Sales & Marketing news

• Trump says he wants to 'spend more on healthcare' — but the GOP bill does the exact opposite

  30-05-2017 23:22 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Sunday to make a big healthcare promise that is in contradiction to his administration's recent actions.
  "I suggest that we add more dollars to Healthcare and make it the best anywhere," Trump tweeted. "ObamaCare is dead - the Republicans will do much better!"
  But both the GOP healthcare bill supported by the president, as well as Trump's own budget, subtract from government healthcare expenditures. That has some healthcare experts concerned that th
  
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• The US dollar isn't living up to expectations

  30-05-2017 23:14 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  One of our key market views at the turn of the year was that the U.S. dollar, though already significantly overvalued, would continue to appreciate in light of a shifting U.S. policy landscape.
  A united Republican Congress and presidency had increased the odds of fiscal stimulus which, coupled with monetary tightening already underway, created the potential for meaningful fiscal and monetary policy divergence between the United States and other major developed countries. As we explained at the t
  
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• Jeff Koons was a cotton trader — and 9 other things you didn't know about the connection between art and finance

  30-05-2017 22:28 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  The worlds of finance and the humanities seem distant. The cold calculus and material emphasis of finance seems about as far removed as one can imagine from the inquiring, open-ended approach of the humanities and its emphasis on meaning. As I researched my book, "The Wisdom of Finance," I was surprised to uncover a close correspondence between the central ideas of finance and the questions that preoccupy many humanists.
  I was also struck by how many great writers and artists were tied to financ
  
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• Here's the hardest word to spell in each state, according to Google

  30-05-2017 22:01 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Can you spell "sauerkraut" without looking? How about "Chihuahua," or perhaps "pneumonia?"
  If spelling those words trips you up, don't worry — you're not alone.
  Google published a graphic Tuesday of "America's most misspelled words," a state-by-state look at the most common word preceded in Google searches by the phrase "how to spell."
  "Pneumonia," and its legendary silent "p," topped the chart in three different states: Alabama, Maine, and Washington. "Beautiful"
  
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• What Jane Austen can teach us about risk management

  30-05-2017 21:06 via feedproxy.google.com
  Harvard Business School professor Mihir Desai, author of "Wisdom of Finance" uses several arts and literature examples to get his point to the readers. In this excerpt of his interview with Business Insider, he explains what the works of Jane Austen and Anthony Trollope can teach us about risk management in finance. Following is a transcript of the video.
  Josh Barro: A lot of these arts and literature examples, like what Jane Austen can teach us about risk, so like what can Jane Austen teac
  
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• Morgan Stanley is wrong — electric cars aren’t going to take over (TSLA)

  30-05-2017 20:29 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Morgan Stanley's "Global Autos & Shared Mobility" team of analysts published a research note on Tuesday highlighting numerous aspects of its overall thesis on the transformation of transportation.
  They covered a lot of ground, but let's focus on what's actually its most radical prediction. 
  According to lead analyst Adam Jonas and his team, Morgan Stanley is "bullish on EV penetration and universally cautious on the long-term viability of the 100-year-old internal combustion engine (ICE
  
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• One company has thrown politics in the Western Hemisphere completely off-kilter

  30-05-2017 20:17 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  One name has completely disrupted politics in the Western Hemisphere, taken down at least one presidency and threatens to topple another.
  It has sent protesters to the streets in more than one nation, and has American officials combing through bank transactions leading to a nebulous web of offshore accounts.
  The name is Odebrecht — it's a Brazilian construction company that became an international giant over years of using bribery and corruption to secure around 100 projects in 12 countrie
  
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• Howard Schultz told Starbucks workers that Trump is creating 'chaos' that is impacting the economy in leaked video (SBUX)

  30-05-2017 20:12 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Donald Trump is creating "chaos" that is impacting the American economy, according to Starbucks' longtime CEO and current chairman Howard Schultz. 
  "The world is screwed up. People are unsettled," Schultz said a meeting with the company's support staff in Seattle in February. "There is a tremendous amount of pressure and anxiety in America."
  "We have a president that is creating episodic chaos every single day, and that is no doubt affecting consumer behavior," Schultz said, in a video
  
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• The CEO of a massive Christian-owned craft store had a surprising response when asked about maternity leave

  30-05-2017 19:33 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Last month, David Green, the CEO of the craft retailer Hobby Lobby, came to Business Insider’s office to promote a book called "Giving it All Away," in which he writes at length about generosity in business and in life.
  Green is an evangelical Christian, and Hobby Lobby famously sued the US government so that it would stop paying for four contraceptives that Green believes cause abortions. He won.
  When we asked him whether Hobby Lobby offers parental leave, he was stumped. "I don’t
  
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• Oil companies are set to struggle rehiring workers they laid off during the crash

  30-05-2017 18:05 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  There's renewed demand for oil workers who left the industry or were laid off during the most recent price crash.
  Hiring in oil and gas extraction increased for three straight months through April, the longest stretch since April to July in 2014, which was right around when oil prices peaked.
  But as companies revamp production — having adjusted to a world in which oil doesn't cost close to $100 a barrel — sustaining this pace will not be cheap.
  "Attracting back workers into the US sh
  
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• British Airways brand reputation nosedives in wake of IT meltdown

  30-05-2017 17:56
  
  British Airways (BA) has seen consumer perceptions of its brand plummet in the wake of an IT outage that impacted thousands of flights over the weekend, and there are already signs it could impact its business as well.
  The airline has been flooded with complaints from travellers after at least 75,000 were affected by the IT failure on Saturday (27 May). Many were stranded at either Heathrow or Gatwick airport, with flights only returning to normal today (30 May).
  The issue was compounded by poor
  
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• Mark Ritson: Can AB InBev avoid killing its craft beer brands?

  30-05-2017 17:16
  
  One of the great transformational experiences of my lifetime has been drinking beer in American bars. As a man who spent more of his 20s in America (and mostly in bars) than in the UK there is no-one who can testify better to just how disappointing American beer once was. Somehow Americans, and me along with them, accepted the idea that the variants offered by Budweiser, Miller and (if you really wanted to push the boat out) Coors were enough to satiate all your drinking needs.
  And then it all s
  
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• Trump's attacks on Germany show he misunderstands a basic fact about Europe

  30-05-2017 16:48 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  With friends like these, the saying goes, who needs enemies?
  America's European allies may be starting to feel this way about the United States.
  Donald Trump has shown a special knack for starting diplomatic spats with longtime US allies — the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and Mexico all found themselves on the president's erratic firing line within his first couple of months in office.
  Germany is the new enemy, after a recent visit to Europe left leaders there despondent about US rel
  
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• TRUMP: Senate Republicans should use the 'nuclear option' to pass healthcare and tax cuts

  30-05-2017 16:32 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the Senate should get rid of the legislative filibuster so that it could pass healthcare and tax-cut bills.
  "The U.S. Senate should switch to 51 votes, immediately, and get Healthcare and TAX CUTS approved, fast and easy," Trump tweeted. "Dems would do it, no doubt!"
  The filibuster allows senators to hold up legislation without a 60-vote threshold.
  Changing the floor rules to end the filibuster has been considered a "nuclear option" for lawmakers, as
  
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• Buffalo Wild Wings CEO hits back at activist investor and blames chain's problems on millennials (BWLD)

  30-05-2017 16:32 via feedproxy.google.com
  As Buffalo Wild Wings continues its power struggle with the activist investor Marcato Capital, CEO Sally Smith says the problem isn't the chain — it's the industry.
  "Casual-dining restaurants face a uniquely challenging market today," Smith wrote in a letter to shareholders on Tuesday.
  Smith outlined three of the biggest problems plaguing restaurants, and especially casual-dining chains, in 2017: changing customer tastes, slowing mall traffic, and declining sports viewership.
  "Millennial c
  
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• Marketoonist on the emperor’s new marketing plan

  30-05-2017 16:02
  
  Tom Fishburne is founder of Marketoon Studios. Follow his work at marketoonist.com or on Twitter @tomfishburne
  See more of the Marketoonist here
  The post Marketoonist on the emperor’s new marketing plan appeared first on Marketing Week.
  
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• Steve Cohen reportedly is prepping the biggest hedge-fund launch ever

  30-05-2017 15:48 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Steve Cohen is looking to raise $20 billion for his big hedge-fund comeback, The Wall Street Journal reported.
  That would make his fund the biggest US hedge-fund launch, coming about four years after his previous hedge-fund firm, SAC Capital Advisors, was barred from managing external money and pleaded guilty to insider trading.
  Cohen was never charged, and he neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing in a civil settlement. He is allowed to manage external capital again in 2018.
  The $20 billion Coh
  
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• Amazon hits $1,000 a share for the first time (AMZN)

  30-05-2017 15:41 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Amazon's stock price hit the $1,000 mark for the first time in early trading on Tuesday.
  The company's shares went public on May 15, 1997, at a time when it had no clear path to profitability and bookstores like Barnes & Noble — over a century older — threatened its business.
  Amazon has now turned a profit for eight straight quarters, largely because of the strength of its cloud-computing business, Amazon Web Services.
  Its more popular, less profitable retail segment has for
  
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• Weetabix on why TV is ‘very hard to beat’ for ROI

  30-05-2017 13:59
  
  Armed with a £10m investment from its new US parent company Post Holdings, Weetabix is hoping a mixture of TV advertising and shopper marketing will help the cereal brand stay top of mind with consumers.
  “We want to become even more relevant and that’s everything from being front of mind and to making sure that we’ve got a regular presence in media. The very best way we’re seeing to do that is through regular TV advertising,” explains Weetabix head of brand, K
  
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• How to take advantage of mobile-first search

  30-05-2017 10:12
  
  The idea of mobile-first search engine indexing seems strange at first. Mobile websites still often feel like an afterthought, with less content and more emphasis on conversion than desktop sites. This isn’t the right approach, however, and Google’s move towards a mobile-first index makes a lot of sense.
  The percentage of people who use a smartphone has been rising consistently every year, with 74% of UK adults using a smartphone in 2016 and 27% of these using no other device, accord
  
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• Trump, Snapchat, Lucozade: Everything that matters this morning

  30-05-2017 08:47
  
  Tech giants slam Trump’s withdraw from climate agreement
  Apple, Facebook, Google and other leading US businesses have expressed their concern and disappointed over President Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris climate accord.
  In separate messages and statements across social media, leaders from the tech giants called the move “shortsighted” and “wrong”.
  Elon Musk, the owner of electric car maker Tesla, stepped down from two White Hous
  
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• Ryanair, BA, EE: Everything that matters this morning

  30-05-2017 08:47
  
  Ryanair profits rise as ‘always getting better’ programme attracts record traffic
  Ryanair saw profits rise 6% in the full year to 31 March to €1.316bh, an increase it puts down to a 13% cut to average fares and the third year of its ‘Always Getting Better’ programme. Traffic was up 13% to a record 120 million customers, with load factor (how full a plane is) at an industry-leading 94%.
  Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary says: “We are pleased to report a 6% incre
  
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• IAG, Deliveroo, BrewDog: Everything that matters this morning

  30-05-2017 08:47
  
  BA owner’s new budget airline takes first flight
  Level, the new trans-Atlantic budget airline budget from British Airways owner IAG, will officially launch today with its first flight from Barcelona to Los Angeles.
  IAG, which also owns Iberia, Aer Ingus and Vueling, has sold 100,000 tickets for Level flights since first going on sale in March. Over the next three weeks Level will begin flying from the Barcelona to San Francisco, Buenos Aires and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.
  
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• Amazon, Snapchat, Co-Op: Everything that matters this morning

  30-05-2017 08:47
  
  Amazon shares hit $1,000 for first time
  Shares in  Amazon have risen above the $1,000 mark for the first time.
  The shares touched $1,001.2 at one point yesterday (30 May) before slipping back to $996.7. It originally listed its shares in May 1997 for just $18 each.
  Amazon now has a market capitalisation of about $478bn and according to consultancy Slice Intelligence, Amazon now accounts for about 43% of all online sales in the US. It is now the fourth-largest US company by market capit
  
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• Amazon, Snapchat, Co-op Bank: Everything that matters this morning

  30-05-2017 08:47
  
  Amazon shares hit $1,000 for first time
  Shares in Amazon have risen above the $1,000 mark for the first time. The shares touched $1,001.2 at one point yesterday (30 May) before slipping back to $996.7. It originally listed its shares in May 1997 for just $18 each.
  Amazon now has a market capitalisation of about $478bn and according to consultancy Slice Intelligence, Amazon now accounts for about 43% of all online sales in the US. It is the fourth-largest US company by market capitalisation,
  
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• How to hire neurodiverse people

  30-05-2017 08:00
  
  Over the past year, employers from every section of society have been redoubling their efforts to promote diversity and inclusion. Brands across the UK are successfully breaking down the barriers around gender, ethnicity, disability and sexuality. However, for the most part their efforts have stopped short of promoting neurodiversity.
  Neurodiverse conditions encompass dyslexia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) and autism, including Asperger’s syndrom
  
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• Video ads must reward viewers

  30-05-2017 02:00
  
  LONDON: People do not warm to digital video ads –particularly non-skippable ads –and need to be rewarded by relevance or entertainment if they are not to skip early, an industry figure advises.In a WARC Best Practice paper, How to...
  
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• PaisaBazaar's three-plank content strategy

  30-05-2017 02:00
  
  NEW DELHI: PaisaBazaar.com has utilised a three-plank content strategy in its rapid progress to become India's biggest marketplace for credit cards and loans.Radhika Binani, chief product officer for PaisaBazaar.com, India's biggest marketplace...
  
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• Maltesers' influencer-driven launch strategy

  30-05-2017 02:00
  
  CHICAGO: Maltesers, the chocolate brand owned by Mars, believes an influencer-driven launch strategy can help it successfully attract attention from young consumers in the US. Rebecca Duke, Senior Brand Manager/Mars Chocolate North America,...
  
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• India cinema picks up

  30-05-2017 02:00
  
  DELHI: After a lacklustre couple of years for Indian cinema, a brace of blockbuster movies is helping to boost the industry's fortunes, at the same time a forecast growth of 15% in cinema advertising revenues hints at the new opportunities for...
  
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• Facebook drives publishers' lifestyle content

  30-05-2017 02:00
  
  NEW YORK: The topic of an article has significant impact on where readers find it, as new research shows lifestyle and entertainment stories see the majority of traffic coming from Facebook, while Google searches drive the majority of tech, sports,...
  
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• Connecting with Gen Z

  30-05-2017 02:00
  
  GLOBAL: Marketers are turning their attention to Generation Z,as 16-19 year olds become a significant consumer force in their own right across many categories, but this mobile-first generation retains affection for traditional media, research...
  
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• Macmillan revamps marketing strategy ahead of brand relaunch

  30-05-2017 01:01
  
  Macmillan is overhauling its marketing ahead of a brand relaunch as it looks to reposition the charity to show that it can help cancer patients and their families at any stage as well as provide not just nursing support but financial and psychological help as well.
  The new brand campaign, created by VCCP, sees Macmillan drop its ‘Not Alone’ positioning in favour of a message about how the charity can help cancer sufferers live normal lives. A series of TV ads, set to air from tonight
  
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