Description: Few people in this city 800 miles south of Detroit cared much about the auto industry until Hyundai announced it would build cars here nine years ago. Source: NYTimes.com Date: 02/19/2011 Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/19/business/19hyundai.html?ref=business Questions for discussion: Why have these automobile manufacturers thrived in Alabama while others elsewhere in the U.S. have struggled in recent… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Part 4: Marketing Management
Valentine’s delivery: 14 million roses
Description: Valentine’s Day orders bring 20 percent of annual revenue for ProFlowers. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 02/11/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2011/02/11/n_valentines_day_proflowers.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion:  Who is the target market and describe their buying behavior. How important is the Internet for this business? What do you think is the message intended and received when roses are… Read more »
Why food prices have skyrocketed
Description: U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack says corn-based ethanol didn’t cause record food prices, weather and trade policies did. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 02/10/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/markets/2011/02/10/mkts_usda_food_prices.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion:  Summarize the reasons for the global rise in food prices. Do you think bio-fuel production contributes to higher prices? How does population and… Read more »
Analysis: Microsoft’s Nokia deal no slam-dunk yet
Description: Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) has yet to persuade investors that a deal to put its Windows software on Nokia Corp (NOK1V.HE) phones is not just two losers hoping to combine into one winner. Source: Reuters.com  Date: 02/11/2011 Link: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/11/us-microsoft-idUSTRE71A78Z20110211 Questions for discussion: Do you think this strategic alliance will be successful? What favorable and… Read more »
Walgreens Launches Campaign to Push Store-Brand Products
Description: THE next time consumers visit a Walgreens drugstore looking for something to soothe their achy heads, the company hopes they will reach for its private-label pain reliever and not a brand name. Source: NYTimes.com Date: 02/10/2011 Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/11/business/media/11adco.html?ref=business Questions for discussion: Do you think the use of digital media for this campaign is a… Read more »
Excess is back as Ferrari sales soar
Description: Sales of the Italian automaker rose 20% in North America in 2010 and big gains are being made in China. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 02/04/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/luxury/2011/02/04/lux_ferrari.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion:  Who is the target market for this firm? Why have sales fluctuated? How should the company handle these issues? How do you… Read more »
Will millions of people pay for iPad news?
Description: Media companies are making big bets on tablet-friendly newspapers and magazines — even as they bleed cash chasing a still-tiny audience. Source: CNNMoney.com  Date: 02/05/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/04/technology/ipad_magazines/index.htm Questions for discussion: Who is the target market for this app? Estimate the size of the potential market in terms of subscribers and dollars of revenue…. Read more »
In a Graying Population, Business Opportunity
Description: IT’S not easy being gray. For the first time ever, getting out of a car is no picnic. My back is hunched. And I’m holding on to handrails as I lurch upstairs. Source: NYTimes.com Date: 02/05/2011 Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/business/06aging.html?ref=business Questions for discussion: Summarize the basic points made in this report. What are the primary opportunities… Read more »
Why Netflix avoids new movies
Description: The movie rental company has focused on cheaper, older films for its streaming catalog to keep costs down. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 01/29/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2011/01/28/tm_netflix_new_releases_expensive.fortune/ Questions for discussion:  Who is the target market for this firm? Do you think the firm has a sustainable business model? How do you think this market… Read more »
Your private data pays for ‘free’ Facebook and Google
Description: “The cost of reading the New York Times for free is being tracked. The cost of being on Facebook is being data-mined,” Peter Eckersley, a senior staff technologist for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said Friday at a panel discussion on the intersection of technology and privacy. Source: CNNMoney.com  Date: 01/28/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2011/01/28/technology/google_data_privacy_day/index.htm Questions… Read more »