Introduction:
This case study will analyze the promotional culture behind Converse shoes. The provided research will detail how a simple rubber soled shoe has been able to stay not only relevant, but heavily popular since 1917. This will be achieved through the close examination of the company 's background, and evaluation of promotions and consumer reactions. Where the company are situated in regards to the ‘spectacle’ will also be addressed.
Background:
“Converse is to footwear, as Coca Cola is to soft drinks” - Richard Copcutt, VP/GM of Chuck Taylor All Stars
Converse are a pervasive footwear icon of Western pop culture. The company was founded in 1908 by Marquis Mills Converse, initially intended to sell sports shoes with rubber soles. …show more content…
But, they cannot rely on just peer to peer marketing. This is why their promotional culture is important. An example of this is product placement. Converse shoes can be seen in a plethora of contemporary films such as Harry Potter, Mean Girls, and more recently Bad Moms and The Shallows. Product placement is a key to Converse’s growing success. When audiences see a product in a certain circumstance i.e on a young beautiful surfer in The Shallows or a MILF in Bad Moms, the targeted demographic audiences relate to the characters. They see something that is tangible from the film that they can then buy and incorporate into their own lives. (Lin., & Chen, …show more content…
The company consistently tell their customers what to do i.e the “shoes are boring, wear sneakers campaign”, but their customers love that and respond positively. Whilst Converse consistently encourage customers to break the status quo and rebel (which could be viewed as fighting the spectacle), they also use the spectacle to pacify their customers on other issues. The idea of one 's identity is manufactured and sold to their consumers. They sell the idea of be who you are and wear Converse shoes whilst you do it. When one doesn’t need to own Converse to be an individual. There’s no rule breaking associated with wearing Converse only the promotions associated with the brand.
The brand 's success is evidently consumer driven this is not because of the shoe itself but because of the importance Converse place on their consumers ("Forbes Welcome", 2016). It’s estimated that 800 million pairs of Converse shoes have been sold (Encyclopedia.com) . It’s also estimated that 60% of the Western population have either owned a pair of Converse in their lifetime or, still currently do
This case study will analyze the promotional culture behind Converse shoes. The provided research will detail how a simple rubber soled shoe has been able to stay not only relevant, but heavily popular since 1917. This will be achieved through the close examination of the company 's background, and evaluation of promotions and consumer reactions. Where the company are situated in regards to the ‘spectacle’ will also be addressed.
Background:
“Converse is to footwear, as Coca Cola is to soft drinks” - Richard Copcutt, VP/GM of Chuck Taylor All Stars
Converse are a pervasive footwear icon of Western pop culture. The company was founded in 1908 by Marquis Mills Converse, initially intended to sell sports shoes with rubber soles. …show more content…
But, they cannot rely on just peer to peer marketing. This is why their promotional culture is important. An example of this is product placement. Converse shoes can be seen in a plethora of contemporary films such as Harry Potter, Mean Girls, and more recently Bad Moms and The Shallows. Product placement is a key to Converse’s growing success. When audiences see a product in a certain circumstance i.e on a young beautiful surfer in The Shallows or a MILF in Bad Moms, the targeted demographic audiences relate to the characters. They see something that is tangible from the film that they can then buy and incorporate into their own lives. (Lin., & Chen, …show more content…
The company consistently tell their customers what to do i.e the “shoes are boring, wear sneakers campaign”, but their customers love that and respond positively. Whilst Converse consistently encourage customers to break the status quo and rebel (which could be viewed as fighting the spectacle), they also use the spectacle to pacify their customers on other issues. The idea of one 's identity is manufactured and sold to their consumers. They sell the idea of be who you are and wear Converse shoes whilst you do it. When one doesn’t need to own Converse to be an individual. There’s no rule breaking associated with wearing Converse only the promotions associated with the brand.
The brand 's success is evidently consumer driven this is not because of the shoe itself but because of the importance Converse place on their consumers ("Forbes Welcome", 2016). It’s estimated that 800 million pairs of Converse shoes have been sold (Encyclopedia.com) . It’s also estimated that 60% of the Western population have either owned a pair of Converse in their lifetime or, still currently do