Hello Kitty MBA Hell
I get all kinds of strange emails linking Hello Kitty with anything you can dream of. You know that the world is nearing the end when MBA students are getting college credit for studying Hello Kitty. You know that I’m in the middle of the Hello Kitty Hell tsunami when those students write to me for help with their project:
We are a group of first year full time MBA students in UC Irvine doing a big marketing project on Hello Kitty and we really need a big favor from you – if possible, to complete this 5 min survey and also to post this survey on your blog or ask your friends to help out as well. We need data that can exclude demographic limitations so we need people from all over the world to do this and we are looking for more than 2000 participants. Please use your charm and also your passion for kitty to help us on this survey!
Obviously these students need to do a bit more research if they believe that I have a “passion for kitty” or that I would ever place my friends into such a tortuous position in the guise of helping (although it seems to be a pretty good project for my enemies). Maybe they should get a failing grade before they even start and save everyone the pain of having to learn anything new about Hello Kitty.
Of course, my wife thinks it’s a wonderful idea and is of the opinion that college would be a much better place if all people had to study about Hello Kitty as part of their graduation requirement. Hello Kitty University – there’s something to look forward to that you know the people at Sanrio are probably all going to be saying, “why didn’t we think of that before?” at their next meeting.
Something tells me these students have already lined up plum job positions at the corporate headquarters of the evil feline or are trying to weasel their way in by kissing some you know what. Seriously, if you were a student and could pick any marketing theme project to conduct, why on earth would you pick Hello Kitty? Or an even better question, why the hell would you think it was a good idea to ask me to help you with it?
Posted: November 11th, 2008 under Hello Kitty.
Comments: 21
Comments
Comment from Rhianimator
Time: November 11, 2008, 6:48 am
Why study the marketing of HK? Because she’s very very good at it. Sanrio has been “Selling snow to eskimos” for a very long time, and to a frightening degree of success.
As far as your passion for HK goes. Sure you have a passion for her… a passionate hatred is still a passion, even if the emotion involved is negative.
And why ask you? Because you have an audience relevant to HK… oh, and they’re probably delusional HK fanatics as well and think you secretly like the puketastically cutesy evil feline.
Comment from Kitteh!!
Time: November 11, 2008, 6:51 am
/\ I agree. Well except about the suggestion that I like HK! 
Comment from Acton
Time: November 11, 2008, 9:35 am
I have to agree with your wife to a degree. Sanrio is a marketing genius. To capture a segment of the population with an endless supplies of goods with out becoming passé is a business feat in it self. There have been some mistakes. I feel Sanrio miss a big one not promoting Batz Maru to the young skate and snowboard generation who grew up with him in the80’s.
The again, why you; it is the same why you get press release from Sanrio, you have a very large audience.
Ps. If the creators of the survey is reading this I did not give you my email address in the survey. Please contact me via web site.
Comment from MBA Student
Time: November 11, 2008, 11:05 am
Seems i will have to follow this blog more often. Selling snow to eskimos eh
Comment from Hello Kitty Junkie
Time: November 11, 2008, 11:20 am
I agree with your wife too! And you are brilliant for thinking of a Hello Kitty University, hehehe! <3 
Comment from Kelly
Time: November 11, 2008, 12:08 pm
Wow. If that survey was actually made up by MBA students-I fear for the companies that might hire them in the future. Not only is the topic a joke, but that survey was horrible. Perhaps these students should focus their efforts elsewhere….like you mentioned, a HK Uni. It would take a bunch of morons to run a place like that.
Comment from Magic Smoothie
Time: November 11, 2008, 2:49 pm
I say we bomb the survey. Hello Kitty is “childish,” “cute,” and “foolish.” We feel “Very unfavorable” about the brand of Hello Kitty. We would consider purchasing “None” of the HK products listed.
Comment from yet another anonymous
Time: November 11, 2008, 4:19 pm
This is yet another proof that American companies are run by those morons. They have very superficial understanding of things in the world, yet making millions and making important decisions. No wonder American companies are sinking like rock.
Comment from andophiroxia
Time: November 11, 2008, 4:20 pm
I hate to say it, Sanrio has got it down.
Comment from mhkitty06
Time: November 12, 2008, 6:14 am
Yes, I agree Sanrio has a Cash Cow in Hello Kitty.
(Take that Marketing MBA wannabees 
)
I took marketing in College, wish I’d gotten to do surveys and lame stuff like that… all we did was business models and stuff that really mattered…
Comment from Catherine
Time: November 12, 2008, 6:57 am
I think “We are a group of First year Full Time MBA students in UC Irvine” Says it all. You don’t see stupid crap like this coming from the Princeton MBA program.
Pingback from dustbury.com » The future of marketing
Time: November 12, 2008, 8:24 am
[...] A future of marketing, anyway: We are a group of first year full time MBA students in UC Irvine doing a big marketing project on Hello Kitty and we really need a big favor from you — if possible, to complete this 5 min survey and also to post this survey on your blog or ask your friends to help out as well. We need data that can exclude demographic limitations so we need people from all over the world to do this and we are looking for more than 2000 participants. Please use your charm and also your passion for kitty to help us on this survey! [...]
Comment from melora
Time: November 12, 2008, 11:03 am
“ROCK ON!” MBA students. One can never have too many Hello Kitty products.
Comment from Mari
Time: November 12, 2008, 5:13 pm
OMG!!! That survey is TERRIBLE! Was it done by a child? And dear heaven, who ever thought that Hello Kitty Wine was a good idea? What would it taste like – cat piss?
Comment from Kitteh!!
Time: November 13, 2008, 1:59 am
The mere mention of HK wine just confirms my view about the utter inappropriateness of some HK products.
Apply this test – would you want your 6YO to have (and where possible consume) this product? If the answer’s “no”, then the product is inappropiate.
Comment from mhkitty06
Time: November 13, 2008, 7:27 am
@ Kitteh!!
Very good point!
Comment from Lulu
Time: November 14, 2008, 6:27 am
That survey was very shallow. If they wanted responses from a variety of demographics, they need to beef that thing up.
Would I rather buy a stuffed bear or a handbag? Neither, but I would like a new book, thanks!
Comment from meow!
Time: November 14, 2008, 8:50 pm
Doing the survey was the best laugh I’ve had in ages. If you pick the leather jacket you get a guy in ridicules pink leathers…I would buy the just to laugh at the unfortunate soul I could convince to wear them.
Comment from Noe
Time: November 15, 2008, 10:10 am
I am puzzled by how people keep asking you for links, “help” etc… when you clearly state – over and over again – how much you despise the cat-who-shall-not-be-named and will not provide these links or give this “help”.
I suppose it’s just further proof that the stupid seriously outnumber the rest of us… *sigh*
Comment from Katie
Time: November 15, 2008, 5:31 pm
I may be mistaken, but it the reason for picking Hello Kitty for their subject may be due to the population of Asians at UCI (it is more than 50% asian-american). I’m a student there (and I am caucasion) and I have been exposed to more Hello Kitty in my few months there than I have in my whole life. Just a thought :]
Comment from Margaret
Time: March 29, 2009, 8:51 am
“Seriously, if you were a student and could pick any marketing theme project to conduct, why on earth would you pick Hello Kitty?”
Well I might, but then my mother has always had a weird fascination with cults and serial killers and I feel like there’s some interesting cross-over potential in subject matter there.
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