COMPANY ANALYSIS

PROJECT 1

UMGC > CMST 301 > DIGITAL MEDIA AND SOCIETY

PROJECT 1: COMPANY ANALYSIS

Objective

The purpose of this project is to   demonstrate your understanding of the following course concepts:



 

1. How companies use digital and social media to   effectively communicate ideas, information, arguments, and messages to   achieve a specific goal.

  2. How digital media has transformed the communication of an idea,   information, and arguments in society.

Project   Description

The use of digital media has   transformed how companies communicate with their customers. The use of the   websites, YouTube, e-books, e-mail and various forms of social media such as   Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Snapchat, Instagram, and blogs has shaped   current day communication strategies.



Project 1 Consists of:

1. Project Requirements (topics and content to cover)

  2. Paper Requirements (content organization)

  3. Submission Requirements (how to submit your assignment)

  4. APA Resources (how to cite and select sources)

  5. Due Date Information and Late Policy

Project Requirements

Select a company that utilizes   digital or social media to communicate with customers to complete Section 1.

 

NOTE 1: You   are required to complete ALL THREE SECTIONS of this project (Sections 1, 2,   and 3).

SECTION 1: COMPANY INFORMATION

Provide the following information   about the company you select:

Item 1: What is the name of the   company?

Item 2: What year was the company established?

Item 3: What is the company’s goal or mission?

Item 4: What products and services does the company offer   or provide?

Item 5: Provide the company website address (URL).

Item 6: How many   employees does the company employ?

Item 7: Where is the   company’s headquarters located?

Item 8: What are the   company’s most recent earnings?

 

Section 1 Source: Include at least one source for   Section 1. Include this source as an in-paper citation and on your Reference   page.

Section 1 Example: The   Henkel Company

To help you with   completing Section 1, an example is provided below:

“…Henkel was founded   in 1876. People around the world trust Henkel’s innovations, brands, and   technologies. In the fiscal year 2016, the company reported sales of approx.   18.7 billion euros and an operating profit of around 3.2 billion euros   (adjusted for one-time gains/charges and restructuring charges). The DAX-30   company has its headquarters in Düsseldorf, Germany. Henkel employs more than   50,000 people worldwide, over 80 percent of whom work outside of Germany.   Henkel is thus one of the most international German companies…”

Henkel. (2019). Company Profile. In Company   Profile. Retrieved 1/15/19, from https://www.henkel.com/press-and-media/facts-and-figures/company-profile

NOTE 2: You cannot use the Henkel Company in your project.

SECTION 2: DIGITAL AND SOCIAL MEDIA USE

How does the company use Digital   and Social Media to communicate with their customers?

Item 1: List   all of the digital and social media platforms the company uses to communicate   with customers (including websites, YouTube, e-books, e-mail and various   forms of social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Snapchat, Instagram,   and blogs).

Item 2: Describe how the company uses EACH digital   and social media listed in Item 1 above to achieve its goals or mission.

 

Section 2 Source: Include   at least one source for Section 2. Include this   source as an in-paper citation and on your References page.

SECTION 3: ANALYSIS

Provide an example of how the   company uses digital and/or social media to accomplish an objective (e.g. to address a serious public relations   issue, promote a cause, market a product, achieve a strategic advantage by   using Big Data, or promote an event).

Item 1:    Describe the situation or example in detail.

Item 2:  How successful was the company in accomplishing the   objective? Support your answer with reference (s).

Item 3:  List one thing the company could have done better   to accomplish their objective. Be sure to focus on the use of digital or   social media here.

Item 4: If you decide to discuss the company's use of Big Data to   achieve a strategic advantage, does their use of Big Data concern you as a   potential customer? Why or why not?



  To help you with completing Section 3, we have provided two sample   topics below:

 

  Section 3 Example 1: Target’s Data Breach

Target’s December 2013   data breach was a public relations nightmare, but the company responded   swiftly over social media, posting safety guidelines on Twitter and keeping   an open dialog with its aggrieved customers.

Section 3 Example 2: Target’s Use of Big Data

Target is renowned in the industry   for its data collection practices. Target maintains a customer relationship   management database which includes information from in-store purchases (they   link all of your purchases to a unique customer identifier) and data they   collect externally (e.g. data from Facebook and other sources).  Combine   the two data streams and Target can predict, with a high degree of certainty,   what your gender is, where you live, how far you travel to work, your   relationship status, and they can even tell if you are pregnant and if so   when you are due. The amount of money spent each year on pregnancy-related   purchases is tremendous. In efforts to win the market share in this profit   area, Target has hired a team of statisticians to perform predictive   analysis. The goal, in this particular situation, is to predict which women   are expecting (or soon to be), without asking them directly, by analyzing   their purchasing behavior (e.g. cribs, baby clothes, prenatal vitamins,   etc.). This way Target can "target" this particular demographic   (with coupons, discounts, and other offers) very early, thus getting a jump   on the competition.

Section 3 Sources: Include   at least two sources for Section 3. Include the two   sources as in-paper citations and on your References page. At least one source should be professional or scholarly.



NOTE 3: You   cannot use Target in your project or any company we discussed in class (e.g.   Google).

Paper   Requirements

1. Your paper must   follow APA format guidelines throughout.

(A sample APA template for you to use is attached   to the bottom of this page). Be sure to use the the sample template.

a. Double-spaced

  b. 1-inch Margins

  c. 12-point size professional font (e.g. Times New Roman)

  d. Header

  e. Automatic Page numbers

  f. Title page

  g. Reference page

2. Length: Minimum of 1,500; Maximum of 2,000   words.

(Title page, Reference page, and   direct quotes do not count toward the total word count). 

NOTE 4: Going over 1,500 words is fine, but if you are   under 1,500 you will be penalized based on the following scale: One letter grade (10%) for every 500 words you are under the word count minimum.

3. Include one Image.

Include at least one table, graph,   or image of an appropriate size that is relevant and supports the information   provided in your paper. Feel free to create the image if you like.

 

Image Example: The   Henkel Company Infographic

  To help you with completing your project, we have included a sample image. This is a great infographic that provides data on   the Henkel Company. This infographic would work well in Section 1.

 

Henkel Company Infographic [Digital image].   (n.d.). Retrieved January 15, 2019, from here.

4. Title Page

Your title page must be APA   formatted and include the following:

a. Project Name

  b. Your Name

  c. Instructor’s Name

  d. Course name and section number

  e. Title of Company Analysis

5. References Page

Your References page must be APA   formatted.

6. Sources: Include at least Four (4) Sources   (Total)

a. Include at least One (1) Source   for Section 1.

  b. Include at least One (1) Source for Section 2.

  c. Include at least Two (2) Sources for Section 3. At least one of the two   sources must be a Professional or Scholarly Source.

Clarification: Please do not   use unprofessional sources such as Wikipedia, About.com, Answers.com,   Dictionary.com, How.com, or anything remotely similar.  Examples   of scholarly sources include textbooks, articles,   academic journals, and conference proceedings. Scholarly resources are   written by experts in their fields, grounded in research, and often refereed   (reviewed and edited by researchers in the field). Examples of professional   sources include trade journals or magazines. Professional   sources are written for a specific audience that works in a certain field.   They are not research-based. You can also use our course content (e.g. Read   & Watch resources) as a source as well. UMGC has a top-notch, extensive   online library. You can find many scholarly and professional sources there.

 

NOTE 5: You can also use social media (e.g.   Twitter posts, blogs, YouTube) sources as well as this is a paper about the   use of digital and social media.

 

7. Setup & Organization

Your paper must include the   following pages and Level 1 Headings:

a. Cover Page

  b. Company Profile (Section 1)

  c. Digital and Social Media Use (Section 2)

  d. Analysis (Section 3)

  e. Reference Page

APA Resources

UMGC’s Effective Writing Center   offers several resources for APA formatting and citation style.

1. APA 6th Manuscript Formatting

http://polaris.umuc.edu/ewc/apa6th/apa6th.html

2. All About APA - Complete Guide

http://polaris.umuc.edu/ewc/web/all_about_apa.html

3. CiteFast Citation Maker for APA

http://www.citefast.com/?s=APA

Submission   Requirements

Please submit your completed   paper to your Assignments   Folder in our CMST 301 LEO   Classroom before the due date.

Due   Date

Five (5) Day Late Period: The Assignments Folder will remain open 5 days after the   due date for late submissions. There will be a 10% (or 2 point) reduction   each day (24-hour period) the assignment is late.  After 5 days, late   assignments will not be accepted or graded. The Assignments Folder   will be closed at this point as well and you will not be able to physically   submit the assignment.

 

Exceptions may be allowed, on a   case-by-case basis, for life situations (military deployment, medical   illness, death in the family, etc). In all cases, timely notification of a   "life situation" is critical to the approval of any extensions. All   exceptions must be accompanied by official documentation, which is subject to   inspection and approval. Workload, course load, vacations, or bad memory are   not acceptable excuses.

 

Running Close to the Deadline?: Please do not wait until the last minute to submit   your assignment. Give yourself at least a 5-hour window to account for any   technical difficulties that might arise. If   you experience technical difficulties beyond your control that do not allow   you to successfully complete the assignment, immediately follow the steps   below:

 

Step 1: Contact UMGC 360 Help and Support. Inform them of the problem you are having. Get a problem   ticket number from them to document the situation.

Step 2: E-mail me ASAP and include (a) your class and   section, (b) description of the problem you are having, (c) your problem   ticket number from 360 Help and Support, and (d) your name, so I can   investigate the situation.

Step 3: Attempt to attach your assignment to a message to me   inside of LEO.

Step 4: E-mail the assignment to me.



Grade   Value

This project is worth 100 points or 20% of   your total grade for the course.

 

Grade   Reductions

You will lose points   for issues such as: not following directions, not submitting your work on   time, and failure to include all required elements. Each omission will result   in a partial point deduction.

 

Submitting   Your Assignment

To complete this   project and receive full credit, you must submit your completed presentation   to your Assignments Folder unless you encounter problems--discussed   above).

 

CYA   (Copy Your Assignment)

Please make sure you   keep a copy of your project stored on your computer. Technical difficulties   do happen--you may need to resubmit your assignment for a number of reasons.   It is always a good policy to CYA!

 

Having   Problems?

Please contact me in   advance if you are having problems understanding what is required of you.

 

Do   Your Own Work

UMGC has strict   policies regarding turning in work that is not 100% your own creation. I will   enforce these policies.

Verify   Your Assignment Has Been Posted ( *** Very Important *** )

It is your   responsibility to make sure you have posted your assignment CORRECTLY! Once   you have posted your assignment, immediately attempt to view it, just to make   sure your post was accepted by LEO, that it is formatted correctly, and you   have posted the correct file.

NOTE 6: You will be held responsible for posting your assignments   correctly.

Project 1: Company Analysis