If I Die in a Combat Zone free essay sample

It was no decision, no chain of ideas or reasons, that steered me into the war. It was an intellectual and physical stand-off, and I did not have the energy to see it to an end(OBrien 22). This nearly sums up Tim OBriens If I Die in a Combat Zone, Box Me Up and Ship Me Home. In OBriens autobiographical novel of his grueling tour and duty during the Vietnam War, we constantly see him struggle with his moral and ethical beliefs while participating in a war he believes is unjust, clearly becoming the main theme of this work, along with courage and the meaning of it to Tim. Tim is very strong in his belief that the war is not right. He discusses this with many people searching for answers while deciding whether or not he would dodge the draft and flee to Canada. Knowing the consequences he would face and bring upon his family, he makes the decision to go to basic training. We will write a custom essay sample on If I Die in a Combat Zone or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page While is basic training, he puts together a thorough plan and budget to desert the US Army by fleeing from Canada to Norway. Unable to build the courage to desert the Army, he goes in search of guidance through the Army and makes appointments to meet with the Army Chaplain and Battalion Commander. He gets none, they believe he is Just a young soldier afraid of dying and do not understand or agree with his beliefs at all. This is when Tim becomes aware of the fact that the US military does not provide moral counsel for its soldiers on the frontlines, the Army only intends to produce infantrymen that do not ask why or who they kill, nor demand to understand the effects it may have on their physical or mental health. Theres an example of this when OBrien becomes involved in the war and begins to struggle with rage against he Vietnamese as he witnesses one after another of his fellow soldiers die. Though being outraged with his enemy, he realizes that reacting in vengeance upon villagers is morally wrong. OBrien also closely examines the meaning of courage during basic training and his duty in Vietnam. OBriens definition of courage comes from his platonic readings, which believes that true bravery consists of wisdom, bravery, courage, and temperance. Many soldiers related courage to their manliness; if they were not brave and made cowardly acts during the battle, it simply robbed them of their manhood Linderman 8). Making courageous acts was seen by other soldiers, unfortunately for Tim it was not. During his duty, Tim realizes he is not brave enough to stand up for his moral beliefs, losing the respect for his family seems to heavily outweigh his ethical beliefs and he does not want to disappoint anyone. This failure to be courageous fuels him into an obsession of analyzing his quest in Vietnam and whether his acts are courageous or not. OBrien says, Proper courage is wise courage. Its acting wisely, acting wisely when fear would have a man act otherwise. After finding himself face down on the ground during battle many times and clearly not being courageous, he begins looking into other people in search of bravery he does not possess. OBrien finds this in Captain Johansen who he considers to be a living war hero because he is wise and brave in battle. By the definition of courage understanding why their decision was made and knowing the consequences that may follow. This, OBrien concludes, is the type of courage he does not possess. Although OBrien never fully gains the ability to do what he believes is truly right, he oes catch himself being morally wrong a few times and tries to change it. The best example being exacting vengeance upon the villagers which he clearly knows is wrong. He also has this problem when it comes to being courageous. Even though he does not have the courage to stand up for his morals and what he believes is right, he produces the courage to fght back against the Viet Cong. This may not have been the courage he set out to find, but its what he got. Just as many US soldiers set off not knowing they would return home with mental problems that would follow them the rest of their life.

If by Rudyard Kipling Essays

If by Rudyard Kipling Essays If by Rudyard Kipling Paper If by Rudyard Kipling Paper Essay Topic: Rudyard Kipling Poems ‘ If’ is a poem written by Rudyard Kipling. The poem is aimed at advicing his son or any male on how to be a man, how to succed in life and in other owrds how to be the ‘ perfect man’ which is unattainable. Kipling himself knew that these tasks will be immpossible to meet up with fully, which is why I believe he named this poem ‘If’ rather than ‘How To Become A Man’. The main theme in this peom is about advicing a someone in a younger generation and teaching him moral. The theme and the structure are somehow entwined with each other. The more you decode one, the better you understand the other. ‘If’is a poem of 4 stanzas made up of 8 lines respectively. I think Kipling made the poem organised by arranging it into accurate parts to express becoming a man as a stage when your filthy habits are discarded and replaced with the habit of being prim and proper. The general shape of the poem is very uneven; lengths of lines vary from line to line. I believe this was done to show that life is not a straight road, there will be bends but you will surely get where you are going. As you read the poem, must peole might get the idea that if the do all these things then they won’t encounter any disasters. Because of this, Kipling arranged this poem unevenly to show that even though you may take his advice, life is still very unpredictable, and things may be harder than they seem. Kipling writes the whole poem in form of a question, continusiously repeating ‘if’ showing that there is doubt in his mind that this person will be able to live up to these tasks. If the person were to live up to this tasks, they have shown perseverance which is one of the themes of this poem. Kipling uses the word ‘if’ repeatedly to show the reader indirectly that you need to be determined inorder to be a man. The structure of each verse is almost regular with an eight line stanza of usually iambic pentameters, a regular rhyme scheme and a skilful use of repetition of lexis, syntax and prosody to reinforce the points being made. Majority of poem is structured around the use of the surbodinate clause ‘if’ the only exsemting the last 2 lines in the fourth stanza ‘Yours is the Earth and’ . The last 2 lines, unlike the rest of the poem is in form of a statement rather than a question. This shows and ending, a result of doing all these things being asked of him. A surbordinate clause cannot stand alone, in likewise manner becoming a man in unachieveable without attaining some of the characters listed in the poem. In the first stanza for example, we see how the whole poem is constructed and how balance is used to drive home the points being rasied in the poem. Most lines have an internal balance, the first line relies on the second for the conclusion. The poem is a dramatic monologue this shows that Kipling is saying because he has been there and expereicned things himself he knows better than his son, therefore he is in the right postion to advice him. There is no one else present in this peom, there it is not argumentative showing the reader that this is what you have to do to become a man. No questions asked. Compare this poem to another in the Anthology in the areas of Mood/Tone and Subject Matter. Express your views about the two authors’ attitudes in presenting the issues in their separate poems. I will be comaparing ‘If’ by Rudyard Kipling to ‘Once Upon a Time’ by Gabriel Okara. ‘If’ is a poem aimed at Kipling’s son or in general to any growing young male. It expresses the values needed to become a man and advices on how to do so. ‘Once Upon a Time’ is a poem which is directed from a father to his son about the way the western values have influenced the cultures he was brought up with – the African culture. Both poems explore the concept of childhood, they both speak from the perspective of an older one, one who was expericened it first hand. These poems have quite similarities. One of the key similarities is the subject matter. ‘If’ is foucused at Kipling’s son in the same manner, ‘Once Upon a Time’ is aimed at his own son. Possessions Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Other Poets section.

Quality Tools in Decision Making Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Quality Tools in Decision Making - Research Paper Example The affinity process is mostly applied to group ideas, which have been engendered, through the procedure of brainstorming. The process of affinity is performed by a cluster or team. Its chief aim is to meld the opinions, perceptions and insights of a group of people that are knowledgeable or well acquainted with the topic or issue concerned. This process has been found to work excellently in situations where the participants taking part are not more than six. An affinity program is critical when a person has workloads of data that they are overwhelmed on what to do with it. This process enables people to arrange such plentiful information from various sources, to assist them in their decision-making. People can apply the affinity program by first examining the issue concerned in broad terms such as applying an open-end question or statement. As a group, they can the generate ideas and opinions and record them maybe on a wall, larger sheet of paper, haphazardly. However, this has to b e in a place where all those present can see and access them. From, here they can arrange the notes or ideas according to their correlation or similarity in groupings. After grouping related ideas together, they can then select a phrase or word that covers the intent of every faction, and situate it at the summit of the category, as a heading or title. This can be done repeatedly, until the broadest title is reached at, forming a hierarchical structure that highlights the correlation of the data (Parnell, 2011). Strengths Affinity diagrams are critical in solving complicated or difficult problems that people discover to be hard to grasp. It is applied to arrange output that results from a brainstorming session. Additionally it is applied when a person is facing a challenging task but by engaging with other fellow professionals, experts or people with relevant information in the field they manage to solve problems or issues that are complex to understand (Heldman, 2011). An affinity program is integral in decision making, as it enables those with the responsibility of delivering a decision, to gather large amounts of information from a faction, within a limited or short amount of time. Through brainstorming, people offer their opinions and ideas within a group in a short while; thus enabling them to collect relevant and crucial information, within a short time (Ward and Worrel, 2006). This process is also significant in team building as it offers each member in group a chance to contribute and give input to the challenge or problem that they are facing. Every member is provided with an opportunity to air his or her ideas and opinions regarding the issue (Parnell, 2011). Furthermore, this process allows information to be organized into categories that makes it easier for such data to be used with other tools. The information collected, will be applied with other tools to attain the desired decisions or results, more so in business, which might be beneficial to t he business, in the contemporary, competitive business world (Hoerl and Snee, 2012). Weakness As highlighted, the affinity diagram is critical when there is the existence of piles and numerous amounts of data. However, this tool is not applicable in a situation where there is less than 15 items of information have been discovered. In such a case, using this tool is unnecessary, as one can elucidate and coalesce the ideas, and

Leading and Changing world Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Leading and Changing world - Essay Example I believe that involving workers in vital organizational matters would play a significant role in motivating them and increasing their dedication to achieving corporate objectives. It is also my ambition to be a charismatic leader, who prioritizes the welfare of his employees, by providing a friendly, fun and motivational work environment. I want to be a team-oriented leader, amply upholding work ethics, and influencing individuals to be both productive employees and diligent community members. After an in-depth analysis of management and its potent attributes, I acknowledge the fact that my prospective leadership should be channeled toward the right environment for the realization of the organizational goals. I, therefore, intend to be genuinely committed to following up on whatever has to be done to realize organizational goals. I will also be realistic when setting management objectives, in order to ensure that the specified goals and targets can be attained. My greatest leadershi p icon, from whom I get my inspiration, is the late Nelson Mandela. He was not just a charismatic individual, but also a highly influential leader. Mandela prioritized the interests of South African citizens, as opposed to his own; strongly advocating for the end of the apartheid and integration of the racially fragmented South African society. His inclusive and team oriented leadership, coupled with personality traits like humility, honesty, and diligence undoubtedly makes Mandela a leader worth emulating (YouTube n.pg). Being an avid advocate of positive leadership behavior, principles and standards, I will strive to continually improve my leadership attributes. Since an effective leader must always be ready to learn through accepting criticisms and owning mistakes, I intend to account for colleagues’ opinions in the attempt to improve my leadership capacity. Thus far, I have been able to embrace positive and negative feedback

Individual coursework Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Individual coursework - Assignment Example This theory asserts that administrators make decisions based on the state of affairs at hand rather than a "one size fits all" technique. An administrator takes correct act based on features most significant to the existing state of affairs. Managers in an institution of higher education may desire to utilize a management approach, which includes contribution from workforce while a manager in the armed forces may want to employ a domineering approach. Looking at the M.A.S holdings, Mr. Mahesh the director of this investment used this theory successfully. After the work situations in Sri Lanka had gotten hard, he sought to resolve this matter well within the required period. He decided to put into practice and experience his new-fangled thought, and hired the female labor for the real initial instance in Sri Lanka, knowing the reality that female in Sri Lanka were extremely experts in garments related fields. His target was to utilize the cheapest and most expert professionals to labor for them. Rigby, (2008) affirms that, Hiring women, as employees were not an easy undertaking because the females were not permitted to toil and they were controlled from their families. He started cheering women to abscond their homes and get chances to make wealth. Further, he started diverse operations with the aid of his spouse. He also formed free of charge residence for women, free of charge dispensaries and checkup facilities inside the factories, free of charge breakfast and lunch for women functioning for this undersized entity. This was more than adequate for the deprived families, so they had deep thoughts of it. As time went, the females from diverse parts of the state got optimistic and went for employment. After several course of time, the administrator started manufacturing Bra for the prominent corporation brand called Victoria secrets. It was a prominent corporation, and this was not easy to begin dealing with this corporation. He

Anti Federalist Arguments The Needed Balance

Anti Federalist Arguments The Needed Balance The year was 1787; delegates were convening at the State House in Philadelphia, the same location where the Declaration of Independence had been signed eleven years earlier.   There, 55 representatives came together for four months to frame a Constitution for a federal republic.   The reason for their convergence on Philadelphia was to revise the Articles of Confederation.   Since 1781 the Articles hindered the needed progress of the thirteen United States.   Rather than a united confederation, states were autonomous causing compromise and cooperation to be in short supply.   The Articles left most of the power with the state governments as a response to fears of re-creating a centralized power similar to Britain.   The burgeoning responsibilities of states were being impeded by several Articles, one being the lack of a revenue stream.   Under the Articles, Congress lacked authority to levy taxes.   It could request the states to contribute a share to the common treas ury, but the amounts gained through this mode of collection were not sufficient. To remedy this particular defect, Congress proposed an amendment that applied to the states for power to lay duties and secure the public debts. The amendment was agreed to by twelve out of thirteen states, with only Rhode Island refusing its consent, thereby defeating the proposal.   Articles 3 and 13 both required all thirteen states to agree in order to pass any legislation.   To overcome the necessity of thirteen states, early in the deliberations delegates voted that only nine states would be required to ratify the constitution.   This change made a difference to the process of ratification.   No longer could Rhode Island or any other state keep the whole from collective progress by one abstaining vote.   The Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia proceeded with men from every state but Rhode Island, as they deliberated over the necessary amendments to the Articles of Confederation the y all agreed that unfortunately, the Articles were not worth amending or saving.   Amid great secrecy they begin to write or â€Å"frame† a new constitution. As the delegates analyzed the Articles of Confederation, they noted many points that were to be part of the new document.   One was an executive branch; in affect the Articles disallowed an executive branch to enforce the laws, nor a national court system to interpret them. The question arose in 1689, a hundred years earlier, by social philosophers such as John Locke, who were arguing the need for an executive to have the power to enforce laws that are enacted by the people.   Under the Articles of Confederation in 1787, Congress was the sole organ of the national government without the ability to force the states to do anything against their will. Congress could in theory declare war and call for an army to be raised, but it could not force any state to provide its assigned quota for troops or arms or the equipment needed to support them. Due to their autonomy, the states were impervious to the threat of force or punishment, leaving Congress at a loss for the income needed to fi nance its activities.   Should a state or states not chose to participate Congress could not punish them for not contributing their share of the federal budget.    In relation to finance and monetary controls, the states controlled taxation and tariffs within their state, and each state could issue its own legal tender.   To this point, the states were more likened to European countries with disputes over borders, different currency and differing governments. Such significant differences caused disputes to arise between the states. Undoubtedly there were many unsettled quarrels over state boundaries and currency issues in regard to trade.   In the end, the only role that Congress could play was of mediator and judge without the force needed to require states to accept its decisions.    With so many contradictory Articles governing the country, a secure future seemed lost due to the many factors that would from past experience, never come together.  Ã‚   For the most part , the nations government, under the Articles of Confederation, seemed like a body without arms and legs.   From May to September 1787 a completely new and improved articles of confederation were written and called the Constitution.   The proposed Constitution was the tool that would presumably lay the foundation for future generations in governance of America.   The purpose and job of the Constitution was to correct the faulty Articles of Confederation and ensure greater central government strength and allow states to proceed as before with greater security and ability.   This was the hope but, the message was not received with the same understanding by the people.   Each state sized up its own unique situation and by calling their own ratification conventions, discussed the issues to determine if the proposed constitution would guarantee existing rights and benefit the state as a whole and not just portions of it.   After the work was completed the â€Å"framers came to an agreement on a final draft of the Constitution on September 17, 1787, after which they signed and prepare d to send it to the people for ratification. American people were now faced with a daunting task.   The whole of the nation had arrived at an important moment of their existence as a union.   Each state had matured at its own rate and grown into its geographical area by putting to use the natural resources each had to work with.   In doing so, they created and built an infrastructure and their own economic stability.   The American states were asked to enter into a federal covenant that would guide and by law regulate the countrys population in trade, commerce, security, and foreign relations. This question became Americas first political argument and one of the most important.   When the final draft was ready for public discourse and ratification not all thirteen states agreed with the entire document.   Smaller states found, what they believed were flaws that withdrew power from the individual states and gave it to the central government, which too many was against the American ideology of independence.   As a reaction to the many questions and concerns the American people were expressing a trio of men came together.   They were physically only 30 years old yet; they were indeed older through the acquisition of political experience, knowledge, and power.   For example, Alexander Hamilton served as a captain and as Washingtons aide-de-camp during the Revolution, he distinguished himself at the bar after victory, and by 1787 was already a prominent figure in the creation of the infant nation. The next man James Madison, by contrast, was more the pensive philosopher than the bold statesman. A lifelong student of philosophy, history, and law, particularly the law of nations, Madison would, despite his shyness, be a commanding presence and driving force at the constitutional convention.    However, it was John Jay who was the most experienced of all three by the time the Constitutional Convention was called. Aside from having served the fledgling republic as a masterful negotiator, a diplomat, and even, for a time, as its president, Jay was the only one to have had direct experience in Europe.   And so by 1787, all three gentlemen were indeed old with experience, well prepared to meet the challenges of the task at hand.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Taking the lead in pushing for ratification, in 1787 these three politicos decided that in order for the new Constitution to be ratified there would have to be a saturation of the issues at hand in the newspapers.   They, along with other men, wrote their arguments for the Constitution and came to be known as the Federalists.   In the same spirit as the Federalists emerged their counterparts, the anti-Federalists.   Both sides published statements, essays, and their opinions on why the proposed constitution should or should not be accepted and ratified. Each group of men was driven by their beliefs and together they fought for what they thought was important for their country.   The anti-Federalist later went by the name of Republican and the Democratic Republican, they spoke for many of the smaller states and their constituents, who had fought and sacrificed along with American forces for the victory over Britain.   They had foresight in their convictions which continue to serve the country today.   The Federalists were influential intellectuals who believed in the Constitution, and believed that it was the perfect model of government to achieve a just society.   Under the proposed Constitution, the American people could enjoy their right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Generally, Federalists were wealthy citizens, highly educated professionals, who in most cases were lawyers and their supporters followed suit by being Propertied and educated people.   In their arguments for the provisions of the Constitution, Federalists stated that if the Constitution had sections or certain language that did not work, amendments could be made. Their arguments were decidedly their strongest weapon in their pursuit to educate the public.   Alexander Hamilton was first to publish the Federalists first argument for ratification of the Constitution.   His opening words grabbed his audience: AFTER an unequivocal experience of the inefficiency of the subsisting federal government, you are called upon to deliberate on a new Constitution for the United States of America. The subject speaks its own importance; comprehending in its consequences nothing less than the existence of the UNION, the safety and welfare of the parts of which it is composed, the fate of an empire in many respects the most interesting in the world. Hamilton had offered the perfect statement on the weight of the matter before them as a country, during this most august period of American history.   Of this there was no argument.   Yet, as the essays by Alexander Hamilton, John Madison, and John Jay began filtering throughout the states there came responses from their counterparts, the anti-Federalists.   They were somewhat less organized than the Federalists, not owing to any financial benefice and served to represent the strong opposition to the idea of states loss of power to a federal government.   The response given to the Federalists essays began with an author known as â€Å"A FEDERALIST†: I am pleased to see a spirit of inquiry burst the band of constraint upon the subject of the NEW PLAN for consolidating the governments of the United States, as recommended by the late Convention. If it is suitable to the GENIUS and HABITS of the citizens of these states, it will bear the strictest scrutiny. The PEOPLE are the grand inquest who have a RIGHT to judge of its merits. The hideous daemon of Aristocracy has hitherto had so much influence as to bar the channels of investigation, preclude the people from inquiry and extinguish every spark of liberal information of its qualities. Thus the war of words had commenced, a thought at that moment might have been, shall we as a public agree to the Constitution as written or shall we, for all future generations, dissect and analyze the document before placing our hand in agreement?   The American people read the essays, listened at town hall meetings, and fueled public dialogue to full head by complete dissemination of the issues at hand offered by both groups of authors.   Their writings were strong, psychological, emotional, and called to the heart of the population to come together for the benefit of the whole and not the one.   The anti-Federalists included some very impressive notables such as Patrick Henry, James Winthrop, Robert Yates, George Clinton, James Monroe, and Thomas Jefferson. Not all contributed to the essays.   Those who did, rather than using their own names, took their cue from the Federalists and used pseudonyms.   The anti-Federalist writers shared a considerably wider range of views. Common concerns were expressed by authors known as Brutus and A Federal Farmer.Robert Yates was known to be â€Å"Brutus† but, the identity of A Federal Farmer was never confirmed. One of the key points these two men made regarded the necessary and proper clause.   The Necessary and Proper Clause, also referred to as the Elastic, Basket, and the Sweeping Clause is the provision in Article One of the United States Constitution, section 8, clause 18: The Congress shall have Power To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof. This clause gave Congress the power to make laws which were necessary to execute all powers vested in the Constitution. The anti-Federalists argued that the Constitution only had the power to do what it states it can, and that nothing should be presupposed by the government. In other words, the government should never use the necessary and proper clause as a blanket grant of power†.   Anti-Federalist were men who understood from their recent involvement with the Revolution that giving too much power to a national government could foster tyrannical desires for more power.   The aristocratic elite and moneyed men would govern for their own states and personal benefit without any concern for the smaller states needs.   Further, the anti-Federalist felt Americans had been given empty promises and after fighting for independence their own independence and ability to provide for their families would become extinct if the Constitution was ratified as it was written.   The prim ary fear was that while a republican government was desirable in order to defend liberty, it was not possible over a large geographic area, such as the United States, because it had never been accomplished before. The fall of the Roman Empire was an implosion, a reaction to inadequate governing of an area to vast to control. The other major pitfall of republics had been class war, something that the Founding Fathers had seen in the recent Shays Rebellion. From 1781 to 1787 there was much consternation within the borders of the United States.   From an extract of a letter from James Madison to George Washington, Feb. 3, 1788, we can read sentiments received from Boston from a member of the convention there: Never was there an assembly in this state in possession of greater ability and information than the present convention, yet I am in doubt whether they will approve the constitution. There are, unhappily, three parties opposed to it. First: All men who are in favor of paper money and tender laws. Those are more or less in every part of the state. Second: All the late insurgents and their abettors. In the three great western counties they are very numerous. We have in the convention eighteen or twenty who were actually in Shays army. Shays Rebellion was an example of the small farmers and independents who had their land and homes threatened to be taken from them.   An armed uprising in central and western Massachusetts, centering in Springfield from 1786 to 1787, Shays rebellion represented the poor compatriots farmers angered by what they felt to be crushing debt and taxes. Failure to repay such debts often resulted in imprisonment in debtors prisons or the claiming of property by the County.   The leader of the Rebellion, Daniel Shays, was himself a veteran of the American Revolution who found himself engulfed in the issue and fought for a way out.    The rebellion was still fresh on the minds of many, causing the mood among the last states to ratify to be thick with opposition and strong sentiments against the contents of the constitution.   The last states to accept the proposed constitution were New York, North Carolina, Virginia, and Rhode Island.   New York presented the problem in its simplest form, the entire mass of interior counties, from Ulster to Columbia, were solidly anti-Federal, encompassing the agricultural portion of the state, the last arrived and settled, and the most thinly populated.   Governor George Clinton of New York wrote on one of the important issues among the anti-Federalists.   From the following extract of a letter from New York, July 20, 1788, George Clinton was quoted as saying, if they ratify the constitution, they must by heavy taxes support their government, which is now wholly done by the impost, etc.   This with the Mynheers is a weighty argument.   George Clinton went on to write, In Opposition to Destruction of States Rights, the following: The premises on which the new form of government is erected, declares a consolidation or union of all thirteen parts into one great whole, under the firm of the United States But whoever seriously considers the immense extent of territory comprehended within the limits of the United Statesthe dissimilitude of interests, morals, and politics in almost every one, will receive it as an intuitive truth, that a consolidated republican form of government therein, can never form a perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to you and your posteritythis unkindred legislature therefore, composed of interests opposite and dissimilar in nature, will in its exercise, emphatically be like a house divided against itself Clinton continued that from his prospective there were no promises that could be made secure â€Å"on the score of consolidation of the United States into one government.†Ã‚   Impracticability, risk, ambitious, and aggrandizement, oppression, intricate and perplexed became words to describe the proposed constitution.   Clinton ended by saying that the proposed constitution was â€Å"too mysterious for you to understand and observe; and by which you are to be conducted into a monarchy, either limited or despotic† Interpretation and understanding by the common man was an important factor for the anti-Federalist arguments against the Constitution.   Writing on states rights, Federalist No. 6 author stated, â€Å"A great danger exists in the competition between states themselves if they are left entirely to their own sovereignty, with no unifying government. Men are by their nature ambitious, and independent states will naturally compete with one another for love of power, control of commerce and domination of territory.† The response from anti-Federalist explained that a strong state government was better than a strong central government. To them if the central government was too strong then it would threaten the peoples liberties and right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.   What rights did the people have under the proposed Constitution?   This issue was the next mountain to cross towards ratification. Anti-Federalist Patrick Henry, who wrote Need for a Bill of Rights felt: this proposal of altering our federal government is of a most alarming nature!. You ought to be watchful, jealous of your liberty; for, instead of securing your rights, you may lose them forevera wrong step made now will plunge us into misery, and our republic will be lost, and tyranny must and will arise The argument over the Bill of Rights was arguably the most important issue for the ratification of the constitution.   Their necessity appeared to be of greater importance in order to calm the states.   Patrick Henry added these words in his observation of the matter, â€Å"We are told that all powers not given are reserved. I am sorry to bring forth hackneyed observations. But, Sir, important truths lose nothing of their validity or weight, by frequency of repetition.†Ã‚   Rather than infer the rights of the people, â€Å"all rights not expressly and unequivocally reserved to the people are impliedly and incidentally relinquished to rulers, as necessarily inseparable from the delegated powers if implication be allowed, you are ousted of those rights,† they would be declared.   This argument was one of the turning points for the final states ratification of the Constitution.   Henry continued his essay on the essential need for the bill of rights by explaining: Without a Bill of Rights, you will exhibit the most absurd thing to mankind that ever the world saw  ­ a government that has abandoned all its powers  ­ the powers of taxation, the sword, and the purse. You have disposed of them to Congress, without a Bill of Rights  ­ without check, limitation, or control You have Bill of Rights to defend against a state government, which is bereaved of all its power, and yet you have none against Congress, thought in full and exclusive possession of all power! The Bill of Rights was important to the American people and by promising to make amendments and provide a draft of a Bill of Rights the delegates began to revisit their stance toward acceptance of the proposed constitution.   The â€Å"Bill† was demanded by the anti-Federalists in New York, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island where the battle for ratification was not clear. In these states the voting was a lot closer than in the states that first decided to ratify. The Federalists however had strong opposition to a Bill of Rights. Robert Yates, writing under the pseudonym Brutus, articulated this view point in the Anti-Federalist No. 84, asserting that a government unrestrained by such a bill could easily devolve into tyranny. Other supporters of the Bill argued that a list of rights would not, should not, and could not be interpreted as exhaustive; these rights were examples of important rights people had, along with other rights as well. Many concerned with the final interpretation of the Bill of Rights were confident that the judiciary would construe these rights in a liberal fashion. Fortunately, the Ninth Amendment would clarify the matter by addressing the rights of the people that are not specifically enumerated in the Constitution.   The arguments were just getting started, representation was of extreme importance to the smaller states who felt their position and voices would be extinguished if their representation was not equal to the larger states, who by virtue of their size may attempt to dominate on issues against those states with less representation.   The fear was understandable.   The Deep South would go to war over such issues as representation.   Melancton Smith, a New York representative at the Convention, wrote his views on the issue of representation for the anti-Federalists stating: When we speak of representatives they resemble those they represent. They should be a true picture of the people, possess a knowledge of their circumstances and their wants, sympathize in all their distresses, and be disposed to seek their true interests. Smith believed that the â€Å"knowledge necessary† for the true representative of a free people should include a comprehension of: extensive political and commercial information, such as is acquired by men of refined education, who have leisure to attain to high degrees of improvement, but it should also comprehend that kind of acquaintance with the common concerns and occupations of the people, which men of the middling class of life are, in general, more competent to than those of a superior class. In order to represent a state, its inner structure must be understood.   The true commercial interests of a country are not the only requirement for representation but also, and most importantly, â€Å"a knowledge of the productions of your own country, and their value, what your soil is capable of producing, the nature of your manufactures, the capacity of the country to increase both.† In the area of laying taxes, duties, and exercises with discretion requires knowledge of the system of finance.   A representative should also know about the people of his country, their circumstances and a general understanding of their economic commerce and ability.   They should also understand, â€Å"how the burdens imposed will bear upon the different classes.†Ã‚   Representatives should be from all walks and levels, not just elite citizens but, those of the â€Å"middling class of life.†Ã‚   Smith, as well as others, had a real concern that most bodies of the government were composed of the first class in the community and by distinguishing them by class, it would appear that the government would fall into the hands of the â€Å"few and the great.†Ã‚   In order to relieve the delegates of unrelenting concern Smith offered the following insight on representation: This will be a government of oppressionA system of corruption is known to be the system of government in Europe it will be attempted among us. The most effectual as well as natural security against this is a strong democratic branch in the legislature, frequently chosen, including in it a number of the substantial, sensible, yeomanry of the country. Does the House of Representatives answer this description? I confess, to me they hardly wear the complexion of a democratic branch; they appear the mere shadow of representation. The anti-Federalists were important to the final outcome of the ratification process because they poised questions that made the American people stop and think about what they were agreeing to and what they may lose or gain as a consequence of the proposed Constitutions acceptance.   Thomas Jefferson, third president of the U.S., from his own beliefs regarding the ratification of the Constitution, feared it would grant too much power to the U.S. government.   Jefferson thought it should be up to the states to govern themselves with a â€Å"hands-off† approach and strictly limited interference of the national government.   The funny thing about Jefferson, figurehead of the anti-Federalists was for a long time he would not choose sides between the Federalists and the anti-Federalists, because of his anti-political party sentiment. He found both sides arguments compelling, he was for a strong central government, which was more of a Federalists view. But, the argument that brought Thomas Jefferson to the anti-Federalist side was Alexander Hamiltons implied powers.   Implied powers were powers which were not stated directly in the Constitution, in other words powers that were assumed by the government. Jefferson was totally against this, he believed that the Constitution could do the things which the Constitution states it can and nothing should be assumed, strict construction. This disagreement would become a great feud between Hamilton and Jefferson, evolving into the first real battle of political parties for election in office. It should be noted that there were conflicting personalities among the â€Å"framers† and their anti-Federalist opposition. When comparing and contrasting anti-Federalist views on the ratification of the United States Constitution with those of the Federalists, one must also consider the inherent relationship that represents their respective views upon principles, problems and solutions, ultimately surmising which side best reflects or departs from the original principles set forth for the Declaration. It can be argued that the two sides are quite contrary in their individual perceptions, with each faction believing its own views are of primary integrity.   One of the major beliefs of the Federalists as pointed out at the Philadelphia convention was that a state should vote according to its population. This later became another big issue with the anti-Federalists and people from the smaller states. By comparison of the elite Federalist camp, the anti-Federalists were made up of anyone who was poor and not a big landowner, anyone tired of being controlled, anyone who wanted the peoples votes to directly count and anyone who wanted to protect their rights. The anti-Federalists were made up of all different types of people, who represented the United States population as a whole, far better than did the Federalists. The anti-Federalists wanted their power in the legislature, mainly the lower house where every state has one vote; and the terms of office to be shorter, with limits on how many terms you could serve. These officials were not to be elected by representatives but directly by the vote of the people of the United States. Finally, the only way the anti-Federalists would ever consider helping to ratify the Constitution was if it contained a Bill of Rights, which was believed essential for preserving the individual liberties of the people. It was the consensus of anti-Feder alist everywhere that without this document the government could control every aspect of a persons life. To them the Constitution without the Bill of Rights was just a weapon of the elite upper class over the poor. Individualism was the strongest element of opposition; the necessity, or at least the desirability, of a bill of rights was almost universally felt, and the anti-Federalists were able to play on these feelings in the ratification convention in Massachusetts in 1788. By this stage, five of the states had ratified the Constitution with relative ease; the Massachusetts convention however, was hostile and argumentative. In the fight for ratification of the proposed United States Constitution between Federalists and anti-Federalists propaganda played a large role on both sides.   Patrick Henry even saw the constitution as a revolutionary document much like Americas separation from Britain, he said I need not take much pains to show, that the principles of this system, are extremely pernicious, impolitic, and dangerous. Here is a revolution as radical as that which separated us from Great Britain.Despite the fact the Federalists and the anti-Federalists had opposing views regarding the constitution; both were headed for a common goal of forming a government that could run the country. Many anti-Federalists believed that the Constitution, as drafted would open the way to tyranny by the central government.   States rights, the Bill of Rights, and represenation were all heated subjects during the ratification phase.   The Bill added a comfort zone for the states; they needed security from the fear that the federal government could control them under a tyranny. States felt they would retain their rights through the freedoms afforded through the Bill of Rights.   These freedoms include freedom of speech, the right to bear arms, the right to deny refuge to soldiers, the right to privacy from search, trial by jury, innocent until proven guilty, the right to representation and to a speedy trial, no cruel and unusual punishment, the right to always have rights, and the right for states to rule on things not mentioned in the Constitution. None of this was possible under British rule; power was transferred from the center to the people. If the Constitution was ratified without the Bill of Rights, the central government could parlay its strength denying people these basic rights. As states made their decision through their own ratification conventions the nine states needed for ratification began voting.   The first state that ratified the Constitution, although its convention was not the first to assemble, was Delaware, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut.   Ratification of the Constitution was four states away

The Emperor?s New Clothes :: essays research papers

‘The Emperor's New Clothes’ is a tale of an emperor who was exceptionally fond of new clothes. Two swindlers came one day and claimed that they were weavers and said that they could weave the finest cloth ever seen. They claimed that the colours and patterns were not only exceptionally beautiful, but the clothes made from this material possessed the wonderful quality of being invisible to anyone who was hopelessly stupid or incompetent. They were paid handsomely to weave this cloth and given a room to work, as the emperor wanted to wear his new robes in an upcoming parade. When they decided that they had finished ‘weaving’, the emperor sent in his ministers to judge the quality of the cloth. The ministers, not wanting to lose their respected positions, told the emperor that it was magnificent when they could not see it at all. The emperor, believing his ministers could actually see the robes, and not wanting to seem a fool, paraded in the streets wearing th e new clothes, which were, of course, non-existent. The public admired the emperor’s clothes, for they too did not want to be labelled fools; only a child came out and said that the emperor was actually wearing nothing at all. Upon this outburst, the rest of the public realized that this was true, and the emperor finished the parade in shame for his stupidity of believing the two swindlers in the first place. One of the morals of this fairytale would be to not succumb to peer pressure. Had the emperor not cared about looking like a fool in front of his ministers, he would have declared that he could see nothing, and would have asked whether the ministers could actually see anything. Another moral would be to always give your honest opinion.

Resume Marketing Management, 14th Edition – Kotler & Keller

KOTLER RESUME Marketing Management Philip Kotler – Kevin Lane Keller SUMMARY PART 1 Understanding Marketing Management4 Defining Marketing for the 21st Century4 Developing Marketing Strategies and Plans5 PART 2 Capturing Marketing Insights13 Collecting Information and Forecasting Demand13 Conducting Marketing Research16 PART 3 Connecting with Customers18 Creating Long-term Loyalty Relationships18 Analyzing Consumer Markets21 Analyzing Business Markets25 Identifying Market Segments and targets28 PART 4 Building Strong Brands31 Creating Brand Equity31 Crafting the Brand Positioning34Competitive Dynamics36 PART 5 Shaping the Market Offerings39 Setting Product Strategy39 Designing and Managing Services41 Developing Pricing Strategies and Programs46 PART 6 Delivering Value53 Designing and Managing Integrated Marketing Channels53 Managing Retailing, Wholesaling, and Logistics58 PART 7 Communicating Value60 Designing and Managing Integrated Marketing Communications60 Managing Mass Co mmunications : Advertising, Sales Promotions, Events and Experiences, and Public Relations63 Managing Personal Communications : Direct and interactive Marketing, Word of Mouth, and Personal Selling68PART 8 Creating Successful Long-term Growth72 Introducing New Market Offerings72 Tapping into Global Offerings86 Managing a Holistic Marketing Organization for the Long Run93 PART1: UNDERSTANTING MARKETING AND MANAGEMENT CHAPTER 1: DEFINITNG MARKETING FOR THE 21st CENTURY THE IMPORTANCE OF MARKETING Marketing is a significant dimension of any business in today’s highly competitive environment and financial success is often dependent on marketing ability. Marketing is crucial for business success. THE SCOPE OF MARKETING Marketing is about identifying and meeting human and social needs.One of the shortest definitions of marketing is the process of meeting needs profitably. Marketing management is the art and the science of choosing target markets and getting, keeping and increasing customers though creating, managing, communicating and delivering superior customer value. UNDERSTANDING MARKETS Marketing can be used for: Services, products, services and products, events, experiences, people, places ideas Marketing managers seek to influence the level, timing, and composition of demand to meet the organization’s objectives. Eight states of market demand are possible: Full demand: consumers buy all services or products brought to market. – Overfull demand: there are more consumers demanding the service or product than can be satisfied. – Irregular demand: consumer purchases vary on a seasonal, monthly, weekly†¦ – Declining demand: consumers begin to buy services or products less frequently or not all. – Negative demand: consumers dislike the service or product and may even pay a price to avoid it. – Nonexistent demand: consumers may be unaware of or uninterested in the product or service. – Latent demand: consu mers may share a strong need that cannot be satisfied by an existing product or service. Unwholesome demand: consumers may be attracted to services or products that have undesirable social consequences. In each case, marketers must identify the underlying causes of the demand state then determine a plan of action to shift the demand to a more desirable state. HOW IS MARKETING PRACTICED? Marketing practice can be viewed in many perspectives. The traditional view is the KOTLERIAN marketing management view of managing the marketing mix after selecting target market and positioning. TRANSACTIONAL, RELATION AND SERVICE MARKETINGTransaction marketing is defined as attracting and satisfying potential buyers by managing the elements in the marketing mix. Interaction marketing: implies face to face interaction between individuals. Network marketing is with the consumers but occurs across and among organization. The concept was developed by the Nordic school from northern Europe and developme nts from the USA. Relationship marketing in its simplest form is a progression from the dominant and often criticized the 4 P focus. The relational is focus on building long-term relationships with consumers CHAPTER 2 : DEVELOPING MARKETING, STRATEGIES AND PLANMarketing is about satisfying consumers' needs and wants. The task of any business is to deliver customer value at a profit. I. The value Delivery Process The traditional view of marketing is that the firm makes something and then sells it. Companies that subscribe to this view have the best chance of succeeding in economies marked by goods shortages where consumers are not fussy about quality, features, or style-for example, basic staple goods in developing markets. There, the â€Å"mass market† is actually splintering into numerous micro markets, each with its own wants, perceptions, preferences, and buying criteria.The smart competitor must design and deliver offerings for well-defined target markets. II. The value C hain Michael Porter of Harvard has proposed the value chain as a tool for identifying ways to create more customer value. According to this model, every firm is a synthesis of activities performed to design, produce, and market, deliver, and support its product. The value chain identifies nine strategically relevant activities-five primary and four support activities-that create value and cost in a specific business. He firm's infrastructure covers the costs of general management, planning, finance, accounting, legal, and government affairs.The firm's task is to examine its costs and performance in each value-creating activity and to look for ways to improve it. Managers should estimate their competitors' costs and performances as benchmarks against which to compare their own costs and performance. The firm's success depends not only on how well each department performs its work, but also on how well the company coordinates departmental activities to conduct core business processes. †¢ The market-sensing process. †¢ The new-offering realization process. †¢ The customer acquisition process. †¢ The customer relationship management process. The fulfilment management process. To be successful, a firm also needs to look for competitive advantages beyond its own operations, into the value chains of suppliers, distributors, and customers. III. Core competencies Many companies today outsource less-critical resources if they can obtain better quality or lower cost. The key, is to own and nurture the resources and competencies that make up the essence of the business. A core competency has three characteristics: 1. It is a source of competitive advantage in that it makes a significant contribution to perceived customer benefits. 2.It has applications in a wide variety of markets. 3. It is difficult for competitors to imitate. Business realignment may be necessary to maximize core competencies. It has three steps: 1. Defining the business concept or à ¢â‚¬Å"big idea† 2. Shaping the business scope 3. Positioning the company's brand identity. IV. A holistic marketing Orientation and Customer Value A holistic marketing orientation can also help capture customer value. The holistic marketing framework is designed to address three key management questions: 1. Value exploration- How can a company identify new value opportunities? 2.Value creation- How can a company efficiently create more promising new value offerings? 3. Value delivery—–How can a company use its capabilities and infrastructure to deliver the new value offerings more efficiently? A. Value exploration Understanding the relationships among three spaces: – The customer's cognitive space – The company's competence space – The collaborator's resource space. B. Value Creation To create new customer benefits, marketers must understand what the customer thinks about, wants, does, and worries about and observe whom customers admire and i nteract with, and who influences them.C. Value Delivery The company must become proficient at customer relationship management, internal resource management, and business partnership management. Customer relationship management allows the company to discover whom its customers are, how they behave, and what they need or want. V. The central role of the strategic planning Successful marketing thus requires companies to have capabilities such as understanding customer value, creating customer value, delivering customer value, capturing customer value, and sustaining customer value.To ensure that they select and execute the right activities, marketers must give priority to strategic planning in three key areas: managing a company's businesses as an investment portfolio, assessing each business's strength by considering the market's growth rate and the company's position and fit in that market, and establishing a strategy. For each business, the company must develop a game plan for achi eving its long-run objectives. The marketing plan is the central instrument for directing and coordinating the marketing effort. The marketing plan operates at two levels: strategic and tactical.All corporate headquarters undertake four planning activities 1. Defining the corporate mission 2. Establishing strategic business units 3. Assigning resources to each SBD 4. Assessing growth opportunities I. Defining the corporate mission To define its mission, a company should address Peter Drucker's classic questions:What is our business? Who is the customer? What is of value to the customer? What will our business be? What should our business be? These simple-sounding questions are among the most difficult a company will ever have to answer.The good mission statements have five major characteristics. First, they focus on a limited number of goals. †¢ Industry. Some companies will operate in only one industry; some only in a set of related industries; some only in industrial goods, c onsumer goods, or services; and some in any industry. †¢ Products and applications. Firms define the range of products and applications they will supply. †¢ Competence. The firm identifies the range of technological and other core competencies it will master and leverage. †¢ Market segment. The type of market or customers a company will serve is the market segment. Vertical. The vertical sphere is the number of channel levels, from raw material to final product and distribution, in which a company will participate. †¢ Geographical. The range of regions, countries, or country groups in which a company will operate defines its geographical sphere. II. Establishing Strategic Business Units Large companies normally manage quite different businesses, each requiring its own strategy. General Electric has classified its businesses into 49 strategic business units, SBlls. An SBU has three characteristics: 1.It is a single business, or a collection of related businesses, that can be planned separately from the rest of the company. 2. It has its own set of competitors. 3. It has a manager responsible for strategic planning and profit performance, who controls most of the factors affecting profit. III. Assigning Resources to Each SBU Once it has defined SBUs, management must decide how to allocate corporate resources to each. Management would want to grow, â€Å"harvest† or draw cash from, or hold on to the business. IV. Assessing growth Opportunities A. Intensive GrowthCorporate management's first course of action should be are view of opportunities for improving existing businesses. B. Integrative Growth A business can increase sales and profits through backward, for- ward, or horizontal integration within its industry. Media companies have long reaped the benefits of integrative growth. C. Diversification Growth Diversification growth makes sense when good opportunities exist outside the present businesses-the industry is highly attractive a nd the company has the right mix of business strengths to be successful. D. Downsizing and Divesting Older BusinessesWeak businesses require a disproportionate amount of managerial attention. Companies must carefully prune, harvest, or divest tired old businesses in order to release needed resources to other uses and reduce costs. VI. Organization and Organizational Culture Five key strategies for managing change in an organization: 1. Avoid the innovation title-Pick 2. Use the buddy system-Find 3. Set the metrics in advance- 4. Aim for quick hits first- 5. Get data to back up your gut-Use testing to get feedback and improve an idea The Business Unit Strategic Planning I. The Business MissionEach business unit needs to define its specific mission within the broader company mission. Therefore, a television-studio-lighting-equipment company might define its mission as, â€Å"To target major television studios and become their vendor of choice for lighting technologies that represent the most advanced and reliable studio lighting arrangements. † II. SWOT ANALYSIS The overall evaluation of a company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats is called SWOT analysis. It's a way of monitoring the external and internal marketing environment. A. External Environment (opportunity and threat) AnalysisThe business unit should set up a marketing intelligence system to track trends and important developments and any related opportunities and threats. Good marketing is the art of finding, developing, and profiting from these opportunities. A marketing opportunity is an area of buyer need and interest that a company has a high probability of profitably satisfying. Opportunities can take many forms, and marketers need to be good at spotting them. To evaluate opportunities, companies can use market opportunity analysis (MOA) to determine their attractiveness and probability of success by asking questions like: To articulate the benefits convincingly to a define d target market(s)? – To locate the target market(s) and reach them with cost-effective media and trade channels? – To possess or have access to the critical capabilities and resources we need to deliver the customer benefits? – To deliver the benefits better than any actual or potential competitors? 5. To rate of return meet or exceed our required threshold for investment? B. Internal Environment (strengths and weaknesses) It's one thing to find attractive opportunities, and another to be able to take advantage of them.Each business needs to evaluate its internal strengths and weaknesses. C. Goal Formulation This stage of the process is called goal formulation. Goals are objectives that are specific with respect to magnitude and time. The unit's objectives must meet four criteria: 1. They must be arranged hierarchically, from the most to the least important. 2. Objectives should be quantitative whenever possible. 3. Goals should be realistic. Goals should arise from an analysis of the business unit's opportunities and strengths, not from wishful thinking. 4. Objectives must be consistent.It's not possible to maximize sales and profits simultaneously. III. Strategic Formulation A. Porter Generic Strategies – Overall cost leadership. Firms pursuing this strategy work hard to achieve the lowest production and distribution costs so they can price lower than their competitors and win a large market share. – Differentiation. The business concentrates on uniquely achieving superior performance in an important customer benefit area valued by a large part of the market. – Focus. The business focuses on one or more narrow market segments. B. Strategic Alliances Product or service alliances-One company licenses another to produce its product, or two companies jointly market their complementary products or a new product. – Promotional alliances One company agrees to carry a promotion for another company's product or servic e. – Logistics alliances One company offers logistical services for another company's product. – Pricing collaborations One or more companies join in a special pricing collaboration. Hotel and rental car companies often offer mutual price discounts. D. Program Formulation and ImplantationThe unit has decided to attain technological leadership, it must plan programs to strengthen its R department, gather technological intelligence, develop leading-edge products, train the technical sales force, and develop ads to communicate its technological leadership. Businesses are also increasingly recognizing that unless they nurture other stake- holders-customers, employees, suppliers, distributors-they may never earn sufficient profits for the stockholders. E. Feedback and Control The company has to point out that it is more important to â€Å"do the right thing†-to be effective-than â€Å"to do things right†-to be efficient.The most successful companies excel at b oth. Product Planning: The Nature and Contents of a Marketing Plan What, does a marketing plan look like? What does it contain? – Executive summary and table of contents. The marketing plan should open with a brief of the main goals and recommendations. A table of con- tents outlines the rest of the plan and all the supporting rationale and operational detail. – Situation analysis. This section presents relevant background data on sales, costs, the market, competitors, and the various forces in the macro environment.How do we define the market, how big is it, and how fast is it growing? What are the relevant trends? What is the product offering and what critical issues do we face? Firms will use all this information to carry out a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis. – Marketing strategy . Here the product manager defines the mission, marketing and financial objectives, and groups and needs that the market offerings are intended to sati sfy. The manager then establishes the product line's competitive positioning, which will inform the â€Å"game plan† to accomplish the plan's objectives.All this requires inputs from other areas, such as purchasing, manufacturing, sales, finance, and human resources. – Financial projections. Financial projections include a sales forecast, an expense fore- cast, and a break-even analysis. On the revenue side, the projections show the forecasted sales volume by month and product category. On the expense side, they show the expected costs of marketing, broken down into finer categories. The break-even analysis shows how many units the firm must sell monthly to offset its monthly fixed costs and average per-unit variable costs. – Implementation controls.The last section of the marketing plan outlines the controls for monitoring and adjusting implementation of the plan. Typically, it spells out the goals and budget for each month or qU31ter, so management can review each period's results and take corrective action as needed. PART 3 : CAPTURING MARKETING INSIGHTS CHAPTER 3 : COLLECTING INFORMATION AND FORECASTING DEMAND Three developments make the need for marketing information greater now than at any time in the past: – Rise of global marketing – New emphasis on buyers’ wants, preferences and behaviour – Trend toward non price competitionTo carry out their analysis, planning, implementation, and control responsibilities, marketing managers need a Marketing Information System (MIS). The MIS’s role is to assess the managers’ information needs, develop the needed information, and distribute that information in a timely manner. It is really easiest and effective with this method to collect information of various countries as it gives: – Quick information – Competitive advantage – Guides the marketing decision It relies on internal company records, marketing intelligence activities & res earch. INTERNAL RECORDS & MARKETING INTELLIGENCESpot important opportunities & problems THE ORDER-TO-PAYMENT CYCLE = the heart of the internal records system Favored firms are those which can promise timely delivery so they have to improve: o Speed o Accuracy o Efficiency This will save costs as well and it is the MIS role! SALES INFORMATION SYSTEMS Reports on current sales are indispensable for marketing managers. Inventory data warehouse is a great tool to capture all important data This will help to be aware of every kind of situation and manage it! Cookies are also a useful tool to provide information to companies.Technological gadgets are revolutionizing sales information systems but sales dta must be carefully interpret. DATABASES, DATA WAREHOUSING, AND DATA MINING Databases are essential to companies to organize their information. This is used in several areas for different information: customer, product, sales person†¦ Advantages: Save mailing expenses Help and make eas y access to decision makers Can be used for statistical methods for usefukl information Managers can yield still deeper insights using its own in-house technology THE MARKETING INTELLIGENCE SYSTEMIt is a set of procedures and sources used by managers to obtain everyday information about pertinent developments in the marketing environment. It can also be called HAPPENINGS DATA. Several steps can be taken by companies to improve the quality of its marketing intelligence: – Train & motivate the sales force to spot and report new development – Motivate distributors, retailers, and other intermediaries to pass along important intelligence – Network externally: giving an immediate competitive advantage – Set up customer advisory panel – Take advantage of government data resources Purchase information from outside suppliers: lower costs – Use online customer feedback systems to collect competitive intelligence Competitive intelligence function work s bests when intelligence operations collaborate closely with key users in the decision-making process! Needs and Trends A trend is a direction or sequence of events that have some momentum and durability. We can draw distinctions among fads, trends, and megatrends. Trends are more predictable and durable. A trend reveals the shape of the future. Trends and megatrends merit marketers’ close attention.Identifying the Major Force In the economical arena, companies and consumers are increasingly affected by global forces. Substantial speedup of international transportation, communication, and financial transactions, leading to the rapid growth trade and investment, especially tripolar trade. – The rising economic power of several Asian countries in world markets. – The rise of trade blocs such as the European Union and the NAFTA signatories. – The severe debt problems of a numbers of countries, along with the increasing fragility of the international financi al system.Successful companies realize that the marketing environment presents a neverending series of opportunities and threats. The major responsibility for identifying significant changes in the macroenvironment falls to a company’s marketers. More than any other group in the company, marketing managers must be the trend trackers and opportunity seekers. 1. Within the rapidly changing global picture, marketers must monitor six major environmental forces: demographic, economic, natural, technological, political-legal, and social-cultural. 2.In the demographic environment, marketers must be aware of worldwide population growth; changing mixes of age, ethnic composition, and educational levels; the rise of non traditional families; large geographic shifts in population; and the move to micromarketing and away from mass marketing. 3. In the economic arena, marketers need to focus on income distribution and levels of savings, debt, and credit availability. 4. In the social-cult ural arena, marketers must understand people’s views of themselves, others, organizations, society, nature, and the universe.They must market products that correspond to society’s core and secondary values, and address the needs of different subcultures within a society. 5. In the natural environment, marketers need to be aware of raw-materials shortages, increased energy costs and pollution levels, and the changing role of governments in environmental protection. 6. In the technological arena, marketers should take account of the accelerating pace of technological change, opportunities for innovation, varying R&D budgets, and the increased governmental regulation brought about by technological change. . In the political-legal environment, marketers must work within the many laws regulating business practices and with various special-interest groups. CHAPTER 4 : CONDUCTING MARKETING RESEARCH The components of a modern marketing information system A marketing informatio n system (MIS): consists of people, equipment, and procedures to gather, short, analyze, evaluate and distribute needed, timely, and accurate information to marketing decision makers. Internal Records System It is the most basic information system used by marketing managers. (Sales, prices, inventory levels†¦)The order-to-payment cycle Sales reporting system MARKETING INTELLIGENCE SYSTEM Is a set of procedures and sources used by managers to obtain their everyday information about pertinent developments in the marketing environment? MARKETING RESEARCH SYSTEM Are the systematic design, collection, analysis, and reporting of data and findings relevant to a specific marketing situation facing the company? SUPPLIERS OF MARKETING RESEARCH Many ways: engaging students or professors to design and carry out marketing research projects; using online information services; checking out rivals.THE MARKETING RESEARCH PROCESS Step 1 : Define the problem and research objectives Step 2 : devel oping the research plan. Decisions on the data sources, research approaches, research instruments, sampling plan, and contact methods Step 3 : Collect the information. The data collection phase of marketing research is the most expensive and the most prone to error. Step 4 : Analyze the information. Extract pertinent findings from the collected data. Step 5 : Present the findings. Major findings are pertinent to the major marketing decisions facing management.MARKETING DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM Is a coordinated collection of data, systems, tools and techniques with supporting software and hardware by which an organization gathers and interprets relevant information from business and environment and turns it into a basis for marketing action? FORECASTING AND DEMAND MEASUREMENT †¢ A VOCABULARY FOR DEMAND MEASUREMENT Market demand Market demand for a product is the total volume that would be bought by a defined customer group in a defined geographical area in a defined time period i n a defined marketing environment under a defined marketing program.Market potential Is the limit approached by market demand as industry marketing expenditures approach infinity, for a given environment? Company demand Is the company’s estimated share of market demand at alternative levels of company marketing effort? Forecast Is the expected level of company sales based on a chosen marketing plan and an assumed marketing environment? A sales quota Is the sales goal set for a product line, company division, or sales representative? It is primarily a managerial device for defining and stimulating sales effort. A sales budgetIs a conservative estimate of the expected volume of sales and is used primarily for making current purchasing, production, and cash-flow decisions. Company sales potential ESTIMATING CURRENT DEMAND Total market potential Area market potential †¢Market-build-up method †¢Multiple-factor index method 3. Industry sales and market shares Estimating i ndustry sales and market shares (Identifying competitors and estimating their sales ESTIMATING FUTURE DEMAND Survey of buyers’ intentions Composite of sales force opinions Expert opinion Market test method PART 3 : CONNECTING WITH CUSTOMERS CHAP 5 CREATING LONG TERM LOYALTY RELATIONSHIPSBuilding customer value, satisfaction and loyalty Customer-perceived value (CPV) is the difference between the entire perceived customer’s evaluation of all the benefits and all the costs of an offering and the perceived alternatives. Applying value concepts The customer value analysis reveals the company’s strengths and weaknesses relative to those of various competitors. Delivering high customer value Loyalty is a deeply held commitment to rebuy a preferred product and service in the future despite situational influences and marketing efforts having the potential to cause switching behavior.The value proposition consists of the whole cluster of benefits the company promises to deliver. The value delivery system includes all the experiences the customer will have on the way to obtaining and using the offering. Total customer satisfaction Satisfaction is the difference between expectations and the product’s perceived performance. Product and service quality Quality is the totality of features and characteristics of a product or service which satisfy explicit or implicit needs. Maximizing customer lifetime value Customer profitabilityA profitable customer is a person, household or company that revenues are higher than the company’s costs for attracting, selling and servicing that customer. But it is a very difficult task, even for banks. Customer profitability analysis is an accounting study which estimates all revenue coming from a customer less all costs (distribution, phone calls, traveling to meet the client, gifts). Measuring customer life time value Customer lifetime value estimates future profits over customer’s lifetime purchases . You can find it p. 172. Cultivating customer relationshipsCustomer relationship management (CMR) Customer relationship management is the process of carefully managing detailed information about individual customers and all customer â€Å"touch points†to maximize customer loyalty. A touch point is any occasion on which a customer meets a brand and a product. One-to-one marketing Identify your prospects and customers, don’t go after everyone. 1. Differentiate customers in terms of (1) their needs and (2) their value to your company. Spend more efforts on the most valuable customers. Do the customer profitability analysis. 2.Interact with individual customers to improve your knowledge about their needs and build a stronger relationship. 3. Customize products, services, and messages to each customer. Increasing value of the customer base †¢ Reducing the rate of customer defection. †¢ Increasing the longevity of the customer relationship. †¢ Increase sells with new offerings and opportunities, like accessories for motorcycles if you sell Harley-Davidson. †¢ Making low-profit customers more profitable or terminating them. Like low-cost flying companies which charge customers for drinks or food. †¢ Focusing disproportionate efforts on high-value customers.Building loyalty Developing loyalty programs Frequency programs are design to provide rewards to customers who buy frequently and in substantial amounts. Many companies have created club membership programs. Customer databases and database marketing A customer database is an organized collection of comprehensive information about individual customers and prospects that is current, accessible and actionable for marketing purposes (sells, maintain relationships). Database marketing is the process of building, maintain and using customer databases to contact, transact and build customer relationships. Customer databasesCustomer database contains customers past purchases, demogra phics (age, birthday, and family members), psychographics (activities, interests), media graphics (preferred media) and other useful information. A business database contains past purchases, volumes, prices, profits, buyer team member names, assessment of competitors their strengths and weaknesses. Data warehouse and dataminig Companies use databases to: 1. Identify prospects 2. Decide which customer should receive a particular offer 3. To deepen customer loyalty 4. To reactivate customer purchases 5. To avoid serious customer mistakes CHAP 6 ANALYZING CONSUMER MARKETSWhat influences consumer behavior? Consumer behavior is the study of how individuals, groups and organizations select, use, and dispose of goods, services, ideas, or experiences to satisfy their needs and wants. Cultural factors Culture is the fundamental determinant of a person’s wants and behavior because of values. Subcultures provide more specific identification and socialization for their members. Subcultur es include nationalities, religion, racial groups†¦ Social classes are relatively homogeneous and enduring divisions in a society, hierarchically ordered and with members who share similar values, interests, and behaviors.Reference groups A person’s reference groups are all the groups that have a direct or indirect influence on their attitudes or behavior. Membership groups have a direct influence. Primary groups are in constant contact with the person (family, friends, neighbors, coworkers). Secondary groups are religious, professional, trade-union groups. Aspiration groups are those a person hopes to join. Dissociative groups are based on individual reject. Opinion leader is the person who offers informal advice or information about a specific productor product category. FamilyFrom family a person acquires an orientation toward religion, politics, and economics and a sense of personal ambition, self-worth, and love. It is a more direct influence on everyday buying beha vior. Role and status A role consists of the activities a person is expected to perform. Each role carriers a status Personal factors Personality is a set of distinguishing human psychological traits that lead to relatively consistent and enduring responses to environmental stimuli (including buying behavior). Brand personality is defined as the specific mix of human traits that we can attribute to a particular brand.Lifestyle is person’s pattern of living in the world as expressed in activities, interests, and opinions. Key psychological processes Motivation  : Freud, Maslow, Herzberg A need becomes a motive when its intensity drives us to act. Perception Perception is the process by which we select, organize, and interpret information inputs to create a meaningful picture of the world. Selective attention is the screening of stimuli and marketers must work hard to attract consumers’ notice. People are more likely to notice stimuli that relate to a current need Peop le are more likely to notice stimuli they anticipateSelective distortion is the tendency to interpret information in a way that fits our preconceptions. Because of the selective retention, we are pore likely to remember good points of a product we like and forget good points about competing products. Learning Learning comes from experiences and makes us changing our behavior. A drive is a strong internal stimulus impelling action. Cues are minor stimuli that determine when, where, and how a person responds. Discrimination means that we have learned to recognize differences in sets of similar stimuli and can adjust our responses accordingly.The hedonic bias says people are more likely to attribute failure to external causes and success to themselves. Memory Associative network memory model explains that information are stored and linked with a different level of strength. Brand associations consist of all brand-related thoughts, feelings, perceptions, images, experiences, beliefs, at titudes, and so on that become linked to the brand information stored. Memory encoding describes how and where information gets into memory. Memory retrieval is the way of the information gets out of the memory.The buying decision process Marketers must identify who makes the buying decision: people can be initiators, influencers, deciders, buyers, or users. Problem recognition Information search Personal: family, friends, neighbors. Commercial: advertising, web sites, salespersons, packaging, displays. Public: mass media. Experiential: handling, examining, is using the product. Market partitioning is the process of identifying the hierarchy of attributes that guide consumer decision making for the marketer to understand different competitive forces and how this various sets get formed.Evaluation of alternatives Belief is a descriptive thought that a person holds about something. Attitudes are a person’s favorable or unfavorable evaluations, emotional feelings, and action ten dencies towards some object or idea. Expectancy-value model of attitude formation shows that consumers evaluate products and services by combining their brand beliefs according to importance. Purchase decision Heuristics are rules of mental shortcuts in the decision process. With the conjunctive heuristic the customer looks for every attribute and chooses the irst alternative that meets the minimum standard for all attributes. With the lexicographic heuristic the customer chooses the best brand on the basis of its perceived most important attribute. With the elimination-by-aspects heuristic the customer compares brands and eliminates those which don’t correspond to the minimum acceptable cutoffs. The perceived risks can modify, postpone or avoid a purchase decision. Functional risk: the product does not perform up to expectations. Physical risk: the product could threat health or well-being of the user or others.Financial risk: the product is not worth the price paid. Social risk: the product results in embarrassment from others. Psychological risk: the product affects the mental well-being of the user. Postpurchase behavior Other theories of consumer decision making Level of consumer involvement Consumer involvement is the level of engagement and active processing responding to a marketing stimulus. Decision heuristics and biases The availability heuristic means that for example a customer who had troubles with a product would be more likely to purchase a future product with warranty.The representativeness heuristic means that the customer buy a product to be seen as representative of a whole category. The anchoring and adjustment heuristic means that the first impression determines the interpretation of the further information. That is why it is very important to make a first good impression for a salesperson, for instance. Mental accounting Mental accounting refers to the way consumers code, categorize, and evaluate financial outcomes of choices. Pro spect theory maintains that the consumers frame their decision alternatives in terms of gains and losses according to a value function.CHAPTER 7 ANALYSING CONSUMER MARKETS A The study of consumer behavior Consumer behavior is the study of when, why, how and where people do or do not buy products. It tries to understand the buyer wants and decision making process both individually and in groups. It also attempts to evaluate influences on the consumer from groups such as family, friends, reference groups, and society in general. Its can be divided into three interdependent dimensions: – The study of culture – The study of social group – The study of the individual CultureCulture is the essential determinant of a person’s wants and behavior. Every culture can be divided in subcultures that include nationalities, religions, geographic region etc and offer more precise identification for their members. Multicultural marketing appear to satisfy the different su bcultures. We can also observe different social classes with people who have the same values, interests and behavior. Each social class show diverse product and brand preferences on different level. Social groups a. Reference group A reference group is a group that influences people attitudes and behavior.There are different categories of groups: – Membership groups: have a direct influence on people (family, friends, colleagues†¦) – Aspirational groups: are thosea person wish to join – Dissociative groups: are thosea person, does not belong b. Family Family is the most influential primary reference group. There are two families: – Family of orientation: parents and sibling – Family of procreation: wife /husband children The individual consumer A consumer’s decisions are influenced by personal characteristics such as the age and stage in the life cycle, the occupation and economic, the life style and values and the buyer’s person ality.So to study and understand consumer behavior it’s really important to start with the consumer herself or himself. Explore into all these factors can provide clues to attain and serve consumers more effectively. B Key psychological process Motivation: Freud, Maslow, Herzberg a. Freud’s theory For Freud people ‘s behavior are unconscious. People not only react to their affirmed aptitudes, but also to other. b. Maslow’s theory c. Herzberg’s theory For Herzberg there are two different factors: – Dissatisfiers: factors that cause dissatisfaction – Satisfiers: factors that cause satisfactionThe sellers should try to keep away dissatisfiers’ factors and identify the principal satisfiers or motivator of purchase in the market and then provide them. I. Perception Perception is the processes by which we select organize and interpret information. People have different perception of the same object because of three perceptual processe s: – Selective attention – Selective distortion: tendency to interpret information in a way that fits our preconception – Selective retention: only preserve information that support our manners and beliefs II. Learning People learn from their experiences and change their behaviour.Marketers should build demand for a product by associating it with strong drives (internal stimulus pushing action), cues (minor stimuli) and providing positive support. III. Memory Memory is distinguished between to type of memory short-term memory and long-term memory. Marketing is a good way to be sure that consumers have the right type of products and services experiences to build the good brand knowledge and keep it in memory. Four main psychological processes affect consumer behavior r motivation, perception, learning, and memory. C Perspectives on consumer behaviorNumerous perspectives on consumer behavior can be considered: – The behaviorist perspective: focus on the imp act of external influences on consumer behavior – The information processing perspective: appeared in the 60’s and 70’s thinks about how consumers mentally process, store, retrieve and use marketing information in the decision process – The emotional perspective: consumers affections should be included in the explanation of consumer decision making – The cultural perspective: culture show consumers view – A multiperspective approach: consumers do not have unlimited mental resources D The buying decision process the five stage modelTo understand how consumer make buying decisions, marketers should identify who makes and has contribute into buying decision. People can be initiators, influencers, deciders, buyers or users. The classical buying process consists of the following succession of events: 1. Problem recognition (the buyer recognizes a problem) 2. Information search 3. Evaluation of alternatives 4. Purchase decision 5. Post purchase be havior (post purchase satisfaction, action, use and disposal) Marketers’ have to understand the consumer behavior at each stage. It’s not always easy because many different factors influence the diverse behavior.CHAPTER 8 : IDENTIFYING MARKET SEGMENTS AND TARGETS I. The business market versus the consumer market Business marketers have numerous characteristics that contrast with those of consumer markets: – Fewer larger buyers: deal with much bigger buyer than the consumer market – Close supplier customer relationship: suppliers adapt their offering to individual business customer needs – Professional purchasing: goods are bought by trained purchasing agents – Multiple buying influence: more people typically influence business buying decisions – Multiple sales calls Derived demand: the demand for business goods resulting from the demand for consumer goods – Inelastic demand: the demand for goods won’t change even if pric es change – Fluctuating demand: the demand for business goods and services tend to be more unstable than the demand for consumer goods and services – Direct purchasing: business buyers buy directly for manufactures II. Buying situations The business buyer faces many decisions in making a purchase. The number depends on the buying situation: complexity of the problem being solved, newness of the buying requirement, number of people involved and time requirement.There are three types of buying situations: – Straight Rebuy: The purchasing department reorders supplies and chooses from suppliers on an approved list. The suppliers’ effort to maintain service and product quality. Their goal is to get a small order and then enlarge their purchase share over time. – Modify rebuy: the buyer wants to change products specifications – New task: the buyer buys the product for the first time III. Systems Buying and Selling Originally,  «Ã‚  system buying   Ã‚ » is a practice about government purchases of major weapons and communications systems.Thus, many business buyers prefer to buy a total solution to a problem from one seller. A system selling is a key industrial marketing strategy in bidding to build large-scale industrial projects, such as dams, steel factory, irrigation systems, sanitation systems, pipelines, utilities and even new towns. B. Participants in the business buying process I. The buying centre The buying center consists of all those individuals and groups who contribute in the purchasing decision making process. Its include all members of the organization who take part in any roles in the purchase decision process. Initiators: request something be purchased – Users: use the product, initiate the buying proposal – Influencers: people who influence the buying decision – Deciders: decide on product requirements or on suppliers – Approvers: authorize the proposed actions – Buyers: have formal authority to select the supplier and arrange the purchase terms – Gatekeepers: have the power to prevent sellers or information from reaching member II. Buying centre influences Buying center typically include several participants with diverse interest.If the business marketers want to influence these participants they should try to be attentive to many factors such as environment, organization, individual, motivations and interpersonal influences. III. Buying centre targeting Business marketers should answer at some questions to target their efforts appropriately. Who are the major decision participants? What decisions do they influence? What is their level of influence? The small sellers focus on reaching the key buying influencers and larger sellers the multilevel in depth selling to attain many participants. C. The Purchasing/Procurement Process a. Purchasing Department PerceptionsRecent competitive pressures have led many companies to upgrade their purchasing departments and elevate administrators to vice presidential rank. These new, more strategically oriented purchasing departments have a mission to seek the best value from fewer and better suppliers. b. Purchasing Organization and Administration Some companies have started to centralize purchasing. Headquarters identifies materials purchased by several divisions and buys them centrally, gaining more purchasing clout. At the same time, companies are decentralizing some purchasing operations by empowering employees to purchase small-ticket items.D. Stages in the buying process The buying process consists of: 1. Problem recognition: the company recognizes a need that can be fixed by purchasing a good or service. 2. General need description and product specification:general characteristics and required quantity 3. Supplier search: identify the most appropriate suppliers 4. Proposal solicitation: invite the qualified suppliers to suggest proposals 5. Supplier selection: the buying center usually use a supplier evaluation to identify the most attractive suppliers 6. Order-routine specification: negotiations 7. Performance review: review of the chosen supplierE. Managing business to business relationship Business marketers must form strong bonds and relationships with their customers and provide them added value. Some customers, however, may prefer more of a transactional relationship. a. The Benefits of Vertical Coordination Much research had advocated greater vertical coordination between buying partners and sellers, so they can transcend merely transacting and instead engage activities that create more value for both parties. Building trust is one prerequisite to healthy long-term relationships. b. Business Relationships: Risks and OpportunismResearchers have noted that establishing a customer-supplier relationship creates tension between safeguarding and adaptation. Vertical coordination can facilitate stronger customer-seller ties but at the same time may increa se the risk to the customer’s and suppliers specific investments. Specific investments, however, also entail considerable risk to both customer and supplier. Transaction theory from economics maintains that because these investments are partially sunk, they lock the firms that make them into a particular relationship. I. Transactions cost economics F. Institutional and government marketsPART 4 : BUILDING STRONG BRANDS CHAPTER 9 CREATING BRAND EQUITY I. What is a brand equity A. Role of brand Permit to consumers evaluate products (of specific brands), in order to find their needs. Brand signal a certain level of quality. Brand offer security for customers and firms B. The scope (ampleur) of branding A brand resides in the minds of consumer as an identity One of the first branding strategy is: consumers must be convinced their meaningful differences among brands in products or services C. Defining brand equity -is the added value endowed on product and service customer based br and equity: the customer brand knowledge is + when he reacts more favorably to a product and –when reacts less favorably 3 keys for favorably react: different responses about consumer needs associated the brand of something (image†¦), and ensuring consumer has great experiences with products. D. Brand equity as a bridge -brand knowledge (decide by customer) dictates future direction of the brand – Brand promise: is what the brand is and must do for consumers So, money spend for marketing is an investment for consumers’ brand knowledge E. brand equity model 4 models of B. equity models brand asset valuator (p 283) 5 categories: differenciation,energy, revelance, estum, knowledge -brandz: (p 284) relationship with brand (pyramid) -AAKER model: typically elements (value, uses, meaning, origin country, personality, symbols) -brand resonance model (p 285): development, building objectives II. Building brand equity This is the creating to have the right brand kno wledge of consumers F. Choosing brand elements -It’s that identify and differentiate the brand -6 criteria: memorable, meaningful, likable, adaptable, transferable (for a new product, geography), protectable (not become generic as Kleenex, scotch).G. Designing holistic marketing activities Brand contact with the consumer, there are 3 phase: Personalization: -stop mass market, throwback to personalizing marketing. – Each customer is unique: one to one marketing -build a strong consumer’s relationship Integration: -traditional mix marketing isn’t adequately, now we need variet of marketing to reinforce the brand. (Sponsoring, communication, promotion, events†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. ) Internalization: -companies must adopt an international perspective Choose the right moment, link internal and external marketing and bring the brand alive for employees H.Leveraging (influence) secondary association Linking the brand with others information (p290), a brand can build equity by linking with others entities. III. Measuring brand equity 2 basic approaches: -Brand audit: uncover sources of brand equity, suggest way to improve its equity. Brand audit is use to prepare marketing plan -brand tracking studies: understanding thank to quantitative data from consumers, to facilitate day to day decision marketing. IV. Managing brand equity Brand management requires a long term view of marketing actions I. Brand reinforcement -Brand need to be carefully managed to surviveImprove product, service, and marketing Needs innovations/relevance throughout marketing program (p295) -marketing need some change to be competitive -brands need activities to awareness (new products, creatively design, ad campaign†¦) J. Brand revitalization New competitors can affect a brand, so brand have to be refresh Solution: -understanding the source of brand equity -bad association loosing the brand -create new positioning -change marketing program -come back to basic ima ge V. Devising (concevoir) a brand Strategy -Brand extension: establish brand with introduce a new one sub brand: new brand combine with existing brand -brand line: all product -License product: brand name has been licensed to make the product K. Branding decision Develop a brand name for a product: 4 strategies Individual name:(old el Paso) advantage, if the product is low quality brand is not hurt Blanket family name: development cost is lower because we don’t need research/add, to create recognition Separate family name for all products: ex: craftsman for tools Corporate name combined with individual product name: Kellogg: kellogg’scorn flakes L. Brand extension Advantages: -customers know parent brand don’t need to create awareness for marketing, communication Feed back effect: knowledge Disadvantages: -confusion with new product -harm, hurt parent brand with bad a product (Success characteristic f 9. 8 p301) M. Brand portfolio Marketers need multiple brands to pursue these segments. Aim goal of brand portfolio is maximize brand coverage. -low end entry: attract customers to brand franchise -high end prestige: prestige of brand with adds CHAPTER 10 CRAFTING THE BRAND POSITIONING SEGMENT MARKETING A market segment consists of a group of customers who share a similar needs and wants.Rather than creating the segments, the marketer’s task is to identify them and to decide which one to target. Market segments can be characterized in different ways, one approach is to: Identify preference segment categorized them by: Homogeneous preferences: if the customers have the same preferences Diffused preferences: the customer preference vary greatly in their requirement Clustered preferences: when natural market segment emerge from groups of customers with shared preferences NICHE MARKETING A niche is marketing is narrowly defined customers group seeking a distinctive mix of benefits or values.Marketers usually identify niches by dividing a m arket into subsegments. Niche markets are generally fairly small is term of volume but constitute a sufficientetly attractive size, profit and growth potential. Also they are less likely to attract many other powerful competitors †¢ Focusing their resources to gain economies though specialization LOCAL MARKETING Customizes merchandise to match the perceived demand of local areas The risk associated with localized marketing includes: †¢ A tendency to drive up the manufacturing costs and to reduce economies of scale Grassroots marketingINDIVIDUAL MARKETING Marketing one to one The researches seek to define segment by looking at descriptive characteristics: geographic, demographic and psychographic. GEOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION Divide the market into different geographical units such as nations, states, regions†¦ DEMOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION The market is divided into groups on the basic of variable such as ages, family size, occupation, race†¦ PSYCHOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION Psy chographic profiles are typically developed with reference to three variables know as the AIO factors that describe individual lifestyle: 1. Activities 2. Interests . opinions BEHAVIOURAL SEGMENTATION Marketers place buyers into groups on the basic of their knowledge of, attitude towards, use of or response to a product. To compete more effectively many companies are now adopting target marketing. Instead of scattering their marketing efforts they are focusing on customers they have the greatest chance of satisfying. Target marketing includes three activities: market segmentation, market targeting and market positioning. STEPS IN SEGMENTATION PROCESS 1. Needs-based segmentation Group customers into segments based on similar needs 2. Segment identificationSegment by behavior, psychographic, individual, demographic and geographic 3. Segment attractiveness: Determine the attractiveness of each segment 4. Segment profitability: Determine segment profitability 5. Segment positioning: for each segment create a value proposition and product-price positioning strategy based on that segment’s unique customer need and characteristics 6. Segment â€Å"acid test†: create segment storyboard to test the attractiveness of each segment’s positioning strategy 7. Marketing mix strategy: Expand segment positioning strategy to include all aspects of the marketing mix: the 4PEFFECTIVE SEGMENTATION CRITERIA An effective segmentation must be: 1. Measurable: size, purchasing power†¦ 2. Substantial: the segment are large and profitable enough toserve 3. Accessible: the segment can be effectively reached and seved. 4. Differentiable: the segment are distinguishable 5. Actionable: effective programs can be formulates for attracting and serving the segments Positioning is the act of designing the company offering and image to occupy a distinctive place in the minds of the target market. The goal is to establish the brand in the mind of the consumers.The result o f positioning is the successful creation of a consumer- focused value proposition CHAPTER 11 : COMPETITVE DYNAMICS Without customers, you don’t have business Creating loyal customers is at the heart of every business, the only value your company will ever create is the value that comes from the customers. Managers who believe that costumer is the company’s only true â€Å"profit center† consider the traditional organization chart (first figure), successful marketing companies invert the chart (second figure) At the top the customer, the front line is the people who meet, serve and satisfy customersMany companies recognize the importance of satisfying theirs consumer in order to develop brand reputations that can deliver a sustainable competitive advantage The concept of costumer-perceived value enables marketers to discover what consumers want though the medium market research CUSTOMER-PERCEIVED VALUE (CPV) The CPVis the difference between the prospective custom er’s evaluation of all benefits and all the costs of an offering and the perceived alternatives. Total costumer benefit is the perceived monetary value of the bundle of economic, functional and psychological benefits consumers expect from given market offering.Total costumer cost is the perceived bundle of costs costumers expect to incur in evaluating, obtaining, using and disposing of the given market offering BUILDING CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Customers want loyalty, not perfection Customer can sense when a companies are consistently more loyal to investors, employees and regulators than to people who buy their products and services, customers are not being disloyal; they are being discriminating. The question is not how can we radically increase customer loyalty, but how can we radically increase our own loyalty to customers.To increase our sellers, we need to develop consumer’s loyalty Total customer satisfaction Whether the buyer is satisfied after purchase depends on the offer’s performance; if the performance falls short of expectations, the customer is dissatisfied, if the performance match the expectations, the customer is satisfied, if the performance exceeds expectations, the customer is highly satisfied or delighted. Customer assessments of product performance depend on many factors, especially the type of loyalty relationship the customer has with the brand.Although the customer-centre firm seeks to create a high customer satisfaction, that is not only his ultimate goal. Company might be able to increase its profitability by means other than increased satisfaction. Monitoring satisfaction Many companies are systematically measuring how well they treat their customers, identifying the factors shaping satisfaction and making changes in their operations and marketing as a result Customer satisfaction Companies should measure customer satisfaction regularly, because an important key to customer retention is customer satisfaction.A hig h customer satisfaction brings high profits, the customer stay longer; the customers are less sensitive to the price and pay less attention to the competing brand. Measurement techniques A number of methods exist to measure customer satisfaction for example periodic surveys, customer loss rate. Influence of customer satisfaction For customer-centre companies, customer satisfaction is both a goal and a marketing tool. Companies need to be especially concerned today with their customer satisfaction level.MAXIMIZING CUSTOMER LIFETIME VALUE Customer profitability A profitable customer is a person, household, or company that over time yields a revenue stream that exceeds by an acceptable amount the company’s cost stream for attracting, selling and servicing that customer. CULTIVATING CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS Maximizing customer-perceived value means cultivating long-term customer relationship. Companies are now moving away from wasteful mass marketing to precision marketing designed to build strong customer relationships.Customer relationship management Customer relationship management (CRM) is the process of carefully managing detailed information about individual customers and all customer â€Å"touch point† to maximize