Pfizer is an American pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation with a current market cap of $173 billion. According to the website, the company is "in relentless pursuit of scientific breakthroughs and revolutionary medicines that will create a healthier world for everyone." Imagine that scientists at Pfizer have created a revolutionary new drug that can significantly reduce the symptoms of a rare, chronic disease. The drug has received FDA approval and will be ready across the US as a prescription pill, beginning in about 10 months. The company has relationships with a full-service advertising agency, a reputable influencer agency, and a major PR firm. Pfizer wants to advertise this new drug to end-users. What should it do first? Create an online community (potentially using contacts from the drug trials) where Pfizer can interact with people who have this disease, so it can learn more about the lived experiences of people who suffer from the disease. Put some creative samples in front of a panel of doctors, to see which combination of creative and message they like best. Have the ad agency buy a 30-second Super Bowl spot and develop a humorous commercial that's likely to go viral. Poll people on Facebook to learn more about how they feel about different messages they might've seen from this and other pharmaceutical companies. Have the PR firm go to work promoting Pfizer's many innovations to try and drum up publicity. Ryan is a "serial entrepreneur." He's been starting businesses and finding ways to make money without a manager since his first lemonade stand, at age 8 . Since then, he's earned a degree in entrepreneurship from MSU, made a fair amount of money day trading, and filed three patents. Ryan recently purchased a machine that will allow him to create metal luggage tags in a variety of colors and shapes and then engrave them for customers. The luggage tags are available in a dozen different shapes (e.g. circle, star, classic tag-shape) and 20 different colors. Customers can personalize the tags with 1-3 lines of text in any of 15 different fonts. Thanks to this new machine, the process of cutting, engraving, and packaging the tags for shipping is automated and fast. The tags take only minutes to make and Ryan has access to virtually unlimited input materials. Ryan currently sells the tags on Etsy and on his website. Sometimes he pays to have his listing promoted on Etsy, but he hasn't pursued other avenues to market the tags. When he sells on Etsy, Ryan's profits (after materials, overhead, and shipping) are $1.50 per tag. Sales on his website, where Ryan doesn't have to give Etsy a cut, profits are $2.25 per tag. What should Ryan do next? Offering the tags as freebies at the upcoming Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco to drum up publicity. TV ads that showcase the product and offer free shipping to the first 50 people to call and order. Online ads and SEM. Booths at local craft fairs, like the upcoming MSU Arts and Crafts Show. Create native ads for magazines that appeal to travelers, where he demonstrates how rapidly and effectively his machine works. Old Navy, and Athleta brands. The brand launched in 1969 in San Francisco, and focused on targeting teens. Imagine that marketing researchers at Gap have reported that the brand has remained popular with Gen Xers and Millennials that have been buying Gap jeans since they were young, but it's not getting a lot of traction with today's pre-teens and teens. The researchers arranged focus groups with pre-teens and teens in LA, Seattle, Kansas City, Indianapolis, and Miami, and found that the stores are already carrying all of the styles they want (leggings, flares, chunky sweaters, and non-prescription glasses that they wear as accessories). The kids are currently getting these items from malls that have Gap stores, but not from Gap. When participants were shown images of clothing (without brands visible) and asked which they would buy, they frequently chose Gap designs, sometimes mis-identifying the clothing as coming from competitors like Zara, Shein, A\&F, and Hollister. When asked why they're not choosing Gap for these staples, the teens reported that they didn't know. Panel data purchased by the ad agency showed that parents of children in this age range frequent Gap, leading the marketing team to conclude that the teens have access to Gap stores, but simply aren't choosing the brand. What would the marketing director at Gap recommend to her CEO? Have the new SEO hire apply her technical knowledge to identify the most influential social media accounts, pare them down to those most relevant to this demographic, and send them free clothing that seems like a match for their personal styles. Create TV ads that demonstrate the quality, beauty, and durability of the clothing, so that teens can understand that this clothing is an incredible value relative to competitors. Identify a relevant influencer (or group of influencers) and co-create a line of clothing. Focus on creating posts on Facebook and TikTok, making sure to use trending tags and youth-oriented language (like "no cap," "wig," and "vibe check"). Work with a mobile service provider to push a mobile ad to relevant customers-teens are heavy mobile users