Growth of Mobile Apps

The growth of mobile apps was almost like an overnight sensation.  Well to the public that is always how it seems.  The developers’ feel like it takes forever for the concept to catch on, but for the rest of the world, it comes around unexpectedly.  This growth is helped by the percentage of smartphone users.  Over 50% of the U.S population owns a smartphone (Cocotas, 2012). 

An example in the fast growth of mobile apps is the overnight sensation of the app Draw Something.  Draw something was released to users in early February, and after 9 days had already acquired about 1 million downloads (Cocotas, 2012).  The growth did not stop there, because after six weeks, the game had approximately 35 million downloads (Cocotas, 2012). 

Opportunity Finance Network

Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) is a network that helps provide investment opportunities to community development financial institutions (CDFI’s) benefiting “low-income, low wealth, and other disadvantaged communities across America” (Opportunity Finance Network, 2012).  Within this Network the CDFI’s deliver “responsible, affordable lending to help low-income, low wealth, and other disadvantaged people and communities join the economic mainstream” (Opportunity Finance Network, 2012).  

Helpful TIps When Writing a Business Plan

I am currently in the process of writing the business plan for my company.  When I started my business plan I was not sure what to expect.  I was also not sure if I could effectively include everything that is needed in order to have a successful business plan.  I researched experts Dave Lavinsky and Tim Berry in order to give me some guidance when writing my business plan.  As I continue to write my business plan, there are a few things that I want to take from these experts that I did not think of before.

Business Plan Experts

According to SBA.gov, a business plan “defines your business, identifies your goals and serves as your firm’s resume” (U.S. Small Business Administration, 2012).  Many times entrepreneurs, looking to start a new business, will seek out the help from business plan experts.  Some experts help write the business plan with you, or they give you the necessary tools needed to write a successful business plan yourself.  I am currently in the process of writing my own business plan, so after researching some business plan experts; I want to share with you the thoughts and ideas from Dave Lavinsky and Tim Berry.

LinkedIn

Social media has taken over by storm.  These sites help stimulate many different needs for their audiences and some sites have become a part of people daily routines.  The impact that social media has on people lives is amazing.  This is where people keep up with the personal lives of their friends and celebrities.  When I think of social media I think of sites such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Pintrest, and Google +.  However, there are more sites then these and that is what I want to focus on.  I want to focus on a site, that brings business professionals together, and has become popular in its on right, and that site is LinkedIn.

Effectiveness of Digital Marketing in the Music Industry

The music industry never has a consistent trend.  This is because the music industry is ever evolving and today’s #1 hit is tomorrow’s one hit wonder.  However, when marketing started to become digitally based, record companies, artist managers, and artist seemed to be hesitant to the idea. 

The music industry has marketed music and artists a certain way for many years.  Marketing used to be done by hiring an agent and driving from city to city, or from store to store selling records (Digital Fire, 2011).   Now digital marketing, especially through social sites, not only promotes artists’ music, but also allows the fans to build a relationship with the artist. 

Dubstep

Dubstep is a vastly growing trend in the music industry in the United States.  Originating in the U.K. dubstep is defined by allmusic.com as “a genre of electronic dance music” said to be “tightly coiled productions with overwhelming bass lines and reverberant drum patterns, clipped samples, and occasional vocals.”  This electronic, computerized sound started showing up in the middle of hits from artist such as Britney Spears, Nicki Minaj, Flo-Rida, Kanye West, Jay Z and many more.