Unbelievable news today! McDonalds has learned – aghast!!- that their consumer perception is trailing their food quality upgrades. Well, doan that just shock ya blind!!! Morning Newsbeat passed on this gem: “McDonald’s Struggles With Brand Perception Issues Advertising Age reports on how, despite the fact that McDonald’s has been seeing steady sales and profits increases, [...]

I was at the AutoShow yesterday; the vehicles were smokin’ hot; but many of the staffers were freezing cold. The staff you select for a consumer show is crucial. It reflects on your image; after all, staff gives a ‘first impression’ of a brand. I never understood why companies bother to exhibit at a show, [...]

Our Entrepreneurship class yesterday was treated to a visit by the ever ethical & astute Neil Jain, who launched one company -Money Life Skills- and is a founding member of a team starting another- TransitHub. http://www.moneylifeskills.com/index.html http://www.transithub.ca/ Despite a hectic schedule, Neil made time to come speak to the couple dozen students in Seneca’s select [...]

Even as brands go global and, at their best, are ever more valuable, some recent trends point to brands being more vulnerable if mis-handled. I won’t call brands today ‘fragile’, but I might say that sins can now hurt a brand faster than ever. Especially given the growing power of ‘The Fifth P’ of Marketing [...]

So- it’s Valentine’s Day, and my thoughts naturally go to the dogs. In a good way. After all, you just gotta love dogs- the way they sense your moods (better than a  spouse), the way they just know what you need (better than a spouse), the way they entertain, know how to have fun, stay [...]

Next week, the college course I teach in Entrepreneurship, which has been focused from the start on BUILDING a business, will shed light on BUYING a business, or buying a FRANCHISE. Those 3 choices are all very distinct; they force one to really reassess what one wants & who one is: Building a business is [...]

Recently I advised my Ontario-based students to consider the possibility of a career in Saskatchewan or Alberta, given their in-demand resource based economies (oil, gas, potash, beef, grain). Many students seemed receptive; others seemed unaware that Ontario’s economy might soften.  So what could possibly upset the Ontario economy? Let’s recap the job sectors that dominate [...]

Opened my newspaper today- out fell some Danier ’50% Off’ fliers. Many of you know Danier specializes in genuine leather attire (the regular kind, not the kinky kind). Of course, they have seasonal clearance sales every year, but what’s notable this time is: Danier usually has a 25% Off or 33% Off sale first, then [...]

3 big Japanese electronics firms- Sharp, Sony & Panasonic- all just posted dreadful losses. All had undergone big strategic changes that failed to yield positive results (yet). Funny thing was – each of the 3 took a different path to change. But they DID make changes. Sharp embraced Vertical Integration & Scale; they built their [...]

January is often time to release growth plans-  especially for partnerships where all the ‘i”s” need to be dotted and “t’s” crossed before an announcement is made. Today we saw, not just one, but two growth announcements. Starbucks has partnered with an India-based firm to open 50 outlets in India; and Imax has gone Bollywood- [...]