In spring, 'balance' goes out the window May 23, 2012 By Becky Beaupre Gillespie I was shepherding my daughters through their bedtime routine a couple of weeks ago when my oldest made an announcement: The spring band concert was approaching, and she and her drum were gearing up for a fabulous performance. She couldn't wait for me to see it — the next morning at 10, right in the middle of a work commitment I couldn't change. Clouds of guilt began to roll in as I reluctantly told her I couldn't be there. When had this been announced? Why wasn't it on my calendar? I called my mom, and asked her to attend in my place and video-record it on her iPhone. But even once ... Continue reading →
Will Wall Street 'Like' Facebook in the long run? May 23, 2012 By Dan Gershenson As a social media brand strategist, it's often hard for me to leave Facebook out of the equation entirely in recommendations. Oh, it happens. But not as much as other social media channels that could be completely left out of the media mix. That part of "buying in" to Facebook is relatively easy, whether that means creating a Facebook Page, choosing Facebook Ads, etc. Practically everyone I know is on it and some of those people don't hop from social network to social network with ease. So I don't see Facebook disappearing anytime soon. I think it's going to be around for a while, which is more than I can ... Continue reading →
The expiration date lawsuit against Groupon alleges, among other things, that the company imposed illegal deal restrictions that violate gift-card laws.NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- If you've ever bought a Groupon, you might be getting an email this week about a class-action lawsuit involving the expiration dates on the company's daily deals.Groupon (GRPN) has settled the case and will pay a proposed $8.5 million in cash to do so -- but, as with many class-action suits, a good chunk of that money will go to the lawyers. Customers will likely take home mere pennies.Seventeen Groupon subscribers each filed individual lawsuits over the past few years about expiration dates on Groupon's deals and how the company sold or advertised those deals. The suits allege, among other things, ... Continue reading →
It’s 8 AM, and the chief marketing officer is wading through his inbox. A board member has e-mailed him about an opportunity to invest in an emerging digital platform. It looks cool, but it’s speculative and not cheap. Minutes later, the chief financial officer appears in the doorway: “The boss wants to sign a big sponsorship deal. Can we drop out of TV for a couple of months to pay for it?” The CMO has barely started to explain what happened the last time the company went dark on TV—an aggressive rival grabbed market share—when his assistant interrupts. The CEO is calling. “What’s going on with our brand image?” she asks. “The latest monitor report looks bad.” The CMO promises a full debriefing later in ... Continue reading →
Urban Partnership Bank buys original ShoreBank HQ from feds (Crain's) — After a lengthy negotiation, Urban Partnership Bank has purchased the South Shore branch of the old ShoreBank from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which acquired it in when ShoreBank failed nearly two years ago.The three-story building, at 71st Street and Jeffrey Blvd., was the original headquarters of South Shore Bank, the community lender launched in 1973 that won national notoriety for making loans in low-income urban neighborhoods that most other banks avoided. Urban Partnership Bank, a startup funded with $150 million from a Who's Who of Wall Street financial giants like J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., acquired the assets and deposits of ShoreBank when it failed in August 2010, ... Continue reading →
