ToneHall

Bloomberg: Zombie AIG Selling Public Offering Within 12 Months

Hard to believe there would be buyers unless a gun was held to their heads - or unless the government planned to give AIG unlimited billions forever.

Britney Spears got it right - Oops, they did it again. 

Here's a corporation that, Naked Capitalism, the WSJ, Bloomberg and the NYT just announced, will be taking another $30B from the U.S. government.  This on top of other billions.  And they'll be announcing a quarterly loss somewhere north of $60B tomorrow.

Great time for a public offering, right?  Looks like they'll be doing it within the next 12 months.  Better still, they may change the company's name because, after all, who'd be stupid enough to buy anything from the likes of AIG?

Here's the quote from Bloomberg: 

"American International Group Inc., the insurer getting a third bailout from the U.S., may sell a 19.9 percent stake in its main unit offering coverage to corporate clients, a person familiar with the matter said.

An initial public offering of the property-casualty division, which was previously intended to be the core of New York-based AIG after a U.S. rescue, may happen by 12 months from now, said the person, who declined to be identified because no formal announcement had been made. The business may get a new name, the person said."

Read the whole piece here.

New York Times: Bill Cunningham - On The Street | A Dash of Color

Bill Cunningham's ON THE STREET

If you're down in the dumps over the economic situation, take a look at fashion photographer Bill Cunningham's latest video.

It's just possible the state we're in could lead to new American innovation - it already has in New York.  I look to invention, ideas and change.

We have always been a country that has excelled at reinventing ourselves.  Look at the movement from an agrarian colony, to an independent country, to battling out differences between the North and South, the movement to mechanization and cities and, more recently, the move to Silicon Valley.

We've done it before. Bill's right - we can do it again. And the tone?  Positive and confident.

 

CNN: Facebook Invites User Feedback in Quest for Transparency

You can teach social media front-runner Facebook new tricks.

Making a great comeback only 7 days after receiving huge screams of protest regarding policy changes, Facebook announced today it would give users additional control over future Facebook rules and practices.

Imagine what would occur if companies like B of A and Citicorp followed a version of this practice?

Guiding users are the newly-published Facebook Principles - 10 values Facebook hopes will provide more transparency.  In addition, there is a statement of rights and responsibilities regarding privacy, content ownership and other items of interest to users.  They'll be able to comment and vote on the wording of the documents. 

Good news for all Facebook users and informative for corporations who 'get it.'

Christa Martin: Double Threat Actor-Writer's Latest with Hunky Actor Matt Struthers

Some talent is just too good not to share.  Actor-writer Christa Martin has done it again.  The star of 'TweeN,' an indie film that got her terrific reviews last year, and her husband Matt Struthers have produced another total winner.

'The Car Makes the Man' is a wry takeoff on '70s muscle car films - with its own twist.  Quirky and LOL funny, you'll find its fresh viewpoint charming. We hope the two of them consider collaborating on their own signature YouTube channel soon.  My prediction?  Views through the roof!

See the vid here.  Hat tip to Randy Keener for excellent cinematography and editing.

See more about the stunning Ms. Martin here.

Wall Street Journal: When the Rich Pinch Pennies, We're All in Trouble

This WSJ piece citing an AP article by Mark Jewell makes a point we'd better think about - the wealthy are helping float the economy.  The tone?  How about deja vu?

Think about it - when Moodys tells us the top 10% of the households are responsible for 25% of the spending and they start closing down the money faucet, it's bound to cause some pain.

And here's what I think is crucial to all of us, no matter what our income:  the top 25% of Americans by income may account for as much as 70% of total personal spending in the U.S.

Yes, I bolded it above and you'll see it again in total below.  Read it and think about it:  the top 25% of Americans by income may account for as much as 70% of total personal spending in the U.S. 

We may not care to see it, but the statistics tell us this isn't a pretty picture.  Here's the article:

"So the rich are hurting — cry me a river.

That’s the tone of many recent articles about the luxury bust and the declining fortunes of the fortunate. The derision is understandable: Who can be sympathetic to Richistanis cutting back on their private-jet flights or selling off their oversized mega-mansions while most Americans can barely fill their gas tanks? (One of my favorite recent quotes is from a yacht owner named Durand Blane who complained in a Bloomberg article that one fill-up of the yacht is “like pumping Chanel bags into a boat hull.” Oh, the waste.)

But the fact that the rising tide of economic pain is reaching the yacht set is important. And not just for Schadenfreude.

The wealthy, for better or worse, have become one of the biggest engines of economic growth, investing, and taxes. The flip side of inequality is that cutbacks by the rich now have an outsized impact on the economy.

According to an Associated Press article by Mark Jewell about cutbacks by the wealthy, the 10 percent of households with the highest incomes account for nearly a quarter of all spending, according to data compiled by research firm Moody’s Economy.com from a 2006 federal survey.

“That does suggest those folks are important for the spending outlook, and the overall economic outlook,” said Scott Hoyt, Moody’s director of consumer economics.

Added Sara Johnson, an economist at the research firm Global Insight: “Consumer spending makes up 70 percent of gross domestic product, and when one group accounts for a very substantial share of consumer spending, they also account for a large share of the economic activity that creates jobs.”

Research published by Citigroup in 2005 speculated that the top 25% of Americans by income may account for as much as 70% of total personal spending in the U.S. Given that personal consumption accounts for 70% of our economy today, that top quartile has become crucial.

Of course, it’s no surprise that the wealthy now account for an outsized share of spending. But the degree to which the U.S. economy has become dependent on Richistan has yet to be truly felt. Perhaps we will find out in the coming months."

Strategy: Nilofer Merchant, Silicon Valley CEO

A serious hoot.  That's what I thought of the two links mentioned below.  Then I thought again of the upheaval, the excitement in a startup, the fear, and - for these companies - ultimately, the failure.  Kind of a tone of terror, when I think of it.

Nilofer infers if we're not solving a customer problem, we're not really in business.

She gets it - we got distracted by our own adrenaline.

"Harry Max sent these two links, here, and here. on web-based failures yesterday and they had me going down memory lane. From lamo things to Beenz to worthy ideas like WebVan. It is both funny and sad to see.

And so I remind you/me/everyone the simple lesson we must hold onto. Every successful company has to have a clear customer pain/problem that they MUST solve. No company, regardless of the zany notion or the fantastic technology succeeds without that."

Brand Autopsy: GM and Ford Making an iPhone, Customer Experience and Habit

Reading John Moore's 7/25 post, Three Reads, reminded me how often we go wrong with marketing.

One: Detroit doesn't need to create the next iPhone.  GM and Ford just need to create a vehicle that 1.) meet's customer needs, 2.) is high quality, 3.) has excellent design.  Art meets function in autos - it's past time for these companies to deliver something that excites customers.

I can't remember the last time I got excited about a car Detroit made.  And let me say it here first - I have no intention of ever buying an American car again.  They use too much gas, the quality is poor and the design pathetic.  I'm a Toyota and Honda fan - they've got plenty I'll plunk down money for.

Two:  All due respect to Bruce Temkin, but his The 6 Laws of The Customer Experience are why we've gone so far off with regard to this topic.  Unengaged Employees Don't Create Engaged Customers!!??  Bruce, we're here to serve customers, not engage them. 

In short - employees who aren't respected treat customers poorly.  If you think beating up employees will make them shower love on customers, wake up. 

Three: Habit may come easily for Dr. Neale Martin, but a trip to his web site is definitely not going to be a habit for me.  His type is grayed out and hard to read.  If we're going to provide something we'd like visitors to read, let's make it easy for them.  In fact, making it easy is one of the best ways to develop a tendency to visit again (hmm - a habit.)