Shareef Mahdavi's Premium Experience Network — The Best Things in Life ... Aren't Things

A Taste of Merlindia
VIDEO SEGMENT: We traveled to Merlindia to see how Fojol Bros. theming transforms the food truck experience.

Made in America: The Return of Innovation
If you find yourself wondering what's happened to innovation and the ability for Americans to invent new products, you will want to watch this video tour of Tech Shop SF, a member-based place where people can bring their dreams to life by prototyping new product concepts.

The Real “Real Thing”
posted 1/25/2012

The Coca Cola Corporation spends untold millions of dollars each year trying to convince the public that their product is the real thing. The length of the soda section in most supermarkets attests to the success in building their brand and its motto proclaiming Coke to be the real thing. At our local grocery store, a cooler just inside the front door (see photo 1) displays individual bottles of Coke with the nostalgic swirl design many of us remember from ou...

Continue

0 Comments

Blowing the Save…A Failure in Listening
posted 10/28/2011

When a major league pitcher is brought in late in the game to help his team secure their lead and win the game, he earns what is known in baseball parlance as a “save.” If he allows the other team to score runs and loses the lead, it’s called “blowing the save.” That’s precisely what Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings has done to his customers. After making a major gaffe this past summer and having an opportunity to “right the ship” this month with his cust...

Continue

0 Comments

Meet Ray, the Usher from Section 121
posted 10/19/2011

Ahhh, the Fall Classic is upon us once again. Sadly, the San Francisco Giants didn’t make the cut and will not be repeating last year’s World Series triumph. This season was too full of injuries and a lack of offense to give the fans at AT&T Park a chance to root for the “G Men” during the month of October. I was fortunate to have been able to attend - a dozen games this season, having purchased tickets from a season ticket holder whose ...

Continue

2 Comments

Groupon for Surgery: A Bad Idea
posted 9/27/2011

Like many of you, I get a daily Groupon e-mail and will often take a look and see what special deal is being offered. I admit to being intrigued by the upcoming Tomato Battle taking place in my town next weekend (modeled after the annual rite in Bunyol, Spain), but I’ll leave it up to a few thousand others to enjoy that event. While I have serious reservations about the longevity of the business model (which were confirmed by Groupon’s recent financial reporting), thi...

Continue

2 Comments

Social Media Helps The Help
posted 8/23/2011

A recently released movie called “The Help” finished this past weekend as the top grossing movie, beating out bigger budget flicks about apes, kids, and a re-made barbarian. What’s remarkable about this feat is that The Help didn’t open as the top movie its first week. Opening week sets the tone for a movie’s revenue trajectory, and revenue as well as ranking typically fall with each succeeding week a movie is in theaters. The Help broke...

Continue

1 Comment

« OLDER ENTRIES

TESTIMONIAL
Katherine Carter Thomas, St. Louis, MO

"Shareef, I was looking through your library of articles...Pretty amazing how the articles from 2001 are still relevant today. I guess good advice transcends time!"