Cultural Oppression Essay Example for Free

Cultural Oppression Essay Women has come a long way from being the gods of the feminist society, oppression from the paternal Roman Catholic, and the continuous struggle to uplift itself from the discrimination in out society. Therefore it is not correct to say that â€Å"The world has evolved in a huge way, but for the groups that remained oppressed it does not seem like evolution has even touched them. † It seems a very narrow way of putting the struggle of women from centuries of oppression when in fact before World War I there were no women in the military, no women in college, no women in office, and no women in the library. Same goes for the homosexuals. There are already four states that allow same sex marriage in the United States and the world is not so unforgiving 50 years ago when homosexuals where killed. Indeed, homosexuals and women have come a long way and it is rather fitting that we recognize them in their accomplishments in pursuing their common good. I agree with Miss Johnson. This society is so bent on discrimination based on color when in fact African Americans are just as able as Caucasians in getting every job done. As long as there are equal opportunities for both races then there won’t be some dumb Joe lying around. We claim to be the most advanced nation in the world but it seems we still have prehistoric traces of slavery in our society. We still think that just because African Americans came to America as slaves then they are a backward race. What the people of America should remember that the very same slaves built this nation with their bare hands and they wouldn’t be slaves had we not made them that way. It seems that we have a double standard when we talk about freedom and liberty for all Americans. That shouldn’t be so because history has proven that it’s never a war of colors, it’s only a war of interests and power. The author mentioned about the struggling African Americans who are in the upper class. Well, money can’t erase prejudice from people especially the prejudice that is rooted in our history. That’s why the weak should fight for its liberation because nobody will save them from it but themselves. Reference

Communication Challenges in Global Virtual Teams Essay Example for Free

Communication Challenges in Global Virtual Teams Essay Communication Challenges in Building Successful Global Virtual Teams Due to Diversity and Cultural Differences Abstract This paper introduces an approach to effectively communicate within a global virtual team by discussing the challenges faced by them, understanding cultural differences in communicating, diversity within a team, building trust in virtual communication, and communicating across different regions and time zones. This approach appears in many discussions surrounding the difficulties managers and team members have in communicating effectively in global virtual teams. Specifically, this paper evaluates how the diversity of a global virtual team makes it challenging to communicate when members are not present face to face and adhering to the different regions and time zones these members are located. It will also examine the challenges in understanding the different cultures amongst a team and how to effectively build trust by researching, acknowledging, and understanding these cultural differences and communicating them to the team in a virtual environment. Communicating Challenges in Building Successful Global Virtual Teams Due to Diversity and Cultural Differences In today’s economy, many organizations must expand their operations globally in order to remain competitive and to stay afloat. With this business model companies have to develop teams across all functions of the organization and in all regions of the globe in which the company operates. For these companies, many have set up global virtual teams to manage processes and implement any projects or company initiatives with other employees of the organization. However with these teams come many obstacles and challenges definitely in communicating across cultural differences, understanding the diversity of the team and communication management within the different regions and time zones. Various authors (Danielle, 2006; Kayworth, 2000; Lee-Kelley, 2008 to name a few) have noted that these groups consisting of dispersed members across the globe and accumulated from various cultural backgrounds have an impact on how effective global virtual teams can be. Kayworth determines that there are four main challenges that global virtual teams face; which are communication, culture, technology, and project management. This paper observes the difficulties that virtual teams face within their communication efforts, analyzing the diversity of team members and the obstacles of communicating across different regions and times zones. As well as it takes an extensive look at the cultural differences that consists of these virtual teams and the challenge of building trust amongst a dispersed group. And in order for a global virtual team to operate effectively, managers and the members must research the different cultural backgrounds of its members, understand the communication challenges they face, and utilize them accordingly in order to build trust amongst the team to fulfill their goals that they place ahead of them. Defining Global Virtual Teams There are many authors that have provided definitions of global virtual teams, Lee-Kelley (2008) mentions that Towsend along with Lipnack and Stamps define a virtual team as a group that is geographically dispersed and utilize telecommunication and information technology as forms to communicate and perform. Lee-Kelley also refers to Alge, Balosky, Christensen, and Davis’ definition that virtual teams are typically a group that are dispersed who use various sources of information technology to communicate. In the case of these definitions, there is a lack of emphasis on the concept of team, but further definitions tie in this concept and place more value on the aspect of team. Cascio’s and Shurygailo’s mentioning of multiple-relationships in global virtual teams, by referring to the number of manager’s involved, number of team members, and number of locations. Many researchers in this field do not reference a specified distance in which team members must be apart to classify as virtual team, but as Lee-Kelley stated it is a psychological reality versus sociological that team members conceptually define themselves in a virtual team. In sum, there are many definitions that agree on the structure, form and characteristics of a virtual team and the members it consist of, but there is a lack of consensus amongst them. This lack of consensus on the definition of a global virtual team has also brought up the discussions of the challenges in communication that these virtual teams face, thus prompting this research. Time Zones and Work Schedules One of the initial challenges of global virtual teams is the complicated work schedules of its team members in their respective regions. Settle-Murphy (2006) notes when working in a synchronous mode (Instant Message, telephone, video conference), some remote team members are forced to work at awkward times. This alone is one the most consistent challenges that managers and teams have to overcome. When is the optimal time for virtual teams that span across various time zones to meet? A manager and its team have to take in consideration the different work weeks as well as the time difference. Consistently in many western civilizations, the standard work week is predominately Monday through Friday, utilizing Saturday and Sunday as business days off in order to tend to personal matters and observance of the religious day that is most affluent in that region and culture. Where in many eastern civilizations the work week is Sunday through Thursday, and they utilize Friday and Saturday as their days off. This difference is not only restricted to western/eastern civilization, but ultimately applies to the different cultures that make up the team, the different religions, and time of year. Being cognitive of this challenge and addressing it in an applicable manner is crucial to the effectiveness of a global virtual team. It is an evident obstacle in scheduling team meetings via information technology applications (i. e. teleconferencing, video-conferencing, etc). This is one challenge that can easily be addressed by the manager’s and team’s awareness of these work week schedule differences along with the cultural and religious difference of its team members. Another issue that global virtual teams encounter is conducting meetings across the various time zones of its members. There is no exact corporate standard or guidelines on how and when meetings should be conducted in order to accommodate all members of the virtual team. Settle-Murphy states that in order to reduce this challenge as an obstacle to building trust and team success, a team should agree when same time meetings are necessary, and consider rotating the times to share the burden of working during normal sleep time. The managers and team members should also consider which work can be done asynchronously (e. g. via email or a shared workplace) to allow all team members to work at the most convenient times. This approach can be highly effective because it is apparent that the manager and other team members have taken into consideration each other’s differences of location, culture, and business practices, and simultaneously addressing the challenge of building trust. By researching, understanding, and being respectful of the team members and their time, the cohesiveness of the group is established quickly and strengthened, which is also a challenge to overcome in global virtual teams. Communication and Behavioral Differences In the article â€Å"Working Together Apart,† Zakaria, Almelinckx, and Wilemon (2004) state that, â€Å"managers have often under-valued the profound influence of culture on knowledge conceptualization and transfer. Suggesting that knowledge sharing is often facilitated by communication that involves the exchange of meaning and that the process of communicating is dynamic, multifaceted and complex† (p. 17). Zakaria et al. , also suggest that cultural conditioning has a major affect on the evaluation of experience as well as how information and knowledge in global virtual teams is conveyed and learned. In short, cultural influences play a major role in communication and behavioral differences. This concept is another major challenge that global virtual teams face when striving to reach their end goal. Conveying a clear message is only one challenge, the difficult part is conveying that message so that it reaches each individual affectively according to their unique cultural and behavioral background and how to convey organizational messages across global virtual teams has consensually been done through technology. Global virtual teams that use information and communication technologies and exclude social or physical presence and rely on depersonalized forms of communications between its team members (Zakaria et al. ,2007). One can argue that this hinders the creation of a knowledge-sharing culture, yet over time, the exclusion of social and physical presence can possibly strengthen working relationships that normally would not form in a more traditional work setting. Utilizing technology as the form of communication takes out a lot of subtle communication aspects that are experienced when working within a team in a more traditional framework. An example of this is the use of non-verbal communication or cues. The absence of non-verbal communication may cause difficulties for those global virtual team members’ cultures that rely on body language, gestures and facial expressions for vital communication. For example, in high-context cultures, people value these subtle and indirect communications. Visual communication like a nod, smile, posture, voice and eye contact provide important indications and meanings to establish understanding of what is trying to be communicated. The usage of verbal and non-verbal communication is important when working together in a team. Global virtual teams usually lack the ability to rely on these communication manners because of their reliability on technology in order to communicate and therefore it is difficult to build cohesiveness and trust within the team. Zakaria et al. , states that: â€Å"Technology is simply a tool that needs human operations, no matter how sophisticated the technology can be, the implementation of technology has the potential to fail if insufficient considerations are given from the user perspectives† (p. 19). This brings up the topic of what is appropriate and what is not when communicating to and within global virtual teams. In the majority of information and communicated technology-mediated environments where team members are dispersed geographically and are culturally diverse, the usual form of communication is electronically, and the preferred language of use is English. Studies have shown that native and non-native English speakers exhibit culture-based differences in meanings of terminology, structure and format. A key example of this is the usage of terms and slang. When members use terms and slang words, the intended meaning can be obscured due to cultural differences and can hinder knowledge management and effectiveness. Another area for potential conflict in information communication is the actual language itself. For those teams that use English, individuals need to be aware of the English language variation in intra-team electronic communication. This particularly pertains to the tone, style, formality, salutations and closings and that they need to be aware that there are substantial sociolinguistic and grammatical variations within the global English-speaking community and will have a significant impact on intra-team communications. In order to successfully facilitate the cross-cultural collaboration and communication, the team members must be aware of these subtle differences and acknowledge them when relaying organizational messages. Since the use of electronic communication technology has the capacity to reduce or overcome certain cultural challenges within a global virtual team, these forms of technologies can facilitate intra-team interaction. It also introduces a shared-framework, a virtual work setting that can build intra-team respect, trust, reciprocity and positive individual and group relationships. Therefore, understanding the communication and behavioral differences when communicating electronically to the team members can put the team in the position to work through the challenges that lie within a global virtual team. The Importance of Developing Trust For global virtual teams, building trust is one of the essential factors in developing a successful team. Since global virtual teams consist of many cultures that make up the entity as well as a geographically dispersed entity, there is a high risk of potential misunderstandings and mistrust. So the question that many virtual teams face is how to develop trust. Many researchers contend that in order to develop trust, a group must facilitate face to face interactions in order to build trust. These face to face interactions allow people to relate to each other or â€Å"click† as many of the new generation say. However, this may not have enough grounds to develop strong trust within a team if the members do not understand each other and/or the nature of the team itself. As Roberts observed, â€Å"the development of trust, whether on a local or international basis, requires more than face to face contact or its technological and spatially indifferent substitute video-conferencing ellipses, trust depends on the sharing of a set of socially embedded values, cultural institutions and expectations† (Roberts, 2000, p. 6). In order for global virtual teams to be effective, there must be intra-group trust as well as trust between management and team members and vice versa. Jarvenpaa, S. L. , and Leidner, D. E. 1999) infer that virtual teams have no time to gradually develop trust and therefore require a high degree of â€Å"swift trust† to be demonstrated by enthusiastic and proactive team members’ behaviors. So how do cross-cultural members form swift trust? Jarvenpaa and Leidner suggest that the virtual team members would import the expectations of trust from other settings that they are familiar with. It is also important to note tha t if an individual team member’s cultural stereotypes are flawed, biased or incomplete, this technique may be problematic. Once communication is developed between members, trust could be maintained by actions that are highly dynamic, proactive and enthusiastic. Such active communication must be premised on accurate cultural knowledge to be effective. Therefore swift trust is made possible because when cross-cultural teams work in a virtual environment, they bring their knowledge, competence and expertise not only to meet the goals that are set but also about the other team members’ and their cultures in order to ensure the success of the team. Not only is this necessary for the members of the team but it also necessary for the leaders of the team to establish this swift trust. As noted from Zakaria and Leidner, there are two behavioral categories that form cross-cultural trust. First, credibility where one individual believes that the other individual has the capabilities, competence, expertise and resources to make a successful exchange that meets expectations. Note that when working in cross-cultural teams, the work expectation of a person in culture A is different from the expectations of a person in culture B. This can be challenging in implementing swift trust in global virtual teams, but it can be overcome if the expectations are set by the managers or leaders and are clearly communicated to all team members. The second factor that Zakaria and Leidner discuss is benevolence, the beliefs about the emotional aspects of the referent’s behavior like positive intention to exchange. These beliefs include a referent’s good will so that they would participate in the better good of the team rather than jeopardize the exchange outcome. This may result in some challenges to the team because swift trust does not focus a lot on interpersonal relationships. Rather it places more emphasis on the initial broad social structures. Therefore in order for swift trust to be implemented successfully, team members must maintain a high level of actions, regardless of their cultural preferences and differences. But team members should also appreciate, understand and respect the cultural differences that make up the team in order to truly succeed in a global virtual team. Conclusion Through research of many articles and publishing’s regarding the topic of communication in global virtual, building trust has been the one subject that has been consistently addressed. Mockaitis, A. I. , Rose, E. L. nd Zetting, P. (2009) suggest that the development of trust in the context of multicultural global virtual teams is related to aspects of culture, conflict, task interdependence and communication. A team whose members are more collective in nature rather than distant tend to report more positive results of developing trust within the group, this impli es that culture matters. It is important for all team members to understand and respect the cultures of the other individuals. Although team members’ personal cultural values have consistent predictive power it is suggested that it displays very little value in developing trust within the group. Initially since communication amongst the team is done virtually and not face to face, it is important to establish trust among the group. But as the team develops the factors for cultural differences and diversity tend to become less important to the success of the group. The findings of Mockaitis et al. , show that cultural diversity does not appear to serve as a barrier to trust, even as differences become apparent through communication, but it can play a crucial role in developing that trust. Therefore along with cultural differences, communication is extremely important for the development of trust within a global virtual team.

Literature Review Definition Of Marketing Marketing Essay

Literature Review Definition Of Marketing Marketing Essay Marketing is managing profitable customer relationships, the twofold goal of marketing is to attract new customers by promising superior value and to keep and grow current customers by delivering satisfaction (Armstrong Kotler, 2007 p. 5). People often think marketing as selling and advertising, which is just a small part of marketing. The marketer does a good job when he understands superior customer value, prices, distributes and promotes them effectively; the products will sell very easily then. This tells that selling and advertising are just a part of marketing as a marketing mix; a set of marketing tools that work together to satisfy customer needs and build customer relationships. (Armstrong Kotler, 2007 p. 5). Figure: A simple model of the marketing process Source: Armstrong G and Kotler P, (2007, p. 6). Marketing: an introduction. 8th ed. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education. Marketing mix According to Mohammed Rafiq and Pervaiz K. Ahmed (1995), the term marketing mix was first used by Borden and that it was suggested to him by Cullitons (1948) description of a business executive as mixer ingredients. Borden did not define the marketing mix; it simply consisted of important elements of ingredients that make up a marketing programme (Borden, 1965, p. 389). McCarthy (1964, p. 35) refined this further and defined the marketing mix as a combination of all of the factors at a marketing managers command to satisfy the target market. Later McCarthy and Perreault (1987) together defined the marketing mix as the controllable variables that an organisation can co-ordinate to satisfy its target market, which is widely accepted as the set of controllable marketing variables that the firm blends to produce the response it wants in the target market (Kotler and Armstrong, 1989, p. 45). According to Jonathan Ivy (2008), marketing mix is a set of controllable marketing tools that an i nstitution uses to produce the response it wants from its various target markets. Ronald E. Goldsmith (1999) stated that 4Ps was first formulated by McCarthy (1975) as a pedagogical tool to describe the chief tasks of marketing managers. Marketing managers must develop a systematic plan to sell to the customers after selecting a target market to create long-term relationships (Doyle, 1995). The marketing mix plan consists of 4Ps which consists of decisions about product, place, promotion and price (Goldsmith, 1999). According to Bennet (1997), the concept of marketing outlines a course for the organisation using controllable variables in an environment where many factors are uncontrollable, defined as the external market. Kotler (1967) (cited by Bennet, 1997) broadened this classification into four namely, customer, environmental, competitive and marketing decision variables. Focussing on manufacturing industries, Borden (1964) identifies the four external forces on the organisation as consumer buying behaviour, trade behaviour, competitors position and behaviour and government regulations. Robins (1991) formulated four Cs which is an alternate mnemonic to the marketing mix formulated by McCarthy (1964). Four Cs are defined as Customers who buys goods and services in the market place, Competitors who provide the choice of alternative sources of supply, Capabilities and Company both of them refers to the organisation which has ability to satisfy customer needs. Gronroos (1984) proposes a concept of interactive marketing which was backed by Kotler (1991). This concept emphasizes the relationship between the employee and the customer and identifies it as the key factor in successful market making. Kotler (1991) argues that the employee-customer relationship is an important factor in the success of the market-making process. Booms and Bitner (1981) added three additional factors to the marketing mix elements proposed by McCarthy (1964) namely people, processes and physical evidence. This concept highlights that the model proposed by McCarthy (1964) might lead to too narrow focus on the internal variables, and does not include some of the process variables which is a part of marketing planning system (Bennet, 1997, p. 151). Lings (1999) argues for services industry 4Ps are in adequate and 7Ps marketing mix illustrates the importance of internal factors, as retail sector is not a service based industry traditional 4Ps marketing mix is used to represent the external factors (cite d by Khanh Kandampully, 2004). 4Ps makes the marketing easier handle for the managers in non service based industry; the components of traditional marketing mix can change a firms competitive position (Gronroos, 1994). Even with the deficiencies, the 4Ps remain a staple of the marketing mix (Kent and Brown, 2006). According to the American Marketing Association (1985), marketing is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and services to create exchange and satisfy individual and organisational objectives. Kent (1986) states that the four Ps of the marketing mix as the holy quadruple of the marketing faith written in tablets of stone. According to Armstrong and Kotler (2007) marketing mix tools are classified into four broad groups, called the four Ps of marketing: product, price, place and promotion. In order to deliver on its value proposition, the firm must first create a need-satisfying market offering (product). It must decide how much it will charge for the offer (price) and how it will make the offer available to the target customers (place). It must communicate with target customers about the offers and persuade them of its merits (promotion) (Armstrong and Kotler, 2007 p.53) Baker Hart (2008, p 463) the logic of 4Ps is straight forward; a supplier needs products, needs to price them, to promote them and distribute them to the place where the customer can buy them. According to Dogra Ghuman (2008) some of the variables associated with 4Ps are: Price: price level, credit terms, price changes and discounts. Product: features, packaging, quality and range. Promotion: advertising, publicity, sales promotion and personal selling. Place: inventory, distribution channels and number of intermediaries. Figure: The four Ps of the marketing mix Source: Armstrong G and Kotler P, (2007, p. 6). Marketing: an introduction. 8th ed. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education. Product According to Armstrong and Kotler (2007), product can be defined as the goods and services is a combination the company offers to the target market. Belohlavek (2008) argues that a product or service is the element which satisfies the clients needs. The product or service generates two types of relationships with the prospect: a functional and a linking one. The usefulness of the product bears a relationship with its benefits measured both objectively and subjectively. The products use value is fundamental to the purchasing decision process in its closing stage (Belohlavek, 2008 p.15). For a competitive approach the company has to offer products that are unique and meet customer needs, wants and values. Maintaining the product uniqueness is difficult for a company since the product can be matched by competitors. The company must often compete on price, distribution, or promotion; in order to compete unless the product is of sound quality (Rea Kerzner, 1997 p. 57). Product variety Pine (1993), product variety is defined as the number of different products offered to the customers (cited by Felipe Scavarda, Reichhart, Hamacher, Holweg, 2010). According to Bils Klenow (2001) and Er MacCarthy (2006) product variety is a new development and a trend in many industry sectors worldwide (cited by Felipe Scavarda, Schaffer, Jose Scavarda, Reis Schleich, 2009). Product variety is an effective strategy to increase the market share as it enables the company to serve different kinds of customer segments and to satisfy the customer variety seeking behaviour (Tang, 2006). This involves different product features, packaging, or channels of distribution (Felipe Scavarda, Schaffer, Jose Scavarda, Reis Schleich, 2009). Product variety strategy as a marketing strategy will result in sales growth, profits and meeting more specialised demands (Berry Cooper, 1999). Kim Chhajed (2000) argues that different kinds of product manufacturing results in a decrease in logistics perfor mance or manufacturing performance. Lee Billington (1994) also argues that product variety can result in higher forecast errors and lead to excessive inventory for some products and shortages for other products. If the product variety is to the optimal or to the appropriate level of variety, then product variety will result as economical efficient and will create positive marketing efforts (Lancaster, 1990). According to Pine (1993) and da Silveira (1998), product variety enables the ability to customise products to customer needs and has been identified in achieving competitive advantage over other retailers (cited by Felipe Scavarda, Reichhart, Hamacher, Holweg, 2010). As product variety gives a broader product line and can lead to increased profitability (Kekre and Srinivasan, 1990). Product variety gives rise to the need to consider different products of the individual product variants, as different end items that are fundamentally different do not feature the same variety level for the individual (MacDuffie et al., 1996 Koste and Malhotra, 1999). Price Belohlavek (2008) states that price is a conditioning element for buying a product; price only conditions a product but does not determine it, in accordance to the buyers income makes a monetary value of a given service or goods, which makes them reachable to the goods. Price is a factor which acts as a barrier which when reached in operational terms, thats when the last stage of purchasing action is reached. Price is an element which determines a priority relationship with the value and opportunity creating access to the customer. Kasper et al. (2000, p. 627), pricing is an important management tool to achieve the objectives of the organization. Similarly, Pellinen (2003, p.218) has suggested that pricing is one of the most central management tasks for a service company. It is also the only element of the marketing mix that generates revenues for a firm, while all the others (e.g. new product introductions, promotions) are associated with costs (Zeithaml et al., 2006) (cited by Indounas Avlonitis, 2009). Rea Kerzner (1997) argues that the easiest way to reach and compete with the competitor is to match the price with the competitor. Price is one of the most important criteria that customers use when choosing between competing brands (Huber et al., 2001; Ta and Har, 2000) (cited by Indounas Avlonitis, 2009). Price is the sum of money customers has to pay to acquire the product; often customers buy the product negotiating the price for more accessibility, companies offer discounts to customers adjusting price to sustain the competitive situation (Armstrong Kotler, 2007 p. 52). Price Discount According to Palazon Delgado (2009), Customers are price sensitive and they often look for price related information. Manning et al., (2003), they are vigilant about any information about price and other pricing information (Kukar-Kinney et al., 2007) they spend a lot of time thinking about prices of products, always evaluating savings offered and the convenience by the price discount. Customers with lower levels of price consciousness and value, they are most likely to be influenced by the magnitude of the discount (Alford Biswas, 2002) than the pecuniary value of the discount really offered. (Babin et al., 2007) customers are engaged in searching for more devoted to the task of shopping to the extent that a better price exists in another store. Hardesty Bearden (2003) and Grewal et al., (1996) claims that when the promotional benefit is low, customers are not going to process information extensively about the promotion (price discount) as it has low pecuniary value. Similarly wh en the promotional benefit is high, customers are not sure about the product or the deal they are unlikely to process information extensively as there is less uncertainty about the product. Customers are predicted to analyse the deal moderately whether the benefit are high (Palazon Delgado, 2009). Hardesty Bearden (2003) and Grewal et al., (1996) states that if the promotional benefit is low or high the levels of information processing is low, but for moderate benefit levels information process is high. Chandrashekaran (2004) and Raghubir (2004) argue that high promotional benefits are always evaluated positively. According to Madan Suri (2001) there are different types of price promotions and short term price discounts have been used by the retailers to create short term demand for their products (Monroe, 1990 p 369). Retailers can sell the products very fast without much expensive when they are offering immediate savings to the customers. Short term price discounts are easier to execute and provide immediate price savings to the customers (Madan Suri, 2001). Discounts actually increase the value to the customers and this happens at the intermediate levels of discounts and when the discounts are either very high or very low it decreases the value (Madan Suri, 2001). Promotion The most common promotion is a sale (Levy Weitz, 2007 p 433). Promotion is one of the key Ps in the marketing mix (Dibb et al., 1994). The promotion strategy is used in increasing sales by creating differences in resources which results in a firm being able to outspend a competitor in advertisement, purchase displays, trade shows and other promotional methods (Rea Kerzner, 1997 p. 58). * According to Jennifer Rowley (1998), the objectives of any promotional strategy will be drawn from an appropriate mixture of the following roles of promotion; to: increase sales; maintain or improve market share; create or improve brand recognition; create a favourable climate for future sales; inform and educate the market; create a competitive advantage, relative to competitors products or market position; improve promotional efficiency * According to Jennifer Rowley (1998), an appropriate promotional mix must be created in order to meet the promotional objectives of any given promotion strategy. The promotional mix is the combination of different promotional channels that is used to communicate a promotional message. This will involve an appropriate selection from the range of tools that are available for use as part of the promotional mix. The tools in the promotional mix include: Advertising. Any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods or services by any identified sponsor. The pages of professional newsletters and magazines are common avenues for advertising information products. Direct marketing. The use of mail, telephone or other non-personal contact tools to communicate with or solicit a response from specific customers and prospects. Mail shots and leaflets inserted in professional magazines are used to promote information products. Sales promotion. Short-term incentives to encourage trial or purchase of a product or service, such as discounts for access to a database over a limited time period. Public relations and publicity. Programmes designed to promote and/or protect a companys image, or those of its products, including product literature, exhibitions and articles about organisations products in professional or in-house newsletters. Personal selling. Face-to-face interactions with one or more prospective purchasers, for the purpose of making sales. This is common within the business-to-business marketing transactions in the information industry, where sales representatives, often also with a support function, are common. Sponsorship. Financial or external support of an event or person by an unrelated organisation or donor, such as is common in respect of the arts, sports and charities. Large organisations, such as major publishing groups like Reed Elsevier, or software houses, such as Microsoft, may engage in sponsorship, but public sector organisations, in education and libraries, are more likely to be the recipient of sponsorship. Place According to Kai Li Hung Hung (2007), place is a marketing mix which describes whether the location is accessible and transport is convenient, place comes out as a heterogeneous phenomenon which is created by the company at each place combining resources; accessibility increases value to the customer. Kotler, et al., (2005) claims that place involves all activities of the company to make all products available to the customers. According to Mason Staude (2009), Place is the least changing marketing tactic. Distribution and availability are used in stabilising dimensions, communicating and creating a control as a link between supplier and customer, and reducing the probability to change suppliers, which actually stabilises the market. Backward and forward integration also reduce the uncertainty of retailer stocking the products, lowering the risks and stabilising the environment (Nilson, 1995). According to Boyle Proctor (2009), in the context of product sales, placement is actually distribution (Biech, 2003). In social marketing, distribution can be defined as dissemination channels (NWPHO, 2006). Clearly for dispersing channels to be effective they must be accessible to the target market (Boyle Proctor, 2009). Store location and layout The location and atmosphere of a store communicates information about the service and pricing to the customer. The physical characteristics play an important role in a customers mind (Levy Weitz, 2007 p 434). Store layout influences customer buying behaviour, stores can attract customers with their design and layout motivating them to make impulsive sales or give them a pleasant shopping experience (Levy Weitz, 2007 p 491). According to Davies Rogers (1984), guy (1980), Jones Simmons (1987) and Birkin et al., (2002) site selection and sales forecasting of retail stores are a important factor in retail management and retail geography (cited by Wood Browne, 2007). Store location is used in sales forecasting for retail stores and for determining the optimal location and sales of the store (Clarkson et al., 1996; Smith Sanchez, 2003). Superstores are one of the main formats through which food is sold increasing the money flow (IGD, 2005). The size of the stores is important and it is very expansive to open up a big store therefore accuracy in location planning is essential (Wrigley, 1996). Retail stores are dependent on the daily purchases made and regular weekly purchases this involves repeated car journeys from the customers homes, which requires space for parking near the store for easy access (Wood Browne, 2007). The location of a store affects the customer with sociological and geographical factor s (Wrigley, 1998; Meyer Johnson, 1996; Rust Donthu, 1995) (cited by Beyon, Griffiths, Marshall, Expert Systems (2002). Pricing strategy According to (Blythe, 2008 p 151), pricing a product is one of the most important issues for marketers; it is significant not only to the profit that is to be made but also to the quantity of products which are to be sold. Pricing also touches on all the elements of the marketing mix, pricing is the indication to the consumer of what a company expects in exchange; for the products being offered. Profitability of the company depends on the pricing strategy (Doyle Stern, 2006 p 225). Price may become a proxy measure for product quality when buyers have difficulty in evaluating complex products (Cravens Piercy, 2006 p 316). Consumers are often confused in choosing a product; price helps them choose a product. A strategic viewpoint on pricing decisions may create new market space and opportunities for the company (Cravens Piercy, 2006 p 317). Figure: Steps in selecting a pricing strategy Source: (Cravens Piercy, 2006 p 321). A pricing strategy must be consistent with the retailers overall image (positioning), sales, profit, and return on investment goals (Berman Evans, 2007 p 498). Various roles of Pricing (Cravens Piercy, 2006 p 320) Pricing has few important roles in the marketing program of a company. Some of the roles are: Signal to the buyer Price is the easiest way to directly communicate with the customer. When comparing with other brands price is a visible difference to the customer. Price is also used in positioning the brand to show its quality or instead give direct competition with other brands (Cravens Piercy, 2006 p 320). Instrument of competition As the competitions between companies are high, Price is an element which can quickly attack competitiors. Price can also be used by a company to stay away from the competition if used strategically; pricing strategy is always related to competition with other brands or companies (Cravens Piercy, 2006 p 320). Improving financial performance Using a pricing strategy wisely, companies can generate revenues by forecasting about a product or brand to increase the financial statement in the short term or in the long term in order to survive the global competition (Cravens Piercy, 2006 p 320). pricing strategy has the biggest impact on the profit and loss statement of the company in the short run, Pricing is even more crucial in the long run; the primary purpose of business strategy is to offer consumers enhanced value so that price can be raised considerably above costs (Doyle Stern, 2006 p 225). Marketing program consideration Companies pay a price for marketing, in order to maintain or penetrate in to the market. Price strategy is also used for promoting products (Cravens Piercy, 2006 p 320). Consumer behaviour Blackwell, et al., (2006) defined consumer behaviour as the activities people undertake when obtaining, consuming and disposing of products and services. The activities are divided into three, they are: obtaining, consuming and disposing (Blackwell, et al., 2006 p. 4). Obtaining According to Blackwell, et al., (2006 p. 4) it is the process of purchasing or getting a product. This process includes comparing with other similar products, alternative brands and searching for more information of the product before obtaining it. Analysts often study these purchases in order to improve the understanding of the market; consumer buying behaviour is studied whether they are buying for themselves or as gifts, payment methods, and product transportation or delivery, how they get information about other alternative brands and how the brands influence the consumers product choices. Consuming According to Blackwell, et al., (2006 p. 4), it is the process or activity of using a product by the customer to his/her needs. Based on the consumption of the products researchers can study the consumer decisions whether the product is bought to be consumed in the office or at home, or for entertainment purpose or for its functional purpose, do they consume the product or do they dispose it without using it even once. Based on the consumption these buying behaviours are studied in order to understand the needs of the customers. Disposing According to Blackwell, et al., (2006 p.4), it is the process of getting rid of the product after its use or its packaging. And how do they dispose the product remains or the packaging, whether the packaging is biodegradable. Analysts think in the ecological point of view for this process. Consumer buying behaviour According to McCall, et al., (2009), purchasing decisions happen on daily basis and the most important factor influencing these decisions is the price of the product. For buying any product, price is often the most silent feature (Nagle and Holden, 2002). This can be used as an advantage to increase the overall sales by offering discounts (promotions) to the price sensitive customers (Soman, 1998). According to Saha, et al., (2010), Consumer behaviour is the study of how individuals spend their available resources on consumption-related items. It includes the study of what they buy, why they buy it, when they buy it, where they buy it, how often they buy it, and how often they use it (Schiffman and Kanuk, 1996). The main objective of marketing in the consumer buying behaviour context is to satisfy the needs and wants of the target customer. As a subject consumer behaviour also deals with the factors that affect the buying behaviour of a consumer. The study of consumer behaviour gives a clear idea that how consumer select, buy, use and dispose the product, service, experiences to please the needs and requirements (Kotler, 2003). Stimulus response model is the starting point of understanding consumer buying behaviour. The buyers characteristic and decision process leads to the purchase decision; a consumers buying behaviour is influenced by 4ps, cultural, social and personal factors (Kotler, 2003). The role of marketing mix is also important in making the buying decision by any consumer. The marketing mix consists of everything the firm can do to influence the demand for the product. The many possibilities can be collected into four groups of variables known as the Four Ps that is product, price, place and promotion (Saha, et al., 2010). According to Mowat and Collins (2000), for successful development in business, the company needs to understand and meet the consumer needs and expectations (Douglas, 1993; Knox and Theisen, 1981). Store layout plays (place) an important effect in consumer behaviour besides price and consumer expectation (Kotler, 1973; Eroglu and Machleit, 1990; Bitner, 1992; Baker et al., 1993; Baker et al., 1994; Grewal and Baker, 1994; Simonson, 1999; Baker, et al., 2002) (cited by Vrechopoulos Atherinos, 2009). According to Solomon, et al., (2006), consumer purchase is a response to a problem and a customer goes through a series of steps in order to make a purchase. These steps can be described as (1) problem recognition (2) information search (3) evaluation of alternatives and (4) product choice. After the decision is made, the quality of that decision affects the finals steps in the process, when the learning occurs based on how well the choice worked out. The learning process influences the likelihood that the same choice will be made next time the need for a similar decision occurs (Solomon et al, 2007 p.258). Brin (2004, p 85) argues that it is important to understand the characteristics of the consumers and their buying decision process in order to target them with the most appropriate and effective marketing methods, the management needs to understand and study this decision process on what particular product or service the consumers choose from; the brand they select, from which outlet they buy, what kind of product and the amount spent. It is useful to understand what influences the consumer (Brin, 2004 p 85). Some of the influences in buying roles in the consumer buying process are (Brin, 2004 p 85): The initiator: the very first person who thinks about buying a product The influencer: the person who influences other consumers in taking the final step of the buying decision The decider: the person who takes the final decision The buyer: the person who actually buys a product The user: the customer. There are different types of consumer buying behaviour, and the type of consumer buying behaviour changes according to the type of buying decisions. The main influence is the brands available to the consumer and the personal attachment towards the decision which influences the consumer to become a loyalty customer (Phillips, et al., 1994; p 85). Involvement can be a major factor in decision making; consumers often tend to develop a form of emotional attachments to products and most people would be familiar with the feeling of having fallen in love with a product, even when the product is totally unreasonable though the purchase may not have an important practical outcome for the consumer; the consumers future behaviour does not always materialise (Blythe, 2005 p 53, 54). Low involvement, low price, low risk High involvement, High price, high risk Few differences between brands Brand loyal Repeat purchasing Influenced by price And sales promotional offers Buying process is relatively quick because of the limited differences Significant differences between brands Brand switching but limited information gathering Information gathering and processing is important. Purchase decision is important Figure: Four types of buying behaviour Source: Phillips, et al., (1994; p 85) (Adapted from Assael, 1985 Kotler, 1988). According to Kapoor Kulshrestha (2009), Products convey different meanings to different people and this differing forms an attachment towards the products. According to Zaichkowsky (1985), attachment means the interest, the enthusiasm, the emotional level expressed by the consumer regarding a product (cited by Steichen Terrien, 2009). The meaning of the product depends on the nature of the consumers rather than the nature of the products (Martin, 1998; Rochberg-Halton, 1981). The consumer plays a role in his or her choices (Steichen Terrien, 2009); the decisions are principally based on personal perception followed by the cues sent by the environment with personal interpretation (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975; Fazio, 1985). These choices have different attributes, and some of them are very salient; the choice of salient attributes also depends on the personal characteristics of the consumer (Steichen Terrien, 2009). Based on Uncles and Ellis (1989) the interplay of costs and benefits affects the retailers in making huge gross margins, many retailers are establishing their own labels as a part of retailing today. This allows the retailer selling products under their own name to differentiate their products and stock, from other retailers. Also, allowing them to have a full control over product price, quality and stocks (cited by Rothe Lamont, 1973; McGoldrick, 1984; Simmons Meredith, 1984). This will actually generate higher gross margins. For competitive edge over other stores and brands, retailers hope to build a relationship with the customer by lowering price and offering consumers better value for money without narrowing the product range (Simmons Meredith, 1984). Customer relationship strategy Relationships can obtain competitive advantage (Kanter, 1994; Kay, 1995; Huxham, 1996; Stone and Mason, 1997) (cited by Donaldson O Toole, 2002). Customer relationship strategy is based on mutual trust with the customers creating long term relationships; many researches conclude that customer relationship strategy has increased the profit margin for many firms (based on Lawrence, 2002). Long-time customers are less costly to serve and smooth running of relationships are inexpensive and less resource intensive (Lawrence, 2002). Long term relationships benefit both the buyers and suppliers (Szmigin, 1998). For the strategy to be effective, the component elements should be inter-related. When there is a strong synergy between the component elements the strategy will be eff

A Man Said to the Universe :: Man Said Universe

A Man Said to the Universe Stephen Crane wrote many remarkable poems, short stories, and novels throughout his short life (He lived only to the age of 29). In one poem in particular, "A Man Said to the Universe," Crane uses cosmic irony to depict an existentialist way of life. "Cosmic irony occurs when a writer uses God, destiny or fate to dash the hopes and expectations of a character or mankind in general"(2133). Crane’s use of this type of irony is seen through the relationship that the universe displays with mankind. Existentialism depicts the idea that one is not based on the essence of a soul but, rather is based on decisions made throughout life. God’s existence in nature is expected, and it is ironic how Crane shows just the opposite to be true. Existentialism is indifferent to God’s existence in nature as well. Crane depicts man as a weak soul longing for his existence to be recognized by the universe. "However’ replied the universe,/ ‘The fact has not created in me/ A sense of obligation"(3-5). These lines prove that the universe does not recognize the existence of man. This universe is a mighty force, heedless to the needs and wishes of man. We may argue or detest something that we have no control over, only to come to the realization that nature is indifferent to our thoughts or feelings. It is generally assumed that man has an obligation to the universe and vise versa. However, as seen in this poem, neither can be assumed. By living an existential life a man can detach himself from the idea of

Creating a simple and inexpensive network :: essays research papers

What type of network would you recommend and why? The very fist thing that must be taken into consideration in setting up your network is what capabilities do you want your network to have. The relative ease and low cost to set up a Peer-to-Peer networking system to form a small Local Area Network is the recommendation I am making for your company. Peer-to-Peer networks offer no centralized data storage and eliminate the control over sharing files from one main server. Each computer system connected can share resources that they deem necessary. (Bird, D., Harwood, M. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" 2003) While a server network does offer more security and centralized data, there is no need for a small network of four computers to tackle such an endeavor. The cost of setting up a server network is also much more expensive in that one computer would need significant upgrades to be able to handle software such as Windows 2000 or Linux Red Hat and also to provide data storage and backups for the entire network. As you are currently using Windows 98, the need for additional software is not required to benefit from basic network functions such as shared use of directories, drives, or printers and can extensively simplify internet access at each terminal. (Bird, D., Harwood, M. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" 2003) What type of upgrades might be needed? The only upgrades that you would need to purchase for the systems are network interface cards (NICs), cables and a hub, switch or router. Each machine on the network can be installed with a NIC that connects to the computerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s bus, and to either 10base-T (twisted pair) or coaxial cable. The Ethernet transmits data by means of packets and automatically adjusts to the addition of computers to a net. NICs all have a unique address built in at the factory to facilitate this. After you install the NIC in each system, you will then need to install the driver for the card by using the Windows 98 installation procedures and diskette supplied by the NIC manufacturer. NICà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s can cost as low as $3.00 for a 10/100 NIC PCI Card. (About.com à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" 2005/Pricewatch.com à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" 2005) To make the connection to each system, a hub is needed. The hub is a device that connects the cables from computers and other devices such as printers in the local area network. Traditionally, hubs are used for star topology networks, but they are often used with other configurations to make it easy to add and remove computers without bringing down the network.

Feminism as Sponsored by Gatorade and Nike :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Feminism as Sponsored by Gatorade and Nike The fourth wave of feminism is here and it is based solely on physical achievement. Exercise and sport has become one of the few arenas in which female competition is welcomed and savored. Commercials feature prominent female athletes challenging males, chanting the slogan "anything you can do, I can do better." Due to a variety of factors--improved knowledge about women's health, decreased focus on child-bearing, a cultural ideal of a fit and trim body--athletic success is now an acceptable and applauded goal for women, but at what cost? Part of this focus on the body must be due to the backlash against feminism. I am not speaking of Susan Faludi's theory and examples, but instead of a further backlash against her and everything for which she stands. The focus on the physical is a reaction against the intellectual. It is as if these women are saying "screw postmodern feminist theory. I've got work to do." I have met high school students who say feminism has nothing to do with them and that they are not feminists themselves, but these same girls win basketball scholarships and fight the school board to be placed on the football team. Where did the feminist label get such a bad reputation? Susan Faludi has some ideas in Backlash, but the student athletes will likely never read her book. They have little patience for feminist theory, but appreciate feminist practice. Instead of getting active in politics or academia, they get active on the courts and fields. Feminism has become not a battle of the minds, but a battle of the backhands. When the United States' women's team won the World Cup, the nation rejoiced. Soccer is not known as an American game, especially with its worldwide popularity. For some reason though, women have often been encouraged to play soccer in physical education classes the past twenty years; this is likely because no special equipment such as helmets, padding, etc. is required, thus keeping public school budgets well in check. While the men's team lost, the women's team won. It gave the United States a source of patriotism, a rariety in these global times. However, what I heard most comments from spectators did not revolve around the game itself, but the moments immediately following the dramatic conclusion. When Brandi Chastain stripped off her jersey and ran in her sports bra, that was the image that most people remember.

Effects in Mass Media Essay

What was the major development in evolution of mass media in the 20th century The mass media included television, radio, newspaper and telephone. Before television, there was morse code, but later the telephone came in to play, people decided that it was much easier than waiting for a telegram. Before the invention of television there was the radio, this was considered the main form of entertainment for a family, the radio contained talk shows and advertisements read over the radio from different stores. Newspapers have been around for ages, they were pretty much the communication for cities, towns and small communities. Everything changed when television made an appearance in 1935. The first television set was black and white, mostly they were owned by people who were considered rich, later it became affordable for more families to own. The three major programs offered were ABC, CBS and NBC, later on the color television set was developed. Later on the computer was developed, they seemed too large for households, so most computers were used by the government, after that Apple developed a computer smaller for household use, more and more companies have developed better technology with the computer, television and the internet. How did each development influence America How did these influence America, The newspaper gave the news, it had no other purpose, but as it developed it was used for other purposes, today the newspaper is used for comments and criticism, this involves social, political and religion, this also vents grievances. The radio became very popular, it became the opportunity to speak to people in their homes, it changed the consumer marketing and was a link for entertainment information and product consumption, another use of radio was the war, they used for the detection of planes and ships which was called radar. By the 1950’s radio was lost to television. Television was the main source of entertainment, when kids came home from school, the first thing they do is turn on the television, people use television for a form of relaxation, especially after a long day at work. Today there are thousands if not millions of television stations, due to technological progress, today televisions stations are available in every part of the world, and has been a very influential part of culture. The telephone has made communication with people better and faster, you can contact anyone, anytime of the day. The first rotary phone was developed in 1923, later on the touch tone phone. A few years later the cordless phone came out, this was great, you could move around your home and still talk on the phone. Then later on a new technology was on the rise, the cell phone, now there was no more setting around waiting on a phone call, after that the internet, the phone had more of an impact than any other technology.