Hip Pops Client Summary

CLIENT SUMMARY

Reilly Megee Advertising Message Strategy Landrum Spring 2015

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COMPANY HISTORY

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BRAND HISTORY

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MARKETING HISTORY

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SWOT ANALYSIS

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3C ANALYSIS

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CREATIVE BRIEF

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COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

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VISUAL INSPIRATION

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BRAINSTORMING SKETCHBOOK

COMPANY HISTORY

Four years ago, Hip Pops founder Melissa Fontaine wanted to escape the corporate world and do something she truly enjoyed. That something turned out to be making the delectable treats many have come to love. It began as fun word play with her record label-owning husband - how many pops could they name after popular hip hop artists? The game quickly escalated and grew into a feasible business plan. Thus, “Hip Pops” was born.

Fontaine started off experimenting with pop flavors and selling them to friends, and she was amazed at the result. If she was going to get serious about it, however, she needed a kitchen space. Soon Fontaine moved into Chase Street Warehouses with the hope of having more space to make her product. To her surprise, the rather secluded space had a large amount of foot traffic from kids and parents leaving the Canopy Studio.

Realizing the business potential, Fontaine altered her original plan and converted the space into a storefront. The pops’ popularity quickly grew amongst this group, marking a significant change in Fontaine’s ideas for the business. Originally thinking that Hip Pops would cater mostly to adults, she noticed rapidly that kids would be her primary consumers.

As time went on, Fontaine expanded her business as well as her pop flavor options. With over 60 flavors, ranging from fruity, chocolatethemed, or vanilla-based, Fontaine is continually creating new pops. She also offers customflavor pops, allowing clients like Terrapin Beer Company to tailor the pops to their needs. Hip Pops is currently looking into new forms of their product, such as the creation of pop ice cubes.

The product is constantly evolving and growing with the company.

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Fontaine doesn’t just sell pops from her store, the Pop Shop. She also takes her mobile cart around the town and to festivals, farmers markets, and catered events, bringing frozen joy to wedding guests and carnival-goers alike.

Occasionally an extra worker is brought on to staff the cart, but for the majority of the time, Hip Pops is a one woman show. Working with event planners and independent entities, the Hip Cart is available to cater any event. In addition, Fontaine offers the option to purchase a cooler full of pops for smaller parties. The product is also available for wholesale in “Daily” and in restaurants around the Athens and Watkinsville areas.

Hip Pops has since been recognized by Flagpole Magazine, Ampersand Magazine and more. It has been named one of Athens’ favorite local business and continues to grow.

BRAND HISTORY TAG LINE

LOGO

PACKAGING

As for the visual side of the brand, the colors used in the logo are purple, black, and white. However, a broader color palette exists in the store space. Bright colors like blue, green, pink, and purple adorn the space. Because these colors persist throughout the Hip Pops website and social media accounts, many have come to associate a wide range of vibrant hues with the frozen treat company. Neither the logo nor the tagline have changed since the company’s beginnings. The logo, company name, and tag line all relate the company to the music scene, making the hip hop inspired pop names relevant. The tag line pays homage to the popular 2004 Snoop Dogg song, “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” placing a catchy tune in customers’ minds from the moment they read the tag. The visual elements combine to portray the company as light-hearted, trendy, and possessive of a relatable sense of humor.

As the company’s sole employee, Fontaine is a part of her brand. The way she talks with her customers is extremely reminiscent of the brand’s visual aspects. She interacts with customers casually and joyfully, passing on her contagious happiness to others. Conversations on social media are friendly and quirky, and questions are never left unanswered. The website blog, Ryman Recommends, is written through the perspective of Fontaine’s dog and the company’s unofficial mascot, Ryman. The tone is lighthearted and the concept is cute, giving kudos to local businesses and people.

Overall, the Hip Pop brand seeks to make users feel fun, and fresh. The youthful product instills a sense of giddiness in purchasers while still maintaining an air of stylishness.

LOGO COLOR PALETTE

BRIGHT COLOR SCHEME

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MARKETING HISTORY

As a relatively new business, Hip Pops has a low marketing budget. Fontaine relies heavily on cost-minimal marketing methods, putting most of her effort into social media, word of mouth, and events. Hip Pops has yet to utilize TV and radio mediums.

PRINT

Hip Pops placed a print advertisement in a local newsletter for moms for a three month duration. Fontaine has been informed that the advertisement ran for longer than the allotted time and may still be included in the newsletter today. This was intended to appeal to her mom and child audiences here in Athens, expanding on her popularity from Canopy Studios’ crowd.

PUBLICATIONS

Hip Pops was featured for free in Ampersand magazine, a student-run publication. The article talked about the company’s origins, services, and product. The article was very positive and touched on the creative and trendy aspects of Fontaine’s business. The company also received an article on Online Athens and a few brief mentions in Flagpole, as well as being nominated for several 2015 “Flagpole Favorites” awards, including “Favorite Local Business,” “Favorite Dessert,” “Favorite Ice Cream,” and “Uniquely Athens Restaurant/Shop.” Hip Pops was also featured on Broad Collective’s blog and the Chancey Charm wedding blog, which claimed that, “If you are planning an outdoor wedding this summer, these delicious and refreshing treats are a must have for your guests.”

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SOCIAL MEDIA

In the modern age of technology, a strong social media presence is a necessity. Hip Pops currently has an Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook account. Fontaine posts to each regularly, showing pictures of events, pops, and customers, offering deals, and announcing fun company updates. Hip Pops’ following is growing, with Instagram at 683 followers, Twitter at 380, and Facebook at 756. The current reaction to each individual post is low, but the numbers steadily grow over time and during Hip Pops’ open season. When posts are boosted on Facebook, they see more exposure and thus more reactions. However, this approach is costly and is only done occasionally.

Fontaine also frequently retweets, shares, or reposts other nearby businesses and artists, building relationships with other influential Athens business people in the public eye.

WORD OF MOUTH

Customers are the vehicle for word of mouth marketing, and with a loyal customer base comes rave reviews. Most of Hip Pops’ customers are Athens families, and as Moms often compare reviews of things they’ve gotten for their children, pops are not exempt.

Adult women are also typically avid users of Facebook. In today’s society, social media is the technological version of “word of mouth.”

Customers post pictures of them enjoying pops and type out evaluations of Hip Pops to pass along to their friends.

NETWORKING

Networking and partnerships play a key role in the Athens business scene. Hip Pops is constantly connecting and communicating online with other local companies. Not only does this build a rapport with other businesses, encouraging mutual promotion, but it shows loyal customers of those companies that Hip Pops is approved by their go-to stores and services.

Hip Pops has held a loose partnership with Eptime Events in the past. The event planning company referred Hip Pops to many brides and party hosts, drumming up a significant amount of catering business for Fontaine. In the most recent year, Hip Pops has seen a much smaller amount of referrals from Eptime.

Fontaine is also tangentially related to the Broad Collective, a group dedicated to supporting and exposing local Athens businesses. The group is opening a location at Chase Street, which automatically draws a connection to Hip Pops. Through networking with the artists and companies involved in the Collective, Fontaine can gain meaningful connections and spread the word about businesses in exchange for some promotion of hers. Broad Collective is steadily growing, and creating a connection there at the ground level could allow Hip Pops to grow along with the group.

Hip Pops has a partnership with Daily, a grocer who sells the pops wholesale, increasing awareness to those who shop there. Hip Pops is also sold in Watkinsville and Athens area restaurants.

EVENTS

The Hip Cart allows the company to make an appearance at a variety of events. Fontaine provides pops for kids’ birthday parties. This targets two of her markets. As parents drop off and pick up their children, they’ll see the popular party favors, the ease at which they are ordered, delivered, and eaten, and the enjoyment that their kids get from the pops. When planning future kids’ parties, they’ll turn to Hip Pops for catering. On the other side of things, the children will rave about the pops to their parents, urging them to stop by Fontaine’s shop more often.

The Hip Cart also makes appearances at festivals like Athens Twilight. Because festivals do not sell a guaranteed number of pops, they are less desirable events. While it does increase the awareness of Hip Pops in new audiences, the high set-up fee of the cart and the potential fee for festival space can often outweigh the profits of the day’s sales.

Terrapin Beer Company also hires the Hip Cart to cater their biggest event of the year and to create beer-infused pops. This demonstrates to event guests the versatility of Hip Pops, the trendy vibe of the company, and the deliciousness of the product. Spreading awareness and gaining followers is key.

Weddings are also a big marketing point for Hip Pops. Hosting a trendy wedding and oneupping your friends is a constant battle in the wedding world. The stylish and fresh presence that Hip Pops brings to events adds a unique charm to any reception, a fact that wedding guests will be quick to take note of for their own big day.

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SWOT

ANALYSIS STRENGTHS

What does Hip Pops do well?

• Experimenting with flavors & easily adapting to requests • Creativity with flavors, design, and partnerships • Communicating with children and adults and forming lasting bonds • Bringing out the inner child in adults, encouraging a fun atmosphere and repeat visits to Hip Pops • Streamlining ingredient costs • Low cost of rent for the Pop Shop • Humor and music puns • Fresh ingredients in fruity pops, healthy What unique resources can Hip Pops draw on?

• Foot traffic from nearby establishments (i.e.

Canopy Studios) • Chase Street becoming a more popular destination spot • Trendy and large college student population • Located in Athens, a stylish destination spot for weddings, many possible catering gigs What do others see as their strengths?

• Low prices • Loyal, albeit small, customer base • Local business • Flexibility in flavors and services • Good customer services, kind • Unique product, limited direct local competitors • Healthy

WEAKNESSES

What could Hip Pops improve?

• Building new relationships with restaurants

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• Brand awareness • Decreasing their dependency on Canopy Studios traffic • Assertiveness in business environment • Packaging wholesale process Where do you have fewer resources than others?

• Less money for promotions and advertising • Only one location • Must buy ingredients instead of growing them What are others likely to see as weaknesses?

• Website: impersonal “about us page,” inconsistent blog postings, confusing “hours” information • Out of the way location, low convenience • Not walkable from UGA campus • Limited flavors at any given time

OPPORTUNITIES

What opportunities are open to Hip Pops?

• Epting Events: reconnect and nurture relationship • Connect with other Athens-area event planning companies or venues • Reach out to local stores (i.e. Cheeky Peach, Elijana Cosmetics) to work at their events • Wholesale food: strengthen partnership with Daily Groceries, begin work with other grocers • Restaurants: continue working with Krimson Kafe, contact other restaurants who serve desserts from external vendors (i.e. Heirloom Cafe, Cali & Tito’s) • Farmer’s Markets: participate in the less strict markets (i.e. West Broad Farmers Market • Terrapin Beer Company: inquire about catering future events • Festivals: purchase Hip Cart space for Twilight

Festival, AthFest, Slingshot Festival • Football Games: market coolers for tailgates, find a way to sell pops amongst tailgaters • Sorority and fraternity events, reach out to members at open chapter meetings • Non-greek UGA organization events, catering What trends could Hip Pops take advantage of?

• Natural, fresh products in high demand • Popularity of frozen yogurt declining (Yoforia locations in downtown Athens and Five Points have closed) • Artisan pops gaining popularity How can they turn their strengths into opportunities?

• Market their custom flavor batches as a way to bring in new customers • Nearby college population: sororities, fraternities, club events • Appeal to UGA music students, draw connection between hip hop puns and their musical interests • Wedding destination city: while Hip Pops has worked weddings before, the planning has mostly been through event companies.

Appealing to brides is a great next step (i.e.

Bridal magazines, social media outreach)

THREATS

What threats could harm Hip Pops?

• Seasonal customers and weather • Pops could be a passing fad • If the wholesale market isn’t tapped into soon, King of Pops could take it over and limit

opportunities for entry into that section of the market What is their competition doing?

• King of Pops is growing, buying new locations in the Atlanta area and expanding as far south as Macon, GA and as far north as Greenville, NC. They also sell out of food trucks and carts.

They have also purchased a 66-acre farm in order to grow their own fresh ingredients and host farm-to-table events. In Athens alone, KoP is catering local store events (i.e. Elijana Cosmetics + Umano trunk show) and selling their product out of restaurants.

• Menchie’s frozen yogurt has two locations in Athens with no current intentions to expand.

They do, however, hire media interns from Grady College to do advertising and PR work.

What threats do their weaknesses expose them to?

• If Canopy moves, much of Hip Pop’s foot traffic will disappear • If less desirable businesses move into Chase Street, it lowers the chance for expansion • People may not buy a pop if their favorite flavor is not in stock • Packaging costs could markup the wholesale product too much, grocers could choose to go with less expensive and more established dessert options • Other, more professionally aggressive dessert companies could build relationships with local restaurants, blocking out Hip Pops’ entry into those eateries.

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SWOT

WORKSHEET

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3C

ANALYSIS COMPANY

Hip Pops has a lot of promise. It’s fun, clever, and unique. To efficiently expand, however, Fontaine must tap into less explored markets and improve communication with her customers and other businesses.

• Long Term Goal: Increase event catering jobs. By approaching organizations and event planning companies with more frequency and confidence, Hip Pop’s network will expand and partnerships will increase. Event hosts should refer the Hip Cart service to friends, and therefore the hope is that the company will see an exponential growth in gigs.

• Long Term Goal: Break into the Athens music scene. The product is relevant to music lovers and venues alike because of the hip hop related pop names. By selling out of concert locations or marketing to its attendees, Hip Pops could also tap into the trendy collegeaged market present in the town because of the University of Georgia.

• Short Term Goal: Improve the company’s online presence. Information is hard to find on the website and some areas, such as the “About Us” page, need to be expanded on. People visit a business’ website to learn more about it and find contact and product information quickly. Both of these things could be improved.

• Short Term Goal: Increase door-to-door networking. Be bold and visit restaurants

and shops alike, inquiring whether they sell external desserts or have upcoming events that need catering.

CUSTOMERS

The Hip Pop target audience has several different segments, each of which thinks differently and wants unique things from the company.

• The Fun Mom: These are the moms that want to be appreciated by their kids and their kids’ friends as the “fun” mom. They’ll take groups to the Pop Shop to give children a great - and relatively healthy - experience. Because these moms are so invested, they also want what’s best for their young ones. For these reasons, the best way to approach this audience is through the company’s upbeat atmosphere and - usually - healthy product.

• Youngsters: All kids who love popsicles should love Hip Pops. The possible problem of kids being unreceptive to the unconventional names or flavors became a nonissue as Fontaine claims that her young customers are bold and accepting in their flavor picks.

While the hip hop references might go over their heads, kids understand the language of dessert. The youngsters love bright colors and happy environments, both of which the Hip Pops brand and space provide. As for advertising, this audience could become attached to certain pop flavors and the brand as a whole if they were given characters

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3C

ANALYSIS (CONTINUED) to love. Something to keep in mind is personifying pops as their corresponding hip hop stars.

• Hip College Kids: This audience will be open to try new things, especially if there’s cheap food involved. They’re appreciative of humor and modern music and are all for cute, trendy businesses. However, as college students, they’re constantly busy and driving somewhere for a pop isn’t always feasible with their schedule. The best way to get to these guys is bringing the pop to them. Event catering, pop coolers, and festival days are going to be crucial. The aspects of Hip Pops that will be most appealing are its unique style, music puns, and potential for mobility.

• Pinterest Brides: These are the brides that scour the internet for the cutest, most unique, and currently stylish ideas for their weddings. They want to host an event that their friends will talk about and the blogs will repost. The best way to target this group is to showcase Hip Pops as an up-and-coming trendy addition to any cute or vintage wedding atmosphere. They - and their guests - will also appreciate the music puns!

COMPETITORS

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It’s important to understand both direct and indirect competition in order to set yourself apart from them.

• King of Pops: This company is Hip Pop’s closest competitor. They sell pops and offer similar services, including catering, a cart for events, a cooler of pops for parties, and storefront locations, albeit many more. Not only this, but they have a food truck and a farm where they will soon grow their own, natural ingredients. King of Pops now has this claim of being natural and healthy which

will be hard to beat unless Hip Pops starts growing its own supplies. The biggest things that set Fontaine’s company apart are the product’s connection to music and the label of “Local Athens Business.”

• Menchie’s: Menchie’s is a worldwide franchise company that appeals to children, marketing their cartoon yogurt mascot and his food friends. With over 400 locations, their tactic may work in some areas.

In Athens, however, trendsetting and economizing is what it’s all about. With the heavy interest in local businesses, Hip Pops has this advantage over the frozen yogurt chain. Menchie’s does not do event catering, but it does hold in-store fundraiser nights for various organizations. This is a popular option for K-12 schools and college clubs, presumably drawing a large of amount of business in on designated fundraiser nights.

• Ben & Jerry’s: This is also an international company. The ice cream store markets to a broader audience, specifically targeting young adults ages 15-30 with their celebrityspecific flavors, such as Steven Colbert’s Americone Dream. The Athens location does do ice cream catering and ice cream birthday cakes, potentially taking business away from Hip Pop’s birthday party pop coolers. Like Menchie’s, Ben & Jerry’s hosts fundraiser nights, drawing in crowds from local schools.

The location is also centered in the hub of Downtown Athens, pulling in a lot of spontaneous traffic off the streets. Because of Hip Pop’s out-of-the-way storefront, people drive there with a purpose to get pops. Not many stumble in, as they do in the ice cream store. In addition, Ben & Jerry’s caters to the late night crowds with their 12:00am closing time on Friday and Saturdays.

CREATIVE BRIEF

Client/Product Name: Hip Pops Campaign Name: Funkify Your Life Ad Headline: Don’t Let Your Pop Be Cooler Than You Name: Reilly Megee Strategy: Consumers should gain awareness of Hip Pops as an Athens dessert option. They should

see Hip Pops as a fun and trendy supplement to their concert experience, ultimately becoming loyal to the company for their go-to show treat.

Target Audience: “Hip, Music-Savvy Athenians,” stylish college students and Athens locals (aged in their late teens and twenties) with a sweet tooth, a taste for the town’s music scene, and a good eye for trends.

Benefits: Hip Pops are a portable snack, perfect for walking around a music festival or concert venue. Once done, the trash is minimal and easy to stow away in a purse or pocket if a trashcan is nowhere to be found. The pops are cheap and thus a refreshing change from expensive concert venue food. For people who just spent a lot of money on show tickets and couldn’t sneak food past security, the inexpensive treat is perfect. The product is also cold, which could save customers from the heat of concert crowds or the hot sun. The punny pop names also act as conversation starters for the masses of people in concert venues.

Main Message: Hip Pops’ quirky essence and punny relevance to the music world make the treat a perfect addition to a night out in Downtown Athens’ eclectic concert atmosphere.

Visuals: There should be bright colors, clean lines, high contrast, and musical elements (i.e. microphones or pops dressed as music artists). It should be in a style similar to band and concert posters.

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GOODPOP COMPANY ANALYSIS GoodPop makes all-natural frozen pops, seeking to provide the public with a sweet treat without the artificial ingredients. Founder Daniel Goetz grew tired of wondering what was in the desserts he was eating and set out to make a change. The company started out in 2009 in Austin farmers markets and has since grown considerably.

GoodPops can be seen at multiple food expos, whole food and specialty stores in over 15 states and 100 locations, all over town in a food truck, and out of a cart at various events and festivals.

The company’s social media presence is strong, with 5,060 Instagram followers, 20,272 Facebook followers, and 2,502 Twitter followers.

The pictures of pops are all creative, colorful, and aesthetically pleasing. A food photographer is likely to blame, a service that Fontaine could easily replicate with her eye for design. The prettier a post looks, the more people are likely to pay attention to it. They release new flavors on social media in creative ways, drawing people back by combatting monotony and keeping things interesting. GoodPop also has giveaways on social media, a wise practice to keep followers engaged and invested in the content. Interactions

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with their audience are frequent and upbeat.

Retweeting pictures of customers enjoying pops both makes followers feel special and recognized and works to demonstrate the popularity of the product to others.

Yelp reviews of the company are abundant on the web. In today’s technological world, consumers turn to review websites to gain information about new products. Having a good base of customer testimonials on sites like Yelp is a big advantage. Fontaine would benefit from encouraging her loyal customers to write reviews of Hip Pops on Yelp and other specifically-Athens review platforms.

GoodPop has also been featured in several big name publications, like the New York Times, Oprah Magazine, and ABC News. Because the company is so beloved in its hometown of Austin, the local newspapers are quick to write about it. Ryan Gosling was once pictured enjoying a pop in the Texas sun. As a viral internet meme sensation, Gosling only pushed GoodPop further into the spotlight. Fontaine is lucky she finds herself in a big music discovery town - reaching out to artists who found their start in Athens and giving them a few free pops could potentially give the business a wave of new publicity.

As Hip Pops partners with local companies, GoodPop partners with several nonprofits and takes time to do philanthropic work. This adds to the company’s public image and brand, showing that the business is kind and, just like their pops, wholesome.

Through its food truck and mobile cart, GoodPop hits a lot of events, from private parties to the Austin City Limits music festival. Goetz occasionally posts on social media where they are located for the day. This is a wise practice, as it stops customers from having to find the cart or truck and does the searching for them.

Fontaine could work to publicize the occasions that she takes her pops mobile to draw out loyal customers and curious newcomers.

GoodPops has also done many food expos over the years. A good strategy if a company has their eye on wholesale, expos expose a product to investors and retailers. The business’ biggest selling point is their lack of artificial flavors, which are big buzz words in the modern food community.

For Fontaine, food expos are less practical due to her focus on catering and the storefront, as well

as the high cost of entering expos.

To drum up sales in grocery stores, GoodPop owner Goetz stops by with his cart and gives out free samples. Not only does this inform shoppers of a product they may have previously been unaware of, it applies a little social pressure to purchase a box of pops after taking a sample and interacting with the owner. Very personable in his interactions with customers, Goetz also helps the brand image through his supposed friendliness and good humor.

The newest portion of the business is online ordering at $5.99 a box. The flavor options are limited, but it allows people to order a natural and healthy treat from wherever they are. Fontaine does not yet have the capabilities to do this, but it is something to consider for the distant future.

GoodPop grew very quickly, expanding nationwide in just six years. With this quick growth often comes losses. Recently, a few locations have closed around Texas and Arizona. GoodPop is a company to watch as it hopefully learns from its mistakes and popularizes pops and healthy desserts across the country.

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VISUAL

INSPIRATION

WHOLESALE PACKAGING

HIP POP PARTY INVITES

SUMMER SHAPES IN ADS

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CONCERT-STYLE POSTERS FOR ATHENS THEATERS

POPS OF HIP HOP STARS

STICKERS

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BRAINSTORMING SKETCHBOOK

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