Monthly Archives: October 2015

Government intervention can drastically affect how a business preforms. Newly implemented laws or policies may be detrimental to an unsuspecting business.

An example of this happing recently is when China announced that they were abandoning the multi-decade one child policy, the market value of condom companies have decreased significantly.

On the other hand, some companies will thrive, such as companies that make nappies, pushchairs and baby milk, whose shares have all risen in value and business is booming. One of the biggest beneficiaries in terms of the financial markets was China Child Care, which makes hair and skin care products for children, with shares “ending 40% higher on Hong Kong’s stock exchange on [Oct. 30]”.

This links to the topics discussed in class of current events and news affecting stock prices. Looking at the snapshot below from Google Finance we can see the significant increase in stock value on October 30. Looking to the right of the image, we are the new events that may be relevant to the price fluctuations and we can see that “Children-Related Stocks Surge After China Ends One-Child Policy” would justify it.

One month stock performance of China Child Care Ltd.

Sources:

[1] http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/oct/30/condom-shares-fall-in-china-after-plan-to-end-one-child-policy

[2] https://www.google.ca/finance?cid=13122155

In the blog post written by Justin Di, he discusses how Telus Chas announced that it plans to spend $1 Billion in fibre-optic internet expansion in Vancouver.

I believe that this is a way for Telus to establish itself as a recognizable provider of fibre networks before Google Fiber has a chance to enter into Canada. While it may seem like a noble move on Telus’ part to provide its customers w

An example of the speeds capable by fibre optic networks, provided by Google Fiber.

ith a innovative, quality service, it Telus’ underlying motive may be to actually secure a position first in the market for very high speed internets in order for them to continue to charge premium rates with no worthy competitors.

The Telus Fibre website looks very similar to Google Fiber’s website with the only major difference being that Telus is focusing on Canada while Google is starting with the United States. Shaw Communications has also stuck its foot in the door of the fibre internet industry, however only offering its services to exclusive businesses with no set price rates.

This is an example of the major telecommunications companies innovating outwards to stay competitive with each other. There has been obvious public demand for higher speeds, however it is just recently that the demand has reached a point where it would be beneficial to companies to start providing such services.

Sources:

[1] https://blogs.ubc.ca/justindi/2015/10/04/fastest-internet-in-the-world-for-vancouver/

[2] http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/telus-to-spend-1-billion-in-fibre-optic-internet-expansion-in-vancouver/article26640003/

[3] http://business.shaw.ca/Advanced-Solutions/Internet/Fiber-Gateway/

[4] http://www.businessinsider.com/r-business-bandwidth-demand-lights-up-once-dark-fiber-sector-2014-25

In Fianca Chen’s blog post, she outlines the importance of social media marketing, and how some people, ranging from high-profile celebrities to regular everyday users publish content strategically.

There are many services that allow you to set posting times and automatically

Instagress.com landing page

post content for you such as Hootsuite, TweetDeck, and Buffer and even tools that completely automate your presence on social media platforms by automatically interacting with other people, by leaving pre-written or algorithm derived comments, randomly “liking” photos or following other users. A online tool that I have used and am familiar with is Instagress, which does exactly this. Tools like this can interact with thousands of people quickly and efficiently, and most are none the wiser that they are actually communicating with a mindless bot.

I completely agree with Fianca on how we, (our generation) “have a clear advantage in the future of how the social, digital world works”. The most effective way to promote and foster growth for your business is no longer one customer at a time. However I believe that the social media world is becoming so automated, eventually, hidden behind a screen, we wont be able to tell if whomever we are interacting is a real person, or just a clever bot.

Source:

https://blogs.ubc.ca/fianca/2015/11/18/51/

Clutter Inc. executives Ari Mir (CMO) and Brian Thomas (CEO).

Mark Suster, the writer of the blog starts off by congratulating Clutter Inc. for raising $9 million dollars of capital from a large venture capital firm. However, Clutter Inc. the biggest competitor of the startup that Suster has personally invested in, MakeSpace. Mark then begins to justify this, by explaining the importance and benefit of competition, stating that

“[Investors] realize there is some market validation when there are competitors.”

While this is true, I also believe that what investors realize could be positive or negative depending on where your company is positioned against the other(s). If your company’s competitor is so ahead and has established a sturdy position in the market first, investors may decide that the battle is futile and not worth risking.

Suster also mentions that an “unhealthy focus on your competitors leads one to take one’s eye off of the customer and market opportunity”. I agree with his statement; while it is important to keep track and stay up-to-date with a company’s competitor’s developments, tunneled, unhealthy focus on these things can cause a business to lose sight of what is more important; itself. Put beautifully by Suster, do not end up “focusing more on the competition than the customer”.

Sources:

[1] http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2015/10/22/what-to-do-when-your-competitor-gets-funded/

[2] http://blogs.wsj.com/venturecapital/2015/10/22/clutter-raises-9-million-for-its-on-demand-storage-service/?mod=WSJ_TechWSJD_venture

Large companies such as McDonalds, A&W and Kraft Foods are moving towards obtaining a “healthy” image contrary to their previous consumer preconceptions.

McDonalds Canada is boasting that their meat is purchased 100 precent from Canadian producers, and A&W states that all their beef is guaranteed to be “raised without the use of hormones or steroids”¹. Even Kraft Foods announced that “[they] will use spices like paprika, annatto and turmeric to replace the synthetic colours”³ in their famous instant macaroni and cheese product.

This appears to be a common marketing approach by many companies that are not typically viewed as “healthy choices” to cater towards the ever-growing trend of consumer awareness.

This change is influenced by the consumers, for example, the Kraft “change comes after hearing from parents who wanted improved nutrition and simpler ingredients, Kraft (KRFT) said”³.

Sources:

[1] http://www.ctvnews.ca/business/industry-standards-fast-food-giants-in-ad-war-over-meat-source-1.2594198

[2] http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-eggs-cages-20150929-story.html

[3] http://money.cnn.com/2015/04/20/news/companies/kraft-macaroni-cheese-fake-color/

Nissan Motor Co. CEO Carlos Ghosn speaks to the media during the 2015 New York International Auto Show on Thursday. Ghosn said Nissan plans to launch self-driving cars in Japan in 2016. | BLOOMBERG

Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of Nissan stated at a press conference that “there will be a Nissan product in Japan, which will carry autonomous drive”.

Nissan has set a time line of 2016, to use their five year partnership with NASA to develop the newly emerging autonomous driving technology. By 2020, the ability to navigate seamlessly though busy city traffic is hoped to be achieved. All this is going to be achieved step by step because “to persuade the regulators [of different countries] that you can take your hands off the wheel or your eyes from the road is going to take a lot of demonstration”, and with emphasis still on having “zero emission”.

Relating to “Porter’s Generic Strategies” which was discussed in previous lectures, Nissan’s strategy can be interpreted as a “Differentiation Strategy”. The product Nissan promises offers “unique attributes that are valued by customers”, such as complex functions of the vehicle and zero emission technologies.

Nissan will be successful in its differentiation strategy because they meet the Porter’s criteria and have important internal strengths such as access to leading scientific research and a highly skilled and creative product development team due to their partnership with NASA. They also have a strong sales team due to their already established brand and a corporate reputation for quality and innovation due to their consumer perceived “reliable” vehicles and innovative products such as the Nissan Leaf.

Sources:

[1] http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/04/03/business/corporate-business/nissan-launch-self-driving-car-japan-2016-ghosn-says/#.VhCIwxNVikq

[2] http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml