I am back from South Africa and ready to report on my experience. In my last blog entry I promised to provide feedback on how FIFA sponsors leverage the World Cup sponsorship opportunities in South Africa and beyond. Most of my trip was around Johannesburg area and the North West of South Africa, so my reporting is based on what I have seen in the industrial part of the country.

Here is the fact: World Cup is the largest sporting event in the world. On average each game will be watched by 265 million people worldwide - and there are 64 games! It is bigger than Olympics and Super Bowl combined and US marketers started seeing it as well. How global corporations capitalize on this event is something I want to write about here.

Here are some of the major World Cup sponsorship deals:

 Adidas

I must admit I have been one of the pickiest travelers lately. With so many choices and cheap fares, travelers are much more spoiled than before, especially corporate travelers. In order to boost the so-called Business Class Load Factor (percentage of all business class filled seats on a plane), airlines decreased the required amount of MQMs (qualifying miles) passengers need to reach a "special " status.

I recently read an interesting article in Time magazine regarding the new Census NOT labeling Hispanics as a race. Hispanics are labeled as "origin", but in the race category Hispanics have a choice of either "Black", "White" or "Other". The debate has been very heated over the issue and Time magazine has a great article describing the consequences that the nation will face in 2011.

Also, check our own section on Post 2010 analysis:

Hi, Marketers:

Today, I want to talk about an evolution of SWOT analysis. It seems like such an old term that everyone in college had to learn and quickly forget. However, there is no management or marketing plan that lacks these four letters. SWOT analysis has its critics as well, who claim it to be a distraction and a waste of time. Judge for yourself.