James Blog

"A fair go for all!"

You may have all started to see the new TV ads for Virgin Mobiles "Robin Da Hood - A fair go for all" campaign. This campaign brings back the clever marketing we all know and love from Virgin Mobile.

Yesterday afternoon Cassie (National Sales Admin)  and Simon (National Sales Manager) were invited to attend a meet and greet with Sir Richard Branson to kick off the Fair Go for All canpaign.

The Virgin Mobile brand is about challenging the Telecommunications industry and giving consumers a fair go. So with "free voice mail" and"free Virgin 2 Virgin calls and TXT within Oz", roll over of unused credit and coverage that covers 97% of the Australian population on the Optus Dual Band network,  you can't go past Virgin Mobile for a fair go!

This campaign is only just starting and has already been prominent on the radio and television. There was even a write up about it in OK magazine this week.
So with so much going on around Virgin Mobiles new offers and handset range,  it is important to ensure you have adequate stock to meet the increased consumer demand.

 Click Here to be taken to the Robin Da Hood web page, where you can get a run down on the campaign.

 

 

Mobile Broadband Growth Surge

    Mobile Broadband continues to grow in popularity in Australia as consumers look to avoid being tied down to cables and want to enjoy the freedom and convenience of "being connected" whenever and wherever they are.
    We recently launched the Optus Prepaid Broadband Dump Bin into retail channels and this has proven to be a huge success for retailers as consumers awareness of Mobile Broadband has grown considerably in the last few months. 
    I believe in supporting our retailers any way we can. This exclusive Broadband offer through Jenlist Distributors is fully supported by Optus and is finding its way into quality retailers looking to expand their suite of products to meet a growing demand for technology in a convenient loaction and shopping experience.
    It's a great way to start retailing Mobile products if you haven't already given it a go. The dump bin creates an immediate presence in store.
    Even consumers that already have a Mobile Broadband service have been know to purchase another if they have left home and forgotten to bring theirs, or another for the kids. 
    Having the products visible and convenient is proving successful for newsagents and convenience stores around the country.
If you think you want a piece of this action, call us on 1300 781 758.
 

A Global Economy is a Reality
    I have been lucky enough to attend the Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Spring Edition) this week and also spent some time in and around Hong Kong checking out the retail scene for Electronics.
    What I have noticed, is that we are moving closer and closer to a what I believe to be a global economy. Pricing of electronics, and for that matter, just about anything else from a cup of coffee and a meal to furniture and essentials for the home are pretty much on a par with the rest of the world. Sure there are bargains to be had, if you know your prices and are willing to bargain, but when it comes to general retail I have found that prices are somewhat on a par with what we expect to pay in Australia.
    The bargains that we once were able to get are far and few between. Save for some of the more expensive items in life that the Australian Government likes to tax us Aussies heavily for, like high end motor vehicles, most items are pretty much the same when doing the conversions.
    Some of the items I found in retail centres that I would consider to be a fair bit cheaper than we pay in Australia were musical instruments, shoes, high end cars (nearly half price) general clothing and leather furniture, while the more expensive items that matched our pricing, or in some cases exceeded it are things like high end designer clothes, watches and jewellery.
    All in all, the bargains we could once enjoy by "sourcing" from China and Hong Kong are now not so easily found. 
    Yes, I found some items that we will look seriously at bringing to Australia to suit our market and assist our retailers to bank more dollars by way of greater margins, but I certainly found that we are all going to need to work smarter and harder to win the consumers dollar.
 

Aspirational Advertising Sells Product

    Targeting a market is often about creating images in a consumers mind that this could be them. 
    People aspire to be better, fitter, smarter and often believe they can achieve this by purchasing products that create a lifestyle or image for them. 
    There is nothing wrong with feeling this way, and I certainly do not believe there is anything wrong with advertising this way either.
    
    This picture shows a young lady enjoying the use of her Tablet, and projects a certain amount of freedom when using a tablet. No cords, no desktop to sit at. The image removes restrictions based on the fact that a Tablet device is totally portable and wire free! So this becomes an aspiration... people can see themselves like this. Happy, relaxed, informed and free.
    So, think out side the square a little when creating in-store displays to sell products. Maybe use none related products together, or find an image similar to the one above to display with the Tablets and Handsets you have on sale in your store.
    It is often said... " A picture paints a thousand words"