How Sales, Marketeing, Branding & Digital Dysfunction Are Dragging You Down

Getting sales and marketing to talk to each other may feel like torture, but it has never been more critical – especially for the more than 5 million mid-market industrial and B2B companies in the U.S.The digital age and a host of technology developments have exposed four major flaws in traditional B2B marketing practices:• Lack of coordination between brand, sales/marketing and digital activities• Dedication to sales at the expense of marketing• The slowness of firms to focus their online voice• Failure to recognize that the internet has changed the sales dynamicB2B companies are struggling to leverage the internet to sell and grow. Unlike consumer product companies, they’ve been slow off the mark in the digital race due a traditional but flawed rationale that branding and digital communications can’t really help their ‘relationship’ style of selling.What’s become glaringly obvious is that three core marketing functions – brand, sales/marketing and digital communications – don’t behave as if they have anything in common. Worse, they don’t work together to build equity, share of mind, customer loyalty, or sales for B2B enterprises.The open secret always was that sales and marketing were never really very integrated. In some firms, they didn’t even like or talk to each other. Not to mention that in many B2B firms, ‘sales and marketing’ actually means ‘sales.’But because the internet has made company ‘walls’ ever more transparent, there are few secrets. Employees complain, whistle blowers whistle, bloggers gossip, e-mails get forwarded, the news media investigates, and your customers actually know all about you – your product benefits and even your prices – before you ever hit their door. So what are you actually selling?When a company’s brand, its sales force, and its digital activity aren’t in lockstep, customers notice. At best, customers scratch their heads at this lack of coordination; at worst and more commonly, firms are losing credibility, customer satisfaction and opportunity because they can’t get their act together.In 2014, Forbes Insights published, Breaking Down Marketing Silos: The Key to Consistently Achieving Customer Satisfaction and Improving Your Bottom Line.Forbes noted that the challenges with marketing silos mean:1. Each silo may have its own brand vision, creating a disjointed experience and message for the customer.2. Team incentives may motivate some team members to exploit and damage the brand in order to boost short-term sales.3. Poorly integrated teams suffer from inadequate cooperation.4. Silo interests stand in the way of programs that require scaling.5. Key growth areas such as digital are not scaled because they are dispersed across silos.6. Success in one silo is leveraged slowly into others, or not at all.And not listed, but in the mix: Inconsistent customer experience across divisions and functions.The good news is that with the right market data, the marketing function is uniquely positioned to lead the charge for integration in the name of better service to the customer. Forbes pointed out why marketing is primed for a leadership role in integration:1. Marketing brings an outside point of view.2. Marketing can articulate the unique truth of the company and what differentiates it within the marketplace.3. Marketing can communicate the product and value-why products are relevant to customers in different ways, identifying segmentation in the market.4. Marketing creates compelling stories for rallying employees and making an emotional connection with customers.5. Marketing is a strategic seat at the table; there is no other department that can see such a company panorama and bring those perspectives together.To overcome the silo issue, the report concludes by offering best practices for CMO’s:1. Replace competition and isolation among silos with communication and cooperation.2. Consolidate when necessary.3. Act as a facilitator, establishing frameworks, encouraging collaboration through teams and knowledge hubs, and upgrading marketing talent.4. Think like a consultant: create company-wide insights, train marketing talent and participate in strategy development.5. Secure access to the C-suite. Teradata found that marketers with executive responsibilities are almost twice as likely as others to believe that there are no barriers to interdepartmental integration.6. Force integration. In Teradata’s study, marketers say the best way for marketing to become more intertwined with other functions is to set up integrated processes.For some firms, these are lofty marketing ideals. But there are practical steps smaller companies can take to force different thinking and action. But there are practical steps smaller companies can take to encourage different thinking and action. One is to use research and market data strategically – know the customer better than anyone else. A second step is to stop planning functionally and start planning via a ‘communications & experience canvass.’ What does the customer need to feel, see and hear? How do we ‘behave the brand?’ Who is responsible for delivering that? What are the methods for delivery?In short, turn the silos sideways. With this framework, suddenly a lot more people see and serve their responsibility to serve the customer – including functions such as accounting, help desk, order fulfillment and e-commerce managers, and the c-suite.

5 Reasons Why You Should Not Do SEO Yourself – The Honest Guide!

Almost everyone can be successful online if they take the time to understand and apply the SEO principles. But understanding SEO principles and differentiating between SEO myths and facts will most certainly take months if not years to do. Most people know the theory behind SEO but have never taken the time to apply it themselves.That is where SEO companies come in. Some of them provide you standard services with minimal benefit while others are expert in providing unique services, which their competitors just cannot copy.The bottom line is that unless you have spent months or years understanding SEO and applying it, it is better to outsource this job to someone more experienced in this area. Here are 5 reasons why you should not do SEO yourself:1. SEO is all about experience: Almost everyone can undertake SEO but most of the people do not know how to do it right. Seasoned SEO consultants have spent years testing out different techniques and have met with many failures on their way to success. If you do not have the time to apply SEO techniques yourself, it is better to outsource this job.2. There are only 24 hours in a day: Good quality links are comparatively more difficult to find. It is very difficult and time-consuming for a beginner to successfully find good quality links. When I started in the internet marketing realm, I used to put 5 hours daily for 3 months and got only 600 links to my website! Good SEO consultants know where to get the links from and how to do the job quickly. If you are a beginner, do not spend your valuable hours doing the link building yourself. Hire an SEO firm to do the job for you!3. There are too many factors involved: As I keep on studying SEO, I am exposed to new stuff that did not even exist to me before. While many SEO books try to simplify the whole game by presenting you with a list of factors, it is a horrible over-simplification. Although basic SEO can be done quite quickly, getting your website ranked high for competitive keywords requires you to do a lot of things right at the same time.4. Buying SEO software can be costly: If you start doing your websites SEO yourself, you will need to invest a considerable amount in buying good quality SEO software. Although SEO can be done without the software, doing so severely diminishes your chances of success. SEO consultants and firms have already invested in the needed software, which makes them more efficient for the job! If you hire them, you do not have to pay the hefty price of buying and understanding the SEO software yourself.5. You can hold the SEO firms accountable: This is one of the best points why you should not do the SEO yourself. If you hire an SEO consultant, he can be held accountable for the results he provides you. In contrast, if you do SEO in the wrong way, it is only you who is held accountable for the lack of good results. Clearly, if you are not that experienced in SEO, you need to outsource this job in order to reduce your risk.

Bad Credit Car Loan Vs Guaranteed Auto Financing – Will You Save Money?

You’re in the market to buy a new car and that’s great. Today most everyone buying a new vehicle will need some form of auto financing and if you find your personal finances or credit are less than perfect, you can still get a very affordable car financing if you know how.An informed car buyer is a smart car buyer. When you know your auto financing options and you have your car financing set up and approved before you talk to any sales person, you can walk into a car dealership and negotiate a better deal on your terms without feeling intimidated, regardless of your financial situation.If you know that you have certain credit challenges, you should understand the differences between bad credit car loans and guaranteed auto financing.Bad Credit Car Loans…Bad Credit Car Loans typically have been available through new car dealerships on the purchase of a new car or a pre-owned certified used vehicle. The actual auto loan financing paper-work is handled at the dealership but in general, the bad credit car loan finance contract is sold off to another lender. That lender will maintain and service your loan. Loans typically have a term of 24 months up to 60 months. The downsides to a bad credit car loan are that many franchise car dealerships are not set up to arrange these type loans in-house, interest rates and cost can vary widely and limit your auto purchase choices.Guaranteed Auto Financing…Guaranteed Auto Financing differs from a bad credit car loan primarily in that this type financing is offered directly by smaller or independent auto facilities. Your finance contract is provided by the actual auto wholesale dealer and the loan is paid directly to the auto dealer that sold you the car. In other words, you would be financing your car purchase from the company that owns it and sold you the vehicle. Guaranteed auto financing is used for the purchase of used or pre-owned vehicles and not typically for purchasing a brand new car or truck. Loan terms are shorter than more conventional auto loans and they rarely offer terms over 36 months.The big advantage to guaranteed auto financing is that often no credit check is required to obtain this financing. Payments are normally made weekly and sometimes in person. One disadvantage to this type of auto loan is that many car dealers providing guaranteed auto financing will never report your credit to the credit bureaus. So if you’re making payments regularly and establishing an excellent payment history, this will not be reflected in improving your personal credit profile or your credit score.Your best approach would be to start now and see what financing options are available for you. There are excellent specialized auto financing services available online today that offer a whole range of affordable car loan programs even if you’ve been turned down for financing or you have poor credit, bad credit or other financial considerations, you’ll be surprised at how they can help you to buy a new car.You see now that there are major differences between a bad credit car loan and guaranteed auto financing and there are other financing options besides these. Get approved for the best car loan for you first, then walk into the car dealers and negotiate on your terms.

An Introduction to Event Entertainment

Planning an event can be frustrating and exhausting. The number of decisions that you need to make is only outstripped by the flood of details you need to manage. Invitations, seating arrangements, catering details and decorations are only a few of the items that must be dealt with well in advance of your event. One of the most important components is your event entertainment. Most types of events require some form of performance to amuse (or even distract) the attendees. Below, you’ll discover the types of events that need entertainers as well as the types of entertainment that are available.What Kinds Of Events Need Entertainment?Practically every type of event can benefit from having some form of entertainment. Not only will it allow your guests to enjoy themselves more fully, it can also make your event memorable. For example, you may host a birthday party for your child. Hiring a clown to entertain the children can be a great way to captivate the children while the adults enjoy their own conversations.On the other hand, you may be in charge of planning a corporate event that will draw top executives in your industry. In this case, hiring event entertainment can may include a live band, impersonators, or professional speakers. Whether you’re planning a wedding, a dinner party, retirement celebration, or industry show, hiring entertainers for the event can give the occasion an extra boost of distinction.Popular Types Of EntertainmentThere are many different types of event entertainment. Your choice will largely depend on the type of event you’re planning and your audience. One of the most popular types is live music. Few people dislike music. The key is selecting the proper music for your attendees. You can also hire comedians or impersonators for your event. Like music, most people enjoy humor as long as it’s matched properly to the audience. Another option is to hire 1 or more performers. These can include hypnotists, jugglers, dancers and even magicians. If you’re hosting an industry show, consider hiring a professional speaker. That person can address industry concerns or deliver a motivational speech to inspire your audience.Considerations When Hiring The TalentThe key to hiring talent for your event entertainment is to understand the type of event you’re planning and the audience you hope to attract. An older crowd will likely enjoy different forms of entertainment than a younger crowd. Some events are naturally compatible with professional speakers while other events are better served with live music. Once you have decided on the type of entertainer to hire, work with them closely to ensure they deliver the performance you know your guests will enjoy.

Starting An Internet Marketing Business Online

Are you looking to start an internet marketing business online? If so, you need to know exactly what you’re getting yourself into. Don’t think you can just enter into this industry and expect to start making millions of dollars within the next 6 months. I get requests from people all the time telling me that they want to be making $5,000 per month within 3 months. And these are people who have never sold a thing online!One thing that you need to know is that when starting an internet marketing business online, you “kind of” have the world at your feet. There’s plenty of places to advertise, there’s plenty of ways to get free traffic to your site, there’s plenty of business owners looking to learn how to do effective marketing online, and etc. So you can be kind of spoiled once you get your hands on some training materials.But understand that you are operating in a HIGH competition arena. A smart thing that you could do is to offer internet marketing services to local small businesses in your area. Most offline small business owners don’t have a clue about how to market their business online. But in the online world, people have training thrown at them all the time.So I guess the best question to ask yourself is: “How am I different?” Right?? You don’t want to be a “me-too” person when marketing your products and services online. This applies if you choose to be a coach, consultant, or sell products such as books, CD’s, DVD’s, or even magazines. So how are you different? How will you separate yourself from the pack and differentiate yourself from everyone else online who are making the same claims as you?It’s something you need to think about when launching your own internet marketing business online. Where most people get tripped up at is when, they read someone’s free eBook about internet marketing, and then go and buy a large resell rights package that is ALL ABOUT internet marketing.Each product in the package contains something about internet marketing. More often than not, the resell rights bundle may contain products about:Email marketing
Forum marketing
YouTube marketing
General internet marketing
Consumer buying behavior
Copywriting
Etc (the list goes on and on)
And most of these people spend YEARS trying to figure out a way to sell these products – if not sell them as a bundle. OR if not resell the same offer that they bought to receive these items. After years of failure, they usually leave feeling depressed, broke, and convinced that making money online is impossible… if not a scam. And this is just not true.All of these kinds of products are supposed to teach people about niche marketing. Especially a general product about internet marketing. The real pros who sell internet marketing products successfully sell them primarily for a good reason: THEY SELL THEM FOR VERY HIGH PRICES.They sell one course about internet marketing at $200. Then they backend sell you for another similar course at $500. Then they sell you another similar course with huge bonuses for $1000. Then they sell their 3-day seminar and invite you to attend… for the price of $2000. THEN they convince you to sign up for their monthly newsletter or membership website, and charge you $50/month to join.How rich do you think you would be if you were to successfully get people to buy your products at these price ranges?Meanwhile, you’re being convinced that selling $19 eBooks will save you from your day job. This is just not the case. To make $100,000 by selling $19 eBooks, you would have to sell 5000 eBooks per year. That comes out to 416 eBooks per month. Which means you would have to sell 104 eBooks per week. Which thus means you would have to sell 14 eBooks per day.How are you going to sell 13 eBooks per day and you’re struggling to make even a dime of profit selling a $5 eBook on eBay? You have to learn a lot about internet marketing if you want to make a lot of money in this business. ESPECIALLY if you’re selling information about “internet marketing”. If you’re not a guru and have been selling other niche products successfully online, don’t enter into this broad arena.The gurus who are selling “internet marketing” products successfully have a plan that have worked well for them over the years. EVEN IF they lose money on the first sale of getting that first customer, they know how to recoup their lost, and then still profit on the next sale that they make from that customer.They know their numbers. They know their sales conversion rate, their cost per lead, cost per sale, and their average long term value of a customer. Let me ask you a question:If you knew that for every 1 customer you acquired, that you were going to make an average of $5000 over the lifetime of that customer spending money with you… would you care if you lost $5 just to acquire them in the first place? Of course you wouldn’t care.But I’m sure you would care if you were spending $5 to acquire them, and then not selling to them again to recoup your profits. That would mean that for every customer you get, you would be losing $5 per sale… forever. You have to market to these customers over and over again to recoup a frontend loss. This is called “backend marketing”.If you want to get started online in the internet marketing business, you have to bring your A-game and have a mathematical plan of how you’re going to make money. There’s a lot to learn, but once you gain an understanding of how marketing online works (and how marketing in general works)… you’ll be well on your way to success in your business.If you’re going to buy a resell rights bundle package, at least READ the information in the products you acquired so that you can know how to sell them successfully. Don’t be a hopeless cause.

Cheap Personal Loans UK – A Source of Low Cost Finance

A cheap loan is what every borrower is looking for when he shops around for sourcing the finance for personal utilization. Fortunately, there are many lenders who are providing loans at cheap rate to the satisfaction of different kinds of borrowers in the UK. Cheap personal loans UK are best suited for borrowers as the loans come at lower interest rate and easier terms-conditions. Even a bad credit is not at all an impediment in taking the loan.Cheap personal loans UK are offered to the borrowers at lower interest rate. A lower rate of interest is crucial for completing different works at low cost. But the lower interest rate depends on some factors. For availing cheap personal loans it would be better if the borrower offers any of his property like home or automobile as collateral with the lender. With the loan well secured and risks reduced to minimum, providers of secured cheap personal loans can offer a lower interest rate. What is more if the amount borrowed is kept lower than equity in the property placed as collateral, lender may even offer the loan at reduced interest rate.Under secured cheap personal loans UK any amount ranging from £5000 to £75000 can be borrowed. The repayment duration for the secured loans ranges from 5 to 30 years. This means if you opt for larger repayment duration the borrowed amount can be spread up to number of installments. Your per- month monetary outgo towards installments thus is reduced substantially and you have more money for meeting expenses.If you do not own a property, still unsecured cheap personal loans UK are the option available. Though the interest rate on the unsecured cheap personal loans is little higher because of some risks, you can avail a comparatively lower interest rate on comparing different lenders. If the borrower boasts of an excellent credit history, the unsecured personal loans are available to such borrowers at comparatively cheaper rate of interest. Lenders would not like to loose such a borrower. No collateral is required for unsecured personal loans UK and instead proof of annual income and employment etc is considered enough for approval of the loan.Bad credit is no problem if secured cheap personal loans are the option as in case of payment default the lender can recover the loan on selling bad credit borrower’s property placed as collateral. For the unsecured cheap personal loans however a bad credit borrower has to show proof of repaying capacity through annual income, bank accounts and employments or any other documents.It would benefit more if borrower compares various cheap personal loans UK providers on their web sites. Compare their interest rates to arrive at a suitable lender offering cheaper rate. Apply online to the lender. Online lenders charge no fee on processing loan application which also reduces cost of availing the loan. The loans are approved within days for timely utilization.Thus cheap personal loans UK are source of cheap finance to all type of borrowers. The installments should be cleared regularly so that debts are avoided and also the credit score gets improved.

Auto Loans For People With No Credit Or Bad Credit

A bad credit signifies that the person has a poor credit history due to various reasons such as skipping the monthly loan redemption amount (Monthly installments that one pays to “pay off” the loan), untimely loan repayment habits, exceeding the credit limit, and even declaring bankruptcy. Basically, all the financial activities associated with the loan are recorded by the lenders when they provide the loan facility.When the person starts making timely payments to the lender, the fact is included in the credit history, and this creates a “good” impression of the borrower, which will improve the credit ratings. However, when the opposite happens i.e. the person fails to fulfill the terms and conditions mentioned in the loan agreement, it creates a negative or a “bad” impression which lowers the credit score. This gives rise to “bad credit” ratings. On the other hand, some individuals like college graduates and business persons using cash while carrying out their financial transactions do not have any credit record or history, since they might have never availed any credit or loan facilities in the past. Such a condition is interpreted as a “no credit” status.In both the cases, financers and money lenders hesitate while providing the loan, since they are unsure about the repayment capacity of the borrower. So both the credit conditions create problems for the loan applicant when he or she applies for the credit facility. The money lenders thus provide loans having stringent terms and conditions associated with the repayment activity to these kinds of borrowers. Typically financers provide “no credit auto loans” to individuals having a “no credit” type of credit status, and “bad credit auto loans” to those who do not have a good credit history.Bad Credit LoansThe main problems associated with a bad credit status can prevent the applicant from getting the much required car loan. The issues are;• The rate of interest associated with bad credit auto loans is higher as compared to a traditional or a normal loan generally provided by banks and lending institutes. While availing auto loans for people with bad credit, the interest rate depends upon the person’s credibility which is stated by the credit history. When the repaying history is not so good and indicates late or missed monthly payments, the lenders choose to earn back the capital provided as soon as possible, and keeping a higher rate of interest facilitates them in doing just that.• Bad credit ratings also indicate a possibility of “bad debt” in the past. So a higher debt to income ratio indicates there is a greater likely hood of the borrower defaulting in the future. The lenders cater to this risk factor by linking strict repayment plans and heavy fines and penalties for late or missed payments. The idea is to create conditions which force the borrower to make regular payments, and by imposing heavy fines as well as penalties, the borrower is intimidated in being more regular with the redemption.• Individuals availing a bad credit auto loan cannot opt for the bankruptcy option and write off the outstanding amount of unsecured loans such as credit card credit loans.No Credit LoansThe following pointers can help you in creating good credit ratings which can help the borrowers avail auto loans for people with no credit;• It’s recommended to open a savings account. This creates an impression that the individual is responsible and believes in saving money. Lenders believe if the person is likely to save money; it is going to be easy to recover the outstanding dues in case the person defaults in the future.• Avail credit card facilities and go in for low credit limits. Make sure you do not overdraw, and make timely credit card payments so that your account remains in good standing. It is important to make sure you do not incur any credit card debt. Maintaining a proper account status will reflect within the credit history and improve your ratings and credit score.• While applying for the online auto loans, make sure you exhibit a sound and steady background to your lender. Stating a permanent residential address, longer employment history and proof, valid contact numbers that are operative can go a long way in creating a good impression and improving your credit scores.• Getting a good reference from your employer or business associates can further strengthen your application for your no credit auto loan.• If possible get a co-signer who can vouch for you and provide the financial guarantee to the moneylender.

S&P 500 Rallies As U.S. Dollar Pulls Back Towards Weekly Lows

Key Insights
The strong pullback in the U.S. dollar provided significant support to stocks.
Treasury yields have pulled back after touching new highs, which served as an additional positive catalyst for S&P 500.
A move above 3730 will push S&P 500 towards the resistance level at 3760.
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Pfizer Rallies After Announcing A Huge Price Hike For Its COVID-19 Vaccines
S&P 500 is currently trying to settle above 3730 as traders’ appetite for risk is growing. The U.S. dollar has recently gained strong downside momentum as the BoJ intervened to stop the rally in USD/JPY. Weaker U.S. dollar is bullish for stocks as it increases profits of multinational companies and makes U.S. equities cheaper for foreign investors.

The leading oil services company Schlumberger is up by 9% after beating analyst estimates on both earnings and revenue. Schlumberger’s peers Baker Hughes and Halliburton have also enjoyed strong support today.

Vaccine makers Pfizer and Moderna gained strong upside momentum after Pfizer announced that it will raise the price of its coronavirus vaccine to $110 – $130 per shot.

Biggest losers today include Verizon and Twitter. Verizon is down by 5% despite beating analyst estimates on both earnings and revenue. Subscriber numbers missed estimates, and traders pushed the stock to multi-year lows.

Twitter stock moved towards the $50 level as the U.S. may conduct a security review of Musk’s purchase of the company.

From a big picture point of view, today’s rebound is broad, and most market segments are moving higher. Treasury yields have started to move lower after testing new highs, providing additional support to S&P 500. It looks that some traders are ready to bet that Fed will be less hawkish than previously expected.

S&P 500 Tests Resistance At 3730

S&P 500 has recently managed to get above the 20 EMA and is trying to settle above the resistance at 3730. RSI is in the moderate territory, and there is plenty of room to gain additional upside momentum in case the right catalysts emerge.

If S&P 500 manages to settle above 3730, it will head towards the next resistance level at 3760. A successful test of this level will push S&P 500 towards the next resistance at October highs at 3805. The 50 EMA is located in the nearby, so S&P 500 will likely face strong resistance above the 3800 level.

On the support side, the previous resistance at 3700 will likely serve as the first support level for S&P 500. In case S&P 500 declines below this level, it will move towards the next support level at 3675. A move below 3675 will push S&P 500 towards the support at 3640.

SPDN: An Inexpensive Way To Profit When The S&P 500 Falls

Summary
SPDN is not the largest or oldest way to short the S&P 500, but it’s a solid choice.
This ETF uses a variety of financial instruments to target a return opposite that of the S&P 500 Index.
SPDN’s 0.49% Expense Ratio is nearly half that of the larger, longer-tenured -1x Inverse S&P 500 ETF.
Details aside, the potential continuation of the equity bear market makes single-inverse ETFs an investment segment investor should be familiar with.
We rate SPDN a Strong Buy because we believe the risks of a continued bear market greatly outweigh the possibility of a quick return to a bull market.
Put a gear stick into R position, (Reverse).
Birdlkportfolio

By Rob Isbitts

Summary
The S&P 500 is in a bear market, and we don’t see a quick-fix. Many investors assume the only way to navigate a potentially long-term bear market is to hide in cash, day-trade or “just hang in there” while the bear takes their retirement nest egg.

The Direxion Daily S&P 500® Bear 1X ETF (NYSEARCA:SPDN) is one of a class of single-inverse ETFs that allow investors to profit from down moves in the stock market.

SPDN is an unleveraged, liquid, low-cost way to either try to hedge an equity portfolio, profit from a decline in the S&P 500, or both. We rate it a Strong Buy, given our concern about the intermediate-term outlook for the global equity market.

Strategy
SPDN keeps it simple. If the S&P 500 goes up by X%, it should go down by X%. The opposite is also expected.

Proprietary ETF Grades
Offense/Defense: Defense

Segment: Inverse Equity

Sub-Segment: Inverse S&P 500

Correlation (vs. S&P 500): Very High (inverse)

Expected Volatility (vs. S&P 500): Similar (but opposite)

Holding Analysis
SPDN does not rely on shorting individual stocks in the S&P 500. Instead, the managers typically use a combination of futures, swaps and other derivative instruments to create a portfolio that consistently aims to deliver the opposite of what the S&P 500 does.

Strengths
SPDN is a fairly “no-frills” way to do what many investors probably wished they could do during the first 9 months of 2022 and in past bear markets: find something that goes up when the “market” goes down. After all, bonds are not the answer they used to be, commodities like gold have, shall we say, lost their luster. And moving to cash creates the issue of making two correct timing decisions, when to get in and when to get out. SPDN and its single-inverse ETF brethren offer a liquid tool to use in a variety of ways, depending on what a particular investor wants to achieve.

Weaknesses
The weakness of any inverse ETF is that it does the opposite of what the market does, when the market goes up. So, even in bear markets when the broader market trend is down, sharp bear market rallies (or any rallies for that matter) in the S&P 500 will cause SPDN to drop as much as the market goes up.

Opportunities
While inverse ETFs have a reputation in some circles as nothing more than day-trading vehicles, our own experience with them is, pardon the pun, exactly the opposite! We encourage investors to try to better-understand single inverse ETFs like SPDN. While traders tend to gravitate to leveraged inverse ETFs (which actually are day-trading tools), we believe that in an extended bear market, SPDN and its ilk could be a game-saver for many portfolios.

Threats
SPDN and most other single inverse ETFs are vulnerable to a sustained rise in the price of the index it aims to deliver the inverse of. But that threat of loss in a rising market means that when an investor considers SPDN, they should also have a game plan for how and when they will deploy this unique portfolio weapon.

Proprietary Technical Ratings
Short-Term Rating (next 3 months): Strong Buy

Long-Term Rating (next 12 months): Buy

Conclusions
ETF Quality Opinion
SPDN does what it aims to do, and has done so for over 6 years now. For a while, it was largely-ignored, given the existence of a similar ETF that has been around much longer. But the more tenured SPDN has become, the more attractive it looks as an alternative.

ETF Investment Opinion

SPDN is rated Strong Buy because the S&P 500 continues to look as vulnerable to further decline. And, while the market bottomed in mid-June, rallied, then waffled since that time, our proprietary macro market indicators all point to much greater risk of a major decline from this level than a fast return to bull market glory. Thus, SPDN is at best a way to exploit and attack the bear, and at worst a hedge on an otherwise equity-laden portfolio.

S&P 500 Biotech Giant Vertex Leads 5 Stocks Showing Strength

Your stocks to watch for the week ahead are Cheniere Energy (LNG), S&P 500 biotech giant Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX), Cardinal Health (CAH), Steel Dynamics (STLD) and Genuine Parts (GPC).

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While the market remains in correction, with analysts and investors wary of an economic downturn, these five stocks are worth adding to watchlists. S&P 500 medical giants Vertex and Cardinal Health have been holding up, as health-care related plays tend to do well in down markets.

Steel Dynamics and Genuine Parts are both coming off strong earnings as both the steel and auto parts industries report optimistic outlooks. Meanwhile, Cheniere Energy saw sales boom in the second quarter as demand in Europe for natural gas continues to grow.

Major indexes have been making rally attempts with the Dow Jones and S&P 500 testing weekly support on Friday. With market uncertainty, investors should be ready for follow-through day breakouts and keep an eye on these stocks.

Cheniere Energy, Cardinal Health and VRTX stock are all on IBD Leaderboard.

Cheniere Energy Stock
LNG shares rose 1.1% to 175.79 during Friday’s market trading. On the week, the stock advanced 3.1%, not from highs, bouncing from its 21-day and 10-week lines earlier in the week.

Cheniere Energy has been consolidating since mid-September, but needs another week to forge a proper base, with a potential 182.72 buy point formed on Aug. 10.

Houston-based Cheniere Energy was IBD Stock Of The Day on Thursday, as the largest U.S. producer of liquefied natural gas eyes strong demand in Europe.

Even though natural gas prices are plunging in the U.S. and Europe, investors still see strong LNG demand for Cheniere and others.

The U.K. government confirmed last week that it is in talks for an LNG purchase agreement with a number of companies, including Cheniere.

In the first half of 2021, less than 40% of Cheniere’s cargoes of LNG landed in Europe. That jumped to more than 70% through this year’s second quarter, even as the company ramped up new export capacity. The urgency of Europe’s natural gas shortage only intensified last month. That is when an explosion disabled the Nord Stream 1 pipeline from Russia that had once supplied 40% of the European Union’s natural gas.

In Q2, sales increased 165% to $8 billion and LNG earned $2.90 per share, up from a net loss of $1.30 per share in Q2 2021. The company will report Q3 earnings Nov. 3, with investors seeing booming profits for the next few quarters.

Cheniere Energy has a Composite Rating of 84. It has a 98 Relative Strength Rating, an exclusive IBD Stock Checkup gauge for share price movement with a 1 to 99 score. The rating shows how a stock’s performance over the last 52 weeks holds up against all the other stocks in IBD’s database. The EPS rating is 41.

Vertex Stock
VRTX stock jumped 3.4% to 300 on Friday, rebounding from a test of its 50-day moving average. Shares climbed 2.2% for the week. Vertex stock has formed a tight flat base with an official buy point of 306.05, according to MarketSmith analysis.

The stock has remained consistent over recent weeks, while the relative strength line has trended higher. The RS line tracks a stock’s performance vs. the S&P 500 index.

Vertex Q3 earnings are on due Oct. 27. Analysts see EPS edging up 1% to $3.61 per share with sales increasing 16% to $2.2 billion, according to FactSet.

The Boston-based global biotech company dominates the cystic fibrosis treatment market. Vertex also has other products in late-stage clinical development that target sickle cell disease, Type 1 diabetes and certain genetically caused kidney diseases. That includes a gene-editing partnership with Crispr Therapeutics (CRSP).

In early August, Vertex reported better-than-expected second-quarter results and raised full-year sales targets.

S&P 500 stock Vertex ranks second in the Medical-Biomed/Biotech industry group. VRTX has a 99 Composite Rating. Its Relative Strength Rating is 94 and its EPS Rating is 99.

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Cardinal Health Stock
CAH stock advanced 3.2% to 73.03 Friday, clearing a 71.22 buy point from a shallow cup-with-handle base and hitting a record high. But volume was light on the breakout. CAH stock leapt 7.3% for the week.

Cardinal Health stock’s relative strength line has also been trending up for months.

The cup-with-handle base is part of a base-on-base pattern, forming just above a cup base cleared on Aug. 11.

Cardinal Health, based in Dublin, Ohio, offers a wide assortment of health care services and medical supplies to hospitals, labs, pharmacies and long-term care facilities. The company reports that it serves around 90% of hospitals and 60,000 pharmacies in the U.S.

S&P 500 stock Cardinal Health will report Q1 2023 earnings on Nov. 4. Analysts forecast earnings falling 26% to 96 cents per share. Sales are expected to increase 10% to $48.3 billion, according to FactSet.

Cardinal Health stock ranks first in the Medical-Wholesale Drug/Supplies industry group, ahead of McKesson (MCK), which is also showing positive action. CAH stock has a 94 Composite Rating out of 99. It has a 97 Relative Strength Rating and an EPS rating of 73.

Steel Dynamics Stock
STLD shares shot up 8.5% to 92.92 on Friday and soared 19% on the week, coming off a Steel Dynamics earnings beat Wednesday night.

Shares blasted above an 88.72 consolidation buy point Friday after clearing a trendline Thursday. STLD stock is 17% above its 50-day line, definitely extended from that key average.

Steel Dynamics’ latest consolidation could be seen as part of a larger base going back six months.

Steel Dynamics topped Q3 earnings views with EPS rising 10% to $5.46 while revenue grew 11% to $5.65 billion. The steel producer’s outlook is optimistic despite weaker flat rolled steel pricing. STLD reports its order activity and backlogs remain solid.

The Fort Wayne, Indiana-based company is among the largest producers of carbon steel products in the U.S. It engages in metal recycling operations along with steel fabrication and produces myriad steel products.

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STLD stock ranks first in the Steel-Producers industry group. STLD stock has a 96 Composite Rating out of 99. It has a 90 Relative Strength Rating, an exclusive IBD Stock Checkup gauge for share-price movement that tops at 99. The rating shows how a stock’s performance over the last 52 weeks holds up against all the other stocks in IBD’s database. The EPS rating is 98.

Genuine Parts Stock
GPC stock gained 2.8% to 162.35 Friday after the company topped earnings views with its Q3 results on Thursday. For the week GPC advanced 5.1% as the stock held its 50-day line and is in a flat base.

GPC has an official 165.09 flat-base buy point after a three-week rally, according to MarketSmith analysis.

The relative strength line for Genuine Parts stock has rallied sharply to highs over the past several months.

On Thursday, the Atlanta-based auto parts company raised its full-year guidance on growth across its automotive and industrial sales.

Genuine Parts earnings per share advanced 19% to $2.23 and revenue grew 18% to $5.675 billion in Q3. GPC’s full-year guidance is now calling for EPS of $8.05-$8.15, up from $7.80-$7.95. The company now forecasts revenue growth of 15%-16%, up from the earlier 12%-14%.

During the Covid pandemic, supply chain constraints caused a major upheaval in the auto industry, sending prices for new and used cars to record levels. This has made consumers more likely to hang on to their existing vehicles for longer, driving mileage higher and boosting demand for auto replacement parts.

Fellow auto stocks O’Reilly Auto Parts (ORLY) and AutoZone (AZO) have also rallied near buy points amid the struggling market. O’Reilly reports on Oct. 26.

IBD ranks Genuine Parts first in the Retail/Wholesale-Auto Parts industry group. GPC stock has a 96 Composite Rating. Its Relative Strength Rating is 94 and it has an EPS Rating of 89.