Got Relevance?

MediaPost Publications, October 30, 2009 — One of the most daunting challenges companies face now is how to market themselves.

Think of it: There are many businesses with the same or similar offerings. Customers can purchase goods or services from anywhere in the world, thanks to the Internet. With rapid commoditization, effectively marketing a business is more challenging than ever. It takes more than a marketing plan, strategy and tactics, positioning and differentiation to successfully market now. But what?

P&G Considers Booting Some Brands†

Wall Street Journal, October 29, 2009 — Facing mounting pressure to boost sliding sales and recalibrate his company, P&G CEO Robert McDonald is stepping up the hunt for acquisition and divestiture candidates, people close to the company said.

Strategy of New Chief at Motorola Appears Poised to Pay Off

New York Times, October 29, 2009 — Sanjay Jha’s honeymoon as co-chief executive at Motorola lasted just a few minutes into his first meeting with employees in 2008.

Why should we trust you?” one employee blurted. The frustration was understandable. Motorola, which pioneered cellphones and built such consumer favorites as the StarTac and the Razr, had not had a hit phone in years, and a succession of leaders could not find one.

Mr. Jha, 46, an engineer who worked his way up at Qualcomm from a chip designer to the No. 3 executive, answered the challenge, saying employees should not take him on faith but watch what he did.

The Two Faces of Facebook†

Steve Rubel on Digital Communications

Advertising Age, October 29, 2009 — I spend a lot of time gazing into a crystal ball that I know is going to be cloudy half the time. Lately I have been pondering Facebook's future.

Facebook is clearly on a roll and is knocking on Google's door as the biggest site on the web. Will it continue to dominate or see its lead slip? Here are two potential outcomes.

Accidental Purchases: Blame Package Design

MediaPost Publications, October 28, 2009 — Poor package design is costing marketers more than $2 billion in U.S. sales as consumers are accidentally reaching for copycat house brands that are meant to look like the well-known branded products.

Marketers such as Starbucks discover that simple sells

USA Today, October 28, 2009 — Simple is better.

This could be 2010's most powerful marketing mantra.

If 2009's hottest sales pitch was all about buying stuff on the cheap, 2010 marketing will increasingly stress less as more, as in fewer parts, additives or ingredients. While the trend is taking hold in many product categories, including health and beauty items, nowhere is it more apparent than with things we eat and drink.

Timex Pulls Out Stops For ING NYC Marathon

MediaPost Publications, October 28, 2009 — Timex has been quietly winding up programs to move the brand away from an "old reliable" sort of brand equity toward a more athletic positioning, using its Iron Man sub-brand to reach younger consumers.

The company is in its second year as official timing partner of the ING New York City Marathon

Top Brands Not Making the Most of Mobile

KenRadio, October 28, 2009 — Some 83% of U.S. consumers say their favorite brand has yet to market to them via their mobile phone, even though 37% say they would be interested in participating in a mobile customer loyalty program from a brand they trust, according to recent research by Hipcricket.

8 Guaranteed Ways To Kill Your Brand

MediaPost Publications, October 27, 2009 — Throughout the recession, many marketers have relied on so-called "recession-survival" lessons to drive their strategies. Unfortunately, these aren't always lessons as much as they are myths. We thought we would help dispel some of them and share a few tips to spur positive momentum

How to Develop the Right Communications Strategy for a Conversation Economy†

Begin With the End in Mind: What Message Can Drive Sufficient Revenue to Support a Business Model?

Advertising Age, October 27, 2009 — What does the worldwide, technologically enabled drive for conversations mean for marketers? It means you're no longer marketing products or services — you're marketing conversations. It means marketing-communication planning should be driven by a conversation strategy.

Neuromarketing: What the Human Brain Means to Your Campaign

CMO Magazine, October 27, 2009 — The rise of loyalty marketing and consumers shifting to online media has put increasing pressure on traditional ad agencies and broadcasters to deliver measurable ROI to clients.

Advertisers who see consumers TiVo-ing through television ads and downloading their favorite shows for free are demanding real accountability. One of the most compelling arguments for loyalty and database marketing is that you can understand what you get in return for your investment. Agencies and broadcasters are searching frantically for ways to provide that same level of measurable return

As Media Market Shrinks, PR Passes Up Reporters, Pitches Directly to Consumers†

Best Buy, MasterCard Among Those Creating Their Own Content

Advertising Age, October 26, 2009 — At a time when earned media is so highly sought after by marketers due to its (relative) low cost and the credibility with consumers, brands that rely on it are faced with the growing challenge of finding news outlets for their messages.

Happy Birthday, Digital Advertising!†

The Banner Campaign that Started a $24 billion Business, and Got a 78% Click-through Rate

Advertising Age, October 26, 2009 — Oct. 27 marks the 15th anniversary of the industry's first banner display ads, which appeared on Hotwired.com. To the many of you reading this who weren't in the business back then, that's not a typo; I'm not referring to www.HotWire.com, the travel site, but HotWired — the first commercial digital magazine on the web and the offshoot of Wired magazine.

The Case for 'Reverse Innovation' Now

A sophisticated emerging-market strategy is not optional for companies that want to survive and thrive in the 21st century

BusinessWeek, October 26, 2009 — Is it possible that the most important innovations of the future will be adopted first in the developing world? In a recent Harvard Business Review article General Electric (GE) CEO Jeff Immelt and I argued that this phenomenon, "reverse innovation," will be increasingly common. Since then, the most common question we've been asked is "why now?"

We can answer this question by analyzing how American companies became global and why a new approach is needed going forward.

Twitter Serves Up Ideas From Its Followers

New York Times, October 26, 2009 — Companies big and small monitor Twitter to find out what their customers like and what they want changed. Twitter does the same.

It started two years ago as a bare-bones service, offering little more than the ability to post 140-character messages. Then, it outsourced its idea generation to its users. The company watches how people use the service and which ideas catch on. Then its engineers turn the ideas into new features.

No Einstein in Your Crib? Get a Refund

New York Times, October 24, 2009 — Parent alert: the Walt Disney Company is now offering refunds for all those “Baby Einstein” videos that did not make children into geniuses.

Marketers Grapple With Brand-Bashing ''Badvocates''

GM, American Airlines and others try to win over critics on the Web.

Forbes, October 23, 2009 — During General Motors' financial meltdown this year, politicians, corporate executives and journalists piled on to gripe about the auto-maker's business. Most of the chatter was expected, admits Christopher Preuss, GM's vice president of communications. What surprised company execs was the number of bloggers and social media hounds who chimed in to grouse about the car-maker and its vehicles.

Coke Ambassadors Taking Social Media Old School With Around The World Trip

MediaPost Publications, October 22, 2009 — Giving new meaning to the term social media, Coca-Cola is enlisting a team of three young brand ambassadors to visit all 206 countries where the company's products are sold.

Dubbed "Expedition 206," the adventure throughout 2010 is expected to cover 150,000 miles in just 365 days. What are they expected to do at each destination? "Seek out what makes people happy and share their happiness and enthusiasm with the rest of the world."

Coca-Cola has selected a pool of nine potential ambassadors, from which consumers are now being asked to select three winners online at Expedition206.com.

How Do You Measure Success?

Custom content good for ROI

eMarketer, October 22, 2009 — Nearly three-quarters of companies have guidelines to measure the success of their marketing programs, and for one-half such measurements are a requirement for obtaining marketing funding, according to the King Fish Media “2009 Survey on Marketing, Media and Measurement,” conducted in partnership with HubSpot, Junta42 and the Upshot Institute.

A Problem-Solver's Guide to Copycatting

Fast Company, October 21, 2009 — Your business has a big problem. You've thought about it, but you can't seem to crack it. So you consult your colleagues — to no avail. Then you turn to the big guns — your industry's top experts. They've got nothing. (Well, to be precise, they've got 40 PowerPoint slides worth of nothing, and you've got $225,000 less of something.) Now what?

GM Exec Extols Virtues Of Social Media

MediaPost Publications, October 21, 2009 — Social media has been the most effective tool for consumers in the market for a car or truck and the best vehicle for GM in terms of transparency and accountability, Chris Preuss, VP communications, told a roundtable in New York on Tuesday.

Mattel Hopes Barbie Facelift Will Show Up Younger Rivals†

Wall Street Journal, October 21, 2009 — his was supposed to be the year that Barbie finally regained her tiara as the queen of the toy aisles. After many false starts, Mattel Inc. thought it had found a way to make the iconic fashion doll once more a must-have for girls of all ages — and to boost the company's flagging revenues as well. It is spending millions of dollars to promote its new "Fashionista" Barbies, even hiring a choreographer-to-the-stars to create a dance called "The Barbie" for a video that had its premiere on the "Today Show" and was posted on YouTube.

New-Media Users Expect Brands To Engage

MediaPost Publications, October 21, 2009 — Just when you thought the impact of new media on mainstream brands couldn't be hyped any further, new data come along to change that idea.

A just-released study from Cone Inc. reports that among new-media users, a staggering 78% of them interact with companies or brands via new media sites and tools — up from 59% the year before.

Walmart 'Impact Store' Program Remains on Track†

Remodeled Stores Will Make Up 32% of Retailer's U.S. Outlets By Mid-November

Advertising Age, October 21, 2009 — Reports by some suppliers and others close to Walmart that the retailer will temporarily halt rollout of its remodeled "Impact Stores" looks to be wishful thinking: The retailer's executives indicated to analysts and investors today that the program remains on track, and that elimination of in-aisle displays will even accelerate.

Indian Firms Shift Focus to the Poor†

Wall Street Journal, October 20, 2009 — Indian companies, long dependent on hand-me-down technology from developed nations, are becoming cutting-edge innovators as they target one of the world's last untapped markets: the poor.

O'Brien: My journey into the heart of Generation Y shopping habits

San Jose Mercury News, October 20, 2009 — I am a proud, flag-waving member of Generation X, the latchkey kids born between the early 1960s and late 1970s who listened to grunge music while worrying that we'd never make as much money as our parents. My children, 4 and 6, are part of the emerging Generation Z, a demographic too young to be stereotyped.

Climbing inside the mind of a CMO

iMedia Connection, October 19, 2009 — In this episode of Marketing Obsessions with Kevin Lee, Yahoo SVP Joanne Bradford talks about how top CMOs are moving their assets to digital while maintaining an edge through exclusivity.

P&G Exec: Innovation Needs To Be Purpose-Driven

MediaPost Publications, October 19, 2009 — Procter & Gamble's mantra, "The consumer is boss," has become a part of the fabric of marketing. But there's another related concept that is also critical to the company's successful record of innovation, according to P&G group president, North America Melanie L. Healey.

State of the Blogosphere 2009

Technorati, October 19, 2009 — Welcome to Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2009 report. Since 2004, our annual study has followed the growth and trends in the blogosphere. For 2009, we took a deeper dive into the entire blogosphere, with a focus on professional bloggers. This year’s topics include: professional blogging activities, brands in the blogosphere, monetization, twitter & micro-blogging and bloggers’ impact on US and World events.

A Place Where Sponsors Sign Athletes

New York Times, October 18, 2009 — MARKETERS have been playing a new, more cautious game when it comes to signing athletes as endorsers, winnowing their rosters of jocks peddling products to proven performers with national — or international — profiles like LeBron James, Tiger Woods, Peyton Manning, Serena Williams and Derek Jeter.

Crowdsourced branding, a disaster for Kraft?

idsgn, October 15, 2009 — When Kraft launched a spin-off of their uniquely Australian Vegemite spread, they turned to consumers for a name… and it was dropped four days later. Last week another name was announced, can Kraft make it right this time?

Bloomberg to Buy BusinessWeek After McGraw-Hill Tires of Losses†

Wall Street Journal, October 14, 2009 — McGraw-Hill Cos. agreed to sell BusinessWeek to Bloomberg L.P., marking the growing media ambitions of its new owner and a retreat for McGraw-Hill after 80 years of owning of the business magazine.

Hershey's Arrested Development

The chocolate maker's innovation cupboard is bare. Some wonder about what might happen to the company when consumers tire of the same old standbys

BusinessWeek, October 14, 2009 — Buried within Hershey's (HSY) Web site is a section that invites consumers to pitch their own ideas for new products. "We are seeking innovative concepts," it reads. "What's your big idea?"

Hershey could certainly use the help. The innovation cupboard at the $5.1 billion chocolate maker has grown bare.

Disney’s Retail Plan Is a Theme Park in Its Stores

The Walt Disney Company, with the help of Apple, intends to overhaul its approach to the shopping mall.

New York Times, October 13, 2009 — The Walt Disney Company, with the help of Steven P. Jobs and his retailing team at Apple, intends to drastically overhaul its approach to the shopping mall.

At a time when many retailers are still cutting back or approaching strategic shifts with extreme caution, Disney is going the other way, getting more aggressive and putting into motion an expensive and ambitious floor-to-ceiling reboot of its 340 stores in the United States and Europe — as well as opening new ones, including a potential flagship in Times Square.

In New Campaigns, Spots Take On a Rosier Hue

New York Times, October 13, 2009 — The American economy is back — or so some of the country’s biggest advertisers are saying in new campaigns.

It may be a sign that the recession is ending, or it may be a sign that consumers are sick of hearing about it.

While economists and investors study housing starts and gross domestic product predictions to measure economic vibrancy, General Electric, Bank of America and other companies are using commercials to proclaim that America’s future is bright. And that may be something of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Pepsi's Apology for Amp IPhone App Heightens Furor†

Social-Media Debate Over Energy Drink's Allegedly Sexist Marketing Spurs Criticism of Entire Company

Advertising Age, October 13, 2009 — PepsiCo has inserted itself and several of its brands into a heated debate surrounding an iPhone app launched by its Amp Energy brand. By introducing a Twitter tag #pepsifail, the company has spread the news further and associated its flagship brand with the sexist app. So is it a savvy, transparent social-media move or is it simply exacerbating the damage already done?

Listen to the show Marketers can't find 'average American'

Study out says we've become so diverse that there's no longer such thing as an average America

American Public Media, October 12, 2009 — TEXT OF INTERVIEW

Kai Ryssdal: The 2010 census will officially record that more than 300 million people live in this country. It's a diverse group, as we've known for a while now. But a study commissioned by the trade magazine Advertising Age will pose some problems for marketers in the second decade of the century. We've now become so diverse that there's no such thing as an average American anymore. Peter Francese is a demographer at the ad agency Ogilivy & Mather. He helped write the report that's out today. Mr. Francese, how are you?

PETER FRANCESE: I'm fine, thanks.

Ryssdal: Tell me what you have found as we start thinking about the 2010 census.

FRANCESE: Well, the 2010 census is going to show that we are truly multicultural and very... continue reading

New U.S. Census to Reveal Major Shift: No More Joe Consumer†

Ad Age White Paper 2010 America Uncovers the Marketing Implications

Advertising Age, October 12, 2009 — The 2010 Census is expected to find that 309 million people live in the United States. But one person will be missing: the average American.

"The concept of an 'average American' is gone, probably forever," demographics expert Peter Francese writes in 2010 America, a new Ad Age white paper. "The average American has been replaced by a complex, multidimensional society that defies simplistic labeling."

What Do You Think?†

Companies are learning to make the most out of customers' online reviews of their products

Wall Street Journal, October 12, 2009 — Online, everyone has an opinion. For e-commerce businesses, the hard part is making the most of them.

Amazon.com Inc. began posting customer ratings and reviews of its products online in 1995, with an anonymous five-star write-up of Dr. Seuss's "The Butter Battle Book." Since then, most online businesses have found that allowing customers to post reviews—including negative ones—can boost sales and help merchants quickly identify problems with their products.

Now, makers of review software are adding features that allow businesses to get more out of consumers' input online.

Why Email No Longer Rules… …And what that means for the way we communicate†

Wall Street Journal, October 12, 2009 — Email has had a good run as king of communications. But its reign is over.

In its place, a new generation of services is starting to take hold—services like Twitter and Facebook and countless others vying for a piece of the new world. And just as email did more than a decade ago, this shift promises to profoundly rewrite the way we communicate—in ways we can only begin to imagine.

Why It's Time to Do Away With the Brand Manager†

P&G, Unilever Among Those Embracing New Roles in Social Media Age

Advertising Age, October 12, 2009 — Managing a brand has always been a slightly odd concept, given that consumers are the real arbiters of brand meaning, and it's become increasingly outmoded in today's two-way world. That's why a new report is going to recommend changing the name "brand manager" to "brand advocate," and fundamentally changing marketer organizations in response to the onset of the digital age.

Looking at Life as One Big Subscription

New York Times, October 11, 2009 — EVERYWHERE you look these days, businesses are selling subscriptions. Cable television, Internet and cellphone services are sold that way. So are business software, office printing and car rentals like Zipcars.

How Kroger reinvented itself

Cincinnati Enquirer, October 8, 2009 — The Kroger Co. realized nearly a decade ago that to survive it had to put the customer first, and permanently.

That meant larger stores with more products at cheaper prices. It meant cleaner aisles and shorter lines. It meant $4 generic prescriptions, organic food selections, Murray's Cheese counters and a 3-cent reward for using a reusable shopping bag.

It meant donating food to local food pantries, launching breast cancer awareness campaigns using local women, giving away its Deluxe ice cream to loyal Twitter followers.

Just 25% Say They Manage Marketing Well

MediaPost Publications, October 8, 2009 — Despite increased measurement systems and practices, only one-fourth of marketers believe they're managing marketing effectively, according to a new survey by market research firm Chadwick Martin Bailey and marketing consultancy CMG Partners.

Why Global CMOs Face Greater Challenges Than Traditional Marketers†

Levi's Jaime Szulc and Others Take Note: Winning Globally Is Not Only About Getting the Regional Marketing Mix Sorted Out

Advertising Age, October 7, 2009 — Levi Strauss & Co. recently announced the hiring of Jaime Cohen Szulc, who is the first in the company's history to take the title of global chief marketing officer. The news is predictable yet intriguing.

Digital Bridges

New research uncovers keys to successful digital-media integration

Hub, October 6, 2009 — Early digital pioneers remember the frontier days of the ’90s. Looking back, and looking around, who successfully migrated, who struggled, and what can be learned from the journey?

ROI Is a Marketing Problem -- and a Brand Problem Too†

Lee Jeans Embraces Cross-Functional Analytics

Advertising Age, October 6, 2009 — For all the focus on marketing ROI, some companies miss the forest for the trees, because improvements won't happen through tactics alone. They need a new approach, applying marketing analytics to business decisions — call it return on brand — that can more than double marketing ROI through a cross-functional implementation of integrated business analytics.

Verizon Eliminates Companywide Chief Marketing Role†

CMO John Stratton Will Now Head Mobile Efforts as Landline Units Merge Into One Business

Advertising Age, October 6, 2009 — Recognizing just how paramount its wireless business has become, Verizon Communications is eliminating the company's chief marketing officer role and re-drawing the responsibilities of John Stratton, who will now assume duties for plugging the company's mobile offerings.

Activating Creativity

Bringing brands to life across channels and disciplines moves people to action

Hub, October 5, 2009 — When the legendary New Zealand All Blacks rugby team lost unexpectedly at the 2007 Rugby World Cup, its sponsor, Adidas, realized it had an opportunity to restore the team’s close ties with its disenchanted fans and, in the process, make real its own brand purpose.

To do this, Adidas employed a “new world” manifestation of creativity to bring the brand to life for its fans. Specifically, the sports footwear and apparel maker drew from the fans’ deep connection with the ultimate symbol of the All Blacks, their jersey. Adidas made it both the message and medium.

FTC Cracks Down on Blogger Payola, Celebrity Tweets†

Rules on Endorsements and Testimonials Extended to Social Media

Advertising Age, October 5, 2009 — The Federal Trade Commission is cracking down on blogger payola.

The agency, which protects consumers from fraud or deceptive business practices, voted 4 to 0 to update its rules governing endorsements, and the new guidelines require bloggers to clearly disclose any "material connection" to an advertiser, including payments for an endorsement or free product.

It’s Brand New, but Make It Sound Familiar

New York Times, October 5, 2009 — Humans instinctively sort and classify things. It’s how we make sense of a complex world.

So when companies develop innovative products and services that don’t obviously fit into established categories, managers need to help people understand what comparison to make.

U.K. Wireless Brand Turns Customer Service Over to Consumers†

Users Get Freebies for Marketing the O2's Giffgaff to Others

Advertising Age, October 5, 2009 — You've seen user-generated content, so now get ready for user-generated marketing, technical support and customer service.One of the UK's biggest cellphone operators is launching a new mobile network called Giffgaff whose customers will be able to earn free calls and texts by actively marketing the service to their friends and families.

Why Harrah's Loyalty Effort Is Industry's Gold Standard†

Casino Owner Rewarded With $6.4 Billion In Revenue; Program Set to Go Mobile

Advertising Age, October 5, 2009 — Joseph, a 30-something New Yorker, was visiting Harrah's Resort in Atlantic City on a weekend the hotel was booked solid. But after using his Total Rewards card while playing the tables, he was directed by a pit boss to the front desk, which informed him a room had become available for a "special rate of around $100 a night." When he checked out two nights later he was told all the room charges were on the house.

Was the sudden vacancy pure luck or was it just a case of good customer-relationship marketing on Harrah's part? Ask any of Harrah's 10 million active Total Rewards program members, and they'll all tell you it's unequivocally the latter.

ComScore: Forget About Clicks

MediaPost Publications, October 2, 2009 — It's time for online marketers to forgo click-through rates for a better measure of success, according to new data from comScore in conjunction with media agency Starcom USA and behavioral targeting firm Tacoda.

Indeed, the number of people who click on display ads in a month has fallen, from 32% of Web users in July 2007 to only 16% in March 2009. Worse still, an even smaller core of consumers — representing just 8% of the Internet user base — accounts for the vast majority, or 85%, of all clicks.

"Marketers who attempt to optimize their advertising campaigns solely around the click are assigning no value to the 84 percent of Internet users who don't click on an ad," said Linda Anderson, comScore VP of marketing solutions and author of the... continue reading

Toyota, Saatchi Sued for 'Terror Marketing Campaign'†

Online Effort for Matrix Had Woman Afraid for Her Life

Advertising Age, October 2, 2009 — Toyota Motor Sales USA and its ad agency of record, Saatchi & Saatchi Los Angeles, engaged in a bizarre, online "terror marketing campaign" that frightened and harassed thousands of consumers via e-mails, according to a lawsuit filed Sept. 28 in Los Angeles.

How GE Is Disrupting Itself†

For decades, GE has sold modified Western products to emerging markets. Now, to preempt the emerging giants, it’s trying the reverse.

Harvard Business Review, October 1, 2009 — In May 2009, General Electric announced that over the next six years it would spend $3 billion to create at least 100 health-care innovations that would substantially lower costs, increase access, and improve quality. Two products it highlighted at the time—a $1,000 handheld electrocardiogram device and a portable, PC-based ultrasound machine that sells for as little as $15,000—are revolutionary, and not just because of their small size and low price. They’re also extraordinary because they originally were developed for markets in emerging economies (the ECG device for rural India and the ultrasound machine for rural China) and are now being sold in the United States, where they’re pioneering new uses for such machines.

We call the process used... continue reading

Kraft Explains Its Decision to Charge for Its IPhone App†

Five Questions With Director-Innovation Ed Kaczmarek

Advertising Age, October 1, 2009 — To charge or not to charge. That's the question many marketers and media companies building mobile apps are asking themselves. Kraft, which has arguably been one of the more successful marketers in the iPhone App Store, charges 99 cents for its iFood Assistant.

Pop Artist

Meet the man with a nearly uncontainable design challenge: making Coke even bigger (and staying ahead of Pepsi).

Fast Company, October 1, 2009 — The image on the Webcam is grainy but unmistakable: a blond woman, likely in her thirties, steps up to a shiny silver soda-fountain machine at a fast-food restaurant in Atlanta and plants a fat kiss on its side. The moment is unscripted and, as far as the woman knows, unwitnessed by anyone except a girl who appears to be her daughter, busily filling her cup. If great design is all about creating a bond between your product and your customer, this is clearly some kind of mechanized Cyrano de Bergerac, brokering the ardor between a consumer and her Diet Cherry Coke.

The reason for this public display of affection? It might be the fountain's astounding array of choices, more than 100 different Coca-Cola variants, including exotic hybrids such as Minute Maid... continue reading

Should You Launch a Fighter Brand?†

Customers are suddenly hyperconscious of value, and new low-price competitors are nipping at your heels.

Harvard Business Review, October 1, 2009 — Managers contemplating a new product launch during the prosperous early years of the twenty-first century typically looked only in one direction: up. Thanks to consumers’ rising incomes and apparently insatiable desire for superior quality, the era began with a focus on “premiumization,” “trading up,” and “luxury for the masses.”

But times change. Economic strains are now causing consumers to trade down, and many midtier and premium brands are losing share to low-price rivals. Their managers face a classic strategic conundrum: Should they tackle the threat head-on by reducing prices, knowing that will destroy profits in the short term and brand equity in the long term? Or should they hold the line, hope for better times to return, and in... continue reading