Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Purchase an authentic high school essay

Purchase an authentic high school essay High school essay Producing a good high school essay is not a piece of cake. If students have to write a paper on the topic they know nothing about, it turns out to be a real disaster. The point is that they do not have relevant expertize in preparing different types of academic works. Moreover, they do not know which method for writing essays is the most efficient. As a result, learners spend much time doing such an assignment. In order to learn to write high school essays of top quality, you should follow clear directions. First, you need to conduct painstaking research to gather valuable material for the paper. Then, you should analyze the collected data and arrange them in accordance with the outline. It is important to provide plausible arguments to make your work reasonable. The last step is to write a valid conclusion. Note that it is essential to adhere to professors guidelines while preparing your essay. If you are confused about the bewildering variety of high school essay topics, you may contact our reliable company. We will help you handle this assignment. hires experienced writers only. They know how to write a high school essay perfectly. Moreover, our specialists work fast. Thus, they are able to produce exclusive papers in a short period of time. We ensure that you will receive a fantastic piece of writing. You should know that each paper is carefully checked for plagiarism and grammar. It should be admitted that we evaluate writers work regularly. For this reason, we have created a coherent rating system. It helps encourage writers to produce papers of superior quality only. Therefore, you can be sure that you will get an interesting piece of writing with the right high school essay format. We care about the reputation of our company. That is why we do our best to provide customers with first-rate writing services. When your paper is completed, you may use it as a model for preparing your own work. When cooperating with our trustworthy agency, you will not receive a plagiarized work no matter essay topics for high school. In case you are not satisfied with the paper, you may get your money back. For this reason, we have introduced a clear Money-Back Guarantee policy. Our specialists always write works from scratch and follow clients instructions. Therefore, you will receive an authentic paper. When producing high school essay writingpieces, our writers use authoritative sources only. Furthermore, all of them are cited properly. If you do not have time to write your high school essay, contact us without hesitation. Our skilled writers will be pleased to assist you in preparing superior papers. We can meet even the strictest deadline. All you need to do is to place an order on our companys website.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Book review of Chris Grey's book A Very Short, Fairly Interesting and Essay

Book review of Chris Grey's book A Very Short, Fairly Interesting and Reasonably Cheap Book About Studying Organizations (200 - Essay Example Also, these contemporary theories ignore the opportunities of further evolution in management sciences and consider the application of management theories a simple task with predictable outcomes, whereas the truth is that organizations are more than just management with high degree of uncertainty and ability to digress from the standards suggested by scientific management. Christopher Grey has managed to provide a book which compiles both classic and contemporary theories related to organizational management. While writing this book, Grey has attempted to combine the management and organization theories by amalgamating their outcomes. The book stands on a rationale that organizational theories and management are no different since management is an integral part of practices taking place in an organization. The work of Grey is important on the basis that where other books and literary works have limited the application of organizational theory only to the corporations and institutions , Grey argues that organizations by means of a structure, is more comprehensive than that. He views the application of organization as a concept in overall social spectrum; even in a family structure as well (Callahan, 2009). The book itself is meant for readers who have prior knowledge of other management concepts and organizational studies. Since management of the organizations act as the gist of the book, therefore all the chapters which discuss parts of organizations also deal with the management theories (Donaldson, 2006). Through this book, Grey has asserted that where other books on organization possess a lot of knowledge covered in hundreds of pages, the contents discussed are either too generic or faulty to understand. Therefore, he presents arguments on different areas of organizational management based on the arguments presented by previous theories. Grey has mentioned time and again that organizational theory has been misunderstood or explained in a manner which illustra tes the importance of job to be done however questions like who is expected to define the methods and who will perform the job, remain unanswered. Therefore, in order to illustrate this communication gap between the actual and perceived forms of organizational theory, this book discusses leadership, people management, importance of bureaucracy, fast capitalism and change management (Callahan, 2009). In order to deliver his point of view, Grey has used an assertive approach towards combining the classic and contemporary theories. The approach does seem like a mannerism to draw lacking in other’s work which appears rather unethical. However, the basic purpose in the book is to illustrate how organizations behave, evolve and relate to resources associated to them. The crux of this discussion is human resources itself (Donaldson, 2006). Through his arguments, Grey illustrates how bureaucracy is related to scientific management of the organization (Aulich, 2012). He discussed seve ral management styles and also the implications of applying generalized theories in the problematic areas. By doing so, Grey argues that organizations have flexible nature like people and applying fixed solutions provided by management consultants only consumes time, resources and energy. He further argues that while solving a problem, managers need to show susceptibility to presence of different solutions and selection of the

Friday, November 1, 2019

Is it right to reject the concept and practices of development Essay

Is it right to reject the concept and practices of development Critically discuss with reference to at least one practical example of political activism. - IR - Essay Example In view of the global stratifications, development entails the various levels of political, social and economic achievements of the country in consideration. In achieving these set standards defining development, the countries meet various challenges as they structure their concepts and practices for development. These concepts and practices constitute development agenda for the various countries. In the discourse of development, the sectors of the concepts and practices incorporate the three key essentials of economic, social and political milestones in development (Ove, 2013, p 313). All these concepts emanate from the various political activism procedures, developing the concepts and procedures accordingly. For instance, in analyzing the concepts of development form the economic perspective, various theories and approaches as well as challenges to these concepts are evident. Escobar, as he seeks to evaluate the concepts of economic development in the relation to third world countries, he notably states and evaluates the role of economists in the processes incorporated in development (Escobar, 1995, p 7). Thus, this as a starting point, considering the concept of economic perspectives in development, several factors come into consideration. Firstly, what constitute the economy of the country in question, as well as, the facilitators of this concept of development. The economy of a country vastly defines the class it belongs to in the global stratifications. Economic power is essentially the driving factor of development although it may not sustain the entire development process on its own (Bhatia, 2012, p 131). The concept of development form economic approach encompasses, firstly, the concept of resources that the country posses in determining its success level (Santander, 2014, p 65). The factor of distribution of natural resources within the various geographical locations is a relatively highly controversial concept in the process of

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Contemporary leadership issues Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Contemporary leadership issues - Research Paper Example Effective leaders are able to influence employees, organizational departments and teams to work towards an organizational goal of outperforming their competitors. Multinational companies operate under different external environmental factors and employ people from different regions across the globe. The leadership must therefore motivate and influence the diverse employees towards a collective organizational goal in different regions (Tayeb 14). Nestle company is among the most successful companies that has been able to influence its employees to forego their cultural diversity and goals to adopt the company’s cultural practices in a vibrant business environment across the globe. This paper will critically evaluate nestle company in regards to its products, operations, culture and leadership. Company Analysis Nestle is a leading international company dealing with dietary, health and well-being foods and beverages. It’s headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland and runs over 4 60 production plants in 83 nations across the globe and employs over 330,000 staff from all nationalities. The company’s history dates back to 1866 when Henri Nestle launched the first products to save a neighbor kid. Growth of the company is based on nutrition, corporate culture, flexibility and international diversity. In 1905 the company merged with Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company to form Nestle and Anglo-Swiss Milk Company (Zehnder). Over the years the company has launched different nutritional products. The company’s brand mainly consists of food and beverages for all individuals including those with specific health requirements and includes baby foods, nutritional cereals, water, chocolates, coffee, confectionary, dairy products, cold and hot drink products, ice-cream, foods, frozen foods, healthcare nutrition, and pet care among others (Nestle. com). The main objective of the company is to improve the quality of life of its customers by offering quality and n utritious food products as well as the lives of its employees and other stakeholders by adjusting to the dynamic environment whereas its basic values of integrity, fairness and appreciation of people’s health remains the same. The company has a management strategy that ensures diversity, accountability and professionalism across all levels of management. This is portrayed in their executive board of directors that consist of 13 members from nine different nationalities while its headquarters employs people from almost a hundred countries (Zehnder). CEO Bio Paul Bulcke is the current chief executive officer of Nestle Company (Annual Report 2012 6). He was choosing to this position in April 2008 after working in the company for thirty years. Paul Bulcke was born in the year 1954 and joined Nestle when he was 25 years after working for another company in the position of financial analyst (Zehnder). He served in various management in operations, marketing and management positions before being appointed to lead nationwide operations in Portugal in the year 1996, in the year 1998 he was the leader in Czech and Slovak regions and in the year 2000 he was moved to German. During his tenure in these regions the

Monday, October 28, 2019

United States South Korean Alliance Essay Example for Free

United States South Korean Alliance Essay About 55 years have been passed since the U. S. -R. O. K. alliance, a pillar of East Asia security indeed, which has been proven to be quite successful and beneficial to both the countries in the history of International Relations. For the Republic of Korea, the security guaranteed by this alliance has acted as a major instrument for its transformation. While on the other end, the United States expresses its gratified sentiments to have played a vital role in supporting the progression of democracy, human rights and in holding out its aid for the very survival of the population in the Republic of Korea. A set of mutually related policies of understanding and agreement exist in this alliance. There happens to be a series of goals, whose accomplishment has been a shared responsibility of both the partners. A strong foundation indeed, this firm security alliance has turned the very relationship into a more mature and inclusive partnership for both the countries. However, lately, this longstanding alliance has undergone an intricate time. There exist a number of challenges which seem to pose quite a concentrated threat to this collaboration. Concerns are growing at both ends, with experts and historians wondering over what the future would be for this alliance. Nonetheless, deep down, both the parties foresee the much feared atrophy as a terrible mistake. â€Å"Experts say friction in the U. S. -South Korean relationship is hardly new, but the alliance has managed to endure. † And for a continued survival, both the countries need to envision a renewed perspective towards the very many present and forthcoming challenges. The History Following the post-World War II splitting of the peninsula between the then occupying forces of the United States in the south and the now called Soviet Union in the north, as the promised national elections continued to pend, the United Nations in 1948 finally pronounced the Republic of Korea (R. O. K. ) as the only legal and rightful government on the peninsula. This assertion was highly rejected by the Soviets. In retaliation, the Democratic Republic of Korea (DPRK) invaded South Korea in 1950. This was the time when the United States held out its support and reached to the rescue. Insuperable challenges had to be faced as the struggle continued till 1953, and an armistice finally took effect. It was in 1954, that the United States and South Korea approached and mutually signed the U. S. -R. O. K. Mutual Security Agreement. In this, they corresponded to protect each other in the episode of outside aggression. Present Challenges to the Alliance Society does change with time. For natives it may be acceptable as it is about their own country, but when it is in relation to some other country, even if it is a coalition partner, things get a little complicated. For both South Korea and United States, the issue of raising public awareness , of the changes taking place in each other’s society is the biggest challenge fronting their alliance. The impact of the September 11 attacks on America, and the resulting magnitude of its effect wasn’t and still isn’t fully appreciated. Similarly, on the part of Americans, it is also tough for them to cope with the radical changes evolving within Korea. For America, the September 11 attacks chiefly affected their foreign relations, as well as the political, domestic and economic landscape. If considered in some other context, rather than that of September 11 and the subsequent fundamental changes it brought to the American society, the U. S. policy of fighting against terrorism and weapons of mass destruction and promoting the spread of autonomy and social equality as the best solution to extremist ideologies, creates unrest in the international community. Thereupon, the South Korean government unwaveringly and gallantly supported the war on terrorism, at the same time exposing itself as a fervent supporter of democracy around the world and playing an active role in encouraging constructive changes in the developing world. Such common interests of the two countries and next to no areas of conflict are a merit in their alliance. In 1998, South Korean President Kim Dae-jung adopted the â€Å"sunshine policy,† an Asian variant of the â€Å"Ostpolitik† policies pursued by West Germany toward the Communist East during the Cold War. Kim extended his proposal of economic and altruistic support to North Korea. In return it asked the North Korean government to be humble in recouping the contacts between long-divided families and other cultural concession, under the intention to defrost the inter-Korean relations. However, a generational divide largely exists in South Korea over how to handle it. The abysmal memory of the 1950 war that frets the older generation about relations with the DPRK, while the younger generation’s empathy with the impoverished North Korea, and who instead, has powerful reminiscence of their own nation’s tyrannical rule, are indeed two opposite sides of the picture. Due to this generational fault line, a paradigm shift has been brought about in the foreign policy objectives, as many Koreans of today’s time, who grew up in a room knowing only democracy, independence, freedom and global impact, no longer see North Korea as an enemy. Instead, they consider it a partner in need of support and understanding. They expect to achieve genuine peace, settlement and reunion through augmented exchanges and collaboration with North Korea. Now here, the North Korea’s nuclear program appears in the limelight, being a big challenge to South Korea and its alliance with the U. S. In 1994, four countries consisting of North and South Korea, Japan and the United States arrived at â€Å"Agreed Framework† Pact whose purpose was to end the North’s nuclear weapons research in return for economic and political privileges. In order to carry out the terms of the pact, the â€Å"Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization† (KEDO) was established by the United States, Japan and North Korea. But it wasn’t far away when North Korea started violating the agreement and troubles started rising. The U. S. President Bush terminated diplomatic talks with North Korea in 2001. The relations kept on fraying, and in 2005 when North Korea claimed that it has nuclear weapons, followed by the July 2006 long-range missile tests that it carried out, operated to further aggravate tensions. This made the U. S. to hard-boil against the DPRK. Due to this, South Korea, on the other end, also had to cut the humanitarian aid to its northern neighbor. At the same time, however, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun, who did not want to lose ground on the progress that had been made so far in the inter-Korean relations, tried to give a lower profile to the July missile tests, being of the view that the weapons were not as much a bigger threat to the United States as they were for Seoul, the capital of South Korea. In reality, for South Korea, the North Korean nuclear weapons, is not a critical issue – it never was. In fact, its prime concern is how to settle the issue of national unification and incorporate North Korea back into the world’s most active region, whether or not there are nuclear weapons. In contrast, U. S. concerns are global and military. Being so over focused on the anti-terrorism issue, the United States has been emphasizing on denuclearizing the North, viewing this policy as a narrow addition to its anti-terrorism policy. Therefore, the attitude toward DPRK missile tests and the disapproval shown by the South Korean President towards such an increased authorization incensed the U. S. government. South Korea also, in return, objected the fact America is ignoring about all the gains it has made so far. Such beliefs and different strategic priorities have led to serious strains, resulting in the upsetting of the U. S. -South Korean alliance. Regarding the issue, the Six-Party talks among the United States, Russia, Japan, China, North and South Korea, was thought to act as a basis for a closer coordination between the two alliances, and also for the purpose of convincing North Korea to join the international community by giving up its nuclear weapons program, and getting out of its self-imposed remoteness.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Historical Narrative: Beacon In A Sea Of Darkness :: essays research papers fc

The day started as usual. I got out of bed. My eyes sore from lack of sleep. My feet hit the cold floor, sending a shudder through my spine. It's a shame. In the winter, the weatherman will tell you that tomorrow will be a warm one, but warm for winter in New York is still blisteringly cold (Weather 53). I looked at the clock. 7:50 AM. No time for breakfast. I had to get to work. In this business, either you were there on time to take someone's case or he went to another detective. I grabbed my coat and started running down the apartment stairs, trying to wave down a taxi. My landlord tried to nab me and complain about my late rent, but I had not time to trifle with him. I jumped into the first taxi I saw and told the driver to take me to the corner of 7th and Elm. Whin I got to the office, Rose, my secretary, was on the phone talking to her fiance ("Miss" 30). Her husband to be was a real sweet talker, but he was a Communist, which made my blood hot. Such a shame, a fine broad going to waste like that. She whispered goodbye to him and hung up the phone. "Any calls for me while I was out, Rose?" "No, Sam, the morning's been pretty quiet so far," she replied. "Here's the morning paper as you requested. The coffee should be hot and ready in just a few minutes." "You're a doll, you know that, Rose? I swear my morning would be a nightmare if it weren't for you. I've got a couple of tickets to the next Yankees game if you'd like to go out. I hear Mantle and Rizzuto are hitting pretty well" (Effrat 34). "Mr. Brock! Thank you very much, but I'm engaged. I can't go off on a weekend dating spree right before I get married. What would others think? They'd call me a floozy for sure!" "Well, I thought it was worth a try. Give me a holler if you change your mind. I'll be in my office if anything comes up." I walked into my office, about to shut the door, when I stopped myself. "Rose, what do you see in that guy anyway? Did he trick you into marriage or was he just the only guy left in the store?" "Despite what you may think of him, I find him very attractive.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Exam 1 Study Guide – Marketing 360

Chapter 1 – Overview of Marketing * Inertia to Passion * * 80/20 Rule * â€Å"80% of profits come from 20% of consumers† * Economies of Scale * The more you make of something, the less it costs per unit * i. e. Microsoft Office 2014 * Wholesale – Costco * Understand Marketing Mix (4 P’s)/From Customer Perspective 4 Cs * Marketing Mix: A combination of the product itself, the price of the product, the place where it is made available, and the activities that introduce it to consumers that creates a desired response among a set f predefined consumers * Marketing Mix consists of;Marketer| Consumer| Product| Customer Solution| Price| Customer Cost| Promotion| Communication| Place| Convenience | * Exchange * Pg. 12 â€Å"Occurs when a person gives something and gets something else in return. The buyer receives an object, service, or idea that satisfies a need, and the seller receives something he or she feels is of equivalent value† * Trade currency * Tr ade services * Trade behaviors * Exchange Value * Criteria for a Market A market consists of all the consumers who share a common need that can be satisfied by a specific product and who have the resources, willingness, and authority to make a purchase * Utility – Time, Place, Possession, Form, Info * Utility: The usefulness or benefit consumers receive from a product * Time Utility: Storing products until they are needed * Place Utility: Making products available where customers want them * Possession Utility: Allowing the consumer to won, use, and enjoy the product * Form Utility: Transforming raw materials into finished products * What is Value?Components of Value * Value: Benefits a customer receives from buying a good or service * Value from the customer’s perspective: Price and benefits * Value from the seller’s perspective: Is the exchange profitable to them, has it made money * Build Value: Goal is to satisfy customer over and over again so that they can build a long-term relationship rather than just having a â€Å"one night stand† * Customers have value: Firms recognize that it can be very costly in terms of both money and human effort to do whatever it takes to keep some customers loyal to the company.Samsung Distribution ChannelVery often these actions pay off, but there are cases in which keeping a customer is a losing proposition * Lifetime value of a customer: How much profit they expect to make from a particular customer * Provide value through competitive advantage: Distinctive competency- a firm’s capability that is superior to that of its competition * Value from society’s perspective: * Customer Satisfaction Model * Customer Equity * Combined customer lifetime value of all customers Firing Customers * Sustainable Competitive Advantage * Competitive Advantage: Ability of firm to outperform competition, providing customers with benefit competition cant * Identify distinctive competency (firm’s capability superior to competition) * Turn distinctive competency into differential benefit (important to customers) * Sustainable Competitive Advantage * Distinctive Competencies; Differential Benefits * The Value Proposition * Philosophies (eras) Societal Marketing Orientation (New Era); Triple Bottom Line * Emphasis on satisfying broader needs of society (employees, stockholders, etc. ) This is like market orientation by there is a little something more * Being concerned with social issues†¦ doing things better for society and being genuinely concerned * Building long-term relationships * Also referred to as the â€Å"triple bottom line† * Environmental, social and financial bottom line * Building long-term relationships, not just satisfying a one time need * i. . McDonalds * Ronald McDonald House * Using paper hamburger cases vs. * If the bottoms (financial, social, environmental) become the norm, it becomes the marketing orientation * Marketing (customer) Orientatio n * A company that practices the marketing concept. Determining and then satisfying consumer needs and wants at a profit * Selling Orientation * Getting the product out the door! Reducing inventories.Product supply is greater than demand * Getting excess products out the door, the decisions you make will reflect on what orientation you will use * One time purchases, do not establish relationship with the customer * Competitor Orientation * Focus is on competitor intelligence. Learning and reacting to what the competition is doing * i. e. Lowe’s – Wherever there was a Home Depot, they would place a Lowe’s * Product Orientation * Emphasis is on making the product better, production efficiencies.Best when demand surpasses supply * How is this different from a marketing orientation? NOT asking what the customers want, making what they want. (It’s going to be cool and you’re going to want it) Chapter 2 – Strategic Planning * Mission, Marketing My opia * Mission statement describes organization’s overall purpose * How should we develop firm’s capabilities? * What products and benefits can we create for customers? * What business are we in? * What customers should we serve? Avoid marketing Myopia – Having a really narrow mission statement, or being short sided * SWOT ANALYSIS Assessment of Organization’s internal and external environment SWOT Analysis, SWOT interactions * * External Environment Identify opportunities and threats to firm from consumers, competitors, economy, etc. Internal Environment Identify strengths and weaknesses in firms employees, technologies, facilities, finances, etc. Leverage: Strengths + Opportunities * Vulnerability: Strengths + Threats * Constraint: Weaknesses + Opportunities * Problem: Weaknesses + Threats * Portfolio Analysis Portfolio Analysis – a management tools for evaluating a firm’s business mix and assessing the potential of its SBU’s * Indi vidual units within a company – Nike Swimming within Nike * SBU’s (Strategic Business Units)– Individual units within a firm, each having its own mission, objectives, resources, managers and competitors * BCG Matrix; Star, Dog, Question Mark, Cash Cow * Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Growth Matrix – Analyzes the potential of products to generate cash for a firm. Tells managers which products they should grow * i. . Different Products Owned by Larger Firm * Strategies for Each Portfolio * Business Portfolio: Stars * High industry growth * High relative market share * Consider potential to stay star * Requires much investment * Generates relatively high revenues * Cash Cows * Low industry growth * High relative market share * They are not spending a lot of money to communicate with consumers, they are just bringing in business * Economies of scale and high profit margins * Requires less investment * Generates relatively high revenues Helps you support other businesses and launch other business/ventures * Question Marks * High industry growth * Low relative market share * Consider potential to be star * Requires too much investment * Generates relatively low revenues * i. e. Samsung Galaxy – how to move it over to get more money? * Spending more money with less or a market share in comparison to other products * Dogs * Low industry growth * Low relative market share * Generates little profits * Fish or cut bait * Either get rid of it or reinvent it – determine a new use for it.Find a way that it has never been used before * **Exam Question** Selling cutting boards, more people are cooking at home, market for cutting boards (market growth rate) is high. Company makes bamboo cutting boards, has 10% market share * Relative to competition * Product-Market Growth Matrix * Marketers use the product-market growth matrix to analyze different growth strategies pg. 52 (the left of the table would read MARKET EMPHASIS with â€Å"New Markets† on the bottom left and â€Å"Existing Markets† on the top left) PRODUCT EMPHASIS Existing Products New ProductsMarket Penetration StrategySeek to increase sales of existing products to existing markets| Product Development StrategyCreate growth by selling new products in existing markets| Market Development StrategyIntroduce existing products to new markets| Diversification StrategyEmphasize both new products and new markets to achieve growth| * Strategic Alternatives – Market Penetration; Market Development; Product Development; Diversification * Market Penetration: Growth strategies designed to increase sales of existing products to current customers, nonusers, and users of competitive brands in served markets * Market Development: Introduce existing products to new markets (geographic area, or it may mean reaching new customer segments within an existing geographic area) * Product Development Strategies: Create growth by selling new products in exist ing markets.May mean extending the firm’s product line by developing new variations of the item, or it may mean altering or improving the product to provide enhanced performance * Diversification Strategies: Emphasize both new products and new markets to achieve growth. Chapter 3 – Marketing Environment * Economic Environment * Marketers must understand economy and business cycle * Level of Economic Environment; LDC, Developing Country, Developed Country * Level of economic environment: the broader economic picture of a country * Deciding whether or not a country will be a good prospect * LDC: Least Developed Country: A country at the lowest stage of economic development * In most cases, its economic base is agriculture * Africa and South Asia * Standard living is low and so are literacy levels * Developing Country When an economy shifts its emphasis from agriculture to industry, standards of living, education, and the use of technology rise * The future market for con sumer goods like skin care products and mobile phones * Developed Country * Boasts sophisticated marketing systems, strong private enterprise, and bountiful market potential for many goods and services * Economically advanced and they offer a wide rand of opportunities for international marketers * Competitive Environment Marketers must know what competitors are doing (Competitive Intelligence) * Micro vs. Macro Competition * Macro – Overall industry, big picture Monopoly – one seller controls market, some companies sued for owning a monopoly * Oligopoly – small number of sellers, each with large share of market, i. e. cars * Monopolistic Competition – (we often see this as consumers) Many different sellers each offering a different benefit and each having a small share of market, i. e. soaps * Perfect Competition – Many small firms all offering similar products, no influence (rare) * Micro environmental competition– Competition for $â€℠¢s with products in the same class, what product alternatives will consumers choose * Competes on 3 levels * For discretionary income – how are people spending disposable income * Product competition – different products meeting the same need, i. e. ravel * Brand competition – same product trying to meet the same need, i. e. treadmills * Competitive Market Structures; Perfect Competition, Monopolistic Competition, Oligopoly, Monopoly * See Competitive Environment * Levels of Competition – Brand (Direct), Product, Total Market Competition (Discretionary Income) * See Competitive Environment * Technological Environment; how does this change industry? * Understanding the impact of technology on all aspects of the business * Distribution * Inventory Control * Communication, etc. * Political/Legal Environment/Federal Legislation (Acts) * Legislation that influences business. Make sure people compete fairly. Sherman Antitrust Act (1890) – intended to eli minate monopolies by prohibiting price fixing or predatory pricing * Vertical price fixing: When a manufacturer tells a retailer to sell at a fixed price * Vertical price fixing overturned by supreme court 2007 * Horizontal price fixing: When companies get together at the same level and agree to sell a product at the same price (Illegal) * Predatory price fixing: setting prices low to drive others out of business (Illegal) * Clayton Act (1914) – Prohibits tying contacts, take one product must take others * Nike – Violation of this act, LeBron shoes – Florida sued Nike for not delivering the shoes on time for â€Å"withholding† * Federal Trade Commission Act (1914) * Created the Federal Trade Commission to monitor unfair practices * Sociocultural Environment * Refers to the characteristics of the society, the people who live in that society, and the culture that reflects the values and beliefs of the society * Whether at home or in global markets, marketer s need to understand and adapt to their customs, characteristics and practices * Ethnocentrism The belief that one’s own norms and the products made in one’s country are superior * Bias occurs because we tend to use our own cultural frame of reference to judge other people * Ethnography: Researcher lives with people they are studying * Demographics * Statistics that measure observable aspects of a population * Population size * Age * Gender * Ethnic Group * Income * Education * Occupation * Family structure * Social Norms * Specific rules dictating what is right or wrong, acceptable or unacceptable * What ways to dress, how to speak, what to eat and how to behave * Cultural Values * Deeply held beliefs about right and wrong ways to live, that it imparts to it’s members * Talking about sex in public * Product Standardization vs. Localization Advocates of standardization argue that the world has become so small that basic needs and wants are the same everywhere * A focus on the similarities among cultures is certainly appealing * Realize large economies of scale because it could spread the costs of product development and promotional materials over many markets * Consistent exposure also helps create a global brand because it forges a strong, unified image all over the world * Advocates for localization feel that the world is not that small; you need to tailor products and promotional messages to local environments * Marketers feel that each culture is unique, with a distinctive set of behavioral and personality characteristics Chapter 4 – Market Information/Research * Steps in Conducting Market Research (this bullet will answer almost every bullet in this section, so just read over this one it’s in detail) 1.Define the Research Problem a. Specify the research objectives: i. Symptom or problem? ii. Selling the wine for too much money – symptom†¦ problem is the type of cap! What is the true issue? b. Identify your po pulation of interest: iii. Look at surrounding environment iv. What’s happening in the environment, is it a symptom or a problem? 2. Determining Research Design c. Research Design: Specifies what information will be collected and what type of study will be done d. Must determine if we are collecting primary or secondary data v. Primary: We collect data ourselves 1. Finding exactly what you want vi. Secondary: Someone else collects the data . Quality may be cheaper, but not as precise 3. Often outdated e. Determining Specific Information Needs vii. Primary information: Data specifically collected and organized for a particular marketing information need. Original viii. Secondary information: Data gathered for some purpose other than the current marketing information need (i. e. f. Primary Data – 3 types ix. Exploratory (problem identification) 4. Qualitative technique used to generate insights for future, more rigorous studies a. Interviews (1 on 1) b. Focus Groups (8-1 0) c. Ethnographies (researcher lives with people they are studying) d.Projective techniques (take yourself and â€Å"project† yourself into the situation based on information given) i. i. e. Folgers instant coffee – surveyed women ii. If you were making instant coffee you were â€Å"short-changing† your husbands iii. Benefits and features x. Descriptive (problem solving) 5. Quantitative technique that probes more systematically and with more respondents e. How to quantify a qualitative data – use a scale 6. Think frequencies f. Identifying numbers (how many people walk by the mall on campus) 7. Helps identify attitudes of consumers that buy the products g. Satisfaction survey xi. Casual (problem solving) 8.Quantitative techniques that attempt to understand the cause-and-effect relationships h. Test hypotheses i. Independent variable: manipulation j. Dependent variable: measureable outcome 9. Experiments: lab 10. Field Studies: real world 11. Causal Resea rch Example k. I work for Nestle and I believe that chocolate country of origin has an impact on satisfaction with the chocolate iv. Dependent = satisfaction v. Independent = country of origin vi. Independent variable with 5 choices (USA, Mexico, Canada, etc) 1. The more conditions you add, the more subjects you need to have vii. Let’s add an additional IV nuts or no nuts 2.Country of origin (5 choices) x Nuts (2 choices) = 10 conditions 12. You can have as many IV’s as you want, but this increases the number of subjects you need 13. To determine causality you look to see if there is a difference | Exploratory| Problem-Solving| Purpose| Investigation| Actionable information| Research Problem| Not well defined| Specific| Type of data| Qualitative | Quantitative| Sample| Small| Large| 3. Primary Data Collection Methods g. Communication, surveys xii. Mail questionnaires xiii. Telephone interviews xiv. Face-to-face interviews xv. Online questionnaires h. Observation xvi. P ersonal 14. Stores hire researchers to watch people xvii. Mechanical 15.Device that tracks behaviors (black strip that measures how many cars pass a street†¦) * Different Research Study Designs * A plan that specifies what information marketers will collect and what type of study they will do * Cross-sectional design: A type of descriptive technique that involves the systematic collection of quantitative information * Longitudinal Design: A technique that tracks the responses of the same sample of respondents over time * Types of Data: Qualitative, Primary, Secondary * Primary: We collect data ourselves * Finding exactly what you want * Secondary: Someone else collects the data * Quality may be cheaper, but not as precise Often outdated * Qualitative: You cannot put a number on it†¦ i. e. are you happy? Yes or no * Quantitative: You can put a value/scale number on it * Validity and Reliability * Validity: The extent to which research actually measures what it was intended to measure * Reliability: The extent to which research measurement techniques are free of errors * Construct – did we measure what we intended to measure? * Internal – can you identify the true causal relationship (most important) * External – generalizability; does this hold true for my population of interest? * Sampling * The process of selecting respondents for a study Probability sample: Each member of the population has some known chance of being included * Nonprobability sample: The use of personal judgment to select respondents (some cases, they just ask whoever they can find, some members of the population may not be included at all) * Convenience Sample: Nonprobability sample composed of individuals who just happen to be available when and where data is being collected * Independent/Dependent Variables * Independent – manipulation * Dependent – measureable outcome * Advantages/Disadvantages of Primary Data Collection Techniques * Advantage s of primary data collecting * Original * Gathering information for a particular need * Disadvantages of primary data collecting * Expensive * Advantages of secondary data collecting * Cheaper, saves time * Disadvantages of secondary data collecting * Outdated * Data Mining Process in which analysts sift through data to identify unique patterns of behavior among different customer groups * Data mining has 4 primary applications for marketers 1. Customer Acquisition: Many firms include demographic and other information about customers in their database 2. Customer Retention and Loyalty: Firm identifies big-spending customers and then targets them for special offers and inducements other customers won’t receive 3. Customer Abandonment: A firm wants customers to take their business elsewhere because servicing them actually costs the firm too much 4. Market Basket Analysis: Develop focused promotion strategies based on the records of which customers have bought certain products * Data Collection in Other Countries and Cultures Market conditions and consumer preferences vary worldwide and there are major differences in the sophistication of market research operations and the amount of data available to global marketers * Some countries may not have phones, literacy levels may affect mail surveys * Understanding local customs and cultural differences can affect the responses * Solve this problem by including local researchers in decisions about the design * Language: To overcome language barriers, researchers use the process of back-translation – the process of translating material to a foreign language and then back to the original language Additional Topics * Stealth Marketing * When you’re being marketed to, and you don’t realize you’re being marketed to * i. e.Camera phones – Nokia, having employees ask people to take pictures with their camera phones (w/o launching a campaign) * Guerilla Marketing * Doing something in a non-conventional, unique way * i. e. shooting someone from behind a tree†¦ * First time using QR codes * Buzz vs. Hype * What’s the difference? Guerilla marketing is all about creating buzz (goal is to get people to talk about us) * Buzz – people talking about it * As a consumer, we believe buzz over hype * Hype – comes from the company * i. e. television commercial * Hull’s drive theory * As humans, we are wired to know what we need which drives us * Homeostasis -> equilibrium * i. e. shivering when you’re cold Study in 70’s (rise of mini theories) claim there are many contributors to consumers * Darwin’s biological determinism * What motivates us * Cowbird; lays eggs in another species nest * When that egg hatches, it automatically knows the cowbird song * BORN with what motivates us * Cannibalization * When a new product takes sales away from original (existing) product * i. e. Apple 4S to 5, or Coca cola to diet coke * Can b e good and can be bad, depending on the situation * When you introduce a new product and it isn’t good†¦ It can motivate people to move away from the brand as a whole * Negative- having to sell what’s in inventory * Traditional vs. non-traditional media types * Traditional vs.Nontraditional * Subliminal messaging * Self-help cassette tapes * Lose weight label – people got the stop smoking message * Stop smoking – people got the lose weight message * Placebo * All of the Knuff’s Knuggets * Syphilis study – KNUGGET * Testing the spread of syphilis across the spread of African Americans * Infected some people with syphilis, some were given treatment, some were told they would be given treatment – but weren’t * Unethical, U. S. Government backed this study and eventually was sued for millions by families * Milgrim Shock Study * †¦Why we have the IRB * Institutional Review Boards * QR Codes Measures the effectiveness of th e ad * Allows a large amount of information to be displayed in a small space * Part of technological environment * Internal validity is necessary, but not sufficient for establishing external validity *KNUGGET * We have to have internal validity, otherwise its garbage * Just because we have internal validity, does not mean we can generalize or say that we have external validity * Heider’s Balance Theory is one explanation * Suggests that we need to keep triangle in balance * or NIKE GOLF TIGER WOODS YOU All positives around the outsides, or two negatives and one positive