July 21, 2016
Today's Special
This Week in eSports... is your kid good enough for an eSports scholarship?
This week's top eSports news: ESPN's viewership doubles for Street Fighter V, the US sees it's first student to graduate with an eSports scholarship, and would Donald Trump be bad for the eSports industry?
DID YOU KNOW…
Finally, something political that won’t leave a bad taste in your mouth
Avery’s Beverages, an 112-year-old soda company, is looking to add some pop and fizzle to this year’s election. They have released special flavors named after the Democratic and Republican candidates — Hillary Hootch and Trump Tonic. Trump Tonic has the tagline “Make America Grape Again” and has some added acidity to mirror his rhetoric. Meanwhile Hillary Hootch has a list ingredients on the label’s side, including a few “classified” ones.
Whatever you can do, I can do better!
Barstool Sports, the often caustic and controversial men’s lifestyle website, has named a “non-bro” as their new CEO — Erika Nardini, a digital media and marketing veteran. Barstool and their followers (called Stoolies) are known for ruffling feathers and are often accused of harassing women online who don’t share their humor and opinions. So to name a woman CEO is a big move for the popular site.
I’M READY FOR MY CLOSEUP MR. DEVILLE
Why it’s important to you: Political theatre is entertainment in its own right.
When Ted Cruz took the stage last night in Cleveland, the Trump campaign already knew he wasn’t there to support their candidate. Yet, they let Cruz speak and quite notoriously NOT endorse their candidate. The former presidential candidate went so far as to encourage those listening to, “Vote your conscience.” This revelation caused Cruz to get booed off the stage and his wife Heidi, required security to exit the stadium safely.
Why did Trump let him speak? Because this was reality TV at it’s apex. By giving the Trump campaign a heads up, Cruz provided them with the time to script their response…and a masterful response it was. Trump entered the venue just in time to completely steal the show and make Cruz look petty. Likely the Texas Senator didn’t care as much speculation swirls around his intentions for 2020 and the assumption there won’t be a Republican incumbent. This is only the beginning folks…
Location, Location, Location
Why it matters to you: Finding the next hot neighborhood is a path to success.
When Dany Meyer opened the Union Square Cafe in 1985 it was across from what was then called “needle park.” Now it’s one of the toniest locations in Manhattan. According to Meyer, it’s as simple as following the first coffee joint into that undiscovered neighborhood. Meyer joined New York Times writer Julia Moskin, chef Frank Stitt of Highlands Bar and Grill in Birmingham Alabama, and Trevett Hooper of Legume Bistro in Pittsburgh on a discussion about location searches.
Stitt’s place in Birmingham was formerly a biker bar and Hooper’s place in Pittsburgh was a pioneer for fine dining in a city where white table clothes were reserved for country clubs, not restaurants. The real lesson is to find the gems where they are and be first. Given that Meyer moved his signature spot from its original location of 30+ years because the landlord finally capped his rent at $350/square foot, you know he bet right. So look around and find the new coffee shop in that off-neighborhood. It could be your next great location.
CURE FOR WHAT AILES YOU
Why it’s important to you: What will you tolerate from your best performers?
Roger Ailes's troubles are not a new story. He’s been accused of sexually harassing women since the ‘70s. While it finally caught up with him, the real loser in this story will likely be Fox News. Ailes has been running the network since its inception and his division creates a commanding $1.6 billion in profit (yes profit) for the network. That’s almost 25% of their total revenue. Given that these accusations were enough to cause Fox to boot him, they must also see the continued exposure as sufficient to cut off the head of its most successful profit center.
There is an obvious allegory for any of us that run small businesses in this tale. Have you ever had a chef make a bad choice or a key employee no call no show? If you didn’t fire them immediately, then you made a choice to balance performance with discipline. Has it ever come back to haunt you? After a 40 year career with allegations spanning that time, it’s likely that Ailes’s employer knew he was a risk, but $1.6 billion in profit saved his job…until now.
LURKING IN THE DARK
Why it’s important to you: Just another way you are exposed to cyber trouble
Most of us think of the term ‘watering hole’ and envision our favorite pub after work with a tall glass of adult beverage in our hands. For hackers, it has become the name of a ploy used to infect your customers with their malicious code. The idea is that the hacker finds a restaurant near a large employer they want to target and they infect the menu pdf on your site. When employees of the target download the menus from the offending site, the hackers are ready to pounce.
The lesson here is to insure that your website is as secure as possible. If you aren’t sure how, get some help. You don’t want a large company near you to be able to trace a cyber security breach back to your business. Check out this blog we did on cybersecurity for other tips on how to avoid getting hacked.