Recently, WestJet has reduced ticket prices for certain flights by 15%. WestJet has done this in hopes of increasing demand for these flights, as they have been flying planes that are not reaching full occupancy.When selling a product, in this case flight tickets, the more you sell the

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better. This is because with increased quantity comes decreased average total cost per product, to a certain point. If only a small quantity of a product is sold, the average cost of production per unit is higher. This is why limited edition luxury products can be sold at extremely high prices. WestJet has noticed that their planes are not being flown at full occupancy, which increases their costs. To clarify, they still have the same production and operations cost, but less revenue to cover it. By decreasing the ticket price they hope to induce more customers into the market, thus filling their planes to full capacity and increasing revenue. For a business to make profit it is essential to exceed their break-even point, where revenue equals cost. WestJet hopes that this price cut will result in a high enough demand to make a profit.

See Article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/westjet-to-reduce-fares-by-15-on-several-routes/article21511800/

Social enterprises aim to create shared value. Many organizations try to create shared value as an added bonus, bus the sole purpose of social enterprises is to create this shared value. The United Nations is an organization that promotes social progress. To do so, the UN often partners with social enterprises. The question is, if the UN was fully funded why would we need social enterprises? Well social enterprises tackle social issues and work towards beneficial social change from many different aspects. There are many issues that social enterprises deal with, and there is no way all of them could be left to solely the UN to solve.

Image Source: The Arc Initiative Site

One example of a social enterprise is the Arc Initiative which educates entrepreneurs and business owners so they can effectively contribute to their local economies. An important aspect of this initiative is the resource of knowledge. The key in attaining the mission of developing economies in the third world is sharing knowledge, not money. Funds are important and necessary to run social enterprises, but it is not what solves the social issues that they target. This is why social enterprises are important, even if the UN was fully funded: because money is not only solution. Social enterprises are usually smaller organizations that are able to create lasting partnerships and evoke sustainable social change, something that a disconnected money donor can not ensure.

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The marketing of a brand is extremely important in it’s success. Marketing refers to how the brand is presented to the public. People are bombarded with advertisements for countless different products from different brands daily, as such not all are memorable. The most successful advertisements are the ones that are subconsciously absorbed due to its consistency with the consumer’s prior knowledge or experience. So in order to be successful, a brand should relate itself to something the consumer is familiar with.

The blog post The Psychology of Colours in Marketing, by Kyle Reyes, explains that one way to create familiarity is through marketing using colour. As explained in the blog post, there is a general objective perception of meaning behind colours. The meaning we associate with colours may be subconscious but it exists. Understanding what meanings people generally associate with each colour presents an opportunity for marketers to strengthen their brand. Reyes explains the association with several colours such as green, blue, and yellow.

TD Bank Logo

Green is associated with growth, blue is associated with trust, confidence, and dependability, and yellow conveys optimism. Think of brands that use these colours and see if their colours accurately relate to their brand image. An example I thought of is TD Bank, having a green logo which subconsciously relates to growth, something you definitely want to see from a bank.

“The Psychology of Colours in Marketing” Blog Post: http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20141108192602-21131543-the-psychology-of-colors-in-marketing?trk=tod-posts-post1-ptlt

The success of businesses within any given industry are greatly affecting by its macro environment. There are many aspect of macro environment. One way to analyze the macro environment is through a PEST analysis. A PEST analysis uncovers political, economic, social/ cultural, and technological trends that are outside of the control of any given company or industry.

Source: Google

A recent social trend favours movie streaming over theatre going. This social trend has negatively impacted the movie theatre industry greatly, with attendance falling 11% in 2013. Theatres are having difficulty attracting audiences, which obviously negatively impacts profits. Though the theatre industry cannot control social trends, individual companies can make efforts to increase theatre attendance.  Certain theatre companies in the industry have begun to attempt to create attractive points of difference to increase their sales. All movie theatre companies meet a point of parity of screening movies and selling snacks, but a point of difference is what makes the company stand out from the rest, what makes it more attractive than opponents.  Some attempts companies have made to make movie theatres more appealing and differentiated have been to screen old box office successes, employ 3D and 4D (includes sensory aspects) screening, have luxury reclining seats, have alcohol service and have meal service. Though these changes have slightly increased sales, in a declining industry there is only so much companies can do to save sales.

See article: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-11-06/hollywood-counts-on-event-films-technology-to-wow-ticket-buyers#r=hpt-fs