There are studies about shopping behaviour and there are studies. Then, there are Confessions of a Technology Shopaholic.
As a self-confessed gadget freak, I can see that the link below- a Technology Influencer / Opinion Leader / Early Adopter spilling the beans on a purchase- falls in the latter category:
http://shopping.yahoo.com/articles/yshoppingarticles/358/how-my-499-ipad-purchase-became-a-1170-credit-card-bill/
If you can't wait to hit the Apple store to see a decade long buzz on convergence and ubiquitous computing take a step closer to reality thanks to great productization and marketing, join the line. :-)
What do you think?
--
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Cloud Computing and Innovation in Sourcing Strategies?
Executive Summay: A speculative look at innovation in sourcing strategies driven by Cloud Computing, based on pricing complexity and on third party players and standards helping develop seamless integration across vendors.
Would the adoption of cloud computing across industries lead to innovation in sourcing strategies? Would it lead to innovation in how the sourcing strategies are implemented?
Tried and tested single, dual or multiple vendor approaches exist, along with bidding mechanisms. If we are to speculate on potential for innovation, below are some possibilities. These are driven by the increasing complexity seen in the pricing of sourcing contracts- the elements of which sometimes resemble derivatives transactions.
1. Does the future hold structured arrangments where cloud computing locations (think: risk management/ disaster recovery/ pricing & capacity management) are transparently bundled into dynamic pricing of services? E.g. Dynamic energy trades/ demand management in the enery sector?
2. Does the future hold structured arrangements where multiple vendors could transparently bundle their services in a dynamic pricing model? E.g. Advertisers bidding on Google search response positions.
As you can see, this speculation rests not only on pricing going "derivative", but also on the emergence of a "glue" that holds all this complexity together and packages it for translation into everyday use.
Getting an answer to this can be broken down into the following steps:
1. Current state of the art in, and future trends in the industry:
- Are the players specializing? How?
- Which tiers of the computing infrastructure are being moved to the cloud and how?
- How are different sectors engaging with cloud computing and its vendors? E.g. Data privacy concerns in healthcare and financial services. We have covered some thoughts that impact this here:
http://randomjunkyramblings.blogspot.com/2009/08/privacy-and-social-media.html
The current state analysis process may be similar to the one we previewed for the consumer electronics industry here:
http://randomjunkyramblings.blogspot.com/2010/01/consumer-electronics-show-ces-2010-ce.html
2. Alliances:
- Is there a potential for alliances between players in the sector? Or would any partnership within the sector be a step toward mergers and acquistions?
- Is there a potential for vertical alliances? E.g. Cloud computing providers and Google Analytics?
3. Development of Third Party Standards for Cloud Computing:
- These would range from metrics to methodologies across quality of services, monitoring and executive reporting.
What do you think?
--
Would the adoption of cloud computing across industries lead to innovation in sourcing strategies? Would it lead to innovation in how the sourcing strategies are implemented?
Tried and tested single, dual or multiple vendor approaches exist, along with bidding mechanisms. If we are to speculate on potential for innovation, below are some possibilities. These are driven by the increasing complexity seen in the pricing of sourcing contracts- the elements of which sometimes resemble derivatives transactions.
1. Does the future hold structured arrangments where cloud computing locations (think: risk management/ disaster recovery/ pricing & capacity management) are transparently bundled into dynamic pricing of services? E.g. Dynamic energy trades/ demand management in the enery sector?
2. Does the future hold structured arrangements where multiple vendors could transparently bundle their services in a dynamic pricing model? E.g. Advertisers bidding on Google search response positions.
As you can see, this speculation rests not only on pricing going "derivative", but also on the emergence of a "glue" that holds all this complexity together and packages it for translation into everyday use.
Getting an answer to this can be broken down into the following steps:
1. Current state of the art in, and future trends in the industry:
- Are the players specializing? How?
- Which tiers of the computing infrastructure are being moved to the cloud and how?
- How are different sectors engaging with cloud computing and its vendors? E.g. Data privacy concerns in healthcare and financial services. We have covered some thoughts that impact this here:
http://randomjunkyramblings.blogspot.com/2009/08/privacy-and-social-media.html
The current state analysis process may be similar to the one we previewed for the consumer electronics industry here:
http://randomjunkyramblings.blogspot.com/2010/01/consumer-electronics-show-ces-2010-ce.html
2. Alliances:
- Is there a potential for alliances between players in the sector? Or would any partnership within the sector be a step toward mergers and acquistions?
- Is there a potential for vertical alliances? E.g. Cloud computing providers and Google Analytics?
3. Development of Third Party Standards for Cloud Computing:
- These would range from metrics to methodologies across quality of services, monitoring and executive reporting.
What do you think?
--
Stock Repurchase Trends and Forecasts
Executive Summary: Companies as diverse as Pepsi and Intuit have stock buy back programs. Below is an effort to structure an analysis of this corporate finance mechanism, and provide a filter for someone frequently coming across news on this mechanism.
Are there explicit stock repurchase trends in the equities markets?
Can these trends be categorized by sector, geography, excutive compensation structure, company capital structure, dividend policy, need to maintain EPS and EPS guidance, competitive nature of the industry, ranking in the industry, maturity of the player or the industry, or specific macro-economic forces (say a recession) at play?
Or, are these trends and forecasts driven by the specific circumstances of a particular company, and that there is a "natural" limit to a successful, organic reinvestment of cash flows back into the company's operations? If there exists such a "natural" limit, would the company's hurdle rate be the single most important factor in decision making?
What do you think?
Are there explicit stock repurchase trends in the equities markets?
Can these trends be categorized by sector, geography, excutive compensation structure, company capital structure, dividend policy, need to maintain EPS and EPS guidance, competitive nature of the industry, ranking in the industry, maturity of the player or the industry, or specific macro-economic forces (say a recession) at play?
Or, are these trends and forecasts driven by the specific circumstances of a particular company, and that there is a "natural" limit to a successful, organic reinvestment of cash flows back into the company's operations? If there exists such a "natural" limit, would the company's hurdle rate be the single most important factor in decision making?
What do you think?
Parallels to Regulating the Financial Sector
Executive Summary: The financial services industry and regulators are in rare agreement over the need for some sort of reform. The broad spectrum of views on the issue suggests a need for some fundamental questions that highlight the key decision making elements of the process. Here are some questions that may position you to quick get to the crux of the matter.
A friend* who owns and runs a company in the chemicals industry asked, "If the state is responsible for everything, and pays for everything, why have any liability (on the private players) at all?" As a responsible businessman, he was reacting to a news article that in case of problems, a power plant operator's liability would be capped at 5 to 10% of the total cost of building the plant. The sector? Nuclear power.
The financial services sector and its regulators are apparently in rare agreement that some change must be effected in the sector. The questions I raised in the exchange over the nuclear power sector may be applied to the financial services sector. This is to serve as a parallel to help think through the direction of regulatory reform.
The key to the questions is based on:
1. Market structure
2. Managing liability
Fundamental Questions
Here are some fundamental questions that may help us get a better grip on the discussion.
1. Liability:
- Why do we need the concept of a corporation and the limited liability corporation, for private industry to successfully exist?
- Why do we need the concept of bankruptcy and the potential of a corporation emerging from it?
- Why do countries support the concept of LLCs, and why do more "efficient" (???) economies have "good" bankruptcy laws and implementations?
- Does liability, actual or nominal, ever disappear? Or does it just sit hidden (liability arising out of the risk of a catastrophic event), or rest in plain view (estimated liability after the catastrophic event has occured), till some action is taken?
2. Comparables:
- Does a generator of hydro electric power, who has built a dam, get some sort of liability support?
- If yes, is there a particular reason for either denying or augmenting liability support for the nuclear power sector?
3. The Need for Private Players in the Industry:
- Why do we need private players in the sector? Why can't the government go it alone? Is there a need for more capital, technology, management expertise, or innovation?
4. Regulation:
- How does regulation create the right sort of safeguards and incentives?
- Can the regulation be effectively implemented/ enforced?
More on Liability
An example from the brick and mortar world:
If a building falls a few years after construction (now, we could use the example of crane accidents which have happened in New York), the supplier of building materials/ builder/ building management/ city may get sued/ face civil or criminal action/ etc. Perhaps the high cost of paying out the liability may cause one of the players to go bankrupt. Lets deconstruct this scenario:
1. Was the supplier of building materials working in an environment where faulty components were expected to be weeded out by other players in the value chain, and were not supposed to make the building collapse? In that case, was the liability shared by the "integrated" supplier, construction company and the checks and balances system?
2. Was the liability so huge that, despite it being correctly apportioned to all stakeholders, it remained so large that even after liquidating, the private players involved couldn't make a dent in the liability? In that case, what's the point of apportioning liability?
3. Is it possible to limit the effects of a collapse of a market to within the market? E.g. Does the market have enough players to replace the bankrupt company?
4. Would the collapse of the company cause the market to collapse? Would the collapse of the market be acceptable?
5. Is this a market where "failure" means only two options- all players come together to fix the problem, or someone is prosecuted for negligence, while the rest try to fix the problem?
An Example of a "Negotiated" Allocation of Liability
Lets return to the financial services industry, and look at how Iceland is handling the liabilities arising out of the collapse of its financial services industry:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703391004575106452707894556.html
What do you think?
Update: Nikhil shared a wonderful article that showed that folks in the 1950s in the US had thought about these deep philosophical questions while creating an industry in the Nuclear Power sector. It's just fantastic to know that. Now, the same assumptions may not apply in a different context, but it is still fantastic to get an insight into "market engineering".
* Thanks Nikhil.
A friend* who owns and runs a company in the chemicals industry asked, "If the state is responsible for everything, and pays for everything, why have any liability (on the private players) at all?" As a responsible businessman, he was reacting to a news article that in case of problems, a power plant operator's liability would be capped at 5 to 10% of the total cost of building the plant. The sector? Nuclear power.
The financial services sector and its regulators are apparently in rare agreement that some change must be effected in the sector. The questions I raised in the exchange over the nuclear power sector may be applied to the financial services sector. This is to serve as a parallel to help think through the direction of regulatory reform.
The key to the questions is based on:
1. Market structure
2. Managing liability
Fundamental Questions
Here are some fundamental questions that may help us get a better grip on the discussion.
1. Liability:
- Why do we need the concept of a corporation and the limited liability corporation, for private industry to successfully exist?
- Why do we need the concept of bankruptcy and the potential of a corporation emerging from it?
- Why do countries support the concept of LLCs, and why do more "efficient" (???) economies have "good" bankruptcy laws and implementations?
- Does liability, actual or nominal, ever disappear? Or does it just sit hidden (liability arising out of the risk of a catastrophic event), or rest in plain view (estimated liability after the catastrophic event has occured), till some action is taken?
2. Comparables:
- Does a generator of hydro electric power, who has built a dam, get some sort of liability support?
- If yes, is there a particular reason for either denying or augmenting liability support for the nuclear power sector?
3. The Need for Private Players in the Industry:
- Why do we need private players in the sector? Why can't the government go it alone? Is there a need for more capital, technology, management expertise, or innovation?
4. Regulation:
- How does regulation create the right sort of safeguards and incentives?
- Can the regulation be effectively implemented/ enforced?
More on Liability
An example from the brick and mortar world:
If a building falls a few years after construction (now, we could use the example of crane accidents which have happened in New York), the supplier of building materials/ builder/ building management/ city may get sued/ face civil or criminal action/ etc. Perhaps the high cost of paying out the liability may cause one of the players to go bankrupt. Lets deconstruct this scenario:
1. Was the supplier of building materials working in an environment where faulty components were expected to be weeded out by other players in the value chain, and were not supposed to make the building collapse? In that case, was the liability shared by the "integrated" supplier, construction company and the checks and balances system?
2. Was the liability so huge that, despite it being correctly apportioned to all stakeholders, it remained so large that even after liquidating, the private players involved couldn't make a dent in the liability? In that case, what's the point of apportioning liability?
3. Is it possible to limit the effects of a collapse of a market to within the market? E.g. Does the market have enough players to replace the bankrupt company?
4. Would the collapse of the company cause the market to collapse? Would the collapse of the market be acceptable?
5. Is this a market where "failure" means only two options- all players come together to fix the problem, or someone is prosecuted for negligence, while the rest try to fix the problem?
An Example of a "Negotiated" Allocation of Liability
Lets return to the financial services industry, and look at how Iceland is handling the liabilities arising out of the collapse of its financial services industry:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703391004575106452707894556.html
What do you think?
Update: Nikhil shared a wonderful article that showed that folks in the 1950s in the US had thought about these deep philosophical questions while creating an industry in the Nuclear Power sector. It's just fantastic to know that. Now, the same assumptions may not apply in a different context, but it is still fantastic to get an insight into "market engineering".
* Thanks Nikhil.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Organization (Re)Alignment and 360 Degree Messaging.
Executive Summary: Tools to tackle the "softer" aspects of organizational (re)alignment- backed by analytics, like the Identity Circle, in a previous post- need to be prioritized when organizational initiatives are planned. Purely as a current example, snippets from the global discussion on Toyota's response to its car performance crisis provide you the starting point to think about, and build, the tools to weigh your options more effectively.
The Crisis
Toyota is facing a massive car performance crisis. It has needed various parts of its ecosystem, which includes car dealers, sales, marketing, PR, operations, finance and suppliers, to move in a concerted manner across various channels to tackle it. The crisis has the potential to impact the industry as a whole. Yes, that's where the term 360 degree messaging comes in. It implies both external and external messaging.
The Conversation
Below is a snippet from the global discussion about Toyota's crisis that shed light on the response to the crisis:
1. Accelerating towards crisis: a PR view of Toyota's recall
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/feb/09/pr-view-toyota-reputation-management
As you would have noted, this article talks about crises that companies like Mattel and Cadburys have tackled previously. Toyota's crisis happens to be a current example in a continuum. The conclusion? A brand/ PR crisis is not an "unthinkable". It may be a Black Swan, but it needs to be explicitly considered.
Organizational (Re)Alignment?
How does the organization and/ or its ecosystem tie into a crisis response? Lets look at some questions that help us evaluate this.
* Are crisis response issues worth minimizing in advance? Do they deserve upfront planning and resources?
* Are crises response issues black swans?
* Is response to a crisis purely an external messaging issue? Is it a leadership issue? Is it an across-the-board organization/ ecosystem issue?
* Would tools that effectively (re)align organizations have helped Toyota or other organizations in crisis?
* Would the results of implementing such tools have helped response?
* Which tools are more effective at providing leadership, or the overall organization, levers to deploy an effective response?
* What tools are available?
* What are the pros and cons of each?
* How effective are each of these tools?
What do you think?
--
The Crisis
Toyota is facing a massive car performance crisis. It has needed various parts of its ecosystem, which includes car dealers, sales, marketing, PR, operations, finance and suppliers, to move in a concerted manner across various channels to tackle it. The crisis has the potential to impact the industry as a whole. Yes, that's where the term 360 degree messaging comes in. It implies both external and external messaging.
The Conversation
Below is a snippet from the global discussion about Toyota's crisis that shed light on the response to the crisis:
1. Accelerating towards crisis: a PR view of Toyota's recall
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/feb/09/pr-view-toyota-reputation-management
As you would have noted, this article talks about crises that companies like Mattel and Cadburys have tackled previously. Toyota's crisis happens to be a current example in a continuum. The conclusion? A brand/ PR crisis is not an "unthinkable". It may be a Black Swan, but it needs to be explicitly considered.
Organizational (Re)Alignment?
How does the organization and/ or its ecosystem tie into a crisis response? Lets look at some questions that help us evaluate this.
* Are crisis response issues worth minimizing in advance? Do they deserve upfront planning and resources?
* Are crises response issues black swans?
* Is response to a crisis purely an external messaging issue? Is it a leadership issue? Is it an across-the-board organization/ ecosystem issue?
* Would tools that effectively (re)align organizations have helped Toyota or other organizations in crisis?
* Would the results of implementing such tools have helped response?
* Which tools are more effective at providing leadership, or the overall organization, levers to deploy an effective response?
* What tools are available?
* What are the pros and cons of each?
* How effective are each of these tools?
What do you think?
--
Thursday, February 4, 2010
The Identity Circle: A Talk by Larry Ackerman
Executive Summary: Larry Ackerman gave an amazing talk on the Identity Circle recently in NYC. His insights and measured responses to queries led to an enlightening evening for the audience, and a fleshing out of the concept and implementation of The Identity Circle. A perspective would be to look at molding/ creating an organization's identity as a tool in a spectrum of initiatives toward organizational (re)alignment.
The Talk
Larry's talk was an interesting insight into the challenges of identifying and molding an organization's identity. The website below provides a great overview:
http://www.theidentitycircle.com/
It was refreshing to see the presenter acknowledge sources that have provided a foundation for his work- Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs was one of four.
Apple was a case in point of an organization that has transitioned through various markets and technologies while maintaining a core identity. Maytag is another example where his work yielded results.
Larry's experience with a multiyear engagement at a large, complex, multi-market organization shed light on the effort that goes into moving toward an identity for an organization. The challenges are greater for acquisitive organizations.
Plan for Organizational (Re?)Alignment
Larry explicitly tied in the Identity Circle with organizational alignment initiatives. However, how would you rank order this (re?)alignment initiative when an organization picks its top 3 initiatives for a period?
A Perspective on Organization Realignment
The concept can be looked upon as a part of a spectrum of initiatives organizations may use to realign themselves, where Identity Circle occupies the "softer" range of the spectrum, which is usually occupied by the communication/ messaging tools. Specific cost cutting and process and revenue improvement initiatives occupy the "harder" range of the spectrum. This tool provides leadership the levers for a faster turnaround toward results from hard initiatives.
Note: Larry pointed out in his talk that Identity Circle is backed by hard, analytical tools- its categorized under "soft" tools here as it's "direct" results focus on perception and attitudes. Looking at the steps in the process, you might agree that they are nothing but "hard". :-)
Now, the key challenge remains- given the need for all organizations, public and private, to turn around quick financial results, what would trigger an organization to target a complex and potentially long term initiative in its top 3 items on the "to do" list?
Some More Questions
Larry's thoughts on some of the questions I discussed with him.
1. Identity Beyond The Organization:
* Given that quite often, a nation may be attributed with an identity. Does the Identity Circle applies only to organizations?
- Yes. However, an organization with an identity may span diverse and complex entities.
* Does an industry like the diamond industry -from DeBeers with "Diamonds are Forever" in the 1930s to players like Zales today with DeBeers still a large player- shares an identity?
- No, the players share an image- the identity circle is still tied to the organization.
2. Identity and the Market:
* Do hypercompetitive markets, like Christiansen's Disk storage industry case, "own" the identity (or a large percentage of the identity) of an organization?
- No. The market plays a role in the identity of the organization, but the organization firmly owns its identity, even in extremely hypercompetitive markets that see frequent churn in participating players. Apple was a case in point.
3. Google and China:
* How does Google reconcile the hacker attack problems with China, its core theme of "Don't be Evil", and its initial intent of being an active player in China, despite known challenges going in?
- Google's tactical decision-making may vary to reconcile various objectives; however, longer term, its moves will be in line with its identity.
What do you think?
--
The Talk
Larry's talk was an interesting insight into the challenges of identifying and molding an organization's identity. The website below provides a great overview:
http://www.theidentitycircle.com/
It was refreshing to see the presenter acknowledge sources that have provided a foundation for his work- Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs was one of four.
Apple was a case in point of an organization that has transitioned through various markets and technologies while maintaining a core identity. Maytag is another example where his work yielded results.
Larry's experience with a multiyear engagement at a large, complex, multi-market organization shed light on the effort that goes into moving toward an identity for an organization. The challenges are greater for acquisitive organizations.
Plan for Organizational (Re?)Alignment
Larry explicitly tied in the Identity Circle with organizational alignment initiatives. However, how would you rank order this (re?)alignment initiative when an organization picks its top 3 initiatives for a period?
A Perspective on Organization Realignment
The concept can be looked upon as a part of a spectrum of initiatives organizations may use to realign themselves, where Identity Circle occupies the "softer" range of the spectrum, which is usually occupied by the communication/ messaging tools. Specific cost cutting and process and revenue improvement initiatives occupy the "harder" range of the spectrum. This tool provides leadership the levers for a faster turnaround toward results from hard initiatives.
Note: Larry pointed out in his talk that Identity Circle is backed by hard, analytical tools- its categorized under "soft" tools here as it's "direct" results focus on perception and attitudes. Looking at the steps in the process, you might agree that they are nothing but "hard". :-)
Now, the key challenge remains- given the need for all organizations, public and private, to turn around quick financial results, what would trigger an organization to target a complex and potentially long term initiative in its top 3 items on the "to do" list?
Some More Questions
Larry's thoughts on some of the questions I discussed with him.
1. Identity Beyond The Organization:
* Given that quite often, a nation may be attributed with an identity. Does the Identity Circle applies only to organizations?
- Yes. However, an organization with an identity may span diverse and complex entities.
* Does an industry like the diamond industry -from DeBeers with "Diamonds are Forever" in the 1930s to players like Zales today with DeBeers still a large player- shares an identity?
- No, the players share an image- the identity circle is still tied to the organization.
2. Identity and the Market:
* Do hypercompetitive markets, like Christiansen's Disk storage industry case, "own" the identity (or a large percentage of the identity) of an organization?
- No. The market plays a role in the identity of the organization, but the organization firmly owns its identity, even in extremely hypercompetitive markets that see frequent churn in participating players. Apple was a case in point.
3. Google and China:
* How does Google reconcile the hacker attack problems with China, its core theme of "Don't be Evil", and its initial intent of being an active player in China, despite known challenges going in?
- Google's tactical decision-making may vary to reconcile various objectives; however, longer term, its moves will be in line with its identity.
What do you think?
--
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Entrepreneur's Corner: Baked by Melissa, Bite-Size Treats!
Executive Summary: We look at an entrepreneurial venture, Baked by Melissa, and some things that stand out with this cupcake shop- product size, pricing and a range of product flavors.
The Overview
Walking about in Manhattan, two signs of green shoots caught my attention. Here is "Baked by Melissa".
The "Baked by Melissa" store's hole in the wall look belies all the work that seems to have gone on behind it- they already seem to have a following, and also run a catering operation. I discovered in when I saw a long line in SOHO, almost as long as the ones formed by fans outside the Abercrombie store on 5th Ave., leading up to a little window.
The cupcakes are bitesized, for a dollar each, and you pick a minimum of 3 from the shop. I was only too glad to sample 3 different flavors at one go. I can see cupcake fans going in for volume when they visit the store.
How Do You Find It?
http://www.bakedbymelissa.com/
Green Shoots?
Melissa Bushell started this venture after moving on from her last job. Talk about green shoots! Here's a candid (third party) interview:
http://cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com/2009/04/cupcake-interview-melissa-bushell-of.html
It's a great insight into "Animal Spirits".
The Deal- The Marketing Strategy
Why would I talk about this startup?
Note: These perspectives are all mine and have not been discussed with Baked by Melissa.
* The Product: Interesting mix of standard and innovative cupcakes. Did I say that I see cupcake fans buying cupcakes in "box sizes"? I can also see a bite-size cupcake going up against mini/ regular/ large cupcakes with a message- "lose the calories, but not the taste".
* Product Size and Pricing: Did I mention that the cupcakes are bite-sized, for a dollar each, and you pick a minimum of 3 from the shop? This strategy confers great flexibility on the margins.
* Positioning- While the messaging theme (see website) is simple and correctly centered around taste, it could also subtly play into a health and fitness savvy dessert-fiend profile.
* Merchandising- none noted at the store. A simple, "back to the basics of taste" operation.
Ahem... Constructive Criticism?
None. The idea here is to understand "green shoots" and "animal spirits". The entrepreneurs ostensibly have the right counsel to survive growth pangs.
What do you think? Ready, Steady, Cupcake?
--
The Overview
Walking about in Manhattan, two signs of green shoots caught my attention. Here is "Baked by Melissa".
The "Baked by Melissa" store's hole in the wall look belies all the work that seems to have gone on behind it- they already seem to have a following, and also run a catering operation. I discovered in when I saw a long line in SOHO, almost as long as the ones formed by fans outside the Abercrombie store on 5th Ave., leading up to a little window.
The cupcakes are bitesized, for a dollar each, and you pick a minimum of 3 from the shop. I was only too glad to sample 3 different flavors at one go. I can see cupcake fans going in for volume when they visit the store.
How Do You Find It?
http://www.bakedbymelissa.com/
Green Shoots?
Melissa Bushell started this venture after moving on from her last job. Talk about green shoots! Here's a candid (third party) interview:
http://cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com/2009/04/cupcake-interview-melissa-bushell-of.html
It's a great insight into "Animal Spirits".
The Deal- The Marketing Strategy
Why would I talk about this startup?
Note: These perspectives are all mine and have not been discussed with Baked by Melissa.
* The Product: Interesting mix of standard and innovative cupcakes. Did I say that I see cupcake fans buying cupcakes in "box sizes"? I can also see a bite-size cupcake going up against mini/ regular/ large cupcakes with a message- "lose the calories, but not the taste".
* Product Size and Pricing: Did I mention that the cupcakes are bite-sized, for a dollar each, and you pick a minimum of 3 from the shop? This strategy confers great flexibility on the margins.
* Positioning- While the messaging theme (see website) is simple and correctly centered around taste, it could also subtly play into a health and fitness savvy dessert-fiend profile.
* Merchandising- none noted at the store. A simple, "back to the basics of taste" operation.
Ahem... Constructive Criticism?
None. The idea here is to understand "green shoots" and "animal spirits". The entrepreneurs ostensibly have the right counsel to survive growth pangs.
What do you think? Ready, Steady, Cupcake?
--
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