The earnings season has been going pretty good so far, and Walt Disney (DIS) will get its chance to impress Wall Street this afternoon when it reports its fiscal first quarter results after the market closes.

Going into this afternoon's report, analysts are expecting to see the company report earnings of $0.56 per share, up from $0.47 during the same period last year.

Continue reading Disney Expected to Post Strong Q1 Results

Disney Expected to Post Strong Q1 Results originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Feb 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Campbell Soup (CPB) reported its fiscal first quarter results Tuesday morning, and the stock was trading lower after the company's quarterly earnings came in under expectations.

Headed into this earnings report, analysts had been expecting to see the company report $0.83 per share, but the Campbell's came up a little short, reporting actual earnings of $0.82.

Continue reading Campbell Soup Reports Disappointing Earnings

Campbell Soup Reports Disappointing Earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 23 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Sonic: A Restaurant with Risks

Sonic: A Restaurant with Risks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 25 Jun 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Running a consulting business can be a juggling act. It's not easy to manage a variety of accounts while also continuing to look for new business. And, in light of the tough economy, clients are looking for ways to cut back on services.

What to do? Well, you can try to find new revenue sources. And one interesting option is to sell software products.

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: Boost Your Consulting Business by Selling Software

Entrepreneur's Journal: Boost Your Consulting Business by Selling Software originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 13 Jun 2010 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

From his apartment in 1999, Marc Benioff started a new-fangled software company, Salesforce.com (CRM). While there have been some missteps along the way, the company is a model of success. Today, Salesforce.com generates more than $1 billion in sales, is profitable and has a market cap of $9 billion.

How did Marc do it? Well, now we have a chance to find out. That is, he has written an excellent book about his experiences and strategies, called Behind the Cloud: The Untold Story of How Salesforce.com Went from Idea to Billion-Dollar Company -- and Revolutionized an Industry.

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: How to Create a Billion-Dollar Company

Entrepreneur's Journal: How to Create a Billion-Dollar Company originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 10 Jan 2010 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In an episode of The Office, Michael Scott wasn't impressed with his company's move towards technology. He thought the old-school approaches still worked, such as giving gift baskets away to former customers. Of course, it was a disaster. These customers left because of a lack of technology, as well as high prices.

As with any comedy, there was truth to both sides. Actually, we can get sucked into too much technology. And yes, customer gifts can be a good idea. After all, it costs much more money to acquire customers than than to keep them.

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: A Good Idea to Give Gifts to Customers?

Entrepreneur's Journal: A Good Idea to Give Gifts to Customers? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 20 Dec 2009 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Jason Sadler made a whopping $85,000 wearing T-shirts! Yes, you heard right, wearing T-shirts.

Jason is way out there where imagination rules. He dreamed up the idea of wearing a different T from a different company each day. Simple idea. But there's more.

Just getting paid a few dollars to wear a T shirt doesn't add up to $85,000. Now comes Jason's marketing genius. He charges for wearing the T-shirts based on the day of the year. For example, on January 1 he charges $1.00, on the second $2.00 and so on up to $365 for December 31.

Continue reading Way out there marketing: Getting paid six figures to wear a T-shirt

Way out there marketing: Getting paid six figures to wear a T-shirt originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In any recession, customers get stingy. It's natural.

But is there something different this time; that is, are customers becoming long-term frugal?

Perhaps. With an unemployment rate at 10.2%, it will likely take several years for it to get to normal levels. What's more, consumers are saddled with debt and have experienced drastic reductions in wealth (especially with the fall in the real estate market).

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: How to sell when no one is buying

Entrepreneur's Journal: How to sell when no one is buying originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 15 Nov 2009 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Higher U.S. postal rates would curb 'catalogue mania'

Higher U.S. postal rates would curb 'catalogue mania' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

By any historical standard, it's been a horrible recession. Just surviving has been a big accomplishment.

However, this "survivor mentality" can be a problem. If anything, it can prevent your business from eventually growing.

Growing? Yes, that's right. Taking a look at the recent economic indicators, it does look like the economy is on the mend.

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: Is it possible to grow your business now?

Entrepreneur's Journal: Is it possible to grow your business now? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 06 Sep 2009 18:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Across the country, college classes are starting. In each of these classrooms, students are struggling with calculus, trudging through Candide, and wondering just what the hell they're going to do with their degrees upon graduation. The last of these is characteristic of every college student, especially those of us, with the foresight fortitude recklessness zeal to major in liberal arts fields (in my case, Philosophy).

The anxiety is a bit higher this year, given a high rate of unemployment, the likelihood of a "jobless recovery" and the fact that it could take years for destroyed value to be recovered.

Continue reading 2.9 million college kids unsure of career plans

2.9 million college kids unsure of career plans originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In a move to bring profitability to its popular video sharing site YouTube, Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) has inked a deal with Time Warner, Inc. (NYSE: TWX) to show clips of the company's television shows and movies.

When Google announced back in 2006 that it would be paying $1.65 billion for the popular video sharing site, a lot of critics questioned whether or not the company would be able to turn a profit from the site, which at the time had around 46% of the online video market share.

Continue reading Time Warner inks deal with YouTube

Time Warner inks deal with YouTube originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Aug 2009 18:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Washington Post Q4 earnings preview

Washington Post Q4 earnings preview originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 24 Feb 2009 16:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Entrepreneur's Journal: How to market in grim times

Entrepreneur's Journal: How to market in grim times originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 22 Feb 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Pepsi introduces throwback beverages

Pepsi introduces throwback beverages originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 16 Feb 2009 12:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In the ultimate example of an advertising campaign that's ripe for the internet, Burger King Holdings (NYSE: BKC) started selling Flame, a $3.99 perfume for men that smells like -- wait for it -- a flame-broiled hamburger. And an informal Boston Herald survey reveals that the scent of a burger appeals to some people.

Burger King, which sells Flame through Rickey's, a New York City retailer, and at firemeetsdesire.com, bills Flame as "a new men's body spray: the scent of seduction with a hint of flame-broiled meat." Unbelievably, some who have sniffed this concoction find it appealing.

Here are two favorable quotes from the Herald:

• Alyse Hawco, 14, said, "It smells like cinnamon. I'd buy it for my brother."
• Salami Caushi, 55, said, "It's very nice," and after spraying Flame on his wrist and then taking a long sniff, he remarked, "Yes, nice."

Continue reading Burger King's flame-broiled perfume

Burger King's flame-broiled perfume originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

For Citigroup (NYSE: C) to regain the confidence of Wall Street it will have to start doing a few things right. Firing 53,000 people probably does not qualify. After that news, Citi hit another 52-week low at $7.80, down from a 52-week high of $35.29.

More losses won't help. Some bank analysts believe that Citi's consumer credit portfolio and derivative assets will cause negative earnings right through 2009.

Now, the big bank gave investors another reason to turn their backs as it closed one more of its hedge funds, which lost 53% of its value in a month. Taking the value of assets down that much in such a short period probably requires as much skill as showing an increase of a similar size. In other words, it is extraordinary.

According to the FT, "Citigroup is liquidating its Corporate Special Opportunities hedge fund after it lost 53 per cent of its value last month, marking the ninth time in recent months that the bank has had to close or rescue a fund." At its peak, the fund had over $4 billion in assets.

The point in this is not only that Citi keeps making mistakes. In addition, the bank might as well fire its entire public relations and corporate communications staff. They are of no use to the firm as long as it keeps cutting its own throat in front of the press and shareholders. Dispensing with the PR group could be part of the big, planned layoff. No one would miss them

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

Citigroup proves it can do little right; closes another hedge fund originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 08:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Nike (NKE) first quarter earnings preview

Nike (NKE) first quarter earnings preview originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 22 Sep 2008 15:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

According to Moneyweb, software giant Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is hooking up with Jerry Seinfeld. No, they're not trying to revive the comedian's sitcom career (although that would be cool). It seems Microsoft is feeling a bit blah about its brand equity, so it's looking to initiate a hip advertising campaign that will tout the company's image and its powerful Windows Vista technology.

No doubt, the advertising campaign from Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) that makes fun of the PC-Windows platform has a lot to do with it. I love those commercials, and I think it's about time Microsoft came to its senses and decided to do something serious to answer them. A campaign with Seinfeld, if done with a maximum amount of creative wit, will work wonders. But of course, that's the point -- it has to be done right. Seinfeld is a big name, and his presence carries a lot of weight with consumers.

Still, I have reservations about using him in an ad campaign. Am I the only one who wasn't impressed by his American Express commercials? I liked Seinfeld in his famous television show, but seeing him pitch charge cards didn't make me want to apply for one. I thought he was boring in the format.

Apparently, ad firm Crispin Porter + Bogusky will be doing the ads featuring Seinfeld, and they were the creative force behind the Burger King commercials with the creepy King mascot. Those commercials rock. It would be nice if the firm could do something as edgy with Seinfeld and Microsoft, but I'm not holding my breath. I'm not sure that kind of lightning could strike twice.

Continue reading Can Jerry Seinfeld improve Microsoft's brand equity?

Can Jerry Seinfeld improve Microsoft's brand equity? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 21 Aug 2008 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Advertising revenue at big media companies is being beat up by the economy. Traditional media like newspapers are losing boat loads of money to the internet.

With most large TV network companies showing flat revenue and newspaper chains struggling with double-digit losses, the falloff in auto advertising is likely to make the second half much worse.

According to The New York Times, "In the first quarter alone, the auto industry spent $414 million less on advertising than in last year's first quarter, according to TNS Media Intelligence."

What can media companies do? For one thing, give money-losing companies a discount. For a newspaper or magazine to print extra pages adds only modest expense. Putting extra banners on internet sites costs next to nothing. The same is true with TV ads. They cost money to produce but not to run. In other words, cut-rate car ads are better than no car ads. Media companies may have lower margins, but at least their revenue does not have to drop of a cliff.

From a media standpoint call it the "auto company preservation act.". Detroit may not make it out of its current dilemma alive. Any help it gets increases it chances to become healthy again. If the domestic auto business can recover, so will its marketing spending.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

Detroit's pain shatters advertising growth hopes originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.