Mathilde's Final Blog

Harper’s Bazaar:

Even if I’m not a fashionista per se, I was excited to visit such a prestigious fashion magazine. First of all, the building is simply amazing; it’s bright and has unique architecture. I’m sure that the beauty of the place is a motivating element by itself.

I found Carole and Lindsay very nice, passionate and receptive to us. I enjoyed all the strategic aspects of Carole’s job and her will to constantly reinvent the magazine through different vehicles such as the store, the events, the blog, etc.

I especially liked her explanation about the nature of the Bazaar store and the fact that it is clear that the purpose of it, surprisingly, is not primarily to sell products but to be more of a branding platform.

I liked Carole’s honestly about the magazine industry and its ups and downs. I always hear particularly alarmist comments on how the press magazine industry is dying. However, it was really powerful to listen to the explanation coming from someone that has so many different experiences with numerous magazines. 

I enjoyed the way she was talking about her magazine and explaining that Bazaar wasn’t a brand compared to Elle, for example. She knows the market so well and it seems that she always knew what to do and where to go for each specific magazine at which she’s worked during her career; for example, developing an Elle product line but not doing the same for Bazaar.

Even if Carole specified that we don’t have to be a passionate about fashion to work on the sales side of the magazine, I still feel that you need to at least be really interested in the fashion world, about what is trendy, new and “en vogue”.

I really liked the strategic aspect of her job but not the products to which it’s applied. Consequently, I don’t really think about applying for an internship here.

The Evolving Industry Class

In my opinion, the Evolving Industry Class is the best one to get us ready for the working world. Being available to physically meet professionals, to hear about their vision of the industry and their work, and to understand what make their company unique and potentially appealing to us as graduate students is really powerful.

Interacting with real communication professionals also helped me to easily visualize myself among them.  Even if I found some visits more suitable for me than some other, I always, at some points during the visit, connected with the host’s speech, whether about the working culture, their vision about the industry, their mission towards their clients or their way to build strategies.

I also liked the oral format of the class, even if I’m not the most comfortable person when it comes to engaging in a class discussion. I feel that throughout the semester, this constraint became an opportunity for me, and step-by-step I gained comfort and enjoyed sharing my thoughts with the class.  I also enjoyed hearing different point of views about the lectures and felt it helped me open my mind and think deeper and more critically.

I particularly enjoyed the TTIY presentations. I realized that it taught me a lot about the strategy and the actions of 14 different brands. I thought about applying for an internship after listening to some presentations as the brand, its positioning and type of actions reasoned with me. I think it was a great way to learn deeply and in a very efficient way. 

Wei Yun Lim Final Blog

I was surprised that magazine publishing is not considered to be "dead", especially when it comes to physical rather than online publishing. A large part of why I was considering working with e-books and e-publishing rather than with physical books was because I consider physical books to be an industry without the potential for much growth: the reason I chose Amazon for my TTIY project is precisely that, as I do intend to look into e-publishing. However, while I am not interested in magazine publishing, the visit to Harper's Bazaar definitely gave me a lot more insight into publishing.

I was very interested by the magazine world, however, though I am not exactly keen on working in it. I really enjoyed the idea that the magazine itself serves as some form of advertising, and the idea of connecting the magazine to Harper's online store was absolutely genius. It's like the magazine is half magazine, half catalog now, which I think is pretty cool and definitely a clever marketing tactic. I especially enjoyed the free food informativeness of the visit. Everyone seemed to live, eat, and breathe fashion, which gave me the idea that they were all very excited about what they do. It must be nice to love your job so much.

One thing that made me wonder was how this might translate into the industry of book publishing, and how there might be some way to save it. It's something I might have to consider during my future career.

Reflections

It's been such a fast semester. This was definitely one of the best classes. While I had quite a narrow focus in regards to what I wanted to do at the start of the year, I now have a much more open mind and a lot more potential ideals. So far, I think Cohn and Wolfe would be the company I'd choose to work for out of all the ones that I saw, and I'm actually brainstorming about the online showcase as I write this. It'll be difficult, but it'll definitely be fun! I'm really sad that Steve is leaving, though-- I wish he could stay to help with the internship, but all good things come to an end.

Catherine's final post

Although I am happy that the holidays are here, I am really sad to say goodbye to this class. I loved all the visits and look forward to them so much. There seems to be so much more to see and learn, I feel like I've only seen the tip of the iceberg. I am a little more confused about what I want to do after this course because the Communications industry seems so interconnected. The roles are not extremely diverse and there are merits to every sector within the industry. I did learn that the job role depends mostly on the company and that the most important thing is the company culture and the way it functions. That inspires me to do more research on each company that I apply for rather than just applying superficially for the brand name.

Other than the visits, I really enjoy the class discussions because of the way my thoughts are challenged. The case studies are extremely interesting and provides many learning points. Speaking of case studies, I really enjoyed the last class on the Dove Case Study. I felt so strongly about the issues discussed. At the same time, I also feel a bit helpless and hypocritical for buying into this madness. The female self esteem issue is a big problem in our society and even though Dove has self-benefiting reasons for coming up with the pro-real beauty ads, I do support it and hope that the rest of the industry can follow suit. Change probably won't come any time soon but a girl can dream! 

Harper's Bazaar

When I was younger, I really wanted to work for a beauty magazine. That changed as the digital scene grew and I saw little potential in that business. I am very surprised by Harper's Bazaar's statistics and claim that the magazine business isn't dead. It is simply shifting its business and focus. I loved the new shop concept and and all its potential. Although that may not make me want to be in the magazine business again, it was definitely an eye opener. 

I always loved the women's beauty magazine Allure. I am more into beauty and skincare than I am into fashion. I used to buy it a lot more in the past but now that I find good research and reviews online, I rarely buy the magazine. The issues that I do get are annual ones that showcase the Allure Best Of Beauty buys etc. I love the expert (editors and dermatologists) reviews of products and ranking of what they deem best. The list is seems more extensive than what I can find online and saves me the trouble of searching for them myself. The magazine also publishes the research and data that back what they say. I think Allure can afford to partner up with beauty bloggers and youtube gurus that are taking the beauty industry by storm. They can promote the magazine or products they feature. Allure could also partner up with shops like Sephora and have a section dedicated to Allure curated products.

Tanya Dentham: Final Blog

Current Events:

It's no longer enough to have smartphones, smartwatches, smart TVs and smart cars. Now a tech company is bringing artificial intelligence to lingerie. Researchers at Microsoft have developed a prototype of a "smart bra" embedded with physiological sensors that seek to monitor a woman's heart activity to track her emotional moods and combat overeating. Signals can be sent to the wearer’s smartphone to warn her about making better diet decisions.

The high-tech bra, developed by Mary Czerwinski at Microsoft Research in Redmond, is essentially a wearable stress sensor. The bra has two sensors — an EDA sensor and EKG — for detecting when the wearer is stressed out. It tells the wearer that they are stressed out, which is usually enough for them to break the habit of emotional eating. The whole thing is powered by a small 3.7-volt battery, which is only good enough for a few hours of sensing — something that will need to be improved if Microsoft plans to commercialize the smart bra.

Recent research suggests that, if you only stress eat on occasion, and your normal diet is healthy, there’s no real risk — plus, more importantly, the stress eating will make you feel better, which is really the whole point of it in the first place.

Will this work? What about the concept for male consumers? I think it is questionable whether this will really work – people are already taking their own steps to a healthier lifestyle and have other resources to help them with that.

Talk about cutting edge technology!

Harper’s Bazaar:

Harper’s Bazaar was definitely what I had expected to be as a fashion publishing company. I have to admit, I had a vision of the company to be something like the setting from the Devil Wears Prada movie. Everything about the company was so stylish and chic – a reflection of the magazine’s brand personality. I can definitely see the influence of fashion in the line of work and amongst the staff. Everyone was dressed so nicely and “in trend” – something that comes with the industry, I suppose. In my opinion, the people who worked at magazine publishing companies are also “living and breathing” the brand as a whole. You would really have to be passionate about the magazine and this was demonstrated by both of the presenters, Carol Smith and Lindsay Officer.

Having had no experience or knowledge in magazine publishing, I thought this visit taught me a lot. I was intrigued by Carol’s presentation and was amazed by how much she has done for Harper’s Bazaar. I definitely thought that she is a woman of so much confidence and her abilities had done wonders for the magazine, thus far. We all have heard people say “magazines/print media is dead” – I feel like I was one of those people who believed that print was slowly dying, especially because we are bombarded by other media channels – online and digital. However, it is apparent that print media is in fact, not dead. Carol talked about the different things that publishing companies are doing in order to remain solid in the market scene. Harper’s Bazaar was not only a magazine publishing house, but it also expanded into retail. Shop Bazaar allowed the company to establish a presence in the online channels in order to compete with other online content available for the consumers. I thought it was a smart strategy for the magazine to be a reflection and a representation of the products sold in the store. It definitely helps drive traffic onto their website and ultimately boosting sales for the brands.

I think the challenges that publishing companies face is the ability to compete with other media channels and also amongst themselves. Although I am not a current subscriber of any magazine, I tend to reach out for ones that stand out from the clutter, particularly those that pertain to my interests in lifestyle, trends and fashion. I like to think that the content of the magazine is very important since it allows readers to keep up with the current events and styles. I believe that Harper’s Bazaar is going in the right direction and that they will continue to prosper in the market place. I think that they have the advantage over other magazines since they were the first to implement their strategy.

Since my main interest is not in publishing, I did not feel like Harper’s Bazaar is for me. While it proved to have opportunities in the market as they are tapping into new media channels, I still would like to keep my focus on branding and strategy for consumer products or other related fields.

Final Reflections:

It is hard to believe that the semester is over. It always felt like time was passing by very quickly but I think it became so real as we were approaching the final days of our classes. The Evolving Industry was both enjoyable and insightful for me. I enjoyed every single class and company visit because it allowed me to see the communications industry from different viewpoints – seeing the similarities and differences that these companies have with each other. I definitely thought that it was useful to see the things from both the corporate and agency side because they have different approaches to thrive and survive in the industry. These companies need to continuously innovate, create new strategies, keeping up with current trends of the industry as well as serving the diverse roster of clients. I definitely value the experience as it widened my horizons on what I wish to do for my internship and also after graduation. Although I may have felt like a lot of the companies were not a fit for me, it helped gear my interests in the right direction. I can say that the learning from all the visits definitely equipped me with necessary tools to better prepare me for the “real world” in terms of what to expect and how to manage myself in those types of working environments.

Thank you Professor Jarmon and everyone for a great semester. Happy Holidays!

Monica Nguyen- Final Post

Harpers Bazaar

I really enjoyed our visit to Hearst and Harpers Bazaar. I was excited to learn more about the Publishing Industry and how they are adapting and continue to prosper when everyone thinks print is dying out. Right when I saw Carol appear, I thought of Anna Wintour or Miranda Priestly.  She is very knowledgeable about the field and it was amazing to hear her experience and get a sneak peak into her creative mind.

It was smart and creative of her to create a store for Harper’s Bazaar that is a part of the magazine and helps readers keep up with their favorite trends and also a way for them to purchase them online. I also think it was a great idea for them to go to Coachella where you don’t think a high-end fashion magazine would have a booth at. There are many celebrities and lots of fashion bloggers at these events so it isn’t surprising that they would want to be a part of that.

I subscribe to many fashion and lifestyle magazines: Glamour, Vogue, Cosmo, Elle, and Instyle. I love having the hard copy of magazines and flipping through them. When I was cleaning out my apartment in LA, I had 5 full boxes of magazines that I donated!  I love the feeling of having the actual magazine in my hand.  I thought it was interesting how there are two copies of the same magazine with a different cover. I definitely saw that the subscription version of the Harpers Bazaar one was a lot more chic than the newsstand version, which just screams, “Buy me!”

Harpers Bazaar was one of my favorite visits but I wish we could have gotten a tour of the building because it was beautiful!

Course Reflection

I can’t believe that the semester is officially over! I really enjoyed this class—it was so eye-opening and I learned more about myself and my interests than I initially thought. There were many areas that I thought I would never think about working in and now my mind is more confused—but in the best way possible. It was great to get an inside view of all these diverse companies and to get a taste of what it would be like working there.

Also, a random side note: every time I see my Hulu advertising playing before my video and I want to mute it, I think about this class and how I should be more receptive to these ads!

I am sad that Steve is leaving but I appreciate everything you’ve taught us!

Titi Ogunbayo- Finale

When something looks glossy and fun it is sometimes hard to imagine the hard work that goes into producing and sustaining such things. The visit to Hearst really opened up my eyes to the challenges and opportunities the Magazine Industry face. When I flipped through magazines back in the day, all I saw was the editorial effort but hearing Carol Smith talk about the business side was a highlight for me. Her vision and drive have made Harper's Bazaar what it is today and it is rather inspiring to see a woman take hold of something and leave her legacy all over it.

 

I was surprised to hear that the demise of magazines all depends on the type of magazine, the audience and the alternatives/competitors. To hear the media talk about magazines, one would think the whole industry was being read its final rights.

I wasn't too surprised to hear about magazines becoming brands in order to survive, particularly in the fashion industry where the likes of Vogue are worshipped by every "fashionista" out there. People don't just buy any fashion magazine, they buy the status or the recognition that comes with being seen holding a copy of Vogue, Elle or Harper's Bazaar.

 

But to hear about Harper's branching out and differentiating itself from other magazine brands by integrating its magazine with a Harper's website was wonderful. And I was also shocked to hear that brands that appear on the Harper's website are enjoying a "branding opportunity" and not necessarily a "selling opportunity." I also love that the magazine pushes boundaries by going to places where high-end fashion magazines never venture- Coachella-who would have thought? This actually makes me want to go to a music festival in the summer.

 

However, the most eye-opening thing I learnt was that the Publishing Industry single handedly killed their subscription stream. With all their tactics to attract subscribers in order to charge advertisers more, they ended up sabotaging themselves.

I no longer read magazines but it think becoming mobile and interactive, not just online but in places where readers wouldn't expect certain magazine brands to be is the way to enhance the prominence of any magazine.

 

The semester is over and even though I am sad that Steve is leaving, I am very grateful to have been taught by him- ugh, this is so hard!

But the Evolving Industries class has taught me not to underestimate any facet of the Communications industry. There were certain companies I was sure I wouldn't be caught dead working in and now, my thinking has changed. I have also learnt to challenge myself; things may not come easy at first but its okay to try and stumble, as long as I learn along the way.

Another amazing this is I am no longer a hypocrite, advertising, both online and offline, no longer annoy me. I now watch ads with the patience of a saint and I think its because I now appreciate the amount of work people actually put into making those ads and it's ok to give them a 15-30 second chance to appeal to my wallet.

Thanks, Steve!

Rachel Palekar - Final Blog

This visit was a bit different than I imagined it to be. I went into the visit without an interest in working in the fashion/publishing industry. While I still do not want to work in that area, I found the visit to be very interesting and enjoyed listening to Carol Smith speak. I thought it was neat how she and her team turned Harper's Bazaar into a brand in order to help it prosper. I feel like most things today need to have an essence, or to be more than what they actually are, to be successful. Harper's Bazaar does this well by creating a aspirational lifestyle brand that makes its readers yearn for what the magazine is selling. I think that creating a store for Harper's Bazaar, that is integrated with the magazine and the website, was a very creative idea. Not only can readers get thrills from reading about trends and fashion in the magazine, but they can also go to the store and get inspired by all the expensive bits and bobs, or visit the website to get even more hot stories, fashion and lifestyle advice.

While I do not currently subscribe to any magazines, I feel that it would be smart for magazines to utilize supplemental platforms, especially digital ones, to capture its audience. The iPad has a virtual newsstand in which one can buy a magazine and have it quickly download to their device. This rids of the wait time and suspense having to do with monthly subscriptions and deliveries. Another idea that Carol mentioned that I thought was great was the pop-up stand at Coachella music festival. I went to a music festival this summer and feel that it is a fantastic way to reach many people all at once and provide them something different and unexpected. Teen Vogue was at the Firefly music festival that I attended and was taking photos of people's outfits and posting the top, trendy outfits on their website and magazine. I was photographed and though I do not normally buy their magazine, I made sure to purchase that edition because I wanted to see if I made it into the magazine! These sorts of events help build engagement with current and new readers and provide many opportunities for the future of magazines. 

Time Flies

I can not believe that the course is already over! I learned so much about myself and about my interests from visiting the companies. I think that seeing companies in real life makes the learnings more tangible and applicable to "real life" situations. It was also a fantastic method to start building contacts, as well as opening our minds to the plethora of opportunities and paths that are out there. This was a great way to lay out the fundamentals of many different sectors of the communications industry, and the classes made it a bit clearer how all the industries work together to create a final product. 

Thanks for a wonderful semester!