Product Distribution - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

[VIDEO] Why is Everything Getting So Expensive?

March 10, 2023

Prices on everyday products like groceries and diapers have increased dramatically in the last couple of years, with inflation often being identified as the culprit. This video takes a close look at the potential causes of the post-pandemic trend of rising inflation, examining why supply chain issues and plain old markups could be responsible for ever-increasing prices.

Questions:

What are the potential causes of inflation outlined in this video? Which factor do you think is the most likely cause Continue reading →

[VIDEO] How Commodity Markets Work

March 3, 2023

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Florida’s orange crop is shrinking year after year, sending commodity prices skyrocketing for orange juice concentrate. This video examines the intricacies of commodity markets through the lens of concentrated OJ, looking at concepts like futures contracts and how they affect both farmers and retailers.

Questions:

Why has Florida’s plummeting orange production caused juice prices to increase significantly?
What are the benefits of futures contracts for farmers and manufacturers?

Retail, Pricing, Product Distribution, Operations Management, Agriculture, Commodities, Food & Drink, Supply & Demand

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 19: Securities Markets, Videos

The Tricky Task of Monetizing Esports

February 24, 2023

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This week, the esports talent agency GameSquare announced that it hired Tyler “Ninja” Blevins as its Chief Innovation Officer. A famous Fortnite streamer with more than 17 million followers on the platform Twitch, the company said Ninja will “curate disruptive strategies, pursue new business opportunities, and explore next-gen technologies to accelerate the [e-sports] industry’s growth within pop culture.” This will also give Ninja another source of revenue besides streaming, which he claims to earn $500,000 a month from while keeping Continue reading →

[VIDEO] Making 100,000 Bagels a Week by Hand

February 22, 2023

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While last week we looked at how Domino’s relies on automation to mass produce its pizza dough, today’s video examines the operations at a company that takes the opposite approach. At Utopia Bagels in New York City, a well-trained staff of specialists make thousands of bagels by hand every day, all driven by a passionate owner whose love for his craft comes through in this video.

Questions:

What are the advantages and disadvantages of making bagels entirely by hand?
What Continue reading →

Product Development, Training, Product Distribution, Supply & Demand, Specialized labor, Marketing, Motivation, Operations Management, Entrepreneurship

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 10: Motivation, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Videos

[VIDEO] How Domino’s Became The World’s Biggest Pizza Chain

February 17, 2023

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With thousands of locations across more than 90 international markets, Domino’s has become a global powerhouse thanks largely to its innovative production and distribution methods. This video takes an extensive look at how Domino’s makes pizza, focusing especially on a dough-making facility that relies heavily on automation to succeed.

Questions:

Why did Domino’s install automated systems in its Indiana dough-making facility?
Do you think more food companies should rely on automation like Domino’s? Why or why not?

Product Development, Operations Management, Automation, Global, Product Distribution, Domino’s, Food & Drink

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 12: Labor Management and Unions, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Videos

Egg Prices Continue to Soar as Inflation Starts to Fall

January 27, 2023

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Food prices hiked by inflation have taken a toll on Americans’ wallets for more than a year, although economists say that costs for a number of commodities are finally starting to fall. But that has not been the case with eggs: the average U.S. price per dozen hit $4.25 in December 2022, up from $1.79 a year earlier. The situation is especially bad in costly markets like California, where 12 Grade A large eggs go for an average of $7.37. Continue reading →

Food & Drink, Ethics, Supply & Demand, Pricing, Regulation, Product Distribution, Operations Management

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

[VIDEO] The Multi-Billion Dollar Business of BTS

December 14, 2022

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The members of the K-pop group BTS are more than just entertainers: they’re financial juggernauts who have contributed billions of dollars to the South Korean economy. The video below looks at how BTS leverages their massive global audience to develop lucrative brand partnerships with everyone from McDonald’s to Louis Vuitton. This bonanza of cash might not go on forever, though, with the group announcing they were taking a brief hiatus that could potentially blunt their branding power.

Questions:

What Continue reading →

Product Development, Branding, Promotions, Marketing, Entertainment, Global, McDonald’s, Music, Product Distribution, South Korea, Celebrities

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Videos

Amazon’s Echo Fails to Live up to Expectations

December 7, 2022

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When Amazon launched the Echo in 2014, both the e-commerce giant and media observers set the bar very high for the smart speaker. One publication likened the voice-assisted machine to something out of Star Trek while others called it the “computer of the future” that would soon be in every home. These predictions seemed reasonable enough as Amazon sold more than 5 million Echos in the device’s first two years on the market. By 2016, the Echo and its voice Continue reading →

[VIDEO] How Retailers Deal with Returns

November 30, 2022

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The National Retail Federation says that customer returns are increasing across the industry, driven primarily by online returns that have more than doubled in the last few years. Contrary to what many consumers may think, these products don’t simply boomerang back onto store shelves. As the video below shows, returned items take a complicated journey from warehouse to warehouse that frequently ends either at a secondary resale center or a landfill.

Questions:

Why do many returned products end up in Continue reading →

Ethics, E-commerce, Product Returns, Supply & Demand, Amazon, Marketing, Operations Management, Product Distribution

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Videos

Ticketmaster Buckles under the Pressure of Taylor Swift Tour

November 18, 2022

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Last month Taylor Swift released her 10th album Midnights, which shocked the recording industry by selling the equivalent of 1,578,000 copies. Songs from the album also occupied every slot of Billboard’s Top 10 singles chart, the first time in history that an artist has achieved this feat. Needless to say, anticipation for Swift’s upcoming tour grew to massive proportions on the eve of a pre-sale event planned for earlier this week. Ticketmaster established a Verified Fan program to keep Continue reading →

Marketing, Promotions, Ethics, Entertainment, Regulation, Music, Product Distribution, Monopolies, Supply & Demand

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, 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