This executive briefing on how organizations can best leverage the MarketWatch social media platform was prepared by Brandon Surrency while an MBA student in the College of Business at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana.
Overview
MarketWatch, the website that you go to when you want to learn how to invest wisely and prosperously! MarketWatch is an online tool that comes complete with business news, financial news, stock market quotes and the virtual stock exchange simulation game. All of these items are must have tools if one truly wants to be successful when buying or selling in the market. MarketWatch is also available as an app that can be downloaded on your iphone, ipad or android device.
The Platform in Brief
MarketWatch is a website set up to help investors select the right company to invest in. The company does this by providing news, stock market data and analysis. The company was founded on October 30, 1997. Larry Kramer was the main founder, along with a host of others (Larry Kramer bio). MarketWatch gathers information from 10 bureaus located across the world (MARKETWATCH,INC). The demographics of the viewers are broken down as being 65% men and 35% female. Most of the viewers are located in the United States at 58.5% (Competitive Intelligence). Canada and India both make up 4.7% percent of the location of viewers. The goal is to give the consumer the best information possible to invest wisely. The primary target audience for MarketWatch is anyone who wants to make informed financial decisions based on the stock market (Roush, 2014). MarketWatch allows users to do this by employing many prominent journalists. MarketWatch gives a brief summary and all news reports located on the web of every company that you can invest in. Also, the website shows statistics as well as facts about the companies including anything from the Corporate Structure to Gross Profit Margin.
The Platform in Operation
Many people and companies review MarketWatch before making financial decisions such as purchasing and selling stocks. To be exact, 16 million viewers per month make use of this website for such reasons (MARKETWATCH, INC Company Information). This app/website is multi faceted, not only does it give you valuable information to play the market, the website also is equipped with a social network portion that allows you to play the market through a free simulation game. The game is known as the “Stock Market Exchange game”. This game is very customizable and allows people to create personal accounts. Your personal account consists of a portfolio, which you manage stocks in. This social network creates a way for you to interact with others through the Stock Market Exchange game. Whenever you create a game you send out invites using email, Twitter and Facebook. While customizing the game you get to choose how long the game lasts and how much money you start off with. The games can be private or public, depending on your preference. If you choose private, then your game is locked and you will have to create a security code that all players must enter correctly in order to join your game. Once the game is started the players compete amongst each other and are ranked in order of most profit gained while investing. You can view each person’s portfolio while playing. This helps to give you a better idea of which stocks are doing well and which stocks are doing less satisfactory. Charles Schwab, Edward Jones and ask.com are all companies that use Market Watch for advertising and marketing purposes.
The Platform’s Pros and Cons
MarketWatch has a great deal of Pro’s; for example, the online simulation game is very intriguing and also is free of charge. While playing the online game you manage a profile that consists of a handful of useful tools. You have the option to subscribe to prominent newsletters and reports of various companies via email (Privacy Policy). Your profile also has an excellent tool called “Watch List”. Your watch list is a place in which you are able to put a stock that you are interested in purchasing but not quite sure about. The watch list gathers information on this prospective company for you, making it readily available for you to view information about the company and their stock. This tool is comparable with the idea of Pinterest and “pinning” to your wall for future use. MarketWatch is a must have; it is a virtual cheat sheet for investors looking to make a jump into the stock world. MarketWatch also has a radio network and is a member of the Wall Street Digital Network. The radio network is beneficial to users who do not have Internet access throughout the day. The radio show reviews stock updates and data every 30 minutes, keeping investors knowledgeable and informed on the market. The fact that MarketWatch has an app shows that they possess a useful tool for smart phone users who are looking to stay informed and monitor their stocks.
However, MarketWatch does have a few Con’s; for instance, some user reviews stated that MarketWatch only shows the positive aspects of company financials and news. MarketWatch has responded to these comments as false accusations.
Analysis
MarketWatch is a great company for anyone looking to learn how to invest. It truly gives you an in depth analysis of the stock market and all that surrounds it. The company does a great job preparing you to play the market, giving great advice every step of the way. The Simulation game also helps one to play the market before actually using real money. This is extremely beneficial to newcomers in the market. Everyone wants to learn how to play but not many people want to learn how to play and lose money in the process. MarketWatch also does an amazing job by making itself easily accessible to the public through the web, radio shows and through their app. I believe that in order for MarketWatch to stay on top of the financial news food chain it must continue to realize that people aren’t reading news simply for academic reasons but rather for the realization of personal money concerns (Roush, C.) This company does a great job of taking advantage of advertising opportunities by allowing high profile investors and investment companies to advertise on their website.
References
Competitive Intelligence. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/marketwatch.com
Hey There! (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/competition.marketwatch-inc993942871c5df0f1.html
Larry Kramer Bio. (2008, October 12). Retrieved February 24, 2015, from https://cscape.wordpress.com/larry-kramer/
MARKETWATCH, INC.Company Information. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/company-profile.marketwatch-inc.993942871c5df0f1.html
OVERVIEW. (n.d.). Retrieved February 24, 2015, from http://www.mshanken.com/marketwatch/
Privacy Policy - MarketWatch. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.marketwatch.com/support/privacy.asp
Roush, C. (n.d.). Marketwatch editor: Most stories will now be less than 400 words. Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://talkingbiznews.com/2/marketwatch-editor-most-stories-will-now-be-less-than-400-words/
MarketWatch, the website that you go to when you want to learn how to invest wisely and prosperously! MarketWatch is an online tool that comes complete with business news, financial news, stock market quotes and the virtual stock exchange simulation game. All of these items are must have tools if one truly wants to be successful when buying or selling in the market. MarketWatch is also available as an app that can be downloaded on your iphone, ipad or android device.
The Platform in Brief
MarketWatch is a website set up to help investors select the right company to invest in. The company does this by providing news, stock market data and analysis. The company was founded on October 30, 1997. Larry Kramer was the main founder, along with a host of others (Larry Kramer bio). MarketWatch gathers information from 10 bureaus located across the world (MARKETWATCH,INC). The demographics of the viewers are broken down as being 65% men and 35% female. Most of the viewers are located in the United States at 58.5% (Competitive Intelligence). Canada and India both make up 4.7% percent of the location of viewers. The goal is to give the consumer the best information possible to invest wisely. The primary target audience for MarketWatch is anyone who wants to make informed financial decisions based on the stock market (Roush, 2014). MarketWatch allows users to do this by employing many prominent journalists. MarketWatch gives a brief summary and all news reports located on the web of every company that you can invest in. Also, the website shows statistics as well as facts about the companies including anything from the Corporate Structure to Gross Profit Margin.
The Platform in Operation
Many people and companies review MarketWatch before making financial decisions such as purchasing and selling stocks. To be exact, 16 million viewers per month make use of this website for such reasons (MARKETWATCH, INC Company Information). This app/website is multi faceted, not only does it give you valuable information to play the market, the website also is equipped with a social network portion that allows you to play the market through a free simulation game. The game is known as the “Stock Market Exchange game”. This game is very customizable and allows people to create personal accounts. Your personal account consists of a portfolio, which you manage stocks in. This social network creates a way for you to interact with others through the Stock Market Exchange game. Whenever you create a game you send out invites using email, Twitter and Facebook. While customizing the game you get to choose how long the game lasts and how much money you start off with. The games can be private or public, depending on your preference. If you choose private, then your game is locked and you will have to create a security code that all players must enter correctly in order to join your game. Once the game is started the players compete amongst each other and are ranked in order of most profit gained while investing. You can view each person’s portfolio while playing. This helps to give you a better idea of which stocks are doing well and which stocks are doing less satisfactory. Charles Schwab, Edward Jones and ask.com are all companies that use Market Watch for advertising and marketing purposes.
The Platform’s Pros and Cons
MarketWatch has a great deal of Pro’s; for example, the online simulation game is very intriguing and also is free of charge. While playing the online game you manage a profile that consists of a handful of useful tools. You have the option to subscribe to prominent newsletters and reports of various companies via email (Privacy Policy). Your profile also has an excellent tool called “Watch List”. Your watch list is a place in which you are able to put a stock that you are interested in purchasing but not quite sure about. The watch list gathers information on this prospective company for you, making it readily available for you to view information about the company and their stock. This tool is comparable with the idea of Pinterest and “pinning” to your wall for future use. MarketWatch is a must have; it is a virtual cheat sheet for investors looking to make a jump into the stock world. MarketWatch also has a radio network and is a member of the Wall Street Digital Network. The radio network is beneficial to users who do not have Internet access throughout the day. The radio show reviews stock updates and data every 30 minutes, keeping investors knowledgeable and informed on the market. The fact that MarketWatch has an app shows that they possess a useful tool for smart phone users who are looking to stay informed and monitor their stocks.
However, MarketWatch does have a few Con’s; for instance, some user reviews stated that MarketWatch only shows the positive aspects of company financials and news. MarketWatch has responded to these comments as false accusations.
Analysis
MarketWatch is a great company for anyone looking to learn how to invest. It truly gives you an in depth analysis of the stock market and all that surrounds it. The company does a great job preparing you to play the market, giving great advice every step of the way. The Simulation game also helps one to play the market before actually using real money. This is extremely beneficial to newcomers in the market. Everyone wants to learn how to play but not many people want to learn how to play and lose money in the process. MarketWatch also does an amazing job by making itself easily accessible to the public through the web, radio shows and through their app. I believe that in order for MarketWatch to stay on top of the financial news food chain it must continue to realize that people aren’t reading news simply for academic reasons but rather for the realization of personal money concerns (Roush, C.) This company does a great job of taking advantage of advertising opportunities by allowing high profile investors and investment companies to advertise on their website.
References
Competitive Intelligence. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/marketwatch.com
Hey There! (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/competition.marketwatch-inc993942871c5df0f1.html
Larry Kramer Bio. (2008, October 12). Retrieved February 24, 2015, from https://cscape.wordpress.com/larry-kramer/
MARKETWATCH, INC.Company Information. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/company-profile.marketwatch-inc.993942871c5df0f1.html
OVERVIEW. (n.d.). Retrieved February 24, 2015, from http://www.mshanken.com/marketwatch/
Privacy Policy - MarketWatch. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.marketwatch.com/support/privacy.asp
Roush, C. (n.d.). Marketwatch editor: Most stories will now be less than 400 words. Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://talkingbiznews.com/2/marketwatch-editor-most-stories-will-now-be-less-than-400-words/
Contact Information
To contact the author of this article, “What You Need to Know About Market Watch: An Executive Roadmap for Social Media Success,” please email the author at [email protected].
To contact the author of this article, “What You Need to Know About Market Watch: An Executive Roadmap for Social Media Success,” please email the author at [email protected].
The mission of the College of Business at Southeastern Louisiana University is to provide educational experiences for personal, professional and intellectual growth, enable the creation and sharing of knowledge to enhance learning and to advance the practice of business, and engage communities through service to positively impact their future. The Accounting and Business programs in the College of Business are accredited by the AACSB International.
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