Archive for February 9th, 2011

GM’s UAW workers get windfall bonus … and, oh yeah, Toyota’s innocent.

February 9, 2011

From the ‘makes your blood boil’ file:

Yesterday, there were 2 seemingly unrelated news stories … I say ‘seemingly’ because the mainstream media hasn’t picked up on the connection.

First, the WSJ reported that GM (aka, Government Motors)  is planning to pay its hourly workers  at least $3,000 each in profit-sharing payouts, the largest amount ever.  Why? Because the company miraculously returned to profitability in 2010. The profit-sharing checks will go to 45,000 workers as part of the auto maker’s contract with the United Auto Workers union.

Now, let’s stop and think for a moment.

How did GM return to profitability?

Through increased UAW productivity?

Nah.

First, GM wiped out shareholders and – completely ignoring contract law — moved the union pension claims ahead of its bona fide secured creditors. Get rid of your debt – and its related interest – and your economics change a bit.

Then, toss a couple of billion dollars of excess plants & equipment into a new corporate entity … just get it off your books.

Then, have one of your owners – in this case the Federal government – make some bogus claims against one of your major competitors.  Maybe have the President and Secretary of Transportation declare that the competitor’s cars are unsafe to drive.  That might dampen their sales … and increase your’s.

So what if the claims are largely unfounded.  Go for it.

Now, for the other news story.

The WSJ reported that NASA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration conducted a 10-month-long study on Toyota’s apparent acceleration problems.

Based on the study they absolved the electronics in Toyota’s vehicles for unintended acceleration, and said driver error was to blame for most of the incidents.

While floor mats sometimes got caught under the throttle, the  most common problem was drivers hitting the gas when they thought they were hitting the brake, which the NHTSA called “pedal misapplication.”

So tell me again why the overpaid, over-pensioned UAW workers are getting bonuses …

Posted in Autos - Travel, Obama Administration | Leave a Comment »

Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut cereal: it’s not just for breakfast any more … say, what ?

February 9, 2011

TakeAway: Adult cereal is rarely advertised primarily on the basis of taste (e.g. Special K as a dieting aid, Wheaties as “fuel” for athletic performance, etc.).  However, Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut is going “radical” and claiming great taste, on which most children’s brands do focus.   

Trivia point Kellogg’s may need to message around: its sugar content (maybe part of its “great taste”) is on par with Frosted Flakes – yikes!

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Excerpted from WSJ, “Did We Mention That It Tastes Good?” By Andrew Adam Newman, January 26, 2011

With nearly all American households already buying cereal, there are few people to initiate, so cereal marketers often focus on increasing so called “usage occasions,” like incorporating cereal into an every-meal diet plan, as Kellogg does with Special K, or featuring non-breakfast recipes on boxes, like Kellogg’s Corn Flakes-coated chicken, Chex Mix and Rice Krispies treats.  A  Leo Burnett creative director said that the campaign aimed to reinforce that Crunchy Nut “really is a breakfast cereal,” but “baked into our tagline and concept that ‘It’s morning somewhere,’ is that we’d like to extend usage occasions.’”

A publicity stunt to encourage eating Crunchy Nut round-the-clock is being organized, fittingly, around a clock. In Los Angeles on Saturday, the brand hopes to break the Guinness world record for the largest cuckoo clock, with a timepiece that is 66 feet tall and 28 feet wide.

At the top of the hour for 24 consecutive hours, emerging from the innards of the clock will be not a mechanical bird but an actor, Brad Norman, who will perform as characters from countries where it is morning. Videos from the performances will be uploaded to the Crunchy Nut Facebook page and to YouTube.

Additionally, scanning a quick response code printed on the back of Crunchy Nut boxes with smartphones, which can recognize users’ location and local time, prompts a video of an exotic locale where it is morning.

In a survey by Mintel of American adults who eat cereal, respondents rated the importance of cereal attributes, and taste ranked highest, followed by price, wholegrain content, familiarity of flavor, fiber content and sugar content.

Edit by AMW

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Posted in Mktg - Positioning | Leave a Comment »