Monday, September 30, 2019

Market penetration Market development Essay

Beiersdorf has expanded in each possible direction. Market penetration is demonstrated by NIVEA Lip Care products, which have been extended with new variants. The latest of these (Pearl and Shine) became the market leader in 2003. An example of product development is Visage Soft Facial Cleansing Wipes. Market research showed that women were looking for a new way to clean and tone their skin. The Wipes quickly took the number one spot in the UK wipes market market. Market development is demonstrated by the launch of NIVEA deodorant into the UK and new markets in Europe. The UK launch was into a market dominated by Unilever. Following market research, NIVEA entered this market in a more specialist skincaring segment, positioning the deodorant so that it had the same values as the NIVEA cream. Diversification is shown by the development of NIVEA FOR MEN. This built on the strong brand. It recognised that men also used facecare products. The product range included shaving foam and gel, aftershave and moisturising lotion. Introduction Beiersdorf is the skincare business behind leading brands such as NIVEA, Atrixo and Elastoplast. Beiersdorf’s first product was NIVEA Cream, the first modern cosmetic product, now used by an estimated one billion people worldwide. Beiersdorf has helped to stay ahead of competition over the last ten years by growing the business. Growth Business growth can be measured by how it increases sales turnover, profits, market share, number and range of products, geographical spread or its number of employees. Businesses can grow from inside, by increasing their product range, or from outside, by acquiring other businesses. Beiersdorf has concentrated on the first route, called organic growth. It has developed new products; established in new countries and expanded market share in its established markets. Its growth focuses on a relatively small number of key brands. Conclusion Beiersdorf is Europe’s leading skincare company. It has competed effectively by continually growing both its products and its markets. Ansoff ’s matrix Business writer Igor Ansoff suggested four possible directions for growth. Businesses can grow by selling: ââ€"â€" More of their present products in present markets – market penetration. ââ€"â€" New products into present markets – product development. ââ€"â€" More of their present products into new markets – market development. ââ€"â€" New products into new markets – diversification. Ansoff showed these in a table. Any of these, or a combination, can be used for expansion.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Natural Sciences Essay

What is it about theories in natural and human sciences that make them so convincing? During the course of my Biology HL syllabus, I came across the theory of the fluid mosaic model. I instantly considered this theory to be absolute and accurate. This level of certainty was created with the first reading of the theory, and evoked the question as to what makes the theories formulated in natural and human sciences as convincing as they are. Both Natural and Human scientists take pride in the fact that their work is the result of long, precise and experimental research and the fact that their theories are able to overcome the skeptical approach of human nature and produce enough certainty in people to accept their work without further questioning. I will attempt to state and explain the reasons for this creation of such certainty by incorporating three areas of knowledge. Firstly, natural sciences and how they are so convincing despite the lack of certainty. Then I will elaborate on the human sciences and how its theories are debatable and the difference between the two sciences. Lastly I will intrude into the ethical aspect of the knowledge issue, as conflicting emotions and reason are essential in creating the faith and belief in the theories formulated by these explicit and evidence rich areas of knowledge. We as humans are generally skeptical about various sources of information, but this skeptic approach does not apply to science as we consider all scientific information to be true and from a reliable source. This approach reveals the fact that evidence and understanding of the concept is a key factor assisting the reasoning of the mind. While studying Taxation in microeconomics, I realized that theories that are said to produce a certain effect are not realistically proven or implemented in the real world. For example, a theory in taxation states that, if a tax is imposed on a producer with inelastic supply then the entire tax incidence is borne by the producers themselves. But, in reality such a situation does not exist, the producers generally raise prices to higher levels where the revenue is more than sufficient to pay the tax imposed on them, which means that the consumers actually bear the brunt of the new taxation policy. We accept such theories at first as they are said to be formulate by a reliable source and seem to be probable. So why do the theories from these areas of knowledge appear so convincing to us despite the uncertainties that are presented by them? Why are they accepted as the truth even before they are completely evaluated? It is evident that the reason we trust science as a reliable and infallible source of information is because we believe in science. This belief has led to the creation of faith towards science, which has compelled us to accept all that science offers without a doubt of reason. The psychology behind this belief exclaims that we believe in science the same way as we believe that our new car is not going to explode on its first travel. Cars stay safe more often than not and science in the same way has proven itself accurate many more times than it has been proved wrong. The belief and faith induced by scientific theories has been developed over time through constant provision of proof and evidence, which are the basic requirements for human beings to trust in something. While studying and understanding theories regarding sub-atomic particles, which are practically invisible, such as the VSEPR theory or the theory of hybridization, I don’t question the strength of the theory itself as it is a result of extensive research and has overcome the challenges posed by many to prove them wrong. Thus, the efforts to prove the theory wrong and the failure to do so have actually strengthened the belief in science, thus providing a logical and universal explanation justifying the theory formulated. Also, human nature suggests that we need to believe in something, and more often than not people choose the logical, experimental and evidence rich path provided by science. We tend to believe in the ideals a majority believes, be it a country, a city, a community or even our immediate family. For example, if your family believes that the economic crisis will eventually affect your future, even you tend to follow â€Å"convention† and believe in the same thing. Taking the example of the cure for cancer, people at first did not believe that cancer was ever curable due the number of deaths that had amounted. Their belief that the drug developed, actually cured cancer was eventually strengthened as the positive evidences kept increasing. Today if a scientist says that he has developed a new cure for cancer, people would believe in the drug as they know science has accomplished it before, and hence can probably achieve the same feat again. In the natural sciences, research begins with a hypothesis which is followed by experiments and later proof of whether the hypothesis is accurate or is invalid. In contrast to this, we observe that in many experiments conducted, the results vary marginally and hence hamper the certainty of the research, which means that scientists have o rely on various degrees of certainty based on their recorded values to establish the overall certainty of a research project. This implies that many of the theories being applied today are not of absolute certainty, thus the use of such theories can be attributed to our belief and faith in science as a reliable source of information. Shifting the focus to my second area of knowledge which is human sciences, I’d like to state its primary objectives to help understand the formulation of the theories more effectively. The aims of virtually all human sciences are the same: to explain human behavior, formulate theories to predict it, and then develop remedies for the problems identified by those predictions. They use the same scientific method as natural sciences but cannot hypothesize the reactions of the human beings, as each of them respond to the research questions in different ways and depict different and forms of emotion and reasoning depending upon the kind of questions asked. Most research in human sciences begins with intuition which then leads to proof. Here, the scientists believe that a particular stimulus would produce a certain behavioral effect on a person or a community that is being experimented upon and the statistics collected are processed to analyze the change in behavior. These theories regarding human behavior are accurate for a majority of the trials but often there are exceptions which destabilize the foundation of the theory, which again affect the belief people have in the theories in human sciences. Taking an example from economics; the Keynesian and the Monetarist views are contrasting market development methods which argue the role of the government in regulating the market function in the economy. One proposes intense government intervention whereas the other proposes minimal intrusion by it respectively. Till the 2007 global recession the markets followed the monetarist model but the immense financial problems caused and market failures recorded called for a reform which turned the governments towards the Keynesian model. This signifies that more often than not the theories in human sciences stand, but they can be overcome and felled with the inclusion of a strong stimulus. And if the theories prove ineffective there would always be another theory formulated as backup which could be applied and the same expected results could be yielded. The economic example presented here stresses on the fairly large margin for error present in the human sciences, which primarily differentiates it from natural science which are purely dependent on proofs and evidence. Also the common element prevalent in both these sciences is that of research period. Theories of both sciences require a long and strenuous research period to incorporate all the hypothesis, observations, experiments, and data collection, which are required to prove the theory. These similarities and dissimilarities introduce us to the ethical concept of certainty which plays a vital role in balancing out the conflict between emotion and reason. We perceive science to be a reliable and an accurate source of information due to its extensively experimental, research dependent and foolproof nature, i. . we are emotionally inclined towards the sciences as they have the proof to back up their theories. But as we see from the examples, they do not offer complete certainty as there is always an exception to a particular theory and hence by reason, our belief in science should be far less than it actually is. The simple explanation to this would be that reason favors science as it has proven itself more often than not and as we have observed, failure to prove theories wrong increases and strengthens our belief in its relevance and accuracy. Thus we can conclude by answering the primary question staged in the introduction as to what makes theories formulated by the sciences so convincing. The extensive research involved and the proof presented in favor of the theory play a major role in developing the certainty, this is well complimented by the belief and faith science has cultivated in human beings and the strong the emotional and reasonable backing that has been made available by this belief in them.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Between White and Roberts Essay

Between the descriptive essay â€Å"Once More to the Lake† by E.B. White, and the narrative essay â€Å"How to Say Nothing in 500 Words† by P.M. Roberts I find the descriptive essay to be far more interesting to read for the way it is written appeals to the senses of the reader. Both essays, however, carry good merit and are written very well. The essay that is currently being presented is an interpretation of the similarities and differences between the styles of these two essays, and the impact they have on the reader as well. Among the major differences between the two essays is the way they are structured. In the essay â€Å"How to Say Nothing in 500 Words† Roberts uses nine different headings relating to the key elements of what he is writing about. He breaks down each component of what he considers to be good practices of writing with each section consisting of its own idea. He uses this method to present multiple ideas pertaining to the same general subjec t of the essay. Using headings to separate ideas and points is a good way to present information clearly, but it also gives a paper an impersonal and formal feeling that most casual or average readers do not relate to. In â€Å"Once More to the Lake†, however, White does not separate ideas into different headings. The story he tells in his essay progresses forward without being broken up into multiple ideas, and the general subject does not change throughout the essay in any major way. The entire essay reads like it is its own chapter of a book. It provides the reader with a fluent story from start to finish. Another large difference between these two essays is in the tone and language that the authors use. Roberts uses a mostly formal tone and language throughout most of his essay. There are a few places in which he uses mild humor to keep the readers’ interest, but his dry tone mixed with the subject his essay is centered on limits the effectiveness of his attempts. One such attempt at humor is where he speaks of a college  professor grading essays in the sentence, â€Å"As he reads paper after paper all saying the same thing in almost the same words, all bloodless, five hundred words dripping out of nothing, he wonders how he allowed himself to get trapped into teaching English when he might have had a happy and interesting life as an electrician or a confidence man.† (P.M. Roberts) He has a very dry sense of humor that leaves the reader wondering why he even makes the attempt at humor in many cases. White uses an informal tone in his essay, and uses language that appeals to the readers’ senses. He makes no attempts at humor in his essay like Roberts does, but he instead paints pictures of scenery with words in exuberant detail. The depth and detail with which he writes stirs the readers’ emotions and memories in the way he tells of his own memories. He takes the mind of the reader on a journey with him as he recounts memories of his childhood. The tone he uses is one that is somber and serious, but also quite casual. â€Å"Summertime, oh summertime, pattern of life indelible, the fade proof lake, the woods unshatterable, the pasture with the sweet fern and the juniper forever and ever, summer without end; this was the background, and the life along the shore was the design, the cottages with their innocent and tranquil design, their tiny docks with the flagpole and the American flag floating against the white clouds in the blue sky, the little paths over the roots of the trees leading from camp to camp and the paths leading back to the outhouses and the can of lime for sprinkling, and at the souvenir counters at the store the miniature birch-bark canoes and the post cards that showed things looking a little better than they looked.† (E.B. White) It is with the use of this kind of language that White fills the writing canvas, as well as the reader’s thoughts, with the detailed images of the surroundings of the lake. The subject matter between the essays by Roberts and White is yet another drastic difference. â€Å"How to Say Nothing in 500 Words† is an informative narrative essay about what to, and what not to do in the writing of a college essay. It is a strictly academic essay. It covers a number of points of what kind of language and ideas to use in a college level paper. The section of his essay that he names â€Å"Call a Fool a Fool† can easily be summarized as him trying to get across that one should say what they think of a matter regardless of what they think the instructor grading the paper or anyone else that might read it would think of what you have to say. He  basically states that if it is your opinion, then state it without worrying that it may offend anyone that may not share the same view. The subject matter of Roberts’ essay is a topic that only a college student would truly care to read about. The subject matter of the essay by White, however, is nearly as far in the other direction as you can get from Roberts’ essay about writing an essay about college football. White’s essay â€Å"Once More to the Lake† is about his visit with his son back to the same lake that his own father took him to every summer with his family while he was growing up. He describes in detail the changes that have occurred in the many years since he had been back to the lake, and the times he had with his family in his youth as well as the time he is spending there now with his own son. â€Å"Inside, all was just as it had always been, except there was more Coca Cola and not so much Moxie and root beer and birch beer and sarsaparilla. We would walk out with a bottle of pop apiece and sometimes the pop would backfire up our noses and hurt. We explored the streams, quietly, where the turtles slid off the sunny logs and dug their way into the soft bottom; and we lay on the town wharf and fed worms to the tame bass. Everywhere we went I had trouble making out which was I, the one walking at my side, the one walking in my pants.† (White E.B.) The way he describes and speaks of his surroundings and the small adventures that he and his son embark upon makes it evident that he truly cares about the story he has written, and that the entire compositio n is a nostalgic journey through his past and present. The feelings that he clearly has while writing his essay is something that nearly any reader can relate to. Now that the major contrasting points between the two essays have been presented we should move on to the similarities, but there are next to no similarities at all. The most prominent similarity between them is simply the fact that both compositions are considered essays. They are written in completely different styles on completely different subjects, and with a completely different reading audience in mind. It can be said, however, that both essays are properly written for their intended audience, and one could also argue that the essays are similar in regards to the fact that both essays give the reader something to think about after having read the compositions, but that would be reaching very far to find some form of similarity simply for the sake of being able to say that they are similar in some fashion. It is easy to say  that the two essays contrast in major ways, but it is not so easy to say that they compare in any significant way. The essays â€Å"How to Say Nothing in 500 Words† by P.M. Roberts, and â€Å"Once More to the Lake† by E.B. White are both well written, but the descriptive essay by White is the superior of the two for his use of easily understood descriptive language and the seamless flow of his ideas and thoughts on the paper making for an easy and enjoyable read. His essay is also written about a subject that nearly any reader can relate to in some way while the essay by Roberts is aimed more at a particular demographic. Roberts also uses a â€Å"matter of fact† kind of tone that if he had not introduced a dash of humor here and there throughout his essay would have made it too technical to keep the average reader interested enough to read the whole composition while the essay by White draws the reader in and leaves them wanting more. The essay â€Å"Once More to the Lake† by E.B. White is a timeless piece of literature that the writer of this essay strongly recommends to any reader. References Roberts, P. M. (n.d.). How to say nothing in 500 words. Retrieved from https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Gw_UcMT4u-ZSW7ZBN_RAMspZFex6o83oIbnvtuV-CM8/edit?pli=1 White, E.B. Once more to the lake. Retrieved from http://www.freewebs.com/lanzbom/EBWhiteLakeEssay.pdf

Friday, September 27, 2019

Freeman Stakeholder Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Freeman Stakeholder Theory - Essay Example Employees have their jobs and livelihoods at stake and suppliers provide raw materials to the corporation, hence its success is vital to their success. Similarly, managers, customers and the community are other stakeholders in the corporation, all of whom stand to benefit from it. (Freeman, 1984). On this basis, Freeman argues that changes that have occurred in corporations law have resulted in constraints, in that stakeholder interests are being compromised in the interest of promoting the interests of stockholders, which has produced an outcome that is not conducive to the general good. He therefore contends that all stakeholders have the right to benefit equally and need to participate in determining the future direction of the firm. The purpose of the firm cannot be described as merely that of maximizing profits for stockholders (Freeman, 1999). Freeman bases his Doctrine of Fair Contracts on a normative basis, i.e, that fairness dictates that the purpose of the firm and its operations should be such as to ensure that there is a basic equality maintained among all groups of stakeholders. Therefore, the normative basis applies justice and fairness, as outlined in Rawls’ theory, using the device of the social contract. Under the social contract, every person has the right to certain basic liberties, which are equal to that which others have (Rawls, 1971:53). Furthermore, opportunities should be available to everyone without restriction and they must be of the greatest benefit to the least advantaged members of society (Rawls, 1971:303). Applying a normative basis to stakeholder holder theory, the guiding principle is that a firm should be managed in such a way that the benefits are balanced for all stakeholders and this is achieved by the Fair Doctrine principles outlined above. When a firm is managed in such a way that only stockholders benefit, then this may undermine the

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Homelessness in U.S Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Homelessness in U.S - Essay Example Given the current economic constraints, some people argue that the homeless people are freeloaders, who are unwilling to work extra hard so as they can afford to live in a place, which is not only safe, but also healthy for themselves, as well as their families. Therefore, this essay tends to clarify this issue by examining the main causes of homelessness within the United States, its effects, while at the same time giving a recommendation on what has to be done in tackling this problem. Causes There are various reasons leading to people becoming homeless, as well as the combination of causes leading to homelessness within the United States, which tend to vary from different individuals. The National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty (2011) notes these causes including high cost and scarcity of housing; it is hard, according to Mayock and Carr (2008), if not impractical, for individuals with low-income, together with families to get affordable housing within the US. The majority o f the houses available in the United States are extremely expensive; therefore, it is easy for low income earners to acquire them (USA Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness, 2011). Secondly, poverty, literacy, joblessness and education happen to be another significant cause of homelessness within the United States. Poverty has a close connection with homelessness. When people do not have income for meeting all their needs, they get compelled to make a choice between housing, childcare, utilities, food, transportation and healthcare (Carter, 2011). Mayock and Carr (2008) claim that, even though a high percentage of homeless individuals has employment, their incomes are in most cases not enough to make certain that housing stability while the majority of people lack jobs, which living wages, high job security, as well as health insurance. Additionally, a lack of educational opportunities restricts accessibility to living-wage jobs (USA Institute for Children, Poverty & Homele ssness, 2011). The third leading cause of homelessness within the United States happens to be domestic violence: This is a factor in homelessness especially for women with children. Research shows that up to half of homeless women along with children might have gone through domestic violence before becoming homeless (National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty, 2011). The majority of homeless youth and young adults have experienced violence within their homes. Fourthly, effects of mental illness and drug addiction also play a key role in the problem of homelessness within the United States. Most people with complex life issues connected to mental illness as well as substance use are amongst homeless persons compared to the general population (National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty, 2011). In the United States, about 25 percent of homeless people are living with acute mental illness with alcohol and drug use being noteworthy amongst a huge group of homeless persons (National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty, 2011). Apparently, issues related to untreated mental illness, together with substance abuse affect housing stability, as well as success (USA Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness, 2011). Institutional release to homelessness happens to another major cause of homelessness in the United Stat

Histology practical write up Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Histology practical write up - Essay Example Upon the maturation of the beneficial T cells, they are released into the blood. The thymus is a primary lymphoid organ (Paul, 2013). The spleen on its part is an immunologic blood filter. The spleen is of T cells, B cells, dendritic cells, natural killer cells, red blood cells and macrophages. The spleens functions by capturing antigens from the blood passing through the spleen. The migratory macrophages together with the dendritic cells transport the foreign bodies to the spleen through the blood stream. When the antigens get to the spleen and gets into contact with the appropriate B or T cells, an immune response is initiated. The B cells once activated produces large amounts of antibody which kills the antigen as well as aged red blood cells. The spleen contains two types of T-cells which are helper T-cells and killer T-cells. The helper T-cells are responsible for systematising the attack while the killer T-cells destroys the infected cell since it has then been turned into a virus reproduction factory. The spleen is a secondary lymphoid organ since it contains both T and B cells and requires an antigen entry to stimulate the lymphoid cells (Turgeon, 2014). Since the tissue sections are in wax, they are placed in hot plates for 2 minutes till all the wax is melted, and no traces of wax found in the tissues. Within a two-minute interval, the tissues are placed in absolute alcohol, 90% alcohol and 70% alcohol. In order to stain the tissues, they are placed in Ehrlich’s Haematoxylin for 45 minutes. Since this is a regressive stain, over stained tissues will have the stain solution removed with a tissue paper and rinsed for 30 minutes with tap water. The tissues should appear bluish purple/dark blue. The tissues are in acidic alcohol for 4 minutes and turn red. Immediately the slides are put into ammoniated alcohol and will turn blue. Within two-minute duration, the tissue

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

The Employees Performance of Their Duties in Macrobox Essay

The Employees Performance of Their Duties in Macrobox - Essay Example Under the foregoing circumstances, the blogger by providing online guidance to direct the computer attack or server intrusion and all those persons who may have conspired and confederated with the blogger may be held liable under the Computer Misuse Act 1990 (CMA) as amended by the Police and Justice Act 2006 (JPA) and Serious Crime Act 2007 (SCA) where the following acts were defined as unlawful or criminal acts—unauthorized access to computer material; unauthorized access with intent to commit a further offence; and unauthorized modification of computer material. Section 1 of the CMA provides that in cases of unauthorized access to computer material a person may be found guilty when (a) he causes a computer to perform any function with intent to secure access to any program or data held in any computer; (b) the access he intends to secure; and (c) he knows at the time when he causes the computer to perform the function that that is the case. This provision was modified by Se ction 35 sub-section (2) of the JPA where the phrases were inserted in sub-section (1) in paragraph a to read â€Å"†¦or to enable any such access to be secured† while in paragraph (b) â€Å"†¦or to enable to be secured† however this amendatory provision was again superseded by Section 61 of the SCA by omitting altogether subsection (2). While Section 2 finds a person guilty under unauthorized access with intent to commit or facilitate the commission of further offences if it is committed with intent (a) to commit an offence to which this section applies; or (b) to facilitate the commission of such an offence.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

The Biome of Hawaii Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Biome of Hawaii - Essay Example In addition, the website provided the average temperature: 75 degrees to 88 degrees Fahrenheit from April to November, and 68 degrees to 80 degrees Fahrenheit from December to March, with an average water temperature of 74 degrees Fahrenheit. According to Encarta Online Encyclopedia (2007), eight main islands, namely Hawaii, Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Kahoolawe, Oahu, Niihau and Kauai take almost the state's entire area of 28,311 square kilometer, with 98 sq. m. of inland water. The other part is composed of islets, coral reefs, and shoals. Thus, it is considered to be one of the smallest state in America. Hawaii did not escape the bad effects of deforestation, pollution, global warming, and human selfishness. The Nature Conservancy (2008) cries, "Climate change is already affecting our lives and the places we live, and has the potential to dramatically impact the lives of future generations." The plant life in the islands are mostly sets of coconut palm trees which are usually seen near the beaches, uncommon plants such as mesquite, koa haole, cactus, drought resistant grasses, wiliwili, naio, bastard sandalwood, niihau, kahoolawe, kukui, lantana, and alien weeds.

Monday, September 23, 2019

Observation Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Observation - Research Paper Example The attendant worked as a front desk agent at the hotel where she had the mandate of conducting various duties like checking the rooms’ occupancy during their late shift. Indeed, the attendant checked in guests, took their reservations, and checked them out. She welcomed the guests in a very courteous and accommodating manner by introducing herself first and answering all the questions asked by the guests about the hotel services. The hotel recorded only four bookings in a span of two hours starting 11 PM up to 1:00 AM. The attendant seemed very informed about the hotels facilities, amenities, layout and the surrounding environment as well as their loyal customers. We noted that the attendant had a set of questions, which she asked every guest. The questions included the size of the room preferred by the guest, the duration that the guest intends to stay at the hotel and the type of the bed preferred. The information was then recorded into the system and a receipt of payment was issued to the guests. Finally, the reception attendant thanked the guests and encouraged them to feel free to ask for any form of assistance. The front desk is spacious enough and hence there is no congestion when the guests are checking in. The attendant served the guests on a first come first served basis. The attendant was in a uniform and hence the guests could differentiate them from the other people. She welcomed and acknowledged all guests with the Fairfield Inn culture of efficient guest service. She engaged each guest and listened to his or her requests attentively. We observed that the attendant were very courteous, accommodating and fast. The attendant escorted the guests and introduced small talks, which included some questions like how were his trip, whether he has been to California again, and the most beautiful things about California. On arriving at the suite, the attendant opened the door, took in the luggage,

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Advertising and Sales Essay Example for Free

Advertising and Sales Essay Assignment Q1. What is the meaning of advertising? Explain the advertising pyramid with a neat diagram. Advertising is the non-personal communication of information usually paid for and usually persuasive in nature about products, services or ideas by identified sponsors through the various media to reach broad audiences† The five basic element of this pyramid are: attention, interest, desire, action and satisfaction. Attention: The first objective of advertising is to capture attention of the consumer. The job is easy as even shouting or clapping can draw attention. Therefore, the copywriter usually makes the headline very catchy by using the bigger fonts. The other techniques are to use short punch lines in conversational language. Interest: The advertisement’s next objective is to create interest in the readers about the product. After giving a good headline, their interest is retained by elaborating on the key features of the product. This is usually incorporated in the body copy. Desire: In this step, the advertisement creates a situation for the prospective customer to enjoy benefits of the product vicariously. The writer creates a situation that makes the reader feel as though there is a lot that is being missed if one does not use the product. Action: The purpose of this step is to motivate people to do something. No advertisement is successful if it cannot induce any action. This is not a difficult step because if the copy is clear then surely the reader will act. Satisfaction: The tip of the pyramid is satisfaction. After the product is bought, the buyer should have a feel of satisfaction. The customer should always feel that it has got the appropriate returns for the money spent. Q2. What do you understand by integrated marketing communication (IMC)? What are the various roles? â€Å"IMC is a strategic business process used to develop, execute, and evaluate coordinated, measureable, persuasive brand commun ications programs over time with customers, prospects, employees, associates, and other targeted relevant internal and external audiences. The goal is to generate both short-term financial returns and build long-term brand and share-holder value.† Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) is a process involving coordination of various promotional elements and other  marketing activities that communicate with a firm’s customers. It includes managing customer relationships that drive brand value through communication efforts. The role of IMC can be discussed with the following points:  · Identifying the target audience  · Specifying promotion objectives  · Setting the promotion budget  · Selecting the right promotional tools  · Designing the promotion  · Scheduling the promotion Identifying the target audience: IMC’s first function is to identify the right audience. It is very important to deliver the message to the right audience. Specifying promotion objectives:  · Designed for a well-defined target audience  · Measurable  · Cover a specified time period Hierarchy of effects: Sequence of stages a prospective buyer goes through Use as a tool to develop objectives  · Awareness – Ability to recognize and remember the product or brand  · Interest – Increase in desire to learn about the product features  · Evaluation – Consumer’s appraisal of the product on important attributes  · Trial – Consumer’s actual first purchase and use  · Adoption – Repeated purchase and use of the product or brand Setting the promotion budget:  · Percentage of sales: Funds are allocated as a percentage of past or anticipated sales  · Competitive parity: Matching the competitor’s absolute level of spending Selecting the right promotional tools  · Specify the combination of the five basic IMC tools – advertising, Personal selling, sales promotion, public relations and direct marketing  · Promotion mix can vary  · Assess the comparative importance of the various tools Designing the promotion:  · Design of the promotion plays a primary role in determining the message that is communicated to the audience  · Design activity is viewed as the step requiring the most creativity  · Design each promotional activity to communicate the same message Scheduling the promotion:  · Determine the most effective timing  · Promotion schedule describes  · Factors such as seasonality and competitive promotion activity can influence the schedule. Q3. While developing an advertisement, some theories are useful. Discuss the two theories to design an advertisement. In developing an advertisement for an advertising campaign, several theoretical frameworks are useful. The first theory is the hierarchy of effects model. The second is a means to an end chain. Both the hierarchy of effects model and a means to an end chain can be used to develop leverage points. 1. Hierarchy-of-Effects Model Among advertising theories, the hierarchy-of-effects model is predominant. It helps clarify the objectives of an advertising campaign as well as the objective of a particular advertisement. The model suggests that a consumer or a business buyer moves through a series of six steps when becoming convinced to make a purchase. These six steps are as follows: Awareness – If most of the target audience is unaware of the object, the communicator’s task is to build awareness, perhaps just name and recognition with simple messages repeating the product name. Consumers must become aware of the brand. Knowledge – The target audience might have product awareness but may not know much more; hence this stage involves creating brand knowledge. This is where comprehension of the brand name and what it stands for become important. What are the brand’s specific appeals, its benefits? Liking – If target members know the product, how do they feel about it? If the audience looks unfavorably towards the product then the communicator has to find out why. If the unfavorable view is based on real problems, communication campaigns alone cannot do the job of erasing it. Preference – The target audience might like the product but not prefer it to others. In this case, the communicator must try to build consumer preference by promoting quality, value, performance and other features. Conviction – A target audience might  prefer a particular product but not develop the confidence about buying it. The communicator’s job is to build conviction among the target audience. Purchase – Finally, some members of the target audience might have conviction but not quite get around to making the purchase. Th ey may wait for more information or plan to act later. 2. Means-End Theory A second theoretical approach a creative (team) can use to design an advertisement is a means-end-chain. This approach suggests that an advertisement should contain a message or means that lead the consumer to a desired end state. Means – end theory is the basis of a model called the Means-End Conceptualizations of Components for Advertising Strategy (MECCAS). The MECCAS model suggests using five elements in creating advertisements.  · The product’s attributes – delicious and refreshing are the products attribute.  · Consumer benefits – delicious and refreshing are linked with the benefit of freshness and good taste.  · Leverage point – the leverage point in the advertisement is the link between the benefit of delicious drink and the personal value of choosing the right drink of an athlete.  · Personal Values – the value of the consumer, the reason of buying Coca Cola. He could value the ’refreshing’ or the ’delicious’ attributes. The marketers need to understand the personal value so that the message will hit the right target. Q4. What do you mean by public relations(PR)? What are the difference between PR and advertising? â€Å"Public relations† is used to build rapport with employees, customers, investors, voters or the general public. Public Relations (PR) is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual etc. in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers etc. The most comprehensive definition is as follows: â€Å"Public relation is the management function which evaluates public attitudes, identifies the policies and procedures of an organization with the public interest and executes a program of action and communication to earn public understanding and acceptance.† The following are the differences between advertising and public relations. Advertising 1. The company pays for advertising the company. Hence the focus is on getting its products or  services. 2. Since you are paying for the space, you have creative control on what goes into that advertisement. 3. Advertisements can be published or run repeatedly. An advertisement generally has a longer shelf life than one press release. 4. In advertising, you get to exercise your creativity in creating new advertising campaigns and materials. 5. If you are working at an advertising agency, your main contacts are yours-workers and the agencys clients. 6. You are looking out your target audience and advertise accordingly. You would not advertise a kid’s Product in a business magazine. 7. Some industry professionals such as Account Executive have contact with the clients. Others like Copywriters or Graphic Designers in the agency may not meet with the client at all. 8. â€Å"Sales!, 20% discount, Buy this product! Act now! Call today!† These are the things you can say in an advertisement. You want to use those buzz words to motivate people to buy your product. Public relations 1. The objective is to get free publicity for space. You know exactly when that advertisement will on air to be published. 2. You have no control over how the media presents your information, if they decide to use your information at all. They are not obligated to cover your event or publish your press release. 3. You submit a press release about a new product or about a news conference once. The PR exposure you receive is only circulated once and the editor will not publish more than once. 4. In public relations, you have to have a nose for news and be able to generate buzz through that news. You exercise your creativity in the way you search for new news to release to the media. 5. In PR, the main contacts will be people in the area of publications and broadcast media. 6. It is generally not possible to segment, target or position the product or service. 7. In public relations, you are very visible to the media. PR professionals are not always called on for the good news. In an emergency you may have to give a statement or on-camera interview to journalists. You may represent your company as a spokesperson at an event. 8. You are strictly writing in a no-nonsense news format. Any blatant commercial messages in your communications are disregarded by the media. Q5. What are the four types of annalists used to develop a comprehensive model for evaluation of a sales organization? There are mainly four factors or types of analysis that are usually needed to  develop a comprehensive model for evaluation of a sales organization. They are: 1) Sales analysis 2) Cost analysis 3) Profitability analysis 4) Productivity analysis 1) Sales analysis: It is an important factor for evaluating the effectiveness of a sales organization. Sales analysis detects strengths and weaknesses of the organization. Sales analysis is described as a detailed inspection of a company’s sales data, which includes assimilating, classifying, comparing and drawing conclusions. Sales analysis is done based on the following parameters: a) Levels in sales organization: Sales analysis should be done at all levels of the sales organizations. This includes evaluation of sales performance from the company level down to the last level. b) Types of sales: The analysis of different types of sales at different organizational levels definitely increases the sales manager’s ability to detect problem areas in the company’s sales performance. For example, analysis can be done: a. Based on type of products b. By distribution channels types c. By type of customer classifications d. By size of orders 2) Cost analysis: Cost analysis is the analysis of costs that affect sales volume. The purpose of marketing cost analysis is to determine the profitability of sales control units, like market segments, sales territories and products. This is done by subtracting the marketing costs from the sales revenues, associated with the sales control units. 3) Profitability analysis: Profitability analysis of marketing units (that is, regions, branches, channels, products or customer groups) can be developed by preparing profit and loss (or income and expense) statements for marketing units. However, the question arises as to how to allocate indirect or shared expenses to various marketing units. There are two approaches for profitability analysis 4) Productivity analysis: Productivity is usually measured by ratios between outputs and inputs. For example, sales per salesperson are used by many companies as a measure of productivity. There  are other productivity ratios such as selling expenses per salesperson, sales calls per salesperson, and quotations submitted per salesperson. Q6. Describe the meaning and importance of media fix decisions. A media mix is the way various types of media are strategically combined in an advertising plan, such as using newspaper and posters to announce a new product as the iPod managers did, followed by television advertising that shows how to use the product and billboards that reminded people to look for it when they go out to the store. A media vehicle is specific TV program (Comedy Circus, CID), newspapers (The Telegraph, Mumbai Mirror), magazines (The Sport star, Elle). Media planning is the way advertisers identify and select media options based on research into the audience profiles of various media; planning also includes scheduling and budgeting. Media buying is the task of identifying specific vehicles, such as TV channels/programs or websites, negotiating the cost to advertise in them and handling the details of billing and payment. Frequency refers to the number of times a person is exposed to the advertisement. An impression is one person’s opportunity to be exposed one time to an advertisement in a broadcast program, newspapers, magazines or outdoor locations. Circulation means the number of copies sold. In the media industry, there are professionals who do both, sell and buy advertising. Media sales people work for a medium, such as a magazine or television channel and their objective is to build the best possible arguments to convince media planners to use the medium they represent. There are also media reps, who are people or companies that sell space (in print) and time (in broadcast) for a variety of media. The rate base is the real number of copies of a newspaper or magazine that gets printed and sold. Readership is the average number of readers per copy sold.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Pomegranate Tree In The Kite Runner

Pomegranate Tree In The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseinis The Kite Runner is a novel that explores many important themes. Three such themes are violence, friendship, and the quest for redemption. Although Hosseini uses many techniques to depict these themes, one technique that stands out is his use of symbolism and imagery. Some of the symbolism and imagery he uses are key factors in the story. The pomegranate tree and the sacrifice of the sheep are effective forms of symbolism and imagery that enrich the themes of violence, friendship, and the quest for redemption. Although Hosseini reminds people of a peaceful Afghanistan, he also reveals the agony the nation faces after the Taliban came to power. Violence spreads throughout the story, everything from a harmless activity of kite flying to the rape of Hassan. The pomegranate tree reveals the violence occurring in the novel. The entire story circles around on an action of violence, Hassans rape, and Amirs pretending that Hassans rape never happened. In the novel, Amir wants Hassan to hit him with pomegranates to inflict pain and lessen his guilt; instead, Hassan smashes the pomegranates over his own head. This indicates that violence is the key to lessen the guilt; Amir believes a physical punishment will make Hassan release his pain and get rid of Amirs guilt. In the Quran, the pomegranate tree is spoken of as a fruit in the garden of paradise. At first it appears that way in the novel, but later as more violence occurs, the tree is barren and dead, meaning that paradise has fallen when the Tal iban took over. Afghanistan started to get destroyed and the Taliban kill whoever they like. This violence reflects todays world where people witness violence but walk away knowing they could have stopped it. There are many aspects of this theme many people can relate to everyday. Friendship in the novel is a recurring theme. Both the pomegranate tree and the sheep reveal the changes in the friendship throughout the novel. The friendship between Amir and Hassan is a key factor in the novel. While Amir and Hassan are young they carve their names into the pomegranate tree. Hassan says, One summer day, I used one of Alis kitchen knives to carve our names on it: Amir and Hassan, the sultans of Kabul. Those words made it formal: the tree was ours ( ). The tree symbolizes their relationship. Before the Taliban came to power there was less violence and the relationship was strong, but after the Taliban came to power, Afghanistan became more violent, and the healthy, green tree became dead and ruined, just like Amir and Hassans relationship. The social inequality in Afghanistan plays a key role as Amir begins to think of Hassan as a servant rather than a friend after the rape. Another example of the changes in friendship is shown by the sheep. In Muslims culture, the sacrifice of a sheep is meant to celebrate the faith of the prophet Ibrahim. This is similar to when Hassan, a pure boy is raped by Assef. The sheep symbolized the rape of Hassan because just like the sheep he was slain for the kite that Amir won. This made Amir feel guilty, which made him lose his connection with Hassan. Their friendship desecrated and Amir started to treat Hassan as a Hazara. Redemption is an essential part of the novel, since many sins are endured. When Hassan gets raped, Amir pretends nothing happened and starts feeling guilty. As children, Amir commits many sins, but Hassan takes the blame. The pomegranate tree was healthy and growing, but years later when Amir returns to Afghanistan, the tree is barren and dead, like their relationship. Amir feels guilty because he cant apologize for the rape of Hassan. He feels to redeem himself; he has to take care of Hassans son, Sohrab. Amir goes to great lengths to redeem himself; he gets beaten by the same bully that raped Hassan. This lessens his guilt, and makes him more committed towards taking care of Sohrab. In the story, Rahim Khan writes a letter to Amir; in the letter it says, I know that in the end, God will forgive Forgive your father if you can. Forgive me if you wish. But most important, forgive yourself( ). This is what pushes Amir to risk his life and go back to Afghanistan. He wants to be like his father, so he sets out to help Hassans son. This is like todays world, people make mistakes they go and try redeeming themselves. Anyone in the world can be placed in Amirs situation. In conclusion, the imagery and symbolism used in the novel effectively. The pomegranate tree showes the readers the change in Amir and Hassan`s relationship, whereas the sacrifice of the sheep showes the sins of Amir and how he tries to redeem himself. It enriches the novel and gives the readers a better understanding of the novel. The themes of violence, friendship, and the quest for redemption stands out, due to these techniques; of imagery and symbolism.