Last Ever Blog

Today I was extremely ill and I went to the doctors to find out what is wrong with me and it turns out I have tonsillitis, not the best way to end the blogs. I was prescribed some euthromyycin to help get rid of it but i'm still feeling as bead as ever, my worst illness yet.

Anyway, thank you for reading my blogs for the last 11 or so day, I hope you have enjoyed the blogs.

Thank You, Christian Tye

Day 11 

Last Task

Before these blogs I loved converse anyway. These blogs have shown me what companies want to know and the kind of questions they are looking to be answered in order to improve in any way. Converse are my favourite brand of shoe and have been since before the blog and a long time before that. My opinion of converse hasn't changed at all and they are still a brand I will definitely.  Converse are still the main brand I would buy if I was to go out looking for new shoes.

Converse are a very versatile company in the way that they are bringing out various different types and trying to interest others into buying converse. An example of this is the converse pro leathers, these are an attempt of trying to interest others into buying converse. They have made these shoes that don't really look at all like converse but at the same time they are really nice. In a previous blog about the converse website I included a picture of my favourites from the new 'pro leathers'. 

Three words to describe converse:

Different        Simple        Great

My opinion on converse hasn't changed at all from these blogs and like I've said before, converse are still the main brand I would go to if I were looking for some new trainers.

Day 10 

Eighth Task (weekend task)

Facebook

I think having any company having a facebook page is clever. It advertises the brands over a social networking site which millions of people use. This allows millions of people to see it. Even if they are not searching for it, there are advertisements and other things to make the user see them. In a way this controls them subliminally because they have seen the brand and it will stick in their mind.

I would like these pages because I am a big fan of converse and a big fan of vans. Not as if they need my likes, they both already have millions. With these facebook pages I like the fact that the updates are about what have been going on with the company. This allows others to go onto the page ad see what converse or vans have been up too, and it is very simple to access.

I expect a lot of brands to this this these days as social networking is taking over the world in a way that almost everyone owns a computer and most people with computers have facebook. I haven't liked any other brands on facebook, simply because it's not a thing I would do. If i was asked to like it I would but I wouldn't go out of my way to like the page.

Twitter

I don't follow any of these brands on twitter but I do have a twitter account. I barely use it, I jut created it to see what celebrities are doing and keep up to date with the latest celeb news. I would follow converse or twitter because I would be interested to know whats going on with both of the brands and it is something that would interest me.

Day 8 

Task 7


Vans on Youtube

Similar to yesterdays blog, this task is all about youtube and other videos. Vans on youtube is all about skateboarding. As soon as you go onto the page, the first video is about skateboarding. This is an advantage and a disadvantage because it is only aimed at one category of people, those who like skateboarding, but I guess people who aren't into skateboarding could enjoy the videos too. From these videos I understand that vans are souly made for skating, but they are now becoming more trendy and worn by not just skaters.

I already knew that vans were designed for skaters so this is what I expected vans to do. This is one of the videos I enjoyed on the vans youtube page:

This is completely different to the converse videos as converse were about advertising and events and vans are about events and skateboarding.

Latest Video


I don't really understand the 'latest video' on the vans website. It is completely different to what I am seeing on youtube and this tells me that vans are not just about skateboarding, they are developing more than just that. It isn't what I expected vans to do at all but now that i've seen this, I know to expect more than just skateboarding from vans.

Day 7 

Sixth Task

CONVERSE BLOCK PARTY

I think the video is very cool and artistic. It is very well edited and I think it mainly explains exactly what the event is without using any words. It is a bit dark in my opinion and rapping isn't my kind of music but for people who are into rapping it would be very interesting. I like the way only converse clothing is shown and any other brands in the video are blanked out. This is clever marketing because people only see converse and no other brands which focuses their mind on converse. I have never heard of the converse block party before I saw this video. 

The converse block party doesn't really appeal to me. The music they are using is rap and I am not into rap at all. This will appeal to people who are into this kind of music as they will want to hear more of this music. This party is also aimed at older people, from the ages of around 18-25 because there is obviously alcohol which has an age limit. This isn't something I would expect converse to do. To be honest I thought converse were only about shoes so seeing this was a bit of a shock to me. Knowing that converse are not only about shoes, I know what to expect in the future and I know that they are also about music and events rather than just the trainers.

CONVERSE YOUTUBE PAGE

I think these videos are quite interesting. My favourite video was the rubber tracks, tracks of the week. I think the concept of this video is a very good idea and I think that it could be developed more. If every week converse picked the best song of that week and got the band or artist to go to a studio and do a live recording of the song and then post it on youtube, I think it could be a really big thing. I think a lot of fans would watch and subscribe to the channel and look forward to seeing the next videos.

These videos show that converse are more than just a brand of shoe. They are a big brand that are big for more than one reason. They are involved in many things such as music, parties, and they are trying to get more and more known and trying to find new ways to get publicity as we can see through the block party and now through youtube. Youtube is a worldwide website and converse are trying to get publicity through it, so yes it is something I would expect converse to do and I would expect many other brands to do the same thing. 

Day 6 

Fifth Task

This task is all about celebs who wear different brands of trainers.


Converse

This is the artist Rihanna wearing converse on what looks to be a casual day. I chose Rihanna for the fact that she wears converse casually. She doesn't wear them for a sponsor or to get her own look across, she wears them because she likes them, just like a normal non-celeb would.

This is the band Newsboys and they are all wearing converse:



I chose this picture because it shows how they are all also wearing converse. They might be wearing them just for the picture and there is one red pair to stand out and be different, or it was a coincidence that they were all wearing converse when the picture was taken and they actually wear converse casually anyway.

I struggled to find a picture of sports stars wearing converse. All I could find is an NBA basketball star Larry Bird wearing them in a game:

Someone that I don't see wearing converse is rapper Eminem:

This is because they are completely not the kind of style. He wears more nikes and the air force kind of thing.

A sports star that would never wear converse is Gervinho. He plays for arsenal and the every time I see him not in a football kit, he is wearing a suit or a tracksuit.

Vans

Singer Justin Beiber is known to wear vans as we can see from this picture here:

I chose him because he is very famous and him wearing vans will promote them a lot.

I searched the web for a sports star wearing vans but I couldn't find a picture anywhere. I tried searching for individual people but I still couldn't find anyone wearing vans. Better for converse I guess. Well, converse are better anyway :)

Again, musicians that would never wear vans are the rappers and the sort of, un-trendish end of the industry. Eminem, Lil Wayne, Drake and all of them kind of artists.

Types of bans that would never wear bands are the older generation. For example ACDC, guns and rose etc. They tend to stick to more old style than what is more recent and upcoming.

Adidas

I also couldn't find any celebrities wearing adidas. I think adidas have taken more the side of sports trainers rather than trendy trainers. The type of musician that would possibly wear adidas trainers are the ones who care less about their look, so maybe rappers, but I can't be sure because I haven't found any pictures.

This is arguably the most famous footballer of all time David Beckham wearing adidas football boots:

The likelihood is that he didn't choose what boots he was going to wear, he was most probably sponsored by adidas so he wears their boots as advertisement in return. A lot of footballers are wearing adidas boots as they are sponsoring a lot of teams. 

Another footballer Lukas Podolski of arsenal wearing Adidas football boots.

Singers that are less likely to wear adidas are the females. Adidas is a majority male brand and less aimed at females. I looked on the web for a female artist wearing adidas trainers but I couldn't find anything which backs up my point that adidas is more aimed at men.

I don't think there are any sports stars that would 'never wear adidas'. Adidas being a sporty brand is used in all types of sports. The only thing I can think of is if a sports person signs a contract with one brand. This means they will have to wear that brand and therefore won't be wearing adidas.

Nike

The musicians that are more likely to wear nike are rappers and that type of genre that don't care as much about their style and their look like I said about adidas. I mentioned Eminem earlier and here he is wearing nike air max's:

This backs up what I said about rappers being less trendy and not going for what is new and trying to get their own original style knows.

Exactly similar to what I said about adidas, sports stars that wear nikes are everywhere. Nike sponsor a lot of footballers. Here is Wayne Rooney wearing Nike football boots:

Similar to Beckham, he was probably approached by nike and given a large sum of money to wear their boots rather than choosing the boots himself.

I think nike is a lot more likely to be worn by artists because they are better known and nike aren't as focused on just sports, they are also quite focused on bringing out new styles as they have just bought out their new brand of 'nike blazers'.

·   

Day 5


Fourth Task


VANS


As soon as I went onto the vans website, I got the impression that the site was more about news and updates than about shoes. I know vans for the trainers they sell and the website was not about them at all. On the page there are a few little icons that say products, stores etc, but the rest is all about news. This news is all related to sports BMX and Skateboarding. This doesn't interest me at all and to be honest i'm very disappointed with the vans website as I thought they would be a bit more creative and more about the actual shoes them selves and that they would be the main focus point. Overall I think the converse website is a lot better than the vans website. I is better laid out and easy to get your head around and understand where things are.

The shoes in particular are really nice. I am a big fan of vans so obviously keeping that in mind, me going onto the vans website, I am going to see a lot that I like. I'm a big fans of the plain vans. Again, like I said about the converse I prefer the more plain ones because the style of the shoe stands out more and I prefer it where there isn't too much going on. There are some really nice shoes on this website that I haven't seen before in shops. These are some I have taken a liking to:

ADIDAS


The adidas website was very different to the vans website. As soon as I went onto the website a giant picture of some footballers appeared and the text 'Unleash Your Pride', and at the bottom of the picture it said 'shop for euro 2012 jerseys'. Adidas are focusing more on shirts and other clothing at the moment with the Euro 2012 tournament going on, rather than shoes as their main priority.

I am not a big fan of adidas at all. I own some adidas football boots but that is about it. I would never go onto the adidas website to find some new trainers. But saying that I do own a pair that I bought off of ebay that I thought were very nice so maybe if some other trainers come out like that I might be interested. But if I thought I needed a new pair of shoes I would go onto the converse, vans or office website to see if there were any new shoes that I liked and might want to get.

I still think the converse website is a lot better for shopping for trainers as they are the main focus of the website. There are some other things on the website but they are less dominant compared to the vans and adidas website where shoes are not the main priority and do not stand out enough.

Take The Stage

I think the take the stage idea is a bit dry to be honest. I understand what they are trying to do but in my own opinion, I would not go onto the website just to have a look at what is going on. I have seen the advert on TV with quite a few big name celebrities and I think that this will interest a lot of people but it's not for me really.

Day 4

Third Task

I've had a look around the converse website and I think it's a very cool and creative website. All of the icons and buttons to click on are interactive and I think this gives it a really different flair, in contrast to other websites that are quite plain, like the office and topman websites. As soon as I entered the website a lot stood out and got me interested straight away. I did have a problem though. I clicked on the mens shoes and waited until some icons popped up but I still couldn't see the shoes clearly. It was only until I clicked on it another three times did it load. I liked all of the creative converse and all of the different styles that are on offer, I think more of the creative converse should be available in shops as in shops only the plain ones are for sale and the occasional different style. There were also some really nice other shoes. I am a big fan of converse so I was bound to like what I saw on the website anyway but all of the plain colour ones such as the whites and navy's are really nice. I also saw this other pair of 'pro leathers' that I haven't seen before, they must be a new brand but they were way too overpriced and I wouldn't be able to afford them which is a shame because I really liked them. This is the pair:

As you can see, $170 is way too much money and I wouldn't spend that much on a pair of trainers.

I then went onto design your own shoe. I think this is a great idea. It's good because it allows people to be creative in their own way. For example if someone knew exactly what they wanted their converse to look like but on the website there were none like they wanted, all they have to do is go onto create your own and they can make what they desire. A feature I really like is the labelling feature that allows you to add some text to your converse. The only criticism I would have is that it only allows you to place the text in two places on the shoe, it would be better if you could choose where you want the text anywhere on the shoe. 

This is the shoe I designed on design your own: 

I chose to create a pair of low top converse all stars. These are quite plain but I think they are really nice. I chose to stick to simple because i'm not too keen on converse with a lot going on. I like to stick to simple as I have done and I think simple converse look the best. I also added my name to the      
shoe. I was surprise at how cheap these were aswell because I thought the delivery and making would add a lot more to the cost but it hasn't.

Music Art Sport Style

This part of the website didn't really interest me and I don't really understand what it is meant for. When you click on it some boxes pop up with some information in but as a shopper on the website I wouldn't have time to read this. I just want to get on the website and shop for my trainers, I think all this additional information is unnecessary but i'm not sure maybe it could interest some people.

Day 3


Second Task


Today I went to brent cross to have a more detailed look at the shoe shop office. Office is the shop I go to when I need some new shoes as they sell all the shoes that fit my style such as vans, converse, nike and other brands that I may consider if they bought out a new style.

As soon as I walked into the shop I was greeted by a member of staff from the shop, this was nice and inviting as it made me feel more at home and I know where to go if I need help with anything. The shop window is just plain, transparent glass with shoes displayed behind the glass. I think this is a good marketing technique as it lures potential buyers in. For example if a customer was walking past and saw a pair of shoes that he or she liked, it could attract them to the store and get them a sale. The service in the store was not very good. I asked for a pair of size nines and it took quite a while for the shoes to be brought to me. The way the shoes are displayed on the shelves is really good. they are displayed side ways so the customers can get a clear view of what they look like.

The trainers that were particularly appealing were the vans. This was because they were well advertised. There was a large VANS logo above them, with all the shoes displayed nicely and neatly underneath. I also like the fact that with vans, they are all exactly the same shape, but the colours and style change to make the different types. This looks attractive when on the shelves because the variety attracts customers.

The nike trainers stood out the most. This is for a simple reason that they are the biggest shoes and there was quite a lot to choose from. They are also the most colourful. The new range of 'nike blazers' had a wide range of colours and this stood out a lot when looking at the shoes.

There were a few displays in the store. There was a display for the cheaper shoes and the ones they need to get rid of but there wasn't really any stand out displays to really attract buyers. A display that was clearly branded and looked nice would have been good in the store as it will attract buyers over to it if the design and what it looks like is good enough to attract people to have a look a the shoes that are on this display. The store is quite plain and there isn't much to it. The shoes are on the walls either side of the store and there isn't much standing out. there are a few little displays in the middle of the store with some woman's shoes on but nothing to really grab the eye of potential buyers.

There isn't really much else that stood out to me. The store is a bit plain and I think this is something that can be improved by a better interior designer and more creativeness could be used.

Day 2


I know its a bit late but i've had a very long day.

Its only 3 days until my maths exam so the revision has been piling in. Did about 8 hours today, meant to get round to doing this earlier but was really busy. Had some builders in to fix the kitchen roof, don't even know what was wrong with it. But generally a good, useful day. Feeling quite proud of myself for the revision but also exhausted.

Just going to sleep now and hopefully tomorrow will be another good day. Going into town to take some pictures of some shoe shops for the second task, so hopefully that will go well.

Thanks, Christian Tye

Day 1 

First Task

My Trainers

I currently own 9 pairs of trainers

4 of these are Converse
3 Pairs of Vans
1 Pair of Nikes
1 Pair of Adidas

Converse


Out of the 9 pairs i have, i would only consider 5 of them as pairs that i would actually wear. The others are either old and battered, or i have just grown out of them.
This is a pair of my white converse that i still wear:

These are converse all stars

I have had these for around two years now. I bought them from office. Office is the place where i buy mostly all of my shoes from. Office are good because they don't just stick to one brand, they supply all types of trainers so when you walk in and have a look on the shelves, you have a large array of shoes to choose from and it is easy to spot the ones you like. 

These are the only pair of trainers that I can actually wear with anything. They are just plain white and this means that any pair of jeans, chinos or other trousers you wear won't clash with them. This is why I have had them for so long and haven't had to replace them with other ones of a different colour because they go with whatever you are wearing. I will wear these trainers if I am just popping out to the shops, going to the park with my friends, or any other casual outing. The only reason that stops me from wearing them when I go out to a more formal event is that they are quite dirty. I can clean the mud off of the sole, but there is quite a bit of mud on the fabric part of the shoe and this is hard to clean off, which makes them less presentable. 

On the shoe there are 2 strips, a maroon strip and a blue strip. These aren't too noticeable but I think they are very cleverly included on the shoe as they attract attention from potential buyers when they are on a shelf as they it makes the shoes look less plain. The shape of the shoes are really good. I don't like shoes when they are too pointy but at the same time, a slight point can make the trainers look a whole lot better and that is what i like about these converse, the shape is perfect so they look smart and casual at the same time. These trainers are my most prized pair as I have owned them the longest, along with another pair of exactly the same pair that got ruined in the rain but I loved the style and these converse so much that I bought exactly the same pair again. Here are the pair I had before that got ruined in which I had to replace them : 

As you can see these have been completely ruined and the colour has completely changed. These converse would be a lot more efficient if they were easier to clean as they would last much longer.

As you can see I have kept these incredibly clean. I have kept them this clean because these are the trainers I wear out to a more formal event. Obviously not a strictly formal event but an event that is a little less casual than just going to the park. 

I bought these from offspring in camden. The offspring shop in camden is amazing for all different types of shoes. Here is a link to my converse and other shoes on the offspring website: 

http://www.offspring.co.uk/perl/go.pl/style.htm?style_uid=5736&color_uid=17578

I have another pair of converse that I don't wear anymore because i have completely grown out of the style. I am not quite sure what these ones are called:

These for me are completely not my style anymore. There was a point where I loved these shoes and they were the only trainers I would wear, but I have completely gone off them. I think the shape is a major put off. They look really long when you have them on, even though they are only a size 7. i would never wear these converse again. The design is also a bit childish for me, the arrow and star no longer appeals to me. 

Vans

I own 3 pairs of vans: 

The pair on the left are my first pair. These are black and checkered. I no longer wear these out because I have completely ruined them. Until I made a hole in the front, I would still wear them out. There is something about vans that allows you to wear them out even if they are battered. This is something that you can't really do with converse because it won't look right. 

The middle pair were my second pair of vans. I got these about a year ago from office and they are still in extremely good condition. I wear these out with certain clothes that go with them, for example blue chinos or a blue cardigan. They still appeal to me as nice trainers and I think they will last me quite a long time.

The pair on the right are my most recent pair of vans. I bought these about 3 months ago, also from office. They go with a lot of my clothes, this is why I bought them. As I own a lot of grey clothes, the grey on the shoes goes with that. These are suede vans, which means I need to be careful where I wear them because if they get wet, the suede can get ruined very easily. 

Others

The pair on the left were my first pair of shoes that were nike, I have had one other pair but they ripped so I had to throw them away. I don't quite know why i bought these as I have never had any intention of wearing them. They are completely not my style. I have worn them a few times out and about and the insoles have already ripped. These are by far the worst pair of trainers I have purchased and I will not be buying nike again. 

The pair on the right are adidas nizzas hi x porters. I don't often wear these out but they are still shoes that appeal to me. I got them off Ebay. Ebay is a good place to shop for trainers as they have a wide range and alot of the trainers aren't found in shops. These adidas's caught my eye so I bought them and I would still consider wearing them today. 

Overall my favourite pair are my converse leathers.