Qatar’s bonds rose after the largest-ever sale of debt by an emerging-market government received $28 billion of orders, four times the amount issued.
Qatar’s $3.5 billion of five-year bonds, half the total $7 billion sale, advanced to 100.1 cents on the dollar from an issue price of 99.87 cents, according to ING Bank NV data on Bloomberg at 5:59 p.m. in Doha. The emirate’s $1 billion of 30- year bonds rose 3 percent to 102.8 cents, according to prices provided by DZ Bank AG.
“This is the largest debt deal from an emerging-market sovereign to date,” said Fabianna Del Canto, syndicate manager at Barclays Capital, a lead arranger for the sale, in London. “Qatar has firmly established itself as the premier borrower in the region.”
Qatar, the world’s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, will use the bond proceeds to provide “contingency funding” for state-owned companies, pay for infrastructure projects, and invest in the international oil and gas industry, according to the bond sale prospectus obtained by Bloomberg News. The Persian Gulf emirate is spending billions of dollars diversifying its economy with acquisitions of stakes in London- based lender Barclays Plc and German carmaker Volkswagen AG.
‘Strong Appetite’
Middle East borrowers will sell as much as $18 billion of international bonds in 2010, Luis Costa, an emerging markets debt strategist at Commerzbank AG in London wrote on Nov. 11. Commercial Bank of Qatar, the country’s second-biggest bank by assets, sold $1.6 billion of bonds on Nov. 10. Dubai last month raised $1.93 billion through the biggest Islamic bond sale from the Gulf region this year, while Tourism Development & Investment Co., a state-owned developer of hotels in Abu Dhabi, raised $1 billion from a five-year Islamic bond issue.
“There remains very strong appetite for the region,” said Neil Slee, director of debt syndicate for Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa at Credit Suisse Group AG, which was one of the lead arrangers for the deal. “It’s a reflection of market confidence in the Qatari credit story” that it was able to close the largest-ever transaction from an emerging market issuer, he said.
April Sale
The emirate was able to sell the bond at a lower cost than its last sale in April, with the five-year bond being priced to yield 1.85 percentage points above U.S. Treasuries yesterday. That compares with a spread of 3.4 percentage points it offered in April for a bond with similar maturity. A five-year bond issued by the Dubai government maturing in 2013 was yielding 5.8 percent today.
Dubai, which suffered the worst in the Middle East from the global financial crisis, is struggling to refinance its debt after its government related companies earlier borrowed more than $80 billion to transform its economy into a tourist and financial services hub. Qatar is rated Aa2 by Moody’s Investors Service and AA- by Standard & Poor’s. Dubai is not rated.
In addition to the five-year and 30-year bonds, Qatar issued $2.5 billion of 10-year bonds to yield 1.95 percentage points more than Treasuries. Qatar’s sale topped the $5 billion that Venezuela issued in October, according to ING Groep NV.
Source
Monday, December 28, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
New ITV boss meets with City approval
Troubled broadcaster ITV saw its shares lift by 3.5 per cent yesterday after it announced the appointment of City high-flier and former Tory MP Archie Norman as its chairman.
After months of speculation, analysts applauded the selection of a big-hitting turnaround specialist, with strong links to the Tories, to guide ITV’s strategy moving forward.
Norman has been credited with turning around supermarket chain Asda, before selling it to US chain Wal-Mart in 1999, and restructuring telecoms group Energis before selling it to Cable & Wireless for double the original enterprise value.
Norman’s priority will be to recruit a new chief executive to replace outgoing boss Michael Grade. ITV has been trying to fill the role since April, with an embarrassing lack of progress. But the process was put on hold in September until a new chairman was found.
Analysts speculated that a chairman of Norman’s calibre could persuade interim chief executive John Cresswell, who was planning to leave ITV once the position was filled, to stay at the company.
Norman’s appointment also has political implications. ITV has battled regulatory constraints since it was created by the merger of Carlton and Granada in 2004, and was disappointed in September when Ofcom decided against relaxing advertising rules.
“If the Tories come to power next year and go ahead with reducing Ofcom’s power, having someone with an ‘in’ to David Cameron could be helpful,” said Panmure Gordon analyst Alex DeGroote.
After months of speculation, analysts applauded the selection of a big-hitting turnaround specialist, with strong links to the Tories, to guide ITV’s strategy moving forward.
Norman has been credited with turning around supermarket chain Asda, before selling it to US chain Wal-Mart in 1999, and restructuring telecoms group Energis before selling it to Cable & Wireless for double the original enterprise value.
Norman’s priority will be to recruit a new chief executive to replace outgoing boss Michael Grade. ITV has been trying to fill the role since April, with an embarrassing lack of progress. But the process was put on hold in September until a new chairman was found.
Analysts speculated that a chairman of Norman’s calibre could persuade interim chief executive John Cresswell, who was planning to leave ITV once the position was filled, to stay at the company.
Norman’s appointment also has political implications. ITV has battled regulatory constraints since it was created by the merger of Carlton and Granada in 2004, and was disappointed in September when Ofcom decided against relaxing advertising rules.
“If the Tories come to power next year and go ahead with reducing Ofcom’s power, having someone with an ‘in’ to David Cameron could be helpful,” said Panmure Gordon analyst Alex DeGroote.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Tuck In, Luck Out: A Guide to an M&A Opportunity Built for Two
There’s strength in numbers, goes the old adage, but there’s also strength in the power of one—a cumulative strength that printing companies can achieve by undertaking the kind of merger known as a “tuck-in.”
A “tuck-in” occurs when one firm acquires certain assets and the book of business from another firm. Generally this is accomplished through an outright purchase, the bulk of which is paid for in the form of an earn-out based on sales retained by the acquiring company. By combining their best features and capabilities in a well-planned tuck-in, the companies can eliminate excess capacity, do away with redundant overhead costs, and avoid duplicative staffing. Although the new entity may be smaller than the sum of its parts, it will be a stronger, more stable operation that's better positioned for growth than either the firms would have been on its own.
New Direction Partners has managed seven tuck-ins in the last year, including the “merger of equals” detailed in “A Merger Going Right!”. In this case, the owners agreed to exchange stock in their firms for stock in a new entity that repaid their investments many times over because of its subsequent success.
But, tuck-in partners don’t have to be financial equals, and the rewards depend on how the deal is structured to the benefit of both parties. One of the owners, for example, might decide to sell unneeded equipment, keep the proceeds, or use the cash to pay down debt—whatever best suits the owner’s long-term business and personal goals.
It’s All in the Vetting
Jim Russell, a principal of New Directions Partners, says that whether a company is considering a tuck-in as a buyer or as a seller, it’s crucial to choose one’s potential partner with care. It’s obviously important, for example, to be certain that the acquisition target is not carrying more liabilities than the new entity will be capable of settling.
Something else to keep in mind, says Russell, is that in most cases, an acquisition target will not respond to a direct overture from another printing company. This is where New Direction Partners, with a track record of having facilitated more than 200 successful mergers and acquisitions, can be the independent third party that makes the tuck-in happen.
As the facilitator, New Direction Partners can evaluate candidates recommended by the client and propose tuck-in candidates of its own. The process begins easily and inexpensively by posting a “Firms for Sale” or “Firms Seeking Acquisition” notice at the New Directions Partners web site—an online destination that has become a meeting-place for many companies that probably would not have made contact otherwise.
Peter Schaefer, another principal of New Direction Partners, says that if a company meets any of the following criteria, a tuck-in with another printer could be its best strategic move:
• There is excess production capacity that can’t be filled.
• The company is struggling financially, particularly when it comes to securing credit.
• In the opposite case, where the company is doing relatively well in its home market, it can identify firms that are struggling to survive there.
• The owner is ready to retire and is looking for a suitable exit strategy.
Source
A “tuck-in” occurs when one firm acquires certain assets and the book of business from another firm. Generally this is accomplished through an outright purchase, the bulk of which is paid for in the form of an earn-out based on sales retained by the acquiring company. By combining their best features and capabilities in a well-planned tuck-in, the companies can eliminate excess capacity, do away with redundant overhead costs, and avoid duplicative staffing. Although the new entity may be smaller than the sum of its parts, it will be a stronger, more stable operation that's better positioned for growth than either the firms would have been on its own.
New Direction Partners has managed seven tuck-ins in the last year, including the “merger of equals” detailed in “A Merger Going Right!”. In this case, the owners agreed to exchange stock in their firms for stock in a new entity that repaid their investments many times over because of its subsequent success.
But, tuck-in partners don’t have to be financial equals, and the rewards depend on how the deal is structured to the benefit of both parties. One of the owners, for example, might decide to sell unneeded equipment, keep the proceeds, or use the cash to pay down debt—whatever best suits the owner’s long-term business and personal goals.
It’s All in the Vetting
Jim Russell, a principal of New Directions Partners, says that whether a company is considering a tuck-in as a buyer or as a seller, it’s crucial to choose one’s potential partner with care. It’s obviously important, for example, to be certain that the acquisition target is not carrying more liabilities than the new entity will be capable of settling.
Something else to keep in mind, says Russell, is that in most cases, an acquisition target will not respond to a direct overture from another printing company. This is where New Direction Partners, with a track record of having facilitated more than 200 successful mergers and acquisitions, can be the independent third party that makes the tuck-in happen.
As the facilitator, New Direction Partners can evaluate candidates recommended by the client and propose tuck-in candidates of its own. The process begins easily and inexpensively by posting a “Firms for Sale” or “Firms Seeking Acquisition” notice at the New Directions Partners web site—an online destination that has become a meeting-place for many companies that probably would not have made contact otherwise.
Peter Schaefer, another principal of New Direction Partners, says that if a company meets any of the following criteria, a tuck-in with another printer could be its best strategic move:
• There is excess production capacity that can’t be filled.
• The company is struggling financially, particularly when it comes to securing credit.
• In the opposite case, where the company is doing relatively well in its home market, it can identify firms that are struggling to survive there.
• The owner is ready to retire and is looking for a suitable exit strategy.
Source
Sunday, November 15, 2009
RSA to sell ‘advanced’ security services
The company, which is the security software division of EMC, said at its annual conference in London that the service would help firms “implement or improve their security operations function to more effectively manage both risk and IT compliance programmes”.
Businesses need to take a “more advanced approach” to security, it said, in order to identify and manage incidents, and to protect information.
RSA said its services will help businesses gather and analyse security data, evaluate risk in order to priories remediation, detect and react to security incidents, monitor the effectiveness of existing controls, report on security metrics, and address compliance.
The new services will be split into three areas. The first, security operations strategy and assessment, will target firms that want to deepen their security strategy.
The second, security operations management, aims to help firms establish comprehensive policies, procedures, guidelines and documentation. This includes operational run-books and workflow that can support a security operations centre or incident management programme on a day-to-day basis.
The last area is security operations analysis and design, and this is aimed at businesses seeking a broad evaluation of security operations requirements. It also guides on an incident management framework and how to establish the development of appropriate policies and procedures for security operations.
Peter Charland, marketing director at RSA professional services, told Computerworld UK that many businesses needed a more thorough examination of their security, because they were “still looking at the perimeter and not looking enough inside the organisation”.
The services offered a broader look at security than before, he said, offering a different depth of assistance depending on the maturity of companies’ security setups.
Source
Businesses need to take a “more advanced approach” to security, it said, in order to identify and manage incidents, and to protect information.
RSA said its services will help businesses gather and analyse security data, evaluate risk in order to priories remediation, detect and react to security incidents, monitor the effectiveness of existing controls, report on security metrics, and address compliance.
The new services will be split into three areas. The first, security operations strategy and assessment, will target firms that want to deepen their security strategy.
The second, security operations management, aims to help firms establish comprehensive policies, procedures, guidelines and documentation. This includes operational run-books and workflow that can support a security operations centre or incident management programme on a day-to-day basis.
The last area is security operations analysis and design, and this is aimed at businesses seeking a broad evaluation of security operations requirements. It also guides on an incident management framework and how to establish the development of appropriate policies and procedures for security operations.
Peter Charland, marketing director at RSA professional services, told Computerworld UK that many businesses needed a more thorough examination of their security, because they were “still looking at the perimeter and not looking enough inside the organisation”.
The services offered a broader look at security than before, he said, offering a different depth of assistance depending on the maturity of companies’ security setups.
Source
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Obama draws on election strategy to sell plans
FACED with fading support for his health-care reforms, the US President, Barack Obama, has returned to the strategy that won him the presidency, presenting a big-picture vision of the future that his plans in health, education and the economy would bolster.
"History should be our guide," he said in a speech on Wednesday that resonated with the emotional flourishes of the election campaign. The United States led the world's economies in the 20th century because we led the world in innovation. Today the competition is keener; the challenge is tougher; and that's why innovation is more important than ever."
Mr Obama chose the town of Elkhart, Indiana, mobile home capital of America as the venue for his return to form. Sales of motorised mobile homes, which often cost more than $US100,000 ($119,000) have been ravaged first by high petrol prices and then by the economy.
Elkhart has had one of the steepest rises in unemployment in the country, the jobless rate rising 10 percentage points in a year to 17 per cent.
The battle for America's future "will be won by making places like Elkhart what they once were and can be again - and that's centres of innovation and entrepreneurship and ingenuity and opportunity; the bustling, whirring, humming engines of American prosperity," Mr Obama said.
Instead of becoming bogged down in the health hpolicy detail as he has recently, he chose a much bigger canvas, to explain how these changes were central to retooling the US economy.
Mr Obama also launched a rare personal appeal via the internet to his support network, Organising for America, urging supporters to go door to door during recess of Congress this month to shore up support for a universal health care option.
"We didn't win last year's election together at a committee hearing in DC," he said. "We won it on the doorsteps and the phone lines, at the softball games and the town meetings, and in every part of this great country where people gather to talk about what matters most."
Democrats returning to their electorates are finding town hall meetings on health care issues are becoming chaotic, with shouting and angry exchanges.
A White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, has accused the Republican Party and interests opposing health care of orchestrating the protests. He called it "manufactured anger".
The liberal blog The Progress Report termed it "swift boating" - a reference to a smear campaign against the Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004 - and said right-wing groups were behind it.
Source
"History should be our guide," he said in a speech on Wednesday that resonated with the emotional flourishes of the election campaign. The United States led the world's economies in the 20th century because we led the world in innovation. Today the competition is keener; the challenge is tougher; and that's why innovation is more important than ever."
Mr Obama chose the town of Elkhart, Indiana, mobile home capital of America as the venue for his return to form. Sales of motorised mobile homes, which often cost more than $US100,000 ($119,000) have been ravaged first by high petrol prices and then by the economy.
Elkhart has had one of the steepest rises in unemployment in the country, the jobless rate rising 10 percentage points in a year to 17 per cent.
The battle for America's future "will be won by making places like Elkhart what they once were and can be again - and that's centres of innovation and entrepreneurship and ingenuity and opportunity; the bustling, whirring, humming engines of American prosperity," Mr Obama said.
Instead of becoming bogged down in the health hpolicy detail as he has recently, he chose a much bigger canvas, to explain how these changes were central to retooling the US economy.
Mr Obama also launched a rare personal appeal via the internet to his support network, Organising for America, urging supporters to go door to door during recess of Congress this month to shore up support for a universal health care option.
"We didn't win last year's election together at a committee hearing in DC," he said. "We won it on the doorsteps and the phone lines, at the softball games and the town meetings, and in every part of this great country where people gather to talk about what matters most."
Democrats returning to their electorates are finding town hall meetings on health care issues are becoming chaotic, with shouting and angry exchanges.
A White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, has accused the Republican Party and interests opposing health care of orchestrating the protests. He called it "manufactured anger".
The liberal blog The Progress Report termed it "swift boating" - a reference to a smear campaign against the Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry in 2004 - and said right-wing groups were behind it.
Source
Monday, September 28, 2009
Strategy guides, who needs them?
If there is one thing I can’t stand with video games its frustration. There are enough things in life to be frustrated about that I don’t want to feel that way when I’m trying to be entertained. This blog talks about the way video games make you spend more money if you want to avoid the inevitable frustration that seems to be packaged into the game. There are some games that scream strategy guide and some games that don’t, let’s look at a few from each category.
So I picked up Oblivion (good move) and the strategy guide that went with it (questionable at best) in order to get what I thought was the most out of the game. The guide costs just as much as the game and in the onset was worth every penny. The guide had tons of useful information that made the game frankly easier. In retrospect however I think my friends have way more fun playing the game because they don’t know what’s coming next. The guide for oblivion is bigger than the bible and has more pictures to boot; if you can’t beat the game with that book then you are different and strange, or maybe illiterate.
The real trouble began when I realized my time with Oblivion was officially over. Sure I could play through the game again but the itch wasn’t there. The reasons for this is for another blog entirely, but suffice to say I had had my fill. The rally cool guide I paid for became my first issue; it went from being a really cool accessory, to a book I had no hope of getting rid of outside of ebay. Now it’s just taking up space on my shelf, while my game is back at the Gamestop. Strategy Guide 1, Dante 0.
Having already been burned by the lack of resale value on a strategy guide, I decided to try my hand at a game guide free. I jumped feet first into Star Ocean: The Last Hope with no previous Star Ocean experience. This is the first time I realized that the Strategy Guide makers and game developers must be working in cahoots. There is almost no way to beat the game without some sort of help.
The maps are next to useless, like looking at a Thomas Guide with no street names. The NPC’s (non player characters) are of no practical help and are so non-distinct you have no hope of knowing who you’re talking to. And the game doesn’t help you at all keep track of where you are versus where you need to go. I was warned earlier that I should get the strategy guide because I would need it, and that friend was right.
My problem is simply this: Is it fair for game developers to be lazy in the making of a game because they know a strategy guide is coming? That’s what it feels like. If Star Ocean addressed some of these issues the game wouldn’t need a strategy guide.
I’ll be the first to admit that there is a great sense of accomplishment working puzzles and such out on your own, but I don’t have all the time in the world running around aimlessly with no ability to save in sight. I don’t mind puzzles as long as there is a function that tells me that I already went left, now it’s time to go right. The lack of anything that will help the player along in the game screams strategy guide and I think it’s a cruel way to make an extra buck or two.
At the very least, retailers like Gamestop should redo their policy on strategy guides, they should buy back undamaged guides much in the same way they buy back games, much like a college bookstore. I’d be willing to bet that they would sell more guides because gamers won’t be stuck with the guide long after discarding the game.
Fable 2 is an example of a game that does it right. Sure, there is a strategy guide, but do you need it? No, the game is very playable from Jump Street and provides an adequate challenge without forcing you to strangle yourself with your controller. In fact, if you feel you need a guide to beat Fable 2 you should have your gamers license revoked (don’t run, I won’t tell anybody you bought the guide for Fable 2….). I think from now on, all game reviews should take whether you need a guide for the game into consideration, and the guides should always be at least half the price of a used copy of the game it’s for, or at least we should be allowed to return said guide when we return the game.
In the end role playing games are a lot of fun no matter what you want to call them, but there should be a fine line between challenging and poor workmanship. Shame on the makers of Star Ocean: TLH (looking at you Square) for being outright lazy with the games guts, and thanks to the web for its free walkthroughs and strategy guides to balance an underhanded tactic.
Source
So I picked up Oblivion (good move) and the strategy guide that went with it (questionable at best) in order to get what I thought was the most out of the game. The guide costs just as much as the game and in the onset was worth every penny. The guide had tons of useful information that made the game frankly easier. In retrospect however I think my friends have way more fun playing the game because they don’t know what’s coming next. The guide for oblivion is bigger than the bible and has more pictures to boot; if you can’t beat the game with that book then you are different and strange, or maybe illiterate.
The real trouble began when I realized my time with Oblivion was officially over. Sure I could play through the game again but the itch wasn’t there. The reasons for this is for another blog entirely, but suffice to say I had had my fill. The rally cool guide I paid for became my first issue; it went from being a really cool accessory, to a book I had no hope of getting rid of outside of ebay. Now it’s just taking up space on my shelf, while my game is back at the Gamestop. Strategy Guide 1, Dante 0.
Having already been burned by the lack of resale value on a strategy guide, I decided to try my hand at a game guide free. I jumped feet first into Star Ocean: The Last Hope with no previous Star Ocean experience. This is the first time I realized that the Strategy Guide makers and game developers must be working in cahoots. There is almost no way to beat the game without some sort of help.
The maps are next to useless, like looking at a Thomas Guide with no street names. The NPC’s (non player characters) are of no practical help and are so non-distinct you have no hope of knowing who you’re talking to. And the game doesn’t help you at all keep track of where you are versus where you need to go. I was warned earlier that I should get the strategy guide because I would need it, and that friend was right.
My problem is simply this: Is it fair for game developers to be lazy in the making of a game because they know a strategy guide is coming? That’s what it feels like. If Star Ocean addressed some of these issues the game wouldn’t need a strategy guide.
I’ll be the first to admit that there is a great sense of accomplishment working puzzles and such out on your own, but I don’t have all the time in the world running around aimlessly with no ability to save in sight. I don’t mind puzzles as long as there is a function that tells me that I already went left, now it’s time to go right. The lack of anything that will help the player along in the game screams strategy guide and I think it’s a cruel way to make an extra buck or two.
At the very least, retailers like Gamestop should redo their policy on strategy guides, they should buy back undamaged guides much in the same way they buy back games, much like a college bookstore. I’d be willing to bet that they would sell more guides because gamers won’t be stuck with the guide long after discarding the game.
Fable 2 is an example of a game that does it right. Sure, there is a strategy guide, but do you need it? No, the game is very playable from Jump Street and provides an adequate challenge without forcing you to strangle yourself with your controller. In fact, if you feel you need a guide to beat Fable 2 you should have your gamers license revoked (don’t run, I won’t tell anybody you bought the guide for Fable 2….). I think from now on, all game reviews should take whether you need a guide for the game into consideration, and the guides should always be at least half the price of a used copy of the game it’s for, or at least we should be allowed to return said guide when we return the game.
In the end role playing games are a lot of fun no matter what you want to call them, but there should be a fine line between challenging and poor workmanship. Shame on the makers of Star Ocean: TLH (looking at you Square) for being outright lazy with the games guts, and thanks to the web for its free walkthroughs and strategy guides to balance an underhanded tactic.
Source
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Advances Guide Insight-Based Ad Strategy with Hard Numbers
has begun to complement insights gleaned through its editorial guides with hard numbers in the hopes of wooing advertisers. Advancing a project launched last year, the New York Times Company-owned site has conducted in-house studies on topics including the recession and healthcare to better serve advertisers and agencies.
The site today revealed findings of a healthcare related study, which showed a significant portion of respondents would be interested in very specific information in ads for health products. Nearly 30 percent said info about a certain health condition would attract their attention, while 28 percent said info on side effects and safety of medications would spark their interest.
Key to the study, suggested Cella Irvine, president and CEO of the About Group, is "the positive impact of information oriented advertising." She called the study, "part of a new approach we've been taking to help About.com advertisers understand the user mindset."
The site's sales team intends to add the new data to its arsenal to provide advertisers with a clearer sense of what About users might respond to; however, don't expect About to suggest how advertisers might inform creative decisions based on the studies. "Advertisers are the experts in knowing how to communicate to their market," said Irvine. "What we will tell them is what we hear from our users."
According to About, pharmaceutical advertisers including Bristol Myers Squibb, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Novartis, and Pfizer have advertised on the site. Wyeth Pharmaceuticals is currently running ads alongside content about Crohns disease, and promoting its rheumatoid arthritis education site on About's pages dedicated to the condition.
"We have seen an uptick recently in condition specific usage [of About.com]," said Irvine. "Our intuition is that the healthcare debate [over government healthcare reform] is making people more aware."
Around a year ago, About started taking a more consultative approach to selling ads, in the hopes of distinguishing itself from lower priced ad networks. The company's sales staff has been tapping its editorial guides for information about their niche audiences, and hired a director for its Insight Network to serve as a liaison between advertiser clients and guides.
The new study also found that 38 percent of participants had talked to a doctor after seeing a healthcare ad. In addition, 36 percent researched a drug in more detail online, 17 percent spoke to friends or family for drug recommendations, 13 percent visited a pharma company's site, and 13 percent asked their doctor for a product sample or prescription.
Source
The site today revealed findings of a healthcare related study, which showed a significant portion of respondents would be interested in very specific information in ads for health products. Nearly 30 percent said info about a certain health condition would attract their attention, while 28 percent said info on side effects and safety of medications would spark their interest.
Key to the study, suggested Cella Irvine, president and CEO of the About Group, is "the positive impact of information oriented advertising." She called the study, "part of a new approach we've been taking to help About.com advertisers understand the user mindset."
The site's sales team intends to add the new data to its arsenal to provide advertisers with a clearer sense of what About users might respond to; however, don't expect About to suggest how advertisers might inform creative decisions based on the studies. "Advertisers are the experts in knowing how to communicate to their market," said Irvine. "What we will tell them is what we hear from our users."
According to About, pharmaceutical advertisers including Bristol Myers Squibb, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Novartis, and Pfizer have advertised on the site. Wyeth Pharmaceuticals is currently running ads alongside content about Crohns disease, and promoting its rheumatoid arthritis education site on About's pages dedicated to the condition.
"We have seen an uptick recently in condition specific usage [of About.com]," said Irvine. "Our intuition is that the healthcare debate [over government healthcare reform] is making people more aware."
Around a year ago, About started taking a more consultative approach to selling ads, in the hopes of distinguishing itself from lower priced ad networks. The company's sales staff has been tapping its editorial guides for information about their niche audiences, and hired a director for its Insight Network to serve as a liaison between advertiser clients and guides.
The new study also found that 38 percent of participants had talked to a doctor after seeing a healthcare ad. In addition, 36 percent researched a drug in more detail online, 17 percent spoke to friends or family for drug recommendations, 13 percent visited a pharma company's site, and 13 percent asked their doctor for a product sample or prescription.
Source
Monday, July 20, 2009
Successful businesses should chart an exit strategy as well
MANY successful business owners often fail to chart an exit strategy for their business.
Often overlooked, this important element of strategic planning can lead to major setbacks or harm the long-term future for both the business and the owner if it is not identified and addressed accordingly.
In fact, a well-defined exit strategy should be clearly laid out during the planning, or preoperational stages, of the business. And, most notably, it requires a different approach or solution to different owners.
All too often, business owners find themselves too preoccupied with the day-to-day running and operations of the firm that they fail to make time to plan for it and let rigid personal plans drive their exit strategies.
For example, a person may plan to sell a business when he or she reaches 60, but that objective may be out of sync with the goal of maximising the selling price if, for instance, they become ill or incapacitated in some way at 58.
But should this happen without a plan in place, what would come about? Well, what ensues may be a forced sale at a sharp discount to make a quick exit.
Some even cling to a mistaken belief that someone will one day arrive to make an offer they can’t refuse for their business. This unfortunately, does not apply to most businesses.
However, with flexible and well-conceived exit strategies in place, options for next generation succession planning or intention to list the said business on the stock exchange, for example, can be clearly laid out before retirement.
A known fact is that a lack of careful sale preparation will prevent many business owners from maximising their opportunity.
The most common exit methods include:
·Selling to an outside buyer: This approach typically involves a straightforward sale and transfer of control from a business owner to a third party. The process starts with preparation of a short write-up on your business and prospects, usually called a teaser document. With interest received more information is released after confidentialities are acknowledged. Use of advisors to guide through the process and have a clear dataroom of information can help owners to streamline the process of selling their business.
·Launching an IPO: While an initial public offering (IPO) offers the highest potential payout to a business owner who is seeking to move on, the approach is not a simple one as it is time consuming and requires substantial investment. Furthermore, success largely depends on how well a company can communicate its story and growth prospects to potential investors.
The cost versus benefit of an IPO can also change one’s decision as funds raised from the IPO will require to be nett of fund raising and advisory expenses of the IPO which can be anywhere from RM1.5mil to RM3mil alone.
However, further funding requirements of the company will be easier to be raised once listed by tapping on the liquidity of the market. It is worth taking into account the recent changes to the listing rules and requirements as the regulators are making it easier to list businesses whilst making sure corporate governance is stepped up.
·Selling to current management: This succession plan is a stock ownership roadmap under which certain members of the management can assume partial ownership in the firm. Depending on how the planned exit is timetabled, this approach can allow the business owners to maintain a majority interest in the company or allow other members of the management team to gain full or majority stake in the business upon close of sale.
Options here includes terms like MBO and LBOs, where management buys over stakes from existing shareholders using their own funds or borrowed funds from external funders. This type of takeover is common in the West and growing more apparent in Asia also especially in recent times.
·Transferring control within the family: Similarly, this succession plan can take the form of a structured buyout, or a stock ownership plan as stated above – under which control can transfer immediately, or on a defined schedule. In addition to determining the financial makeup of these kinds of transactions, a sound exit strategy will include an analysis of all potential succession candidates and a recommended choice.
The problems usually faced by inter-family transfers are that key management team members who are not family may be left out in succession planning. Alternatively, the family members chosen to run the business may not necessarily be qualified to manage the complexities of business management.
And, correspondingly, establishing an accurate valuation of the business is important in preparation for all of the aforementioned exit strategies.
What is your business worth?
Answering this question is critical and is deemed as the most complex component of the selling process. It is not just number crunching, nor is it similar to real estate or equipment appraisals. It is an art of understanding an industry or business issues which may affect fair market and investment valuations.
The former is simply determining what a buyer would pay a willing seller while the latter employs a more specialised approach and considers “special benefits” that make the firm worth more than fair market value.
In arriving at an investment value, a variety of approaches are considered and used, including balance sheet analysis and market comparisons against similar businesses.
It also values tangible and intangible assets that can affect a company’s future prospect.
Here, examples of intangible assets considered for valuation include business synergies due to strategic advantages of an acquisition and strong brand awareness, to name a few.
Get your books in order
A related aspect of valuation – reasons why buyers purchase exiting businesses include expanding market share, leveraging on economies of scale and to reduce their risks – and the only way to verify the fair value of the business is to look at your books.
As such, all records such as the profit and loss statements, balance sheets, tax returns, contracts, leases, etc. need to be in order.
Having audited accounts are not only important but a necessity. Many small business owners do not have accounts and will face problems when exiting as due diligence will be difficult to ascertain true value.
Ultimately, it works back to having a good and solid business plan since having a well structured and well-conceived plan, paves a clear roadmap to bring you to your destination.
Furthermore, the business plan remains the cornerstone in determining whether you can attract potential investors to your business in the long run as it outlines your vision and how the business is to be managed in achieving its objectives.
It needs to be built with such strategies in place and should cover what you sell, your market, your company background, financial projections and specific milestones of activities. As such, planning ahead is key and exit strategies work back to the basics.
Conclusion
To sum it up, you have to be prepared. Be sure you have an exit strategy for your business, even if a sale may be years down the road. By following a sound strategy, you can get the best possible price for your business and put it in the strongest possible position to thrive after you leave.
It must be highlighted that a lack of careful preparation will prevent many business owners from maximising the opportunity due to the fact that an exit strategy, or preparation to sell your business, is not something you can do well in 12 months, but takes a few years to play out.
Source
Often overlooked, this important element of strategic planning can lead to major setbacks or harm the long-term future for both the business and the owner if it is not identified and addressed accordingly.
In fact, a well-defined exit strategy should be clearly laid out during the planning, or preoperational stages, of the business. And, most notably, it requires a different approach or solution to different owners.
All too often, business owners find themselves too preoccupied with the day-to-day running and operations of the firm that they fail to make time to plan for it and let rigid personal plans drive their exit strategies.
For example, a person may plan to sell a business when he or she reaches 60, but that objective may be out of sync with the goal of maximising the selling price if, for instance, they become ill or incapacitated in some way at 58.
But should this happen without a plan in place, what would come about? Well, what ensues may be a forced sale at a sharp discount to make a quick exit.
Some even cling to a mistaken belief that someone will one day arrive to make an offer they can’t refuse for their business. This unfortunately, does not apply to most businesses.
However, with flexible and well-conceived exit strategies in place, options for next generation succession planning or intention to list the said business on the stock exchange, for example, can be clearly laid out before retirement.
A known fact is that a lack of careful sale preparation will prevent many business owners from maximising their opportunity.
The most common exit methods include:
·Selling to an outside buyer: This approach typically involves a straightforward sale and transfer of control from a business owner to a third party. The process starts with preparation of a short write-up on your business and prospects, usually called a teaser document. With interest received more information is released after confidentialities are acknowledged. Use of advisors to guide through the process and have a clear dataroom of information can help owners to streamline the process of selling their business.
·Launching an IPO: While an initial public offering (IPO) offers the highest potential payout to a business owner who is seeking to move on, the approach is not a simple one as it is time consuming and requires substantial investment. Furthermore, success largely depends on how well a company can communicate its story and growth prospects to potential investors.
The cost versus benefit of an IPO can also change one’s decision as funds raised from the IPO will require to be nett of fund raising and advisory expenses of the IPO which can be anywhere from RM1.5mil to RM3mil alone.
However, further funding requirements of the company will be easier to be raised once listed by tapping on the liquidity of the market. It is worth taking into account the recent changes to the listing rules and requirements as the regulators are making it easier to list businesses whilst making sure corporate governance is stepped up.
·Selling to current management: This succession plan is a stock ownership roadmap under which certain members of the management can assume partial ownership in the firm. Depending on how the planned exit is timetabled, this approach can allow the business owners to maintain a majority interest in the company or allow other members of the management team to gain full or majority stake in the business upon close of sale.
Options here includes terms like MBO and LBOs, where management buys over stakes from existing shareholders using their own funds or borrowed funds from external funders. This type of takeover is common in the West and growing more apparent in Asia also especially in recent times.
·Transferring control within the family: Similarly, this succession plan can take the form of a structured buyout, or a stock ownership plan as stated above – under which control can transfer immediately, or on a defined schedule. In addition to determining the financial makeup of these kinds of transactions, a sound exit strategy will include an analysis of all potential succession candidates and a recommended choice.
The problems usually faced by inter-family transfers are that key management team members who are not family may be left out in succession planning. Alternatively, the family members chosen to run the business may not necessarily be qualified to manage the complexities of business management.
And, correspondingly, establishing an accurate valuation of the business is important in preparation for all of the aforementioned exit strategies.
What is your business worth?
Answering this question is critical and is deemed as the most complex component of the selling process. It is not just number crunching, nor is it similar to real estate or equipment appraisals. It is an art of understanding an industry or business issues which may affect fair market and investment valuations.
The former is simply determining what a buyer would pay a willing seller while the latter employs a more specialised approach and considers “special benefits” that make the firm worth more than fair market value.
In arriving at an investment value, a variety of approaches are considered and used, including balance sheet analysis and market comparisons against similar businesses.
It also values tangible and intangible assets that can affect a company’s future prospect.
Here, examples of intangible assets considered for valuation include business synergies due to strategic advantages of an acquisition and strong brand awareness, to name a few.
Get your books in order
A related aspect of valuation – reasons why buyers purchase exiting businesses include expanding market share, leveraging on economies of scale and to reduce their risks – and the only way to verify the fair value of the business is to look at your books.
As such, all records such as the profit and loss statements, balance sheets, tax returns, contracts, leases, etc. need to be in order.
Having audited accounts are not only important but a necessity. Many small business owners do not have accounts and will face problems when exiting as due diligence will be difficult to ascertain true value.
Ultimately, it works back to having a good and solid business plan since having a well structured and well-conceived plan, paves a clear roadmap to bring you to your destination.
Furthermore, the business plan remains the cornerstone in determining whether you can attract potential investors to your business in the long run as it outlines your vision and how the business is to be managed in achieving its objectives.
It needs to be built with such strategies in place and should cover what you sell, your market, your company background, financial projections and specific milestones of activities. As such, planning ahead is key and exit strategies work back to the basics.
Conclusion
To sum it up, you have to be prepared. Be sure you have an exit strategy for your business, even if a sale may be years down the road. By following a sound strategy, you can get the best possible price for your business and put it in the strongest possible position to thrive after you leave.
It must be highlighted that a lack of careful preparation will prevent many business owners from maximising the opportunity due to the fact that an exit strategy, or preparation to sell your business, is not something you can do well in 12 months, but takes a few years to play out.
Source
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