmas decorations, and I’ll have more free time to take it all in. Until then, though, the days seem to keep on flying by just like any other time of the year!
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