Seth’s Blog

When I searched business blogs online, the Top 50 Business blogs popped up. I selected the first one, Seth’s Blog, and glanced through it.

Seth’s style is quite interesting and easy to follow (just like his profile picture). In one of his posts, Organizing For Growth, he uses the example of a house painter to analyze how different operations can make a business become more efficient. I was amazed by the way he used to make an easy house painting work into a growing organization and brand.

His idea may sound ridiculous, but it is mind blowing. It is true that a business doesn’t have to operate the same way as everybody else does. Actually, it might be better for an entrepreneur to try something different. As he mentioned in the post, there are some things like “cash flow”, “demand enhancement”, “increasing ability to keep your promises by investing in a pipeline of talent”, etc. The most important thing is to know what you want to do.

Dream big. Be creative. Try hard. Ask for help. Go for it! “An entrepreneur creates something when there is nothing.” – What It Means to Be an Entrepreneur Now

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

I think there is always a need for social enterprise because the United Nations will never be fully funded. They need to consider and solve problems from all the areas including economical development, environmental issues, peacekeeping, human rights, etc. They will never have enough funds to solve these problems. We can’t expect them to put helping with poverty as their first task.

On the other hand, the Arc or social enterprise’s object is to help people in poor areas by giving them knowledge, capital, and mental support, so that they can do something they want, for example, running a business. It is infeasible for the United Nations to do these things. There is a difference between government and non-government organizations. If the United Nations’ job is to “save the world”, the social enterprise’s job is to “help the world”. If the United Nations do things due to responsibility, the social enterprise does things due to the willingness of helping others. The United Nations don’t earn profits by themselves, but social enterprises do.

In conclusion, I think we need the Arc or social enterprise to create a better world.

Online shopping sees 30% rise between midnight and 6am, study says

Alfred Nelson-Holmquist’s Blog

Michelle Liao’s Response

I want to talk about Alfred’s blog “Evaluating When Consumers Make Their Choices”.

The original article talks about how people do more online shopping nowadays, especially during midnight. It really catches my attention because there is an event happening on China’s biggest online shopping website – Taobao. In recent years, most online retailers will offer great discounts on November 11, which is known as “Singles’ Day” in China. (The number “1” looks like a stick. In China, single people are called “bare sticks”.) This year, some products even come with globally free shipping. This is a brilliant idea that satisfies the huge amount of overseas Chinese students’ needs. As a result, the sells on that day will increase dramatically.

The biggest online shopping website in China – Taobao

The separation of tablets does increase the percentage of people doing Internet shopping. My mother is a good example. I actually like that because it is a more convenient way of doing shopping, especially when the shopping malls are far away.

Alfred thinks that physical stores should extend opening hours to satisfy customers’ needs and compete with online stores. However, Michelle Liao, who also comments on Alfred’s blog, thinks that these stores should “take advantage of the online channel” instead. I agree with Michelle’s point of view.