Revenue Magazine

The first publication devoted entirely to the world of affiliate marketing.
Website: http://www.revenuetoday.com/

Volkswagen - Counterculture

Advertising: The ’60s as the Good Old Days

IF you remember the ’60s, as a popular saying goes, you probably weren’t there. No matter. Madison Avenue is taking you back with a skein of campaigns celebrating sights and sounds of the decade. The ads are filled with images like Volkswagen buses festooned with groovy graffiti, daisies and other power flowers, peace signs, psychedelic drawings in DayGlo colors and hair, long beautiful hair, shining, gleaming, streaming, flaxen, waxen (to quote a lyric from the era).

COMMENT: What is most intriguing about the trend is that the ads present many of the contentious aspects of the ’60s — the protests, the hippies, the challenge to authority.

Discount Rate

Fed Cuts Rate a Quarter Point; Stocks Dive

In announcing the cut, the Federal Reserve signaled its concern that the credit crisis may be damaging the broader economy. The Dow fell nearly 300 points.

COMMENT: I am concerned about inflation and the outlook for our economic growth in 2007. The subprime mortgage problems might be making banks and other lenders reluctant to lend not only for housing but for other activities as well. I feel a recession coming on!

Flying the friendlier skies?

Airlines offer videos on air etiquette

Airlines and customers have differed on what it means to be a good traveler. Southwest Airlines Co. was criticized for telling a young woman in July that her outfit was too revealing to fly. Chief Executive Gary Kelly issued an apology to the young woman, Kyla Ebbert, that was read on "The Dr. Phil Show."

COMMENT: Part of the problem is that airlines haven't properly educated the public on what to expect aboard a plane. If people don't know how to behave long before adulthood, they are certainly not going to be receptive to a short animated film on the airplane. Unfortunately if they are already ill-mannered adults, their children will be the same.

Freelancers Walk Out at MTV Networks

Freelance workers from MTV Networks walked off the job today filling the sidewalk outside the headquarters of its corporate parent, Viacom to protest recent changes in benefits.

COMMENT: ABOUT TIME!! Another labor action is expected to take place outside Viacom later this week. Members of the Writers Guild of America, who have been on strike for five weeks, are expected to picket there on Thursday.

MYSPACE UNPLUGGED

In an attempt to position itself as a destination for hearing and buying music, MySpace is inviting musicians to perform songs for a program called Transmissions. The Web site will show and sell videos of the performance.

ADVERTISING - Dr. Martens Featured in ADs & Fashion Shows.

ADVERTISING: An Antifashion Classic Returns

After Dr. Martens ran advertisements that depicted dead rock stars. The brand has a new campaign, a new agency and fresh ambitions for a comeback. The campaign, by Exposure Communications of New York, features young models wearing Docs with grunge- and punk-inflected outfits and expressions of bored disaffection; the spots are appearing in publications like Teen Vogue, Spin and British GQ, GQ, Vogue, Seventeen, Lucky and Us Weekly (which declared, “They’re baack!”)

COMMENT: The promotional stategy to stimulate selective demand actually was orchostrated to defend their current position. Furthermore, The all purpose work boot website has Internet initiatives, too. It recently started a contest where people can custom-design the classic 1460 boot online (http://www.dmbootdesign.com/). This is a great example of intergrated marketing communications (IMC).

INSTITUTIONAL ADVERSTISING - LIRR

"Be TrainSmart" Safety Campaign Launched
Learn to Cross the Gap Safely

COMMENT: The goal of the "Be TrainSmart" campaign is to improve customer safety by raising customer awareness about safe habits and customer behaviors that will reduce the number of accidents for those traveling on the LIRR. The campaign will run for an entire year, focusing on safety factor every 2 months. It will include the use of posters, brochures and advertisements at stations and on trains.

FEARING SAMSUNG'S SCANDAL

For weeks, the manufacturing giant Samsung has been battered by accusations of corruption. But because South Korea's economy is so heavily dependent on a handful of conglomerates like Samsung, Koreans fear that striking these behemoths too harshly may hurt their own economic well-being.

CANCER DRUG DISAPPOINTS

An analysis by the staff of the Food and Drug Administration appeared to dim the prospects that Genentech's drug Avastin would win approval as a treatment for breast cancer. The drug did not help women with breast cancer live meaningfully longer, the agency staff said, and it caused significant side effects.

Retooling - Competive Market Strategy

2 Airlines to Cut Back Plans for Increases in Capacity

Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines will scale back seating-capacity plans for next year on mounting concern over high oil prices and a weakening United States economy. Delta said yesterday that it would cut domestic capacity as much as 5 percent in 2008 and projected that higher fuel costs would wipe out its operating profit this quarter. Southwest, the largest discount carrier, still plans to increase overall capacity in 2008, but it reduced its projected growth for a third time, to a range of 4 to 5 percent.

COMMENT: Southwest is also hurt by higher fuel prices, but far less than competitors, giving the carrier a distinct advantage in an industry where beating the other guy often seems more important than actually doing well.

Levi Strauss Jeans

RESEARCH: A Nevada tailor named Jacob Davis came up with an improved design for making denim jeans, which were already popular with farmers and working men of all types. The problem with denim jeans was that the pockets always ripped out from people jamming their hands in the pockets. Davis came up with a solution to that problem, and that was to put copper rivets at the stress points of seams, such as at the pockets, and at the base of the fly. He didn't have the $80 required to file a patent, so he approached Levi Strauss to finance the venture. Struass was a successful San Francisco businessman, selling denim and canvas pants to miners. Davis' improvement to Levi's already sturdy jeans turned them into an icon.

Ford Galaxie 500

RESEARCH: The Ford Galaxie was the primary full size car built in the US by the Ford Motor Company for model years 1959 through 1974. A version of the car was produced in Brazil under the names Galaxie 500, LTD and Landau from 1967 to 1983. As often is the case with American cars, the model names shifted around from year to year, but the Galaxie was always Ford's full-size car. In the late 1960s, the low trim Fords would be the Ford Custom and Custom 500, while the high end would be the XL and LTD, but the Galaxie was normally the high volume counterpart to the Chevrolet Impala.

ART LINKLETTER vs BILL COSBY

Vs.








Kids Say the Darnest Things

Synopsis: Hosted by television personality Art Linkletter, Kids Say the Darndest Things captured youngsters saying a variety of funny or occasionally touching things. This video compiles two hours of the long-running show's best moments, focusing primarily on the funniest moments. Bill Cosby hosted an attempted revival of the program in the '90s.

DISNEYLAND - The Happiest Place on Earth?

A MICKEY MOUSE BATTLE

An aerial map shows Disneyland and the resort district - GRAY AREA: Possible residential development. Anaheim, CA is home to one of the fastest-growning Latino populations in the U.S.

Not in Mickey's Backyard

HOW A ZONING DISPUTE ESCALATED INTO A BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE OF DISNEYLAND

FANTASYLAND: Sleeping Beauty's castle, July 1955. Disney kept Anaheim officials friendly with parties and free tickets to its theme park.

This year Disney sued the city for the first time in the park's 50-year history, and both sides are now in the thick of a municipal ballot fight that could rank as the most expensive in California history. COMMENT: This is going to get ugly. A lot of taxpayers monies will get spent. The old aerospace industry suburb is now in demand for affordable housing that's not being met. I believe the city of Anaheim, Ca will prevail.

DETROIT AUTOMAKERS STRUGGLE

General Motors and the Ford Motor Company said that they would cut production in the first quarter because of slowing sales. At G.M., sales dropped 10.9 percent in November; Ford eked out a 1.3 percent gain, after 12 consecutive monthly sales declines.

HELP FOR HOMEOWNERS

Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. said he hoped to reach agreement this week with lenders and institutional investors on a plan to temporarily freeze the teaser rates for certain qualified mortgage borrowers. But industry analysts said the effort could help only a small number of those who took out such loans.

Portfolio Magazine - Business Intelligence

December 2007

2007 Writers Guild of America strike

The strike is against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), a trade organization that represents the interests of American film and television producers. Over 12,000 writers are affected by the strike. The current strike has so far lasted 5 weeks. The last such strike in 1988 lasted 22 weeks. There are several key issues of contention including DVD residuals, union jurisdiction over animation and reality program writers; and, perhaps most importantly, compensation for new media - emerging digital technology such as the Internet.

COMMENT: Let's not short change this guys. I believe new media will eventually supplant both DVD in the home video market and television in the broadcasting market as the primary means for distribution.

U.S. Route 66

Right after Route 66 was commissioned, it was known as The Great Diagonal Way because a large section of the highway (Chicago to Oklahoma City) ran diagonally, unlike the other highways. It originally ran from Chicago, Illinois, through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, before ending at Los Angeles for a total of 2,448 miles (3,940 km)

Chrysler Imperial

The Chrysler Imperial, introduced in 1926, was the company's top of the range vehicle for much of its history. Models were produced with the Chrysler name until 1954, and again from 1990 to 1993.

STARTING OVER - SOUTHWEST AIRLINES

Time flies when you're having fun!

More than 36 years ago, Rollin King and Herb Kelleher got together and decided to start a different kind of airline. They began with one simple notion: If you get your passengers to their destinations when they want to get there, on time, at the lowest possible fares, and make darn sure they have a good time doing it, people will fly your airline. What began as a small Texas airline has grown to become one of the largest airlines in America. Today, Southwest Airlines flies almost 100 million passengers a year to 63 great cities all across the country, and do it more than 3,300 times a day.

COMMENT: Where they right? I will find out if there marketing efforts were customer driven OR NOT!!

WORLD'S FINEST CAR: THE INSIDER'S GUIDE

The annual Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance car show is where the world’s millionaires and billionaires show off some of the most exotic cars on the planet. Winning this competition can add hundreds of thousands to a cars’ value, but any of these collectors will tell you- it’s not about the money – it’s about bragging rights.

COMMENT: I found this exclusive look into this festival as a way billionaires and millionaires battle it out, savage competition, the ultimate aculade. There are three types of collectors, the Hunter, the Enthusias and the crazy man BOB LEE WHOM IT TOOK 20 YEARS TO FINALLY WIN. This holy grail of car awards is even placed in their resumes.

What seperates them from the rest - Video: http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1155838635?bclid=452299732&bctid=1155105462

Gulf Currency Peg Under Pressure

The UAE dirham has appreciated to a 17-year high as currency investors pile pressure on Gulf Arab dollar pegs, encouraged by a report that a revaluation could come as early next week. Central banks are trying to deter bets on appreciation. Kuwait, the only Gulf oil producer that tracks a currency basket, let its dinar fall in twice in one day and the UAE pushed down interest rates at an auction that guides inter-bank lending. Lower interest rates risk stoking inflation, which is at decade highs across the Gulf.

COMMENT: Although central banks are cutting interest rates to defend their pegs, I think markets will eventually give up and follow Kuwait's lead in unshackling their currencies from the dollar. This is an excellent preview for US might be in store for....focus should be on fighting inflation.

Businesses urge climate action

Business leaders from 150 global companies have called for a comprehensive, legally binding United Nations framework to tackle climate change.

The initiative, led by the Prince of Wales and EU Corporate Leaders Groups on Climate Change (CLGCC), includes some of the biggest global companies from the US, Europe, Australia and China. It comes before UN climate talks in Bali, Indonesia, from December 3-14. Companies in support of the UN call include Coca-Cola, Gap, Nike, Sun Microsystems, Westpac, Anglo-American, F&C Asset Management, British Airways, Nestle, Nokia, Shell, Tesco, Virgin and Volkswagen.

COMMENT: The shift to a low carbon economy is not only an environmental need but also an unprecedented economic and social opportunity that will likely fold. You must spend moving to make money. Innovative means are imperative.

Chiquita sued for Colombia killings

Reiter showed journalists stories of alleged killings by Colombian paramilitaries on Chiquita's payroll

Leading banana producer, Chiquita Brands International, has been sued for funding and arming a Colombian paramilitary organisation accused of killing banana growers.The civil lawsuit seeks a total of $7.86bn on behalf of 393 victims and their relatives. Chiquita is accused of conspiring with the United Self-Defence Forces of Colombia (AUC), to control Colombia's banana growing regions.Jonathan Reiter, the plaintiffs' lawyer in New York, said: "It was about acquiring every aspect of banana distribution and sale through a reign of terror."

COMMENT: Now this is was you call supporting terrorism, war crimes, wrongful death and torture. I hope these families get their money.

BIGGEST Deal In Civil Aviation History

Prince Walid bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud is the first private buyer of the A380

Airbus Seals $50bn Aircraft Deals
Airbus, the European aircraft manufacturer, has secured an order worth up to $50bn from Middle Eastern carriers at the Dubai Aerospace Air Show.The company is said to have scored a major victory over Boeing, its US rival, winning an order worth $31bn from Emirates, the Dubai-owned airline, for 70 Airbus A350 aeroplanes. Rolls-Royce is also a major beneficiary of the move, which may be worth as much as $8.4bn, as Rolls-Royce offers the only engine available on the Airbus airplane.

COMMENT: Gulf appetite - Walid, whose interests span from hotels and financial institutions, has ordered a VIP version of the A380, dubbed the "Flying Palace". He already owns a Boeing 747-400, the newest type of the original jumbo jet currently in service.

Yahoo Settles Lawsuit with Jailed Scribes

Yahoo settles China lawsuit:

Yahoo has come to a settlement with the families of two Chinese journalists who accused it of supplying the Chinese government with information (E-mails containing pro-democracy literature) that led to them being imprisoned and tortured. Shi Tao, a business journalist, and Wang Xiaoning, a pro-democracy blogger, are serving jail sentences of 10 year each.

COMMENT: PR nightmare. I sense there will be a strong backlash against yahoo from human rights groups. Yahoo's subsidiaries should set up legal funds for other dissidents and their families.

Chevron in Oil-For-Food Settlement

Chevron Corp. has agreed to pay $30 million to resolve criminal and civil liabilities related to procurement of oil under the UN oil-for-food program. Chevron obtained Iraqi oil under the programme from third parties that paid secret, illegal surcharges to the former government of Iraq, the prosecutors said today.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said Chevron agreed to the settlement brought under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act without admitting or denying the allegations. Chevron will not be prosecuted and will continue to co-operate with investigators, prosecutors said. The deal will see Chevron, the second biggest oil company in the US, pay $25 million in profits and a $3 million civil penalty. The company also will pay the treasury department's Office of Foreign Asset Controls $2 million.

COMMENT: Basically it called Kickbacks.... it was found be corrupt after 2,200 companies in 66 countries paid $1.8 billion in kickbacks to Iraqi officials to win supply deals. The program was established to help Saddam Hussein's Iraq sell oil to buy humanitarian supplies while it was under UN sanctions due to its 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

Shirley Chisholm - 1st Black Woman for President

First African American candidate for President of the United States. She won 162 delegates. Born in Brooklyn, New York, of a Barbadian mother and a Guyanese father, she was a Congresswoman, representing New York's 12th District for seven terms from 1968 to 1983.

Korea Farmers Riot oover US Trade Pact

A South Korean Protester throws a plastic water container at police during a rally in Seoul yesterday. Police estimated there were 20k demonstrators (farmers) at a rally yesterday against a free-trade agreemnet with the US. Police fired water cannons and fire extinguishers at them.

Comment: The passsage of the FTA will deepen the polarization of their society. I am sure there will be other kinds of agricultural produce that will pour into the country.

SmartPhone - Social Networking

Palm, Inc. and Sprint are introducing the Palm Centro smart device, claiming it is designed for individuals and traditional mobile phone users looking for a better way to manage their professional and social lives. The Palm Centro enters the market at US$99.99 but only after rebates and a two year contract. As the newest member of the Palm family, Centro is expected to attract new users to the smartphone category.

COMMENT: With voice, text, IM, email, web, contact and calendar capabilities, a full-color touch screen and full keyboard, Centro brings Palm simplicity and organization to customers who want to SOCIALIZE. I believe it will be a big hit since it's priced at $99, but only after rebates and a two year contract. - That's how they get you.

Recommendations tha FAILED - NY's former police commissioner

The 52-year-old former detective is awaiting trial at a New York federal court house Friday. Kerik had 14 charges leveled against him ranging from accepting bribes and blocking an FBI investigation to withholding information from the federal government. The bribery charges against the ex-police officer, who had also been business partners with Giuliani, include him allegedly taking USD 160,000 in kickbacks from a reportedly mafia-related construction firm.

Comment: Prime example of how individuals are recommend (by Rudy) to move to the top but failed. In 2004 Rudy promoted Kerik as the best man to run the newly created Office of Homeland Security.

Strategic Decisions - Celebrity Spokesman

Accounting Firm Hires Celebrity Spokesman

J.H. Cohn accounting firm hired New York Yankees manager Joe Torre to be their celebrity spokesman in 2006. Torre is part of a $6 million advertising campaign that will be spread over three years. The Roseland, N.J.-based firm has annual revenues of $143.4 million, 96 partners, 722 total staff and eight offices.

COMMENT: This marketing efforts are designed to raise long-term brand awareness, not sales.

Customer Satisfaction Approach

"There is no I in team team"

Northside: Back to Life

Chris Murphy (reginal manager) and UrbanAmerica have transformed Miami-Dades Northside Centre, show the potential of projects in working class neighborhoods.

Comment: UA's gamble at Northside now bustling with commerce pays off; more than four years and $14 million in renovation. The objective is to fix up, lease and resell the centers without changing their targeted low to moderate income shoppers

Review of CHAPTER 1

1. Business: 2006 and Beyond

~ The four basic FACTOR OF PRODUCTION are natural resources, capital, human resources & entreprenuership.

~ BUSINESS consists of all profit seeking activities that provide goods and services necessary to an economic system.

~ ENTREPRENUERS are the risk takers in the PRIVATE ENTERPRISE SYSTEM.

~ The 6 historical ERAS are the coloniall period, the Industrial Revolution, the age of the industrial entrepreneur, the production era, the marketing era and the relationship era.

~ TECHNOLOGY allows businesses to provide new goods and services for consumers, improve customer service, lower prices and enhance working conditions.

~ The relationship between the # of units produced, humans & other production inputs needed to produce is called PRODUCTIVITY.

~CAPITALISM basic rights are private property, profits, competition and freedom of choice.

Review of CHAPTER 2

2. Business Ethics and Social Responsibility

Business ETHICS are the standards of conduct and moral values involving right and wrong actions in the workplace. Businesss that set high ethical standards avoid public image problems, costly lawsuits, customer mistrust, and other expensive problems. They can also offer CODE OF ETHICS and guidlines for (ex. executives and employees. SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY is a management philosophy that highlights the social and economic effects of business decisions and actions. Social responsible firms give back to their communities, customers, and employees.

Oil Prices Soar to $97 a Barrel

Traders work in the crude oil futures pit at the New York Mercantile Exchange on today. Futures jumped to a new record above $97 a barrel after bombings in Afghanistan and an attack on a Yemeni oil pipeline.

Oil futures jumped to a new record above $97 a barrel today after bombings in Afghanistan and an attack on a Yemeni oil pipeline compounded the supply concerns that have driven crude prices higher in recent weeks.

COMMENT: My oil bill is going to put a hurt on me. Last winter along I paid over $2k.

Read More: http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Oil-Prices.html?_r=1&ref=business&oref=slogin

Industrywide Cash Compensation

These are the average of salaries across funds and firms of all sizes.

SOURCE: 2008 PRIVATE EQUITY COMPENSATION REPORT

RE-BRANDING: Hotel/Condo Conversion

UrbanAmerica in a joint venture with Buena Vista Hospitality Group has acquired and has converted the former Sheraton World Resort and Spa into a condo-hotel. The property, now named International Plaza Resort & Spa is an existing and fully operational hotel, spa, and is directly adjacent to Sea World and within a few miles of both Disney and Universal theme parks.

OPINION: UA is taking some of the hotel rooms and converting them into condos. Construction has began on the hotel. This a great chance for second home investments and time shares. What's great about is that you would have all the amenities of a hotel built in. The re-branding of a hotel is not an easy task, a lot is involved in getting your name out and in promoting your product in the market. The marketing sales campaign is out!

Sep 8 Benchmark had NEGATIVE effect

Brokerage firms had hoped to get a lift from the Fed's decision in late September to reduce its benchmark interest rate and try to restore confidence. But shares of most firms, like that market, have experienced a decline since the close on Sep 18. SOURCE - JPMorgan

Rice Sees Mideast

Hands painted bood red, protester Diree Anita Ali-Fairooz confrionts Secratary of Sate Candoleeza Rice before she testiffies to Congress on Iraq, Iran and Isreal-Palesttine conflict.

In a House hearing interrupted by anti-war protesters, Rice said an upcoming peace conference inn Annapolis is needed to spur moderate Palestinian forces. She blamed Iran for fanning flames in the region, including what she called "new support for Hamas" militants.

Another Year for Astroland

Astroland will roll on another year... so if you have not gone recently GO! Executives from Coney Island and its landlord, Thor Equities announced yesterday their agreement to keep the park open throught next summer. Thor bought the park last year for $30 million.

Urban II Acquisitions

As of July 07, UA has invested it $50 million New Markets Tax Credit allocation. This month UA was awarded an additonal $75 million in NMTC program.