Self Reflection

1) I believe I am doing well so far. I have completed all the required assignments and have tried to do more than required. I would give myself a AE-.

2) I think I have done well on the research checks. Because the topic I am working on is something I really enjoy, I have no problem learning more about my topic. I try to get as many possible sources and gather as much information. I enjoy research checks because it allows me to focus just on the topic and improve my knowledge of the topic.

3) I would like to improve on presentations. Even though we have had just one presentation, and lots of practice the years before, I feel that I still can improve, especially with presentation skills. I tend to get nervous and focus on what people think, rather than focusing on executing the presentation well.

Science Fair Proposal

 1) Hypothesis: If nail polish is exposed to soap, then it will last the least amount of time on a square tile.

2) Control: tiles with lots of nail polish that are not manipulated
    Dependent: nail polish removal
    Independent: removal fluids (ex:soap)


3) My senior project EQ, which is "What is the most important factor in marketing your skin care product successfully?" does not necessarily correspond with my science fair project. One important factor in marketing skin care products is the success of the product. The product must work for potential customers so that they will purchase the product. Same thing goes for nail polish companies. If the product does not last long enough, then customers will not purchase the product after all.
 
4) I will perform the experiment for five days straight, and on day one, I will have my conrol(4 un-touched nail polishes) out while I expose the four different nail polish companies to dishwasher soap. I will continue to do this until day 5. To determine which has the least amount of nail polish, I will weigh the control and document. Then on day 5, I will weigh the tiles again, and see which weighs the least.

~Materials:
-dishwasher soap
-4 different nail polish companies
-small(light as possible) square tiles
-record sheet


5) This falls under Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Source: Secret Ingredient: Nail Polish. Nail Magazine. May 19, 2011. http://www.nailsmag.com/article/92314/secret-ingredient-nail-polish

What I've Learned So Far

1) When I first began my senior project, I thought that the key to marketing products successfully are how well you can convince the person(s) to buy the product, but I was mislead. To market skin care products successfully, there are a few things to consider. The person who markets the skin care products must be familiar with the product themselves. They should be able to know ingredients used to where it was made. When marketing, the person should be enthusiastic and presentable. You, for example, would not like to be buying a product where the marketer is unprofessional and have no clue what they are talking about. Another tip would be to get to know your clients. If they walk into your store, greet them and for instance, if they came in last week and talked to you about their sick relative, ask them how their relative is doing. This will make the customer cared for and will most likely return.      Explain what the product can do (don't use false information) and how it will improve their skin. This will gain the customer's trust from you and will continue to purchase from you. To have customers continue to purchase from you, the product must also work.  This is probably one of the most important factors to being successful in the skin care industry. Once customers see that the product works, they will spread the word and the business can continue to grow.

2) There was a video taped during a meeting with Seacret but it would not upload. : (



3) The three research articles that helped me the most are:

- Upselling Skin Care and Aesthetic Services By Christine Heathman: This explains the many reasons to develop a good relationship with you customer
-The Secret to Competitive Marketing By Bryan Durocher: Really explained how the marketer should be when selling to clients
-Marketing: A Top 10 List By Carol and Rob Trow: Explained the reasons to why you should get to know your clients and be informed yourself about products and the company itself.

Independent Component 1 Plan Approval

1) For the first independent component, I will be making skin care products of my own made from organic and/or natural ingredients. For example, I would create a facial mask made from honey and milk and blend it all together. I would use it on my face every night and see if it will either improve my skin or not.

2) I will help my mother with the self-facial appointments she has scheduled at work. Self-facials allow clients to do there own facial at the spa, and can create there own mask or scrub made from natural/organic ingredients.  The clients that return can allow us to see whether or not the natural/organic ingredients work.

3) My EQ, which is,  " What is the most important factor in marketing your skin care product successfully?", will allow me to gather different answers and decide which is the most important. One possible answer is results. If a product does not show any results or very little, a consumer will not be interested in continuing to use the product. The type of ingredients in the product can help the company who made it or not help it at all.

Defining the Essential Question

1) EQ: What is the most important factor in marketing your skin care product successfully?

2) By factor, I mean the most important part of aspect in marketing successfully. An example
    of a part or aspect would be results the skin care product gives or packaging the skin care
    product is in. Successfully means that the skin care product has attracted many of its
    target audience(e.g. young women between the ages of 18-30) and people
    have developed a trusting relationship with the skin care product.

3) Possible answers:
- results and satisfaction
- packaging is clear and understandable.people can look at the packaging and have no
  questions about anything on it
- ingredients used in the making of the product
- expertise(being educated, leadership skills, relationship with industry professionals)
- uniqueness(what is diff.about your product that other products don't have, and can show
  results as well)
- how much can skin care product do (product that multitasks. e.g. contains SPF, moisturizer,
  anti aging,etc...)
- enthusiasm/positivity
4) The most important source is an article I found online. So far, I believe this has helped me
    toward finding some answers to my essential question, though there is still more research
    and a long way until the two hour presentations. The article name: Upselling Skin Care and
    Aesthetic Services. Author: Christine Heathman.
    This article has mentioned some main factors I think are most important in marketing the
    skin care product. The article explains that having a good relationship with your
    customers can help you strive to your goal. The customers can gain your trust and have
    become loyal to you can give feedback and what needs improvements or what they simply
    like about the product. The next factor is how being enthusiastic when marketing the
    product can bring customers in. It says to be excited aboutt he product and to explain that
    it can improve their skin.

Second Interview Questions

The second person I will be interviewing is Veronica M. She is a member of the Seacret team where she will have a booth set up at a convention coming up soon. There, I will help her look for new members to join, or sell to those who simply want to buy the product.

1) What made you decide to be a part of the Seacret team?

2) Have you had any prior experience with marketing skin care products?

3) What lessons or skills can I obtain by helping you market the product(s)?

4) How can Seacret be beneficial to me or any other person wanting to be in the marketing and/or beauty industry?

5) Do you have any prior knowledge about any skin care products and what makes them stand out and be successful in the beauty industry?

Presentation Reflection

1)   In what way did the first interview affect your presentation?  Please explain, be specific and use an example.

When I interviewed Timothy Her, and asked him "What can you tell me about Marketing Skin Care Products?" I never thought he would surprise me by his answer. His first answer was results. All the research I have been reading so far have all mentioned results being one of the most important in being able to successfully market the product. When I first planned out my presentation, I was going to compare the difference between natural/organic products, and those that aren't. When I looked back to my first interview, I remembered Mr. Her saying that results are the most important. So why not present on ingredients that can be used in products and to be aware of what kinds of ingredients go into the product.

2.  What you say stood out about your presentation performance and why?

During my presentation, I mentioned some examples of ingredients used in products and the good and bad that can come out of some. When I mentioned these to the class, I had little trouble presenting this information. I knew this information almost by heart, so presenting this information would be less difficult.

 3.  What was the most challenging to do and why?

The most challenging to do was presenting in front of an audience. I don't have trouble speaking to people, but when all eyes fall on me, it's a whole new story. I always panic when I present and feel that if I do something wrong, the audience will say something. But I know this isn't true. They are all presenting for the same reason, and we all make mistakes.

Senior Project Presentation 1

*The objective of my five minute presentation is to inform students about the difference between skin care products that are truly natural and/or organic and those who claim to be.

1. I will begin by asking, "How many of you, by a show of hands, believe that they are using natural and/or organic skin care products?" Most girls,and some guys as well do use some sort of skin care product om their face, whether its a moisturizer or sunscreen.

2. I will then pick on a few student and ask if they know if the products they are using are really natural or organic, and how they know they are.

3. After a few answers, I will begin a brief explanation of what natural and organic is, and one way to know if they are, which is researching the company and understanding the ingredients used in them.

4. After explaining, I will show my visual. My visual will be of two skin care products (one product that claims to be natural/organic, and one who really is) and I will explain some ingredients and the information on the packaging itself.

5. I will then conclude by asking one or two students what they gathered from the presentation.

Interview Check

My first interview will be with the head of marketing, Tim, from Seacret, a new skin care product line. He will be able to answer as many questions regarding my topic due to the fact that these past few weeks, they have been launching their products into the skin care market. Once or twice a week, a seminar is held to have beauty professionls purchase the products to use for their clients.

Questions to consider asking:
How difficult is it when the products you are marketing is new to the beauty industry?
How can I help distinguish my self from other companies who are similar when trying to market?
Does money play a huge role when trying to market these products?
How much time do you need before you can begin marketing the products?
Does going to school to take classes about this topic help you more?

Senior Project Topic

Topic: Marketing Skin Care

I picked this topic because I do have experience with this topic. My mother works in the beauty industry and I am often there to help her sell the skin care products. Though she did not create the skin care products, I do have a few skills on how to persuade customers into buying our products. I also chose this topic because I love to be around the beauty industry and hope to one day have my own line of skin care products. Throughout the year, I will research and become close to this topic and hope to gain the knowledge I need to some day have my own line and to help my mother with the business. Researching can allow me top gain even more ideas and skills to profit and expand my mother's business.