Leadership in the Workplace

Leadership is a necessary trait that a manager must carry and demonstrate. Different types of leadership are required for different situations. The different types of leadership are: coaching, super, and servant.

Coaching Leadership

Coaching leadership instructs followers on how to meet special organizational challenges they face. This type of leadership identifies inappropriate behaviors and suggests to the subordinate how they should change them. As the name indicates, this approach is much like a coach.

Super Leadership

Super leadership although it sounds like the best way to lead, it is not always the appropriate type. Super leadership is leading others by showing them how to lead themselves. A manager must teach them to think on their own, eliminate negative thoughts, and build self-confidence. If a manager does those things, the subordinate is more likely to lead her/himself.

Servant Leadership

Servant leadership is placing more value on helping followers achieve aspirations and fulfill personal needs. This type of leadership has been around the longest. A servant leader has multiple traits such as; a good listener, persuasive, empathetic, and consider themselves a steward of human resources.  Research has shown that this type of leadership has a lot of potential to lead an organization to success. 

Works cited:

Brown, Paul. "Leadership." Management 320. Barry Hall, Fargo. 2 Dec. 2015. Lecture.

Giving Tuesday

An annual event took place yesterday called Giving Tuesday. This event occurs every year on the tuesday following Thanksgiving. Local and national businesses partook in this event by raising money for charities around the country. Many companies use this as a strategy of Public Relations to create a positive company image. In Fargo companies like Valley Imports and Others Fair Trade Boutique. Valley Imports said they would match donations up to $5000 and donate those funds to Sharehouse.
Philanthropic type activities generated by corporations and business have a positive effect on the companies image. This can be used as a marketing strategy to generate the interest of consumers by creating awareness of a company and perhaps giving them a competitive advantage over companies who don't partake in philanthropic activities. Giving tuesday became an internet sensation yesterday by creating hashtags and by generating the interest of social media users. Many companies gained recognition by their donations. These donations  not only created a good reputation for the company  but also boosted sales with their donations.





Works cited:
Olson, Dave. "Inside Business: Groups Get behind Giving Tuesday Movement." INFORUM. N.p., 02 Dec. 2015. Web. 02 Dec. 2015.

What is Direct Marketing?

Direct marketing is one form of selling a product. This form of marketing gives the marketers a good amount of control over what information and impression the customer is getting. Direct marketing can come in many forms, Mail order, M-commerce, Telemarketing, and Direct Response Advertising.
Mail order can come in two forms, catalogs and direct mail. Catalogs are collections of products offered for sale and described in book form, usually consisting of product descriptions. An example of this would be the Sunday catalogs that department stores like Macys and Herbergers send out on an ongoing basis. Direct mail is a brochure/pamphlet offering a specific good/service at one point in time. An example of direct mail would be like the flyers Direct TV sends out to people that promote their prices.
Telemarketing is a form of direct marketing over the telephone. We have all experienced the annoying telemarketers that call the same time every day trying to sell the same product. A disadvantage of using this technique is nowadays there are "Do Not Call" lists.
Direct response advertising allows consumers to respond by immediately containing the provider with questions or an order. Direct response TV is an example of this with products such as Pay-per-view features on TV. Another example is Informercials which are segments that demonstrate and inform the audience about a certain product and often times will offer special prices if people "call within the next 20 minutes!".
M-Commerce is a promotional and other e-commerce activity that is transmitted over mobile phones/devices. An example of this would be SMS text messages that reach out to customers.

The technique that marketers choose to use is not always the same. There is no one definite way to market every product. The type of technique depends on the size of the audience and the product/service being sold.



works cited:
Pillai, Rajani. "Trade Promotion, Direct Marketing, and Personal Selling." Marketing 320. Barry Hall, Fargo. 1 Dec. 2015. Lecture.

Getting Paris Back on Track

As you recall last week I wrote a blog about the economic repercussions of the Paris attacks, now I am following up with how Paris should go about getting back on track. You can probably imagine tourism has slowed down significantly since the attacks in Paris. Tourism accounts for over 7% of France's GDP. Two weeks later Paris is still seeing sparse lines at stores, less traffic, and early Holiday sales in hopes to attract customers. The 4th quarter was not so great for the people who do business in France because of the attacks, long-term planning on the political and business fronts will likely increase the countries economy. Last week a survey was completed which involved American Business people who have conducted business in France and the results showed that France is actually perceived less bad as years before. France especially now relies on business people around the world to continue doing business in France because of the downfall of the economy. The survey results look hopeful for the French economy and the likeliness of long-term effects on the attacks are slim. If the percentage of people with a negative perception of the French Market continues to decrease, France will likely see better days ahead.








Works Cited:
Karabell, Shellie. "Paris Now: How to Get Business Back on Track." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 28 Nov. 2015. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.

Black Thursday & Cyber Sunday

By the looks of the title of this blog you must have thought I had the name wrong. Not this year! More and more stores are opening on Thursday (Thanksgiving) evening and allowing shoppers to shop. However stores have actually started to begin their "black friday sales" almost a week before actual Black Friday. Well-known stores like Herbergers and Macys have begun their Black Friday festivities nearly one week ago.
Cyber Monday also has been promoting the early bird sales that begin on Sunday instead of Monday. Walmart announced big sales will hit its website everyday in November leading up to Cyber Monday.  More than likely we will see both Black Friday sales and Cyber Monday sales continue weeks after the actual days if stores don't sell out of the products they intended to.
Although Black Friday is still an eventful day for shoppers, with continued extended sales offered by stores, we will start to see less and less popularity of just the Friday after Thanksgiving. Businesses seemed to have a hold on their prices in order to offer such large sales for such an extended period of time so it is likely we will see this trend continue into the next few years until the demand for Black Friday decreases.
The newest Holiday to add to the bunch is Small Business Saturday. As the name mentions, this is to promote shopping at small businesses on the Saturday following Thanksgiving. Small businesses are the only category of this infamous trifecta that are less likely to extend their sales weeks before and after the actual day. Now we have Thursday-Saturday to take care of all of our holiday shopping!

Works cited: "Friday Favorites - JK Style." JK Style. N.p., 20 Nov. 2015. Web. 24 Nov. 2015.

Freenomics

According to marketingbinder.com, Freenomics s a business model that encourages giving products away for free because of the increase in profits that can be achieved by getting more people to participate in a market. We as consumers don't quite grasp how a company can be successful by giving away products and services for free. The example that comes to mind when I think of freenomics is the free music app called Pandora. Pandora is a great example of how freenomics works. Although there is the option for subscribers to purchase ad-free listening for $4.99 per month, that is not how Pandora makes their profits. Pandora, and other freenomic operating businesses make their money because they have the ears of so many consumers listening to their streaming that advertisers will pay big bucks to get their advertisement streamed to listeners on pandora. Essentially, the more people that listen to Pandora the bigger the market gets which means the bigger the audience get which ultimately leads to higher priced advertisements. By offering free music services Pandora has earned profit into the millions in recent years. Freenomics turns out to be a win-win situation for consumers and Pandora.  This new business model has show quite the success over the last few years and will continue to grow as we enter into more and more technology driven markets.


works cited:
"Freenomics." Marketing Binder. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2015.

Science behind Black Friday

Black Friday has become the holiday after the Thanksgiving holiday. Driven by massive sales in nearly all retail store, consumers have cut their holiday of giving thanks short. Ironically they cut the thankful holiday short in order to get greedy in retail stores around the country. How are these companies able to offer such discounted prices year after year and still make a profit?
This diagram demonstrates how a typically company will operate on black friday:

As you can see the retailer will typically sell the product for double the money they paid for it. On black friday they will sell it for 1.5 times the money they paid for it instead of double. By doing this they end up selling almost 5 times more of the inventory which generates over double the amount of profit. So next Friday when you are out black friday shopping, ask yourself if you are really getting the deal you think you're getting. Chances are most marketing departments in companies won't set prices to match cost or lost money therefore they are still making a profit on your purchase.



Works Cited:
"Black Friday By The Numbers - The Accounting Degree Review." The Accounting Degree Review. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2015.

What is Beta?

Beta is a term used  in the financial and statistical industries. The greek term serves as a coefficient for both industries. In the financial industry Beta is a coefficient that measures stock's market risk. When it comes to stocks, there are two different types of risk, systematic and unsystematic. Systematic risk is unavoidable. Systematic risk reffers to recession or inflation of a market. Unsystematic risk can be eliminated because it is risk referring to product or labor problems. The unsystematic risk can be eliminated through portfolio diversification.

Beta coefficient shows a stock's volatility relative to the market and indicates how risky a stock is if the stock is held in a well- diversified portfolio. Beta measures the systematic risk of an asset. The average Beta is = 1.0 which is the Market beta. If Beta is less than one, the stock is considered less risky than the market. If Beta is greater than one, the stock is considered more risky than the market. If Beta = 0 it is independent of the market.

Beta measures the light blue section.

To estimate beta we must run a regression of the security's past returns against the past returns of the market. The slope you get is going to represent the beta coefficient. What if you get a negative slope? Yes that is also possible too. If the slop is negative, the correlation between the stock and the market is negative. This is a very unlikely situation.

works cited:

Tian, Rulin. "Risk and Return." Finance 320. Barry Hall, Fargo. 16 Nov. 2015. Lecture.

Paris attacks

Not only were the terrorist attacks by ISIS an extremely devastating series of events for the people of Paris at the time of the attacks, but they are also having a huge effect many days after. The people of Paris and the businesses of Paris are suffering right now. Shortly after the city of Paris began to set up for the Christmas market and hang lights throughout the city, the city was attacked. Today, many of the shops and stalls remained closed by official order and stores resemble ghost towns. Shops lacking customers is a very small tragedy in comparison to the loss of a life but is an indicator of Paris's lack of economic recovery after the attacks. Most people who were looking to travel to Paris over this holiday season are now steering away from traveling. Not only are tourists afraid to travel to Paris and walk the streets of the city, but the people of Paris are also fearful to walk the streets by shops and they want to avoid crowds. It is too soon to say how long the repercussions of the attacks will continue to be present, but its safe to say that for now the economy is suffering and many businesses will not see as many sales as previous months even though the Holidays are among us. Tourism represents 8% of the French economy and with many hotel cancellations, event cancellations, no foot traffic, and people remaining isolated, the French economy is sure to suffer.


works cited:
Jolly, David, Jack Ewing, and Doreen Carvajal. "After Paris Attacks, Waiting for Shopping and Culture to Come Back to Life." The New York Times. The New York Times, 16 Nov. 2015. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.

Branding a product.

In marketing, companies face a question when they release a new line or create a new product. The question is whether or not to keep the same brand name as the rest of the products or to use a completely different brand name. The term used to describe the continuous use of the brand name is called brand extension.
Brand extensions are useful when the company already has a good reputation therefore that reputation carries over to the new product too. Brand extension helps to gain a market share quickly because the brand is already established and people trust in the products. A firm is also able to set their prices a little higher right off the bat if they extend the brand name because of the value that the brand carries.
A new brand name comes in handy when a firm needs to rebuild the reputation and disassociate with the previous brand because of negative views. This strategy also differentiates a companies products by giving them different names. For example, the company dodge introduced the model of truck called the Ram, they eventually turned Ram into its own brand name because it differentiated the truck from the other cars dodge sold.
There is no right way for every situation a company faces. The strategy to be used should depend on the type of product being introduced, companies reputation, market share, and price.


works cited:
Pillai, Rajani. "Branding." Marketing 320. Barry Hall, Fargo. 5 Nov. 2015. Lecture.

Human Resources in a Firm

If you have ever applied for a job in an established firm/company, you've probably dealt with the Human Resources department. Personally speaking, I have always wondered what the human resources department of a company does.

HR has 3 goals:
1. Attract an effective workforce.
-Internal vs. external hiring.
-Looking for a good fit.
2. Develop the workforce.
-Training and Education.
3. Maintain the workforce.
-Compensation, Benefits, etc.
As you can tell, HR is centered around finding good employees, developing them, and maintain them.

If only their job was that easy! HR not only has to hire employees they feel are a good fit for the company, but they have to make sure they are not violating any laws while doing so. One of the biggest issues they face is discrimination. Discrimination is making job related decisions on non-job related criteria. Whether they intend to or not, many HR departments could have faced legal action on the basis of discrimination. If a firm is 15 people or greater they are subject to legal action when the criteria describes a protected group. To avoid potentially facing legal action firms will take affirmative action( sometimes required by a court) and give preference in hiring and promoting to members of protected groups.


Works Cited:
Brown, Paul. "Human Resources." Management 320. Barry Hall, Fargo. 8 Nov. 2015. Lecture.

Price Skimming

Price skimming is when a marketer sets a price relatively high with the intentions of eventually lowering it over time; it is a form of price temporary discrimination. A company might consider using the strategy of price skimming when first entering a market for a number of reasons.

Establishing the brand

Marketers often want to base their brand off of quality or status. Price skimming is a great way for marketers to reach their target market by establishing how their brand is perceived.

Perceived Quality

There are many different ways that consumers perceive quality, price being the most obvious. Usually when something is more expensive it is also better quality (or so we think). Using a price skimming strategy provides a perceived idea that the quality is greater than something that is similar but less expensive.

Attract the status driven customers

The status driven customers are always concerned about the price but not in the way that most of us are, they want the price to be high. This group of customers is all about looking prestigious and wealthy. Price skimming creates those high priced items that the status driven customers are looking for and "HAVE" to have.

Early Adopters

In the PLC (product life cycle) some of the quickest people to purchase a new item to the market are the early adopters, these people are generally willing to pay more than the later majority of purchasers. If a marketers sees that his/her firm is one of the only firms in the market he/she will use price skimming because he/she knows that they have control over the pricing of that market and have no competition.

Recover costs

As you can imagine startup costs for a business are not cheap. Price skimming can quickly recover those research and development costs that occur when starting a business or entering a market with a new product. 

Works Cited:

Brookins, Miranda. "What Are the Benefits of Skimming Pricing Strategy?" Small Business. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Nov. 2015.

Informational and Operational Efficiency

In the world of finance there are many different markets which exist. For instance we have the commonly known markets such as the stock market and the bond market. Another aspect of the financial markets are the efficient markets which relate to stocks and bonds. Efficient markets are ones in which security prices are current and fair to all traders, and transactional costs are minimal. Within the efficient markets there are two forms: operational and informational.

Operational efficiency refers to the speed and accuracy with which trades in the market are processed. Many of the markets have developed systems to aid with operational efficiency. NYSE has developed the SuperDOT computer system and the NASDAQ has developed the SOES. These types of systems match buyers and sellers in a very efficient way by doing so at the best available price for both parties.

Informational efficiency refers to the speed and accuracy with which information is reflected in the available prices for trading. This type of market consist of 3 hypotheses that make up the EMH (efficient market hypothesis); weak form, semi-strong, and strong form. The weak form is implying that the market is efficient and that the price (of a stock) reflects all information and historical prices have no impact on the current price. Semi-strong form assumes that the stock price reflects all public information and financial statements therefore that information is not useful. Strong form assumes that the price of the stock reflects all private information, public information and historical information therefore insider information is not useful.

Overall the efficiency markets are as they sound: efficient. The main goal is to create speed and accuracy and assume that the prices of the stocks reflect all relevant information to the potential buyer.

Works cited:
"Weak, Semi-Strong and Strong EMH - CFA Level 1 | Investopedia." Investopedia. Investopedia, 18 Apr. 2008. Web. 03 Nov. 2015.

The product life cycle

The product lifecycle is a concept that explains how products go through four distinct stages from birth to death: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. The product lifecycle is a very important cycle for marketers to know before introducing a new product to the market. The strategies marketers use varies depending on the stage of the cycle it is in. Here is a brief overview of what the stages of the product life consist of and how prices, sales, profits, goals, and marketing strategies change throughout the life of a product.

Introduction Stage
The introduction stage is when a single company produces a single product. The purchasers of the product in this stage are usually the eager first-time buyers. The sales at this point in the cycle are increase at a slow but steady rate yet the profits are still negative due to the research and development startup costs. Pricing strategies are usually high to recover those R&D costs or else low to attract a large consumer base. Marketing in the stage is all about informing the consumer about the product.

Growth Stage
In the growth stage new competitors enter the market creating different variations of the product. The goal of the marketers is to encourage brand loyalty. Sales are now rapidly increasing while profits start to see positive numbers and often times peak. The pricing may need to be reduced if it started off high because of competitors. Marketers promote heavy advertising to seek a competitive advantage.

Maturity Stage
Now the products contain new features and most of the sales come from replacing the products. Marketers are now seeking to attract new users who are maybe late to jump on the product wagon. The sales however start to decline and the profit margins narrow. The prices are set in order to maintain the marketshare. Marketers are now advertising for the purpose of reminding consumers about the product.

Decline
During the decline stage the number of variations for the product decreases and the goal for marketers is to remain profitable and make the decision of whether or not to keep the product. The sales and profits are now declining and the product prices are quite reduced. There is little to no marketing during this stage because of decreased profitability.


Works cited :
Solomon, Michael R., Greg W. Marshall, and Elnora W. Stuart. Marketing: Real People, Real Choices. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2006. Print.

Drones and the Economy

A new business is about to enter the delivery market. We currently have ground delivery and air delivery and in 2017 we will have drone delivery. Google expects to be delivering packages to customers some time in 2017. Google is currently in talks with the Federal Aviation Administration to discuss an air traffic control system to fly the drones under 500 feet.

Using drones for package delivery could dramatically change the dynamics of the delivery industry. Companies such as UPS and Fedex could see some competition among the companies that offer drone delivery. I would not be surprised if all delivery companies develop some sort of drone delivery. The idea of drone delivery is to make deliveries much quicker and cheaper than ground or air delivery.

Not only will drones be used for package delivery but one drone company claims that 90% of the drones will be used for farming purposes. Farmers will use drones for precision crop-dusting and seeding and scanning the crops for health related issues. Drones could result in farmers using less pesticides in the crops. Another thing that farmers need to do to be successful is to scout their crops to make sure they look good and that there are no bad weeds surrounding the crop. Drones can aid in this process by viewing the crops from 200 ft and snapping images and videos to report back with results.The drones are likely to create up to 100,000 jobs in 10 years because of the use of them in the farming industry.

Although drones seem to be something that is unrealistic, it is becoming more real everyday. In about 2 years some of us may have drones dropping packages off at our homes, some of us may have drones checking our crops and lastly, some of us may be working for a company in a drone department dealing with drones every day. As technology advances so does our economy and competitive markets.

Works cited:
"Google Wing Will Begin Drone Deliveries In 2017, Exec Says." Popular Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Nov. 2015.

Departmentalization

In a business you must have some sort of structural organization in order to operate. Business structures are to be thought of as a triangle; the tip being top management, corporate CEOs, Presidents, Vice presidents etc and the bottom being more lower level functions such as a sales person, accountant, production worker etc. In a business the departmentalization methods can vary.

 In a functional structure, you group jobs together base on their performance of like activities. For example, you still have your top management near the tip of the triangle but there is a cut off line near the top where functional jobs break out where you'll find marketing, production and staff functions. Functional structure creates an efficient use of resources such as in the jobs and it eliminate redundancies. Specialization is also a benefit because the jobs are grouped together based on their performance of like activities therefore each department is specialized. 

In a divisional structure, you group jobs together on the basis of product, geography, and customers.We still see top management at the tip of the triangle and a divisional breakout near the top. Below the divisional break out we see the categories of product, geography and consumer instead of staff functions. As we move down the triangle we see another break out, this time it is a functional breakout. So this is where we see the functional jobs such as production, marketing, and staff lines. A divisional structure is very responsive and flexible due to its multiple levels of jobs and functions. We also see better functional coordination due to the breakdown of jobs. When we look at the entire triangle we see a lot of division of jobs and functions which helps each department to develop goals. As we move up the triangle we see general managers develop much before they would had they been in a functional structure.

There is no one right way of structuring a business. Certain structures work better for certain companies depending on size, type of business, and foundations of the business. Each structure has it's pros and cons but qualities of each type can make a business of similar nature run completely different if  one is divisional and one is functional.

Works Cited:

Brown, Paul. "Organizing." Management 320. Barry Hall, Fargo. 28 Oct. 2015. Lecture.

Why businesses fail.

Being a student in the business field looking into potential career opportunities I have considered it all. I have considered owning my own business one day and while looking into some statistics I came across a quite alarming one: 8/10 businesses fail within the first 18 months. That's 80%! I was dumbfounded when I read this statistic. I couldn't stand to just leave it at that, I was dying to read into why this was an accurate fact. After researching I found the following results discussing the reasons why:

• Not building a strong relationship with customers. Customers are your business, without a customer base a business does not exist. Many businesses fail to meet customer needs because they fail to maintain a good understanding of their customer.
• No differentiation. What makes your products/services different than what's already out there? Differentiation is a slow but sure killer of a new business.
• Failure to communicate. So lets say you've mastered the differentiation you now need to communicate it to your customers. Customers won't buy things that they have never heard of simply because they don't know it's out there.
• Management failure. If your management fails to complete duties or quits their job you have to step in and fill that position. As a business owner you are the highest manager and overseer of the business. You have to know how to fill each roll if it needs to be filled.
• Unable to make a profit. If you are unable to make a profitable business model your business will surely come crashing down. Minimize your start up costs by limiting your cash outflow. You need to think and move quickly in order to best act on your investment. 

works cited:

Wagner, Eric T. "Why Businesses Fail." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 12 Sept. 2013. Web. 27 Oct. 2015.

Stocks vs. Bonds for dummies.

Lets say you have hit the point in your finances when you would like to consider investing your money. You have heard of both stocks and bonds but don't really understand the differences between the two and the benefits of both. I am here to tell you in layman's terms what the difference between stocks and bonds is. 

When you purchase stock, you are buying into the company and are part owner of the company. When you purchase bonds you are not purchasing ownership you are just considered a creditor. Stocks have no maturity date while bonds have a predetermined maturity. Stocks however generate variable periodic income and bonds generate fixed periodic income. When you invest in stocks you do not know how many payments you'll receive over the time of ownership. When you invest in bonds you know how many payments you'll receive over the life of the bond. Bonds also have a set end value (par value) that you'll receive at maturity. Stocks do not have a set end value because they do not have a set maturity. Stock's rate of return remains unknown until you sell the stock (hint: buy low sell high). Bond's rate of return is known if it is held to the maturity, this is known as the Yield to Maturity or Yield to Call depending on the type of Bond. 

As you can probably now gather, stocks are a very unpredictable investment therefore posing a higher risk. Bonds are a very predictable investment therefor posing less risk. It seems like Bonds would be an obvious choice when investing money but that is not the case. The higher the risk of investment the higher the potential yield could be. If you are looking for a safe and secure investment, bonds are a great choice. If you are looking for a riskier and potentially higher yield investment, stocks are a good choice. The benefit of bonds vs stocks is that if the company goes bankrupt, you still get your initial investment and promised money where as if you owned stocks, you would be out the money. The benefit of stocks vs bonds is that you have the potential to earn more money over the course of your ownership.

What makes a monopoly?

A monopoly is defined as the exclusive possession or control of the supply or trade in a commodity or service. Monopolies are also illegal in the United States. Although most businesses ideally work toward a monopoly almost never accomplish it and that is a good 
, legally at least. In layman's terms a monopoly is when one business is the only supplier 
(for the most part) of a certain good and has complete control over price. Governments try to eliminate monopolies by enforcing antitrust laws. Antitrust laws are designed to prevent monopolies and monopolistic practice. 

What classifies a monopoly?

• One producer controls supply of a good.
• entry of new producer is highly restricted and/or prevented.
• Price-fixing: company controls price.
• Market share greater than 50%.

Well-known monopolies in history.

• Standard Oil
• Salt Commission
• De Beers
• AT&T
• Cable TV
• Hudson Bay Company

All of these companies at one point have held a monopoly over the market they do business in and have since been split up or no longer exist.

works cited:

Holmes, Alex. "10 Greatest Monopolies." The Ministry of Fear. N.p., 27 Jan. 2009. Web. 22 Oct. 2015.

"Monopoly Definition | Investopedia." Investopedia. N.p., 24 Nov. 2003. Web. 22 Oct. 2015.

Credit Card Chips

We jokingly talk about microchips being programmed into everything nowadays. Well now our credit cards will have microchips programmed in them, we can only imagine what's next. To many consumers confusion, many banks have mailed out new credit and debit cards for consumers to replace their current one. Microchip credit cards are a completely new thing for the United States. 

What does this mean for consumers?

For the most part consumers can go along their merry way buying and using their cards just as before. However, there is a slight learning curve to the new cards. Instead of just swiping a magnetic strip they will simply insert their card to a machine for a couple of seconds and potentially prompted to sign or enter a pin number.

What does this mean for companies?

Retailers reacted quite negatively to this change. For retailers this could mean potentially millions of dollars spent on new machines that are compatible with the new credit cards. For higher end stores that sell more expensive items there is more liability therefore more urgency to get these new devices. 

Why the switch?

The switch to the microchip cards vs. magnetic strip is due to more security. With retailers like target and others having issues with customer security the need for a more secure transaction is needed. The new cards work in a way such that every transaction is given a unique code making it less more difficult for hackers to commit fraud. 

Works cited:

Jones, Charisse. "Ready or Not, It's Credit Card Chip and Dip Time: What You Need to Know." USA Today. Gannett, 01 Oct. 2015. Web. 22 Oct. 2015.

Internships

As a college student eventually seeking a career, the word "internship" has become a very familiar term. Internships are designed to give people hands on experience in a job environment or position. Some majors at schools around the country are now requiring students apply and get an internship before graduation. Internships provide many great benefits. As mentioned before, internships provide hands-on experience. Many employers look for employees that have relevant work experience that internships provide. Internships also provide the opportunity to see and experience many different types of jobs within an organization to give you an idea of what you might want to pursue. As an intern you develop many skills that employers seek. Whether it is the ability to work with others, complete a certain task, you will have developed a multitude of skills. Another benefit of internships are that they push you outside of your comfort zone, often times introducing you to unfamiliar things.

However, internships also have their negative qualities. In the workplace you are often thought of as a student, regardless of your status. You are also tagged with the name 'the intern' in a condescending manner. Your role as an intern can often be confusing because the work you do is very broad making it hard to focus your aim. Lastly, internships don't always have consistent schedules like your typical 9-5 job might.

Personally speaking, I think internships provide great opportunities for learning. Often times internships can lead to jobs within the same company after they are done. Internships can be a crucial part in developing your education and building a good resume.

works cited:
Flecher, Nicola. "Pros & Cons of an Internship..." The Outreach Interns. N.p., 22 Mar. 2013. Web. 22 Oct. 2015.

No-tipping Policy

Could restaurants eliminate customers tipping their servers? There have been some motions from some restauranteurs to eliminate the gratuity act of tipping. Most people go to out for dinner expecting to tip their server around 20% on top of the cost of their meal. This is just the way that Americans dine and have dined for many years. So why change now? Well many restaurants are wanting to support wage equality for all employees including the chefs. Often times Chefs take home less pay than the waiters and waitresses because their pay doesn't include any tips. This seems a little backwards considering Chefs go through culinary school and gain an expert knowledge on cooking through rigorous schooling yet get less take home pay than the servers who have had no professional education in their specific job.
The arguments goes both ways. Many people argue that getting rid of tips in some restaurants could cause much confusion for diners all around.  Many people question how will they know if they should tip or not. In order to eliminate this confusion all restaurants around America will need to go with the no-tipping policy. Diners often times like to show their gratitude toward their servers by giving them a tip and now they won't be able to express that gratitude freely.
Another argument on the other side of the spectrum is anti-tipping. Pilots aren't tipped for landing planes safely, doctors aren't tipped for saving lives, and teachers aren't tipped for giving good lesson plans so why should servers be tipped for just doing their job?
Eliminating tips doesn't necessarily mean that the customers will be saving money. How the restaurants will most likely compensate for the lost revenue will be through price increases on menu items. Not just small price increases either, it will be starting at about 20%. This means a meal that was once $20 will now be at least $24. Getting rid of tipping strips away our American expression of gratitude. It might not be the most sensible systematic way of doing things but its part of American culture.

works cited:
Drew, Kate. "New Wage Inequality Battleground: Stiffing Waiters." CNBC. CNBC, 16 Oct. 2015. Web. 16 Oct. 2015.

What makes a good Tutorial Video

With the current assignment in English 320, I though discussing tutorial videos would be quite fitting. While working on the assignment myself, I began to think of what qualities I enjoy in tutorial videos. Guilty of watching many make up tutorials, piano tutorials, and baking tutorials, I've seen the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The first thing that I find important in making a video tutorial is a good intro. If the intro of the video seems boring then I most likely won't bother to watch the rest of it. However, if the intro grabs my attention with some features, music, etc. I am eager to see what's next. The intro of the video really sets the tone of what is to come.
The next thing I think is important is that the tutorial is made very simple. Don't assume a knowledgable audience. Most likely, your audience will be someone who knows little to nothing about the topic being explained. Even if your audience happens to have a basic knowledge of the content, being thorough never hurts.
Another thing I like in a tutorial is when the maker/speaker is slow and descriptive. There is nothing that makes me more upset than when the tutorial speaker goes way too fast. If the tutorial is music related tutorial it will more than likely require you to play back what you just learned. When the tutorial goes through everything quickly, it makes it more difficult to keep up.
Keeping the tutorial under 10 minutes is another feature that I think is important. If I click on a tutorial video on Youtube and I see that its over 10 minutes I try and look for another one. Granted some topics take a little more elaboration than others, keeping it under 10 minutes will ensure your audience stays tuned.
Overall just remember K.I.S.S. Keep it simple stupid. Make it short but sweet. Make sure your video is easy to understand for less knowledgable audiences. Lastly, make it interesting, no one wants to be overloaded with information.

Dressing for a job interview

The Dos and Don'ts of dressing for a job interview:

As students approaching graduation quickly, we are more than likely about to/already have faced the world of job interviews. If you have already made it thus far, congratulations, this means you have already impressed the employer on paper and now have the opportunity to impress s/he in person. Aside from coming prepared and on-time, dressing professionally can make or break a potential job. Here are some tips for preparing your attire for the big interview.

Do

• a little research on how the people in similar positions of the same company dress.
• over-dress.
• wear neutral colors.
• wear dresses, skirts, and nice dress pants. (girls)
• wear nice pants, perhaps a sport coat or blazer, and polished shoes. (boys)
• wear small amounts of jewelry if desired.

Don't

• wear skirts or dresses above the knee. (girls)
• wear tops that are low cut and show cleavage. (girls)
• wear casual khaki pants.
• casual shoes.
• wrinkled shirts.
• too much makeup. (girls)
• wear bright flashy colors.
• too tight or too small of clothing.

Works cited:

Don't Be This Guy. Digital image. Giorgentinewyork.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.

Made in The USA

American Apparel,  on of the few clothing manufacturers stationed here in the United States filed for bankruptcy on Monday. Although the bankruptcy will clear most of the companies debt, they also reconsidered if they should continue manufacturing in the U.S. As American's, most of us like to say that we are more likely to buy American made things than overseas but most of the time that is not the case. Price and quantity is usually what appeals to us; if a garment is cheap we like it. 

If American Apparel were to re-station overseas, they would lose their reputation of "Made in the USA". However, American Apparel would cut costs dramatically by doing this. Sadly, the cost to employ people in the United States is at least double of what it costs to employ people over in China, Bangladesh, India, etc. American Apparel can only hope that they would not lost their loyal "USA made clothing customers" by expanding overseas.


Most apparel companies actually are stationed overseas making American Apparel a minority. Economically, it is way more efficient for companies to operate in countries where the cost of materials and labor is cheap. If an American company produces a shirt for $10 including labor, a manufacturer in China can product that same shirt for 4$ and thats including labor as well. If the American company wanted to have competitive prices they might charge $20 for that shirt while doubling their money. China could charge the same price of $20 while quadrupling their money. Because this happens to be the reality of the situation, less companies are able to generate a revenue being stationed in the United States.


Works Cited:
Li, Shan. "American Apparel Hangs on to Its Made-in-America Model — by a Thread." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 07 Oct. 2015. Web. 07 Oct. 2015.

Twitter may need change to survive.

Sorry Tweeters, you're not quite enough.

Jack Dorsey, the co-founder of the infamous social media hotspot Twitter has made it apparent that there is still a lot left to do in order for Twitter to ensure Twitter's survival. With 300 million users, Twitter still needs more. In order for Twitter to continue to generate revenue it must add to it's 300 million users. Although it may seem that Facebook is outdated and Twitter is the new "hip" social media place to post, that is not the case. Facebook sees over 1 billion active users everyday. What will this company do in order to see continued success? Twitter is about to make changes.

People's thoughts on making twitter better:

• Kim Kardashian-West tweeted  saying:

"I just emailed Twitter to see if they can add an edit feature so that when u misspell something u don't have to delete & repost Let's see..."

Jack Dorsey Actually replied thanking her for the feedback saying it was much appreciated.

• Extending the amount of characters available to type per tweet.
• User @canadagood tweeted to @jack saying :

"Dear @Jack Dorsey,

The one thing I want from $TWTR is an easy jump to any time/date in my Twitter feed without scrolling. Thanks."

• User @askaaronlee tweeted :

"Dear @jack, can you change your 'favorite' button to a 'like' button? thanks."

Could all of these suggestions please the current Twitter users while still generating new ones? That is the million dollar question being asked right now. Dorsey is currently in the process of rethinking certain Twitter features such as the one's mentioned above in hopes to strengthen his company''s growth.

works cited:

Fiegerman, Seth. "So, Jack Dorsey, What Comes next for Twitter? The Public Has Some Ideas." Mashable. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2015.

Tis the Season.

Shopping season is among us.

While fall and winter approach us we are reminded of the holidays that come with these changing seasons such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. For those of us that work in a retail store the holidays are not the first thing that come to mind. The chaos of holiday shoppers are what come to mind. Since when is Thanksgiving no longer about giving thanks but rather about the Friday that follows with mass amounts of shopping? In recent years we have seen the amount of Black Friday shoppers increase with store discounts everywhere around us. However, this year that will not be the case. Retailers are prepared for a rather difficult holiday season this year. Difficult because consumers are now trained to expect store discounts all the time, competitors are using competitive prices, and a economy that still isn't at it's greatest.

Less discounts.

This year, many retailers have vowed to cut back store promotions and discounts. In an article in the Fargo Forum written by Reuters Media they talked to a few major retailers and received some feedback. Nordstrom said that they had planned to cut back store discounts by 20% and will continue to decrease them for years to come saying they are going to focus on service and differentiated products instead. Abercrombie & Fitch and Aeropostale both said that they are going to have far less discounts as well. Their huge clearanced items happened to be logo centered apparel which needed to be rid of due to reduced customer demand. People are more opt to buy full priced items when they are not logo centered.

Price over everything.

Unfortunately consumers are still responding to price more than retailers want them to. In a study conducted it showed that 87% of Americans are still letting price determine what they will be purchasing this holiday season. American's have been so accustomed to discounted prices in recent years that they are trained to shop based on price rather than quality or service.

Works cited:
Reusters Media. "Retailers Gear up for What Could Be Difficult Holiday Shopping..." INFORUM. N.p., 05 Oct. 2015. Web. 05 Oct. 2015.
"File:Owl Shopping by Mimooh.svg." - Wikimedia Commons. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2015.

Business to Business Marketing.

Business to Business (B2B) Marketing involves the activities of the sale of goods and services from one business to another. Most people don't consider how a company obtains their supplies and equipment to operate a business but believe it or not, the B2B market is much larger than the Business to Consumer market.

Who are the Customers?

In B2B marketing the customers consists of:

• Government Agencies.
• Companies that resell products.
• Institutions.
• Companies that use their products.

Government agencies are the largest purchaser of B2B marketing goods.

What makes B2B different?

• More complex decision making
• The purchases from one business to another tend to be much larger than a business to consumer. This is because the B2B market is usually involving the sale of expensive equipment, mass quantities of supplies, or other high priced items that help a company run.
• B2B purchases are more rational
• This plays off of the idea listed above. Being that the price of the items purchased are typically more expensive buyers need to be much more rational with their purchase and not buy goods and services because of emotions. Buyers need to ask themselves "Will this good/service make the company a profit?", "Will this good/service help the business grow?".
• B2B products are more complex
• When we as consumers make purchases we generally don't need a prior expert knowledge about the product. When it comes to B2B products the complexity level is higher than B2C. As an example, when a buyer in the B2B market wants to buy a new computer programming system for designing the companies products, the buyer needs to know much more detail about the system than your typical B2C customer buying a new personal computer.
• Relationships are VERY important
• In B2B markets, relationships between the buyer and seller are vital. Having a good relationship is a key step in the process because the sellers want to make sure they have built a good foundation with their clients to ensure continued business. It is very common to see the buyers and sellers on a first name basis. The sellers usually follow up with their clients on a regular basis and make sure their clients are pleased with their purchased goods/services.

Works Cited:

"B2B Marketing | What Is Business to Business Marketing?" B2B Marketing | What Is Business to Business Marketing? N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Oct. 2015.

French Author causes economists to think.

Thomas Piketty, a french author, wrote a book in 2014 titled Capital in the twenty-first century. The book focuses on the growth of the returns to capital in the economy are exceeding the rate of growth of the economy. For those of you who are not in an economics class, Piketty is basically saying that the rich are getting richer and everybody else is struggling. I'm not going to get into politics while writing this but I am however going to look at Piketty's conclusions in his research.

Piketty's General Conclusions:

1. Wealth is growing faster than the economy. 
2. Piketty wants to adopt a global tax on wealth. He suggests 80%.
3. Faster economic growth = diminishing importance of wealth ; slower economic growth = increase importance of wealth.
4. High levels of wealth inequality are a problem.

Why should we care?

Most of us are not in the top 1% of upper class. Therefore the economy that we operate in today, the businesses that we own, the jobs that we hold, the money that we invest, and the income we earn are not growing anywhere near the rate that the wealth obtained by the elite upper class is growing. Regardless of our personal thoughts on this fact, we have to be aware of the effects on society that this large gap has. How/if we think that gap should be eliminated is a matter of opinion. 

Works cited:

Gates, Bill. "Why Inequality Matters." Why Inequality Matters. N.p., 13 Oct. 2014. Web. 30 Sept. 2015.

Reputation Management and Brand Marketing

We've all heard of the terms Marketing and Management (or at least I hope so), but Reputation Management and Brand Marketing might be new to our vocabulary. Lets start with discussing what they are.

Reputation Management

Reputation management is a form of management is a form of maintaining a companies reputation. Reputation management started off as a term used in Public Relations. Nowadays this term is primarily used in Media Relations and maintaining a reputation online.

Brand Marketing

The act of marketing a product so that it's brand represents the companies identity and reputation. For example, when you are looking to buy a new laptop if you're given the option between an Apple laptop or some other standard brand, which are you going to choose? Most likely Apple. Why? Because you are buying so much more than just the laptop, you are buying the reputation of having an Apple product.

Reputation Marketing

Reputation marketing is the result of the combination of Reputation Management and Brand Marketing.  Reputation Marketing is all about customer reviews and feedback from an online source such as Facebook, Google, Blog Pages, etc. Neilson Research did a study in 2012 about consumer reviews and they found that 70% of all consumers will trust an online review of a company or product. That is a pretty large number if you ask me! The importance maintaining a good reputation definitely has its benefits for a company, more than you think.

Works Cited:

"Brand Marketing | What Is Brand Marketing?" Brand Marketing | What Is Brand Marketing? Marketing-schools, n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2015.

LinkedIn

What is it?

LinkedIn is a networking website used by many business professionals, students, and families around the world. LinkedIn is the largest professional networking site that is around today. Unlike most popular social media forms, LinkIn isn't used for useless status updates or hashtags. LinkedIn is used for exchanging information, knowledge, ideas, and job opportunities.

How it works.

LinkedIn is fairly easy to setup and is much like setting up any other social media account. You create a professional profile listing things such as past job experience, education, current job experience, resume, blog links, and much more. LinkedIn is a great way to connect with other professionals and network among them.

Pros and Cons.

Some benefits of creating and using LinkedIn are as follows:

• finding job opportunities
• staying in tune with other business professionals
• networking to potential employers
• stay up to date with industry news

Some cons of creating and using LinkedIn are as follows:

• LinkedIn is known for SPAM
• Time consuming to set up
• Hard to maintain connections and conversations

works cited:

"LinkedIn for Business: Pros & Cons You Should Be Aware Of | Cision."Cision RSS2. N.p., 27 Sept. 2013. Web. 25 Sept. 2015.

5000% Increase in Price of Drug

Smart business or greedy business?

In reading the title you might think I accidentally tacked on one, two, or three extra zeros. Unfortunately for the thousands of patients out there using Daraprim all of those zeros belong. Daraprim is a 62 year old drug that was recently bought by Turning Pharmaceuticals. CEO Martin Shkreli defends his decision to raise the prices and makes many statements on how he believes that he did nothing wrong.  Daraprim is a drug used for treatment of eating under-cooked meat, contaminated water, and some cancer and AIDS patients use.

Where does all this money go?

Before this drastic price increase Shkreli claimed that Daraprim was an unprofitable drug to pharmacies and actually lost them money. That being said, Daraprim's new price of $750/pill from $13.75/pill now generates profit. According the Shkreli the revenue will also go towards research of Toxoplasmosis and finding a cure. According the Turning Pharmaceuticals, the primary stakeholders for this company are the patients therefor the research is a top priority.

People lash out.

Of course a price increase like that doesn't happen without major outrage. Even Hilary Clinton came out and said "Price gouging like this in the specialty drug market is outrageous". Oncologist are also outraged with this price increase. Dr. David Agus said "Patients shouldn't be taxed and charged for future research and development. Patients should pay for the drug they're getting and what they need in the situation that they are".

Works Cited:

"Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli Defends 5,000 Percent Price Hike on Daraprim." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 22 Sept. 2015. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.

Electric Car

Apple to the rescue
Cars used to be thought of like how we think of time machines nowadays. Impossible. Apple does not think so. According to recent news, Apple committed to designing the electric car and already is planning for 2019 ship dates. 

What are electric cars?

• Cars that run on 100 % electricity.
• environmental friendly.
• Some can be half electricity driven and half fuel. (Hybrid).

What will this to do to auto and other industries?

• Potentially monopolize the automobile indsutry. 
• No more fuel run cars
• Compete with other cars on the market that are run by fuel.
• Create a dramatic drop in demand for oil/gas.
• put many gas stations out of business

Works Cited: 

WAKABAYASHI, DAISUKE. "Apple Targets Electric-Car Shipping Date for 2019." WSJ. N.p., 21 Sept. 2015. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.

Magna Steyr Mila. Digital image. OSX Daily. N.p., 13 Feb. 2015. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.

New pharmacy likely to put others out of business.

PillPack

What would a doctors visit be like without going to the pharmacy right afterwards to pick up prescriptions? Well, it looks like we are about to find out. A new company PillPack has developed the next generation pharmacy service. PillPack is a full-service online pharmacy designed to make your prescriptions pre-labeled, pre-sorted, and delivered right to your door. PillPack even has pharmacists available 24/7 to take care of everything for you and pre-contacts your doctors when you need to be prescribed refills. 

How it affects other businesses

The idea of PillPack sounds almost too good to be true right? Its great unless you're a small business owner of a pharmacy, or employed by a pharmacy other than PillPack. PillPack is like the Netlix to the blockbuster, only in pill form. This advanced form of pharmacy is breaking technology that could potentially put other pharmacies out of business. We've seen it happen before with movie stores as mentioned above. Are pharmacies the next thing to go? With the convenience that Pillpack provides, and the ease of use it is very likely to make an impact on the pharmacy industry. Pillpack is even equipped with mobile features such as an app and daily reminders when to take pills. This is yet another example of how technology is constantly changing the way businesses operate and affect the environment around them.

Works cited: 

PillPack. "Shared Article from INFORUM." INFORUM. PillPack, 12 Sept. 2015. Web. 16 Sept. 2015.

Studying Abroad

Recently I was exposed to an opportunity to study abroad. The program I was presented with was a European Business Environment program. The program is from May 21st to June 30th 2016. The study tour takes place in Dublin, Ireland at UCD. After listening to the presentation I did some research on costs, application process, and the pros and  cons of studying abroad. I found a little bit of everything while researching.

Pros:

• Meeting new people
• International business experience
• Learning new culture
• Building a culturally diverse resume
• Networking
• Great experience

Cons:

• Expensive
• Credits may not transfer
• A lot of travel
• Culture shock 
• Homesick
• Language Barrier
• No income/no job

While researching I also came across some opportunities that NDSU offers for financial aid for studying abroad. There was also quite an extensive list of scholarships available to help with the costs. Overall I think the study abroad programs seem like a great thing to do if you have the means and time to. However I am still undecided whether or not I will partake in this study abroad experience. The pros seem to outweigh the cons besides the financial aspect. As a business student I would get great international business experience if I were to seek this opportunity.

Works Cited:

NDSU. "International Student and Study Abroad Services." Ndsu.edu. NDSU, n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.

"4 Signs You Should NOT Study Abroad." USA TODAY College. N.p., 30 Sept. 2014. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.

Waters, Marcie. Study Abroad. Digital image. Www.studentofflscs.wordpress.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.