The Eco Scale

Whole Foods is a store devoted to customer excellence. They like to provide their customers with the most organic and clean groceries possible.

A new thing that the company has come out with is an Eco-scale.

This eco-scale uses three different scales (pictured above) that rate household cleaning products sold in their stores.

Most grocery stores don't offer this. But Whole Foods wants to keep the trust of their customers.

The breakdown goes like this:

Orange-rated products:

- No ingredients with significant environmental or safety concerns, such as phosphates, chlorine, or preservatives that have the potential to release formaldehyde.

- No artificial colors

- No animal testing

Yellow-rated products:

- No ingredients with moderate environmental or safety concerns, such as DEA, TEA or MEA surfactants (surface acting agents that can act as foaming agents) that have the potential to contain nitrosamines and other impurities

- No synthetic thickeners made from non-renewable petroleum-derived sources

- 100% natural fragrances

Green-rated products (highest rated):

- Meet all of the standards of both orange and yellow-rated products.

- Only 100 percent natural ingredients

- Contain no petroleum-derived ingredients at all

This is used to help customers not contaminate their home with the harmful chemicals that are found in cleaning supplies. Any products that do not meet these standards will be taken off the shelves.

Photoshop Mania?

Magazines have been known to photoshop for the longest time. But people have never noticed because are too consumed in the fake beauty that we see on covers.

Britney Spears was the spokeswoman for Candies, a clothing and accessory line. She was a spokeswoman for them when she was going through a bad time in her life.

Since she had to do a photo shoot, a lot of photoshopping had to be done.

Below and above are results of the images.

This photoshopping is what is getting Americans to buy what is advertised. We believe the beauty in these photos so we pressure ourselves to become just like them.

Britney Spears is aware of the before and after pictures.

She has allowed the pre-airbrushed images from a shoot she took part in to be used ALONGSIDE the digitally-altered ones, so people can see the difference.

The 29-year-old singer made the extraordinary move in order to highlight the pressure exerted on women to look perfect.

What do you think?

Youtube Gurus

Youtube has been a site that has blown up in last few years. Anyone can post a video about anything and get many many views. Some people actually get paid for the amount of views they receive. Something that has been on the trend for the past year are "Youtube Gurus".

Youtube Gurus are people who are self-proclaimed "experts" that give demonstrations, tips, advice on a specialized subject via series of youtube videos. Most gurus are makeup gurus.

They also do things called "hauls" where they show off what clothes or new makeup products they bought.

These hauls can be considered as advertising. The gurus show the new makeup products that they bought and they brag about how AMAZING the product is. Or it can be reversed and a guru can talk about how they hate a product.

Either way, it is a form of advertising that has been more common.

Some gurus even get sent free products to review or get paid to review certain products.

Here is an example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsbWOVvnjyo&feature=feedu

New is Now!

So the gym I go to in my hometown Chicago is called Lakeshore Athletic Club. Now I was very satisfied with this gym and loved it a lot. As I came home for break, I decided to take a trip there and work out a bit. To my surprise... nothing was where it used to be. Everything was changed, the cardio room changed, the whole facility changed!

I am not one that likes change. But for some reason.... I liked this change.

As I inquired about it I learned that the company went under new management.

The new management turned LSAC around in a 180.

The company changed their logo, their name, the inside color scheme, and so much more.

They also have new gym equipment, food & beverage section, and new locker room furnishing.

To see ALL the new improvements check out the "New is Now" campaign.

I think that this new management will increase customers and excellency within the company.

I just hope they don't increase my membership fee!

Shop with MAC

So of course I LOVE MAC and as I soon as I heard MAC cosmetics was coming out with a new program on their site, I was all over it.

The company has decided to put a program on its website called "MAC Shop Together."

All you have to do is log onto the website and you can instantly have a chat with up to 4 or 5 of your friends and talk about the MAC products.

This program launched April 22nd.

MAC Shop Together was created to be a platform so that all MAC fanatics can come to one place to discuss products, launches, and enhance the overall consumer experience.

I believe this is a great marketing and advertising tool because it not only allows one person to be online, but it convinces their friends to be on line too.

This will then force the other friends to look onto the site and see what they can buy and which will then lead them to buy products.

This is a great way for friends and the company to be in a win-win situation.

All the consumers can shop together on an online experience.

Will you try it out?

For the love of Animals

So I bet if someone saw a PETA ad, they could spot it right away. But these ads (above and below) I did not recognize. They are PETA ads and I have never seen them before. They are very intriguing and they definitely caught my eye. Now if PETA ever tried to get a message across... this for sure would win.

I like these ads because they are bold, edgy, and taking a risk. These ads almost seem inappropriate for the public.

PETA is known for risque advertisements. The are mostly known for their

"I'd rather go naked than wear fur" campaign.

These advertisements however, I am vert unsure about.

Even though I am unsure, I think it is powerful.

It is almost a slap in the face to meat packing companies.

They are saying "Image packing human flesh and then eating it."

PETA is also getting very clever in their advertising. They are starting to have games on their website that involve what PETA is trying to tell the world.

Play the game yourself. I been playing it forever.

COOKING MAMA

The Feathery Flight

Yet again, MAC cosmetics is coming out with a NEW collection. Yes you heard me... a NEW one. This is the third collection in line to be released.

The thing about this collection is that I am IN LOVE WITH THE ADVERTISING!!

^^ So look above... just look... right now ^^

This is the image that is being used as advertisement for the collection. What I love about this image is the eye in the middle of all the colorful plumage.

The eye is mysterious and captivating. It makes me want to know what is so mysterious about this collection and why is it luring me to buy it??

Great marketing scheme I think.

I also think the color choices are great. They are bright and vibrant and it captures the consumer's eye.

I absolutely LOVE it.

Here is a picture of what the new eyeshadows from this collection will look like:

Yay or Nay?