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Advertising Age, February 4, 2009 — Kraft Foods is sticking to its guns when it comes to increased marketing spending, despite missing analyst expectations in its earnings report today.
BusinessWeek, February 4, 2009 — When times get tough, one of the first things we do is think about what we can do without, like cutting latte consumption from five a week to two. Similarly, companies say no to some things to conserve resources and ensure remaining resources are focused on the right things.
Companies looking to shut down some innovation efforts have to evaluate their portfolio of what's in the process. Prudently pruning this portfolio will help to ensure that resources flow to the right ones. Here's a look at two typical approaches executives often take—and a third that might work better.
Chicago Tribune, January 24, 2009 — In the grocery aisles and in kitchens across the country, old school is increasingly in, courtesy of the recession and higher food prices.
Less-expensive comfort foods and classic brands—think Kraft Macaroni and Cheese and Hormel's Spam canned meat—are doing bang-up business. White flour and dried beans are hot items as more Americans are making foods from scratch.
And the supermarket sales category with the highest annual growth rate as of early November was—get this—canning and freezing supplies, according to market researcher Nielsen Co.
Wall Street Journal, January 20, 2009 — Marketers, seeking to boost their online exposure while keeping a lid on costs, are looking beyond Internet search engines such as Google and Yahoo to find new places for their search ads.
The trend reflects a change in the way consumers are navigating the Web. More online searches now take place on YouTube, the popular video site owned by Google, than on Yahoo, the No. 2 Web-search property. The change has companies including Pizza Hut, Universal Pictures and Monster.com rethinking their search marketing strategies.
Advertising Age, January 13, 2009 — As a marketer, you may be asking yourself: Are there any consumers out there who will be shopping this year? The answer is a resounding yes. Moms will keep shopping. They have to. Moms control 85% to 90% of household spending on everyday, Warren Buffet-advocated items, according to a BSM Media Study, which also projects household spending to be $3 trillion in 2012, up from $2.1 trillion today. In this economy 85% may play an even bigger role to your bottom line. Your efforts to understand their purchase behavior are more important than ever.
Advertising Age, January 5, 2009 — Marketing executives are tired of buzzwords such as Web 2.0, blogs and social networking. They're more concerned about credit availability, housing markets, alternative energy and the trade deficit, according to a new study of top-level marketers.
Of course, it's no surprise that the economy is weighing heavily on marketers looking toward 2009. In a study by Anderson Analytics for the Marketing Executives Networking Group, more than half of the marketers surveyed said their budgets will be cut in the coming year, and another 44% said they'll cut or freeze hiring.
Wall Street Journal, December 15, 2008 — Sure, the economy's bad. But it's a good time to innovate, according to Clayton M. Christensen, a Harvard Business School professor who focuses on innovation.
He is the author or co-author of a number of books on the subject, from "The Innovator's Dilemma" to a book due out next month on health care, "The Innovator's Prescription."
Dr. Christensen spoke with MIT Sloan Management Review senior editor Martha E. Mangelsdorf for Business Insight.
BusinessWeek, December 9, 2008 — Gary Bacon II had bargain-hunting on the brain when he visited his local Barnes & Noble (BKS) in Jacksonville, Fla., on Dec. 7. But he didn't make any purchases. Instead, the Web designer whipped out his smartphone, snapped a few photos, and headed for the exit.
Bacon was using a new feature, released by Amazon.com (AMZN) on Dec. 3, that lets users take mobile photos of items they want to buy, store them in an online shopping cart, and purchase them whenever they want—typically at a discount—via the online retailer.
Advertising Age, December 2, 2008 — The current economic crisis will undoubtedly leave a lasting imprint on how all business gets done from this point forward and undeniably be a catalyst for unprecedented change in the advertising industry. And we had better be ready for it.
In any economic crisis, reduction in ad spending is inevitable and necessary as companies adapt, Darwin style. Today's environment is no exception. We're keenly aware that in past recessionary periods advertising has taken more than its share of cuts. This time, while the cuts in spending have already begun, the impact will have even more dire and long-term consequences. As the cuts continue, brand managers will begin to realize that "my current advertising level and spend really wasn't helping to build my brand the... continue reading
Advertising Age, December 2, 2008 — While President-elect Barack Obama is assembling his cabinet in Washington, moms across America are changing the ways they stock their own cabinets. As they function simultaneously as secretaries of transportation, interior, homeland security and, most important these days, commerce, women faced with new economic realities are rapidly shifting their priorities and shopping behaviors. Here are six changes in where they stand on consumption.
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