My First Marketing Client - RIP

 I recently found out my 1st ever Marketing client passed away in May of 2020 .

He was my 1st client while I was still doing my Marketing Undergraduate studies at UBC & Capilano University - in 2000 .

Clearly a lot happened in 22 years . In 2000, he signed up with me on a 3 month contract . He had owned a construction company in North Vancouver .

He wanted to expand his business - so he hired me to create a Strategic Marketing Plan - as well as to edit his existing Business Plan .

The Marketing Fundamentals I focussed on were:

a) Product

b) Price

c) Promotion

d) Place

e) People

f) Process

g) Physical Evidence

I will share some of that Strategic Marketing Plan in a later blog post .

RIP Dylan

When Will The Covid-19 Virus Become Endemic ???

 

• The Omicron Variant destroyed Christmas 2021 - much like the Delta Variant wrecked Summer 2020
• The Omicron Variant is more transmissible - but less virulent than the Delta Variant
• We need to embrace Non Pharmaceutical Interventions - or NPIs
• NPIs include: rapid COVID-19 testing / wearing iso masks / staying home during major outbreaks / etc
• Once these NPIs are followed - we move on from a state of acute emergency to a state of transition to endemicity
• Endemicity means that immunity and infections will have reached a steady state
• Not enough people will be immune to deny the virus a host
• Not enough people will be vulnerable to spark widespread outbreaks
• Endemicity isn’t a promise of safety. - rather it’s a guarantee of having to be on guard all the time
• We can’t eradicate SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind Covid, because it has other hiding places in the world
• As long as another host for Covid exists, there is no hope of being safe from it forever
• Covid-19 herd immunity is a pipe dream
• It’s a weird irony that the US, so well supplied with vaccines that you can get shots without an appointment, is short of rapid tests, when they’re a routine part of the Covid response in Germany and the government distributes them for free in the United Kingdom
• Learning to live with the long presence of Covid will require acknowledging that breakthrough infections may happen to us all at some point, even though a full course of vaccination plus rapid use of antivirals will mute their severity
• The fate of the pandemic is governed by the vulnerability of the least protected
• We need to make sure everybody in the world has access to their two doses of vaccines by the end of March 2022

A Recap On The Shipping Crisis - 2 Weeks Later

Of course there are no solutions in sight with regards to the Global Shipping Crisis - especially over the Christmas & New Year's Day holidays .

• The Global Shipping Crisis will continue well into 2022
• Ships jam-packed with containers are stuck at ports
• Factories have had to limit production - in spite of increased online orders
• There are approximately 25 million containers on 5500 container ships worldwide
• Sadly the COVID-19 Pandemic (March 2020) led to lockdowns & inconsistent supply & demand - which have thrown global supply chains and transportation networks out of whack
• There is also a shortage of shipping & transportation industry workers
• The shipping crisis hit a benchmark moment when the Ever Given became stuck in the Suez Canal in March 2021
• This blocked approximately 400 container ships for 1 week - and led to approximately $10B USD in tree losses
• Constant pressure to load and unload goods at shipping terminals has lead to hoarding of shipped goods
• Interestingly enough - goods can take up to 2 months to clear in California's port - but Amazon's cargo ships wait approximately 2 days
• Amazon can now make its own shipping containers - and use smaller ports and charters its own private ships
• In January 2021 - Amazon acquired 11 Boeing 767 Airliners to be used as cargo planes to ship goods worldwide
• Amazon is now in the top 5 of highest ranked shipping companies in the Trans Pacific Federation
• Amazon's techniques are very expensive but they are also very successful
• Amazon can send containers directly to the destination - without having to return them after each delivery
• By contrast - there are over 100,000 empty containers in the LA port waiting to be returned to their point of origin
• Amazon has sent approximately $4 Billion USD in shipping expenses
• Even Coca Cola is now chartering bulk shipping vessels that are usually reserved for hauling loose materials like coal
• These private ships can easily cost as much as $40K per day
• Most people are hoping the demand for shipping containers will decline after Christmas / New Year's Day
• Ultimately the longer-term issue is inflationary pressure
• Every manufacturer / brand will have to decide whether to increase prices or take quality out of the product
• Surging inflation could see millions of North American households paying $3500.00 USD in additional expenses over 2022