Xenophon Strategies

Josh Stewart

 Consumer products are perhaps the most competitive of any segment of our economy.  Snack-foods especially, are constantly looking to differentiate themselves.  Every day there is intense competition for consumer attention from food giants like Frito-Lay , Kettle Brand, Utz and many others.

Recently, popchips an “all-natural” snack food that markets itself as a healthy alternative to potato chips, debuted a viral-style marketing campaign based on a fake...

Matt Meenan

It’s been a rough couple of weeks for financial giant Goldman Sachs. First, Executive Director Greg Smith resigned in spectacular fashion with a blistering op-ed in the New York Times blasting the firm’s “toxic and destructive” culture. In the wake of the story, Goldman’s stock price took a quick,...

Blake Rhodes

Business leaders often revel in getting customer feedback so they can refine their product or message. Imagine hearing from 20,000 of your best customers all at once. Great, if they’re happy. Not so great, if they’re not.

Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob recently had a not-so-pleasant experience when the team’s fan base displayed its displeasure over the trade of popular player Monta Ellis when he was roundly...

Blake Rhodes

Since the Costa Concordia ran aground last week in Italy, Costa Cruise Lines and its parent company, Carnival Corporation, have seen their reputations and bottom lines suffer severe blows.  While a crisis situation could be around the corner for virtually any company, planning for and effectively enacting a crisis response plan can mitigate damage to a company’s reputation and financial ledger.

From the crew’s delayed and fumbled reactions after the ship hit the...