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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 7, 1977)
*/vs \n iditions month. Tower, on, will n Festi- tourna- 51, was V^ednes- he only intment 1978. million n. The month, n seek- tion re- ndation nds it is i public Stephen a mis- Jr. The of one to get?” le thing il. They ally em- sasic re nt to do Local merchants get advice from Aggies Marketing class practices in real world Area merchants are using a course L Texas A&M University to gain better insights into what will make their businesses more appealing to allege students. Custom Sounds, T.J.’s, Bill’s Carden Center, Swensen’s Ice Cream Factory, and the Bank of are a few of the local busi nesses that have taken advantage of the marketing research offered by students taking Marketing 445. Dr. Donald E. Stem, Jr., course instructor, recently said the course has been taught here for some time, but that he is responsible for the present format of the class. Stem said there is no charge for the service unless the business re quests very extensive research. When this happens, the merchants compensate the students for the extra work, but a student working on an average project receives no pay for his services. “This is a is a typical course in marketing research technology. The only thing unique about it is that it gets you in contact with the real world,” Stem said. “This has been good experience because the local businesses have been extremely ca pable and more than willing to help the students.” One or more students are as signed a local merchant to work with in an effort to determine if the mer chant’s advertising and marketing strategies are effective. The stu dents compile a comprehensive re^ search survey at the completion of their study. A typical research survey consists of an overview that outlines measur able problems in the existing mar keting strategy and suggestions for improvements. Researchers rely heavily on Texas A&M students to provide opinions and suggestions for the data that is included in the surveys. This is done by telephone surveys of the A&M student body. Each re searcher contacts approximately 40 students. Their phone numbers are provided by the housing office. Lynn Harper and Susan Gatlin, senior marketing majors, are work ing together on a marketing re search survey for Swensen’s Ice Cream Factory, a new business in College Station that is to open in the late spring. Gatlin said she is trying to deter mine if the people she surveys have tried Swensen’s Ice Cream in other cities and if they have, how it com pared to other ice cream. She is also trying to determine what form of media is most effective for tlieir ad vertisements. Harper said the course is entirely different from any that she has ever taken before. “I’ll be able to tie together a lot of the courses I have had in past semesters such as computer sci ence, statistics and all of my market ing courses,” Harper said. “This course is a pain, but it is a good pain,” said Gatlin, ‘‘You learn an appreciation for what goes into research. I would like to be a buyer for some firm after I graduate, and this research has made me see what customers want. This will help me a lot when 1 start to work. ” Phil Callahan, owner of the local franchise for Swensen’s Ice Cream Factory,, said the marketing re search projects are an excellent op portunity for a small business to get some valuable consultation, free. “It is an outstanding idea for stu dents to be in a learning experience while in school and at the same time able to apply it to a real-world situa tion,” Callahan said. Paul Newell, owner of Custom Sounds, said that he is in the middle of the second survey conducted for his business by the Marketing 445 It takes a little bit of our time but we get a lot of real good information out of it. I was surprised at how much the students could do,” he said. CASUAL FASHIONS for GUYS & GALS TOP DRAWER Culpepper Plaza THE BATTALION FRIDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1977 Page 3 Knowledge is your best protection. < / / _ \ > Carl Bussells X/Diakond Room 3731 E. 29th 846-470K Town & Country Center MEMBER AMERICAN GEM SOCIEIY Need jumper start or male escort? Ask the man with the yellow tickets levision unora is ;art, 82. e youth levision an til the Yednes- of situa- e prose- pected they do lie clean lifestyle »ity. We tual and dividual i too of- iversity, klahoma ^e think oblems, 0 ■ Litera- Spanish :he tra- 5 man s By LARRY PARKER “Believe it or not, we do more than issue traffic tickets,” said Tom Parsons, director of security and traffic at Texas A&M University. The records for September prove that the police have done more than practice their writing skills on yel low slips of paper. They have as sisted 95 vehicles with “jumper starts,” escorted 190 women from dark parking areas and recovered about $8,170 worth of stolen prop erty. The campus police perform these ;ood Samaritan” deeds as well as many other tasks and respon sibilities as a part of their job. Some students think we are out to get them,” said Ottie L. Luther, university police chief. Traffic com plaints from some of the 20,754 ve hicle owners seemed to agree with Luther’s statement. Complaints have poured into the police station at an average rate of 115 per day since Sept. 12. However, 60 per cent of the complaints were ex cused, according to police records. Forty-six criminal incidents were investigated during the month, 16 of which involved bicycle thefts. The main crime on campus, is bicycle theft, but in almost every case the bicycle was not locked or registered,” Parsons said. Other crimes on campus have also been misdemeanors (crimes invol- ving $200 or less). They involved stolen calculators and minor van- Round and round Ryle Field they jog this Sunday If you ve ever wondered how 'T'any bps you can run around the Kyle Field track in an hour, you’ll have an excellent opportunity to hud out Sunday afternoon. Brazos Valley Joggers Club offi cials will stage such an event at 3:15, "ith personnel on hand to time, count laps, and dispense water to , e circling participants. The annual °ur run immediately follows the cubs traditional one-mile “fun run. dalism. There were 119 non criminal (non-offensive) incidents reported such as fire alarms, reports of bent traffic signs, and location of students in emergencies. “Most of our time and labor force is spent in security patrol, said Luther. They have conducted 945 building security checks. And of course, the campus police look around campus for illegally parked vehicles. According to park ing lot surveys, lot 50 was the most used lot on campus. The police re ports stated that students were re sorting to illegal parking rather than parking across Wellborn road in lots 56 and 61 (west campus). Survey re ports stated that there were 750-900 m /vpTn&ml>a Eddie Dominguez 66 Joe Arciniega “74 empty parking spaces daily in lots 56 and 61. In the staff parking areas, on four consecutive days there was an aver age of 575 spaces available daily. CHAMPIONS BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION'S MOST EXCITING NEW DISCO BOOGIE & BOOZE SCREEN TESTS NIGHTLY * s The HOME of the $ 2 00 Steak All Day 11:00 a.m.-ll:00 p.m. 7 Days a Week 1 8 Sizzlin Jr. Round-Up i | | IN THE AGGIELAND INN Open: 6-12 Sun.-Thurs. 6-1 Fri.-Sat. 5 6 Sirloin Steak, Baked Potato or F.F. or Hash Browns, Texas Toast plus coffee, tea, or soft drink. Steak on a Stick, with or without mushroom gravy. Baked Potato or F.F. or Hash Browns, Texas Toast plus coffee, tea, or soft drink. \ Your Choice: ^1" for Lunch or Dinner 1701 S. Texas Ave. Bryan I If you want the real thing, not frozen or canned ... We call It “Mexican Food Supreme." Dallas location: 3071 Northwest Hwy 352-8570 The Battalion Call 845-2611 ds out onigW ercent u-Ai* 1 ress Can.1 . Rusty Kim T)’ - Cllcmut Wl* Liz 1"** . . . KY,. H . Dougin «rr.v. ClM ,hn U . Dr. nl n/itin": B BUY ONE — GET ONE FREE SKEETER’S JUNCTION RESTAURANT Culpepper Plaza College Station, TX Junction of Hwy. 6 & Hwy. 30 °uy One Por Boy or Submarine Sandwich and Get One FREE Hogue Bun, Salami, Bologna, Turkey, Lettuce, Tomatoes, 2 Cheeses. Includes Potato Chips ^present this coupon Expires Oct. 14, 1977 Present This Coupon & Get $1.00 Off Regular Price CHICKEN FRIED STEAK Reg. Price $2.95 Texas Toast & French Fries All meat, No soybean patties Expires Oct. 14, 1977 SKEETER’S JUNCTION RESTAURANT Culpepper Plaza at Hwy. 30 & Hwy. 6 College Station ©1977 Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, Wis