This blog post is dedicated to the following question found in Class 20’s class prep:

“If the United Nations was fully funded, why would we need the Arc or social enterprise”?

While the United Nations focuses on global problems of international magnitude, social entrepreneurs and inspirational initiatives, such as the Arc, evoke social change within local communities. Social enterprise aims to help individuals and small societies, where as the United Nations finds solutions to social, economic, and political problems that affect colossal populations.

I believe that social enterprise plays a much more personal role when it comes to their cause, compared to the United Nations. While the UN solves immediate problems, they do not solve every aspect of the problem with their one solution. Social entrepreneurs find long standing solutions while the United Nations finds short term fixes to problems.

While I was in Turkey in the summer, my family and I stumbled upon a carpet factory. The workers told us that they worked 18 hours every day in order to support their families, at next to nothing wages. Using this circumstance as an example, if the United Nations were to implement a policy that eradicated 18 hour work days, this would improve the working conditions of the workers. While they would get shorter days, this policy would not solve the health and economic problems they have collected from their job. Social entrepreneurs would look into solutions that would help them get back on their feet, socially and economically.

If the United Nations were fully funded, they would solve problems that aid a global population. These solutions however, would not pertain to every individual’s circumstances. Initiatives like The Arc and social entrepreneurs are vital in order to evoke long term changes in the community.

In reference to Harvard Business Review’s blog post “Taylor Swift and the Economics of Music as a Service”, the post discusses the evolution of the music industry and the effect technological change has on industry’s capability of selling music.

The contents of the Harvard blog post were extremely fascinating. I found it interesting how it was necessary for one to have a physical hard copy of a good (ex. a record, disk, mixtape, etc…) in the past to listen to music, whereas today, we have the capability to stream and listen to music online at next to nothing costs. This is a sign that the way the music industry earns its revenue has dramatically changed over the past few decades. I believe that every industry and market, including the music industry, grows alongside external aspects such as technological developments, the internet, and new innovative business plans.

Furthermore, the blog post discusses Apple’s amazing ability to adapt to new environments. Most notably, I believe that Apple revolutionized the music industry when they decided to charge prices at a “single” rate, where one has the option of downloading a song for a single fee. In class the other day, we learned that a company should modify their business models after the demands of their consumers. They should be innovative and forward thinkers in order to beat out fierce competition – this will give the company a distinguished point of difference that differentiates them from similar companies. Apple is a company that exemplifies this concept.

As evident from the past, the music industry has been progressively evolving to discover new ways to make money. From record players, to CD players, to MP3 players, to Napster, iTunes, and finally, digital streaming, the possibilities are endless for the future.

Find the original article here.

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Microsoft is planning on coming out with a new, cheaper smartphone that costs approximately $135 US dollars. The Lumia 535 has the appeal of any other high-end Microsoft phone with two SIM slots, Windows Phone 8.1, Skype video calls, Office apps, a quad core 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 processor, 512MB of RAM, 8GB of built in storage, and a virtual assistant similar to Apple’s Siri. The phone is going to have a 5-inch screen, a 5 megapixel front and rear facing camera, as well as a low price that targets a new, cost sensitive audience

In an effort to expand into a new customer segment worldwide with cheaper phones, Microsoft has cut manufacturing costs. Production costs are minimized with touch screen camera and control buttons, instead of the typical physical buttons on the frame.

I believe that Microsoft is wise to expand into a larger customer segment. The phone they have created is highly competitive, has amazing value, and is an impressive option for anyone looking for a functional phone that is on the cheaper side. Not only are they catering to their more affluent customers with their regular devices, but they are now delving in to new waters and expanding their horizons into a less wealthy customer segment. By doing so, Microsoft will broaden their brand name to different parts of the world that they could not previously reach with their moderate to expensive pricing. I predict that Microsoft’s net worth will grow with the release of The Lumia 535, expected to come out at the end of November.

Find the original article here

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In response to Trent Abraham’s insightful blog post, I agree that BlackBerry’s biggest downfalls were that “the company failed to be forward thinking, deviated from its strategy, and is consequently nearing inferiority in an industry it once owned.”

To add on to what has been said, I believe that BlackBerry’s failure to dominant the smart phone market is mainly due to their lack of a distinct point of differentiation. Their signature keyboard with physical buttons is what they are well known for – it is user friendly amongst older generations and easy to type on. It’s a no fuss, no brainer solution made for everyone of any age. Keeping their most prominent point of differentiation was an vital component to their survival.

         

Instead of focusing on what they are known for, they strayed from their original brand reputation, confusing customers in the long run. In class, we learned that a company should propel their marketing strategies considering the mind sets of their customers first and foremost. Once upon a distant time, BlackBerry was placed at the top of the ladder when it came to user friendliness, thanks to their practical keyboard buttons. If they present their products differently from how they present their company, they will blur their main focus and as a result, BlackBerry’s popularity will ultimately suffer.

Visit Trent’s blog here.

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