Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Marketing - Essay Example Balancing marketing mix enables the business to deliver its product in the right location within the stipulated time. Firms that demonstrate great consumer satisfaction are able to hold on large market shares because they respond effectively to consumer trends. Introduction Sustainability of an organisation depends on economic viability of the business in relation to customer’s behaviour. Business enterprises that post successful results in the market are able to convince consumers to buy their products as well as reciprocating consumer’s behaviour by providing products, which will satisfy consumer demands. Zara is an apparel company with outlets in famous cities of the world. The organisation traces its root in Spain; however, it has branches in major cities of the world. The concept that this paper intend to discuss is marketing of the company product. Marketing is a crucial element for the business because it dictates the viability of the sustainability of the busine ss. The report will explore various marketing aspects such as customer, market environment, and marketing mix in relation to the strategy of the business. Investigation of the above aspects will enable the report to make recommendation as well as developing future strategies of increasing the performance of the business. The operation of the company in foreign markets is a concern of this paper. The choice of market is very critical to the business performance. However, the knowledge of customer choices helps many enterprises to integrate their markets with respect to consumer behaviour. Zara The firm established its operation in 1975 in Galicia Spain. The firm has stretched its operation to cover large cities in the world. It retails products of textile with a focus on fashion trends that dictate the consumer behaviour in the clothing industry. The profit margin of the organisation has been consistently high, demonstrating that the organisation is economically viable. Currently, th e organisation has 2,692 stores across the world (Dutta, 2002:3). The organisation’s aim is to feed the markets with medium quality products at competitive prices. The idea is to ensure that the company products are selling in a highly competitive environment. The organisation relies on consumer trends in designing its products as well as setting the prices of the product. Clothing apparels pose a number of challenges to entrepreneurs because the consumption behaviour changes with fashion trends (Luo, 2008:6). This requirement dictates the marketing strategy of the product. For instance, the organisation has observed that high prices delay stock turn over which eventually reflects on the profit margin of the organisation. Zara’s manufacturing and stocking trend ensures that the customers’ tastes are available in the market at any given time. The idea seems to be influencing the manufacturing trends developed by the firm. Time is a concept that influences product behaviour in most cases. Some product have short expiry period while other have long expiry period. Whatever the case, market response for the company product dictates the manufacturing speed and the profit of the business. For example, Y products in the market may take two months in the market. The two months would be reflecting on the product demand patterns demonstrated by the consumers. However, when the organisation decides to change the prices of the

Organizational Characteristics Essay Example for Free

Organizational Characteristics Essay This paper will describe the culture and the organizational characteristics of a chosen organization, Publix Supermarkets. Detailed throughout will be the common characteristics of the organization as it operates on a day to day basis. Specifically the system based on individual units, rules and norms expected of the associates and supervisors as well as the hierarchy will be established for the reader to garner a better understanding. Furthermore, the communication networks, organizational orientation, approaches to and by leadership members, as well as the decision making and communication procedures put forth by members of management will be analyzed. This paper will describe which 4 of these listed characteristics are most influenced by communication between members and levels of Publix Supermarkets. The author has been employed with this supermarket chain for more than 7 years and has ample knowledge and understanding on the organization as a whole. Common Characteristics of an Organization Publix Supermarkets is a grocery chain unlike many others for a variety of reasons. Founded in 1930 in Winter haven, Florida by George W. Jenkins, Publix is known for its customer first atmosphere and pleasurable shopping experience. The grocery chain whose motto states they will never knowingly disappoint their customers operates in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee and currently has more than 1000 stores in operation (Publix.com). Jenkins’ supermarket chain has continued to grow on their customer friendly business sense. Publix has since become a Fortune 500 company and is privately held and owned by its employees. For as well as they treat their customers, the chain treats its associates and management staff just as well if not better. Publix workers who have been with the company a base number of years receive shares of stock for every 1000 hours worked, and can purchase more shares of stock at almost any time during a given year. The grocery chain is also well known for its high ranking employee benefits and treatment in the employment world. Rules/Norms (Written and Unwritten) Outside of the big green P logo, the Publix atmosphere is what customers relate to with the chain more than anything else. Communication with customers is a major asset in following proper Publix protocol. The smiling helpful associates, clean stores, and consumer friendly set up of product is where Publix truly prides itself as an organization. Each experience ends with a friendly cashier and bagger, and the bagger will always bring the customer to their vehicle and help load product into the car for them. Believe it or not this all relates to performance evaluations that are done quarterly, where associates are evaluated on their behavior amongst the customers. Customer intimacy is something Publix takes very seriously. The Publix image extends onto its associates as well. All employees are expected to show up to work on time and be clean shaven in full clean uniform attire. Each department and job class has their own specific uniform; however all include proper hygiene, reasonable hairstyling, and proper equipment to perform their tasks to better serve the shoppers. Publix is an organization that understands how to promote their brand by utilizing all available options to do so. Clean stores and clean happy associates promote the â€Å"Publix Way.† This plays a major role in nonverbal communication between Publix associates and their customers. Aside from dress code and customer relations, two major elements, there are many other standards Publix employees are held to. A good example of one unwritten Publix rule would be: communication between associates when out on the sales floor during business hours must be respectful, and if at all possible must include the customer. Also, outside from positive communication both verbal and nonverbal with customers and fellow associates employees are expected to communicate both effectively and respectfully with management teams as well. Hierarchy The Publix store level hierarchy is something that runs seemingly parallel in each department throughout the store. Each department and sub department have their chain of command as follows: part time associates, full time associates, assistant department manager, and department manager. The two major departments, grocery and customer service, have the most associates, in order to better supervise their employees there is a position called a team leader that fits into the hierarchy between the full time associates and the management team. Publix is a company that only promotes from within. This is a big selling point for associates and applicants alike. Knowing that the opportunity for advancement is always there is a major asset for the associates in the store. Communications between the different levels of the chain of command are fluid. The associates can go to their department managers, or team leaders, with any concern or idea. The department managers at store level then communicate with the store’s assistant manager and store manager about the associate’s ideas and concerns. Communication Networks The information Publix gathers through their retail channels is usually information based on product analysis and placement that they can pass down to the management teams at store levels to assess further. Ultimately the store will take the advice of corporate and try to taper the information in the way it works most effectively for each store. Each store can take the same information and depict it differently. Information about new products, events, or openings may not influence all stores, or influence them all at the same level. There are times, during major events like hurricanes, holidays, or back to school time, where Publix store level employees must take the information sent to them by corporate including sales figures and forecasts in order to build the proper displays and floor models for customers to browse. Having product out that customers take interest in can help drive sales. The communication between the different levels of Publix Supermarkets goes hand in hand with communication networks at the store level. Leadership Approaches A major tool in the line of communication at Publix is how they allow anyone who is willing to step up and be a leader, do so. When every associate feels that sense of empowerment in their employment it urges them to lead in a different way, work harder and do a better job to lead by example. Publix pushes their associates to be role models both in the stores, and in the community. The management teams are in place to ensure guidelines are followed, but showing quality leadership through positive communication means so much more. Communicating with leaders is always a situation associates take very seriously in any industry or business. This is no different in the retail world at Publix. Associates voice their concerns and feelings to their leaders, whether it be management, team leaders, or even fellow associates who take on the responsibility of leading a specific group. At Publix supermarkets the communication had with leadership is always something associates should come away from feeling they were heard out and understood, good virtue for any organization to sustain. Conclusion Publix through the years has become one of the most widely respected organizations in America. This is due to the quality product and customer service put out the grocery chain, but also playing a role in the respect factor is the culture of the organization. This of course starts at store level and works its way to the corporate ranks, and is in large part to do with positive, effective communication. Publix supermarkets are known throughout the world a company that is great to work for, just as much as they are to shop at. Through utilizing all of the common communication characteristics Publix has continued to promote a very associate friendly atmosphere through the years. The supermarket chain takes pride in the fact that each associate understands their value to their company and takes pride in hiring quality applicants. Publix utilizes its rules and norms, hierarchy, communication networks, and strong leadership approach in all day to day activities in order to remain a successful industry leader.

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck Essay -- farm, tractors, land own

The bright colors and nice shirts all grab your attention at the store, but how did the cotton, grain, or wheat in the products come to be? In Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, mechanization brings capitalism and other unintended consequences, leads to the decision for land owners of whether to run a business using greed or virtue, and separates the working class. Steinbeck starts The Grapes of Wrath by showing the Joad family who had just been removed from their farm. The Joads are one family of a monstrous number of families to be removed from their farms. They were raised on the land, some died on the land, and they were with approximately seven million families that lived on farms in the same day (â€Å"U.S. AGRICULTURAL POLICY,† 10). The banks told the Farmers’ Association to lower the overhead of all agricultural products by employing possibly one or two men to take the place of sixteen other men. The owner of the land had the choice to both get rich and be extremely wealthy by profiting off the loss and pain of others or to become one who is taken advantage of and becoming hungry and poor. One of the main unintended consequences of employing one man to drive the tractor was a loss of contact to the land. The land owners became completely separated from their land. The people who farmed in the same way as the Joads lived for the land, and they lived because of the land. This relationship between farmer and land was destroyed due to the introduction of the tractor to the land. Land owners no longer knew when they needed to give the land a break, and for this reason many pieces of land became totally dust and truly became unformidable to any type of farming. This overuse of the land led to what we know as the Dust B... ...reed which totally annihilated the working class’s bond of unity. If the working class had united maybe they would not have been so very miserable for such a long time. Maybe the Dustbowl would have never happened. Works Cited â€Å"Article III.† The Harvest Gypsies: On the Road to the Grapes of Wrath. Charles Wollenberg, ed. Berkeley: Heyday Books, 1988. â€Å"Article IV.† The Harvest Gypsies: On the Road to the Grapes of Wrath. Charles Wollenberg, ed. Berkeley: Heyday Books, 1988. Harvey, John, John Crowley, and Jack Hayes. U.S. Government. Department of Agriculture. Face of Rural America. 1975. Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. 1939. Eds. Peter Lisca with Kevin Hearle. New York: Viking,1997. Rasmussen, Wayne D.. "The Challenge of Change." Trans. Array U.S. Agriculture in a Global Economy. 1985. "U.S. AGRICULTURAL POLICY." The Reference Shelf. 38. New York: 1966.

Gabriel Garcia Marquezs Chronicle of a Death Foretold Essay examples -

Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Chronicle of a Death Foretold Many authors parallel the protagonists of their novels to other figures in order to make a direct comparison. Throughout the novel Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Gabriel Garcia Marquez forms a congruence between Santiago Naser and Jesus Christ. While parallels between both men are woven within the pages, revelations of the corrupt societies are distinguished as the deaths of Santiago and Jesus essentially epitomize the cultural traditions that were destroyed by their lives, but revived through their deaths. The portrayal of Santiago Naser develops into a direct parallel of Jesus Christ. At the beginning of the novel â€Å"Santiago put on a shirt and pants of white linen†(5). Since white is the color of innocence, this choice of clothing promotes an innocence in Santiago Naser. Just as Jesus wore a white linen cloth before he was to die, Santiago too wears white linen the day that he is supposed to die. This immediate comparison with Jesus Christ thus sets up the rest of the novel as a symbolic reference. The most direct parallels come during the narration of the direct killing of Santiago and the description of the body after the murder occurs. Marquez explains that â€Å"The knife went through the palm of his right hand and then sank into his side up to the hilt. Everybody heard his cry of pain†(139). Once again an absolute parallel is seen here. Jesus Christ was nailed to the cross by means of the palms of his hands. And just as the soldiers stabbed a woun d in His side in order to ensure He was dead, the Vicario brothers stabbed the knife into the side of Santiago. In addition to all the parallels of this single quote, the explanation that â€Å"Everybody heard hi... ...ir honor. The society believed that if Santiago remained in the civilization he would be defying the traditional values. Jesus Christ also faced these traditional values within His society. Christ was killed to uphold the tradition of the church. By Christ claiming He was God, the church had been defied and thus became angry. Through the death of Jesus Christ though, the church believed that the traditional values could be upheld and remain unchanged. Overall, the comparisons between Santiago and Christ were uncountable. Marquez weaves the Biblical ideas throughout his novel in order to promote the destruction and recreation of cultural traditions. In doing so, the corrupt actions of the society were made known as the faults in people thoughts were confirmed. Bibliography: Marquez, Gabriel Garcia. Chronicles of a Death Foretold, 1982, Vintage.

Philosophical thinking Essay

There are many forms of philosophical thinking that humans tend to immerse themselves into. Sometimes, even the realm of self idolatry can be a subject of one’s happiness in pursuit of his own idea of what is satisfactory. In a more conventional identification of this act, vanity can become an obsession and may induce certain effects to one’s character. According to Wikipedia, vanity is a form of self gratification with regards to one’s belief about his or her attractiveness and abilities. Most of the time, people with this philosophy tend to excessively compliment themselves without entertaining any forms of negative perception from the people around them. In religious perspectives, vanity is a form of idolatry to oneself in which a person may become too overwhelmed with his characteristics that he tends to ignore any other beings superior than what he is supposed to be, bypassing the concept of god. In modern times, vanity can be easily spotted and may be identified to almost all societies in the world. One may identify a vain person by simply observing the way he acts with regards to how he projects himself to the public. For example, a person may always need to do make up retouching, consistently apply perfumes and even always engage in small acts of looking for runs and protruding fibers out of his clothes. In some cases, vanity can also be identified not only in physical perspectives but also in one’s philosophy. Vain people tend to always tell self proclaimed abilities about how they can handle situations which seem to be a problem for others. With such acts, some people may even interpret them as a form of arrogance. It would be a fulfilling experience if someone will tell you compliments about how you look and praise what you can do, but the aim to always look forward for this reactions from people can become an obsession and may lead to vanity. Works Cited Wikipedia. November 7 2007. Vanity. Wikipedia-The Free Encyclopedia. November 19, 2007 http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Vanity.

American Bald Eagle essays

American Bald Eagle essays The Haliaeetus leucocephalus is commonly know as the Southern Bald Eagle. The Southern Bald Eagle is a member of the Accipitradae family that also includes hawks and vultures. Eagles are divided into four groups depending on their characteristics; in which the bald eagle is a sea or fish eagle. Bald eagles are found throughout North America in the Tiaga and Deciduous Forest Biomes. The Southern Bald Eagle is found in the Gulf States from Texas to Baja California across to South Carolina and Florida. Bald eagle usually nest on coasts near bodies of water where they feed. They build their nests in tall trees with a clear view of the surrounding area. Eagles nests are very strong and on an average are twenty feet thick and about ten feet across and are the largest of any bird in North America. A nest cite can be occupied for more decades as long as it is claimed. Fish are the preferred diet of eagles, but they also eat small mammals , water turtles, reptiles, and dead animals such as stranded fish and road kill. An eagle can expertly catch waterfowl and fish from the water with its talons. When catching prey in flight they turn upside down and grab the prey by the breast. An eagle can fly at speeds up to sixty-five miles per hour at level flight and reach speeds of one hundred-fifty miles per hour in a dive. By eating dead animal matter, they help with natures clean-up process. Since they are hunters they also keep the animal population strong. They do this by killing weak, old, and slower animals; leaving only the healthiest to survive. When Europeans first came to North America eagles were unwanted and considered vermin by farmers. They were shot for the fear of poultry and livestock loss. By the nineteen fortys their destruction prompted the passage of protective laws and public attitudes began to change. Since the bald eagle is our national symbol, in the nineteen sixtys people began to take e...

Essay Sample on the War Measures Act in World War I

Essay Sample on the War Measures Act in World War I Free example essay on The War Measures Act: I found the War Measures Act by going to the University of British Columbia Law Library and asking the librarian for help. I asked if he could help me find the act, and he proceeded to lead me to the stacks where it was located. In this report, I will examine the contents of the act- specifically the balance of power between the Governor in Council and Parliament, as well as the historiographical context surrounding its creation. The War Measures Act is based in World War One. World War One started surrounding the various alliances present in Europe at the time. Serbia, which was ruled by Austria-Hungary, was thrown into chaos by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and Russia, an ally of Serbia came to it’s defence. France was allied to Russia, thus the French came to Russia’s defence. Great Britain was also allied to Russia and France, in addition to promising to defend Belgium’s neutrality. â€Å"When Germany invaded Belgium, Britain declared war.† (1.) Now, Canada, which was still ruled politically by Great Britain, was automatically committed to the defense of Great Britain. In preparation for the war, Parliament convened and unanimously passed the War Measures Act, which was a statute declaring that the Prime Minister’s Cabinet had the right to ‘suspend the civil liberties of anyone suspected of collaborating with the enemy and to regulate any area of society deemed essential for the conduct of the war.’ (2.) Once the act had gone through Parliament, it gave the federal cabinet an incredible amount of power. Upon close examination, however, Parliament did retain the ability to impose itself upon these powers, as will be explored. The War Measures Act begins with a clause specifying the conditions of war. It opens with the phrase: ‘The issue of a proclamation by Her Majesty or under the authority of the Governor in Council shall be conclusive evidence that war, invasion or insurrection, real or apprehend, exists†¦or†¦[continues] until by the issue of a further proclamation [it has ended]’. (3.) It is interesting to note that it is not by declaration of the Canadian Parliament that war is declared to have begun or ended, but by the Queen or the Governor in Council. Once the act had gone through Parliament, it gave the federal cabinet an incredible amount of power. This is important because at the time the act was passed, the Governor in Council was the Queen’s representative in Canada. This political institution linked Great Britain with Canada, which is subsequently the political reason that Canada was committed to the defense of Great Britain and her allies. (4.) It is in this brief section that wide discretionary powers were granted, and when one reviews the powers in conjunction with the last statement of the subsection, the extent to which the federal cabinet were given control becomes clear. It is not clearly stated what the stipulations are which would specify whether war, invasion or insurrection exists, merely that the Governor in Council has the authority by proclamation to declare it so. Once this proclamation has been issued, only a further proclamation by the Governor in Council can declare the war, invasion or insurrection as being over. The powers of the Governor in Council (Governor General) explicitly specify that it had the authority to make enactments necessary for the ‘security, defence, peace, order and welfare of Canada’, The special powers of the Governor in Council ‘extend to all matters coming within the classes of subjects hereinafter inumerated.’ These include: censorship and control of communications; arrest, detention, exclusion and deportation; control of the waters and movement of vessels; transportation by land, air or water as well as persons or things; trading, exportation, importation, production and manufacture; and control over property and its use. (5.) The act then puts ‘all orders and regulations made under this section [as having] the force of law’. The Governor in Council is given the authority to enforce them, ‘as [it] may prescribe’ as well as the powers to ‘vary, extend or revoke’. (6.) Now, any law which is put into effect must have some sort of punishment accrued to it, and yet again, the Governor in Council is given complete discretion in this matter. ‘The Governor in Council may prescribe the punishment that may be imposed for contraventions of orders and regulations made under this Act,’. (7.) Under section 6 of the War Measures Act, Parliament retained the right to check the federal government. In 6.3 it states that where there has been a proclamation pursuant to subsection 2, that the proclamation shall be debated, and ‘if both Houses of Parliament resolve that the proclamation be revoked, it ceases to be in effect.’ (8.) Furthermore, sections 3, 4, 5 – the force of law, imposition of punishment and no release of aliens – ‘cease to be in force until they are brought into force by a further proclamation.’ (9.) This may seem redundant, although it is not, because for the first time in the act, there are stipulations which are put on the Governor in Council. Another proclamation must be made ‘without prejudice to the previous operation of those sections; anything done or suffered under them; or any offence committed or punishment incurred.’ (10.) This is to say that the previous effects of the proclamation must not be use d as evidence that a further proclamation should be announced. Further to these stipulations, the act must not in any way ‘abrogate, abridge or infringe’ upon the Canadian Bill of Rights. (11.) In conclusion, it is important to make mention of the historiographical context in which this act was written. At the start of World War One, the world was changing dramatically. The Industrial Revolution had altered the position of Great Britain in international relations. With the advent of the industrialization of countries which were previously agricultural, Great Britain began to meet competition on the world economic market. (12.) A wave of protectionism arose in which Great Britain was not allowed to participate in free trade with most other European Countries. This had the effect of stimulating interest in Great Britain’s Commonwealth as regions which could supply raw materials for domestic industries. (13.) Thus, at the start of the war, Great Britain, and subsequently Canada, were forced to draw upon their collective resources to fund the war effort. The exigencies under which the War Measures Act was written could therefore be viewed as a response to the internation al climate which Canada, as part of the British Commonwealth, were faced with. The Powers of the Governor in Council- which are the substance of the act, could be interpreted as an exertion of control over the Canadian domestic realm. Censorship and control of communications, as well as the measures of deportation, were a response to the increased modes of communication made possible by advances in technology. Similarly, the control of points of entry and transport of persons and things were measures to ensure Great Britain’s control over its dominion. The political leaders of Canada at this time, both French (led by Henri Bourassa) and English (led by Wilfred Laurier) were in support of this. Henri Bourassa ‘initially supported Canadian participation, seeing the survival of France and Britain as vital to Canada.’ (14.) English Canadians were naturally in support of Great Britain, and again, they were bound to Britain by virtue of their political ties.