Casual Articles - Business

Preparing for a Job in the Legal Profession
As a job seeker, you’ve probably been told repeatedly to prepare some questions to ask at the end of your interview – but seldom got advice on what constitutes a good interview question. In brief, a good interview question is one that shows your knowledge of the field, and focuses on the company rather than on what you expect to get from your association with them. In other words, this is not the place to ask about salary and benefits. If you do your research on the company in advance, you’ll likely find some good subjects for questions. Some examples of questions you might ask include:I saw in the trade papers that the property boom is expected to continue. How much of my job will involve supporting solicitors involved in real estate law?How much of the firm’s efforts are put into charity work, and how can someone in my position assist in that area?Is this opening the result of someone leaving, or is it an entirely new position? If the former, can you tell me under what circumstances the person who held this job formerly left? If the latter, what does the firm expect this new position to accomplish?What would you say are the biggest challenges for the person who accepts this position with your firm?What would you expect the person hired for this position to be doing in six months?What would my typical day be if I accept this position?I have particular skills in (name an area). How do you see those skills being utilized in this position?Likewise, you’ve probably been told to prepare answers to the most commonly asked interview questions – but again, few people tell you what those questions are. It’s rather difficult to prepare answers to questions you don’t know! Here’s a list of some of the most commonly asked questions in interviews for

o is well known for his fitness-centered lifestyle - became an obvious choice for brand spokesperson.

Speaking to Ad Age magazine, Energy Brands' VP of marketing, Rohan Oza, said "We've seen that when 50 Cent incorporates [Vitamin Water] into his daily routine ... the brand gets on the airwaves and we create a lot of trial." Making vitamin water a visible part of the rapper's healthy lifestyle worked so well the company launched a new "Formula 50" variety named for the artist.

Such "organic" relationships can grow from Product Seeding. Not only can marketers benefit from press mentions, but the process can be used to uncover promotional opportunities and, in some cases, identify the most ideal product endorsers.

Product Seeding remains a gamble but, if executed properly, one well worth taking. Relatively speaking, it is a very low-cost marketing program. And the return on investment - though difficult to forecast compared to barter relationships discussed below - can be big. But what if your goal is limited to getting press mentions? Can a publicist hedge his or her bets in this category?

One of the great things about Product Seeding is how creative you can get. For Trident White chewing gum, the company commissioned a Harris poll asking the public to vote on the best "celebrity smiles." My company, which specializes in celebrity product placement, delivered gift baskets of the product to the Top 6 winners, allowing Trident to plug the celebrities in their press materials.

On another occasion, Electrolux - maker of a new high-end, super-quiet vacuum cleaner - wanted to align their product with celebrities. We identified 6 celebrity moms who had recently given birth and - touting the fact that these vacuums would not wake a sleeping baby - made gifts of the product to each. Here again, the company was able to use celebrities to draw press coverage for its product. And they were able to referenc

Future Relevance - Will They Still Find You Tomorrow?
How viable is your organization in the future? Do you know whom you should be speaking to now in order to succeed down the road? The Baby Boomers time has passed and we are faced with the most technically savvy, socially responsible generation to ever walk the planet and they do not look at their world with Baby Boomer eyes.According to the US Census, Generation Y (those born between 1980 and 1990) will outnumber both Generation X and the Baby Boomers combined. If you are not preparing your marketing and products to engage this generation now then you will certainly have no future relevance when they swing into full power. To put it quite frankly, your business will not survive their expectations.This generation’s media habits and culture call for a transformation of marketing, advertising and product development practices. If you are counting on your organization being relevant in the future you must learn how and where to speak to them or you will quickly find your marketing investments washed and your sales force out of an audience.Generation Y is not just an age range, it’s a mindset developed out of growing up with technology and generations of marketing hype and false promises. Seeing where their parents went wrong, the bust of the dot com era, and companies such as Enron swindle millions; this generation seeks authenticity, relevance and a conscience. Speaking to this generation is not about using trendy words or cool graphics in your branding efforts, they can see right through those tactics. It is about how you go about reaching them, where you speak to them and the part that makes most brand managers shiver, brands they have a hand in building.Not your mother’s media. We are just seeing this generation enter t

With more and more companies wanting to integrate their products into the lives of celebrities, now seems like a good time to take a closer look at Celebrity Product Placement, describe three common approaches, and outline what steps can be taken to guarantee results.

The term "Celebrity Product Placement" is used to describe several related techniques, but its definition applies to each: free products are distributed to celebrities in expectation of a promotional benefit. Unlike the more overt, paid-for endorsement, it offers a distinct advantage. It can appear like a product choice made on individual preference.

Most marketers are unaware of their options in this category (one form features contracts with celebrities, guaranteeing performance and allowing marketers to actively leverage celebrity patrons in the media) and therefore many overlook a very powerful influencer-marketing technique.

In this article, I will describe each of the three main approaches and discuss their relative merits by listing their pros and cons. I also hope to quash any misconception that Celebrity Product Placement has to be a gamble, and show you how best to secure a return on investment (R.O.I.).

But first, a little history...

Celebrity Product Placement (sometimes called "Celebrity Seeding") has been with us since the dawn of marketing. Centuries before Arnold Schwarzenegger stepped into his first Hummer, an 18th century potter named Josiah Wedgwood began supplying his wares to England's Queen Charlotte. Being given the title "Potter to Her Majesty" led to a huge amount of publicity for Wedgwood which he took advantage of using the term "Queen's Ware" wherever he could.

It wasn't until the 20th century that marketers keyed-in on America's "royalty": Hollywood. But more often than not they met with disappointing results. Some companies responded only to occasional requests for products ("gifting"), while others made half-hearted attempts to distribute them without first devising a means to guarantee results ("seeding"). In the end, most companies seeded product "to the wind" and failed to grow anything of value.

Those efforts that did succeed, however, were so successful that independent specialists emerged to help companies achieve better results. But the services they offer vary and so do the results.

What's It All About?

Marketers have long known the power of celebrity to influence consumer- purchasing decisions. The term "borrowed equity" has been used to describe how a celebrity endorsement can bestow upon a product special attributes and cache it might not otherwise have.

The same concept applies to Celebrity Product Placement. But unlike celebrity endorsements, where a highly compensated personality appears in commercial advertising, Celebrity Product Placement offers marketers a more subtle and highly effective means of reaching the public - via the media they consume by choice.

Indeed, Celebrity Product Placement is as much about placing products with celebrities as it is about getting stories about those relationships into the press. Regardless of the approach, Celebrity Product Placement strategies have a common aim: to tie celebrities (thought-leaders, influencers) with consumer products in the public consciousness.

Three different techniques offer three different levels of control over that placement: gifting-the-talent (this usually involves supplying products for gift bags at live events); product seeding (products are distributed more widely in hopes of securing a promotional benefit and kicking off a trend); and, barter relationships (individual celebrities agree to participate in custom programs in exchange for valuable products).

Let's take a look at each one in greater detail.

GIFTING-THE-TALENT

"Everybody" knows that celebrities own all the coolest stuff, and well before everybody else. Celebrities travel the world and every minute detail of their daily lives pervades the media. As style-leaders, they are perhaps our most powerful influencers. It's no wonder then that companies are lining up to give them the latest gifts and gadgets for free.

One method to do this is called "Gifting-The-Talent." This generally involves supplying free product for insertion into "goody bags" which are handed out as 'thank you' gifts to celebrity presenters and award nominees at the now-countless awards shows and charity benefits that dot the entertainment landscape.

At last year's Academy Awards, for example, one of two Best Actress gift-bags featured Gucci sunglasses, a Sprint PCS phone, Christian Tse 18-carat gold Iris earrings, and more. The Best Actor bag featured Gucci eyewear, a Maurice Lacroix Swiss watch and assorted other goodies. According to news reports, the retail value of one such group of bags at the Oscars exceeded $110,000 each!

But how effective is this practice? If the goal of Celebrity Product Placement is to get press coverage, can we measure the value of gift-bag placements? What types of products are suitable and which are not? And what level of control does this strategy offer marketers both in terms of demographics and reach?

There is no denying the value of being associated with these glitzy events, and by extension, the celebrities who populate them. On the plus side, they offer a rare opportunity to get close to the biggest stars in the world. On the minus side, the marketer has no control in matching up celebrities who hold sway over their particular demographic. They have to play the cards they are dealt.

Gifting-the-talent at award shows virtually guarantees mentions in the celebrity press at the time of the event; but without permission to associate the celebrity's name and likeness with the product, marketers don't have the leeway to truly leverage those relationships in their own press activities.

Gifting-the-talent in this way has other limitations: first-movers snap-up desirable categories and, of course, not all products are deemed appropriate. You won't find an energy drink in these bags.

PRODUCT SEEDING

Product Seeding offers marketers more control over whom to place products with but, conversely, less control over how (or if) those products get used. And, while virtually any product - from bottled water to consumer electronics - can be seeded with celebrities, marketers are playing the odds here. But the payoff can be huge if the seeding is supported by a creative strategy.

Product Seeding is the oldest form of Celebrity Product Placement. Products are distributed more widely. They can be aimed at celebrities who are most compelling to your demographic. And they can be delivered directly to the celebrity without the filters imposed by events. Of course, working with a specialist who can get your product directly to celebrities becomes paramount here. Film and television product placement agencies are NOT set up for this practice.

Taken by itself, Product Seeding is a gamble. If you send enough freebies to Hollywood but you don't have a creative strategy, a celebrity might be photographed using your product or evangelizing it on a talk show. But if one looks at Product Seeding as one tactic in a larger Celebrity Product Placement effort, it can pay big dividends - particularly in identifying celebrities who have a true affinity for your product.

Energy Brands, makers of the Glaceau Vitamin Water line, discovered this in 2004. As a result of its long-time strategy to "home deliver" the vitamin-enhanced drink to celebrities (including Sean "Puffy" Combs and Tom Cruise), the company gained a fan in 50 Cent. Having mentioned his preference for the product in a series of interviews, the Hip Hop star - who is well known for his fitness-centered lifestyle - became an obvious choice for brand spokesperson.

Problem Solving Skills Managers Must Have to Make Their Business a Success
The success of any business relies heavily on the competency and ability of the manager.That is why managers are usually given the most ardent and difficult task of directly supervising the business’ operations, dealing with staff, getting into negotiations with potential business partners for deals and making sure the overall well being of the firm is maintained.Those would be enough to justify the usually attractive compensation provided to them.That way, more kids are aspiring to be tough and effective managers someday. Business management is a profession gaining more popularity as people and economies continue to realize their contributions not just to the progress of a company, but to the entire economy.But it pays to be a business manager. To be one, you should acquire and develop effective problem solving skills. Yes, managers are first and foremost, problem solvers.Problem solving skillsDifferent managers and experts have been coming up with their own problem solving skills. It is inevitable because that is mankind’s nature---to improve what is already widely used norms and practices.Practically, all problem solving skills and practices are derived from the most basic problem solving processes most popularly known in the academe as the scientific approach.It could be inferred that Science in general, regardless of specific branch or discipline, has forced men to come up with a systematic approach to problem solving.Thus, the scientific approach to problem solving, being the basic process, is very potent and effective in putting solutions to every challenges, especially in businesses.Scientific approachAs refresher, it would help a lot if you would be reoriented to these scientific problem solving steps:

others made half-hearted attempts to distribute them without first devising a means to guarantee results ("seeding"). In the end, most companies seeded product "to the wind" and failed to grow anything of value.

Those efforts that did succeed, however, were so successful that independent specialists emerged to help companies achieve better results. But the services they offer vary and so do the results.

What's It All About?

Let's take a look at each one in greater detail.

GIFTING-THE-TALENT

Gifting-the-talent in this way has other limitations: first-movers snap-up desirable categories and, of course, not all products are deemed appropriate. You won't find an energy drink in these bags.

PRODUCT SEEDING

Why Are Your Co-Workers So Lazy?
Have you ever asked your self why you work so hard and those around you just do not seem to take work seriously? It is almost as if they could careless if the company succeeds or fails, as all they want to do it get paid. As long as they get a paycheck for showing up and doing halfass work they just do not care one bit.Do you find it difficult to even relate to them or understand why they lack work ethic? Do you find it rather alarming that you cannot even understand their perception of the issue? Why is it that you are doing all the work and they are screwing off all day and they still get paid just like you? Don’t you wish you were in charge so you could fire them?If you did, do you think that they would even understand why you fired them in the first place? Probably not you see? And that might actually happen because if they do not try chances are you may get promoted before them and they will work under you, but they will not care and you will be forced to fire them.They will be angry of course and blame you and then go to their next job, but they will not learn, as this whole scenario will repeat and they simply either do not care or care to understand? Now back to my question; Why are you co-workers so lazy and is there anything you can do to change it? Consider all this in 2006.

stuff, and well before everybody else. Celebrities travel the world and every minute detail of their daily lives pervades the media. As style-leaders, they are perhaps our most powerful influencers. It's no wonder then that companies are lining up to give them the latest gifts and gadgets for free.

Gifting-the-talent in this way has other limitations: first-movers snap-up desirable categories and, of course, not all products are deemed appropriate. You won't find an energy drink in these bags.

PRODUCT SEEDING

Entrepreneurial Inertia
From the moment a business is launched, a phenomenon begins to take over. The anti-entrepreneurial inertia begins to set in.Every business starts out entrepreneurial. Hungry and eager, innovative, open-minded and resourceful, all of its attention focused on finding and keeping customers.Things start to happen and the business begins to grow.Meanwhile, something sinister begins to occur. Slowly, subtly and insidiously, the anti-entrepreneurial inertia begins to creep in.As the business continues to grow, we take on more and more responsibility. We hire other people, who now need to be managed. We establish policies and procedures, routines, and rituals as part of our success strategy.Our focus has begun to shift. Without realizing it, we’ve grown a little less curious, a little less open-minded and a little less attentive to the needs of our customers.Soon we become “experts” in our field. We’ve achieved success. We know all there is to know about our particular field of endeavor. We’ve established an identity or a culture within our organization.Without realizing it, we’ve lost our entrepreneurial zeal. We’ve grown less open minded, now focused on protecting what we have rather than scouting the horizon, looking for what we don’t.We stop listening. We stop learning. We ignore or deny the changes that are occurring all around us. (Think Maxwell House vs. Starbucks)Without realizing it we’ve moved to the other end of the spectrum. Without realizing it we’ve become complacent.Without realizing it we’ve created an opportunity for the next eager and innovative, open-minded entrepreneur.

leeway to truly leverage those relationships in their own press activities.

Gifting-the-talent in this way has other limitations: first-movers snap-up desirable categories and, of course, not all products are deemed appropriate. You won't find an energy drink in these bags.

PRODUCT SEEDING

Top Ten Tips About Communicating with Your Employees Effectively
Communication is the basis of who you are as a manager/leader in business. The rules are simple and the good news is that you can learn them and develop your skills...and it's quite easy! Here's the low-down on great Communication:-The best communicators... Keep It SimpleGreat Communication is about making what you say very easy to understand. Just realise that important messages get across better without loads of technical jargon or 4 (or more!) syllable words. Less is definitely more.Know Their AudienceIt is important to understand that there are different levels of message for different groups of people. This is not demeaning those different groups - indeed, it honours them that you have taken the time to think of them. Be aware of who you are talking to and pitch the message accordingly.Listen WellThe best Communication is as much about listening, as what you say. It's the 'two ears/one mouth' thing - keep how you use them in proportion. People love it when you listen to them and you will learn much more about them and their situation. Check out Dale Carnegie's 'How to Win Friends and Influence People' - a fantastic little book that's stood the test of time.Pay AttentionIt is important that when you are in dialogue with someone, be it on the phone, face-to-face or in a group, that you give them your full attention. If you go off-message because of interruption or distraction you will lose them and your credibility.Honour The AudienceAll inputs from others is valuable, very valuable. So ensuring that when folks have taken the time, effort and, yes, courage to speak up, that you treat them with respect and gratitude.Realise Their Respon

o is well known for his fitness-centered lifestyle - became an obvious choice for brand spokesperson.

But what if you want tighter integration with celebrities? Suppose you need to forecast a return on investment in order to get approval for a Celebrity Product Placement campaign? And what if you want celebrities to provide feedback about your product and authorize use of their names and likenesses as part of your press campaign?

BARTER RELATIONSHIPS

Barter is, perhaps, the only way to guarantee performance on the part of the celebrity. Unlike other forms of gifting, this is a quid pro quo relationship whereby the celebrity agrees in advance to participate in the marketer's promotional activities - in exchange for valuable product.

Celebrity Product Placement campaigns of this type work best for big-ticket items such as consumer electronics and (the loan of) cars. But with creative approaches, special product questionnaires and generous "Right of Publicity" agreements, marketers can use the celebrity's name, likeness and opinion as part of their public relations campaigns.

Celebrity Product Placement - via barter agreements - is also among the most affordable ways to use celebrities. For the price of a few products, and sometimes a token honorarium, companies can integrate testimonials into their PR materials and create customized celebrity content for their websites.

They can involve numerous stars in a press campaign for less than the cost of a single paid celebrity spokesperson. It is one of the most under-exploited tactics available to marketers today.

A Case Study: Sony Electronics

The Sony CD Mavica - at the time, the only digital camera offering a built-in CD- Rom - had failed to penetrate the increasingly crowded market for digital imaging products. This was troubling for Sony because the CD Mavica offered clear advantages over its competitors; namely, freedom from wires. But that message had failed to reach the public.

Sony wanted to involve celebrities with their products and for that involvement to influence the public in a meaningful way. They wanted a high-profile event - preferably benefiting charity - upon which to launch a yearlong press campaign in time for the Christmas shopping season. The focus: to promote the simplicity of CD-based photography.

The budget was limited. But, having learned that the latest Sony products could be made available to gift the talent, The Hollywood-Madison Group proposed a Celebrity Product Placement campaign. Each celebrity would be asked to take a picture of what "Freedom" means to them, and those photos would be auctioned off for charity.

Such an artistic challenge, coupled with the prospect of receiving free Sony product, not only served to induce celebrities to participate, but offered us an extraordinary opportunity: to frame these pictures and mount an exhibition which raised money for charity. Indeed, the charity component attracted higher-caliber celebrities and provided the "hook" to draw media attention.

We successfully placed the Sony CD Mavica digital camera with fifteen top stars including Eric McCormack, Alyssa Milano and Dennis Hopper. The photographs were then offered for sale on eBay as part of Wired magazine's annual charity auction, and put on display at a star-studded event in Los Angeles.

Fifteen top celebrities demonstrated the practical use of Sony's product and authorized the use of their names, likenesses and opinions about the product for press and marketing purposes (for one year). Sony received free advertising for its product in print and online for three months (worth an estimated $100,000), as well as 3.6 million webpage impressions (auction as a whole) and national press coverage including Entertainment Tonight.

You can read more about this project on our website>celebrity_projects>influencer campaigns.

Conclusion

Celebrity Product Placement offers marketers an exciting way to influence consumer-purchasing decisions. Properly executed, it can be a low-cost, high- return proposition. As such, it should be part of every consumer-marketing program.

Three different approaches offer three different results: gifting-the-talent (narrow focus); product seeding (broad focus) and, barter relationships (one-on-one focus). But, as we have seen, a tightly integrated celebrity product placement campaign, combining elements of each, can improve results and deliver an impressive return on investment.

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Many small business computer consulting companies share a familiar headache and frustration-- how do you motivate or have employees follow the rules of your company? Employees can be using your firm as a stepping stone to something bigger, a place to get their feet wet. They are not there for the long run or to win the longest serving employee award. It is time to stop dreaming that you will have employees that will be with you forever. It just isn't going to happen.

It was not very long ago that the only place that thought about kids were the big fast food chains, and even then limited by offering a small toy with the purchase of a hamburger. These days if you don’t create an amazing experience for the twelve and under demographic you will lose their vote!!! So let’s look at a few ideas to get them on side:

We in the retail sector engage in discussions of fulfillment product services almost too often. But, in these discussions, we often forget some of the key issues which make fulfillment services so important to our sector.

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