From http://goo.gl/7YdGQ6

Urthecast is a new innovative business that will be offering live HD video footage from space for commercial sale.

Although the idea is quite intriguing, I feel that the company has a very limited amount of revenue streams.
In my previous blog, I discussed how moving companies may not need to retain their customers as much as the average business because people only move every five years. When looking at Urthecast’s cutomers, the issue isn’t retention, it’s acquisition.

At first, although the idea of live HD footage from space sounds cool, in the end, who would actually be willing to purchase this content? Well, the average consumer, unless was a die-hard geography fan, most likely has better methods of using their money. On the other hand, major news cables may want to purchase this, as the presenter stated during his presentation in our class.

I would argue though, that news cables most likely will not be very interested either; when, for example, a natural disaster happens, news agencies would deploy helicopters with HD cameras to get certain angles or a long focused shot. Using a satellite although sounds cool, I don’t think it fulfills a need, or improves on existing methods.

From https://i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/4109023744/h2606131F/

Think twice the next time you see an unbelievably low-priced moving rate from a new moving company.

Recently, a CBC Marketplace report showed that there is an increase in customer complaints against moving companies. From hidden fees that are revealed when a customer is about to pay, to broken or damaged objects, moving companies clearly do not care about customer retention.

For businesses, costumer relationships are a key building block for success. Furthermore, retaining customers is just as important as getting new customers. However, I could see why moving companies may not view the retention aspect too significantly. According to Ask.com, “[t]he normal American household moves every five years”. Thus, for these moving companies, even if you retain customers, you would only receive work from customers every five years. Perhaps this is why moving companies do not care about retaining customers, and advertises low-price deals instead.

I personally do not believe this model will be successful because it does not seem sustainable. Once a lot of people have negative experiences, they will depreciate the moving company’s reputation via word-of-mouth. Eventually, people will blacklist these “scam” moving companies.

Most importantly, business should be about delivering authentic value, not tricking customers.

From http://goo.gl/MEPNxD

If you are a woman who wears above L-sized clothing, you better skip the heavily-perfumed A&F outlets.

Kevin Ding recently criticized A&F for “refusing to produce and sell above large-sized women’s clothing”, which you should also check out.

In my opinion though, I don’t think that this policy is a form of discrimination. Most clothing companies sell a wide range of sizes in order to supply a greater number of customers’ needs. Thus, companies aren’t necessarily obligated by law to produce all supplies.

In fact, A&F is employing a focus strategy on the customer segment of physically fit individuals. By utilizing this strategy, A&F enjoys a high standard of customer loyalty; a lot of my friends who wear A&F continually purchase their apparel. Furthermore, people who can wear A&F (and afford to) are perhaps wearing the clothes to associate themselves to the whole “physically-active” image. Overall, this strategy seems to work for A&F, except for the negative publicity they receive from some people. However, every business strategy will have its benefits and consequences.

In the end, I don’t think it’s a huge deal if you can’t wear A&F clothing; there are a plethora of substitute brands that are more fashionable.