February 21, 2024

Fast food companies pour billions of dollars into marketing every year, and a big portion of those costs come from expensive video shoots for commercials. This video takes a detailed look at the extraordinary skill that goes into seemingly simple fast food ads, from hand-painting burger patties to moving items precisely with the help of robot technology.

Questions:

1. Why do fast food companies spend so much money to make their menu items appear realistic on camera?
2. How does Continue reading

Continue reading...

November 8, 2023

If you’ve taken an over-the-counter (OTC) nasal decongestant recently, you may have been upset to discover that it did not do much to relieve your clogged sinuses. In fact, recent studies by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) show that most OTC decongestants work no better than a placebo. This video explains in detail how store shelves became filled with useless cold medicine, and ways that the FDA are working to make things right.

Questions:

  1. Why do most OTC decongestants Continue reading
Continue reading...

August 30, 2023

America’s biggest retailers have often embraced product returns as a key aspect of their business, starting with J.C. Penney and his namesake company in the early 20th century. Allowing customers to return any product with no questions asked, other big companies like Walmart and Amazon would go on to follow his example in the years to come. “It’s a hallmark of successful American retail,” said Dale Rogers, business professor at Arizona State University. “If you make it easy to shop, Continue reading

Continue reading...

January 16, 2018

For Facebook’s more than 2 billion users, the News Feed serves as a gateway to what’s going on in their world. People can spend hours scrolling through the photos and videos that pop into their feeds from friends and media companies they follow. In fact, for years Facebook ensured that content posted by brands received prominent placement in the News Feeds of its users. At one point the company even developed a partnership program that allowed media firms to take Continue reading

Continue reading...

November 28, 2017

Last week we took a look at how analysts were lowering their expectations for Black Friday, which is traditionally the country’s biggest annual shopping event. While retailers managed to generate about $5 billion in sales on the day, this year’s take was decidedly lower than in years past. In some cases store traffic was non-existent, leading at least one newscaster to vent their frustrations about the poor turnout on air. But while some brick-and-mortar stores stayed empty, Continue reading

Continue reading...

November 16, 2017

For decades Black Friday has served as the country’s symbolic start to the holiday shopping season. Each year local news teams honor the event by turning their cameras onto the post-Thanksgiving crowds who gather in front of stores and wait patiently for the doors to swing open. Once inside, some deal-seeking shoppers frantically seek out products before anyone else can get to them, occasionally leading to arguments or even fights.

Of course, this perspective on Black Friday may be more Continue reading

Continue reading...