Trudy Sutherland's Blog

Who’s buying up all the foreclosed homes?

Trudy Sutherland (New Hampshire Business Review) — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 20:58:18 -0700

Who's buying up all the foreclosed homes?

Friday, April 10, 2009

Farzana Alamgir bought a toxic asset that is now her home. It's in a small residential circle near the Beaver Meadow Golf Course in Concord.

"It's a good time to buy," said Alamgir. "Of course, I feel uncomfortable knowing that someone lost this house."

The previous owner had paid $280,000 in 1995 for the home, taking out a mortgage from now-bankrupt First Magnus Financial Corp., an Arizona company that used to originate loans without verifying income, selling them off on the secondary market.

This borrower apparently got in over his head, owing Fannie Mae - which either bought or insured the loan - $220,000 before it foreclosed on the property last year.

For more on this story go to www.nhbr.com

http://nhbr.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090410/INDUSTRY09/904089945/-1/NEWS05

New publication targeting baby boomers here in NE

Trudy Sutherland (New Hampshire Business Review) — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 14:05:17 -0700

Just looking to get the word out, I'm working on a new publication for McLean Communications called BOOM!

Please check it out on line at www.boomne.com and email me if you would like more info at tsutherland@nhbr.com

New Hampshire Business Review the Best of Business Awards

Trudy Sutherland (New Hampshire Business Review) — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 09:54:05 -0800

NH Business Review's BOB Awards

Starts: Wednesday March 18, 2009, 06:00PM Ends: Wednesday March 18, 2009, 09:00PM

Event Type: Networking/Meetup

Location: Grappone Center at Courtyard Marriott, Concord 70 Constitution Ave Concord, NH 03301 US

Website: http://www.nhbr.com/bob

Industry: marketing and advertising

Keywords: Networking B2B business awards marketing advertising meet-ups advertising public relations

Intended For: marketing managers, marketing directors, sales managers, sales directors, business owners, presidents, ceo, cfo, advertising agencies, public relations

Organization: NH Business Review

New Hampshire Business Review the Best of Business Awards –BOBS, honoring businesses in over 80 business-to-business categories. The winners were picked in a statewide readership poll.

Consider this your invitation to an exclusive networking event.

Hang out with the people who make it happen in NH & spend time with old and new friends in the BOB Lounge, filled with sofas and small spaces to catch up with folks (and maybe make a deal or two?).

MAKING PERSONAL CONNECTIONS, CREATING NEW OPPORTUNITIES – THE BOBS - MAKE SURE YOUR NAME IS AT THE DOOR. Wednesday, March 18, 2009 Reservations at www.nhbr.com/bob

Double Down on Strategic Advertising

Trudy Sutherland (New Hampshire Business Review) — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:18:37 -0800

See this article on line:

http://www.bnet.com/2403-13241_23-251352.html

by Susanna Hamner and John Maas

The scenario: Hard-sell or luxury-oriented ad campaigns are starting to sound tone deaf to recession-wary consumers. Some competitors are pulling back on advertising.

The tactic: Increase communication with customers to show how your product can ease the difficulties they're going through.

Advertising budgets often become easy prey during down markets - but companies that start to slash do so at their own peril. "If there's any time to increase communication, it's during a recession," says Andrew Razeghi, a marketing professor at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management. During the recession that followed September 11, just 25 percent of all companies boosted their ad spending - and those that did saw their market share rise more than twice as fast as it typically rises during a normal economy, according to a 2001 Cahners Advertising research report. According to a MarketSense study, during the recession of 1989-91, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell saw sales jump by 61 percent and 40 percent, respectively, after pumping more money into advertising, while McDonald's slashed its ad budget and saw sales drop 28 percent. It's not that easy, of course.

Marketers need to spend smart - and tune their message to customers' shifting attitudes during a financial crisis. "The closer a brand can cozy up to a consumer with a message along the lines of 'we're all in this together,' the better off a brand will be," says John Quelch, a Harvard Business School professor and author of Greater Good: How Good Marketing Makes for Better Democracy. For instance, a credit-card company should change its message from "use our card to give memorable holiday gifts" to "our card gives you the most money back." Taking advantage of its "Talk to Chuck" campaign, brokerage giant Charles Schwab brought out its CEO this fall to reinforce a calming message of reassurance. "I've been through at least nine of these ... and I've learned that I have to keep my patience," Schwab says in one commercial. What's the logic here? "The recession is sufficiently serious that investors don't just want to talk to Chuck, they want to see Chuck," Quelch says. "He's a savvy person capable of holding the hand of the younger investor." For companies without a high-profile "Chuck," the communications budget may be better spent on smaller hand-holding gestures. Razeghi suggests preparing white papers about the recession to send to valued customers. "It reassures folks you're still in the game," he says. Caution: Now is not the time for positive, brand-focused campaigns that won't resonate with cash-strapped customers. But don't campaign on fear, either. "People are sufficiently panicked already," Quelch says. "A message that exacerbated the fear would be counterproductive."