Today's Number: 60

       Percentage of Americans who say they're extremely or very confident that the economy will prosper in the long term, according to a recent Gallup Poll.

        Sarah Gutfreund has been named vice president and retail deposit marketing manager at Fifth Third Bank. She is responsible for all retail customer communications and product marketing to newly acquired customers through conversions. Ms. Gutfreund joined Fifth Third in 1987 and previously worked in Midwest Payment Systems as a banking center manager. She holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Cincinnati.

        Product differentiation is becoming harder and harder to sustain, according to Steven Wheeler and Evan Hirsh in Channel Champions: How Leading Companies Build New Strategies to Serve Customers. “Product superiority is usually a fleeting illusion,” the authors contend.

        There are two reasons for the death of product differentiation: Competition these days is global and therefore pervasive, and technological change means products must have continual improvements just to survive.

        “Competitive advantage is becoming ever shorter in duration,” he says.

        State and federal laws, as well as rules set by the National Association of Securities Dealers and the New York Stock Exchange, hold those who sell stocks or bonds to strict standards about the suitability of investments. The New York Stock Exchange's “know-your-customer rule” is perhaps the strictest, said John C. Coffee, a Columbia University law professor and securities-law expert.

        Practice With A Purpose: The 12 specialists of Beacon Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine established their practice in 1997 to improve quality of care for their Cincinnati-area patient base. The board-certified and fellowship-trained physicians offer treatment for fractures, total joint reconstruction and arthroscopic procedures of the shoulder, elbow and knee.

        Team Players: Beacon is the official medical-care provider for the Cincinnati Reds, Cincinnati Cyclones and Xavier University.

        In And On The Field: The practice has nine offices in Greater Cincinnati, including the newest in Kings Mills. However, most evenings the physicians can be found on the sidelines of a sports event, prepared to treat a player.

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