What is poverty by Jo Goodwin Parker - 1694 Words

What is Poverty? – Jo Goodwin Parker First impressions: One thing that the reader notices is that Goodwin dives into the subject immediately and questions the reader â€Å"you ask me what is poverty?† in a rhetorical manner as if to describe the absurdity of the question itself. Whether or not the writer is the character portrayed in the essay or that she has adopted a persona is unknown since the author writer has not disclosed much about this work or herself. In any case, we know that the person writing this essay with a narrative style has seen and perhaps experienced poverty even from a disturbingly close proximity. In the first paragraph, Goodwin advises the readers to â€Å"listen without pity† and see everything as if from a distance but the†¦show more content†¦Although this essay has no political undertones, this may be a remark on growing capitalism during the 70’s, when the rich became richer and the poor poorer. Another sad reality the writer shows in the essay is that for the poor there is no season of rest and relaxation. They always have to be up and about, facing life with all its struggles and hardships. In winters and summers both, they have one or the other kind of worry. â€Å"Poverty is hoping it never rains†, â€Å"poverty is cooking without food and cleaning without soap†, â€Å"poverty means insects in your food..† all in all Goodwin shows the readers so many faces of poverty that the reader is left empathizing with her, and comparing their own life to hers, which is the true essence of this work. Not many works have this kind of ability to make a person think, wonder, and evoke the kind of emotions that this essay has been able to do. Poverty does not end at being poor, ill or starving. It goes all the way to shame and humiliation. The worst kind of humiliation comes when asking somebody for help. Like in the case of granny, others also find their way out of helping you because of utter indifference. â€Å"And after spilling the whole shame of your poverty all over the desk between you, you find that this isn’t the right office after all-â€Å". What Goodwin is suggesting here is that for the poor their true companions are the troubles andShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of What Is Poverty By Jo Goodwin Parker736 Words   |  3 Pagesdreads of poverty, so naturally we are not educated on what the terrors are. Jo Goodwin Parker informs readers in her short story â€Å"What is Poverty† about what life is like for those who live a harder life than most. She gives people an inside look on what it’s like to have almost nothing. The story is not told so the reader can pity the poor, it is told so we real ize that as big as our problems might seem many people face harder and the message the story is trying to send. Jo Goodwin Parker sends manyRead MoreWhat Is Poverty? By Jo Goodwin Parker And The Poverty Of Equality1001 Words   |  5 PagesPoverty has been a controversial issue in the United States. It has taken lives and has built obstacles for many Americans today. Poverty is a physical and mental handicap to many Americans who are not able to get past this barrier. However, some may argue poverty is just an excuse for those who decide not to put effort. Not to mention, two articles will share their story about the issue of poverty. â€Å"What is poverty?† By Jo Goodwin Parker and â€Å"The Poverty of Equality† by Stephen Moore and Peter FerraraRead MoreEssay on Jo Goodwin Parker. What Is Poverty?1018 Words   |  5 Pages090 December 6, 2010 What is Poverty? Jo Goodwin Parker’s essay, â€Å"What is Poverty?† is about Parker who has personally experienced rural poverty. She explains her story from childhood to adulthood. Parker’s struggles are overwhelming; look at any sentence, the evidence of her daily struggle is there. From her underwear to living arrangements, and everything in between, Parker resides in poverty. In her essay, she says to listen to the story of what poverty is. Then she talks about the differentRead MorePoverty Essay948 Words   |  4 PagesAccounts, Experiences and Scenarios in Poverty Stories and factual experiences provide insight to readers that explicate the reality of any situation. The solutions to poverty become more attainable when accounts from others’ experiences are brought into consideration. In Jo Goodwin Parkers’ â€Å"What is Poverty?,† Lars Eighners’ â€Å"On Dumpster Diving,† Peter Singers’ â€Å"The Singer Solution to World Poverty† and Barbara Ehrenreichs’ â€Å"A Step Back to the Workhouse, † each author expands on personal experiencesRead More Americas Downward Spiral Essay632 Words   |  3 PagesAmericas Downward Spiral In recent years, the economy in the United States has been in what most would see as a recession. American people differ in the way they react to a recession. Some, such as Michael Moore, feel it becomes a downward spiral as big business and it’s stockholders gain more money and power, and it’s workers gain less money and stability. With a loss of stability for the American worker there is a fear of losing their health benefits, social security, pension plan, andRead MoreEssay on Let’s Put an End to Corporate Power and Greed666 Words   |  3 Pagescarrying away with them the primary sources of living of many people. As we saw in Roger and Me, General Motors replaced it’s Flint plant to open new ones in Mexico, laying off 30,000 workers in the process. Flint quickly turned into a ghost town with poverty taking its toll on the common people. The rich got richer, while the poor became poorer. By this time the conditions had become so bad that the Money Magazine described Flint as the worst American city to live in. John Grisham (My Turn: SomewhereRead MorePoverty Is Not For A Decent Job938 Words   |  4 PagesAt this moment in my life I would not consider myself poor but, according to Jo Goodwin Parker’s definition of poverty I am. Parker defines poverty as not having enough money for necessities, none for luxuries or pleasure, is a single parent, has very little education, and has little or no access to healthcare. I am still in school so obviously I do not have the proper education to get a decent job. With the part time job that I do have I don’t make enough money to have that many luxuries. If itRead MoreDo You Want Lies With That?1039 Words   |  5 Pages â€Å"Do You Want Lies With That? Summary In his article â€Å"Do You Want Lies With That? by Morgan Spurlock, the author is telling his audience about consumerism and over consumption with Americans as a hole. He begins by informing the reader about what we should and should not be put in mouths and is why we get warning labels now. He continues the article talking about how many people smoke and why so many do not smoke now. Huge lawsuits from the nineties forced changes in the way people viewed tobaccoRead MoreEssay on What is Poverty?1079 Words   |  5 Pages What do you consider poverty to be? Do you have a definitive explanation of it or do you consider it an abstract circumstance? In the article What is Poverty?, Jo Goodwin Parker gives her ideas on what poverty is. First given as a speech, this article is written as an attack on human emotion. Her use of connotative language creates many harsh images of her experiences in a life of poverty. By using these images, Parker is capable of causing the reader to feel many emotions and forcesRead MoreExamples Of Poverty Essay943 Words   |  4 PagesThe Shame in Poverty Accounts The solutions to poverty are plentiful when accounts from others’ experiences are brought into consideration. Stories and experiences provide insight to readers that explicate the reality of any situation. In â€Å"What is Poverty† â€Å"On Dumpster Diving† â€Å"Lifeboat Ethics† and â€Å"The Singer Solution,† each article expands on personal experiences and situations to open the reader to various viewpoints on how poverty is perceived by society, as well as how it is perceived by those

Questions On Generic Ankle Exercises - 719 Words

Generic Ankle Exercises Ask your health care provider which exercises are safe for you. Do exercises exactly as told by your health care provider and adjust them as directed. You should not feel pain when you do these exercises. Stop right away if you feel any pain. Do not begin these exercises until told by your health care provider. STRETCHING AND RANGE OF MOTION EXERCISES These exercises warm up your muscles and joints and improve the movement and flexibility of your ankle. These exercises also help to relieve pain, numbness, and tingling. Exercises A: Dorsi/Plantar Flexion Sit with your knee straight or bent. Flex your ankle to bring the top of your foot up. Hold this position for seconds. Flex your ankle and point your toes to bring the top of your foot down. Hold this position for seconds. Repeat times. Complete this exercise times per day. Exercises B: Ankle Alphabet Imagine your big toe is a pen. Keeping your hip and knee still, write out the entire alphabet with your pen. Make the letters as large as you can without feeling discomfort. Repeat times. Complete this exercise times per day. Exercises C: Ankle Dorsiflexion, Active Assisted Sit on a chair placed on a non-carpeted surface. Place your foot under your knee and extend your opposite leg for support. Keeping your heel down, slide your foot back toward the chair until you feel a stretch at your ankle or calf. If you do not feel a stretch, slide your bottomShow MoreRelatedUse the following Case Scenario896 Words   |  3 Pagesprobably going to continue dropping. She will require oxygen first, possibly a nonrebreather mask. The symptoms she is facing is of a person going through acute heart failure which includes shortness of breath, coughing/wheezing, weight gain, swollen ankles, rapid heart rate, tiredness/fatigue, and loss of appetite. With Mrs. J’s signs and symptoms, she must be hospitalized immediately. She requires inpatient monitoring. Telemetry monitoring should be initiated and continued for 24-48 hours after admissionRead MoreReference Guide for Pharmacy Technician Exam Essay4921 Words   |  20 PagesMaintaining medications and inventory control systems. 3. Participating in administration and management of the pharmacy practice. This reference guide has more than 500 questions that allow you to practice tackling the actual exam. We have also included more than 40 chapters that will give you knowledge of drug trade names, generic names, indications and major adverse reactions. The PTCBïÆ'’ exam puts more emphasis on calculations; therefore, all efforts were made to include calculations in the tutorialRead MoreIndividual Reflective Report3100 Words   |  13 Pagesparticularly that associated with information literacy, I intend to directly apply to my project to minimise bias and irrelevant results and produce a viable review. Initially, when I first started this case study I thought, quite frankly, that the exercise was not really going to neither challenge me nor teach me a greater degree of theory than already understood. Although the concepts have not changed; the way in which I perceive them and apply them certainly has. Already it has changed the way inRead MoreCase Study Essay33967 Words   |  136 Pagesalcohol). †¢ Routine aerobic exercise, like walking, is also encouraged. Patients at risk for CAD should begin an exercise program under supervision and with the approval of their physician. It is important to start slowly and build up gradually. It is now recognized that any moderate activity is better than none. Studies have shown that long-term exercise compliance is better in individuals engaging in lower to moderate-intensity exercise rather than higher intensity exercise. Although some patientsRead MoreStrategy Management18281 Words   |  74 Pagesstudents interview better and effortlessly join the discourse in the corporate world. Having spoken to hundreds of students across the world, I want to minimize the frustration they express in seeing the same, out-of-date examples in so many of their (generic and boiler-plate) business-school textbooks. Use of the AFI strategy framework. The book demonstrates that â€Å"less is more† through a focused presentation of the relevant strategy content using Analysis, Formulation, and Implementation as a guidingRead More_x000C_Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis355457 Words   |  1422 Pages For more information about our products, contact us at: Thomson Learning Academic Resource Center 1-800-423-0563 For permission to use material from this text or product, submit a request online at http://www.thomsonrights.com. Any additional questions about permissions can be submitted by e-mail to thomsonrights@thomson.com. Printed in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 11 10 09 08 07 ExamView  ® and ExamView Pro  ® are registered trademarks of FSCreations, Inc. Windows is a registeredRead MoreNoughts and Crosses14387 Words   |  58 Pagesand design, add to their thoughts? Draw out ideas on contrast and conflict. Tell students that some editions of the novel include a quotation from Benjamin Zephaniah about the novel. He calls it ‘intelligent, emotional and imaginatively wicked’. Question his inclusion and tell them that he is a British-born West Indian writer who has written extensively on racial issues. Ask students what this knowledge adds to their speculation about the cover. Move swiftly on to look at other external featuresRead MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 PagesData Whetten, David A. (David Allred) Developing management skills /David A. Whetten, Kim S. Cameron.—8th ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-13-612100-8 1. Management—-Study and teaching. 2. Management—Problems, exercises, etc. Kim S. II. Title. HD30.4.W46 2011 658.40071 173—dc22 I. Cameron, 2009040522 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 ISBN 10: 0-13-612100-4 ISBN 13: 978-0-13-612100-8 B R I E F TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S Preface xvii Introduction 1 PART I Read MoreAr 670-1116218 Words   |  465 Pageshairstyles are acceptable, as long as they are neat and conservative. It is not possible to address every acceptable hairstyle, or what constitutes eccentric or conservative grooming. Therefore, it is the responsibility of leaders at all levels to exercise good judgment in the enforcement of Army policy. All soldiers will comply with the hair, fingernail, and grooming policies while in any military uniform or while in civilian clothes on duty. (a) Leaders will judge the appropriateness of a particularRead MoreAr 670-1117328 Words   |  470 Pageshairstyles are acceptable, as long as they are neat and conservative. It is not possible to address every acceptable hairstyle, or what constitutes eccentric or conservative grooming. Therefore, it is the responsibility of leaders at all levels to exercise good judgment in the enforcement of Army policy. All soldiers will comply with the hair, fingernail, and grooming policies while in any military uniform or while in civilian clothes on duty. (a) Leaders will judge the appropriateness of a particular

Coca- Cola Company

Question: Write an essay onCoca- Cola Company . Answer: Coca- Cola Company laid its foundation in 1886 and now is the leading manufacturer and distributor of the world. It is now currently operating in more than 200 countries having brands of more than 230 in number. Around 80% of the companys profit is from the United States. The Chairman of Coca Cola Company revealed that the main strength of the company is being global and it has achieved so by acting locally (Coca-cola.co.uk 2016). The company effectiveness and profit level is due to their strong market share and competitive rank in the world. Initially the company was just geographically located in US but with time, it soon spread to the other countries by adopting the market development strategy. In addition, Coca Cola has separated its geographical units where each unit has an organizational and operational section (Coca-cola.co.uk 2016). They have focused on the key elements of the markets, reporting lines and the flexibility so that the business gets adapted to such geographical features. Company Name % value Coca Cola 47 Cadbury Schweppes 8 Pepsi Cola 21 AmBev 1 Cott 2 Others 21 Total 100 Table 1: Global market share Source: (Smith 2016) The Coca Cola Company has its headquarters in the midtown of Atlanta, Georgia. A home country is important for any organization because it helps in building up that organization. The norm of the home countrys culture has been divided into psychological and institutional level. The psychological level defines individuals attitude, behavior for the organization and how they react to it whereas the institutional level defines those people who are group into the business organization where they are bound to work accordingly (Verbeke 2013). A home country can guide business organization very well because the people who are native to their hometown have same characteristics of culture. They have the same psychological understanding towards the work. Also they possess the same religious beliefs, behavior patterns and subcultures which add advantage to the growing business culture (Cavusgil et al. 2014). As per the Hofstedes theory, he defined the four dimensions, which has intensified the Coca Cola Company. These are Power distance: In this, the organization power has been accepted by the culture of the people but it is distributed unequally. The distribution is unequal which means that less power distance is related to the participation of the employee, which is very less and high power distance means that the hierarchy of the organization is increasing steeple with the leadership (Leonidou et al. 2015). Uncertainty avoidance: this defines that the countries having low avoidance of uncertainty requires more flexibility than bureaucracy does but the Coca Cola Company has a high avoidance of uncertainty where the priority is reflected more upon the organizations procedures and rituals (Wild et al. 2014). Individualism: this signifies that the individual should take care of himself or herself alone, which would be beneficial for the company. Masculinity: this refers to the materialistic success, achievement, and assertion of the Coca Cola Company. The Coca Cola Company has set up Supplier Guiding Principles for choosing the right suppliers for their company. These principles help the suppliers and the company to communicate between them so that the policies are implemented correctly. To understand this, the theory of value chain analysis is adopted which concentrates on the activities like starting of raw materials to its conversion to final products (Fojcik 2015). This theory has two categories primary activities, which include sales, distributions and operation activities, and the other is support activities, which comprises of human resources and RD. this value chain theory has proven to be beneficial because it has created much opportunities to secure the advantages of cost and the opportunities for the differentiation of the product (Coca-cola.co.uk 2016). The value chain theory increases the organizations competitiveness. Reduction in costs, share of market is improved and the profit margin. The global value chains are t he most recent ones as it is more prevalent as it integrates the activities of the organizations on daily basis. It means that the workers and the firms, which are geographically separated, can intercommunicate with each other, which was not possible in the past (Teece 2014). This approach leads to the firm establishment of the organization. This global value chain is a framework, which mainly focuses on the retailers, merchandisers that govern the production and distribution globally. If the suppliers are foreign then there come many barriers in the organizations. The barrier could be of differences in language, methods of payment, and the transportation methods. The goods origin could be affected by the duty and the raw materials from the suppliers. Coca Cola has been selling its products in more than 200 countries so it has vast customer countries for running its organization (Coca-cola.co.uk 2016). The customer countries favor globalization. There are two type of customer industry, which favors an organization. They are the facsimile customer industry who emphasizes more on the homogenous factors and the furniture customer industry whose factors or needs are given by the local culture, tastes etc. This company has the planned method of market entry strategies where it role is to deliver the services or goods to the market that is in target and distributing the products. In the case of exporting or importing the services, the market entry strategies refer to managing and establishing contracts in the other countries (Forsgren and Johanson 2014). The internationalization strategy helps the organization to expand its business outside its domestic domain. They help in making the organization go international by entering new markets; it helps in the cost reduction and enhances competitiveness of the organization. it helps in the exploitation of the core competencies in the new market, helps in sharing higher market risks, the lower cost of labor, lower tax, the natural resources which are cheaper are some of the facilities given by the internationalization strategies (Mellahi and Frynas 2015). Thus, the internationalization strategies help the organization by getting them access to the various markets, helps to get capital from the foreign markets, it also lead to the access to the production valuables of the organization, helps to corporate risk management. It also helps in the launching of new products in the market. Coca Cola has a major partnership with the WWF to conserve water, as it is one of the most important elements of the nature, which needs conservation. These two companies have a partnership since 2007 to conserve the freshwater (Coca-cola.co.uk 2016). Their partnership aims to provide healthy basins of freshwater in the Mesoamerican Reef in Mexico. These two companies are trying to address the challenges of the natural resources by changing the freshwater impact and thus improving the performance of the environmental conditions. This improvement is done across the supply chain of the company, where its core value is integrated to make some decisions about the process and explaining the influential nearby partners to solve the global challenges of the environment. The partnerships of these two companies are on a global basis but they also serve locally in many of the countries to conserve water and create a secure future of water (Radebaugh et al. 2015). As more and more of the allian ces are, being made up in the company they need a strategic alliance, which would make their organization much better and on a higher level. Revenue was considered to be as the major alliance but this was not the only thing there are five other criteria, which determines the strategic alliance of the organization. These criteria are making the business objective as it core goal. Developing the competency of the organization or serves as the reliable source of competitive advantage, the blocking of a competitive threat is another criterion, making the choices, which are strategic for the organization, and last is the risk to the business organization (Thome and Medeiros 2016). The issue with developing such strategic alliance is that the organization needs to figure out as which criteria should be used where and how and what would be the effect of such criteria on the company because if any of the partners misunderstands the strategic alliance then it would lead to the fall of the or ganization. Coca Cola is one of the most recognized and biggest beverage companies in the world. It spreads to more than 200 countries having more than 3000 products. The success of this company is due to the strategy, the rules it follows, and the way it takes care of its employees. They do so by making the environment of the place peaceful and having union among the employees. The company has also formulated some policies for the safety of the company and it employees. The company is so huge and has it branches almost everywhere that it has created some databases to keep an account of their customers, suppliers and how they are doing business with their consumers. This company has been able to set up its market strategies to bring a revolution by making its business high, launching more and more of products and increasing the competition with the other companies. Thus, the new companies are unable to keep up with the growing pace. References: Cavusgil, S.T., Knight, G., Riesenberger, J.R., Rammal, H.G. and Rose, E.L., 2014.International Australia.business. Pearson Coca-cola.co.uk. 2016. Company Structure | Cocaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ËœCola System | Coca-Cola GB. [online] Available at: https://www.coca-cola.co.uk/about-us [Accessed 23 Jun. 2016]. Fojcik, T.M., 2015. International Business Strategy: Rethinking the Foundations of Global Corporate Success, Cambridge University Press, 2013.Management International Review,55(1), p.151. Forsgren, M. and Johanson, J., 2014.Managing networks in international business. Routledge. Leonidou, L.C., Fotiadis, T.A., Christodoulides, P., Spyropoulou, S. and Katsikeas, C.S., 2015. Environmentally friendly export business strategy: Its determinants and effects on competitive advantage and performance.International Business Review,24(5), pp.798-811. Mellahi, K. and Frynas, G., 2015.Global strategic management. Oxford University Press. Radebaugh, L.H., Sullivan, D.P. and Daniels, J.D., 2015.International business: Environments and operations. Pearson Education. Smith, L. 2016. Foodline Market. [online] Foodlineweb.co.uk. Available at: https://www.foodlineweb.co.uk/foodline/market.aspx [Accessed 23 Jun. 2016]. Teece, D.J., 2014. A dynamic capabilities-based entrepreneurial theory of the multinational enterprise.Journal of International Business Studies,45(1), pp.8-37. Thom, K.M. and Medeiros, J.J., 2016. Drivers of successful international business strategy: Insights from the evolution of a trading company. International Journal of Emerging Markets,11(1), pp.89-110. Verbeke, A. 2013.International business strategy. Cambridge University Press. Wild, J., Wild, K. L., and Han, J. C. 2014.International business. Pearson Education Limited.

Okonkwos Fear-From Things Fall Apart Essays - Literature

Okonkwo's Fear-From Things Fall Apart Okonkwo's fear Things Fall Apart, written by Chinua Achebe, is a story of a man whose life is dominated by his fears. There are many subtle themes throughout this book. One theme that cries out over the rest is Okonkwo's, the main character, fear of weakness as seen through his childhood, his oldest son, and eventually his death. Since his childhood, Okonkwo was ashamed of his father, ?In his day he (Unoka) was lazy and improvident and was quite incapable of thinking about tomorrow?(p.4). By the standard of his clan, Unoka was a coward and squanderer. When he was a child, a boy called Okonkwo's father an agbala. This word means ?woman? as well as a man who has no title. His carelessness left numerous debts unpaid at his death. Ashamed of his father, Okonkwo worked hard and fought well to gain a reputation of high status and influence in his clan. He acquired three wives, one whom gave him his first son. Okonkwo's first wife, whose name is never mentioned, gave birth to his first son, Nwoye. Okonkwo saw Nwoye weak and lazy from an early age. For this, Nwoye was beaten constantly. Okonkwo was highly demanding of his family because of his obsession not to be like his father. He mistook this behavior as masculinity. He wished his son were a promising, manly son like his friend Obierika's son, Maduka, who was also a great fighter. One night the town of Umuofia was told that someone in Mbaino had killed one of their ?daughters?. The woman was Ugbeufi Udo's wife. The blood price for the murder was a virgin and young man to Umuofia. The virgin was given to Ugbeufi Udo as his wife. They did not know what to do with the young boy, Ikemefuna. Okonkwo was asked on behalf of the clan to take care of the boy. Secretly, Okonkwo grew fond of Ikemefuna, ?Even Okonkwo himself became very fond of the boy-inwardly of course. Okonkwo never showed any emotion openly, unless it be the emotion of anger?(p. 28). Ikemefuna lived with Okonkwo and his family for three years until the time came when the Oracle said that Ikemefuna had to be killed. Okonkwo was warned not to have any part in killing the boy who called him father. He ignored this and upon returning sank into a deep depression which kindled the affliction inside of him. Not only the death of Ikemefuna, but also the accidental killing of Ogbeufi Ezeudu's son, which gets Okonkwo and his family exiled for seven years, aides in his depression. To atone for the killing of his clansmen's son, Okonkwo and his family were cast out of Umuofia and were forced to go live with his mother's clan in Mbanta. In their second year a group of six missionaries traveled to Mbanta and tried to persuade the people from their false gods of wood and stone to the one true God. They captured Nwoye and he later joined their congregation. When Okonkwo was informed of the news he strangled Nwoye in anger. He questioned how he could have fathered such a weak son. At the end of the seven-year exile, Okonkwo was able to return home. However, the church had taken over Umuofia also. Nothing was the same. Okonkwo refused to integrate with the new visitors. He thought that the clan's failure to remove them was ?womanly?. Almost happy again, Okonkwo began to accept the new Umuofia. Then the leaders of the clan, including Okonkwo, were taken for ransom by the church. Deeply angered by what was happening, Okonkwo killed one of the leaders at a meeting. The pacification of Okonkwo's clan is what depressed him. He knew his clan would not go to war. This desire to act violently all goes back to his father's lack of desire. In the end the violence settled on Okonkwo, when he hung himself. In conclusion, all these aspects: his childhood, his first son and Ikemefuna, and his death contribute in explaining Okonkwo's fear of weakness. Okonkwo's life was controlled by his fears. He valued the success of his family and the community with his own success. If Nwoye was weak it was because

Meaning of Gender in English Grammar

Meaning of Gender in English Grammar Gender is a  grammatical classification which in Modern English applies primarily to the third-person singular personal pronouns. Also known as  grammatical gender. Unlike many other European languages, English no longer has masculine and feminine inflections for nouns  and  determiners.   EtymologyFrom Latin, race, kind. Examples and Observations Although English and German are descendants of the same branch of Germanic, viz. West Germanic, they are characterized by rather different developments in the course of their histories. . . .While German preserved the system of grammatical gender inherited from Germanic and ultimately from Indo-European, English lost it and replaced it by natural gender, a development which is assumed to have taken place in late Old English and early Middle English, i.e. roughly between the 10th and the 14th century. . . .(Dieter Kastovsky, Inflectional Classes, Morphological Restructuring, and the Dissolution of Old English Grammatical Gender. Gender in Grammar and Cognition, ed. by Barbara Unterbeck and Matti Rissanen. Mouton de Gruyter, 1999)   The Loss of Gender in Middle English[F]unctional overload . . . seems to be a plausible way to account for what we observe in Middle English, that is, after Old English and Old Norse had come into contact: gender assignment often diverged in Old English and Old Norse, which would have readily led to the elimination of it in order to avoid confusion and to lessen the strain of learning the other contrastive system. . . .[I]n an alternative account, it was the contact with French that played the role of a catalyst in the eventual  loss of gender in Middle English: when French entered the English language, the distinction of gender became problematic, because speakers were confronted with two quite different gender categories. Since it is always difficult to learn gender in a second language, the consequence of this conflict was that gender was given up in Middle English.(Tania Kuteva and  Bernd Heine, An Integrative Model of Grammaticalization.   Grammatical Replication and Borro wability in Language Contact, ed. by  Bjà ¶rn Wiemer, Bernhard Wlchli, and Bjà ¶rn Hansen. Walter de Gruyter, 2012) Gendered PetsEven in English, which does not have a full-blown grammatical gender system, there is a tendency to ignore the sex of some animals but still refer to them with gendered forms. Many speakers use she indiscriminately for cats and he for dogs.(Penelope Eckert and Sally McConnell-Ginet, Language and Gender, 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press, 2013) American Males and Their Female Cars- I smiled back at him and toyed with all of the gadgets in the car.Oh, shes nice, aint she? This is top of the line here, he told me.Why do men refer to cars as she? I asked just for the hell of it.Because were men, Byron answered. He laughed, a strong hearty laugh. Maybe it was too hearty. He was really pleased with his sale.(Omar Tyree, For the Love of Money. Simon and Schuster, 2000)- American males often refer to their cars as a she, thereby revealing their dominance over the machines and women . . ..(Tony Magistrale, Hollywoods Stephen King. Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) Gender and Third-Person Singular PronounsThe 3rd person singular pronouns contrast in gender: - The masculine gender pronoun he is used for males - humans or animals that have salient enough characteristics for us to think of them as differentiated (certainly for gorillas, usually for ducks, probably not for rats, certainly not for cockroaches).- The feminine gender pronoun she is used for females, and also, by extension, for certain other things conventionally treated in a similar way: political entities ( France has recalled her ambassador) and certain personified inanimates, especially ships ( May God bless her and all who sail in her.).- The neuter pronoun it is used for inanimates, or for male and female animals (especially lower animals and non-cuddly creatures), and sometimes for human infants if the sex is unknown or considered irrelevant. . . . No singular 3rd person pronoun in English is universally accepted as appropriate for referring to a human when you dont want to specify sex. . . . The pronoun most widely used in such cases is they, in a secondary use that is interpreted semantically as singular.(Rodney Huddleston and Geoffrey K. Pullum, A Students Introduction to English Grammar. Cambridge University Press, 2006) Agreement With IndefinitesUnder close scrutiny, [the rule mandating singular agreement with indefinites] emerges as a pragmatically cumbersome, linguistically unreliable, and ideologically provocative rule, which entered the canon under false pretenses.(Elizabeth S. Sklar, The Tribunal of Use: Agreement in Indefinite Constructions. College Composition and Communication, December 1988) Pronunciation: JEN-der

Biography of Charles Wheatstone, British Inventor

Biography of Charles Wheatstone, British Inventor Charles Wheatstone (February 6, 1802–October 19, 1875) was an English natural philosopher and inventor, perhaps best known today for his contributions to the electric telegraph. However, he invented and contributed in several fields of science, including photography, electrical generators, encryption, acoustics, and musical instruments and theory. Fast Facts: Charles Wheatstone Known For: Physics experiments and patents applying to sight and sound, including the electric telegraph, the concertina, and the stereoscopeBorn:  February 6, 1802 at Barnwood, near Gloucester, EnglandParents: William and Beata Bubb WheatstoneDied: October 19, 1875 in Paris, FranceEducation: No formal science education, but excelled in French, math, and physics at  Kensington and Vere Street schools, and took an apprenticeship in his uncles music factoryAwards and Honors: Professor of Experimental Philosophy at Kings College, Fellow of the Royal Society in 1837, knighted by Queen Victoria in 1868Spouse: Emma WestChildren: Charles Pablo, Arthur William Fredrick, Florence Caroline, Catherine Ada, Angela Early Life Charles Wheatstone was born on February 6, 1802, near Gloucester, England. He was the second child born to William (1775–1824) and Beata Bubb Wheatstone, members of a music business family established on the Strand in London at least as early as 1791, and perhaps as early as 1750. William and Beata and their family moved to London in 1806, where William set up shop as a flute teacher and maker; his elder brother Charles Sr. was head of the family business, manufacturing and selling musical instruments. Charles learned to read at age 4 and was sent to school early at the Kensington Proprietary Grammar School and Vere Street Board School in Westminster, where he excelled in French, math, and physics. In 1816, he was apprenticed to his Uncle Charles, but by the age of 15, his uncle complained that he was neglecting his work at the shop to read, write, publish songs, and pursue an interest in electricity and acoustics. In 1818, Charles produced his first known musical instrument, the flute harmonique, which was a keyed instrument. No examples have survived. Early Inventions and Academics In September 1821, Charles Wheatstone exhibited his Enchanted Lyre or Acoucryptophone  at a gallery in a music store, a musical instrument that appeared to play itself to amazed shoppers. The Enchanted Lyre was not a real instrument, but rather a sounding box disguised as a  lyre  that hung from the ceiling by a thin steel wire. The wire was connected to the soundboards of a piano, harp, or dulcimer played in an upper room, and as those instruments were played, the sound was conducted down the wire, setting off sympathetic resonance of the lyres strings. Wheatstone speculated publicly that at some time in the future, music might be transmitted in a similar manner throughout London laid on like gas. In 1823 acclaimed Danish scientist Hans Christian Ãâ€"rsted (1777–1851) saw the Enchanted Lyre and convinced Wheatstone to write his first scientific article, New Experiments in Sound. Ãâ€"rsted presented the paper to the Acadà ©mie Royale des Sciences in Paris, and it was eventually published in Great Britain in Thomsons Annals of Philosophy. Wheatstone began his association with the Royal Institution of Great Britain (also known as the Royal Institute, founded in 1799) in the mid-1820s, writing papers to be presented by close friend and RI member Michael Faraday (1791–1869) because he was too shy to do it himself.   Early Inventions Wheatstone had a wide-ranging interest in sound and vision and contributed many inventions and improvements on existing inventions while he was active. His first patent (#5803) was for a Construction of Wind Instruments on June 19, 1829, describing the use of a flexible bellows. From there, Wheatstone developed the concertina, a bellows-driven, free-reed instrument in which each button produces the same pitch regardless of the way the bellows are moving. The patent was not published until 1844, but Faraday gave a Wheatstone-written lecture demonstrating the instrument to the Royal Institute in 1830. Academics and Professional Life Despite his lack of a formal education in science, in 1834 Wheatstone was made a Professor of Experimental Philosophy at Kings College, London, where he conducted pioneering experiments in electricity and invented an improved dynamo. He also invented two devices to measure and regulate electrical resistance and current: the Rheostat and an improved version of what is now known as the Wheatstone bridge (it was actually invented by Samuel Hunter Christie  in 1833). He held the position at Kings College for the remainder of his life, although he continued working in the family business for another 13 years. In 1837, Charles Wheatstone partnered with inventor and entrepreneur William Cooke to co-invent an electric telegraph, a now-outdated communication system that transmitted electric signals over wires from location to location, signals that could be translated into a message. The Wheatstone-Cooke or needle telegraph was the first working communication system of its kind in Great Britain, and it was put into operation on the London and Blackwall Railway. Wheatstone was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) that same year. Wheatstone invented an early version of the stereoscope in 1838, versions of which became a very popular philosophical toy in the later 19th century. Wheatstones stereoscope used two slightly different versions of the same image, which when viewed through two separate tubes gave the viewer the optical illusion of depth. Throughout his professional life, Wheatstone invented both philosophical toys and scientific instruments, exercising his interests in linguistics, optics, cryptography (the Playfair Cipher), typewriters, and clocks- one of his inventions was the Polar Clock, which told time by polarized light. Marriage and Family On February 12, 1847, Charles Wheatstone married Emma West, the daughter of a local tradesman, and they eventually had five children. That year he also stopped working in a significant way at the family business to concentrate on his academic research. His wife died in 1866, at which point his youngest daughter Angela was 11 years old. Wheatstone gleaned a number of important awards and honors throughout his career. He was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in 1859, made a Foreign Associate of the French Academy of Sciences in 1873, and became an honorary member of the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1875. He was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1868. He was named a Doctor of Civil Law (DCL) at Oxford and a doctor of law (LLD) at Cambridge. Death and Legacy Charles Wheatstone was one of the most inventive geniuses of his generation, combining combined science-based publication with business-focused patent applications and serious research with a playful interest in philosophical toys and inventions. He died of bronchitis on October 19, 1875, in Paris while he was working on yet another new invention, this one for submarine cables. He is buried in Kensal Green Cemetery near his home in London. Sources Bowers, Brian. Sir Charles Wheatstone, F.R.S. 1802–1875. London: Her Majestys Stationery Office, 1975Anonymous. Wheatstone Collection. Special Collections. Kings College London, March 27, 2018. Web. Rycroft, David. The Wheatstones. The Galpin Society Journal 45 (1992): 123–30. Print.Wade, Nicholas J. Charles Wheatstone (1802–1875). Perception 31.3 (2002): 265–72. Print.Wayne, Neil. The Wheatstone English Concertina. The Galpin Society Journal 44 (1991): 117–49. Print.

Brand Creation and Advertising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Brand Creation and Advertising - Essay Example In the era of rapid globalization, global advertising is important element of creating and maintaining enviable market position of products across the globe. Effective brand advertising therefore, facilitates good market positioning of the products and holds true for all type of companies, wishing to expand and exploit global market to gain necessary leverage. Hamsini Shivkumar’s article on the challenges faced in global advertising are succinct and give useful insight into the factors that can make or break the global positioning of the products across globe. Brand creation and advertising are very important part of market strategy. While ‘brand building is needed because products are the same’ (Kotler, 2005), advertising creates the necessary awareness amongst the segmented market to promote and influence the buying decisions of the public. Effective brand advertising therefore, facilitates good market positioning of the products and holds true for all type of companies, wishing to expand and exploit global market to gain necessary leverage. Taking cognizance of the following factors would promote global marketing campaigns of the products: Effective communication is important tool to overcome the barrier of language and socio-psychological paradigms of global community. Facilitating easy access to information brightens the scope of retaining the customers. With so much choice in the open market, one must advertise the unique advantages of the products and their usefulness to draw in new customers while keeping the old. The customer is always interested in the end result of his purchase so he needs to be shown the extra benefits that he would be getting on the purchase! Segmentation of the market as per the demographic compulsions is yet another factor that contributes towards more dominant market position vis-à  -vis common needs and concept that reaches across the race, culture, color and nationality.  

Research Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Research Paper - Essay Example Arrest, detention and seizure are governed by stringent regulations and limitations which, according to Pilon (2000) are primarily intended to protect the citizenry against unreasonable searches, unjustifiable detentions and importantly, against the possibility of law enforcement’s abusing its powers. It is in relation to the stated that Turkey stands in direct contrast to Canada. This Eurasian nation has been cited for human rights abuses on countless occasions and both Amnesty International and the European Commission for Human Rights have repeatedly shed light on abuses vis-Ã  -vis all of search, seizure and detention (ECHR, 2003; U.S. Department of State, 2007). A comparison of the arrest, detention and seizure framework in Canada and Turkey will serve to underscore the imperatives of limiting police authority through the clear explication of the citizenry’s civic rights for the prevention of abuses which translate into nothing less than inexcusable miscarriages of justice. The rules which govern arrest, detention and seizure in Turkey are grounded in the country’s constitution. The Turkish Constitution clearly outlines the civic rights of the citizenry and outlines the limitations on police authority. As Kinzer (2002) explains, arbitrary arrests are prohibited with no statements of exception. Law enforcement must have a clear reason for arresting citizens and must establish, before a judge that the citizen in question has violated the laws of the nation and accordingly, that there are legitimate grounds for the issuance of an arrest warrant. If a warrant is granted, law enforcement has the legitimate right to take the suspect into custody where he/she may be detained for a maximum period of 7.5 days. This period can only be renewed if law enforcement uncovers evidence pertaining to the detained suspect’s highly probable culpability in a crime. Not only that but law enforcement must

Jack Shepherd Essay Example for Free

Jack Shepherd Essay ABC’s hit television series, Lost, portrays interesting characters. From all walks of life, the characters have one thing in common. They are all stranded on a deserted island somewhere off of the airline’s charted flight course. Forty- eight remaining passengers are thrown together as a result of this terrible plane crash, the literary complication. As the plot continues, they must all try to survive. A few of the survivors are badly injured, a few are hysterical, some are angry, and some are scared. No one appears to know what to do. Jack Shepherd is the protagonist who represents the hero of the pilot episode. Through indirect characterization, the writer presents Jack as a dynamic, round, and fully developed character. Jack Shepherd, as the protagonist, is a take-charge sort of guy who is the natural leader on the island, as illustrated by his actions early on in the episode. He calms a pregnant girl who is traumatized and having contractions, gives mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to an African American woman who has quit breathing, and he rescues, at the very last possible minute, a heavy-set guy and the expectant mother from disaster when he sees the plane collapsing. They are both unaware of the impending danger, and almost in superhero fashion, Jack runs down the beach and rescues them as the plane’s broken wing almost falls on the pair. The author presents him as an unselfish character who takes care of the needs of others first before seeking help for his own wounds. The Jones 02 author gives the viewers a glimpse into Jack’s background through his conversations with Kate, an attractive passenger, who sews up Jack’s wounds with a travel sewing kit. He tells Kate that he is a doctor, which explains his helping of the injured people on the island. Through this conversation, we learn that Jack, almost a superhero is a normal human being. He shows fear and vulnerability by telling Kate the story about the horrible experience that he had with the surgery of the 16-year-old girl. He shows strength by telling Kate his method for dealing with fear. The author is using indirect methods of characterization in presenting Jack’s personality, and doesn’t just tell the viewer about Jack. Through showing the viewer Jacks full range of emotions, the author presents Jack as a round character who is able to push fear aside. This character is the most developed character in the pilot episode. As a fully developed character, we know more (through his conversations and actions in trying to save the injured people), about Jack than we do any other character. His main traits are stability, leadership, and emotional stability in a time of crisis. Jack is a dynamic character who changes based on his experiences. He talks about how he never lets fear take hold of him anymore as he relates the story of the surgery mistake to Kate. He shares his method of dealing with fear, and she later uses that method for herself later in the episode. â€Å"I decided to give into the fear for 5 seconds and I counted 1,2,3,4,5,† (Lost) Because of this experience in the past, he changed. Therefore we can assume that he is a real character with real emotions who is affected by what happens around him. The author never becomes the simple narrator who tells the viewers about Jack. It is left up to the viewer to decide what kind of character he is based on Jack’s actions. This is indirect characterization. The main character traits of this character are caring, control and sense of duty to help others. His emotions are in control. The author or screenwriter reveals this when Jack goes off to himself to examine the situation. The camera pans to a shot where Jack is surveying the situation and catching his breath from all that has just happened. His facial expression reveals that he knows that the group is in serious trouble, but he knows he must remain in control. Jack is a â€Å"thinking† character who actively begins searching for answers. Through a flashback scene, the writer reveals to the audience through Jack’s eyes, the moments before the crash. The epiphany occurs when he realizes that something much more serious may be happening on the island, and they are all stranded in a very dangerous place. Jack Shepherd is the hero of the pilot episode. He confronts danger, takes charge, and begins to make decisions for the group. He does not let destiny control him. He seeks a solution to the problem, becoming a proactive leader. The author uses his presentation of Jack to show that he is a dynamic and round character who has caught the viewers’ attention, enticing them to tune in next week. Works Cited â€Å"Pilot Episode. † Lost. Abrams, Lieber, Lindelof. ABC. New York. 22 September 2004. Television.

Mark Twains The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn †Controversial :: Adventures Huckleberry Huck Finn Essays

Huckleberry Finn – Controversial It seems like a never-ending question. When will we ever let it rest? You know the question I'm talking about; should the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn be banned from American Literature courses? It's been argued from so many different standpoints, but it has never been settled. Is Huckleberry Finn really a controversial book? No, I do not agree with the banning of Huckleberry Finn. This book is considered to be a classic. It explores the depths of our past in many different ways. Those who think the book to be controversial probably have never ever read it before. Most likely, they're basing their judgments on the excessively used word, "nigger." For those who have read the book and still feel necessary to ban it are obviously missing the key points of this American classic. If you understand Huckleberry Finn, then you'll realize it's not about slavery or racism. It's about being unprejudiced. In the book, Huck admits that Jim "had an uncommon level head for a nigger." If you were to take out the black and white scenario, you would see that this quote is clearly nothing but acceptance. Huck is accepting Jim, regardless of his ethnic background. If you looked deeper, you would also see, the book is about nothing less than freedom and the quest for freedom. It's about a slave who breaks the law and risks his life to win his freedom and be reunited with his family. He was lucky enough to have a friend who made him his best friend and helped him to escape. Truly this isn't controversial; it's real life. Another controversial aspect of the book would be the use of the word "nigger" and its being in the book over 200 times creates constant scrutiny. I feel the word was not used to be racist and its usage in the book gives great representation of the way life was during the pre-civil war era. People need to grasp the concept that that's how black were treated then. In today's society, we would find quotes such as, "Good gracious! Was anybody hurt?" "No'm. Just a nigger," APPALING! But in fact, it was written in an earlier time setting when quotes like that were okay to say.

Introduction to Marketing Revision Notes

Chapter 1: Marketing Principles and Society Definitions: Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM): The management process of anticipating, identifying and satisfying customer requirements profitably (CIM, 2001) The American Marketing Association: The activity, set of institutions and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. (AMA, 2007) These definitions stress the importance of considering the customer requirements and to delivering value. The difference between a customer and a consumer, is that the customer physically buys the product, and the consumer actually uses (or eats) it. The Marketing Process Marketing comprises 4 phases of activity, which is a component in the process of creating value for the customer: 1. The design phase. Companies identify customer and consumer needs, and design the product offering around their needs to create value for the customer. 2. The development phase. Companies develop products, services, and ideas, which meet those needs and deliver the intended value. 3. The delivery phase. Companies distribute those products, services and ideas to their customers and consumers and customers receive the product offering and the value created 4. The determination phase. Companies determine whether or not what customers receive really fits their needs or not and it not, redesign the product until it does fit their needs, and provide the customer with real value (or the organisation goes out of business). This process is cyclical, because products usually begin with the determination phase. There is a feedback loop to determine whether this product suits customers’ needs. These processes are influenced and dependent upon society and are regulated by government. Marketing: Ancient or Brand New? Marketing as a coherent approach to business has been around since the early 1920s. 1. Production period, 1890s-1920s: focus on physical production and supply, where demand exceeded supply, there was little competition, and the range of products was limited. This phase took place after the industrial revolution. 2. Sales Period, 1920s-1950s: focus on personal selling supported by market research and advertising. This phase took place after WW1. . Marketing Period, 1950s-1980s: more advanced focus on customer needs. This phase took place after WW2. 4. Societal Marketing Period, 1980s-present: stronger focus on social and ethical concerns in marketing. Marketing as a discipline has developed through the influence of practitioners, and through developments in the areas of industrial economics, psychology, sociology, and anthropology, (see page 9 for theorists): * I ndustrial Economics Influences – our knowledge of matching supply with demand comes from the development of microeconomics. Psychological Influences – our knowledge of consumer behaviour comes principally from psychology, particularly motivational research in relation to consumer attitudes, perceptions, motivations, and information processing. * Sociological Influences – our knowledge of how groups of people behave comes mainly from sociology, with insights into areas, such as how people from similar gender and age groups behave. * Anthropological Influences – our debt to social anthropology increases more as we use qualitative market research approaches such as observation to research consumer behaviour. Differences between Sales and Marketing Selling: Product push Marketing: Product pull Marketing * Tends towards long term satisfaction of customer needs * Tends to greater input into customer design of offering (co-creation) * Tends to high focus on stimulation of demand Sales * Tends towards short-term satisfaction of customer needs. * Tends to lesser input into customer design of offering (co-creation) * Tends to low focus on stimulation of demand, more focused on meeting existing demand What do Marketers Do? . Provide marketing intelligence and customer insight 2. Provide strategic marketing direction for the organisation 3. Develop the customer proposition 4. Manage and provide marketing communications 5. Use and develop marketing and customer information 6. Lead marketing operations and programmes 7. Work with other business functions and 3rd parties 8. Manage and develop teams and individuals Marketers at different levels of organisation will undertake different components of t hese functions at different levels. Generally, senior marketer/marketing director will guide and direct these functions, while the marketing manager will manage them, the marketing executive will undertake the actions necessary to fulfil these functions, and the marketing assistant will support the marketing executive (CIM, 2OO5). The Marketing Mix and the 4 Ps There are some general concepts that help managers frame their actions as they develop their marketing plans and undertake marketing tactics. The marketing manager was a â€Å"mixer of ingredients†, a chef who concocted a unique marketing recipe to fit the requirements of the customers’ needs at any particular time. Eugene McCarthy (1960) simplified and amended the memorable 4ps from previous lists: 1. Product – the offering and how it meets the customers’ needs, packaging and labelling. 2. Place (distribution) – the way in which the product meets customers’ needs. 3. Price – the cost to the customer, and how the cost plus profit to the seller 4. Promotion – how the product’s benefits and features are conveyed to the potential buyer Extended Marketing Mix for Services: the 7Ps American scholars, Boom and Bitner (1981), incorporated a further 3Ps into the marketing mix: 5. Physical evidence – to emphasise that the tangible components of services were strategically important since customers used these to infer what the quality of the service might be e. g. students requesting brochures of different universities, to pick the course most suitable. 6. Process – because service delivery cannot be separated from the customer consumption process. Process is included because of the need to manage customer expectations, interaction and satisfaction. E. g. track and trace delivery services. 7. People – included to emphasise that services are delivered by customer service personnel, sometimes experts and often professionals who interact with the customer sometimes in an intimate manner (e. g. spa treatments). How they interact with customers, and how satisfied customers are as a result, is of strategic importance. Market Orientation * Marketing Orientation: a company that increases the importance of marketing within the organisation, e. g. by appointing a marketing person to its board of directors. * Market Orientation: doesn’t just involve marketing. Involves all aspect of the company, gathering and responding to market intelligence (i. e. customers’ verbalised needs and preferences, market research etc) Developing a market orientation means developing the following: * Customer orientation * Competitor orientation * Interfunctional orientation Organisations that manage to develop a market orientation are better at market sensing (understanding the strategic implications of the market for a particular organisation). Relationship Marketing Organisations must keep relationships with the parties exchanging value. 1. Suppliers 2. Potential employees . Recruiters 4. Referral markets – where they exist (banks rely on professional services i. e. estate agents for mortgage referrals) 5. Influence markets – e. g. government bodies for companies in the public sector 6. Internal markets – e. g. existing employees Relationship marketing concerns the integration of customer service and quality assurance. Customer re tention is more important to companies than customer acquisition. Research proves that retention is more profitable than acquisition: * Customers will increase their purchases over time * Customers cheaper to promote to Customers who are happy with their relationship with a company are happy to refer to others The Consumer Services Perspective Some commentators argue that products and services have significant differences and similarities: Services: * Cannot be protected by a patent * Do not make use of packaging * Lack a physical display * Cannot be demonstrated in the same way However there are major similarities, including the need to: * Work at full capacity * Develop trade and service marks * Use promotional media * Use personal selling techniques The five characteristics of service products Service industries are generally seen to have 5 important differentiating characteristics: 1. Intangibility – enhancing physical environment, producing brochures, leaflets, by obtaining service quality kite marks. 2. Inseparability – production and consumption are inseparable in service markets. There is a need to manage carefully relationships between clients and their customers, managing their expectations of the quality of the service that they receive. 3. Variability – the quality and standard of service products varies depending on the individual customer and the service provider. Can be difficult to monitor and control service production to ensure consistent service standards. 4. Perishability – services cannot be stored and consumed at a later date, unless they are recorded. Service-based businesses must maximise how much their facilities are used through yield management. E. g. offering discounts at specific times. 5. Non-ownership – customers cannot own the service they receive because ownership is not transferred from the seller to the buyer as it is with a tangible good. The Business to Business Perspective The emphasis in b2b markets is strongly focused on the development and building of mutually satisfying relationships based on commitment and trust, to win the contract in the first place. B2b marketers can create a competitive advantage if they develop a linkage between the marketing and logistics functions, developing a strong customer service proposition on the following items: * Reduction in order cycle times * Simple accurate invoicing procedures * Consistent and reliable delivery * Simple and effective claims procedures * Availability of inventory Good condition of goods and effective service delivery * Flexible delivery times * Strong after-sales support What Impact Marketing has on Society It is important to be critical of marketing. As beneficial as it can be, by providing wants and needs of customers and consumers, with higher technology, more ethical products, with it can also come by marketing bad products, such as alcohol. Cigarettes have been banned to be advertised, but it is important to recognise that not all companies market products for the greater good, but because they can make a profit. Chapter 2: The Marketing Environment . External Environment 2. Performance Environment 3. Internal Environment The external environment consists of the political, social, and technological influences, and organisations have relatively little influence on each of these things. The performance environment consists of the competitors, suppliers, and indirect service providers who shape the way an organisation achieves its objectives. Here, organisations have a much stronger level of influence. The internal environment concerns the resources, processes, and polices an organisation manages in order that it can attempt to achieve its goals. These elements can be influences directly by an organisation. Understanding the External Environment The Political Environment The political environment relates to the period of interaction between business, society, and government before those laws are enacted, when they are still being formed, or are in dispute. Political environment analysis is a critical phase in environment scanning because companies can then detect potential legal and regulatory changes in their industries and so they can have a chance to impede, influence, and alter that legislation. The Economic Environment Companies have to develop an understanding of the economic environment in which they operate and trade. The external environment of a firm is affected, but not exclusively, by the following items: * Wage Inflation * Price Inflation * Gross Domestic Product (per capita) – combined output of goods and services in a particular nation and is a useful measure for determining relative wealth between countries * Income, sales, and corporation taxes – taxes run at different levels all around the world, substantially affecting how we market goods and services * Exchange rates Export quota controls and duties All these factors can change the amount a company charges for its products and services. Companies need to understand how prices or labour costs change if we are importing goods and services, or even components, from another country. The difficulty comes in comparing prices from one country to another. Firms usually have little impact on the macroeconomic environment since t hey have little control over macroeconomic variables, e. g. oil prices, which might affect their business. The Socio-Cultural Environment Lifestyles are constantly changing and consumers are constantly shifting their preferences over time. Companies who fail to recognise this will ultimately fail. Companies must consider the nature of households, lifestyles and the family structure, and the changing values in society or in a consumer group as important variables in their scanning process. The Technological Environment The emergence of new technologies can substantially affect not only high-technology businesses but non-technology businesses as well. Examples include those aspects of technology which impact upon productivity and efficiency. New technology is increasingly changing the way that companies go to market through moves towards more email and web-based marketing. The difficulty for most firms is how to determine whether or not to invest in radical new technologies, since the potential benefits are far from clear at the outset. The Legal Environment The legal environment covers every aspect of an organisation’s business. Laws and regulation are enacted in most countries ranging from the transparency of pricing, minimum wages, business taxes, product safety, packaging and labelling, the abuse of a dominant market position. All of these come under the umbrella of the legal environment. The Ecological Environment Concept of sustainability in marketing and corporate (social) responsibility. Increasingly, customers are being worried about the impact of companies on their ecological environments. Consumers are equally concerned with ensuring that products are not sourced from countries with poor and coercive labour policies. Orsato (2006) suggested that a company should adopt one of the following four different green marketing strategies: 1. Eco-efficiency – developing lower costs through resource productivity (e. . energy efficiency). This approach should be adopted by companies which need to focus on reducing the cost and environmental impact of their processes. 2. Beyond compliance leadership – the adoption of a differentiation strategy through organisational processes such as certified schemes to demonstrate their ecological credentials. This approach should be adopted by firms which suppl y industrial markets, such as car manufacturers. 3. Eco-branding – the differentiation of a firm’s products or services to promote environmental responsibility. For example, BP – formerly British petroleum – who changed their logo to make it green and yellow in a flower petal and sun synthesis, which they call the Helios, and slogan to â€Å"beyond petroleum† to reflect their intended shift in meeting the world’s energy requirements to more sustainable sources. 4. Environmental cost leadership – the offering of products and services which give greater environmental benefits at a lower price. This strategy suits firms operating in price-sensitive ecologically sensitive markets, such as the packaging and chemical industries. Chapter 3: Marketing Psychology and Consumer Buying Behaviour Diffusion Process Consumers purchase products at different times in the product life cycle. 1. Innovators: kick starts adoption process 2. Early Adopters: speeds up adoption process. Opinion leaders. 3. Early Majority: more risk averse than other 2 groups. This group requires reassurance. 4. Late Majority: sceptical of new ideas. Only adopt products due to social/economic factors. 5. Laggards: opinions hard to change. Small majority. Lowest income and social status. Suspicious of new ideas Innovators: 2. 5% of population Early adopters: 13. 5% of population Early majority: 34% of population Late majority: 34% of population Laggards: 16% of population It is likely that a promotional campaign should only be targeted at innovators and the early majority. Word of mouth and reputation will get round to the late majority and laggards. People are classified into these groups, but the type of people in the groups can swap and change depending on the type of product. Consumer Product Acquisition Motive Development Information Gathering Product Evaluation Product Selection Acquisition Re-evaluation Motive Development: the model begins when we decide we need to acquire a product. This involves initial recognition that some sort of problem needs solving, i. . need a new dress Information Gathering: the next stage requires us to look for alternative ways of solving our problem. We are open to ways of solving our problem, i. e. looking online Product Evaluation: once we feel we have all the information that we need to make a decision, we evaluate the products, i. e. choose between 2 dresses Product Selection: the pr oduct we eventually select is the one that we evaluate as fitting our needs best beforehand. This is a separate stage because there are times when we must re-evaluate, because what we want may not be right, or not available, i. . pick best dress Acquisition: once selection has taken place, different approaches to product acquisition might exist. It is important for the marketers to ensure that their customer value the product that they receive, i. e. buy online, with chance to return within 14 days, free delivery etc. Re-evaluation: the theory of cognitive dissonance (Festinger, 1957) suggests that we are motivated to re-evaluate our beliefs, attitudes and opinions. To reduce dissonance, we might: * Selectively forget information * Minimize the importance of an issue, decision or act Selectively expose ourselves to information which agrees with our existing view * Reverse a purchase decision (take product pack) Perceptions Consumer understanding very much depends on how effectively the message is both transmitted and perceived. In any one day, consumers receive thousands of messages. AMA, 2007: Based on prior attitudes, beliefs, needs, stimulus factors, and situational determinant, individuals perceive objects, events of people in the world about the. Perception is the cognitive impression that is formed of â€Å"reality† which in turn influences the individual’s actions and behaviour toward that object. The process of screening such meaningful information from the non-meaningful is known as selective exposure (Dubois, 2000). The implication for marketers is the importance of determining what media your customers use, and which they ignore. Perceptual mapping is a useful tool to determine how consumers perceive competing products and services, by comparing labels, brands and products, by rating those using semantic differential questions. Learning Consumers are continually learning about new product characteristics, their performance and new trends. Learning is the process by which we acquire new knowledge and skills, attitudes and values, through the mediums of study, experience, or modelling others’ behaviour. There are numerous theories of human learning, including classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and social learning. Classical Conditioning: Ian Pavlov stated that classical conditioning occurs, because we learn by associating one thing with another, in Pavlov’s case, the sound of the bell and arrival of food made the dogs salivate, so eventually, just by the sound of the bell, the dogs assumed that food would arrive. Operant Conditioning: Skinner (1954) argued that learning was the result of operant conditioning, which is learnt through behaviour reinforcement, through punishment or reward. Social Learning: Bandura (1977) suggested humans are much more thoughtful and less animalistic than the Skinnerian behaviourist school of learning suggested. Also contrasting to operant conditioning, Bandura argued that we can delay gratification and dispense our own rewards our punishment. In other words, we have more choice over how we react to stimuli than Skinner proposed. We can reflect on our own actions and change our future behaviour. In social learning, we learn by observing the behaviour of others. Memory Knowledge develops with familiarity, repetition of marketing messages, and consumers acquisition of product/service information. According to Bettman (1979) our memories are highly complex, there are a variety of memorisation processes which affect consumer choice, some of which include the following: 1. Recognition and recall – less frequently used words in advertising are recognised more. The more unique a campaign’s message, the better it is recognised, but the worse it is recalled. 2. Effects of context – memorisation is strongly associated with the context of the stimulus, and while information may be available in memory it will be inaccessible in the wrong context. 3. Form of coding and storage of objects in memory – subjects may store information in the form it is presented to them, either by object (brand) or dimension (product/service attribute). 4. Effect of processing load – this concept operates from a capacity allocation theory of memory suggesting that we are likely to find it more difficult to process information into our short and long term memories when we are presented with a great deal of info at once. . Effects of input mode – short term recall of auditory input (i. e. sound) is stronger than the short term recall of visual input (sight) where the 2 compete for the consumers attention. 6. Effects of repetition – recall and recognition of marketing messages increase the more times a consumer is exposed to them alth ough there are decreasing increments in memory performance and repetition increases. Personality How and what we buy is also based on our personalities. Personality: the aspect of our psyche that determines the way in which we respond to our environment in a relatively stable way over time. 3 main approaches: . Psychoanalytic approach – stresses self-reported unconscious desires 2. Trait theory – stresses classification of personality types 3. Self concept approach – concerned with how we perceive ourselves as consumers. Psychoanalytic Approach Freud (1927) stated that someone’s personality is determined by their sexual development through the oral, anal, phallic, latent, and genital stages. An adult’s personality is developed according to how well they cope with crises that occur during these 5 phases. ID – instinctual drives and urges Ego – attempts to find outlets for the urges in our id and acts as a planning centre. Moderated by superego. Superego – controls how we motivate ourselves to behave to responds to our instincts and urges, so that we do in a socially acceptable manner, and avoid any feelings of guilt or shame. Social conscience. Trait Approach This approach categorises people into different personality types. There are 20 needs. E. g. autonomy, aggression, and achievement. Maslow (1943) suggested a hierarchical order of human needs: Self-actualisation Needs The need to fulfil our potential Esteem Needs Valued and respected by self and others Belongingness Needs Affection, attachment, friendship Safety Needs A predictable non-threatening environment Physiological Needs Food, water, oxygen, sex, and shelter from the elements The importance of each level ranges from country to country, as some needs are more readily available than others. Chapter 4: Marketing Research and Marketing Information Systems Marketing research is used to obtain information that provides the management of a company with sufficient insight to make more informed decisions on future activities. For a business to be successful, an organisation must understand the motivations, desires and behaviour of its customers and consumers. Marketing research specifies the information required to address certain issues; design methods for manage and implement the data collection process; analyse the results and communicate the findings and their implications. (ESOMAR 1995) Even though marketing research is the foundational element of modern marketing practice, market research is valued by some companies more than others. Commissioning Marketing Research Conducting market research depends largely on the size of the company and the type of product or service being sold. Some large companies employ market research agencies to conduct their research for them. The main advantage of using agencies is that it is relatively cheap compared with undertaking the research in-house and collecting the data independently. The main disadvantages of using agencies are that the agency sometimes cannot achieve the depth of knowledge of the client’s problems or market unless it offers a niche specialism in this area. In many syndicated surveys, (retail audits etc) several rival organisations buy the same data from the agency, so a cost effective survey can be carried out. However the survey could be less specific to each business. The Marketing Research Brief Typical contents might include the following: * Background summary – brief info and details about the company and its products it offers * Management problem – clear statement of why the research should be undertaken and which business decisions are dependent upon its outcome * The marketing research questions – a detailed list of the information necessary in order to make the decisions outlined above * The intended scope of the research – the areas to be covered, which industries, type of consumer etc. Should be provided. Should give an indication of when the info is required and why that date is important * Tendering procedures – the client organisation should outline how agencies are to be selected as a result of the tendering process. Specific info may be required such as CVs from agency personnel to be involved in the study, and referee contact address The Marketing Research Process Stage 1 – define the problem Stage 2 – decide the research plan Stage 3 – undertake the data collection Stage 4 – undertake the data analysis/interpretation Stage 5 – write the report and deliver the presentation See book for detailed descriptions, page 144 Competitive Intelligence and Marketing In formation Systems It’s no good having lots of data unless you know how to use it. Companies are frequently swimming in data but have no means to convert the data into intelligence or no means to store it and provide it to end users. Competitive Intelligence – the organised, professional approach to collection, analysis, and distribution of timely, accurate and useful information as intelligence products – intelligence that contributes materially to the achievement of strategic and tactical business objectives (Nolan, 1999). There are various techniques used which include: * Use remote psychological assessment tools to build profiles of business opponents * Collecting competitive intelligence at conferences and trade shows * Collecting information on rivals from their customers and suppliers using elicitation techniques * Collecting intelligence on rivals from 3rd parties using elicitation techniques Marketing Research and Ethics Many supermarkets adopt loyalty cards. The major value of such schemes is the provision of consumption information. This data is analysed by a 3rd party, and sold to the company. Since marketing research is based on the cooperation of the individuals or organisations that provide the answers or fill in the questionnaires, marketing research should be carried out in an objective, unobtrusive, and honest manner. Researchers have been particularly concerned about the public’s increased unwillingness to take part in market research. Marketing research should neither attempt to induce sales of a product or service, nor influence customer attitudes, or intentions of behaviours. The general public and other parties are entitled to assurances that no information collected in a research survey will be used to identify them, or disclosed to a 3rd party without their consent. In conducting any marketing research, researchers have responsibility for themselves, their clients and the respondents from whom the information is being gathered. International Marketing Research Marketing researchers need to understand how culture operates in international markets and how this impacts upon research design. More variables need to be considered. Difficult to decide whether to use the same sampling frame, or study using different scales, sampling methods and sizing. The key issue faced by international researchers is to ensure comparable data are collected, despite differences in sampling frames, technological development and availability of interviewers. Conceptual Equivalence – when interpretation of behaviour or objects, is similar across countries. Functional Equivalence – a concept has similar functions in different countries Translation Equivalence – words in some languages have no real equivalent in other languages The International Marketing Survey Research Process . The project is discussed at length with the client 2. The fieldwork agencies for each country are selected 3. The questionnaire is developed centrally 4. The questionnaire is translated locally and the translation is checked centrally 5. The questionnaire is piloted locally 6. The questionnaire is finalised centrally 7. The interviewe rs are briefed locally by an executive of the central company 8. A coding and editing plan is provided for the local agencies 9. The edited and coded questionnaires are returned to the head office 10. A coding and editing check is carried out centrally 11. Data processing is carried out centrally Chapter 6 : Market Segmentation and Positioning The STP Process The method by which whole markets are subdivided into different segments is referred to as the STP process. STP refers to the 3 activities that should be undertaken. These are: 1. Segmentation 2. Targeting 3. Positioning Marketers are increasingly segmenting markets and indentifying attractive segments in order to identify new product opportunities, develop suitable positioning, and communicate strategies (i. . what message to communicate), and effectively allocate resources to key marketing activities (i. e. how much should we spend and where? ). Organisations operating in highly dynamic environments seek to conduct segmentation research at regular intervals to keep in touch with changes in the marketplace. Key benefits of STP process include: * Enhancing a company’s competitive position by providing direction and foc us for marketing strategies – such as targeted advertising, new product development and brand differentiation. Examining and identifying growth opportunities in the market through the identification of new customers, growth segments, or new product uses. * More effective and efficient matching of company resources to targeted market segments promises the greatest return on marketing investment. The Concept of Market Segmentation Market segmentation is the division of a market into different groups of customers with distinctly similar needs and product/service requirements. The purpose of market segmentation is to leverage scarce resources, to ensure that the elements of the marketing mix are designed to meet particular needs of different customer groups. With an increasing proliferation of tastes in modern society, consumers have increased in disposable incomes. As a result, marketers have sought to design product and service offerings around the consumer demand (market segmentation) more than around their own production needs (product differentiation) The process of Market Segmentation There are 2 main approaches to segmenting markets. 1. Breakdown Method – this adopts the view that the market is considered to consist of customers which are essentially the same, so the task is to identify groups which share particular differences. 2. Build-up Method – considers a market to consist of customers that are all different, so here the task is to find similarities. The breakdown approach is perhaps the most established and well recognized and is the main method used for segmenting consumer markets. The build up approach seeks to move from the individual level where all customers are different, to a more general level of analysis based on the identification of similarities. The aim of both methods is to identify segments in the market where identifiable differences exist between members within each segment (member homogeneity) The segmentation process varies according to the prevailing conditions in the marketplace and the changing needs of the parties involved, not simply the needs of the selling organisation. Market Segmentation in Consumer Markets To segment the consumer goods and service markets, we use market information we have collected based on certain key customer/product/situation related criteria (variables). These are classified as segmentation bases, they include profile, behavioural, and psychological criteria. The 4th segmentation criteria is contact data. The population can be segmented and analysed through various ways: * Demographics * Lifecycle * Geographics * Geodemographics * Psychographics * Behavioural criteria Transaction and purchase: the development of electronic technologies has facilitated the rapid growth in the collection of consumer purchase and transactional data, providing an additional consumer characteristic upon which to base market segmentation. Segmentation in Business Markets There are 2 main groups of interrelated variables used to segment business-to-business markets: 1. Organisational characteristics: organisational size/location/industry type (SIC codes). 2. Buyer characteristics: Decision-making unit structure/choice criteria/purchase situation. Organisational size: by segmenting organisations by size, it is possible to identify particular buying requirements. Geographic location: particularly useful since it allows sales territories to be drawn up around particular locations which salespersons can easily service. SIC codes: Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes are often used to get an indication of the size of a particular market. Easily accessible and standardised across most western countries. Decision-making unit: a decision making unit may have specific requirements that influence their purchase decisions in a particular market, i. e. policies, purchasing strategies, attitudes towards vendors and towards risk. Choice criteria: business markets can be segmented on the basis of the specifications of product/service that they choose. Purchase Situation: there are 3 factors associated with the purchase situation. 1. The structure of the buying organisation’s purchasing procedures (centralised, flexible etc). 2. What type of buying situation is present (new task, modified re buy, straight re buy) 3. What stage in the purchase decision process have target organisations reached? Target Markets It is important to determine which, if any, of the segments uncovered should be targeted and made the focus of a comprehensive marketing programme. It needs to be judged which markets are selected and exploited, and which markets are ignored. Kotler (1984) suggested that for market segmentation to be effective, all segments must be: * Distinct Accessible * Measurable * Profitable Targeting Approaches Once identified the company needs to select its approach to target marketing it is going to adopt. Four differing approaches can be considered: 1. Undifferentiated marketing e. g. UK post office, targets mass market. 2. Differentiated marketing e. g. Levi’s, targets multiple market segments. 3. Focu sed/concentrated marketing e. g. Jordan cereal targets consumers interested in organic. 4. Customised marketing: B2B markets (e. g. marketing research or advertising services) Market Segmentation: Some Limitations The process involves approximating product/service offering to the needs of customer groups, rather than providing an individual customised offering, there is a chance that our customers’ needs are not being fully met. * There is insufficient consideration of how market segmentation is linked to competitive advantage. Market segmentation has not tended to stress the need to segment on the basis of differentiating from competitors. * It is unclear how valuable segmentation is to the manager. Suitable processes and models to indicate how to measure the effectiveness of market segmentation processes are not yet available. Process issues – lack of experience, guidance and expertise concerning the way in which segmentation is undertaken and managed. Positioning Ha ving segmented the market, determined the size and potential of market segments, and selected specific target markets, the 3rd part of the STP process is to position a brand within the target market. Positioning is important because it is the means by which goods and services can be differentiated from one another and so give consumers a reason to buy. It’s about how customers judge a product’s value relative to competitors and its ability to deliver against the promises made. . Physical attributes – functionality and capability that a brand offers. 2. Communication – the way the brand is communicated and how consumers perceive the brand relative to other competing brands in the marketplace. Perceptual Mapping Perceptual mapping represents a geometric comparison of how competing products are perceived. The further apart the positions, the greater the opportunity for new brands to enter the market, because competition is less intense. Repositioning Strateg ies Markets, consumer tastes, fashions and competitors change. There are four main ways to approach repositioning a product. . Change the tangible attributes and then communicate the new product to the same market. 2. Change the way a product is communicated to the original market. 3. Change the target market and deliver the same product 4. Change both the product attributes and the target market. Chapter 9: Products, Services, and Branding Decisions The 3 levels of a product: 1. The core product – consists of the real core benefit or service. May be a functional benefit in terms of what the product will enable you to do, or an emotional benefit in terms of how it will make you feel. E. g. cars provide transportation and a means of self-expression. 2. The embodied product – consists of the physical good or delivered service that provides the expected benefit. E. g. features, durability, design, packaging, brand name etc. 3. The augmented product – consists of the embodied product plus all other factors necessary to support the purchase. E. g. credit and finance, training, delivery, installation, guarantees. Consumer Products Durable goods: can be used repeatedly and provide benefits each time they are used e. g. ike, Ipod Non-durable goods: limited duration, often only capable of being used once e. g. yoghurt, newspaper Convenience products can be sub-divided into 3 categories: 1. Stable products: bread, milk, petrol 2. Impulse products: chewing gum, chocolate, magazines 3. Emergency products: bandages, umbrella, plumber in the middle of the night when there’s a leak. Unsought products refers to a group of products which people do not normall y anticipate buying or want to buy. For example, insurance sold on the streets, double glazing, and timeshare holiday (mainly products pushed to buy from salespeople). Business Products There are 6 main categories identified according to how organisational customers (business people) use them: 1. Equipment goods 2. Raw materials 3. Semi-finished goods 4. Maintenance repair and operating goods 5. Component parts 6. Business services Product Lifecycles Product lifecycle is the belief that products move through a sequential, predetermined pattern of development. It consists of 5 distinct stages: 1. Development 2. Introduction 3. Growth 4. Maturity 5. Decline Speed of movement through the stages will vary but each product has a limited lifespan. The lifespan can be prolonged and extended, but the majority of products have a finite period. It does not apply to all products in the same way. E. g. some products reach the end of the introduction stage and then die as it becomes clear there is no market to sustain the product. Some products get to decline, and then get recycled back to growth stage by repositioning activities. Usefulness of Product Life Cycle The plc (product life cycle) concept allows marketing managers to adapt strategies and tactics to meet the needs of evolving conditions and product circumstances. It is a well known and popular concept and is a useful means of explaining the path a product or brand has taken. Clear, simple and predictable. However, in practice the PLC is not great use. Difficult to tell when the product has hit each stage in the cycle. Historical sales data does not help managers identify when a product has moved from one stage to another, so it is difficult to forecast sales and determine the future shape of the PLC curve. Great care is required when using the PLC. Idea Generation Idea Generation Screening Business Plans and Market Analysis Product Development and Selection Test Marketing Commercialisation The Process of Adoption The process through which individuals accept and use new products is referred to as the process of adoption (Rogers 1983). The process starts with people gaining awareness of a product and moves through various stages of adaptation before a purchase is eventually made. 1. Knowledge 2. Persuasion 3. Decision 4. Implementation 5. Confirmation Branding Branding is a method through which manufacturers and retailers help customers to differentiate between the various offerings in a market. It enables them to make associations with certain attributes or feelings with a particular brand. Brands are products and services that have added value. This value has been deliberately designed and presented by marketing managers in an attempt to augment their products with values and association that are recognised by and are meaningful to customers. It is customer perception and the brand’s value which is important. AMA definition: a name, term, sign, symbol, design or a combination, intended to identify the goods, or services of one seller or group of sellers, and to differentiate them from those of competitors (2006). There are 2 main types of attributes: 1. Intrinsic – functional characteristics of a product, such as shape, performance etc. 2. Extrinsic – brand name, price, packaging, marketing communications etc. Benefits of branding for consumers: * Assists people to identify their preferred products * Reduces level of perceived risk * Help people gauge the level of product quality * Reduces amount of time spent making product based decisions, decreases shop time. * Provide psychological reassurance or reward, especially for products bought on an occasional basis (e. g. esigner handbag) * Inform consumers about the source of a product (country or company) Benefits of branding for manufacturers and retailers: * Enable premium pricing * Help differentiate the product from competitive offerings * Encourage cross-selling to other brands owned by the manufacturer * Develop customer loyalty/retention and repeat purchase buyer behaviour * Assist the development and use of integrated mark eting communications * Contribute to corporate identity programmes * Provide some legal protection Types of Brands * Manufacturer brands: Persil, Heinz, coca-cola, Cadbury. Promoted heavily. Distributor (own label) brands: Argos, Harvey Nichols, Sainsburys. Sell manufactured and own label. * Generic brands: plain flour. Packaging only displays info required by law. Sold at prices substantially below normal price. Only firms in pharmaceutical sector use this type of brand now, as popularity elsewhere has declined. Brand Policies Individual branding: requires that each product offered by an organisation is branded independently of all the others. E. g. Unilever uses individual branding with Cif, Knorr and Dove. Advantages: * Easy to target specific segments and to enter new markets with separate names. If a brand fails or becomes subject to negative media attention, other brands are not likely to be damaged. Disadvantages * Heavy financial cost as each brand needs to have its own prom otional programme and associated support. Family branding: requires that all the products use the organisations name, either entirely or in part. E. g. Microsoft, Heinz, and Kellogg’s. Advantages: * It is hoped that customer trust will develop across all brands. * Promotional investment need not be as high as there will be a halo effect across all the brands when one is communicated. Disadvantages: * Damage to one product or operational area can cause problems across the organisation. Corporate branding: Single umbrella brand, based on the name of the organisation. Used by major supermarkets, business markets, and financial services. Advantages: * Promotional investments are limited to one brand. Disadvantages: * The risk is similar to family branding where damage to one product or operational area can cause problems across the organisation. Co-branding is where two established brands work together, either on one product or service. Brand Equity is a measure of the value of a brand. It is an assessment of a brand’s wealth, sometimes referred to as goodwill. Brand equity is considered important because of the increasing interest in trying to measure the return on promotional investments and pressure by various stakeholders to value brands for balance sheet purposes. A brand with strong equity is more likely to be able to preserve its customer loyalty and so fend off competitor attacks. There are 3 parts associated with brand equity: 1. Brand value, based on a financial and accounting base 2. Brand strength, measuring the strength of a consumer’s attachment to a brand 3. Brand description, represented by the specific attitudes customers have towards a brand Packaging There is a societal and political pressure to ensure that packaging and the materials used are appropriate and capable of being recycled. Packaging has 2 main roles to be, functional and communicative. * Protection * Preserved * Convenience * Clear messages about content, features, and dangers * Good design (complement physical attributes) * Brand identification and reassurance * Layout Labelling Labels are important. Deliver information about product usage * Help promote a brand * Enable brand owners to comply with various regulations and requirements * Good design Chapter 10: Price Decisions Price: the amount of money expected, required, or given in payment for something Price: something expended or endured in order to achieve an object In marketing terms, we consider price as the amount the customer has to pay or exchange to receive a good or service. Customer Perceptions of Pricing, Quality and Value Quality is defined as the standard of something as measured against other things of a similar kind. Consumers have differing views of the quality of the product they have purchased. Value is defined as the regard that something is held to deserve importance of worth. In marketing terms, perceived value refers to what we get for what we pay. Value = Quality/Price Although products might be perceived as expensive, they can still be perceived as value for money (e. g. Panadol is an expensive drug, but is more effective than own-label aspirin) Reference Prices: when customers have some idea of what they think is a fair price to pay for a certain good or service, or what they would expect to pay. When customers assess prices, they estimate value using pricing cues, because they do not always know the true cost and price of the item that they are purchasing. Odd Number Pricing: also known as psychological pricing. ?1. 99, we think is a lot cheaper than it is. Purchase Context in Pricing: starting off with cheaper prices before adding in extras (easy jet), or gym memberships with a small monthly fee but with a yearly contract. Consumers are drawn in more if they initially see a low price. Price Bundling: bundling other products together, e. g. magazines with free CD’s or DVD’s. This is pure price bundling. Mixed price bundling is when different products can be bundled together through choice, such as mobile phone packages with international call packages, SMS packages, and email, which can also be available independently or with other offers. Price bundles can also include â€Å"cash back† not just offering products. For example banks offer cash back schemes on money spent and inputted in their banks (Halifax pay ? 5 every month is ? 1000 is put into a current account). Pricing Approaches The setting of prices depends on a number of factors, such as demand, sales revenue, costs etc. There are 4 types of pricing approaches which can be used: 1. Cost-oriented approach (prices are set based on costs) 2. Demand –oriented approach (prices are based on price sensitivity and levels of demand) 3. Competitor-oriented approach (where prices are set based on what competitors charge) 4. Value-oriented approach (prices are set based on what customers believe to offer value) Pricing Policies Although there are 4 main types of pricing approaches, there are in fact many different possible pricing policies which could be used: 1. List pricing: unsophisticated approach to pricing. A single price is set for a product or service. 2. Loss leader pricing: the price of a product is set at a lower level than actual cost to product it. This entices customers into stores, and the loss incurred on these items is made up by increasing costs elsewhere on less price-sensitive items. 3. Promotional pricing: when companies temporarily reduce their prices below the standard price for a period of time to raise awareness of the product, to raise brand awareness in the short term. 4. Segmentation pricing: where varying prices are set for different groups of customers, e. g. tesco finest, tesco value, George asda, etc. Economists call this price discrimination. 5. Price skimming: the start of a product’s life cycle, a product is charged a lot higher, to recoup the costs of research and development, and to make the product â€Å"exclusive†. 6. Price penetration: the start of a product’s life cycle, a product is charged a lot lower, to gain market share and generate a large volume of sales to recoup research and development investment. Pricing in the B2B Setting B2B markets exist on the basis that firms sell products and services to one another rather than to end users. From the B2B seller’s perspective, there re numerous approaches to pricing products and services including the following: * Geographical pricing – where customers are located * Negotiated pricing – set according to specific agreements between company and client * Discount pricing – reduce prices on the basis that customer is prepared to bulk buy * Value-in-use pricing – price foc uses attention upon customer perceptions, what they expect to pay * Relationship pricing – understanding of customer’s needs, helps generate relationship * Transfer pricing – large organisations, internal dealing between different divisions of the company and across national boundaries. Economic value to customer – works on basis that a company prices a good according to its value to the client through comparison with a reference or market leading product, taking everything into consideration (start-up and post-purchase costs) Price Elasticity of Demand It allows us to determine how the quantity of a good or service relates to the price at which it is offered. Inelastic goods and services are defined as such, because a change in price has little effect in sales volumes, whereas elastic goods have large effects. We need to understand this concept in order to understand demand-orientated pricing mechanisms. Chapter 11: An Introduction to Marketing Communications Marketing communications or promotion is one of the 4ps of the marketing mix. It is used to communicate elements of an organisation’s offering to a target audience. Communication is the process by which individuals share meaning. There are 3 main models or interpretations, of how communication works. 1. Linear model 2. Two-way model 3. Interactive model Linear Model of Communication – page 434 Regarded as the basic model of mass communications. First developed by Wilbur Schramm (1955). The linear model emphasises that each phase occurs in a particular sequence, to enable to transmission of information, ideas, attitudes and emotion from one person or group to another. The goal is to create a message that is capable of being comprehended easily by the receiver. once encoded, the message must be put in a form that is capable of transmission. Once the receiver has received the message, they decode it, to make sense of it. Once understood, receivers react and provide a response, with feedback. The final component is understanding. The source and receiver understand each other. Increasing numbers of people now engage with interactive based communications, so companies and individuals cannot be involved in real dialogue. The linear model therefore is no longer entirely appropriate. The Two-Step Model of Communication People can have a significant impact on the communication process, and the two-step model goes some way to reflecting their influence. It recognises the importance of personal influences when informing and persuading audiences to think or behave in particular ways. There are 2 main types of influencer: * Opinion leader – ordinary person who has a heightened interest in a particular topic. * Opinion former – involved professionally in the topic of interest. These both have enormous potential to influence audiences. Messages from personal influencers provide reinforcement and message credibility. The Interaction Model of Communications Model is similar to two-step model but contains one important difference. Mass media is not the only source of communication. Interaction model recognises that messages can flow through various channels and that people can influence the direction and impact of a message. Interaction is about actions that lead to a response and much attention is now given to the interaction that occurs between people. The development of digital technologies has been instrumental in enabling organisations to provide increased interaction opportunities with their customers. (e. g. press the red button to get more info). News programmes now encourage viewers to phone or send in their emails and pictures about particular issues. This gets audiences to express their views and in doing so, promoting access to, and interacting with the programme. The Role of Marketing Communications The success of marketing communications depends upon the extent to which messages engage their audiences. These audiences can fall into 3 groups: * Customers * Channel members – suppliers, retailers, wholesalers, value added resellers * Stakeholders – shareholders, employees, local community There are many types of exchange, but 2 of particular importance: 1. Transactional Exchanges: transactions that occur independently of any previous exchanges. Short term orientation. When a consumer buys an mp3 player, a brand they have not bought from before, then a transactional exchange can be identified. . Collaborative Exchanges: longer term orientation. Develops between parties who wish to build long-term supportive relationships. When a consumer buys their 3rd product from the same brand as the mp3 player, perhaps from the same dealer, collaborative exchanges are taking place. Audiences who prefer transactional exchanges will engage better with advertising and mass media-base d communications, as messages are impersonal and product focused. Companies by adding extra touches, can convert a shopping experience from transactional to collaborative, by putting in extra effort to maintain relationships. The Tasks of Marketing Communications There are 3 main aspects associated with marketing communications: 1. Engagement 2. Audience 3. Responses Communications can be used to differentiate brands and companies, to reinforce brand memories and expectations, to inform (make aware and educate audiences), and finally to persuade them to do things or to behave in particular ways. The Marketing Communications Mix The traditional marketing communications mix consists of a set of 5 primary tools: 1. Advertising 2. Sales promotion 3. Direct marketing 4. Public relations 5. Personal selling These 5 primary tools are used in various combinations and with different degrees of intensity in order to achieve different communication goals with target audiences. Word-of-mouth Word-of-mouth communication is â€Å"interpersonal communication regarding products or services where the receiver regards the communicator as impartial†. Integrated Marketing Communications IMC is concerned with harmonising the messages conveyed through each of the promotional tools, so that audiences perceive a consistent set of meanings within the messages they receive. Cultural Aspects of Marketing Communications Culture is important because it provides individuals within a society with a sense of identity and an understanding of what is deemed to be acceptable behaviour. Within businesses various types of culture arises: * National culture * Industry/Business culture * Organisational culture * Individual behaviour Corporate Concentration – a few large organisations own more and more media properties. Chapter 12: Marketing Communications: Tools and Techniques The marketing communications mix is a set of 5 tools that can be used in various combinations to communicate with target audiences: 1. Advertising 2. Sales promotion 3. Public relations 4. Direct marketing 5. Personal selling There are 6 key classes of media: 1. Broadcast 2. Print 3. Outdoor 4. In-store 5. Digital 6. Other (which includes both cinema and ambient media) The Role and Purpose of the Marketing Communications Mix Media fragmentation: the expansion of media where different classes of media have recently been used in different ways and developed. Advertising Advertising is a non-personal form of communication. It reaches large, mass audiences in an impersonal way. * Can be used to influence demand for products Can be used to manage perceptions and understanding about the organisation as a whole. Strong theory of advertisement – Jones (1991) Weak theory of advertisement – Ehrenberg (1997) Other Promotional Methods and Approaches * Sponsorships * Product placement * Branded entertainment * Field marketing * Exhibitions * Viral marketing Chapter 13: Managing Communications: Strategy, Planning, a nd Implementation There are 3 core marketing communication strategies, each based on broad target audiences: * Pull strategies – used to communicate with end user customers. Consumers and organisations within a B2B context. * Push strategies –