Marketing - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

[VIDEO] How NFL Stadiums Are Engineered to Maximize Profit

February 14, 2025

For decades, American stadium designers aimed to pack as many spectators into a space as safely as possible. In recent years, though, amenities like upscale concession stands and luxury boxes have become increasingly important to the financial health of American sports venues. This video looks at how the Superdome in New Orleans was rebuilt to make as much money as possible, from streamlined snack bars and walking paths to pricey club seating and suites.

Questions:

Why are modern stadiums Continue reading →

Marketing, Operations Management, Product Development, Sports, Entertainment, Pricing, Product Distribution, Supply & Demand, Stadiums

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media, Videos

Disney Vacations Feel Financially Out Of Reach for Many Families

February 12, 2025

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When Walt Disney built his world-famous theme parks, he envisioned them as affordable places for families to spend full days together in the dreamlike world of animated movies. In fact, one executive in the 1980s who tried to raise the price of parking by one dollar met stiff resistance from people who claimed the idea ran counter to Disney’s vision for The Happiest Place on Earth. Over time, though, prices rose steadily with inflation, until the COVID-19 pandemic brought everything Continue reading →

Marketing, Product Development, Promotions, Entertainment, Pricing, Disney, Product Distribution, Theme parks

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion

Google Corrects Its AI Super Bowl Ad Before the Game

February 10, 2025

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This year, AI firms flocked to buy Super Bowl commercials, hoping to make a huge splash about their new products in a cost-effective way. A 30-second spot during Super Bowl LIX cost about $8 million, which may seem like a lot to pay for a short ad. Given that the massively popular game drew in more than 200 million viewers, however, a commercial’s cost-per-viewer actually amounts to less than a nickel. It’s incentives like these that motivated Google to use Continue reading →

Marketing, Ethics, Product Development, Sports, Entertainment, Advertising, Product Distribution, Super Bowl, AI

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Waffle House Adds 50-Cent Surcharge for Eggs

February 7, 2025

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The breakfast chain Waffle House is famous for serving customers a cheap and hearty breakfast at any time of day. In fact, the 24-hour eatery is so reliable and affordable that emergency officials use it as an informal gauge for judging severe weather: if the area Waffle House is closed, then the natural disaster must be extremely severe. But one thing the famously dependable chain couldn’t predict is soaring egg prices, which have driven it to add a 50-cent Continue reading →

Marketing, Ethics, Pricing, Supply chains, Product Distribution, Restaurants, Waffle House, Food & Drink

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution

Fake Online Reviews Become More Common with AI

January 22, 2025

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When online reviews first started in the late 1990s, shoppers used them to compare their purchases with each other instead of relying on the seller’s description or an expert recommendation. Directory sites like Yelp and Trustpilot grew their user bases by incentivizing contributors to leave authentic reviews for restaurants, doctors, and just about any public-facing business. But online reviews created a new problem: fake reviews. Businesses hired brokers to recruit people to write false reviews — either positive ones to Continue reading →

Marketing, Ethics, Entrepreneurship, Social Media, Product Distribution, Artificial Intelligence, AI, Product reviews

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Federal Lawsuit Accuses Ticketmaster of Live Music Monopoly

January 14, 2025

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Pop superstar Taylor Swift completed her Eras Tour in 2024, ending a two-year global phenomenon that became the highest grossing tour of all time. Eras was Swift’s first tour since COVID-19, and its economic impact was such a drastic change from lockdown that financial analysts started calling it the “TSwift Lift.” And even though the tour has come to a close, it could still have a gargantuan cultural impact in 2025 as the U.S. Department of Justice sues Ticketmaster, the Continue reading →

Marketing, Ethics, Promotions, Entertainment, Music, Legal, Product Distribution, Monopolies, Supply & Demand, Antitrust, Ticketmaster

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 5: Forms of Business Ownership, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

Holiday Catalogs Make a Comeback with Online Shoppers

December 13, 2024

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In the days before online shopping, catalogs were a common way to purchase holiday gifts without having to go to a store as customers placed and received their orders directly through the mail. Sears issued the first holiday edition of its popular catalog in 1933 selling toys like a Mickey Mouse watch, a Lionel electric train set, and live singing canaries. In 1968, the catalog grew to more than 600 pages, including 225 pages of toys. Many companies relied on Continue reading →

Marketing, Product Development, Branding, Promotions, Retail, Advertising, Amazon, Product Distribution, E-commerce, Catalogs

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

[VIDEO] How Shopping Malls Are Being Transformed Into Apartments

December 11, 2024

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After decades of decline, many American malls are continuing to struggle as former anchor stores like Macy’s, JCPenney, and Sears either close locations or go out of business entirely. With lots of open space on their hands, at least 192 malls are experimenting with housing in an attempt to bring life back to dying retail spaces. The video below explains the logistics of mall-based apartments, which can be located close to restaurants and shops but also lack basic amenities like Continue reading →

Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Product Development, Retail, Product Distribution, Malls, Supply & Demand, Housing

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Videos

Jaguar Hopes Brand Overhaul Will Attract New Customers

December 6, 2024

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The luxury car brand Jaguar started in England in 1922 as a shop that built sidecars for motorcycles. When the British government stopped rationing steel at the end of World War II, the company was then able to purchase enough supplies to produce eye-catching sports cars. Flashy Jaguar vehicles went on to dominate international motorsport in the 1950s, giving the brand a global reputation as athletic and glamorous. But even as Jaguar grew to become the preferred automaker of the Continue reading →

Marketing, Global, Product Development, Branding, Promotions, Cars, Transportation, Electric cars, Supply & Demand

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion

Online Deal Seekers Head to TikTok for Black Friday Shopping

December 4, 2024

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Since the late 1980s, Americans have marked the day after Thanksgiving as Black Friday, the “official” start of the holiday sale season and the busiest shopping day of the year. Stores like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy used to draw huge crowds by offering massive discounts to the first shoppers to come through the doors. As time passed and e-commerce became more common, though, the one-day sales bonanza expanded to include online deals. Now Amazon is the undisputed champion of Continue reading →