Maui Printing Company

Arnel Pineda never imagined that he would be fronting the world-famous rock band, Journey, when he began singing American rock songs with his friends' band as a teenager. For years his exceptional singing talent had been good enough to belt out songs with club bands doing parties, special events, contests, weddings, and regular appearances around the Philippines, Pineda's home country. However, one evening Pineda was filmed doing his performance with a particular Journey song, "Don't Stop Believin'." The performance, as well as Pineda's accuracy in singing the song so similar to how the original version was sung by the first Journey frontman, Steve Perry, shocked people. It also shocked the guitarist and an original member of Journey, Neil Schon, when he watched the YouTube video as well. One would think that the fairytale story ended at this point as Pineda rocketed to fame as Journey's replacement singer. However, that's not quite how things ...

Pierre Omidyar didn't plan to start a mega-corporation in the late fall of 1995. In fact, all he wanted to do was get rid of some computer equipment he had laying around by selling it through a digital garage sale. However, once he realized how popular his simple web page started to become, and the fact that he could charge a fee for folks to use it, eBay was born. In three short years, the eBay online auction concept went from a private website to a viable business that quickly began to explode. Omidyar had hit on what many in business invention call a "primal need," something that everybody needs and doesn't yet exist. With the help of Jeff Skoll, Omidyar brought in Meg Whitman, the same Whitman who later ran for California's governor, and corporate eBay took off. By 1998, eBay had gone beyond just selling used and collection items and was quickly becoming a viable brand name for online selling in general. The model continues today and competes directly ...

If you ask the owners of many large, family-owned businesses what keeps everyone together, you may notice a trend: philanthropy. Helping others truly does run in the family, and multigenerational businesses are in a unique position to pass along not just the business perspective needed to be successful, but also how to have a positive impact on the community. Even if kids are too young to be involved in the family business, it's never too early to begin coaching children about why it is important to help those who are less fortunate. It's not just large organizations that benefit from giving back -- family businesses of all sizes find that philanthropy offers a way for all ages to come together around a common goal. Teaching Financial Stewardship While most parents strive to raise children that are strong and confident of their place in the world, the reality is that there will always be others who do not have the same opportunities for nutrition, good schools, and a lo...

Fall is a beautiful time of year with cooler weather in some regions, and connotations of family in all parts of the country. Fall brings with it traditional themes of back to school, falling leaves, carving pumpkins, football, and fall holidays. One of the most popular traditions during the fall season is the range of pumpkin-flavored treats available. Using these themes, you can create campaigns to drive new customers and return business. 1. Giveaways and Contests It is always fun to promote a coupon or giveaway with a fall flavor. These can include coupons to neighboring businesses for cross-promotion or sweepstakes for fall gifts. For B2B companies, it is best to keep these rewards under $10 because some industries have strict limits on what they can receive as gifts. Easy gifts are seasonal doughnuts, bags of coffee, pumpkin pie or other food specialties of the season. If you prefer to offer non-food rewards, small sports-related gifts make good selections. It is best to h...

Productivity really is the secret to everything in terms of your business' success. Happier employees tend to be more productive, which is why it is essential that you focus on things like corporate culture and team-building exercises whenever the opportunity arises. Many people don't realize, however, that this is only one small part of a much larger story. It isn't enough for your employees to be happy - healthy employees are also significantly more productive than those who are not, which is why if you're not already making health and wellness top priorities within your organization now would be an excellent time to start. Healthy Employees and Productivity: Facts and Figures According to a series of studies that were recently conducted on the subject, healthy employees may be a whole lot more valuable than you've even realized: On average, employees who eat healthy foods (or who at least make an effort to do so) tend to be about 25% more pr...

One of the things that Google is famous for is data-based decision making. When they want to find the most effective way to do something, they look at the numbers and work from there. However, even a company as married to analytics as Google is vulnerable to lapses and oversights. Recently, their data showed that their process for hiring and promoting the best managers for the job was all wrong. When you look at where Google made their mistake and what they did to correct it, you could save your company some money and heartache and also create a more effective workplace. Google's Error and Assumption Besides a dedication to data, Google's other key characteristic is a high regard for technical expertise. Tech savviness was so prized that, historically, it was one of the top factors in whether someone would get promoted to management. When Google set out to learn whether their hiring and promoting strategy was working, they discovered something interesting: the b...

What do Whopper Juniors and bullying have in common these days? They are both being talked about. A LOT. Recently, Burger King released a three-minute video in honor of National Bullying Prevention month . The viral video revealed that 95 percent of customers were willing to report their smashed, "bullied" Whopper Jr., but only 12 percent stood up for a high school student being harassed in the same store. The "No Junior Deserves to be Bullied" spot received national attention, generating countless online shares and loads of free publicity. One blogger said this: "Yes, this is basically a three-minute Burger King ad. And, yes, it's not subtle. But this PSA is better than it has a right to be, and is certainly more than you'd expect from a restaurant that doesn't really have an ethical obligation beyond selling burgers . . . this weirdly good anti-bullying PSA will wreck your day ." Viral: Why Certain Messages Multi...

A brand is more than just a company logo, and it's bigger than any one particular product or service. Instead, it's the feeling that people get when they think about your company. It's what goes into the instinct they have regarding whether or not to make a purchase. A brand is also massively important in terms of how successful your marketing efforts will be in the long-term. The impression someone has of your brand is something that occurs almost immediately. 48% of consumers say that they are more likely to become loyal to a brand if their first experience is a positive one, regardless of whether or not that experience actually took the form of a purchase. That means your brand must be protected at all costs, particularly in the real-time information age that we're now living in. People are being marketed to from nearly every angle. If you don't work hard to strengthen and hone your brand, you run the risk of being lost in the shuffle. Hope is not lost,...