globalEDGE International Business Blog

The Michigan State University Center for International Business (MSU-CIBER) has recently released the 2009 Market Potential Index for Emerging Markets (MPI).

The study focuses primarily on emerging markets, designated by The Economist magazine. A market is determined to be an emerging market based on the distinction that it is on the cusp of transforming into a developed nation from a developing one. The economies of these nations comprise over half of the world’s population, provide a large share of the world’s output, and generally have very high growth rates in their economies, which are all key aspects of market potential.

The MPI compiles statistics from a variety of sources and then analyzes them according to eight dimensions:

Market Size
Market Growth Rate
Market Intensity
Market Consumption Capacity
Commercial Infrastructure
Economic Freedom
Market Receptivity
Country Risk

These dimensions are found to be one of the best ways to indicate how poised for growth a country's market is, and subsequently, which markets are ideal to enter into for the international business person.

Recently, social networking giant Twitter posted it's Twitter 101 for Business Guide, which is designed to enlighten both consumers and businesses to ways they can use Twitter's micro-blogging service. The guide offers advice on how businesses can use Twitter to market products and boost sales, and will also help consumers who are curious about the site but don't know how to use it or where to even begin.

We live in a world full of advertising. We see it on billboards, on TV, in the newspapers and online. The last time I went to the grocery store there were even LED advertisement screens hawking goods at the end of every checkout lane. Is there no place sacred anymore?!