The Hottest Marketing Trend of 2018
The Mission Newsletter, 4/20/18
“Failure is man-made circumstance. It is never real until accepted by man as permanent.” -Napoleon Hill
News That Matters
Health
Eat your (raw) fruits and veggies:
We can all reminisce about our childhood and remember being told to eat our fruits and veggies. It doesn’t take a scientific study to show that fruits and vegetables are necessary for a healthy body and mind.
However, researchers at the University of Otago have put out a new study that claims raw fruits and veggies are better for your mental health than are cooked, canned or processed ones. The current thought about why raw is better, is that cooking them has the potential to diminish the nutrient levels.
“The top 10 raw foods related to better mental health were: carrots, bananas, apples, dark leafy greens such as spinach, grapefruit, lettuce, citrus fruits, fresh berries, cucumber, and kiwifruit.”
Improve your mental health and clarity by snacking away; raw of course! Read more here.
Wealth
Look for the hedge-fund manager with low testosterone:
It’s no secret that the hedge-funds have largely underperformed against the S&P 500 in the recent markets. However, a new study suggests that your hedge fund manager’s testosterone level could be what’s causing the lackluster performance.
A new study is showing a correlation between higher testosterone levels and lower returns because of a few factors: hedge-fund managers with high testosterone are more likely to trade more frequently, have a stronger preference for lottery-like stocks and are more likely to succumb to the disposition effect.
Read about the study here.
Wisdom
What’s Amazon’s secret to success?:
For the 8th year in a row, Amazon has been ranked #1 according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index! In this release, Jeff Bezos (founder of Amazon) discusses what he believes to be the biggest success factor.
It is high standards.
Bezos relates this concept quite beautifully to a story of a close friend of his trying to learn handstands. Apparently, his friend began working on handstands, and although she practiced for weeks on end, she wasn’t making the progress she wanted. So, she hired a handstand coach. In the first session, the handstand coach gave her this advice:
“Most people think that if they work hard, they should be able to master a handstand in about two weeks. The reality is that it takes about six months of daily practice. If you think you should be able to do it in two weeks, you’re just going to end up quitting.”
So it is with everything in life; unrealistic beliefs will automatically kill high standards. Amazon has worked at fostering a culture of high standards in every aspect of the business.
Tech Trends
Cell phones are a thing of the past:
Okay, not quite…
However, there are industry jitters as evidence shows that the demand for smartphones is down. In fact, the International Monetary Fund put out a report earlier this week that said smartphone shipments went down for the first time.
At the forefront of smartphone chip manufacturing is TSMC (Taiwan Semiconducting Manufacturing Co.). TSMC is saying that, quarter to quarter, their revenue from Apple products may dive as much as 50% in the 2nd quarter.
Another shocking metric is Apple’s shares slipping by 2.7%. But that’s not all. As the article states:
“Applied Materials Inc., which sells TSMC production machinery, fell as much as 7.2 percent. Broadcom Inc., another TSMC customer and a major supplier of phone parts, fell as much as 3.6 percent.”
The best days of the smartphone market may be behind us.
Marketing Trends
The hottest marketing trend of 2018:
With all the hoopla around the recent Facebook “scandal”, I expect to see a massive shift to this marketing trend. The beauty is, it’s something everybody can take advantage of. You don’t even have to own a business to take advantage of it!
If you follow it, you’ll see more customer loyalty, increased revenue, and a growing separation between yourself and all the businesses that don’t follow it.
So what is it? What’s this hot new trend?
It’s nothing more than brutal honesty!
Be truthful about your products, what they do, and especially what they can’t. It’s hard for a consumer not to trust you when you’re the first one to point out your flaws! When you admit your flaws, consumers know you’re being honest, and will reward you for it in the way of higher sales and more word of mouth marketing.
Click here if you’d like to check out a few other marketing trends for 2018.
The Best of What Are Catching in Theaters
Here’s a movie you should go see right meow…
Very fittingly, Super Troopers 2 hit the theaters today! Although it’s unlikely the sequel will be as good as the original, we still can’t wait to give it a watch!
The Story: From The Ocean To The Cloud
Episode 6, Season 2 of The Story Podcast
This is The Story… of how one woman’s love of the sea lured her into engineering, and then beyond… to a virtual cloud in the sky. 🌊 ☁️
Listen on iTunes or Google Play.
Our Media
The Mission is a new kind of media company. We publish stories, videos, and podcasts to help smart people get smarter. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram or learn more about us here. We’d love to connect!
Custom Podcasts
The Mission helps mission-driven companies build trust and connect with customers in a new way.
We create custom podcast sponsorships for enterprise companies. To learn more about why companies like Salesforce trust us to produce results, connect with our team here.
