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The Inner Mind Of A Fashion Designer, Olivia Martinez

Honors Theses

The Inner Mind of the Fashion Designer

After speaking with Laurie from the University Honors Program, I have decided to provide an inside look, into the mind of a fashion designer. So many people have no real understanding of what my industry is about. They seem to think it is all fun and games, that it is easy and that I always have a bunch of free time. They are so incredibly wrong! I want this thesis to open eyes of the readers and provide a better understanding of the plethora of intensive and difficult steps taken to create the …

A Case Study Of Cal Poly Arts’ Outreach Practices To The Latinx Population, Joanne Nicole Lodato

Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Administration

Cal Poly Arts in San Luis Obispo, California is dedicated to being more inclusive of the Latinx population in their community. This study conducted a survey to examine the most effective way for Cal Poly Arts to be more inclusive to the Latinx community in San Luis Obispo County. Results indicated that for the Latinx population in San Luis Obispo county the Internet is the best way to advertise upcoming performances, dance companies are what they most often want to see, ticket prices tend to be a barrier for performance attendance, distance is a deterrent from attendance but not a …

Fresh Squeezed Fitness: A Case Study On The Marketing Of Orangetheory Fitness, Emma Schmidt

Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Administration

The fitness industry has grown immensely in the past decade as a form of health management. The industry has expanded to offer niche fitness facilities that cater to individuals’ specific needs and motivations. The purpose of this study was to examine the best marketing and branding practices utilized by Orangetheory Fitness. The research for this study was collected using a case study matrix, developed by the researcher, to evaluate Orangetheory Fitness’ marketing strategies. The study resulted in findings indicating the importance of technology advancement and brand differentiation pertaining to the success of Orangetheory Fitness. It is crucial for Orangetheory Fitness …

Risk And Return Comparisons Of Pre-Harvest Marketing Strategies, John Leander Turner V

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper analyzes risk and returns associated with pre-harvest corn grain marketing strategies for the state of Arkansas. Farming is characterized by a volatile environment. Numerous risks are taken by producers in order to provide commodities that are bought and sold by various parties in the supply chain. Price, yield, and production costs vary daily and can have large variation between years. Risk and Return Comparisons of Pre-harvest Marketing Strategies examines the effectiveness of using pre-harvest marketing strategies to enhance returns and to mitigate inherent price risk in the Memphis cash corn market. Thirteen strategies are compared to the October …

Understanding The Relationship Between Corporate Social Responsibility, Team Identification, And Behavioral Intention With The Mediating Effect Of Satisfaction In Korean Professional Baseball League, Jaeman Son

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to provide a better understanding of how sport fans’ perceptions of a sport team’s CSR activities influence the behavioral intention of sport consumers. More specifically, the aim of this study was to propose and test a theoretical model that explore the relationship among perceived CSR and team identification and satisfaction, along with the behavioral intention. This study was to investigate the mediating role of customer satisfaction in the relationship between perceived CSR and behavioral intention. Finally, the study attempts to examine whether the relationship between team identification and behavioral intention is mediated by customer …

Cultural Branding: An Examination Of Website Marketing Practices At Historically Black College And Universities And Non-Hbcu Black Serving Institutions, James Hudson

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a difference between the way that higher education marketing professionals at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and non-HBCU Black Serving Institutions (BSIs) use website marketing techniques for institutional branding. This examination was prompted by Gasman (2007) who suggested that the inability of some HBCUs to garner and/or maintain sufficient enrollment numbers stems from poor image management. Further, Gibbs (2015) suggested that a comparison between HBCU websites and Traditionally White Institution (TWI) websites might be beneficial. Thus, this study sought to answer the following research questions:

RQ1. Is there …

What Factors Influence Catholic Parents’ Choice Of School(S) For Their Child(Ren)?, Andrea R. Aiello

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

In 1965, the American Catholic school system had 5.66 million students, 13,296 schools and educated nearly 13% of all school-aged children. Fifty years later, Catholic school enrollments had fallen to approximately 1.93 million and a total of 6,250 schools, while more than 17% of the students enrolled in Catholic schools identified as non-Catholic. Although there appear to be several positive points of difference for selecting Catholic schools, nevertheless families are making other choices. In this exploratory study, I endeavored to understand the demographic characteristics, attitudes toward education as well as more general motivations of American Catholic parents, with a special …

Factors Influencing Esl Students' Selection Of Intensive English Programs In The Western United States, Katie Briana Blanco

Theses and Dissertations

Intensive English Programs (IEPs) play an important role in helping speakers of other languages gain necessary language, cultural, and educational skills to succeed in an English-speaking environment (Hamrick, 2012; Toner, 2017). Previous research has investigated factors that influenced student choice of IEPs located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. (Williams, 1994) and in California (Jones, 2013). This study identified factors that influenced ESL students who chose to further their English language education at IEPs located in the western United States. Particular influences that were probed included program, location, student services, and marketing factors. Moreover, this study examined the previously …

The Cinderella Experience Exploring The Psychological Consequences Of Temporary Aspirational Brand Access, Jennifer Lynn Stevens

Theses and Dissertations

Individuals are motivated to consume brands that allow them to express their self-concept and signal a unique identity to others. However, consumers may not always be able to purchase these brands. Aspirational brands are currently unaffordable “dream brands” that an individual desires to purchase at some point in the future after reaching a higher status or income level. Through aspirational access, an emerging form of access-based consumption, consumers can now temporarily experience their ideal lifestyle for a membership fee. Researchers have begun to explore access-based consumption as an alternative to traditional ownership since consumers are increasingly choosing to access products …

A Cross-Cultural Investigation Of The Relationship Between Customer Demographics And Hotel Room Price Perception, Jinhua Hong

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In this paper, the researcher explored the significant effect of multiple demographics, age, gender, marital status, and culture, on a customer’s perception of hotel room prices. The customer’s perception of hotel room rates was assessed by three variations, perceived value, perceived fairness, and willingness to pay. Descriptive statistics, MANOVA, and ANOVA were applied in this study. The results demonstrated that age, gender, and marital status had a significant impact on a customer’s perceived value; age, gender, and culture significantly influenced a customer’s perception of fairness; yet, none of these demographics had a significant impact on a customer’s willingness to pay. …

Regulating Relationship Needs Via Joint Consumption: An Attachment Perspective, Jana M. Rosewarne

Doctoral Dissertations

Attachment style functions to regulate affect in relationships. I hypothesized that consumer decisions serve a similar purpose, producing distinct patterns of product preferences depending on people’s attachment goals. In a series of studies, I found that attachment avoidance predicted reduced preference for products framed as meeting closeness relationship goals and greater preference for products framed as meeting autonomy goals. The link between attachment anxiety and product preference depended on consumers’ emotions (S2) and relationship commitment (S3). Attachment style also predicted differences in the extent to which consumers thought about their partners when choosing products and their perceptions of how consumption …

Marketing Plan For Create: Art Studio And Workshop, Rachel Marter

Honors Projects

CREATE: Art Studio and Workshop is a privately-owned art studio that hosts classes, workshops, and camps for both children and adults of varying skill levels. They offer topics such as painting, drawing, hand lettering, and other mixed media options. Although they teach courses for all age groups, their primary focus is the children’s classes. CREATE is owned by two Perrysburg moms: Deborah Lambdin and Kerry Wellstein. They founded the studio in 2014 and are currently in their fifth year of business. They thrive on the idea that art is not solely about the finished product, but rather the process, and …

Like And Shout: Brand Loyalty, Framing, And Fan Interactions On The Byu Football Facebook Page, Zachary Anderson Miller

Theses and Dissertations

This research is intended to provide the stewards of social media for Brigham Young University's football program with information that will allow them to make better decisions on what kind of content will maximize engagement and enhance brand loyalty among fans and consumers on Facebook. Using several variables, including the type or theme of content, post frequency, and sponsorship, content was compared against that from the University of Oregon's football program for the 2017 season. The results, found using quantitative data analysis, reveal that some variables have a significant impact on the quantity of engagement from viewers for both programs …

Changing Consumer Behavior Towards Mindful Consumption Through Social Proof To Decrease Environmental Harm, Vineta I. Gleba

University Honors Theses

This thesis describes overconsumption as a cause of climate change and environmental problems. It expands on the idea and definition of mindful consumption to include nine different consumer behaviors people can adopt to decrease their carbon footprint and harmful impacts on the environment. Research shows there is a value-action gap between what consumers value and their purchasing patterns. Therefore, this thesis demonstrates how to use the marketing tactic of social proof to change consumer behavior towards mindful consumption and close the value-action gap. Following suggested approaches of organizations applying social proof messaging to the nine mindful consumption practices, two case …

Corporate Sponsorship And University Campuses: Determining The Effectiveness Of University Sponsorship Efforts At Pittsburg State University, Michaela J. Joines

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

A multi-phase study was completed to determine the effectiveness of corporate sponsorship efforts at Pittsburg State University. Pittsburg State engages in corporate sponsorship to partner with local and national companies, seeking to benefit both the university and its partners. The study sought to find factors that improve the effectiveness of such sponsorship efforts as determined by stakeholders’ ability to recall sponsors, differences in attitudes toward national and local sponsors, and how brand attachment to the university or sponsoring brands effects perception of the sponsorship alliances. Phase One included interviews with stakeholder groups (students, faculty/staff, alumni, and community members) and functioned …

College Students’ Use Of Digital And Traditional Media: Uses And Gratifications Approach, Kelly M. Bodine

Theses

In the higher education field marketers need to better understand how to keep abreast with the trends of their current and future audiences. With ever-evolving technologies, students’ have multiple methods in which to acquire campus related information. The aims of this study were to discover what communication methodologies students employ when learning about campus information and what methodologies they employ when actively searching. Based on a uses and gratifications framework, this study involved conducting an online survey to compare college students’ use and level of influence from traditional or digital media marketing. The findings of this study show that both …

Studying Abroad: A Travel Campaign, Flora Lindsay

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This project displays the steps taken in order to create a successful marketing campaign for the Center for Global Engagement at James Madison University. It explores the history of studying abroad, its perceived benefits, concerns, and existing marketing strategies. The client is studied in depth in order to create a SWOT analysis of its current state. From this research a creative strategy statement is created to better understand the target audience, competition and strategies for the campaign. The campaign idea then comes to life in the deliverables to be used by the client for marketing efforts.

Can You Hear Me Now? The Moderating Effects Of Procedural Justice Within Consumer-Brand Relationships, Alexander Blandina

Doctoral Dissertations

Consumer-brand relationships have led consumers to expect fair outcomes (i.e., distributive justice) consistent with their relationship norms with a brand. Deviation from these norms produced intuitive consequences such as a reduction of consumer loyalty and trust towards the brand. Yet, 65-85% of consumers still counterintuitively defect to a brand’s competitor. According to consumers, aspects of procedural justice qualitatively appeared to be major components that affected their attitudes towards brands. However, the effect of this construct within relationship norms has been underexamined, producing an empirical gap. The purpose of this dissertation was to bridge this gap by identifying the effect procedural …

A Guide For Hiring Mature Employees At Ascentria, Binghe Change, Calleigh Leach, Elsie Lu, Hongquiang You, Mengge Wang, Nina Mariotti

School of Professional Studies

This paper will explore existing literature on aspects of an intergenerational workplace in a nonprofit organization and provide recommendations for recruiting and retaining older employees for a human service organization, Ascentria Care Alliance, in Worcester, MA. The paper will review research on trends in the nonprofit industry, a comprehensive breakdown of generational workplace values, reasons people are returning to work and effective marketing strategies that appeal to older generations. Marketing strategies specifically will explore best practices for website design, social media usage, and job descriptions. Additionally, this paper will research case studies of nonprofits with successful intergenerational workforce initiatives, as …

Adult Learners: A Targeted Marketing Approach, Sarah Baldelli, Camilo Botero, Camille Ferreol, Caleb Horton, Xinyue Ma, Stefan Sprinkmoller

School of Professional Studies

The development of the Adult Learner Capstone Project started with a focus and need to learn more about affinity groups in the Worcester area in order to reach the potential adult learner demographic. Although some partnerships already existed, the Director of Marketing and Communications for Graduate Admissions, Tara Probeck, yearned to explore the potential partnerships and alternative uses of professional organizations to market to the current working professionals. From this idea, our capstone project was introduced in hopes of establishing a comprehensive and exhaustive list of potential organizational partnerships, specific for the School of Professional Studies.

Inbound Marketing, Hasini Assiriyage, Isabelle Zoeckler, Emmanuel Aghado, Kefu Bu, Xiouyu Jiang, Rajesh Kamble, Yan Wang

School of Professional Studies

This study looks into inbound marketing practice through the process of secondary research. This insight on best practices and market examples have been employed in order to identify the benefits of Inbound Marketing for the School of Professional Studies at Clark University. Through the research, this team has consolidated a number of recommendations for the SPS marketing strategies moving forward. A focus has been placed on identifying solutions, which were effective and financially feasible. The primary solutions are internally sourced; with a future long term recommendation of seeking advice from a third party firm to automate the process.

Managing Media For The Genius Of Warren Buffett, Sydney Edens

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

The main purpose of this project was to provide public relations and marketing services to the Genius of Warren Buffett course and related events. I served as the Account Executive for the Genius of Warren Buffett account in the Spring semester of 2018 for MaverickPR, UNO’s student-run public relations firm. Main tactics included media relations and social media research and strategy. Thesis materials include the PR and marketing plan, news releases, social media content calendars, graphic design materials, documentation of client communication, copy writing and editing, news coverage of stories pitched to the media and administrative documents. I assess the …

Is Marketing Messing With Your Clients’ Heads? Brands, Identity, And Clinical Practice, Paul Schuster

Master of Social Work Clinical Research Papers

This narrative review of the literature explores current understanding of whether and how consumer brands affect clients’ constructs of self and therefore clinical mental health practice. The relevance of this question stems from the growing body of academic business and marketing literature dedicated to engineering brands into consumers’ constructs of self, and from the marketing infrastructure dedicated to engineering brands suitable for self-construction. From a social constructionist perspective, the question is additionally relevant considering how environmental factors related to constructing the self ultimately affect mental health. Systematic searches of four databases fail to find any articles addressing potential practice implications …

“Why The Anomaly That Is Super Bowl Marketing Is A Justifiable Investment”, Anthony Cole Brothers

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

By now, we have well established that the Super Bowl is the holy grail of marketing, the championship for the battle of the brands, and the ultimate showcase of creative prowess which determines bragging rights. This American phenomenon is the exception, because it’s the one time on the calendar where viewers are mesmerized by commercials instead of tuning them out as noise. There are critical strategic objectives which can be satisfied, revolutionizing the brand in the eyes of the consumer and drastically expanding brand awareness. We know the vast benefits that well-executed marketing schemes can have for companies, especially during …

Development And Marketing Of A Repurposed Textile Product For Homeless Individuals In Northwest Arkansas, Mckenna Whitaker, Beau Broyles, Lindsey Stone

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

Growing concerns over waste disposal methods have led to a greater focus on recycling efforts in the textile industry. Second only to the oil industry, the textile industry continues to be one of the most wasteful among leading businesses around the world and determining ways to repurpose fashion materials could be a reasonable solution to this growing problem (Dobilaite, V., Mileriene, G., Juciene, M., & Sacevičienė, 2017). In addition to alleviating disposal issues, repurposed materials could serve the humanitarian needs of local communities, and even more importantly, could specifically benefit homeless populations. The purpose of this project was to design, …

#Readyforrio: How A Revised Rule 40 Impacted Sponsorship At The 2016 Summer Olympics, Anthony Carson

Senior Theses

When planning and executing the Olympic Games, a premier event in modern sport, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) relies heavily on sponsorship revenue from their official sponsors. “Worldwide Olympic Partners,” the top 11 sponsors of the 2016 Olympics, had exclusive rights during the Olympic cycle from 2013-2016.

With the purchase of these expensive sponsorship deals, brands are looking to capitalize on the “glow” of the Olympics, and use excusive Olympic intellectual property to make ties from their brand to the Games. In order to make these sponsorship deals more valuable, the IOC has historically provided official partners with added exclusivity …

Imaginary; A Continuation Of Nihility To Vitality, Corinne M. Gahan

Honors Capstones

The focus of this Capstone is to provide an opportunity to do independent theatrical work so one can have a clear understanding of what it takes to put on a production independently. To have a full understanding on what it’s like to play every role necessary to put up a production. This Capstone is an inside look of my experience as the producer, stage manager, playwright, director, designer, stage hand, and liaison between faculty and students within the production. This Capstone follows the development of a theatrical art piece titled Imaginary performed for and by NIU students. The development will …

Strategic Analysis Of Lifeloop, Llc: Current Positioning And Recommendations For Future Growth, Erin Dabbs

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

LifeLoop is a senior living software company that has the potential to gain market share in a new and growing industry. By making changes to current processes, business level strategy, and corporate level strategy, the company can grow organically, faster. LifeLoop must make these strategic changes to areas of marketing and sales processes now as the industry is changing life cycle stages; the company’s movement in this window of opportunity is critical to their future success. These findings outline where LifeLoop is currently positioned and the first steps needed to grow and develop into a reputation of excellence that will …

Music & Media: A Senior Recital & Honors Project, Kayla Luteran

Honors Projects

Music & Media: A Senior Recital & Honors Project is a cross-media marketing strategy. The main purpose of this project was to develop visually appealing, informative graphic elements and branding to effectively promote a musical performance. This is interdisciplinary in nature and includes written and oral communication.

While many music students post about their senior recital on social media or place flyers, they do not develop a thorough methodology for generating buzz about their event. Although musical preparation is of utmost importance for a performance, I believe that time should be spent on all aspects of planning the recital. With …

An Analysis Of The Impact Of Social Media Marketing On Individuals’ Attitudes And Perceptions At Nova Community College, Nya Gibson

OTS Master's Level Projects & Papers

Social media has become prominent in the 21st century. Companies are persistently looking for ways to utilize this new platform within their marketing strategies to increase business growth. Since social media is a networking and communication platform, it is important for companies to create a voice to humanize the business and maintain foot traffic. Although there are studies on how to use social media marketing within a business, there is minimal corroboration available of how social media marketing activities influence a consumer’s buying behavior. This study investigated the effects of social media on consumer attitudes of social media marketing and …