Food Trucks Are Stale. Line Up for Food Scooters

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 2 Starting and Growing Your Business, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description:  Food trucks helped make street vending a $1.5 billion industry in the U.S. last year, according to research firm IBISWorld. Plenty of aspiring entrepreneurs are salivating. But getting a full-service food truck rolling can cost upwards of $100,000, says Howard Leonhardt, who recently launched a venture to sell food trikes and scooters for a… Read more »

Apple iWatch Seen as ‘$6B Opportunity’

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information.

Description: Bloomberg Industries Anand Srinivasan reports on possible product developments at Apple. He speaks on Bloomberg Television’s “Money Moves.” (Source: Bloomberg) Source: Bloomberg.com – video report Date: Mar 05, 2013 Link: http://bloom.bg/13AKpu9 Questions for Discussions: What is the primary selling feature of iWatch that gives Apple competitive advantage? What do you think the key software development… Read more »

Why Redfin, Zillow, and Trulia Haven’t Killed Off Real Estate Brokers

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information.

Description: Over the last decade, the Internet has seeped into that bedrock of the U.S. economy: the housing market. A group of growing and mostly profitable websites have sprung up to help guide consumers through what in many cases will be the largest and most nerve-wracking transaction of their lives. Four sites—Redfin and Zillow (Z),… Read more »

College Students Deal Hunt on Mobile

Posted by & filed under Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description:  Mobile plays a role in more of everyday life for college students. College students have a voracious appetite for mobile apps that help them socialize and communicate. And a November 2012 online survey of 689 US college students conducted by Study Breaks and Campus2Careers finds that they are also committed mobile deal hunters. Source: … Read more »

Classic Toys Redesigned to Traverse Generations

Posted by & filed under Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description:  To Hasbro, no one is too young or too old to play with a Transformers robot, watch a Transformers television show or play a Transformers video game. Source:  NYTimes.com Date: Mar 01, 2013 Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/02/business/hasbro-expands-transformers-brand-into-new-media.html?ref=business&_r=0 Questions for Discussions: Describe the strategic planning at Hasbro. Do you think it is a good way to grow… Read more »

Steady Gains for Mobile Paid Search

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Description:  Nearly one in four paid clicks came from a mobile device in Q4 Source:  eMarketer.com Date: Feb 22, 2013 Link: http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Steady-Gains-Mobile-Paid-Search/1009686#EqlIRUBFwRKOmTZo.99 Questions for Discussions: What does this report say about the growth of mobile search advertising? How will marketing operations be expected to change as these trends develop?

Lose your gloves? There’s an app for that

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 2 Starting and Growing Your Business, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: Tech is fashion’s latest accessory on designer Asher Levine’s smartphone connected clothing. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Feb 15, 2013 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2013/02/15/t-gps-clothes.cnnmoney/ Questions for Discussions: What are the new product possibilities for this technology in the fashion and other industries? Why are partnerships with other firms the better way to bring this technoloy… Read more »

Florists now dread Valentine’s Day

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 2 Starting and Growing Your Business, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description:  Some flower shop owners hate Valentine’s Day, losing money on big orders that flow in from big e-commerce groups like FTD, 1-800-Flowers and Teleflora. Source: CNNMoney.com Date: Feb 14, 2013 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2013/02/14/smallbusiness/order-flowers/index.html?iid=SF_SB_Lead Questions for Discussions: Describe the working relationship between small business shops and e-commerce marketers that feed them orders. How can small business… Read more »

Hermes $10,000 Birkin Purse Seen Leading to Record Sales

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description:  For decades, fashionistas have known that a Birkin bag is a safe style bet — if you can get your hands on one. That demand makes its producer, Hermes International SCA, the surest bet in the luxury industry when it comes to sales growth. Source:  Bloomberg.com Date: Feb 11, 2013 Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-10/hermes-10-000-birkin-purse-seen-leading-to-record-sales-retail.html Questions for… Read more »

U.S. Homeowners Are Repeating Their Mistakes

Posted by & filed under Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description:  If there’s one thing Americans should have learned from the recession, it’s the importance of diversifying risk. Middle-class households had too much of their net worth tied up in their homes and were too exposed to stocks through 401(k)s and other investments. Source:  Businessweek.com Date: Feb 14, 2013 Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-02-14/u-dot-s-dot-homeowners-are-repeating-their-mistakes#r=hp-lst Questions for Discussions: What… Read more »