What makes a good Tutorial Video

With the current assignment in English 320, I though discussing tutorial videos would be quite fitting. While working on the assignment myself, I began to think of what qualities I enjoy in tutorial videos. Guilty of watching many make up tutorials, piano tutorials, and baking tutorials, I've seen the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The first thing that I find important in making a video tutorial is a good intro. If the intro of the video seems boring then I most likely won't bother to watch the rest of it. However, if the intro grabs my attention with some features, music, etc. I am eager to see what's next. The intro of the video really sets the tone of what is to come.
The next thing I think is important is that the tutorial is made very simple. Don't assume a knowledgable audience. Most likely, your audience will be someone who knows little to nothing about the topic being explained. Even if your audience happens to have a basic knowledge of the content, being thorough never hurts.
Another thing I like in a tutorial is when the maker/speaker is slow and descriptive. There is nothing that makes me more upset than when the tutorial speaker goes way too fast. If the tutorial is music related tutorial it will more than likely require you to play back what you just learned. When the tutorial goes through everything quickly, it makes it more difficult to keep up.
Keeping the tutorial under 10 minutes is another feature that I think is important. If I click on a tutorial video on Youtube and I see that its over 10 minutes I try and look for another one. Granted some topics take a little more elaboration than others, keeping it under 10 minutes will ensure your audience stays tuned.
Overall just remember K.I.S.S. Keep it simple stupid. Make it short but sweet. Make sure your video is easy to understand for less knowledgable audiences. Lastly, make it interesting, no one wants to be overloaded with information.

Dressing for a job interview

The Dos and Don'ts of dressing for a job interview:

As students approaching graduation quickly, we are more than likely about to/already have faced the world of job interviews. If you have already made it thus far, congratulations, this means you have already impressed the employer on paper and now have the opportunity to impress s/he in person. Aside from coming prepared and on-time, dressing professionally can make or break a potential job. Here are some tips for preparing your attire for the big interview.

Do

• a little research on how the people in similar positions of the same company dress.
• over-dress.
• wear neutral colors.
• wear dresses, skirts, and nice dress pants. (girls)
• wear nice pants, perhaps a sport coat or blazer, and polished shoes. (boys)
• wear small amounts of jewelry if desired.

Don't

• wear skirts or dresses above the knee. (girls)
• wear tops that are low cut and show cleavage. (girls)
• wear casual khaki pants.
• casual shoes.
• wrinkled shirts.
• too much makeup. (girls)
• wear bright flashy colors.
• too tight or too small of clothing.

Works cited:

Don't Be This Guy. Digital image. Giorgentinewyork.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.

Made in The USA

American Apparel,  on of the few clothing manufacturers stationed here in the United States filed for bankruptcy on Monday. Although the bankruptcy will clear most of the companies debt, they also reconsidered if they should continue manufacturing in the U.S. As American's, most of us like to say that we are more likely to buy American made things than overseas but most of the time that is not the case. Price and quantity is usually what appeals to us; if a garment is cheap we like it. 

If American Apparel were to re-station overseas, they would lose their reputation of "Made in the USA". However, American Apparel would cut costs dramatically by doing this. Sadly, the cost to employ people in the United States is at least double of what it costs to employ people over in China, Bangladesh, India, etc. American Apparel can only hope that they would not lost their loyal "USA made clothing customers" by expanding overseas.


Most apparel companies actually are stationed overseas making American Apparel a minority. Economically, it is way more efficient for companies to operate in countries where the cost of materials and labor is cheap. If an American company produces a shirt for $10 including labor, a manufacturer in China can product that same shirt for 4$ and thats including labor as well. If the American company wanted to have competitive prices they might charge $20 for that shirt while doubling their money. China could charge the same price of $20 while quadrupling their money. Because this happens to be the reality of the situation, less companies are able to generate a revenue being stationed in the United States.


Works Cited:
Li, Shan. "American Apparel Hangs on to Its Made-in-America Model — by a Thread." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 07 Oct. 2015. Web. 07 Oct. 2015.

Twitter may need change to survive.

Sorry Tweeters, you're not quite enough.

Jack Dorsey, the co-founder of the infamous social media hotspot Twitter has made it apparent that there is still a lot left to do in order for Twitter to ensure Twitter's survival. With 300 million users, Twitter still needs more. In order for Twitter to continue to generate revenue it must add to it's 300 million users. Although it may seem that Facebook is outdated and Twitter is the new "hip" social media place to post, that is not the case. Facebook sees over 1 billion active users everyday. What will this company do in order to see continued success? Twitter is about to make changes.

People's thoughts on making twitter better:

• Kim Kardashian-West tweeted  saying:

"I just emailed Twitter to see if they can add an edit feature so that when u misspell something u don't have to delete & repost Let's see..."

Jack Dorsey Actually replied thanking her for the feedback saying it was much appreciated.

• Extending the amount of characters available to type per tweet.
• User @canadagood tweeted to @jack saying :

"Dear @Jack Dorsey,

The one thing I want from $TWTR is an easy jump to any time/date in my Twitter feed without scrolling. Thanks."

• User @askaaronlee tweeted :

"Dear @jack, can you change your 'favorite' button to a 'like' button? thanks."

Could all of these suggestions please the current Twitter users while still generating new ones? That is the million dollar question being asked right now. Dorsey is currently in the process of rethinking certain Twitter features such as the one's mentioned above in hopes to strengthen his company''s growth.

works cited:

Fiegerman, Seth. "So, Jack Dorsey, What Comes next for Twitter? The Public Has Some Ideas." Mashable. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2015.

Tis the Season.

Shopping season is among us.

While fall and winter approach us we are reminded of the holidays that come with these changing seasons such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. For those of us that work in a retail store the holidays are not the first thing that come to mind. The chaos of holiday shoppers are what come to mind. Since when is Thanksgiving no longer about giving thanks but rather about the Friday that follows with mass amounts of shopping? In recent years we have seen the amount of Black Friday shoppers increase with store discounts everywhere around us. However, this year that will not be the case. Retailers are prepared for a rather difficult holiday season this year. Difficult because consumers are now trained to expect store discounts all the time, competitors are using competitive prices, and a economy that still isn't at it's greatest.

Less discounts.

This year, many retailers have vowed to cut back store promotions and discounts. In an article in the Fargo Forum written by Reuters Media they talked to a few major retailers and received some feedback. Nordstrom said that they had planned to cut back store discounts by 20% and will continue to decrease them for years to come saying they are going to focus on service and differentiated products instead. Abercrombie & Fitch and Aeropostale both said that they are going to have far less discounts as well. Their huge clearanced items happened to be logo centered apparel which needed to be rid of due to reduced customer demand. People are more opt to buy full priced items when they are not logo centered.

Price over everything.

Unfortunately consumers are still responding to price more than retailers want them to. In a study conducted it showed that 87% of Americans are still letting price determine what they will be purchasing this holiday season. American's have been so accustomed to discounted prices in recent years that they are trained to shop based on price rather than quality or service.

Works cited:
Reusters Media. "Retailers Gear up for What Could Be Difficult Holiday Shopping..." INFORUM. N.p., 05 Oct. 2015. Web. 05 Oct. 2015.
"File:Owl Shopping by Mimooh.svg." - Wikimedia Commons. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2015.

Business to Business Marketing.

Business to Business (B2B) Marketing involves the activities of the sale of goods and services from one business to another. Most people don't consider how a company obtains their supplies and equipment to operate a business but believe it or not, the B2B market is much larger than the Business to Consumer market.

Who are the Customers?

In B2B marketing the customers consists of:

• Government Agencies.
• Companies that resell products.
• Institutions.
• Companies that use their products.

Government agencies are the largest purchaser of B2B marketing goods.

What makes B2B different?

• More complex decision making
• The purchases from one business to another tend to be much larger than a business to consumer. This is because the B2B market is usually involving the sale of expensive equipment, mass quantities of supplies, or other high priced items that help a company run.
• B2B purchases are more rational
• This plays off of the idea listed above. Being that the price of the items purchased are typically more expensive buyers need to be much more rational with their purchase and not buy goods and services because of emotions. Buyers need to ask themselves "Will this good/service make the company a profit?", "Will this good/service help the business grow?".
• B2B products are more complex
• When we as consumers make purchases we generally don't need a prior expert knowledge about the product. When it comes to B2B products the complexity level is higher than B2C. As an example, when a buyer in the B2B market wants to buy a new computer programming system for designing the companies products, the buyer needs to know much more detail about the system than your typical B2C customer buying a new personal computer.
• Relationships are VERY important
• In B2B markets, relationships between the buyer and seller are vital. Having a good relationship is a key step in the process because the sellers want to make sure they have built a good foundation with their clients to ensure continued business. It is very common to see the buyers and sellers on a first name basis. The sellers usually follow up with their clients on a regular basis and make sure their clients are pleased with their purchased goods/services.

Works Cited:

"B2B Marketing | What Is Business to Business Marketing?" B2B Marketing | What Is Business to Business Marketing? N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Oct. 2015.

French Author causes economists to think.

Thomas Piketty, a french author, wrote a book in 2014 titled Capital in the twenty-first century. The book focuses on the growth of the returns to capital in the economy are exceeding the rate of growth of the economy. For those of you who are not in an economics class, Piketty is basically saying that the rich are getting richer and everybody else is struggling. I'm not going to get into politics while writing this but I am however going to look at Piketty's conclusions in his research.

Piketty's General Conclusions:

1. Wealth is growing faster than the economy. 
2. Piketty wants to adopt a global tax on wealth. He suggests 80%.
3. Faster economic growth = diminishing importance of wealth ; slower economic growth = increase importance of wealth.
4. High levels of wealth inequality are a problem.

Why should we care?

Most of us are not in the top 1% of upper class. Therefore the economy that we operate in today, the businesses that we own, the jobs that we hold, the money that we invest, and the income we earn are not growing anywhere near the rate that the wealth obtained by the elite upper class is growing. Regardless of our personal thoughts on this fact, we have to be aware of the effects on society that this large gap has. How/if we think that gap should be eliminated is a matter of opinion. 

Works cited:

Gates, Bill. "Why Inequality Matters." Why Inequality Matters. N.p., 13 Oct. 2014. Web. 30 Sept. 2015.