Captivating Connections.

Apparently Disney is considered a valuable brand to more than just my family.

Either the Fishmans are trendsetters, or Disney is really upping it's game...

"Disney held firm as the ninth-most-valuable brand in the world, while MTV dropped several slots, but remained in the top 60. Others with significant media interests landing in Interbrand’s annual rankings of the top 100 are Google, Microsoft, Apple, eBay and Yahoo."

Side note: Does this mean that MTV is still losing relevance among it's younger Gen Y and We viewers? Is bringing back Beavis & Butthead not cutting it? Because keeping the hot messes of Jersey Shore on the air is certianly making me ache for my generation (and mankind!).

Asides the usual suspects like Apple, it's impressive to see Disney making moves on this list...

"Disney has a brand value of $29 billion, up 1%. The top seven most-valuable remained the same in the 2011 as the year before: Coke, IBM, Microsoft, Google, GE, McDonald’s and Intel."

What do you think? Who deserves to be here and who doesn't? Who do you think is missing or will make the list in the next year or two?

is CES losing it's swagger?

No, I'm not asking this because I'm bitter I'm not there (it's a worthwhile sacrifice to finish up my MBA at an expedited pace!!!).

Now that Apple has been gone from CES for quite some time, and Microsoft has announced that this is their last year there, the NYTimes notes that "the show is unlikely to be where any blockbuster products of 2012 are introduced. Many of the hottest new gadgets in recent years — including Apple’s iPad and iPhone, Microsoft’s Kinect and Amazon’s Kindle Fire — were first announced at other events, even though C.E.S. remains the world’s biggest consumer technology convention."

Why is that?

According to the NYTimes, "this reflects the changing nature of the technology industry — particularly the fact that the most important developments in the electronics business are no longer coming from the makers of television sets and stereos that have been most closely identified with the show since it started in 1967.

And as the industry and its trade show have grown, the need for buzz and branding has become more acute. The most innovative players — like Apple and Amazon — need to stand out from the crowd and so have chosen to introduce their products at smaller, more narrowly defined conferences and company-only events."

 

 

sorry kevin bacon: we're all a little bit closer now.

Thanks to Facebook's 721 million active users, we're now all a bit closer than 6 degrees...

According to Facebook, we are now globally connected by 4.74 degrees.

Check out the logic here.

does stress lead to feeling more powerful?

I wish!

According to Nielson, "female shoppers are feeling more stressed, more empowered, and more optimistic about what life will be like for their daughters.

The survey looked at women in 21 countries and found that almost 80% of those respondents in developed countries say that the role of women will change, and 90% say it will be for the better. Women in emerging markets are more likely to believe their daughters will find better opportunities than they did.

While all women feel the stress of multiple roles, the study reports that tension is highest in emerging economies, where women have less discretionary income. Women in India (87%), Mexico (74%) and Russia (69%) reported the most stress among developing countries; in developed economies, women in Spain (66%), France (65%) and allegedly laid-back Italy (64%) reported the highest levels of stress."

What does this mean for you?

"That creates more opportunities for marketers to reach women with promises of stress-reducing convenience, the study concluded, with women in most markets saying they like TV best for getting to know new products: 'In 10 of 10 emerging markets and in 7 of 11 developed countries analyzed, television outranked 14 other sources of information,' the report says. Word of mouth came in second. And in 20 out of 21 countries, quality -- not price -- was named as the main driver of brand loyalty."

luxury sales to increase 8% this year.

According to Bain & Co., "worldwide spending on luxury goods is expected to increase 8% this year."

What's causing this?

"Fueled by strong spending in the U.S., Europe, Brazil, Russia, China and the Middle East, the report forecasts luxury spending of €185 billion euros, or about $275.4 billion -- up from €172 billion last year. And 2010 actually came on stronger than many expected, with a 14% jump in luxury goods in the fourth quarter pushing sales past their pre-recession levels. For 2010, sales totaled €172 billion -- busting past the prior peak of €170 billion in 2007.

From 2008 to 2009, the affluent cut back sharply, with luxury sales plunging 17%.

So far this year, sales are up smartly: In both February and March, Bain says both department store and direct-owned luxury chains saw double-digit growth from the prior year. And orders for the fall season are up sharply, particularly for accessories, leather goods and hard luxury categories such as jewelry and watches. The report was released by Fondazione Altagamma, the Italian luxury goods industry trade association.

In the Americas, it predicts spending for the year will reach €52 billion, or $77.3 billion, with the U.S. continuing to hold its position as the largest consumer of luxury goods."

online retailers getting their global on.

“Online retailers are increasingly looking beyond the U.S., according to a new study from Forrester Research and the National Retail Federation.

While 73% of online retailers say they already send products abroad from their home country's distribution center, 17% already have a foreign warehouse in place, hoping to tap into the world's 1.6 billion online consumers. And those that ship abroad say they get an average of about 5% of revenues from foreign sales.

The report, which is part of ‘The State of Retailing Online’ research series, conducted by Forrester for Shop.org, the online division of the National Retail Federation, also reports that U.S.-based retailers are still in the early phases of figuring out the logistics of selling around the world. For example, 37% currently require customers who want to return an item use a returns center in the retailer's country of origin, while 12% have an international returns center located in their own country to handle foreign returns.

The report analyzed 87 online retailers and found the companies are beginning to see their efforts at site improvement pay off: Some 54% say they've increased conversion rates over 2009 levels, 27% have seen gains in units per transaction, 47% say the value of average orders has gone up, and 31% say they've seen a decline in shopping cart abandonment rates, a key measure of customer satisfaction.

Retailing experts are keeping a close eye on all e-tailing efforts, with online sales expected to be among the most robust sectors in the upcoming holiday season. Kantar Retailing, for example, which just released its holiday forecast, is predicting hefty growth.”

mobile growth poised to outpace internet growth.

Color me shocked.

 "Mobile media will significantly outpace the Internet and other traditional media platforms -- especially in emerging and faster growth economies.

A new report from Nielsen Wire, with research from The Cambridge Group, says: 'Defying classic economic models, the demand for communication (cell phones) leads traditional media growth, signifying a global, disruptive phenomenon.' Growth for the Internet will continue -- but at more predictable growth patterns.

Strong mobile growth markets will be in those territories that have a rising financially strong middle class, so called BRIC countries -- Brazil, Russia, India and China.

Nielsen says this large economies are expected to grow on average by four or five percentage more than established economics for the next five years, 2010-2015 -- especially over G-7 nations, including the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan.

Those BRIC nations -- and other countries -- are expected to see around a 7% growth rate in mobile versus developed countries 2% rise.

Mobile media platform growth occurs because access to mobile devices and services generally occurs at a lower household incomes levels. For example, Internet penetration in established economies generally requires a income threshold of around $20,000 of per capita GDP (Gross Domestic Product) to achieve a 50% penetration rate in a specific territory. But for mobile penetration, household income levels can be as low as $5,000."

world cup helping brands be more likeable.

"Big marketers targeting U.S. and U.K viewers during the World Cup are being rewarded for their sponsorship of the soccer event. These include Adidas, AT&T, Budweiser, Hyundai and Sony, which have generated the best 'likability' scores -- 55% higher on average compared to commercials from other, non-sponsor World Cup advertisers, according to the Nielsen Company.

These sponsors also generated 16% higher 'brand recall' on average for their World Cup in-game/in-studio marketing efforts.

Nielsen says this includes Hyundai's 'Halftime Report' and the Adidas 'First Half Highlights.' These results are better than other in-game sponsorship performance in other notable sporting events.

'Nielsen data clearly shows an advantage for U.S. sponsors that have had an expanded presence in the matches with in-game or in-studio elements,' stated Alan Gould, CEO of Nielsen IAG. Nielsen IAG measures TV advertising effectiveness and program engagement.

Gould added: 'The presence of these elements, which are integrated seamlessly into programming, is likely bolstering the effectiveness of these brands' traditional TV commercials that air around the matches.'"

is your company reputable?

"Reputation Institute, a global private consulting firm based in New York, uncovered 28 companies that have established international merit. Earlier this year it conducted a survey to assess the strength of the world's 600 largest companies (by revenue) in their home countries."

Wondering who made the list? Yep, it was the Googles, Sonys, Disneys, etc.

But why?

"Companies at the top of the list all had one thing in common: innovation. Google and Sony ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively (with scores of 78.62 and 78.47), pulling in consumer admiration for new technologies that touch consumers' lives. The two companies have a history of producing forward-thinking products that have emotional and rational appeal. Google, along with pulling in $6.7 billion in advertising revenue for the first quarter of 2010 (up 23% from the same time period last year), offers free services, such as e-mail and maps, for anyone to use. Sony, the world's second-largest consumer electronics maker behind Samsung, has a 54-year history of releasing leading music players and television sets. The two companies recently announced a partnership to launch Internet-connected TVs.

china to get news in english 24/7.

"China's biggest national news agency announced plans Friday to launch its global, English-language television news network this week, part of efforts to expand the communist government's media influence abroad.

Starting Saturday, China Xinhua News Network Corp. (CNC) will begin trial broadcasts of its English TV service around the clock, including news segments, feature stories, weather updates and special bulletins, the official Xinhua News agency said. The channel is officially set to launch on July 1. The agency did not immediately say what countries would receive the channel.

'CNC will offer an alternative source of information for a global audience and aims to promote peace and development by interpreting the world in a global perspective,' Xinhua quoted its President Li Congjun as telling a launching ceremony in Beijing."