a brief history of fad products jeff ward, business department highline community college
Post on 21-Dec-2015
215 views
TRANSCRIPT
A Brief History of FAD Products
Jeff Ward, Business DepartmentHIGHLINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Fads of the 50s
Fads of the 70s
Streaking!
Fads of the 80s
Fads of the 90s
Fads of the 2000s
Origins of FAD
• Fiddle Faddle!– : nonsense —often used as an
interjection
• Shortened to FidFad.
• Then, just Fad.
What is a FAD?
• developments that enter quickly, are adopted with great zeal, peak early, and decline very fast. (Kotler, 1994)
• a temporary state of unusually high sales, driven by consumer enthusiasm and a desire to purchase a product or brand largely because of its immediate popularity. (Lilly, Nelson, 2003)
Product Life Cycle
Introduction Growth DeclineMaturity
Time
Sales $
History of the Pet Rock• Began selling in late spring of 1975
• River rock (Rosarita Beach in Baja, California)
• Pet Carrier
• Straw bedding
• Training Manual
• $3.95 selling price
• $ .95 cost
History of the Pet Rock
• Sold 5 million by mid-December, 1975
• $16 million profit
• In 1975 dollars =
• $56,000,000 today
Yo yo Product Life Cycle
1600s 1700s 1900s1800s
Time
Sales $
FAD
Product Variations
Product Add-Ons
Specialty Products
FAD Psychology?
• Apart from general novelty, fads may be driven by emotional excitement, peer pressure (bandwagon), or even a desire to be outside social norms (rebellion).
Beatnik
Hippie
Valley Girl
Preppie
poop
Goth
Utility• In economics, utility is a measure
of relative satisfaction.
• Utility may be affected by consumption of various goods and services and spending of leisure time.
FADs and Utility
• Most fads that take off, if not completely useless, have utility as a small part of their appeal.
• They are fun at first, a statement of something second, and useful third.
• A fad isn’t an innovation, and it usually doesn’t change throughout its short life.
The Popeil Veg-O-matic
= FAD
FAD FAIL!
Hello Kitty
What’s Next?What’s Next?
Jeff PezDispenser
The question was:
“Why are businesspeople (aka evil and unholy pillagers of the planet) allowed to waste natural resources, exploit workers, and pollute the planet in the production of useless and worthless objects that offer no benefit to society?”
Average Businessperson
It’s all about Utility
• Who gets to decide what has utility?– Books about becoming a Neo-Nazi– Teddy Bears– Books about raw food diets– Combs– Park benches made from recycled plastic
grocery bags– Plastic grocery bags
If I Meet Someone’s Need for Utility:
• I am creating jobs• The Standard of Living for many rises• I may be helping development in 3rd world
countries • (No! You’re making them slaves to
capitalism!)• I am paying more taxes to support the
community• I am helping pay for research into better
ways of utilizing resources• I am making little Charlie and Charisse happy
Jeff’s Eco-Pez*Dispenser* Made from recycled bicycle tires.