Category: Business

In today’s fast-paced digital world, achieving financial freedom is no longer just a dream — it’s a reachable goal for many. One of the most effective ways to get there? Passive income.

Whether you’re looking to leave the 9-5 grind, earn more while you work less, or build a safety net for your future, this comprehensive guide will help you explore some of the best strategies for passive income in 2025 and beyond.

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🔍 What Is Passive Income?

Passive income refers to earnings derived from ventures in which a person is not actively involved on a daily basis. Unlike traditional jobs where income is directly tied to time, passive income allows you to earn even when you’re not working.

From rental properties to digital products and dividend stocks, the opportunities are expanding as technology advances and remote work becomes mainstream.

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🎯 Why You Should Focus on Passive Income

Here are some compelling reasons to consider building passive income streams:

• Time freedom: Work on your own schedule.
• Financial stability: Extra income can cushion you during tough times.
• Wealth accumulation: The rich don’t trade time for money — they invest in systems.
• Scalability: Many passive income ideas allow you to grow without significantly increasing effort.

According to a study by the IRS, the top 1% of earners in the U.S. derive over 40% of their income from passive sources like dividends, interest, and capital gains.

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📌 Top Strategies for Passive Income in 2025

Let’s dive into some proven and scalable strategies for passive income.

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1. 🏘️ Rental Properties

Investing in real estate remains one of the most popular passive income ideas. With platforms like Roofstock and Fundrise, even beginners can get started with minimal capital.

Pros:

• Steady monthly income
• Property appreciation
• Tax advantages

Tips:

• Start with a single-family rental
• Hire a property manager to keep it passive
• Use real estate crowdfunding for low-investment entry

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2. 📈 Dividend Stocks

If you’re looking to make passive income from the financial markets, dividend-paying stocks can provide consistent returns.

Pros:

• Reliable income source
• Portfolio diversification
• Compounding returns

Best Picks (as of 2025):

• Johnson & Johnson
• Coca-Cola
• Procter & Gamble

Investing $10,000 in dividend stocks with a 4% average yield can bring in $400/year without touching the principal.

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3. 🌐 Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing involves promoting products and earning a commission for every sale made through your referral link. It’s one of the most accessible passive income ideas for bloggers, YouTubers, and influencers.

Pros:

• Low startup cost
• High scalability
• Evergreen income potential

Best platforms:

• Amazon Associates
• ShareASale
• Impact.com

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4. 📘 Write and Sell Ebooks

Got expertise in a niche? Package your knowledge into an ebook and sell it on Amazon Kindle or your own site.

Pros:

• One-time effort, long-term reward
• Global reach
• Authority-building

Many creators are making $500–$3,000 per month on average with a single well-written ebook!

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5. 🧠 Create an Online Course

Online learning is booming. Platforms like Udemy, Teachable, and Skillshare allow you to turn your skills into a course and make passive income for years.

Popular niches:

• Coding
• Digital marketing
• Fitness and nutrition
• Language learning

In 2024 alone, the e-learning market hit $400 billion globally — and it’s still growing.

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6. 🎵 License Your Creative Work

Musicians, photographers, and designers can earn passive income by licensing their work.

Platforms to explore:

• Shutterstock (photos)
• AudioJungle (music)
• Envato (templates)

Once uploaded, your work can generate royalties without any further effort.

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7. 💻 Develop a Mobile App or SaaS

Building a mobile app or subscription-based SaaS (software as a service) product can lead to long-term passive profits.

Even a simple utility app solving a common problem can bring in monthly recurring revenue if marketed right.

Tip: Use platforms like Bubble.io or Glide for no-code development.

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8. 🪙 Invest in REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts)

REITs allow you to invest in real estate without owning physical property. They pay dividends and are easy to buy like stocks.

Benefits:

• Diversified real estate exposure
• Low entry barrier
• Liquidity

Many REITs offer 4%–7% annual returns with less hassle than direct ownership.

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9. 🖼️ Sell Print-on-Demand Products

Create designs and upload them to print-on-demand platforms like Redbubble or Merch by Amazon. Every time a customer buys a product with your design, you earn royalties.

Popular products:

• T-shirts
• Mugs
• Posters

It’s an ideal way to earn without holding inventory or managing logistics.

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10. 💳 Peer-to-Peer Lending

With peer-to-peer (P2P) lending, you loan money to individuals or small businesses and earn interest on repayments.

Top platforms:

• LendingClub
• Prosper

Returns can range between 5%–10%, but it’s important to evaluate risk carefully.

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🧠 Pro Tips to Make Passive Income Faster

• Automate where possible: Use tools and outsourcing to reduce effort.
• Reinvest profits: Compound your earnings to scale income over time.
• Diversify: Don’t rely on just one method — spread across multiple strategies.

Are you wondering how do you start a business from scratch? You’re not alone! Every year, millions dream of becoming their own boss, but only a few turn that dream into a thriving company. If you’re determined to make it happen, this is your ultimate guide to how to start up a company the right way.

Whether you’re launching a side hustle or building the next big startup, follow these 10 actionable steps to kick off your entrepreneurial journey.

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1. Get Clear on Your Business Idea 💡

All successful businesses start with one thing: a solid idea. But an idea alone isn’t enough—it must solve a real problem or meet a genuine need.

Ask yourself:

• Does this idea solve a problem?
• Who is my target audience?
• Is there market demand?

Tip: Use Google Trends or keyword tools to see what people are searching for. This validates your idea early on.

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2. Do Market Research 📊

Market research helps you understand your competitors, audience, pricing models, and potential barriers to entry.

✅ Look at existing players in the market
✅ Read reviews to identify customer pain points
✅ Survey potential customers via forms or social media
✅ Check out industry reports (Statista, IBISWorld, etc.)

You can’t build a strong business without knowing the landscape.

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3. Write a Business Plan 📝

Think of your business plan as your roadmap. It’s crucial whether you’re pitching investors or just staying organized.

Here’s what to include:

• Executive Summary
• Business Model
• Market Analysis
• Product or Service Details
• Marketing Strategy
• Financial Projections

A business plan helps clarify your goals and is essential when learning how do you start a company seriously.

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4. Choose a Legal Business Structure 🏢

Picking the right structure affects your taxes, liabilities, and growth potential.

Common options include:

• Sole Proprietorship – easy but no liability protection
• LLC – great for small businesses (personal liability protection)
• Corporation (C-Corp or S-Corp) – better for larger, investor-backed companies

Consider consulting a legal or tax expert here.

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5. Register Your Business Name & Domain 🌐

Your business name is your brand identity. Make sure it’s:

• Unique
• Easy to spell and remember
• Domain-available

Once chosen, register it with your local government and buy the domain name ASAP.

🔍 Pro tip: Use tools like Namecheap or GoDaddy to secure your website URL early.

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6. Take Care of Legalities 📄

You’ll need to handle some paperwork to operate legally:

• Apply for an EIN (Employer Identification Number)
• Register with tax authorities
• Apply for licenses/permits (depends on industry/location)
• Open a business bank account

These steps are crucial in setting up a professional, compliant company.

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7. Set Up Your Finances 💰

Getting your finances in order from the beginning is non-negotiable.

✔️ Open a business bank account
✔️ Separate personal and business expenses
✔️ Get accounting software (like QuickBooks or Wave)
✔️ Understand your tax obligations

Tracking your income and expenses makes life way easier during tax season.

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8. Build Your Online Presence 🌍

In today’s world, your business doesn’t exist without an online presence.

Here’s what you need:

• A clean, professional website
• Google My Business profile
• Active social media accounts (choose based on your niche)
• Email marketing tools

💡 Your website should include your “About,” “Contact,” services/products, testimonials, and a blog (hello SEO!).

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9. Launch Your Marketing Strategy 📣

You’ve built it—now get the word out! Start marketing even before you officially launch.

Try these cost-effective methods:

• Content marketing (blogs, videos, podcasts)
• SEO optimization (like you’re reading here 😉)
• Paid ads (Google Ads, Facebook/Instagram)
• Email campaigns
• Collaborations or influencer marketing

Remember: consistency > perfection.

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10. Stay Flexible & Keep Learning 🧠

Once your business is running, the journey has just begun. You’ll face unexpected challenges, and your strategy may need to change.

✅ Monitor performance metrics
✅ Collect customer feedback
✅ Attend workshops or webinars
✅ Read books or follow business podcasts

The best entrepreneurs stay agile and keep learning.

Have you ever noticed a character in a movie drinking a Coca-Cola, driving a BMW, or pulling out an Apple laptop? 🚗🍔💻
That’s not just coincidence — it’s product placement in movies, a powerful marketing strategy that blends branding with entertainment. In this blog, we’ll dive deep into the product placement definition, understand its significance, and explore why it’s such a huge deal for both Hollywood and global brands.

Let’s jump right in! 🎥✨

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📚 What is Product Placement? (Product Placement Definition)

First, let’s break it down:
The product placement definition is simple — it’s the practice of including branded products or services in movies, TV shows, video games, and other entertainment content as a form of advertising.

Unlike traditional ads that interrupt your viewing, product placement in films is more subtle. It integrates the product naturally into the storyline, making it part of the character’s world without disrupting the flow. Whether it’s James Bond sipping a Heineken 🍺 or superheroes using Samsung devices, these placements feel organic—yet they’re incredibly strategic.

In short, product placement meaning revolves around creating brand visibility within the entertainment we love, without viewers feeling bombarded by ads. 🎯

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🎬 A Brief History of Product Placement in Films

Product placement for movies is not new. In fact, it dates back to the early 20th century!

• In 1927, a Hershey’s chocolate bar appeared in the silent film Wings.
• During the 1980s, product placement truly exploded. Think of Reese’s Pieces in E.T. — after the movie’s release, sales of the candy skyrocketed by 65%! 🍬🚀
• In the 1990s and 2000s, companies saw even bigger opportunities with mega-franchises like Transformers, James Bond, and Fast & Furious, where cars, tech gadgets, and clothing brands took center stage.

Today, it’s a $20+ billion industry globally, making product placement in movies a critical part of brand marketing strategies.

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🧐 Why Brands Love Product Placement for Movies

Brands are eager to pay big bucks for product placement in films—but why?

1. Massive Audience Reach 📺:
   A blockbuster can reach millions of viewers worldwide. A brand featured in a global hit gets priceless exposure without the limitations of regular ads.
2. Emotional Connection ❤️:
   When audiences see their favorite characters using a product, it builds emotional trust. You’re more likely to crave a Whopper if your favorite action hero is devouring one mid-battle, right?
3. Subtle Advertising 🎭:
   Unlike traditional ads, product placement for movies doesn’t feel intrusive. It’s storytelling, not selling—which means audiences are more receptive.
4. Cultural Influence 🌍:
   Products featured in iconic films often become part of pop culture. Remember Marty McFly’s Nike sneakers in Back to the Future? They became legendary!

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🎥 How Product Placement in Films Works Behind the Scenes

Placing a product in a movie isn’t as simple as dropping a Coke can on a table. It involves strategic negotiation between:

• Film producers/directors
• Brand marketers
• Product placement agencies
• Studio executives

Brands pay for different levels of exposure:

• Passive Placement: Background usage, like a logo on a billboard.
• Active Placement: Direct interaction by the characters (drinking, wearing, using).
• Plot Integration: When the product is crucial to the story (e.g., FedEx in Cast Away).

Sometimes, brands even provide funding or sponsor production costs in exchange for prominent placement 🎬💰.

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🌟 Famous Examples of Product Placement for Movies

Here are some classic examples where product placement meaning truly comes alive:

• E.T. (1982): Reese’s Pieces ➔ Candy sales boomed after their cute alien endorsement! 👽
• Cast Away (2000): FedEx was almost a co-star alongside Tom Hanks 📦.
• Transformers series: General Motors supplied the cars, leading to massive exposure 🚗.
• Skyfall (2012): James Bond swapped his usual martini for a Heineken 🍺—a deal reportedly worth $45 million!
• The Lego Movie (2014): A 100-minute commercial for Lego, cleverly disguised as a fun animated film 🧱🎉.

These examples prove that product placement in films can drive real-world business success when done right.

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🤔 Pros and Cons of Product Placement in Movies

Like any marketing strategy, product placement for movies has its advantages and challenges:

Pros:

• Natural brand exposure without interrupting the story
• Long-term visibility since movies live forever on streaming platforms
• Enhanced brand credibility by associating with beloved characters

Cons:

• Over-commercialization risk: Too many placements can annoy viewers.
• Misalignment: Poorly placed products can feel forced and damage both the brand and film’s credibility.
• Cultural limitations: Some products may not translate well globally.

Brands must be careful to maintain authenticity. If it feels too salesy, audiences will notice—and not in a good way 🚫.

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🎯 Future Trends: Product Placement in the Digital Age

The future of product placement for movies looks even more exciting (and sneaky!):

• Virtual product placement: Technology now allows brands to digitally insert products after filming. That means a can of soda on a table could be swapped out for a different brand depending on where or when the movie is shown! 🤯
• Streaming platforms: Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney+ are major new playgrounds for brand integrations.
• Personalized placements: Using viewer data, future films might show you products based on your preferences 😱 (Imagine seeing your favorite sneaker brand in every movie you watch!)

As audiences become more ad-savvy, the key will be subtle, seamless, and smart product placement.

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🛒 Final Thoughts: The Power of Product Placement

Product placement in films isn’t just about logos on screen. It’s about storytelling, emotional resonance, and cultural influence. A well-placed product can create iconic moments, boost sales, and even redefine a brand’s image.

Understanding the product placement definition and product placement meaning shows us that marketing isn’t always loud and flashy—sometimes, it’s the quietest product on the table that steals the scene 🎬🍕.

So the next time you spot a character using a specific brand in a movie, give yourself a pat on the back—you’ve spotted a marketing masterstroke at work! 🕵️‍♂️✨

The phrase “U.S.–China trade war” has been buzzing in headlines for years now—and for good reason. It’s more than a political spat between two economic giants. It has reshaped global supply chains, raised costs worldwide, and created uncertainty that’s affecting businesses from San Francisco to Shenzhen 🌎.

But what’s really going on? And how does it impact you, whether you’re a small business owner, a consumer, or just someone trying to make sense of the global economy? Let’s break it down in simple, friendly terms—with some helpful emojis along the way! 😊

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🔍 What Is the U.S.–China Trade War?

The U.S.–China trade war officially kicked off in 2018, when the U.S. under President Trump imposed tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of Chinese goods 🧾. The goal? To counter what the U.S. saw as unfair trade practices, including:

• 📦 A massive trade imbalance
• 🧠 Intellectual property theft
• 📲 Forced technology transfers
• 🏭 Heavy state subsidies to Chinese companies

In response, China fired back with tariffs on U.S. products, especially agriculture-related goods, triggering a series of tit-for-tat moves. It quickly turned into a full-blown economic battle that sent shockwaves across the globe 🌐.

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📊 Key Global Economic Impacts

Let’s take a look at how this trade war has shaped the world economy over the past few years—and why it still matters in 2025.

1. 📈 Higher Costs for Businesses and Consumers

Tariffs essentially act like a tax. When the U.S. and China slapped tariffs on each other’s goods, importers had to pay more—and those costs were often passed down to you, the consumer 💸.

• Electronics, clothing, furniture, and even groceries saw price hikes 📦
• U.S. manufacturers relying on Chinese parts saw thinner profit margins
• Small businesses struggled to stay competitive

For example, American farmers lost access to Chinese markets, while Chinese tech companies faced more restrictions in the U.S. market. It’s been a lose-lose in many ways 😞.

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2. 🔄 Supply Chain Disruptions

The trade war accelerated a major shift in global supply chains. Companies that once relied heavily on Chinese manufacturing started looking elsewhere—like Vietnam, India, and Mexico 🧳.

• Big names like Apple and Samsung moved parts of their production out of China
• Smaller companies diversified sourcing to avoid dependency
• Nearshoring and “friend-shoring” became hot trends in global trade 🌍

This supply chain rebalancing is still ongoing, especially post-COVID, and will define international business for years to come.

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3. 📉 Slower Global Economic Growth

The uncertainty caused by the trade war—and its knock-on effects—has dampened global growth 📉. According to the IMF and World Bank, the trade war shaved off nearly 0.8% of global GDP in its early years.

Investor confidence took a hit. Companies postponed hiring and expansion plans. Trade volumes declined across continents.

It wasn’t just about the U.S. and China—countries that rely heavily on exports, such as Germany, Japan, and South Korea, also felt the pinch 🚨.

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4. 📉 Market Volatility and Investment Risk

Markets hate unpredictability. Every time a new round of tariffs or failed negotiations hit the news, stock markets reacted sharply 📉. Investors began pulling out or seeking safer assets like gold or government bonds.

This volatility made long-term planning difficult for investors, retirement funds, and businesses alike 😬.

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5. 🌱 Winners and Losers Among Emerging Markets

Some emerging economies are turning the trade war into opportunity. As companies look to diversify, nations like Vietnam, India, and Indonesia have become attractive manufacturing alternatives 🚀.

• Vietnam saw a spike in exports to the U.S.
• India attracted interest in sectors like pharmaceuticals and electronics
• Mexico gained traction as a nearshore hub for North American businesses

However, not all emerging markets have benefited. Those heavily reliant on global trade flows, like Brazil and South Africa, have faced challenges from reduced demand and price volatility 📉.

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🛠️ Have Any Solutions Worked?

Several attempts at de-escalation have been made:

• The Phase One Agreement in 2020 committed China to buy more U.S. goods and protect intellectual property, in exchange for reduced tariffs.
• Ongoing trade talks under the Biden administration have aimed for more strategic engagement rather than all-out confrontation.

But while these deals helped ease tensions slightly, the underlying competition—especially in tech—remains fierce 💻⚡. The U.S. is continuing to limit China’s access to critical technologies like semiconductors, while China pushes for self-reliance and dominance in areas like AI and green energy.

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📅 What’s Next in 2025 and Beyond?

Looking ahead, the trade war is far from over. In fact, it may evolve into a broader economic and geopolitical rivalry.

Here’s what to expect:

• 🔁 Continued reshuffling of supply chains
• 🧠 Escalating tech competition in AI, quantum computing, and chips
• ⚙️ Strategic alliances (like CPTPP and RCEP) playing a bigger role
• 🔍 More scrutiny of foreign investments and cross-border data flows
• 🌍 Countries trying to stay neutral while benefiting from both sides

The trade war has fundamentally redefined global trade rules. Businesses now must navigate this new world of tariffs, tech bans, and shifting alliances.

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🤔 Final Thoughts

The U.S.–China trade war isn’t just a trade issue—it’s a lens into how power, politics, and technology are shaping the global economy 🌐. Whether you’re a business owner, investor, or just curious about what’s going on, this conflict offers lessons on resilience, adaptation, and the importance of understanding global trends.

💬 Want to stay ahead? Keep an eye on global trade updates, diversify your financial strategies, and always be ready to pivot 🌱

Have you ever tried booking the same hotel at different times? Have you ever checked flight tickets for the same flight on different days? If yes, you might have noticed the pricing for the same service was different at different times. This is dynamic pricing used by businesses, especially in the hospitality and travel industries.

What is dynamic pricing?

During the earlier times when there was no penetration of technology and data, businesses used to work on simple static pricing for their products and services. They had a fixed set pricing for all their products which the customers could purchase. At any given point in time, the pricing would be the same. This would be unless the price of the product is changed altogether.

Though this worked for many, some industries had a bad effect in terms of revenue. This is mostly because of the seasonality of these businesses.

Consider an example of a hotel chain with properties in the tropics. These properties are mostly located on lush beaches facing the blue oceans. Naturally, the peak season of revenue generation for this hotel chain would be during the summer and winter holidays. Most of the tourists would come during this period throughout the year. But it would experience less business during the monsoons.

Had this hotel chain worked on the static fixed pricing throughout the year, irrespective of the demand, they would have lost the opportunity of earning good revenue.

This is what dynamic pricing is about. It is a strategy used by businesses where they adjust the price of products or services based on various factors in real-time. This strategy allows the business to respond to the supply and changes in the market so that they can maximize their revenue. This is generally used by industries like travel, hospitality, and e-commerce.

Factors influencing the pricing

The product pricing is dependent on various factors.

Demand and supply

Demand and supply are the basics of any economy. These are the factors that determine the pricing of many products.

The point where demand and supply are balanced is known as market equilibrium. This is the state where the buyers are satisfied with the price customers pay and customers are happy with the price they are paying. When there is an imbalance in either of them, prices change.

When there is a demand in the market with the supply being constant, customers are willing to pay more price for a product. Similarly, if there is less demand and there is constant supply, customers are not willing to buy. To cope with this, the pricing plummets.

Time

In many industries, prices change with the time a customer books. Typically businesses tend to offer discounts to the customers who are making their bookings early. Conversely, the customers making their purchases at the last moment have to pay more.

This is a typical case in the airline industry. Normally, the people who book their tickets early are the ones planning for vacations or unofficial needs. They tend to opt for discounts in the deal. Customers booking tickets at the last minute are normally business customers, and the business needs for the day are more important than the pricing. Hence they are willing to pay a hefty amount for the tickets.

Seasonality

Many industries experience peaks of high demands and low demands during the year.

This seasonality can be because of factors like:

1. Holidays: The tourism industry has peak season during summer and winters
2. Weather: The Fashion industry has seasonal clothing

During the peak seasons, they may increase the pricing because of high demand. Off-seasons experience a lowering of pricing to attract more customers in that period.

Competition

When there is intense competition, companies might engage in price wars. This effectively lowers customer pricing.

When businesses try to build differentiation of their products, they tend to keep the pricing high to justify it.

Starting a service company can actually be a better starting point to build a product-based firm. They are relatively easy to start, with lower initial costs. They are flexible and focus on purely generating revenue from the start.

Service can lead to a path in building a product company

Understanding customer needs

You interact with a wide variety of customers while delivering a project. This helps in understanding the needs, choices, preferences, and habits of customers. It helps how a customer thinks about a particular problem.

Relationships

Services help build relationships with customers and establish credibility. Especially in a B2B scenario, it helps in establishing a strong trust. These relationships can be a good base for selling products further.

Networking

To get projects, it is essential to establish new networks and nurture the existing ones. These networks of clients and industry connections can later support product launches or collaborations.

Revenues and cash flows

Typically, one does not focus on a specific niche of industries or technologies strictly while in a service business. This helps in acquiring quick customers and securing good revenues and cash flows.

How to productize a service?

When a solution that has been offered as a service has the potential to scale, it can be productized. Often similar types of industries or similar types of personas may have a similar set of pain points. Hence when a solution that has been developed for a particular customer can be a pain point for a similar type of customer segment. Productizing a service involves turning a service-based offering into a scalable and repeatable product.

Understand the pain point

Assess the pain point behind the solution that you are offering to the client. Go to the root of why your customer is needing the solution and why do many similar customers will need the solution.

Understand the core value

Once the pain point of the customer has been identified, understand the core value proposition that your solution has offered or should be offering. Break down your service into its fundamental components. What are the key features, benefits, and deliverables?

Optimize on the features

Your solution might be offering a large number of features to the client. This is because it has been developed as a custom solution. After you have identified the pain point and the core value proposition of the part you want to productize, identify what are those features that are helping to achieve the value to the customer. Cut down the features that are not required, and add features that may be potentially required to build a scalable and valuable product.

Standardize and scale

Once you have recognized which features are to be present to make the product useful, determine which aspects of the service can be standardized or turned into a template. Define processes and standard operating processes. Ensure the product can be replicated without losing quality. Define clear processes and guidelines.

Pricing

Decide the pricing model and strategy for the product. Determine the tiers of the pricing based on the needs, value propositions, and pricing.

Marketing

Identify the channels to propagate the value proposition of your product. Develop a sales strategy that educates potential customers on how your product solves their problems or fulfills their needs.

Conclusion

To build a product company does not necessarily mean to start a company in that way. Starting a service company and executing a variety of projects in various industries can be a good way to understand the customers and the market and collect good initial revenue. This can be the much-needed fuel to build a product. Rather, building a service company can be a very safe way to establish a product firm.

The product placement in a retail store has a major influence on the sales of the store. This is because it matters in the decision of a customer to buy a product. Typically, products in the retail stores have a limited life. Hence, the success of these products, especially the fast moving consumer goods, depends on how fast they get sold in the market. Product placement is the strategy of how the products in a super market or a retail outlet are placed in the shelf, so that they get sold out fast. This is optimised to the limitation of the limited shelf area. Putting the products in an appropriate manner have a direct impact on the revenue of a retail store.

With hundreds of brands competing in the sales, the seeking of attention and consumer’s time is the key for sales. This is where the product placement comes in the play.

Planograms

Planograms are the schematic plan of a store which tells where to place the products so as to maximize the sales.

Planograms help stores in maximizing the space utilization and revenue. It is like a store on paper which tells what products are to placed where. What products would be at the eye level? What products woud be at the bottom? What products would be at the start of the store? What products would be at the end of the store? These are some questions answered by it. We, as consumers, are mostly unaware of the layout of the store. But a detailed analysis is done behind the placement of it.

What product placement strategies do retailers use?

Essential products at the end and non-essential products at the start

Frequently required items like groceries and milk are placed by stores at the end. Opposite to this, the non essential, luxury items like perfumes are placed at the start. It is of most probability that consumers would have come to buy the essentials in the store. This leads them to go at the end of the store, and on the way are the usually high margin luxury items. This can motivate the consumer to buy these products. And not to forget, the consumer walks through the luxury items twice while going in and out of the store. This constant bombarding of the luxury products encourages the customer.

Complimentary products

Have you ever seen soaps and soap cases placed side by side? Placing complimentary  products on sides motivates the consumers to buy them together. This makes sense as both the products provide a complete value to the consumer.

Eye level products

How many times in a retail store have you picked up a product which is at the bottom of the shelf? If you have a clear intention of purchasing a specific one, then only you might have done it.

Studies suggest that the majority of the products in a retail store are sold which are at the eye level. Hence retail stores ensure that the best and most successful products are kept at the eye level in the shelf.

How technology is helping in the product placement?

In the era of digitalization, technology is playing an important role in the retail decision making. Modern data driven solutions are helping the retailers to decide where to keep their products in their stores.

The data collected from various methods like images, videos, and, RFID tags are now used by retailers to decide the optimum product placements. This process, like any digitalization project, has multiple phases – installation, data collection, data analysis, and changes with the feedbacks. It is a continuous process towards gradual optimization and maximizing the revenue.

What is a loss leader strategy?

Loss leader strategy is a business tactic in which companies sell a product at very cheap or free to attract a large number of customers or to cross-sell other high-margin products. This strategy is generally used by businesses to capture a new market or as a starting point to introduce their product ecosystems.

For example, a grocery shop may keep the milk prices very low with hardly any profit margins. Milk is a daily used commodity purchased by everyone. The intention of keeping it at a low cost is that when a customer enters to buy milk in the shop, he would also be introduced to the other products which are placed inside and hence increase the chances of buying other products apart from milk as well. Often we tend to purchase things when seen in abundance, like in the grocery shop or a mall, that may or may not be used. This impulsive shopping and eventually building a loyal customer base is the main intention.

Opportunities associated

1. A new product can penetrate the market at a faster rate with a loss leader strategy. It gets the initial break-in momentum.
2. An existing company can add more new customers along with its existing ones
3. With cross-selling or up-selling other products that have high margins, a business has more opportunity to increase revenue.
4. A company can get important customer data with a huge number of customers buying the product or service. This data can be used in a strategic way to favor ways to increase revenue and profits.
5. Inventory-heavy businesses can clear up the excess inventory and outdated products
6. A company can build a strong brand as more and more customers purchase the products and are satisfied with them. This provides an opportunity for building strong brand loyalty.

Risks associated

1. Loss leader strategy at a scale can be implemented only by businesses with deep pockets. There is a huge cash burn involved at the first to gain customers, as there are very less or no profit margins.
2. Loss leader strategy is a high-risk and high-reward type of game. If the strategy is not well executed, the losses are very high.
3. Even if the strategy is executed well and customers purchase the products as expected, if they are not satisfied with the product or service, it can reduce the brand value and hence customer loyalty.
4. There is always a risk associated with the value perception by customers. If this loss leader pricing is used frequently or for a long time, customers might think the value of the product to be less than the actual value. This can impact the revenue when the increased price is set after the market gain.
5. This strategy can force the competitors to reduce their prices as well. This condition can lead to a price-cutting game and is not beneficial to either of the competitors in the market.

Example

My favorite example of the loss leader strategy is for the OTT platform market.

Netflix was an established market leader started in 1997. Amazon, who intended to be in the OTT space, launched its service Prime Video in 2006. The pricing, however, was not at all on a par with Netflix and was very low compared to it. This was the strategy by Amazon, where it used this service to attract consumers to the e-commerce market. With the consumers purchasing Prime Video service they would get an Amazon Prime membership by default, which had attractive propositions of one-day delivery and early access to products. This helped Amazon to compete with Netflix and cross-sell other services. The customer base as of Q3 2023 of Amazon Prime Video is 200 million as compared to that of Netflix’s 247 million

Digital Transformation

The combination of customer needs and innovation is the formula for disruption. Today is the world of technology. Legacy companies are at risk of digital disruptions. With new cutting-edge technologies emerging every day, and new businesses with technology enabled right from their start, legacy companies are vulnerable to losing the market. To be relevant, legacy businesses need to always be on top of changing market scenarios and hence their business models. Digital transformation is one of the important business models to stay relevant with time and ensure a strong market position.

The digital transformation for legacy companies is broadly of four phases.

Identification

It all starts with an understanding of all the business processes.

What are the processes across different departments on which the company works? What processes have to be redefined? How are they interconnected to each other?

Listing all the processes gets the whole picture of the company’s operations. Reimagining the processes is the key to transformation. This is the step to identify specific goals and objectives a business wants to achieve through digital transformation. These could include improving customer experience, increasing operational efficiency, or entering new markets.

Evaluation

After the identification of all the processes that have the potential to be digitally transformed, the next step is evaluating the technical feasibility and the investment. All the processes are not of equal importance. Some processes are high-income generating, whereas some might be bottleneck processes. Also, the budget for transformation is not unlimited.

Businesses need to assess current technology infrastructure and skill sets. This includes evaluating existing systems, data, and the organization’s overall digital maturity. According to the strategy of the business, each process would have priorities. Based on the priorities and the budget at the given time, the transformation has to be executed accordingly. At last, it’s not a one-time process but a continuous improvement one.

The outcome of this step is to determine the processes to be transformed and its budget.

Implementation

The actual implementation starts after deep research into the technical feasibility and availability of finances. This step can include installing additional hardware equipment & sensors, getting third-party data via integrations, and new software configurations. In short, all the possible means are required to collect and share the data between systems.

This process is not an easy one and can have multiple challenges.

It also includes hiring new resources for the projects to execute.

Feedback

As mentioned, digital transformation is not a one-time process. And certainly, it is not a monotonous process as well. It requires a good amount of continuous effort from all the stakeholders. After the implementation, the outputs from it have to be measured. Whether there are any improvements in the systems or not, in either case, one needs to find where the system can be improved. Digital transformations are meant to get minimum turnaround time, better customer service, and savings on costs, which will ultimately lead to becoming an edge over the competitors.

In short, this phase involves regular tracking and assessing the performance of the transformed processes and technologies against the defined objectives, and adjusting strategies as needed to meet evolving goals.

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