December 3, 2024

The Grind Newsletter

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ā˜Žļø Tuesday Talk

Small Business News || The Business World in 5 minutes or less 

šŸŽ§  YT/Pod of the day: In this CNBC interview Gary Vee talks about what is working right now for businesses and brands to sell more product; live selling. Yes, very similar to QVC except you do it, from your location, alone, inexpensively, to increase sales. Listen in.

 FURTHER DOWNā€¦ šŸ”» šŸ”»šŸ”» 

THE GRIND FACTORY šŸ‘‰ļøDigital Marketing Series

TECH TODAY

Amazon announces Nova its new AI. AWS at its re:Invent conference on Tuesday introduced a new family of multimodal generative AI models.

He threw ~$800,000,000 in the trash. In 2013 James Howells discarded 8,000 Bitcoinā€™s worth a whopping $800 million today. In a recent development his ex-girlfriend says sheā€™s the one that threw the hard drive containing the bitcoin away at Howells request. Attempts to recover the hard drive have been unsuccessful.

Cyber Monday Sales. Cyber Monday sales exceeded $13.3 billion up 7.3% over 2023 according to an Adobe report.

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HEADLINE NEWS šŸ‘€

CEO Carrousel

Campbellā€™s CEO, Mark Clouse is set to retire on January 31, 2025. In retirement Clouse will join the Washington Commanders football team as its President.

Clouse has led Campbellā€™s Food since January 2019. The company also announced Mick Beekhuizen to succeed Clouse as CEO. Beekhuizen. has help multiple executive positions with the company including heading the meals and beverages division, and serving as Finance chief which included CFO at yogurt company Chobani.

In separate CEO news Prudential Financialā€™s Executive Chairman and CEO will resign on March 31, 2025 but remain on as Executive Chairman for an additional 18 months.

Prudential named Andrew Sullivan, head of international businesses and global investment management, to succeed Lowrey as CEO.

Intel CEO Exits Under Pressure Of Failure

Credit: Getty Images

Intel is undergoing a shakeup with its CEO Pat Gelsinger resigning on Monday after 30 years with the company.

Back before the technology we know as computing existed the Conestoga Wagon Mfgā€™s controlled the mass movement of goods across a young nation. Though through greed or bliss they miss calculated a new bread of competitors, the railroads. Instead of adopting the new technology Conestoga Wagon Mfgā€™s passed on shifting their focus away from Wagons and toward trains. Likewise, Intel once enjoyed a majority marketshare and control of chip manufacturing. This was in the early days of the PC, but like history tends to repeat this majority marketshare lead caused Intel to make two enormous blunders.

First, they did not foresee the growth of the iPhone and passed on making chips for Appleā€™s newest product. Intel elected to instead focus on retaining their lead in chip computing ignoring the new product about to light the computing world on fire. The second error was recognizing the potential AI would have on computing and then falling behind NVIDIA and AMD. This AI miss combined with a changing PC market and geopolitical pressures added to the miss.

Recognizing the opportunity had passed it by Intelā€™s Gelsinger leaned into finding government support for its foundry business to compete with Samsung and TSMC in manufacturing.

Gelsinger actively lobbied Congress and the Whitehouse to pass the $280 billion Chips Act to subsidize U.S. chips plant expension. Last week the Biden Administration awarded Intel $7.9 billioin for chip projects in New Mexico, Oregon, Ohio, and Arizona.

Even with these new subsidies it was to little to late for Gelsinger. The board had lost confidence in him after the 15,000 employee layoffs this summer did not improve operations.

PBR The Next Mainstream American Sport

Credit: Ticketmaster/PBR

In 1992 twenty bull š“ƒ“ riders were tired of the rodeo circuit and wanted to leave it to focus on their sport exclusively. They reached deep into their pockets (no joke because they didnā€™t make much in the early rodeo days) and ponied up $1,000 each to form a new sports league, Professional Bull Riding, Inc.

In the thrity-two years since the PBR has grown from a sport catering to bull riding cowboys and their cowboy hat adorning fans into one controlled by Wall Street types, private equity companies, and billionaires. The PBR itself is owned by publicly traded Endeavor Group (NYSE:EDR). Endeavor also owns UFC and WWE.

Once a sleepy sub-sector sport on the rodeo circuit bull riding has graduated into a sophisticated sports operation. Split into an eight team league, teams are now running training camps taught by Navy SEALS.

And unlike the past, teams are well funded. Some owned by quasi-institution investors while others owned by billionaires. Team owners are are applying a sophistication level learned in other major league sports to their PBR teams. The new genre of team owners are building data divisions to analytically match the best rider to the best bull, and to create a multipoint nutrition and cryotherapy treatment plans for their riders.

The PBR is on the precipice of making a run at becoming the next mainstream sport in Americaā€™s households. With new team owners from other major sports like NASCARā€™s šŸ Richard Childress, MLBā€™s Athletics Fisher family, and other former and current NBA owners the PBR has a new breed of owners thatā€™s no bull šŸ’© 

The sport has come a long way since its roots of an olā€™ dusty event in a dingy corral dating back to a time when wagons were the featured mode of transportation. The Mexican ranch hands that started this recreation back in the early 1800ā€™s that would eventually make its way to the wild wild west in these United States would never recognize the rope and ride sport they started.

Now with a slew of new owners with deep pockets this once dusty event of the past is looking to find a way to sell corporate America on sponsorships, eager fans box-suite seats and Americas networks a primetime slot, or Netflix or maybe Amazon a streaming package to bring events in newly built bull riding arenas housed in new commercial developments to the old and newly adoring fans of bull riding šŸ‚

 

Elon Musk Files Lawsuit Against OpenAI

In an a court motion Musk is seeking to block OpenAIā€™s controversial conversion from a non-profit to a for-profit corporation.

The injunction asks the court prevent OpenAIā€™s completion of its restructuring and partnerships with Microsoft Corporation. The lawsuit also includes accusations against several individuals, including OpenAIā€™s CEO Sa Altman and LinkedIn Co-founder Reid Hoffman.

The injunction lists OpenAI engaged in anti-competitive behavior by discouraging investors in investing in other AI development companies, including Muskā€™s xAI. The lawsuit also alleges OpenAI and Microsoft benefited from wrongfully obtained competitively sensitive information.

Through the injunction Musk argues the transition of OpenAI to a for-profit Corporation, if allowed, would violate its original nonprofit mission. Previous announcements have put Muskā€™s investment in the nonprofit OpenAI at its inception at $40-50 million.

ECONOMY

China Tariffs

On China, the President elect accused China of not doing enough to stop drugs flowing into the U.S. through the Mexican boarders. ā€œUntil such time as they stop, we will be charging China an additional 10% tariff, above any additional tariffs, on all of their many products coming into the United States of America,ā€ Trump said.

The Chinese embassy hit back.

ā€œChina believes that China-U.S. economic and trade cooperation is mutually beneficial in nature. No one will win a trade war or a tariff war.ā€

Economists say Trumpā€™s overall tariff plans, likely his most consequential economic policy, would push U.S. import duty rates back up to 1930-era levels, stoke inflation, collapse U.S.-China trade, draw retaliation and drastically reorder supply chains.

They say tariffā€™s are typically paid by the importing company, and they either pass the tariff on to the consumer or absorb the tariff accepting lower profits.

Protecting Against Inflation

Protecting the economy against inflation is a known commodity. Limit supply shocks, and buy commodities. But with a new Administration entering the Whitehouse and threatening to cut taxes and issue widespread tariffs on imported goods it might be difficult to default to the known inflation fighters to keep inflation at bay.

Problems are already appearing post election as commodity prices are depressed leaving a looming question if the old tried and true inflation fighters have lost their edge?

FINANCE

Scotts Miracle Gro Management Shakeup

Credit: Ad Age/Scotts Miracle Gro

Scotts Miracle Grow CFO, Matt Garth, will exit the world largest producer of branded lawn and garden products at the end of 2024 in an abrupt ending as the company looks towards the next phase of its growth strategy.

The company also announced the two executive advancements to help fill the void until a permanent replacement is found for the CFO role.

POLITICS

President Biden Pardons Son Hunter Biden

New York Daily News/Getty Images

President Joe Biden in an official Whitehouse release pardoned his son Hunter Biden. In what amounts to a reversal of opinion the full pardon spares Hunter Biden from a possible prison sentence for Federal felony gun and tax convictions.

Kash Patel tapped as FBI Director

Credit: Pete Kiehart / Redux

President elect Trump selected Kash Patel, a Trump loyalist, to head the FBI. The move is seen as an attempt to move out the current FBI Director Christopher Wray before the end of his 10 year term in favor of Patel who has vowed to upend the nations premier law enforcement agency.

Patelā€™s confirmation by the Senate could prove problematic for Trump who would be firing Wray whom he appointed as FBI Director during his first term. The confirmation of Patel would be what Trump hopes is an upheaval of an agency he has consistently spared.

Trump Selects Trade Representative

Credit: KSlaw

The President elect selected Jamieson Greer to serve as his trade representative. The position is of increasing importance with Trump planning to reset trade worldwide.

Greer, a former Air Force attorney, and veteran who served in Iraq, subsequently served as chief of staff for the trade representative during Trumpā€™s first administration. During that stint he was instrumental in negotiating with China.

The position of trade representative has traditionally been low profile but took on greater significance during Trumpā€™s first term in the Whitehouse.

šŸ§  WORD OF THE DAY

Benchmarking

The fundamental comparison of business processes and performance metrics to the industryā€™s bests.

THE GRIND FACTORY āš™ļø

DIGITAL MARKETING FOR SMALL BUSINESS āš™ļø

Digital Marketing a seven week series on everything digital marking in a step by step process to help entrepreneurs formulate a digital marketing strategy.

Entrepreneur Series- Week #2

Digital Marketing For Small Business

This week in the Digital Marketing Series weā€™re looking at Search Engine Marketing (ā€œSEMā€). As the name suggests SEM is the process of marketing using the search engines. Hereā€™s a five step-by-step guide to understanding SEM. We will introduce one step per day this week. Step #1 Step #2 Step #3 

The fourth (and fifth) step, šŸ¦ƒ holiday interruption, in the five immutable steps to SEM is #4 Content Marketing and #5 Social Media Marketing.

Content Marketing is the art of storytelling. Do you remember the scene in Ghost circa 1988 when Demi Moore and da da are enraptured in touching, then feeling the clay as it spins endlessly on the ceramics wheel, music intensifies, bodies mold to one another, petting and kissing ends in the story being told, endless love šŸ’• This is storytelling with purpose.

Great storytelling weaves the audience to be captivated by the tale that will subtly draw them to your brand, building trust and loyalty along the storytelling journey. Hereā€™s steps to help you engage your audience using content marketing.

  • Define your audience: understand who your audience is and create personas for them to effectively communicate to each persona segment.

  • The goal is the ending: what do you want to end up with using content marketing? Set clear and measurable goals to get to your end goal.

  • Produce high quality content: the content should be relevant and address the audienceā€™s needs and or pain points.

  • Consistency is crucial: produce and measure. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

Social Media Marketing is connecting the world to your brand. It is more than posting pretty pictures or funny šŸ© poodle videos. Great SMM is about crafting a story, a message thread, that evolves through content that engages the audience, entertains, and connects with your target audience persona.

Content can be one off single element engagements or a series of content elements that sustain a story your brand wants to put out.

šŸ“š BOOK OF THE WEEK

There is a service maxim ā€œunderpromise overdeliverā€ and this book details why that maxim holds true. Will Guidara took a 2 star Brasserie to being named the Best Restaurant on the planet. If youā€™re in business Will explains why your business should act like its in the hospitality business.

This Book has a 4.4ā­ļø rating on goodreads.

The Grind may earn an affiliate fee if you purchase a book through our links (thank you for supporting our work). 

UNIQUELY INTERESTING

šŸ’” Epiphany Moments

Target šŸŽÆopened the first Target store, a discount retailer offering high quality goods in 1962. Target was the predecessor of Dayton Hudson a retailer started by George Dayton in 1902 a full 70 years before the first Target. Expanding rapidly during the 60ā€™s and 70ā€™s opening new Target stores from coast to coast. In 2000 Dayton Hudson Corporation rebranded to Target Corporation. Target continued to grow afterwards. Target is known for its trendy products and its commitment to sustainability and community.

 šŸŽ One Smart Apple

Sam Walton built the largest retail company in the United States in less than 30 years. A feet unbelievable for any entrepreneur in any industry. After growing up during the depression Walton had a sense of frugality which he honed while learning the retail business. First having a stint at JC Penney in their retail training program followed by opening his first Ben Franklin variety store in 1945. Sam opened his first Walmart store in 1962. Through a variety of expansion and acquisitions Walton grew Walmart quickly. In 1983 Walton opened his first Samā€™s Club. And by 1990 Walmart was the largest retail company in the United States šŸ 

 HEALTH & LONGEVITY

Blue Fin Tuna High Protein

Credit: Ray Harrington, unsplash

Between 2014 and 2022 the population of Pacific Blue Tuna has soared 1,000% according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The fish was not expected to return to a sustainable level of this magnitude until 2034 and came as a surprise to scientists who track sea life.

In response to these findings the aquarium upgraded the Pacific blue fin tuna from red to yellow which means it went from avoid to a good alternative.

Eating fish as a source of protein intake is an important part of a balanced diet to remain lean and adds to personal efforts in diets designed to capture longevity benefits. The blue fin tuna is especially coveted because of its rich nutritional profile:

  • Omega 3ā€™s (EPA and DHA) - reduces blood pressure, lowers tryglycerides, prevents plaque buildup. Supports cognitive function. Anti-inflammatory which helps to reduces disease and is joint and immune system friendly.

  • Vitamin B - supports energy production, cognitive function and red blood cell production.

  • Vitamin D - Supports immune health and bone health.

  • Selenium - Antioxidant that protects cells from damage and supports thyroid health.

Now you can now conscientiously eat a healthy fish protein meal to meet dietary longevity goals.

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