PART ONE of THREE
A 3 Part Journey Into French Marketing with America's Southern College Students
Product 1:Slim Sodas
 |
| Many Europeans do no fit the "YuroPoor" StereoType |
Product 2:
Dinner on the Seine River
After a long day of walking and touring Paris we all met up around 8:00pm in the hotel lobby to go to our last stop of the night. This was the dinner cruise on the Seine River and probably one of my favorite moments in Paris. The boat was transparent on both sides to allow you to see the panoramic night views of the French architecture and monuments. It was nothing like I have ever seen before. As we floated along the Seine River dinner was served. I noticed the portions were much smaller than the portion sizes in the U.S. Also, there weren’t many options as there are in America. Our menus are much more elaborate and detailed with entrĂ©e and side options. The menu in France was very limited and did not give you an option to substitute sides. None the less, the dinner was beautiful and I enjoyed every minute of it!
Product 3:
YSL perfume promotion
After dinner I decided to visit the Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower was right across the street from the boat cruise so I purchased my ticket in advance. I had about forty-five minutes until the time of my tour, so I walked around the streets of Paris to waste time. The street that ran in front of the Eiffel Tower was Quai Branly and I explored to sites on that street to stay close. I noticed that some of the buildings had large posters on them as advertisements. In America we use different forms of promotions like billboards to gain the attention of drivers or pedestrians passing by. In France, they use building to post promotions and it seemed to be a popular technique.
Services
The Metro
 |
| Riding the Metro was Amazing |
Our first day in Paris was very eventful. We explored Paris mostly by foot, but we also used another form of transportation, the Metro. This process is much different than what I’m used to in the U.S. I drive my car everywhere I need to go. In France, it is more convenient to use the Metro. First, you purchase tickets from a booth. (One ticket can take you anywhere you want to go!) Second, you scan your ticket and cross through a set of bars. You then go down an escalator to this underground “subway”. It is important to pay attention to the direction the train is traveling or you will end up on the wrong end of town, as I did several times!
Service 2:
Taxi Driver
After visiting the Eiffel Tower it was pretty late and my torn up map of the city was not going to help me get home. By this time I had nearly been up for 24 hours and was too tired to walk to the hotel anyway. I decided to wave down a taxi to drive me back to the hotel. When the driver pulled up, he rolled down the window to ask where I was going, in French of course. I showed him the hotel business card and he told me to get in the taxi. In the U.S. they would typically open the door for you and provide better customer service. While driving me to my hotel, the driver was talking on his cell phone and smoking a cigarette. This was very different from what I am used to and extremely unprofessional.
Service 3:
Hotel Balmoral front desk
 |
| This is what our Balcony's looked like, such a great service for foreign college students! |
After checking into the hotel we received the keys to our room and they were literally KEYS! In the U.S. if you check into a hotel you receive a card key that you scan to access your room, the elevator, and even sometimes the front door to the hotel. You are to keep this key with you at all times. When leaving the Hotel Balmoral the hotel clerk held onto the key at the front desk. When you returned, you told him the room number you were staying in. They then grabbed the key from a key rack behind the desk and gave you the key to your room.
