Month: October 2011

The huge environmental wave described in the book Green to Gold has crashed onto the business world over the past few years and has opened up an entirely new market, the business of being environmentally friendly. Corporations who have been manipulating their customers’ wants for years are now becoming the manipulated market. Organizations like 1% For the Planet and The Climate Registry have found that businesses these days are desperate to appear sustainable and have capitalized  on this new factor.

They offer legitimacy to businesses that want their customers to see that they are sustainable, like a big stamp of approval. Businesses are capable enough to make their practices sustainable themselves, but now that’s not enough. Being “officially” sustainable comes at a price.

Businesses like 1% For the Planet are genius. Customers want to see sustainable practices within organizations, organizations want the stamp of approval to show customers, and the new businesses provide that by charging a small fee for their name to be flaunted. It is like buying a t-shirt that says Chanel on it. Organizations want that name to show people.

It is just one more  way to use the environment to the human race’s advantage, but this time it’s doing good rather than harm!

The next modern word entering the dictionary, after google, is “Netflixed.” To be Netflixed is to disrupt a previously successful business model, at least it is according to Saul Kaplan’s article for CNN. Netflix’s model of paying a monthly flat-fee for unlimited mail-in movie rentals was extremely successful, until they changed.

A business model has become a key factor in selling a product. It needs to fit the product and allow consumers to get exactly what they want. In class Mahesh outlined this with the direct buy business model for Dell. Netflix beat out Blockbuster because it had a model that was more efficient and allowed customers to tailor their own product. Customers are able to pick how many movies they want and choose from a variety that goes beyond what is just held on video stores’ shelves. Blockbuster’s retail model worked for them for a while, but as soon as Netflix’s better model came in they were toast.

Together, Blockbuster and Netflix show that companies can’t just have the right model, but also need to know how to change their model. Blockbuster didn’t change and it hurt them big time. Netflix did change, but chose the wrong model to change into. It’s all about having the perfect model for the customers.

Before the release of the iPad or Kindle, Apple and Amazon were unlikely competitors; according to business blogger Joe Castaldo, they still are. In his blog post, “Lighting a Fire Under Netflix” he discusses how Amazon’s new product, the Kindle Fire, won’t even compete against the Apple iPad 2 along with Amazon’s likelihood of buying Netflix.

The new Kindle Fire has many points of difference that set it apart in the tablet market along with the necessary points of parities. It has all the key functions of a tablet, but it’s much more. The Fire directs users to Amazon.com and its enormous “web walmart,” is less than half the price of the Apple iPad at $199, and  with Amazon Prime users can get around 11,000 streaming videoes and TV shows. Amazon has created huge selling points that will definitely set the Fire apart in the market’s mind. Also, if Castaldo is right and Amazon is going to buy Netflix, then it will attract even more users by providing Netflix’s entire service through their tablet. Netflix subscribers will flock to the Fire. Amazon has separated its product from the iPad  and will soon overthrow the tablet tyrant.