Peyman Gazor's Blog

 Businesses strive when taking many things into account. Customer service is perhaps one of the most important aspects in business. Consumers make up the market, and the demand. In order for a business to gain market share, improve customer loyalty, and develop a positive image, customer service should be the number one focus. For example, Zappos is well-known for their exceptional customer service; as a result, not only have they managed to create a loyal customer base that can promote the advertising technique of word of mouth, but they have also managed to attract and maintain consumers through such exceptional services.  Management has a crucial role to play in setting the standards for the customer service quality the company is willing to provide. Depending on the quality of this service it can either increase or decrease a company’s popularity among consumers.

      Performance across many levels can be related back to the management of an organization. In order to manage a business effectively there is a need for many traits: leadership, reliability, a clear vision, and appropriate decision making skills. Some of the more successful companies, such as Apple, have seen improvements through the years not only for their products but the effective management system they have in place; more specifically, their leaders did not strive to make money and instead focused on making their visions for the consumer’s market come true.

     Start saving and start producing United States! Change is definitely under way in American business. U.S. citizens will have to adapt to a lower standard of living, and for most, there will be no more indulging.

   It is believed that the worlds financial crisis can be largely related to the greedy investors in Wall Street and their clever schemes, to the poor decisions made by the U.S. Federal Reserve. According to Jim Rogers, a well known international investor, America’s problems are much deeper than a weakening U.S. dollar. The Federal Reserve chairmen travels to asia and debases the U.S. dollar; more specifically, the FED is relying on other countries to “run” the US economy. On one side, we have many supporting the idea of letting businesses go bankrupt in this financial situation, and for the businesses that are sound to take over. However, we have others supporting liquidating assets, and pumping money into the economy; this move can have severe consequences not only for the U.S., but in markets around the world. An increase in inflation would be just one of many following such an action and to add, their will be debasing of currencies globally.

      The U.S. economy is known for using up much of the worlds resources just as a single nation. For example, of the worlds oil supply, 50 % is used by America while the rest of the world has to live on the rest. This example sets us up for the question: why should the U.S. be given such opportunities and endulgance, while the rest of the world has to be limited to supply on world resources? If such practices in the U.S. economy should continue, there will be a run on the U.S. dollar as investors look to other markets and currencies.

      “We will address that problem in the near future.” Considering recent political moves in the U.S., the previous quote must have been very common when the topic of the national deficit was considered.

     Currently the U.S. deficit is amounting to an astounding $14 trillion. If the population is taken into account, the national debt can be calculated as approximately $45,000 per citizen. This situation has been deemed as “unsustainable” and it poses great risks for the U.S. If this problem is left unchecked, it poses a great threat to the future Americans who can face problems from poorer living conditions to a weaker nation.

     Naturally, there is no easy way out, and the solution to the problem will be painful. This past Wednesday, a sweeping austerity program, issued by a White House deficit commission, was presented to U.S. lawmakers. Their proposals include raising the retirement age, and drastically reducing spending in health care and the military. This plan will no doubt face an uphill battle from many politicians in U.S. politics.

     If lawmakers fail to tighten budgets and spending habits, according to some estimates the revenue in 2025 will only be enough to cover the interest for the deficit, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security; as a result, other government spending for activities such as national defense and homeland security will have to paid for with borrowed money.

   Sooner or later the Americans will have to face the inconvenient truth and what it means for the future of their country. They have maintained the ranking of the worlds number one super power for some time, and if this major problem is not addressed they will no longer be in the spotlight.

    Telecommunication companies are discovering new strategies to gain market share by the day, and one that has been proven is the expansion of media. Upon breaking down the sources of its profits, Rogers has concluded very minimal profits in media. Currently, the media profits for Rogers are generated from Rogers Publishing Limited, which has more than 70 consumer and business publications, 51 radio stations, television broadcasting with OMNI, Citytv and the Sportsnet network, OLN, G4 Tech, and The Shopping Channel which is Canada’s home shopping service. Rogers also owns the entire Toronto Blue Jays franchise, a contributing factor in media profits.

  Naturally, Rogers is looking to expand as the company believes there is room for some aggressive action. The telecommunication giant is considering of putting up an offer for the controlling shares of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Toronto Raptors franchises. This  is believed to bring more profits as the teams are going to generate a greater media attention towards the company.

      Just recently Rogers sponsored the 2010 Fifa World Cup and this adds to the company exposure in the media. We should all be prepared for some major changes in the telecommunication industry as company’s are discovering different “gold rushes” that can be beneficial in gaining market share.

Video curtesy of BNN: Rogers Eye Expanding Sports Empire

A link to the news article:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/why-rogers-is-stick-handling-the-big-sports-deal/article1820559/

         In less than a decade the Booster Juice franchise has managed to establish over 170 stores nationwide. The idea was first brought up when Dale Wishewan (founder) and Jon Amack (from the US) were camping and Jon would ask the simple question “Are there any juice bars in the US?” and as Wishewan describes ” the rest is history.”

          The first Booster Juice opened in 1999 in Sherwood Park, Alberta. Once Wishewan gathered a customer base, he was confident in his business. Booster Juice started franchising in 2000, and began its dominance in the market. The franchise fee is fairly priced at $25 000, and the company collects a 6 % royalty. The approximate wait time for a franchise is around 6-18 months, depending on the location.

       The Booster Juice franchise is no doubt an entrepreneurial business. Although Wishewan did not undertake a completely new idea (as most entrepreneurial businesses do), he did take the relatively high risk of starting Booster Juice. Furthermore, Booster Juice made record profits in a very short amount of time, with some estimates in the tens of millions (company does not report profits) in the 11 years it has been operating. Considering the business has been expanding into other markets around the world, it seems the engineer, Wishewan, has thought of everything and left no room for errors.

       For those interested in the franchise and specific information about the business the links below provide very detailed explanations.

http://www.freefranchisedocs.com/booster-juice-UFOC.html

http://www.boosterjuice.com/

            The marketing team at Whistler Blackcomb are working harder than ever to bring in more tourists to the area. From all of the exposure Whistler experienced during the Olympics, why would they now have a hard time driving in customers? This is all due to “the Cypress Problem”, the phrase used by Whistlers public relations office that is trying its best to counter tourist views.

           During the Olympics, Whistler, experienced their second snowiest winter. Whistler Blackcomb was the “place to be” at that time. On the other hand, Cypress Mountain had some of the worst conditions including rainstorms and lack of snow. From a tourist point of view this could go two ways. Either remember the beautiful Whistler Blackcomb for what it was, or think back to the dreadful conditions on Cypress and base your opinion on B.C.’s mountains on that (assuming tourists don’t know how to distinguish between the two mountains). It just so happens that tourists are confusing Whistler for Cypress, and this has had a severe impact on drawing in overseas visitors. Marketers are trying there best to clear up the confusion.

                   There are many other things that have contributed to Whistlers decrease in customers. The rising Canadian dollar has driven away American tourists who use to use the strong U.S. dollar to their advantage. B.C.’s new harmonized sales tax is also another negative, making goods and services more expensive at the resort. Lastly, surrounding competition is driving potential customers away from Whistler due to their cheaper rates. The resort charges a staggering $93 for a one day pass (not including any deals) ! Whistler Blackcomb clearly needs to discover better ways in attracting mountain lovers, especially in these harder economic times.

           Recently, I came across a very interesting article with the author clearly stating that Research in Motion is not the winner when it comes to the smart phone market. In the author’s view, Apple is and will continue to dominate this market. However, what the author fails to recognize is that the companies are actually dominating two very distinct markets. 

            On one side we have Apple dominating the consumer market for various reasons. Just as the author mentions, Apple clearly has many more applications and games available, something the consumer market finds attractive. Apple also finds ways to incorporate smart innovative designs into their IPhones.  Confident in their dominance in the consumer market, I believe that Apple is trying to expand into the business market. Personally, I have yet to hear of an employer paying for an employees IPhone.  

           On the other hand, Blackberry still has no competition in the business market. Their phones are designed by engineers and are more functional, and less fragile. Blackberry messenger has been a breakthrough for RIM, attracting even the younger population (Generation Z). The only problem for RIM, that is not very clearly stated in the article, is that the business market is more mature than the consumer market; in other words, Apple is growing faster due to the fickle consumer market, but that does not mean to say that RIM can not take advantage of the situation either.

                      Overall, I believe the author is mistaken that Apple will be the dominant force. The smaller core franchise that Blackberry happens to control will turn out to be more valuable than Apple`s.

              Analysts are predicting that in the next 12 months the Canadian dollar will rally to an all time high of $1.15 against the U.S. greenback. To most Canadians this is good news, however others will suffer. Exporters in Canada will face hard times ahead if this prediction proves to be true.

              Many governments and organizations around the world have been hinting on additional quantitative easing for there economies;  recently, Japan has taken drastic measures as a means to lower the value of the Yen, some of which included slashing interest rates to zero and putting an additional $60 billion aside for purchasing financial assets. If the expansion of  balance sheets for central banks around the world should go any further, from additional stimuli, the value of their currencies will depreciate.

             Should the Canadian dollar reach an all time high, the nation will most likely suffer. Canada’s economy relies heavily on exports, with the United States as its largest trading partner, exporters will be losing money; naturally, this will have a negative impact on Canada’s GDP in the year to come. At that point the Canadian government will most likely have to intervene and try its  best to control the value of the rising Canadian dollar. On a plus side, Canadian consumers can expect more purchasing power in the United States!

Here is a link to the article:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/economy-lab/the-economists/get-ready-for-a-115-loonie/article1745200/

             In this economy, investors are resorting to risky activities hoping that the returns will be more than satisfactory. The risky “moneymakers” are none other than high-yield bonds. Even the more conservative investors are buying into this “new big thing in bond investing”. The returns generated from these bonds are definitely attractive running into 6 or 7 per cent; however, high-yield bonds have a much higher risk of default in comparison to bonds issued by blue-chip companies or governments. Most of these high-yield bonds are being issued by companies with lower-tier credit ratings. This sudden increase in high-yield bond activity is not all a surprise. In fact these bonds are rebounding from the lows they experienced in 2008, with some big players losing as much as 40 per cent in their funds.

                       In the end, the stock market is all about risks. However, some of the risks (as they appear to be to the inexperienced investor) involved in financial markets can only be barriers to further rewards. Depending on the investor and his/her knowledge of markets, these barriers can be exposed and therefore the risks can also be dismissed. As long as the largest econmy in the world, the United States of America, does not experience a double-dip recession, markets all around the world will begin to see steady growth in all areas including their high-yeild bonds.

High-Yield Corporations

Levi\’s – America Go Forth Commercial

              The Levis brand has definitely seen better days. Not too long ago the company was the number 1 denim jean brand, and had the largest market share (30%). Ever since the start of the last decade their success has been diminishing; naturally, just like many other companies,  Levi Strauss & Co. is looking to revive its brand and hopefully see encouraging signs. For such a goal to be accomplished they have approached the best in marketing: Wieden + Kennedy, an  ad agency out of Portland, Oregon that is also in the process of restoring the Old Spice brand.

              The new ad campaign will have the  “rust-belt town” of Braddock, Pennsylvania as its setting. In the ads, the company plans to refer to the hard times the U.S has had in the past, in the hopes of illuminating the future. Most importantly, the ads will be selling the story of the rundown town and its people. The idea has definitely started controversy. Consumers claim Levis is using Braddock to their advantage and is not appropriately reimbursing the town and its people. In addition, some critics also highlight the fact that although Levis is wanting to support the U.S. in recovering from this economic slowdown and is promoting American iconography in there new ads, ironically the company’s blue jeans are manufactured offshore.  

              I believe Levis is on its way in re-establishing their “lost market” . While there are arguments in their unethical marketing strategy, both Levis and the town of Braddock will benefit from the ads. In Braddock’s case, the town will be more recognized and some citizens will be benefiting in their roles in the ads. Similarly, the critique of the company’s manufacturing offshore, should not be taken into account; although the American consumer believes in “[Buying] American, they spend it all on other stuff made in China.” Overall, Levis is a reputable company and so far has not committed an unethical business practice in the eyes of the public.

 http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/marketing/levis-new-ad-campaign-selling-hope-in-a-forgotten-rust-belt-town/article1725038/page1/