Data rights organizations have warned that patients lack a clear understanding of how information about their health, employment, contact or location details may be used if it is collected by private entities during the Covid-19 vaccine drive.
Some advocates have already expressed concerns that the information could be used for marketing, targeted advertising or de-identified and sold into the multibillion-dollar health data industry.
Read more at
How US companies could use patients’ data from Covid vaccine drive | US news | The Guardian
Showing posts with label Marketing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marketing. Show all posts
5/7/21
11/8/20
Technology: The Dictatorship of Data
Google’s deference to data has been taken to extremes. To determine the best color of a toolbar on the website, Marissa Mayer, when she was one of Google’s top executives before going to Yahoo, once ordered staff to test 41 gradations of blue to see which ones people used more. In 2009, Google’s top designer, Douglas Bowman, quit in a huff because he couldn’t stand the constant quantification of everything. “I had a recent debate over whether a border should be 3, 4 or 5 pixels wide, and was asked to prove my case. I can’t operate in an environment like that,” he wrote on a blog announcing his resignation. “When a company is filled with engineers, it turns to engineering to solve problems. Reduce each decision to a simple logic problem. That data eventually becomes a crutch for every decision, paralyzing the company.”
This is the dictatorship of data. And it recalls the thinking that led the United States to escalate the Vietnam War partly on the basis of body counts, rather than basing decisions on more meaningful metrics. “It is true enough that not every conceivable complex human situation can be fully reduced to the lines on a graph, or to percentage points on a chart, or to figures on a balance sheet,” said McNamara in a speech in 1967, as domestic protests were growing. “But all reality can be reasoned about. And not to quantify what can be quantified is only to be content with something less than the full range of reason.” If only the right data were used in the right way, not respected for data’s sake.
Read more at: The Dictatorship of Data
This is the dictatorship of data. And it recalls the thinking that led the United States to escalate the Vietnam War partly on the basis of body counts, rather than basing decisions on more meaningful metrics. “It is true enough that not every conceivable complex human situation can be fully reduced to the lines on a graph, or to percentage points on a chart, or to figures on a balance sheet,” said McNamara in a speech in 1967, as domestic protests were growing. “But all reality can be reasoned about. And not to quantify what can be quantified is only to be content with something less than the full range of reason.” If only the right data were used in the right way, not respected for data’s sake.
Read more at: The Dictatorship of Data
11/22/19
China-US Relations: China Will Make the Rules if America Doesn't - by Abraham Newman, Daniel Nexon
On Oct. 4, Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey tweeted his support for pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. In that moment, Morey placed in jeopardy the NBA’s success in cultivating an estimated 500 million Chinese basketball fans and may have derailed
efforts by Tencent, its Chinese partner, to regain its luster. Tencent
paid $1.5 billion for the rights to carry NBA games—games that it may no
longer be able to broadcast.
Welcome to the world of Chinese market power. Beijing’s response to the NBA may appear particularly crude, but it fits a broader pattern. China routinely conditions market access, most notably by requiring foreign firms to partner in joint ventures with Chinese businesses. U.S. firms complain about how this requirement facilitates the theft of their intellectual property, but many simply cannot resist the allure of China’s large and growing domestic market.
Even with slowing growth, China’s market will remain a powerful force in international affairs. The Chinese internal retail market has already overtaken, or will soon overtake, that of the United States. But even the fact of such comparisons underscores the degree to which the U.S. market—clocking in at roughly $5.5 trillion this year—remains large and lucrative. The United States, however, is becoming less effective at using its market power to pursue crucial policy goals. Washington has, particularly under Republican leadership, degraded the regulatory infrastructure necessary to make the most of that market power. The result is that, in too many areas, Washington is starting to punch below its weight.
Read more : China Will Make the Rules if America Doesn't
Welcome to the world of Chinese market power. Beijing’s response to the NBA may appear particularly crude, but it fits a broader pattern. China routinely conditions market access, most notably by requiring foreign firms to partner in joint ventures with Chinese businesses. U.S. firms complain about how this requirement facilitates the theft of their intellectual property, but many simply cannot resist the allure of China’s large and growing domestic market.
Even with slowing growth, China’s market will remain a powerful force in international affairs. The Chinese internal retail market has already overtaken, or will soon overtake, that of the United States. But even the fact of such comparisons underscores the degree to which the U.S. market—clocking in at roughly $5.5 trillion this year—remains large and lucrative. The United States, however, is becoming less effective at using its market power to pursue crucial policy goals. Washington has, particularly under Republican leadership, degraded the regulatory infrastructure necessary to make the most of that market power. The result is that, in too many areas, Washington is starting to punch below its weight.
Read more : China Will Make the Rules if America Doesn't
10/4/19
The Netherlands: Dutch change international branding: Holland becomes The Netherlands
The Dutch government is going to stop promoting the country abroad as
‘Holland’ and will instead use The Netherlands’, marketing magazine
Adformatie said on Thursday.
The detailed plan will be published later this year, but a group of marketing professionals were briefed on the change earlier this week. The aim, the magazine said, is to be less promotional and more about content.
The Netherlands currently promotes itself as Holland.com, illustrated in marketing literature by an orange tulip.
The new strategy means, the Netherlands will present itself to the rest of the world as ‘co-creating pioneering solutions to global challenges’, Adformatie said.
Read more at: Dutch change international branding: Holland becomes The Netherlands - DutchNews.nl
The detailed plan will be published later this year, but a group of marketing professionals were briefed on the change earlier this week. The aim, the magazine said, is to be less promotional and more about content.
The Netherlands currently promotes itself as Holland.com, illustrated in marketing literature by an orange tulip.
The new strategy means, the Netherlands will present itself to the rest of the world as ‘co-creating pioneering solutions to global challenges’, Adformatie said.
Read more at: Dutch change international branding: Holland becomes The Netherlands - DutchNews.nl
10/28/18
The Christmas Holidays: Cool Products: 23 Insanely Cool Products You Haven't Heard Of
Click below for a list of the 23 coolest, most unique and most original gadgets on the market. (Many of which are under $60)
Gadgets are great! But with new products emerging every day, it can be hard to keep up with the latest gizmos and technology.
We test and review dozens of products every year and this is a list of our top 23! This list is loaded with ingenious gadgets that you have probably never heard of, because they're only available online.
If you wanted to, you could do all your holiday shopping just from tis list!
(We’ve highlighted our favorite features and any special promotions available for each product. )
Gadgets are great! But with new products emerging every day, it can be hard to keep up with the latest gizmos and technology.
We test and review dozens of products every year and this is a list of our top 23! This list is loaded with ingenious gadgets that you have probably never heard of, because they're only available online.
If you wanted to, you could do all your holiday shopping just from tis list!
(We’ve highlighted our favorite features and any special promotions available for each product. )
10/16/17
Individual Economic Success: 10 golden rules which can make you a millionaire
Thomas C. Corley of Business Insider has spent years studying the habits of wealthy people.
He completed a "Rich Habits Study" in which he interviewed 233 people each worth more than $3.2 million, 75 percent of whom were self-made millionaires.
He compiled the 10 qualities that stood out to him as most common among—and most important to—those ultra-successful individuals. Firstly, innovation, because your million-dollar idea must be just that.
It needs to have some valuable quality that sets it apart from ideas that have come before. Here's how one designer used her innovation skills to create an invention that helps fight Parkinson's.
1) Have an Edge: It's not just your idea that needs to stand out—it's you. Whatever your strong suit is, it needs to be strong enough to help you rise above the rest of the pack.
2) Be an Expert: You need to make sure you are constantly up-to-date on everything there is to know about the field you want to succeed in.
3) Skill Set: Learning on the job is great and all, but you need to make sure you have valuable skills that you accumulate over many years.
4) Work Ethic:This one's a no-brainer. If you want to be successful, you've got to be willing to work incredibly hard and devote lots of time and energy to your goal.
5) Focus UP: Once you're set on an idea, you need to be able to focus on making it a reality. If you're working on a million-dollar project, it requires your full attention, no matter how long the project takes.
6) Connections, Connections and more connections: You can never have too many connections. Seek out the people who can help you and don't be shy.
7) Don't work alone: It'll be hard to get anywhere without people supporting you.Get people to work with you who believe in you and support your ideas and are not scared to be critical of some of your proposals.
8) Never get discouraged and give up: Persistence, of course, is extremely important. Failure happens and can only help you to start over again with new fresh ideas.
9) Have faith in your ability to succeed: Luck is not what makes things really happen. Vision, a good plan and focused hard work is the only path to success.
10) Blow your own horn: make sure that after you have produced your product or service, people hear about it via a variety of publicity vehicles readily available to you.
EU-Digest
He completed a "Rich Habits Study" in which he interviewed 233 people each worth more than $3.2 million, 75 percent of whom were self-made millionaires.
He compiled the 10 qualities that stood out to him as most common among—and most important to—those ultra-successful individuals. Firstly, innovation, because your million-dollar idea must be just that.
It needs to have some valuable quality that sets it apart from ideas that have come before. Here's how one designer used her innovation skills to create an invention that helps fight Parkinson's.
1) Have an Edge: It's not just your idea that needs to stand out—it's you. Whatever your strong suit is, it needs to be strong enough to help you rise above the rest of the pack.
2) Be an Expert: You need to make sure you are constantly up-to-date on everything there is to know about the field you want to succeed in.
3) Skill Set: Learning on the job is great and all, but you need to make sure you have valuable skills that you accumulate over many years.
4) Work Ethic:This one's a no-brainer. If you want to be successful, you've got to be willing to work incredibly hard and devote lots of time and energy to your goal.
5) Focus UP: Once you're set on an idea, you need to be able to focus on making it a reality. If you're working on a million-dollar project, it requires your full attention, no matter how long the project takes.
6) Connections, Connections and more connections: You can never have too many connections. Seek out the people who can help you and don't be shy.
7) Don't work alone: It'll be hard to get anywhere without people supporting you.Get people to work with you who believe in you and support your ideas and are not scared to be critical of some of your proposals.
8) Never get discouraged and give up: Persistence, of course, is extremely important. Failure happens and can only help you to start over again with new fresh ideas.
9) Have faith in your ability to succeed: Luck is not what makes things really happen. Vision, a good plan and focused hard work is the only path to success.
10) Blow your own horn: make sure that after you have produced your product or service, people hear about it via a variety of publicity vehicles readily available to you.
EU-Digest
5/30/17
Belgium: Burger King vs. Belgium: King Philippe Not Happy About Fast Food Ad Campaign - by Lucy Westcott
 |
| Who is the real king of Belgium |
As far as monarchies go, Belgium’s current royal family keeps a fairly low profile. That was until Burger King launched an interactive advertising campaign ahead of the opening of its first Belgium location, which lets people vote for the country’s “real” king.
If you visit WhoIsTheKing.be, you’re greeted with the words: "Two Kings. One crown. Who will rule? Vote now... " Burger King lets you vote for either, well, Burger King or Belgium’s King Philippe. The website then invites you to return on June 19, when the true “king” of Belgium will be coronated.
Voting for for 57-year-old Philippe isn't easy. After casting your ballot, you’re asked several times if you’re sure and reminded that Philippe “won’t cook you fries.” (Maybe he will?) The chain even has posters to download, stating: “Vote With Your Stomach;” “Belgian People, Choose A King Who Will Make You Fries;” and “Philippe, Another King Arrives in Belgium.”
Perhaps the ad campaign hit a bit too close to home: In 1950, Belgium held a referendum over whether to abolish the monarchy and let Leopold III, Philippe’s grandfather, resume royal duties after World War II.
It's safe to say that King Philippe is not amused. Representatives for the king asked Burger King about the campaign, Reuters reports.
"We told them that we were not happy with them using an image of the king in their campaign," Pierre-Emmanuel De Bauw, palace spokesman, told Reuters. De Bauw added that the Philippe’s image can’t be used for commerce. He appears in the Burger King campaign as a cartoon, and the royal family was not asked if Philippe’s image could be used.
Burger Brands Belgium spokeswoman Shanna Van den Broeck said the company is “deliberating on how to proceed” with the campaign.
Read more: Burger King vs. Belgium: King Philippe Not Happy About Fast Food Ad Campaign
2/18/17
Capitalizing on Capitalism: Unilever's Paul Polman Shares His Plans to Save the World - by Vivienne Walt
Step out of the frigid drizzle into Unilever’s factory outside
Liverpool in northern England, and the brightly lit, automated assembly
line gleams in stark contrast to the gloom outside. Thousands of
bottles shoot down a conveyor belt with a click-clack sound, in a streak
of bright purple.
Look more closely, and there is an important detail. The new bottle is squatter than the older, taller style on another assembly line, with a smaller dispenser and a label explaining that this version of Comfort brand fabric conditioner is good for 38 washes, rather than the 33 of the last-generation package. The message is clear: Customers need to help save one of earth’s most precious resources—water.
This might appear to be a clever bit of marketing by one of the world’s biggest consumer product companies, and marketing it surely is. But to Unilever (ul, +14.00%), its updated, concentrated liquid is also a crucial innovation. It’s one of countless tweaks underway by the Anglo-Dutch company in its more than 300 factories across the world, which churn out more than 400 brands for 2.5 billion or so customers—an astonishing one in every three people on the planet.
Central to these changes is a message Unilever is determined to convey to its investors, as well as to other companies: Big corporations need to change the way they do business, fast, or they will steadily shrink and die.
Read more: Unilever's Paul Polman Shares His Plans to Save the World | Fortune.com
Look more closely, and there is an important detail. The new bottle is squatter than the older, taller style on another assembly line, with a smaller dispenser and a label explaining that this version of Comfort brand fabric conditioner is good for 38 washes, rather than the 33 of the last-generation package. The message is clear: Customers need to help save one of earth’s most precious resources—water.
This might appear to be a clever bit of marketing by one of the world’s biggest consumer product companies, and marketing it surely is. But to Unilever (ul, +14.00%), its updated, concentrated liquid is also a crucial innovation. It’s one of countless tweaks underway by the Anglo-Dutch company in its more than 300 factories across the world, which churn out more than 400 brands for 2.5 billion or so customers—an astonishing one in every three people on the planet.
Central to these changes is a message Unilever is determined to convey to its investors, as well as to other companies: Big corporations need to change the way they do business, fast, or they will steadily shrink and die.
Read more: Unilever's Paul Polman Shares His Plans to Save the World | Fortune.com
1/13/17
Advertising budgets: Top 20 companies with the biggest advertising budget - by Tom Wadlow
According to Forbes’s extensive survey of global brands, the world’s most valuable brand Apple spends under a quarter of what the likes of Pampers and Gillette spend on advertising.
Automotive and consumer packaged goods firms occupy five of the top six advertising spends, with luxury brand Louis Vuitton also among the heavy spenders.
The top 10 advertising budgets for 2016 are as follows:
Pampers - $8.3bn (Ranked 50th most valuable brand)
Gillette - $8.3bn (28th)
L’Oreal - $8.2bn (34th)
Chevrolet - $5.1bn (59th)
Louis Vuitton - $4.4bn (19th)
Ford - $4.3bn (35th)
Coca-Cola - $4bn (4th)
Amazon - $3.8bn (12th)
Sony - $3.7bn (76th)
AT&T - $3.6bn (13th)
Lexus - $3.6bn (63rd)
Toyota - $3.6bn (6th)
Samsung - $3.3bn (11th)
NIKE - $3.2bn (18th)
Google - $3.2bn (2nd)
American Express - $3.1bn (24th)
T-Mobile - $2.9bn (93rd)
Nissan - $2.8bn (70th)
Verizon - $2.7bn (21st)
Chase - $2.7bn (65th)
Apple does not appear in the top 20. Its $1.8bn spent on advertising makes it the 33rd biggest spending company, despite its brand value being more than double that of any other in the world.
Read more: Top 20 companies with the biggest advertising budget | Marketing | Business Review Europe
Automotive and consumer packaged goods firms occupy five of the top six advertising spends, with luxury brand Louis Vuitton also among the heavy spenders.
The top 10 advertising budgets for 2016 are as follows:
Pampers - $8.3bn (Ranked 50th most valuable brand)
Gillette - $8.3bn (28th)
L’Oreal - $8.2bn (34th)
Chevrolet - $5.1bn (59th)
Louis Vuitton - $4.4bn (19th)
Ford - $4.3bn (35th)
Coca-Cola - $4bn (4th)
Amazon - $3.8bn (12th)
Sony - $3.7bn (76th)
AT&T - $3.6bn (13th)
Lexus - $3.6bn (63rd)
Toyota - $3.6bn (6th)
Samsung - $3.3bn (11th)
NIKE - $3.2bn (18th)
Google - $3.2bn (2nd)
American Express - $3.1bn (24th)
T-Mobile - $2.9bn (93rd)
Nissan - $2.8bn (70th)
Verizon - $2.7bn (21st)
Chase - $2.7bn (65th)
Apple does not appear in the top 20. Its $1.8bn spent on advertising makes it the 33rd biggest spending company, despite its brand value being more than double that of any other in the world.
Read more: Top 20 companies with the biggest advertising budget | Marketing | Business Review Europe
1/10/17
EU Privacy laws-Internet Marketing: Europe kills the cookie monster
This regulation is for you.
The European Commission’s proposed e-Privacy Regulation announced Tuesday would restrict how companies listen in on calls and read messages and emails over telecoms networks and the internet.
But the Commission is taking aim at the annoying “cookie” banners that have taken over the internet in past years. They’re asking websites to get rid of the banners, forcing websites to try harder to make it clear to people if they’re going to collect and sell their personal data.
So-called cookies are small files copied onto a person’s computer or mobile device that can do things like remembering the content of a shopping bag, a username and a password. Thanks to cookies, if you were looking for holiday houses one day, chances are ads for accommodations would pop up on the side of other websites you visit.
Cookies and more sophisticated software “trackers” are increasingly used by advertisers, growing into a €160 billion global online ad industry, according a recent report by Statista.
Under the proposed rules, consumers would choose a level of protection in their internet browsers, such as Google’s Chrome browser or Apple’s Safari. Websites would then read the users’ security preferences and load web pages accordingly. Only websites serving customized ads will still have to ask visitors if they can copy cookies on their devices for marketing purposes.
“Internet users do not have to click on a banner every time they visit a website,” Commission Vice President Andrus Ansip said. “They will be able to make an informed choice.”
The banners haven’t always been there though. When the European Parliament reviewed the e-Privacy Directive in 2009, it included the obligation for companies storing data to have people opt in, rather than opt out. Coders started building banners across websites to comply.
Now, the Commission wants them to take down the banners again for anything that’s not invading people’s privacy.
“If you set a high level of protection, it doesn’t mean you won’t get ads. But you’ll get more boring ads,” he said. “If you set it lower, you get more customized ads, more relevant ads, and that’s not always bad … De facto, I believe many people will want to switch them on.”
Read more: Europe kills the cookie monster – POLITICO
2/19/16
US firearms industry marketing guns to children says report from Violence Policy Center
 |
| NRA strikes again: marketing gun sales tochildren |
The Violence Policy Center, which aims to stop gun violence, said in its report that gun manufacturers are marketing to the youngest consumers because their primary market -- white men -- is aging.
"The
firearms industry has set its sights on America's children. Much like
the tobacco industry's search for replacement smokers, the gun industry
is seeking replacement shooters," the group said in a statement.
"Along with the hope of increased gun sales, a corollary goal of this effort is the creation of the next generation of pro-gun advocates for future political battles."
Examples of "aggressive efforts" to market to children include rifles made with plastic parts so they are easier to handle, with less weight and recoil, the report said. Some manufacturers sell firearms in a variety of kid-friendly bright colors, including pink for girls.
The report also pointed out that the firearms industry and its lobby want parents to let their children "access guns at the earliest possible age."
The National Rifle Association, the main gun lobby in the US, previously had a website for its junior members, divided into "Under 8" and "8 and Up," the Violence Policy Center said.
Now called "NRA Family," the website's content includes a 2014 article reviewing the Thompson/Center HotShot youth rifle, calling it "a tiny gun intended for the very youngest shooters -- the ultimate first gun."
The article cited the manufacturer as saying the rifle is targeted to kids aged six to 12.
Gun violence is rife in the US, where a third of children live in a household with at least one weapon, according to the group Everytown for Gun Safety. Its statistics show that seven children and teens are killed with guns in the US on an average day.
Read more: Flash - US firearms industry marketing to children: report - France 24
2/10/15
Privacy: Is Your TV Spying On You?- by Dave Lewis
If you have a Samsung SmartTV the answer is, well, it very well could be. The news broke this week
that Samsung has a TV that can listen in to your conversations, record
them and then upload the information to servers under their control.
Then your data could be then farmed out to third party companies. I’m
guessing that these third parties are advertising and marketing outfits
but, that isn’t clearly articulated.
This gets even stranger when you consider that Samsung SmartTV’s can also do facial recognition. “You can use facial recognition instead of, or as a supplementary security measure in addition to, manually inputting your password.”
OK, so these TVs can listen to me, record my conversations and then associate these conversations with the very person in the discussion?
Nothing creepy about that at all.
Sound far fetched? I don’t believe that it is to be honest. The Internet of Things is weaving tis way into every aspect of our lives. With the rush to get products to market as fast as is possible things like security and privacy can often be sacrificed.
Read moreL Is Your TV Spying On You?
This gets even stranger when you consider that Samsung SmartTV’s can also do facial recognition. “You can use facial recognition instead of, or as a supplementary security measure in addition to, manually inputting your password.”
OK, so these TVs can listen to me, record my conversations and then associate these conversations with the very person in the discussion?
Nothing creepy about that at all.
Sound far fetched? I don’t believe that it is to be honest. The Internet of Things is weaving tis way into every aspect of our lives. With the rush to get products to market as fast as is possible things like security and privacy can often be sacrificed.
Read moreL Is Your TV Spying On You?
USA: Valentine’s Day has become a two-week marketing affair
California Pizza Kitchen is offering a “Sweet Deal for 2,” with two entrées and a dessert for $32. On Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, the chain is offering a “What We Do For Love” sweepstakes that invites followers to share photos showing the crazy things they do for love, with the hashtag #CPKLoveSweeps. The winner could receive free California Pizza Kitchen menu items for a year.
Starbucks is kicking off the holiday on Feb. 13, with the World’s Largest Starbucks Date. Since so many members of Match.com list “coffee and conversation” as one of their interests, the coffeehouse chain is inviting members to arrange their first dates that day using a new “meet at Starbucks” feature on the dating website.
Special menu pairings, such as a Caffe Verona coffee press for two and a Double Chocolate Chunk Brownie, will be available for $5. Customers are encouraged to share their experiences on social media with the hashtag #StarbucksDate.
“There’s no better time to celebrate meaningful moments of connection and encourage new ones than during Valentine’s Day,” said Sharon Rothstein, Starbucks’ global chief marketing officer. “For more than 40 years, Starbucks has been a place to connect over a great cup of coffee.”
TGI Fridays is holding a Twitter sweepstakes that asks followers to share stories of how they met at one of its restaurants, with the hashtag #MyFridaysValentine. Daily winners could receive a $50 gift card for a date at a TGI Fridays, and one grand prize winner will receive a weekend getaway for two to Paris.
Dairy Queen is looking to raise the romance level with less cliché gifts. Rather than silly flowers (yawn) or jewelry (please), DQ suggests a heart-shaped Red Velvet Cake and a one-of-a-kind red spoon, which comes in a velvet jewelry box to make it extra classy.
EU-Digest
1/6/14
Scotland: Digital firms look to attract more talent to Scotland
Some of Scotland's fastest growing technology employers are seeking to band together to attract talented digital experts to move north of the Border.
Senior figures at internet dating company Cupid, Tesco Bank and flight comparison website Skyscanner have held talks about how they can persuade the technology industry's rising stars to come to Scotland.Phil Gripton, the new chief executive of Cupid said: "I have been talking to those at Skyscanner and Tesco Bank.
"We are trying to work together to make Edinburgh a much more attractive place to bring in digital talent."
He said that with other potential employers such as Virgin Money and the Scottish Government, digital experts have substantial career options in Edinburgh and Scotland more generally.
Mr Gripton is among those who have been tempted to move north after he relocated from Manchester to Edinburgh on initially joining Cupid as managing director of its dating services business a year ago.
He formally took over as chief executive from Bill Dobbie on December 1 and has succeeded in bringing in a number senior staffers with experience at major digital employers such as Skype and Match.com to the business as he reshaped the team around him.
Read more: Digital firms look to attract more talent to Scotland | Herald Scotland
8/12/13
Personal Privacy: Never Give Stores Your ZIP Code. Here's Why - by Adam Tanner
Why do merchants sometimes ask us for our ZIP code when we buy something?
I recently visited the Mob Museum in Las Vegas, an interesting addition to Sin City’s attractions. I paid my admission with a credit card, prompting the museum ticket seller to ask me: “What’s your ZIP code?”
When I paused for a moment, she added: “It’s for marketing purposes.”
As much as I had heard good things about the museum, I was unlikely to return soon as I live far from Las Vegas, so I was not anxious to receive subsequent marketing. She said it was okay not to give the ZIP code, and then addressed me by name in wishing me a good visit.
Jo Anna Davis remembers one ZIP code request that did not end well. A California victim of domestic violence who works at a group to help other victims, she guards her privacy carefully. Over the years she became a loyal customer of Ulta, the beauty care company. On one occasion she purchased a skin care kit which caused an unpleasant reaction. She brought the kit back to the store for a refund, and the clerk asked for Davis’ ZIP code to process the transaction.
Read more: Never Give Stores Your ZIP Code. Here's Why - Forbes
I recently visited the Mob Museum in Las Vegas, an interesting addition to Sin City’s attractions. I paid my admission with a credit card, prompting the museum ticket seller to ask me: “What’s your ZIP code?”
When I paused for a moment, she added: “It’s for marketing purposes.”
As much as I had heard good things about the museum, I was unlikely to return soon as I live far from Las Vegas, so I was not anxious to receive subsequent marketing. She said it was okay not to give the ZIP code, and then addressed me by name in wishing me a good visit.
Jo Anna Davis remembers one ZIP code request that did not end well. A California victim of domestic violence who works at a group to help other victims, she guards her privacy carefully. Over the years she became a loyal customer of Ulta, the beauty care company. On one occasion she purchased a skin care kit which caused an unpleasant reaction. She brought the kit back to the store for a refund, and the clerk asked for Davis’ ZIP code to process the transaction.
Read more: Never Give Stores Your ZIP Code. Here's Why - Forbes
5/14/13
Christianity: Are Christian Churches Losing Track Of Biblical Truth - by RM
"Let's face it", said a Christian Pastor this past Sunday to his flock "Those that know they are not without sin might be better off than
those who believe they are good law abiding and righteous citizens".
For those who read the bible this Pastor was right on track. Nowhere in the Bible did Jesus ever say "if you want to follow me clean up your act first". Basically i'ts the other way around : accept him and he will clean up your act.
Based on that premises one could say that many Christian Churches in today's world would probably not even accept Jesus as a church member.
Why? Because today's churches do not want to attract the same people Jesus attracted when he was in this world. For the people Jesus attracted included mainly marginalized people, derelicts, prostitutes, outcasts, beggars, swindlers, tax collecting thief's, murderers, and many lost, lonely, depressed and homeless people.
He bore no grudges, did not hold anyone accountable for their sins. He had no if's or conditions to his acceptance of human beings and his endless love for them.
Many Christian churches today seem to have lost track of this Biblical truth.
EU-Digest
For those who read the bible this Pastor was right on track. Nowhere in the Bible did Jesus ever say "if you want to follow me clean up your act first". Basically i'ts the other way around : accept him and he will clean up your act.
Based on that premises one could say that many Christian Churches in today's world would probably not even accept Jesus as a church member.
Why? Because today's churches do not want to attract the same people Jesus attracted when he was in this world. For the people Jesus attracted included mainly marginalized people, derelicts, prostitutes, outcasts, beggars, swindlers, tax collecting thief's, murderers, and many lost, lonely, depressed and homeless people.
He bore no grudges, did not hold anyone accountable for their sins. He had no if's or conditions to his acceptance of human beings and his endless love for them.
Many Christian churches today seem to have lost track of this Biblical truth.
EU-Digest
12/6/12
Agriculture - Fruit: Catch the worldwide blueberry wave - European high-bush blueberry acreage increased five-fold
"European high-bush blueberry acreage increased five-fold from 1995 to 2010, from 4,000 acres to nearly 21,000 acres. Poland, Germany and Spain lead the way in Europe, with 7,800 acres, 5,300 acres and 2,600 acres, respectively, in 2010. Total European production increased from an estimated 56 million pounds in 2008 to 81 million pounds in 2010", said Mark Villata, executive director of the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council (USHBC).
"Given such growth, the blueberry industry needs to attract new consumers across the globe and significantly increase per capita consumption by 2015. There are opportunities to do so. Despite North America’s huge share in blueberry production, some of its markets remain underdeveloped. There continue to be excellent market prospects inn Europe, China, India and South Korea", says Villata.
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Blueberries continue to be a key ingredient in new fruit product development and their “health halo” continues to drive purchases. The key is to design and implement market promotions that leverage the blueberry’s healthful reputation. Villata who was speaking in Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable and Farm Market EXPO in Grand Rapids, Mich., said he was optimistic about the long term prospects for blueberries.
"Given such growth, the blueberry industry needs to attract new consumers across the globe and significantly increase per capita consumption by 2015. There are opportunities to do so. Despite North America’s huge share in blueberry production, some of its markets remain underdeveloped. There continue to be excellent market prospects inn Europe, China, India and South Korea", says Villata.
.
Blueberries continue to be a key ingredient in new fruit product development and their “health halo” continues to drive purchases. The key is to design and implement market promotions that leverage the blueberry’s healthful reputation. Villata who was speaking in Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable and Farm Market EXPO in Grand Rapids, Mich., said he was optimistic about the long term prospects for blueberries.
8/9/11
Halal food market is estimated at EURO 3.51 billion (US $5.b) per year
With the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan underway, the French food industry is paying special attention to the growing market of products known as “halal,” a designation for food produced according to the rules of Islamic law.
Halal retailers earn about one third of their annual revenue during the month of Ramadan. Overall, the quickly expanding industry pulls in an estimated 5 billion Euros worldwide, according to Solis, an ethnic studies consultancy firm. In France, supermarkets sold roughly 130 million worth of halal products last year. That number is expected to reach 140 million Euros in 2011, according to the consultancy firm Nielsen.
Halal products only began appearing in French supermarkets a few years ago. Specialized brands like Isla Délice and Reghalal were later joined by large French food industry players like Fleury Michon and Panzani. The supermarket chain Casino launched its own range of halal products under the umbrella brand Wassila. And Carrefour, France’s top food retailer sells approximately 50 of its own halal products as well.
Mainstream manufacturers and retailers have been slow to take notice. Studies show that while the opportunity for market share among other segments is dwindling, the American Muslim market remains virtually untapped.
For more Halal food market is estimated at EURO 3.51 billion per year
Mainstream manufacturers and retailers have been slow to take notice. Studies show that while the opportunity for market share among other segments is dwindling, the American Muslim market remains virtually untapped.
1/23/11
Almost 1 Million Nintendo 3DS Units for Europe - by Tynan Muddle
Nintendo plan to capture the European market with their upcoming release of the Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo’s new 3D gaming handheld console.
According to website MCV, Nintendo have established 900,000 units for Europe. These reports come from whom their naming “a number of well connected parties”. If true, the number is quite substantial and mimic those of the Nintendo DS launch.
For more: Almost 1 Million Nintendo 3DS Units for Europe | Aussie-Gamer.com
According to website MCV, Nintendo have established 900,000 units for Europe. These reports come from whom their naming “a number of well connected parties”. If true, the number is quite substantial and mimic those of the Nintendo DS launch.
For more: Almost 1 Million Nintendo 3DS Units for Europe | Aussie-Gamer.com
1/15/11
The environment:: A Nice Way To “Stick It” To The Household Eco-Deniers
Some people flat out deny global warming and any other environmental problems. Others kind of get it, but aren’t prepared to give up their Hummers. Others still perpetually express their guilt for eating meat and flying to Dubai for a weekend of debauchery, but do it anyway.
Then there are those who have a strong eco-conscience, don’t eat meat, ride bikes, and shop second hand. And finally, there are folks who live entirely without money. But everyone could use a gentle reminder once in a while. Hu2 Design’s stickers show everybody the hidden costs behind household choices.
For more: A Nice Way To “Stick It” To The Household Eco-Deniers | Green Prophet
Then there are those who have a strong eco-conscience, don’t eat meat, ride bikes, and shop second hand. And finally, there are folks who live entirely without money. But everyone could use a gentle reminder once in a while. Hu2 Design’s stickers show everybody the hidden costs behind household choices.
For more: A Nice Way To “Stick It” To The Household Eco-Deniers | Green Prophet
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