How Material Things Contribute Towards Differences on a Street Essay

Taking into consideration that ‘difference is not the same as inequality’ (Blakeley et al., 2009, p. 24), this essay intends to look at KÃâ€" and outline how the material things contribute towards differences with reference to City Road; deriving from the premise that the material assets of a street can generate either an inclusive or exclusive interaction, favouring some and not others. Kà ¶nigsalle, known by its nickname, â€Å"Kà ¶, is the most beloved upscale commercial street in Germany (Welt online, 2010). On one side of the street we have stores from the most expensive brands in the world and on the other, a mix of baroque buildings which host a different number of businesses. Being seen walking along or visiting its stores is denotative of a unique social status. Everything along the Kà ¶ is designed to be in accordance to and promote an upscale social lifestyle. The material things on City Road, while performing a more literal function, also contribute to tangible objective differences when favouring, for example, pedestrians over drivers (e.g. the red tarmac offers pedestrians an extra safety measure when crossing, while taking away space from the drivers); parking is also a critical matter, generating therefore, economic consequences for the local shops (‘Material Lives’, 2009, scene 1). Another relevant point is the fact that, City Road social appearance, along with its material assets usage, changes considerably throughout the day, making it almost a different street by nightfall (e.g. from a busy commercial street during the day to a ‘party haven’ at night, when it is taken over by young adults) (‘Making social lives on City Road’, 2009, Scene 8). Such an absolute change does not occur on the Kà ¶. On the Kà ¶, the very same material things, should not only perform the most frugal of the functions, but also be in accordance to what the street stands for, thus, being an active part of the process of creating objective tangible differences -like in City Road, as well as, subjective ones. Kà ¶ supports its image by providing the necessary visible and invisible infrastructure to sustain a busy, high-octane upscale atmosphere: The street signage is visible; there are several crossing points; clearly marked sidewalks, tarmacs and lanes favour the mobility of handicapped individuals as well as bicycles and pedestrians without deterring traffic; it is well lit; the buildings and facades are well taken care of; litter bins are everywhere and one will, for example, find plenty of parking possibilities, which as a result, allows the individual to visit the stores and restaurants and feel safe. Altogether, the material things are in perfect apparent symbiosis with its users. Separately, each material asset on the Kà ¶ objectively indicates them as being part of a regular commercial street just like City Road. When looking at them altogether, the ensemble creates a striking subjective difference. To better illustrate how the material things on both streets subjectively enforces a certain type of behaviour and attitude, take the example of an individual walking down the street wearing shorts, tank-top and flip-flops. On City Road, this individual would most likely not even be noticed. The same individual walking down the Kà ¶, would be regarded as conspicuous. The same can be applied to the type of cars circulating on the Kà ¶ or City Road, a Ferrari on the Kà ¶ would be taken for granted while on City Road it would probably stand out. Another example to consider is parking. Though there are many parking slots and options, the prices around the Kà ¶ are up to 80% more expensive than other streets in Dà ¼sseldorf (RP Online, 2011), hence, favouring the visit of the more affluent layer of the community over the lesser one. There is no sign on the Kà ¶ telling who is welcomed or not; objectively speaking everyone is welcomed, but its material things are invested with such a subjective meaning, that they set the pace and shape of the local social life, creating therefore, an alluring environment which itself dictates a whole gamut of social patterns that are absorbed and followed by the local community, consequently contributing towards differences. While City Road reveals a more inclusive image, Kà ¶ conversely manifests a more exclusive one. As we can see, each street is similar in various aspects and are designed and structured to cater and favour a specific type of person, business or activity and its material things corroborate such a process by subjectively or objectively embedding certain social patterns which will then be adopted by their users.

Nescafe and Social Media

and the Social Media by Tanya Senkovska 11114117 Stella Valcheva 11114120 Teodora Gocheva 11114125 1 CONTENTS Introduction †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦3 Theory Marketing Concepts †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦4 Social Media †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â ‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 5 Social Media Marketing †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 6 Nescafe The Brand †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 7 Nescafe Marketing Analysis (theory implementation) †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦9 Adv ertising †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦12 Corporate Social Responsibility †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦13Nescafe and the Social Media Social Media tips and rules †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 13 Nescafe`s Facebook Profile †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã ¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦15 Nescafe on Twitter †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 16 Nescafe – Youtube Channel †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 17 Nescafe Ad Campaigns Around the World †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 18 Conclusion †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 19 References †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦20 2 INTRODUCTION Aim of our project: The main purpose of our project is to define the social media impact on our product.We explore the principal concepts and and tools of successful marketing strategy, from market segmentation and product positiong to designing of distribution channels and communications strategy . To thrive in a highly competitive marketplace, companies must develop marketing plans that align them with their customers and differentiate them from their competitors. Without integrated and innovative strategies, corporate leaders will struggle to create value and generate growth. The reason for choosing NesCafe as a discussing brand is because of the wide range of activities in which the company is involved.Their huge campaigns, reflected in all kinds of social media, are an attempt to create a global brand positioning for Nescafe’s portfolio of coffee brands that explored how the catalytic nature of coffee made the world a more interesting and richer place. The opportunity of interacting among pople gives the customer a fresh insight about the competitive advantage and potential of the unique goods and services your organization offers. 3 THEORY Marketing concepts MARKETING ENVIRONMENT Every company operates under particular conditions that influence its ability to ser ve customers.The microenvironment consists of actors close to the company, such as suppliers, intermediaries – combining efforts to create value; competitors – trying to serve customers better; publics may have impact on firm`s performance; customers – the most important. The macroenvironment includes larger forces that affect the whole internal environment. Those are beyond the control of a single company and thus they shape the opportunities and threats for the business – demographic, political, economic, cultural, societal, technological.STP ANALYSIS The strategic marketing planning process flows from a mission and vision statement to the selection of target markets, and the formulation of specific marketing mix and positioning objective for each product or service the organization will offer. The marketing logic followed should present the organization as a value creation and delivery sequence, resulting in profitable customer relationship. In its fir st phase, choosing the value, the strategist â€Å"proceeds to segment the market, select the appropriate market target, and develop the offer's value positioning.The formula – segmentation, targeting, positioning (STP) -is the essence of strategic marketing. † (Kotler, 1994, p. 93). SEGMENTATION Market segmentation consists of the partition of the market to distinct groups with different needs and wants with the purpose of selecting one or more market segments which the organization can target through the development of specific marketing mixes that adapt to particular market needs. TARGETING From the determined market segments a company chooses a target market – group of customers that the business has decided to aim its marketing efforts at.It is the one for which the firm could create maximum customer value. POSITIONING Positioning of the product is determining the place it takes in consumers` minds. Efforts are put to differentiate the product from competit ors` products, so that it could be accepted as unique. 4 MARKETING MIX Thus the overall marketing strategy is outlined. The next step is to choose the most appropriate marketing mix – the 4Ps that will bring the company the best response to its wants.Product – the portfolio of goods-and-services the company offers to the target market Price – amount of money to be paid, adjusted to the current competitive and economic situation, in line with buyer`s perceptions of the product`s value. Place – all the activities that make the product available to target consumers, including intermediaries, distributors, sellers. Promotion – all the activities that present the unique characteristics of the product and persuade the customer to buy it. SWOT ANALYSIS The SWOT analysis is an extremely useful tool for understanding and decision-making for all sorts of situations in business and organizations.SWOT is an acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Thr eats. SWOT analysis headings provide a good framework for reviewing strategy, position and direction of a company or business proposition. Use SWOT analysis for business planning, strategic planning, competitor evaluation, marketing, business and product development and research SOCIAL MEDIA Social media are forms of electronic communication (as Web sites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content.Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as â€Å"a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2. 0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content. Furthermore, social media depend on mobile and web-based technologies to create highly interactive platforms through which individuals and communities share, co-create , discuss, and modify user-generated content. It introduces substantial and pervasive changes to communication between organizations, communities and individual.Classification By applying a set of theories in the field of media research (social presence, media richness) and social processes (self-presentation, self-disclosure) Kaplan and Haenlein created a classification scheme in their Business Horizons (2010) article, with six different types of social media: 5 ? ? ? ? ? ? collaborative projects (for example, Wikipedia), blogs and microblogs (for example, Twitter), content communities (for example, YouTube and DailyMotion), social networking sites (for example, Facebook), virtual game worlds (e. g. , World of Warcraft), and virtual social worlds (e. g. Second Life)Technologies include: blogs, picture-sharing, vlogs, wall-postings, email, instant messaging, music-sharing, crowdsourcing and voice over IP,to name a few. Social media in business There is an increasing trend towards using social media monitoring tools that allow marketers to search, track and analyse conversation on the web about their brand or about topics of interest. This can be useful in business management and campaign tracking, allowing the user to measure return on investment, competitor-auditing and general public engagement. There are valuable types of information that show the engagement needs of the social media audience.For instance, LinkedIn users are thought to care mostly about identity, reputation and relationships, whereas YouTube’s primary features are sharing, conversations, groups and reputation. Many companies build their own social containers that attempt to collect more concrete information for their brands. On the other hand social media containers such as Google+ or Facebook and also Twitter could provide a business with unbiased, realistic, honest opinions and attitudes, as they are not specially stated for marketing purposes, but for friends or just self-expression.Company faces significant challenges in dealing with viral negative s entiment directed at organizations or individuals on social media platforms, which may be a reaction to an announcement or event. [15] SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING Social media marketing refers to the process of gaining website traffic or attention through social media sites. Social media marketing programs usually center on efforts to create content that attracts attention and encourages readers to share it with their social networks.A corporate message spreads from user to user and presumably resonates because it appears to come from a trusted, third-party source, as opposed to the brand or company itself. Hence, this form of marketing is driven by word-of-mouth, meaning it results in earned media rather than paid media. Social media has become a platform that is easily accessible to anyone with internet access. Increased communication for organizations fosters brand awareness and often, improved customer service. Additionally, social media serves as a relatively inexpensive platform fo r organizations to implement marketing campaigns. Social networking websites allow individuals to interact with one another and build relationships. When products or companies join those sites, people can interact with the product or company. That interaction feels personal to users because of their previous experiences with social networking site interactions. Social networking sites and blogs allow individual followers to â€Å"retweet† or â€Å"repost† comments made by the product being promoted. By repeating the message, all of the users connections are able to see the message, therefore reaching more people.Social networking sites act as word of mouth. Because the information about the product is being put out there and is getting repeated, more traffic is brought to the product/company. Through social networking sites, products/companies can have conversations and interactions with individual followers. This personal interaction can instill a feeling of loyalty i nto followers and potential customers. Also, by choosing whom to follow on these sites, products can reach a very narrow target audience.Social networking sites also include a vast amount of information about what products and services prospective clients might be interested in – marketers detect buying signals, such as content shared by people and questions posted online. Understanding of buying signals can help sales people target relevant prospects and marketers run micro-targeted campaigns. In the context of the social web, engagement means that customers and stakeholders are participants rather than viewers. Social media in business allows anyone and everyone to express and share an opinion or an idea somewhere along the business’s path to market.Each participating customer becomes part of the marketing department, as other customers read their comments or reviews. The engagement process is then fundamental to successful social media marketing. NESCAFE HISTORY Nes cafe is a brand of instant coffee made by Nestle. It comes in many different product forms. The name is a portmanteau of the words â€Å"Nestle† and â€Å"cafe†. It was in 1930 that the Brazilian government first approached Nestle to find a way of making a quality cup of coffee simply by adding water, whilst retaining the coffee’s natural flavour. Sounds simple, right? Wrong.It took seven years of research to perfect. Yes, seven years of blood, sweat and tears went into the first cup of NESCAFE (not literally though). And so, in the spring of 1938, NESCAFE was first launched in Switzerland. The rest of the orld soon followed. 7 Understandably, the Second World War hindered NESCAFE’s progress. But all was not lost. In fact, the American forces played a key role in re-launching NESCAFE in Europe when it was included in their food rations. By the 1950s, coffee had become cool. And everywhere you went you wanted to find your favorite blend. So, NESCAFE fans g rew in abundance.NESCAFE continued working to perfect great tasting coffee and in 1965, introduced the first freeze-dried soluble offering – Gold Blend. And just a few years later, we invented a new technology to capture more aromas and flavors from every single coffee bean. Then in 1994, we created the ‘full aroma' process, making the unique quality and character of NESCAFE even more distinctive. Since then, NESCAFE has remained firmly at the forefront of sustainable coffee farming and product innovations worldwide. With the continual introduction of new blends, we aim to satisfy coffee lovers just like you.PORTFOLIO Nescafe`s products are divided into two main categories: Coffee Products and Coffee Machines. Each product is separately introduced by its own characteristics and each is distinguished by its purpose and most appropriate usage. Nescafe Classic – Rich and full flavored. Nescafe 3in1 – Sweet and Creamy. Nescafe Gold Blend – Smooth taste, rich aroma. Nescafe Green Blend – Roasted and unroasted coffee beans. Nescafe Cappuccino – Light and frothy. The full list of products is different for the each of the countries, in which they are offered, as suggested by Nescafe`s main global strategy – â€Å"think globally, act locally†.The Coffee Machines DOLCE GUSTO are new addition to the company`s portfolio. They have become popular and successful products ever since their introduction, mainly due to professional advertisement. 8 MISSION STATEMENT Nescafe is part of the giant Nestle, so it adopts the mission of the whole corporation, namely: â€Å"Good Food, Good Life† However Nescafe products play vital role due to its high performance in finance. The goal is to make Nescafe consumers` prefer choice throughout by giving them best experiences with new tastes of Nescafe products.To bring NESCAFE to people around the globe, providing a â€Å"1 NOW 1 NESCAFE† to satisfy every aspect of n eeds. General Objective: The objective is to be the leader in Nutrition, Health and Wellness, and the industry reference for financial performance, trusted by all stakeholders. COMPANY`S STRATEGY â€Å"We are seeking to achieve leadership and earn that trust by satisfying the expectations of consumers, whose daily choices drive our performance, of shareholders, of the communities in which we operate and of society as a whole.We believe that it is only possible to create long- term sustainable value for our shareholders if our behaviour, strategies and operations are also creating value for the communities where we operate, for our business partners and, of course, for our consumers. We call this â€Å"Creating Shared Value. † NESCAFE`S MARKETING Analysis Marketing Environment Microenvironment Nescafe helps and supports the agriculture/producers of coffee beans, thus creates close relationship with its suppliers. Uses various types of advertising, promotions, research tools, social media and websites to maintain relationship with its customers as well.One of the most successful are the games, which take place periodically all around the world. In order to please the public Nescafe encorporates a lot of social responsibility actions, environmental friendly practices and values highly the quality of its products. 9 There are also other brands that offer instant coffee, but at least in Europe Nescafe is far ahead its competitors. While in America it lags behind Maxwell House – the instant coffee of Kraft Foods. Macroenvironment The macroenvironment of Nescafe can not be generally determined as it is different in the different countries.However Nescafe successfully copes with this situation adopting the flexible strategy – â€Å"think globally, act locally†. STP ANALYSIS SEGMENTATION AND TARGET GROUPS Nescafe uses mainly age segmentation and targets mainly young people with very active lifestyle, who might need additional energy or who do not have time to prepare coffee. 1. Working Adults (Primary) 2. Students-University, Academy, High School (Secondary) 3. Senior Citizens (Third party) Geographical segmentation is also part of the Nescafe global strategy.They alter it according to geographical and cultural particularities of the region. Here are some other factors Nescafe uses to segment the market and target its customers more efficiently: Young adult cafe culture segment: They target this segment with their new latte range, along with the advertising, sales promotion and the competition to win the lounge seen in the advertisements. Upscale, quality driven, higher income consumers: Their Nescafe Gold range and exotic tastes such as Alta Rice are aimed towards such consumers, where the price and quality are higher than that of the general blends.Middle-class consumer (no age target): Nescafe targets such a large segment with their Blend 43, Mild Roast and Espresso products. The consumer gets an economical benefit , as well as a quality product. POSITIONING Most of the campaigns call on â€Å"wake up† or â€Å"wake up 5minutes earlier†, so it tries to occupy its customers` first thoughts in the morning. Another part of the campaign aiming at teenagers and the youth stresses on the â€Å"cool† appearance with a cup of Nescafe (for example the â€Å"unexpectedly good combination 3 in 1† ad in Bulgaria).The brand also wants its customers to think of Nescafe whenever they feel tired or with lower level of energy, e. g. at the end of the work day or after sports activities. In all the presentations of the brand the cup of coffee is shared by colleagues, friend, couples, so that it could be accepted as symbol of shared happiness. A lot of efforts are put in order to be accepted as healthy products of high quality. 10 MARKETING MIX Product – Nescafe is the world‘s leading brand of coffee. Its portfolio holds variety of Coffee Products, different for each targ et group.Promotion – Promotion is playing very important role in boosting up the product image and creating demand. Nescafe is heavily promoted and that Elements: Advertising, Personal Selling, Sales Promotion, Publicity. As one of the largest companies in the world, Nestle is able to launch extensive advertising campaigns around the world. Place –The company fucuses on placing its product at different markets. Available to all retailer stores, cafes, restaurants, now even vending machines. Price – it offers quality products at a reasonable price.It uses a premium pricing strategy to signal its quality and strong brand attributes. SWOT Strengths ? Broad geographic coverage ? Global leader in instant coffee ? World number one in other hot drinks ? Strong brand portfolio ? High levels of research and development expenditure ? Solid financial base ? Capacity to pass on costs Weaknesses ? Reliance on mass market ? Limited presence in tea ? Increasing bias towards lo w-margin products ? Bias towards caffeine-based products ? Negative ethical image Opportunities ? Strong growth forecast in Asia-Pacific ? The premium trend ?The health trend ? Ethical consumerism ? Cross-branding Threats ? Sluggish prospects in developed markets ? Coffee machine competition ? Rising costs ? Competition from beyond hot drinks 11 ADVERTISING Nescafe employs a â€Å"think globally, act locally† marketing strategy. According to Keegan and Green, â€Å"Nescafe Coffee is marketed as a global brand, even though advertising messages and product formulation vary to suit cultural differences† . Nescafe’s marketing campaign is global in the sense that the company uses the same symbols worldwide, such as the renowned coffee mug and Nescafe logo.However, Nescafe tailors its campaigns to suit diverse consumer attitudes and preferences. For example, marketing advertisements targeting different locations and regions often are different in terms of copy (messag e and language) and advertising appeal (rational vs. emotional). For the emotional appeals, Nescafe is trying to tug at the heartstrings of coffee drinkers. The emotional appeals are similar in that Nescafe wants to be a part of their consumer’s day. For the most part these advertisements do make sense when compared to the cultural factors of each specific country.In different countries the Company uses diverse methods for advertisement and appeal to customers. For example comparison between Germany, USA and Argentina was made according to which in Argentina the ad has an emotional appeal rather than rational; it seeks to associate drinking a Nescafe with having a pleasant day that coincides with your pleasurable coffee? drinking experience. As Germans place great emphasis on structure and routine, Nescafe’s placement of the product as being used during a specific moment during the day (the â€Å"break†) makes sense.Germans are typically busy people; therefore p ositioning the product as a respite from the hectic daily schedule is well done; even the simplicity of the ad adds to the feeling of tranquility and getting away from the rigors of every? day life. Nescafe is promoting the visual of the individual packet in order to appeal to the typical highly individualistic American, as in this package is made â€Å"just for you†. Geared towards people that are on? the? go, the ad appeals to the American that is constantly moving and views time as indispensable and finite.Nescafe is trying to reverse the notion that â€Å"you get what you pay for† by offering the same level of quality for a lower price. Despite these strategies implemented in different countries, there are some aspects that are not especially relevant and we have recommended some changes. Nescafe is seeking to convince consumers, especially young ones, to see instant coffee as a 100% natural product. To do this, Nestle shot the ad in Brazil – the country tha t in 1930 challenged it to develop coffee that could be made by just adding water. Nescafe instant coffee was invented in 1938.According to the company, the plan is to â€Å"reconnect consumers with the journey from the plant to jar† and focus on the origins of its coffee. When brands and their creative agencies agree, in full or in part, about the breadth of the cultural influence and the social value of music, they need to make a long-term commitment to developing a â€Å"music strategy†. Nescafe is a great example for this, because most of their advertisements include music. In this way they connect on an emotional level ,which is central to consumer engagement and music offers a multitude of paths to accomplish this. 2 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY The Nescafe Plan: Creating Shared Value â€Å"Responsibility Goes Beyond the Cup† Paul Bulcke, Neslte CEO states the ambition: â€Å"Nescafe gives its name to this global initiative, which creates value across the coffee supply chain, from farmers, to consumers, to us. † Nescafe works hardly on its image – a really responsible brand, caring of the future generations, believing in the benefits arising from sustainable development. It emphasizes on the Nescafe Plan, which is â€Å"a global initiative that supports responsible farming, production and consumption. To win customers` and shareholders` loyalty the brand takes some actions: ? ? ? ? NESCAFE works with partners to support farmers NESCAFE is working to reduce its impact on the environment. NESCAFE promotes environmental responsibility, creates shared value for the people whose lives they influence NESCAFE makes it personal and acts as promoter of preserving the environment: â€Å"how you can help to reduce your enviromental impact? † In addition Nescafe pays much attention on valuable concepts as â€Å"health† and â€Å"quality†, instead of relying on lower prices.Thus it completes the position of the products as environmentally friendly produced, with high nutrition characteristics and suitable for healthy lifestyle. Moreover its customers believe that they contribute to huge, positive, social impact – grounds for lasting, loyalty and close relationship. NESCAFE AND THE SOCIAL MEDIA SOCIAL MEDIA TIPS AND RULES Is social media important ? ? ? ? ? ? 1 billion people on facebook Social media has become the #1 activity on the web 53 % of people on twitter recommend products in their tweets 90 % of consumers trust peer recommendations Only 14 % trust ads 13 Facebook –a few key things ? ? ? ? ?Best social media platform to drive a purchasing action Not a medium to push business spam Use it to meet,build audience and brand Slow build before you invite the masses 90 % of those who â€Å"like your page will never return to it. Engagement ,not likes , is the key General tips to gain more attention to your page on Facebook ? ? ? ? ? Figure out what your expertise is and how that relates to your product Always treat it like a conversation Have an incentive to join, return and participate Try new things, new topics , new wording , new times A little bit of planning goes a long way Different ways to Build your following ? ? ? ? ? In person Contests Paid advertising Other social media networks Mutual benefit community Through existing members (engagement) Drive engagement –ask your audience simple questions to start a conversation and drive engagement –yes/no ;true or false ; select your favourite ;opinion . another way is through photos (relation to your product, branding without a hard sell , memes and quotes ) Things to limit that can negatively affect the image of your company ? ? ? ? ? Linking accounts Pushing out information Posting once a month/5 times a day Asking people to follow you just to increase your numbers Text heavy posts-keep it short,informative 4 NESCAFE`S FACEBOOK PROFILE Nescafe Bulgaria maintains very active Faceboo k page, with the impressive numbers: 6 417 020 likes & 73 634 talking about this. Globally there are a number of facebook pages divided geographically (for certain country) and for the different products or for different events and campaigns that Nescafe supports. Generally in each man can find: ? ? Basic information could be found on each of the profiles as well as more detailed for the specific one. Many of the profiles hold memorable phrases or mission statements. â€Å"To wake you up and fill you with energy for the upcoming challenges of every ay! † â€Å"We are combining pleasure and health benefits† ? A fan can also find Nescafe`s history along with some interesting facts about the brand. â€Å"The boom of instant coffee was during the World War II. Nescafe was very convenient form of coffee and inseparable part of soldiers` nutrition. Strangely this is the time when it becomes popular in Europe and later on globally. † ? ? Portfolio of Nescafe products U ploaded videos – mainly ads and funny animations, just to entertain the viewer The whole social media promotes it as THE FAVOURITE coffee/ soft drink/hot drink.The campaigns involve the concept of â€Å"shared happiness† showing Nescafe in the company of people who love each other – family, friends, couples. To engage fans` attention Nescafe organizes a lot of games, which are promoted through facebook. The â€Å"Coffee Cup 3in1† SMS game in Bulgaria was very successful in 2012 and from the social network people find out that the same will start again on the 22th of April 2013 too. Another recent one was â€Å"Inspiring moments†, it has already finished and there is post with photo of the winner and his award – an excursion to Austria.Nescafe uses Facebook to increase the Engagement as its posts are not simply informative, but in the form of questions or easy riddles. It seeks opinions and responses. Just a â€Å"like† is not enough, it wants people to talk about the products, to increase popularity and Word-ofMouth effect. For this purpose it offers variable opportunities: to create NesChristmas cards; NesWishes cards; to draw NesLucks. 15 Of course it publishes information for big events – the one Nescafe is sponsor of or significant for the brand itself. The last one is Nescafe`s 75th Birthday.It prompted Facebook fans to post wishes by special application. In addition it posted some photos of its promotion campaign in the center of Sofia, where they give to passers-by free cup of 3in1 coffee. The slogan was â€Å"75 years creating memorable moments†. In Bulgaria Nescafe is strong supporter of an innovative type of music – the beatbox. The company has organized annual beatbox championship with award: â€Å"The Best Beatboxer in Bulgaria†. The winner has the chance to take compete in the World Championship. Of course a Facebook page holds all the information such as ideos, interview s with participants, articles etc. As 3in1 is the most popular, easy to use and beloved by youngsters product, it has many profiles. More games and little competitions such as: fan of the month; inspiring moments, the award was a journey to Austria (picture with the winner posted). There fans can find out about the relationship with the biggest music festival in Bulgaria – Spirit of Burgas and how one can win free entrance tickets. As a whole Nescafe`s Facebook page promises successful further development. It is proof of consumer`s loyalty judging by all the posts and super-frequent fan`s activity.Nescafe includes all the recommendable points. It entertains the followers with many games as â€Å"Connect the Dots† or â€Å"How many red Nescafe cups can you find in the picture? † Urges likes by animating The Cup begging to become red or expressing hope that it will gain many birthday wishes. Very often it asks question like: â€Å"Which is you favorite†¦Ã¢â‚ ¬  or â€Å"Which of those do you prefer? † It is creating more personal relationship through opportunities to publish NesCards with wishes for friends or family and is constantly seeking for opinions and recommendations from its fans.NESCAFE ON TWITTER Although Twitter, especially in Bulgaria, is not so common used social media, it still has an impact on the customer. With around 7000 followers and 700 tweets, Nescafe official fan page provides the insights we get from the advertising. By using social media, producers interacts with customers better and can easily understand their needs and wants. It gives the opportunity both sides to be up-to-date with all new trends, changing every second.Short inquires towards users and questions, concerning the product give the users freedom to share their opinions, which leads to improving the qualities of Nescafe and better integrating to the marketing environment . By sending messages up to 140 letters Nescafe official page emphasiz es mainly on the good start of the day with a cup of coffee. Most of their posts are made in the morning and bring cheerful and optimistic upbeats. Funny comments or witty pictures consisting of key words such as „coffeeâ€Å" of well-known Nescafe logo are hidden marketing tricks, providing the customer with incentives to choose the exact product. 6 NESCAFE – YOUTUBE CHANNEL Currently, YouTube is visited by more than 15 million internet users per day and around 100 million videos are being viewed each day. These guerrilla marketing â€Å"live ads† would also be recorded and edited into YouTube videos, explaining the message of â€Å"life without compromise† and the connection to the convenience and great quality of NESCAFE products. The videos from all the â€Å"live ads† would be uploaded to the NESCAFE YouTube channel called â€Å"NESCAFE – life without compromise†.The YouTube channel would then be distributed and shared using soci al media, by NESCAFE and consumers. These videos will also be shared through NESCAFE’s Facebook page in order to leverage on the high volume of traffic it already experiences. You should keep in mind that Using YouTube as part of your business’s social media marketing strategy can assist you in getting the type of visitors that you want. YouTube users are generally better leads because they have generally already seen a video you have posted, and won’t click on your links unless they like what they see.In Youtube brands need to produce videos that offer true value to their intended audiences. This softer sell defines YouTube’s role in your marketing strategy. This soft sell comes in the form of the information or instruction you provide. Perhaps that’s a video newscast where you talk about industry news or technical developments; perhaps it’s a how-to video that shows people how to use your product to do something useful. In any case, viewer s watch the video because it provides valuable information; what they retain is a sense of your brand or company as a source of authority on the topic at hand.Research has shown that video marketing has become one of the most vital methods of marketing on the net and that it is starting to replace many other forms of marketing. Instead of using just any marketing tool, many marketers are now opting for using video as their preferred marketing tool. YouTube videos are often placed on content-aggregating sites and blogs related to the brand ; those pages use scripts to get the links to the newest videos on the YouTube and have them embedded automatically; getting included on some sites with high traffic can increase video views.YouTube referrals – surprisingly many people are spending hours watching random videos on that site 😉 if you will set proper tags to your video, they will get more traffic, and again: more traffic means more people will get to know the product! R ecommendation Youtube As Youtube’s influence is growing and the site’s capabilities can enhance the product performance ,it has to take major part in the Nescafe’s Advertising campaign in the social medias. It would be beneficial to post more often videos with customer’s opinion and news regarding future events –with interviews of the organisators etc.Another good strategy is to promote the Youtube channels more on their Facebook page so that more people will engage in commenting and if there is a poll ,for example , the company will receive more feedback on their future projects. More fun and interactive games or videos can be uploaded in order to gather more attention and inspire engagement . Good ideas for Nescafe will be to make an video contest . Try offering a reward for the contest online and advertise it everywhere you can. People will follow you and will fill out their information if it means they might win a contest. 17NESCAFE AD CAMPAIGM S AROUND THE WORLD Nescafe has vast amount of supporters through the social media (Facebook, Twitter,Youtube). It has the power and ability to create and expand its customers’ base and in this way promote the product to large number of people with little resources. There are different Facebook pages for the various countries and the way the product is presented in each has some variations depending on the cultural and economical differences between the various countries. There are many examples for campaigns launched or promoted via Social media and the result is astonishing.The probability that certain marketing campaign to be successful is greater if social media is involved, it makes the process for gathering information and receiving feedback easier and more convenient. The marketing power of Nescafe is great and it has achieved much more results thanks to its games, campaigns or quizzes that it has launched on the internet. There are many examples for the impact of socia l media on the marketing campaigns is evident. For example when a certain campaign going to take place , on Facebook or twitter Nescafe posts interesting photos or questions in order to capture the interest of its potential customers.It also relies on â€Å"word of mouth â€Å" ,hoping that when more people know about certain event they can spread the word ,leading to wide amount of people participating in the event. Another strategy Nescafe uses is to promote its new products via interesting or innovative ways. The secret to an entertaining social media campaign is to make the campaign relevant, have a character the target audience can relate with, and reduce brand fatigue by encouraging participation.One example is when Nescafe was searching for a cool way to reveal its newly designed coffee tin, so it came up with a creative Facebook campaign that traded beans for ‘likes. ‘ First, they took a picture of a glass container containing nothing but the new Nescafe tin. T hen they took the same photo after filling the container with coffee beans. They removed coffee beans and continued shooting until the tin was finally revealed. This sequence played out on Facebook based on the number of ‘likes' they received.Every time a Facebook user ‘liked' the page, more beans were removed. On their Bulgarian Facebook page , often in the morning there is inspirational quote so that the more of the users log in their Facebook accounts they will Receive the news in their news Feed and they can share or comment so in that way more users will see it. 18 CONCLUSION Social media possesses incredible influential power, and since the advent of the Internet it's evolved from a simple way for people to keep in touch into a massive global network connecting organizations, communities and people.Social media is the easiest, fastest and most explosive way to transmit and receive information! And best of all – absolutely anyone can take advantage of it. Act ive membership of the most frequented social network is now over one billion people, one out of every seven people on earth is on Facebook! With the global population still rapidly growing, it’s become abundantly clear that social media is no passing fad either. Its influence is remarkable. Small businesses and large corporations alike have tapped into this influence to reach new customers and generate real, honest communication.The best advice for every company is to embrace the ubiquity of social media and use its power to better yourself, your business, or cause. Relating to our finding about Nescafe’s global marketing strategy, the ways it is presented in the social media , it is evident that Nescafe is investing a lot of efforts and financial means to keep up with the changing consumer need and wants. It is irrevocable that with their ad campaigns in various media such as Facebook and Twitter more people will know about their new developments and their consumer ba se will widen in a much greater speed.Using different techniques and new interactive methods for gathering attention is good way to show their commitment and inspire engagement . Another good platform mentioned is Youtube, with its 800 million active users monthly the power of broadcasting is undeniable, which is used by Nescafe for sharing videos of previous ads ,posting interactive videos and acquiring vast amount of comments and recommendations from active their users. Another great techniques which is frequently used in Facebook pages is to promote every day the products’ by showing interesting facts, quotes that can gather attention via sharing or commenting by the users.The different analyses(Swot , Pest ) can prove the marketing power of Nescafe in the coffee industry also outline its potential competitors ,the focus areas where more attention should be paid and the strengths of its brand image. The strong brand image of Nescafe has been built through the years, undoub tedly it has wide consumer base thanks to its great variety of products, which can satisfy the need and wants of a large number of people, differing in age, profession, gender and country of origin.Marketing is changing rapidly due to rapid change in technology and Nescafe should strive to achieve greater power in the social media with applying new and innovative strategies to boost the company’s performance, financial state and image . 19 References: www. nestle. com www. nescafe. bg www. nescafe. com http://www. youtube. com/user/nescafe http://www. facebook. com/Nescafe. BG? fref=ts http://www. facebook. com/Nescafe3in1Bulgaria https://twitter. com/following http://mashable. com/category/social-media-marketing/ http://www. assignmentpoint. com/business/international-business/report-onnescafe. html 20

Ethical Issues with Sweatshops

Ethical issues regarding Sweatshops Michelle Rice Business Ethics Jacqueline Newkirk Remember when you were at the mall the last time and saw a pair of Nike shoes that you just couldn’t live without? You had to buy them, for a pricey cost, and just loved them, right? We all have owned a pair or two of Nike shoes in our life. They were the â€Å"cool† shoes to have back when I was in school. The thing that we may not have known is that Nike has been using â€Å"children as young as fifteen years old† (Jennings, 2012) as employees to make these shoes.In the following report I am going to go over some major ethical issues regarding using underage children and women in foreign countries for labor. I will tell about what the conditions that these people have to work in to get paid barely enough to survive from one day to the next. The first topic that I would like to talk about is a quote coming from Nike when questioned about the conditions of their facilities and th e employees that they had working in them. The quote was â€Å"We’re damned if we do because we exploit.We’re damned if we don’t because these foreign economies don’t develop. Who’s to know what’s right? † (Jennings, 2012) Well, let’s answer that question. First of all you are not damned if you make your product out of the country. Sure, as Americans we would like the opportunity to have the business be here where we could benefit from the jobs that it would create, but we also understand the need to help these other countries build and grow. Second, how is it helping these other countries if you are taking their children out of school at the age that they are able to work in a factory? Jennings, 2012) Wouldn’t the better way to help these countries be to pay them a fair wage and help their children get a good education so that they can grow up to help build their country the way that we are wanting them to? And finally, I don’t know who to say is right in this case, but I do know that Nike was found to â€Å"make women run laps around the factory for wearing no regulation shoes to work; payment of subminimum wages; physical beatings, including with shoes, by factory supervisors; and most employees were women between the ages of fifteen and twenty eight years old. (Jennings, 2012) After having that information, I think I can safely say that Nike cannot possibly think that they should be the ones that people think are right in this situation. Now, let’s go over child labor in general and if it should be allowed. I personally could never employ a child that was under the age of 15 whether it was legal or not. By making these children work in the conditions that they make them work in, for the pay that they give them for this work is not an ethical decision that I could ever live with.In a story about child labor that I found it stated that â€Å"In the 1990s, child labour has found a new niche in the rapidly expanding export industries of some developing countries. In one small carpet factory in Asia, children as young as five were found to work from 6 in the morning until 7 at night for less than 20 cents a day. † (Child Rights, 1995) Can you imagine you five year old child going to work and working for 13 hours? These children have absolutely no childhood and are giving up their education to work so that their families can survive.I think that it is important to have a limit to the hours that a person is allowed to work in one week and that there should be a required minimum wage. Even if it were not a law, if I owned my own company I would have these standards in place for every employee that I hired. While it is important for a company to make a profit, I believe that it is also important for their employees to be healthy and safe in their working environment. When it comes to the wages that are being paid, if you are not up to a standard of income tha t is expected or needed from employees, they are going to go and try to find work somewhere else.If this happens the turnover rate at the company would be incredibly high, therefore causing the company to lose money in the long run. If you are constantly having to hire and train more people you are taking time away from the product that should be being made. So, if you want to keep happy employees that are devoted to the company that they are working for and making a product that is up to standards that are wanted by the company then they should pay them a respectable wage and keep the hours at the amount that you would expect to work yourself.One of the things that I have stated a few times in this report already is that children are not getting the education that they should be getting because they are being taken out of school to work in these factories or they are just not being sent to a school to begin with. I would make it a top priority to make educational opportunities for these children in these countries if I had a business there. I think that it is important that these countries continue to grow and prosper to get as close to the conditions that we live in here in the United States.There is no way that this can happen if we are not sending their children to school. They will have no way to know what to do to run a successful business, only to work nonstop in them. How are they ever going to learn the necessities this way? In today’s businesses they are not thinking about this. They are thinking that they can continue to send the employees here from the United States over there to run the businesses. In which case they will never be an independent society able to function on their own.I think that the reason that society focused so much on the Kathi Lee Gifford and Nike issues are because of the fame that they already have and the popularity of the products that they are selling. We see Kathy Lee Gifford as a wholesome all American Actress th at we all love. We all loved the fact that she made a clothing line, and then sold it in an affordable place such as Wal-Mart. Then we realize that the clothes that we love and are finding affordable are being made in sweatshops in Guatemala. Of course this is going to upset people because it is something that no one would have suspected.When it comes to Nike, it is the company that every athlete endorsed and wears most of the time. It is probably one of the most recognizable shoe companies in the United Stated today. I think that the thing that upsets people the most is that it is such an â€Å"American† known shoe, that people feel that it should being produced in America. So as we have learned in this report is that if you want happy, healthy employees, you need to treat them right and pay them the wages that they are actually earning.Also, children are our future and if we want our future to be prosperous and continue that way we need to make sure that they are getting th e education that they need to run things when we are no longer here. Bibliography Child Rights. (1995). Retrieved 4 1, 2012, from Children pay high price for cheap labour: http://www. unicef. org/pon95/chil0016. html Jennings, M. M. (2012). Business Ethics. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.

Disclosure in Financial reports in Industrial Companies in Libya Research Proposal

Disclosure in Financial reports in Industrial Companies in Libya - Research Proposal Example Additionally, Libya has been the focus of much international scrutiny following the high-publicized released of convicted Lockerbie mastermind Abdel Baset al-Megrahi from a Scottish prison early last month and the eyes of the world are once again on Libya, a former pariah state according to many leaders of the Western world but today a partner in economic development and prosperity. Thus, accusations that Mr. al-Megrahi was released by Scottish authorities to facilitate economic relations between Great Britain and Libya emphatically demonstrate the important economic ties between Libya and the rest of the modern, developed world. Seeking to understand economic development and the increased necessity of the disclosure of industrial financial reports in the Libyan context, this research proposal aims to provide a thorough and comprehensive introduction to a new Libyan phenomenon. As Libya opens up its markets to the forces of liberal economics and seeks to compete with Western actors o n the economic stage, the issues of openness and transparency will increase. How salient are issues surrounding the disclosure of industrial financial reports in the Libya today? Is Libya prepared for increased transparency in the realm of financial reporting? Are industrial companies in Libya equipped to fully disclose their personal financial records? Is full disclosure relevant in the Libyan context? (Cowell and Sulzberger, 2009; Otman & Karlberg, 2007) These questions and many more will be elaborated upon further in this analysis. This will be followed by a description of our methodology and questions surrounding measurement and the coding of variables. Seeking to employ a multifaceted qualitative/quantitative analysis, this project aims to utilize both forms of analysis. We will conclude with a concise overview of this important project proposal

A personal development plan. Becoming an international manager in Essay

A personal development plan. Becoming an international manager in intercontinental hotel - Essay Example Identifying my strengths and weaknesses will enable me to achieve both professional and personal development in the hospitality industry. A personal development plan is important because it fosters and monitors career progression and helps in developing appropriate skills needed to meet the demands of customers and employees in the hospitality industry. The work of an international hotel manager includes answering all questions posted by clients across the world about hotel services and policies. The manager also listens and resolves employees and client’s complaints. The international hotel manager assigns tasks to employees and carefully schedule shifts for all employees worldwide. Supervisors assist in monitoring employees’ work, but the ultimate authority of observing and monitoring employees’ performance in the hotels rests with the international manager. This operation enables the hotel management to accomplish tasks that are assigned to employees. Internat ional managers schedule appointments with clients to plan banquets, weddings and other formal or information conventions. They also meet with business associates and stakeholders to discuss business expansion and future business partners in new countries. The work of a hotel manager is to monitor and track money spent and hotel profits. The international hotel manager is required to cooperate and deliberate with other senior managers to synchronize the activities of the hotels in different parts of the world. The manager is in charge of negotiating contracts with suppliers, electricians, medics and other important people that work together to achieve a common goal of higher returns in their different fields. International hotel managers write extensive reports about each department functions in the hotel and use a computer system to monitor and maintain this information. Some hotels allow their international managers to set room price rates, create a budget, develop and implement po licies and create hotel procedures. An international hotel manager may be allocated the marketing, advertising and promotion design tasks. After completing my studies, my short-term goal includes working in an international hotel such as InterContinental Hotel as a manager. This position will give me the platform needed to acquire experience and skills to progress to a senior manager. Developing interpersonal relationships with my seniors, peers and subordinates will enable me to work towards increasing the hotel profits and improving the living standards of staff members. My long term career aspiration after 5 years of working as a manager is to be promoted to international InterContinental hotel manager. This top position will increase my annual salary with benefits and further develop my leadership and management skills. My long term personal aspiration is to travel to new countries, meet new people and learn new skills. In my international management position, I will develop new working conditions favorable for employees working in different countries with respect to their religious values, political affiliation and cultural backgrounds. I will plan and implement an exchange program for my employees, enabling them to travel to other countries that have our hotel branches and work for six months. During this time, employees will be allowed to explore their creativity in the hospitality industry, exchange cultural values and create a global relationship with other employees from different countrie

Aaa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Aaa - Essay Example Scientific and technological developments are part of our evolution and they do not necessarily intervene. I also do not agree with Dean Burnett’s argument that the convenience brought by technology made us physically weak. For example, Dean Burnett’s argued in his article entitled â€Å"Human evolution: the next stages† that â€Å"An increasingly health-and-safety conscious world where people are prepared to sue for even the most trivial injury means the danger of forceful impact is reducing, and as such rigid and inflexible bones wont be as essential to humans†. It is implied in this argument that modern man is getting weaker because he is used to convenience that evolutionary consequence in order to adapt better to the environment such as having more cartilage to become stronger is not happening. I disagree with this statement because man is in fact getting stronger even without the added cartilages as he suggested. If only Burnett cared to watch sports events such as Olympics where records after records are being broken, he too may change his mind that we are now way stronger than before. Technology did not intervene with our physical development. It enhanced it with better formulation of supplements, better techniques in exercise and training and better understanding on how our body would function better. Taken together, it tremendously improved our evolutionary process that our improvement is become exponential compared to the gradual evolution of

The Effect of Bilateral Trade Agreement between Vietnam and the U.S.A Research Proposal

The Effect of Bilateral Trade Agreement between Vietnam and the U.S.A on Medium and Small Vietnamese firms That Export goods to the U.S.A - Research Proposal Example In 1995, Vietnam became a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). On 13 July 2000, the country signed a BTA with the USA: the agreement went into effect on 10 December 2001. This agreement was part of the ongoing economic reform process in Vietnam and contributed significantly towards the country gaining membership in the World Trade Organization. In 2007, the US Congress approved a Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) agreement with Vietnam. This paper analyzes the influence of the signing of the BTA on the performance of domestic Vietnamese small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) that were engaged in exporting to the US market. The SMEs occupy a significant position in the economy of Vietnam and it is important to know the effect of the BTA on SMEs. The paper first studies the growth rates of production, investment and employment of these Vietnamese firms before and after signing the BTA. The studies were based on the results of a survey which had earlier been conducted by two Vietnamese Agencies and one US Agency. Then, the paper itself conducts two statistical tests of its own to empirically analyze the effect of the BTA on the SMEs in the Vietnamese economy. The findings of the tests, show the BTA has caused the value of Vietnamese exports to the US market to significantly increase from 2001 onwards which in turn has caused a greater number of Vietnamese SMEs to enter the export market.... he signing of the BTA on the performance of domestic Vietnamese small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) that were engaged in exporting to the US market. The SMEs occupy a significant position in the economy of Vietnam and it is important to know the effect of the BTA on SMEs. The paper first studies the growth rates of production, investment and employment of these Vietnamese firms before and after signing the BTA. The studies were based on the results of a survey which had earlier been conducted by two Vietnamese Agencies and one US Agency. Then, the paper itself conducts two statistical tests of its own to empirically analyze the effect of the BTA on the SMEs in the Vietnamese economy. The findings of the tests, show the BTA has caused the value of Vietnamese exports to the US market to significantly increase from 2001 onwards which in turn has caused a greater number of Vietnamese SMEs to enter the export market. Therefore, the paper indicates that there is a lot of potential to be tapped in the export sector of Vietnam. As the case of the BTA has shown, Vietnamese firms are prepared to enter the export market and leverage expanded export opportunities with foreign countries. For this, Vietnam has to search for new trading partner countries and look to enhance its trade relations with them as it has done with the USA. At the same time, Vietnam has to maintain its existing trade relationships with its current trade partners. Only then, can Vietnam’s export sector serve as an engine of growth for its overall economy. (Abbot, et al, 2007, p-2; Burmeister n.d; Martin 2009 p-2; McCaig and Pavcnik, 2011, p-2) Literature Review The entire literature can be segregated into two types: the studies of the impact of the BTA on the Vietnamese economy as a whole and the

Down Syndrome Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Down Syndrome - Essay Example Down believed that those suffering from the condition could lead a better life if given a chance (Bowman-Kruhm 11). The condition came to be referred as Down syndrome in the early 1960s (Margulies 8). Dr. Jerome Lejeune and Patricia Jacobs, in 1959, identified the link between DS and the presence of an extra chromosome (Bowman-Kruhm 12). Symptoms Those suffering from DS exhibit both physical abnormalities as well as health complications. They have delayed cognitive development during early infancy, leading to mental retardation and reduction in intelligence quotient (IQ) from early infancy to late childhood (Rachidi & Lopes). They experience deficiency in speech and language production. The low IQ persists in adulthood and is coupled with a decline in cognition, which is a result of accelerated ageing. By the fourth decade of life, there is often an early onset of neurohistopathology, resembling Alzheimer’s disease (Rachidi & Lopes). Patients with DS have deficient spatial lea rning, behavioral defects, and memory deficits due to development and functional impairments in neurogenesis, myelination, synaptogenesis, etc. in the brain (Rachidi & Lopes). Patients with DS often have some or many of the commonly recognizable traits commonly associated with the condition. They lack normal muscle tone, giving them a â€Å"floppy† appearance (Griffith, Moore and Yoder 270). The head is often abnormally shaped, with an unusually shaped skull. They also have unusual facial features such as flattened nose, large tongues, small mouths, abnormally shaped ears, broad hands with large palm creases, and slanting almond shaped eyes with an abnormal iris... Those suffering from DS exhibit both physical abnormalities as well as health complications. They have delayed cognitive development during early infancy, leading to mental retardation and reduction in intelligence quotient (IQ) from early infancy to late childhood (Rachidi & Lopes). They experience deficiency in speech and language production. The low IQ persists in adulthood and is coupled with a decline in cognition, which is a result of accelerated ageing. By the fourth decade of life, there is often an early onset of neurohistopathology, resembling Alzheimer’s disease (Rachidi & Lopes). Patients with DS have deficient spatial learning, behavioral defects, and memory deficits due to development and functional impairments in neurogenesis, myelination, synaptogenesis, etc. in the brain (Rachidi & Lopes). Patients with DS often have some or many of the commonly recognizable traits commonly associated with the condition. They lack normal muscle tone, giving them a â€Å"floppy† appearance (Griffith, Moore and Yoder 270). The head is often abnormally shaped, with an unusually shaped skull. They also have unusual facial features such as flattened nose, large tongues, small mouths, abnormally shaped ears, broad hands with large palm creases, and slanting almond shaped eyes with an abnormal iris (Griffith, Moore and Yoder 270). It is also observed that the inner corner of the eyes in patients with DS has a rounded fold of skin called the epicanthial fold (Griffith, Moore and Yoder 270). Apart from these, they also often suffer from gastrointestinal and heart defects. Some patients with DS are found to possess normal intelligence, while most others suffer from intellectual deficiencies (Margulies 5).

Single party states and rise to power and origins of the cold war Essay

Single party states and rise to power and origins of the cold war - Essay Example Hitler used the vacuum caused by the demise of the Weimar Republic to gain an electoral majority for the Nazi Party in 1933. One of the most important events in his rise to authority was his rejection of the idea of seizing power through violence after the disastrous Munich Putsch in the 1920’s. (Britannica) Unusual for a man that would eventually become a dictator, Hitler worked within the legitimate political system of his time to win power democratically, and then to quickly consolidate that power into an absolutist one-party state through isolated, symbolic acts of violence (such as the burning of the Reichstag) in order to create a paranoia that he could exploit. The organizational and administrative structure of the Nazi Party, together with Hitler’s well-documented ability to virtually hypnotize individuals, Party and country within a cult of personality and the still mysterious willingness of the German people to accept what appear on face-value to be ludicrous ideas led to the creation of the one-party, Nazi state. One might easily argue that Hitler’s greatest ‘success’ (judged by his perverse standards) was his managing to lead the German people from the baiting of Jews in the early 1930’s to the implementation of the Final Solution in the last four years of WWII. Unlike other leaders, who use a ‘divide-and-rule’ strategy to gain power through conjuring a hatred of the ‘Other’, Hitler gained power in order to be able to destroy that other. The hatred of Jews was not a means to an end, but the end that Hitler always had in mind. The Holocaust was not a sudden occurrence, but rather a slowly developing continuum of increasingly extreme acts that eventually led to mass-murder. Hitler’s greatest success was in convincing a large portion of the German people to at least passively accept what was occurring, if not actually openly help in the effort. (Goldhagen) All other

Opression in a Thousand Splendid Suns Essay Example for Free

Opression in a Thousand Splendid Suns Essay Taslima Nasrin once said: â€Å"Those religions that are oppressive to women are also against democracy, human rights, and freedom of expression. † This quote also applies to a book called a thousand splendid suns by Khaled hosseini and Deepa Metha’s Film Water. A thousand splendid suns in a book about two women in Afghanistan with an abusive husband. They struggle for survival and for their human rights that have been overlooked by the Taliban and a patriarchal society. Water is a movie about widows living in India. They are sent to the country side to live with other widows supposedly so they can live pure lives. In actuality they are cast aside and denied the basic respect all humans deserve. Ironically, the only way they can make enough money to survive is by committing acts as impure as it gets. They are forced to turn to prostitution. These two stories show that a cultural society’s refusal to change religious practices causes the oppression of women. The characters Mariam, kalyani, and chuyia demonstrate this. Mariam is a woman living in Afghanistan from the book A Thousand Splendid Suns. Mariam grew up very poor living in a small hut excluded from society. As a child she was taught only to endure and was never given the opportunity to stand up for herself. Mariam was the daughter of a maid that her father Jalil had an affair with and he was very ashamed of this. To solve this â€Å"problem† he got rid of her. Jalil married her off to a much older man named Rasheed. Shortly after the start of their marriage, Rasheed rapes her. He justifies it with the Quran. â€Å"‘It’s what married people do. It’s what the prophet himself and his wives did. There is no shame. ’† (Hosseini, 77). In this quote Rasheed refers to the prophet Muhammad in the Quran. This shows how Rasheed perverted the events Quran, the sacred Islamic text, to justify the rape of a young girl who hadn’t even turned 16. Marrying young girls still in their teens is an old custom that is embedded in Islam and the Afghan culture. Society’s refusal to change this practice caused the ruthless humiliation of a young girl and in the long run made the oppression of all women an accepted practice. Kalyani is a character in the movie Water. She is a widow most likely in her 20s who never met her husband. Her husband died shortly after her marriage and was sent to the ashram as a young girl. Since she is the only young widow in the ashram she is forced to turn to prostitution to bring in extra money so the widows can at least have enough money for 1 meal a day. Her entire life story shows the subjugation of women. She was married at around the age of 10 because of religious traditions that have not changed in hundreds of years. This tradition has given men the power to oppress women. This oppression is shown through the death of the husband. If the husband dies before the wife, the wife is sent away. If the opposite happen the husband is free to remarry as he pleases. This happens because of the religious belief that when a husband dies, half of the woman also dies. This makes it easier to mistreat women because it makes them seem less than human. It is also believed that the death of a husband is punishment for something done in a previous life. Society’s refusal to change theses Hindi beliefs and practices create the oppression of women by making their mistreatment seem justified and by making them seem less than human. Chuyia is a young girl who was married at the age of 8 and was widowed the next day. She doesn’t even remember getting married but is forced to suffer the same fate as Kalyani. She is young and innocent and her innocence causes her to question practices that everyone else simply accepts. Deepa Metha uses this character to point out inconsistencies in the Hindi religion and traditional society. At one point in the story she asks why there isn’t a place for men to go if they are widowed. She is quickly ridiculed by both men and women. This event shows that the refusal to change religious practices has brainwashed both men and women to accept and even endorse the oppression of women. Taslima Nasrin words are clearly tied to the theme of these two stories. She explains in her quote that a religion cannot be providing people basic rights if it discriminates against women. The theme reiterates the same message by declaring that religion can sometimes cause oppression of women. These three characters show how traditions and old religious practices have made the oppression of women possible all over the world. By displaying this message in the authors’ books and movies, the authors hope to encourage all people around the world to not follow blindly old traditions and practices. They want people to decide for themselves what is right and what is wrong. When people fail to do this, bad things start happening such as the oppression, humiliation, and subjugation of women who are actually just as intelligent, strong, and able as any man.

Business Plan For Dazzling Brides Bridal Wear Marketing Essay

Business Plan For Dazzling Brides Bridal Wear Marketing Essay In Singapore, there are quite a number of bridal shops and boutiques that are locally owned, such as a single unit operations and new business ventures that are increasing in numbers daily. However what sets Dazzling Brides in a different way from other bridal business is that it is a bridal boutique that carries in house designer and collaborated with Swarovski to deliver classy wedding gowns to future brides at a reasonable price. There are a number of factors that influences the decisions of customers. Some of the factors that will play significant influence in customers decisions making in the wedding industry are analysed based on a couple of factors. In the wedding industry, these factors will significantly play a major role in any decision taken by brides. The wedding industry can be a competitive industry for entrepreneurs. Anyone keen in the business need not have to have a store to engage in the bridal business and can do so on a freelance basis. Ease in engaging freelances to assist in the wedding planning process is of ample quantity in the market. When it comes to wedding gowns, there are many substitutes that a bride can do to save cost such as renting their wedding gowns or even sewing it themselves. However these forces did not hinder the plan to set up Dazzling Bride as the strong passion of providing bride- to- be a lifetime experiences that is memorable has been the core reason of setting up a bridal boutique by a group of friends. Weddings are an interesting industry to be involved in as it is an event that never seems to die as the world is evolving no matter how unpredictable the economy can be. What is interesting is the way wedding gowns has evolve and most educated females are looking for wedding gowns that are exclusive and has the capability to make them look dashing. In addition to that, a positive incline in the number of marriages in Singapore has ignited our believed even more that the wedding industry will prosper and this will generate great potential profit to the business. This is one factor that we found to be a positive outlook for the bridal business as there are 24,596 registered marriages in 2008 in comparison of 26,081 in 2009 (Refer to appendix 1). 3.2 Environmental Analysis The Singapore government is actively facilitating singles in Singapore to find a life partner by providing opportunities for them to mingle. In the recent speech by DPM Wong at the Population Community of Supply 2011, comprehensive description on how the government has participated actively in encouraging Singaporeans to get socialize and examples on support available was emphasized. This is made possible through the social development network such as the Social Development Unit (SDU) and the Social Development Service (SDS) in assisting singles to find love between graduates and non graduates. The government has also provided Singaporeans with a broad-based package of support so as to encourage marriage by increasing the maternity and childcare leave, increasing the baby bonus cash gifts and co savings and also increasing childcare subsidies to parents. All these gestures shows the full support of Singapore government in promoting marriages and this is an important political and soc ial assurance for Dazzling Brides business venture as with such support the business will have the ability to acquire greater market share over the long run. Economically, Singapore has performed well in 2010 and this will lead to increment in salary resulting in more disposable income that will encourage many brides to spend more for a wedding gown that is exclusive and a wedding ceremony that will have deep impression to them and guest (refer appendix 2). The stability of Singapore economy status with the expected economy growth of 4.0 to 6.0 per cent in 2011 (refer appendix 3) has also encouraged great influx of immigrants and expatriates and this group of people will have the opportunity to be part of the exclusive customer of Dazzling Brides too. With the growth in population due to increase in trend of immigrants getting married locally (refer appendix 4), and regard Singapore as home or workplace the potential of Dazzling Brides to be involved in this group of customers wedding day will be on the high note. Aside from assessing the political, economically and social outlook, technologies used by Dazzling Brides will be top notch where the photos taken and videos recorded for indoor or outdoor shooting will deliver the best look for the brides with simple touch-ups, colour treatment and album layouts that enhances a bride beauty accompanied by a wedding gown that will complement a look of a lifetime. 4.0 DESCRIPTION OF THE VENTURE (1540) 4.1 Define the Business 4.1.1 Reason for entering venture / Defining Venture Bridal shop services defined for life-style needs is a growing and thriving industry yet to reach its full potential; therefore, Dazzling Brides is created with a passion for bridal services, wedding gowns and to make ones dream comes true on the most glorious day of their life. Our commitment is to provide a personalized service to help one with their wedding during this period. We strongly believe that wedding should be memorable and our  goal is to provide bridal services as comprehensive as possible to allow individuals thoroughly enjoy their special day. 4.1.2 Mission statement At Dazzling Brides, we are committed to provide superb customer  satisfaction as our number one priority. Our mission is to  provide comprehensive, professional and stress-free  bridal services at an affordable rate. Our bridal boutique with a touch of class as well as pragmatism forms the hallmark of our design. Our distinctive selection of luxurious, classic, stylish and sophisticated gowns by professional designers aims to reflect ones personality and unique  style. Our pre-wedding photography is a contemporary and natural in which most couples seek. Everyone at Dazzling Brides will remain deeply committed in bringing our brides the finest to make ones wedding a lasting memory. Location Analysis Dazzling Brides will be located at 2 Tan Quee Lan Street, Primero Place. It is located in Bugis Street and just a stone throw from major shopping centres like Iluma at Bugis, Bugis Village, Albert Complex and Parco Bugis Junction (Onezine, 2010). Other amenities include hotels, backpacker inn, restaurants, and Raffles hospital. Primero Place is highly accessible as it is strategically located near to vicinity like Bugis MRT, taxi stands and four bus stops nearby. For added convenience, over 1000 parking lots are available outside Primero Place and nearby vicinities like OG Albert, Parco Bugis Junction and Shaw Towers. It is also close to schools like Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and Singapore Management University. With many shopping centers, accommodation, amenities such as supermarkets, restaurants, boutique shops, cinema and restaurants / steamboat eateries around, there will be a continuous high influx of customers (generally the younger crowd / couples). Located near Primero Pla ce, there are three bridal shops but Dazzling Brides is differentiated by concentrating on personalization Made to measure gowns and suit and a one-stop service bridal shop that caters almost everything and settle everything in house (except album printing) for a more personalized feel (Business Finder, 2011; Streetdirectory, 2011; ShowNearby, 2011) * (Refer to Appendix 5a-d for Map and more information). Formation Dazzling Brides will occupy two former offices (750 sqft @ $3600 monthly each) on level two via rental. One office will be used for indoor photoshoot and the other will be bridal showroom. As both units are well maintained with partial furnishing, minimum renovation (estimated $10,000) to meet the unique requirement of a bridal shop will be done and Most renovations will be free-standing and can moveable (Refer to Appendix 6 for pictures). Description of the unit (Real Estate Listings Singapore, 2011) Shop House with Lift Access False Ceiling, Lightings, Electric ports, Telephone ports Individual Air Conditional One Partition Room Timber Flooring Attached Washroom with Shower Facilities Attached Shelves And Show Case 4.4 Key players These key players in the bridal industry provide exclusive and unique arrangements and unique designer wear for ones wedding day. Ted Wu: For the flawless bridal gown, Ted Wu is the answer. Ted Wu is associated with dazzling bridal gowns with intricate fabric designs and elegant style with Peranakan embroidery and superior beadwork on the beautiful silk organza. Divine Couture: This bridal shop provide one of the best bridal services in and it offers an extensive range of stylist, glamorous gowns and evening wear. For its gowns, main focuses are on subtle embroiders, lush silks and elaborate bead work. Amanda Lee Weddings: With an exquisite designer wear range using lush fabrics and gorgeous color, it has transformed the bridal scene and becoming one of the best and a leading name in Singapores bridal industry. My Dream Wedding: One of the key bridal players in Singapore that provides one stop custom bridal services in wedding photography, gowns and themes. The Wedding Present: Looking after every aspect from designer gowns, suits, car decoration and floral bouquets and service, it is a one-stop bridal shop that cater to personalized needs / services in a fuss-free manner (Compare Infobase, 2009). Product and Services Dazzling Brides extensive product and services include: Bridal Gown / Evening Gown / ROM Dress / Groom Suit (jacket and pants) / Tea dress / Bridesmaid Dress Flower Bouquet / Bridal Car Decoration Make-up and Hair-Do Photography services including studio, outdoor shoot Wedding album and photo frame Portrait with canvas and frame Accessories General consultation services Dazzling Brides is pioneered by a team of talented and innovative consultants, in house designers and photographers to turn your fairytale into reality. We believe in making ones special day unforgettable. Specialize in customized made-to-measure gowns and suits lovingly made with materials specially imported from Japan, Hong Kong and parts of Europe. With simplicity and elegance as our hallmark, the design style is always strong on innovative tailoring techniques and carried hands sew embellishment. Another trademark of Dazzling brides gown is the creative use of crystals by Swaroski for the elegance and allure touch. Legal Structure Dazzling Brides is incorporated by three directors (shareholders) with passion for the bridal industry. The company is deemed as a legal entity separate from its members and directors and profits are subjected to corporate tax rates. A Private Limited Company (Pte Ltd) will be formed whereby individual shareholders personal assets are protected and own liability is limited to value of the shares; members also have limited liability. In a bridal business, there are many aspects to each deal so to prevent clients from suing the directors, limited liabilities is important to safeguard personal assets. Set up costs consists of fees for company name approval @ S$15 per name and registration fees @ S$300. Official procedures to comply consist of personal assets are protected of company secretary, auditor (exempted for the first three years of business); annual returns must be filed and there are specific rule for general meeting, appointment of directors and shareholders resolutions etc. T he company will have perpetual succession unless business is closed by winding up or striking off (Spring Singapore, 2009). 5.0 SWOT ANALYSIS Dazzling Brides competitive edge is that it is located geographically in heart of the city and is accessibly convenient for patronizing by customers. It has a very spacious area that has ample space for brides family and friend. Space constraint will be eliminated with smartly arranged decor so as to create an ambience of freedom where bride can move with ease while trying their wedding gowns. Not only that, a sitting area will also be provided so as to make family members and friends feeling comfortable too as they are very much responsible in providing positive or negative feedback to customers purchasing power. Dazzling Bride will carry high end wedding gown by in house designer and each designer will be allocated a designated section in the shop space. For example if a customer is looking for designer A wedding gown, they will be able to see this entire designer options grouped in one segment. On top of that, Dazzling Brides will also collaborate with Swarovski closely so as to provide brides a glittery experience look to their expectations. These are some strong quality that Dazzling Bride possess that will ensure a smooth flow of process from meeting up with wedding consultants, selection process, fitting, photographers selection and many more. Sales staff hired by Dazzling Bride will be employed based on their experience in the retail industry and has the necessary knowledge and skills so as to ensure that customers will feel supported at all times in every detail of their wedding preparation. The key criteria required will be sale personnel that have high tolerance and patience level and are creative in their selling capability. Dazzling Brides is a new business venture and this may seem to be a slight pinch nevertheless with great determination, sincerity and passion of its consultant, in house designers, talented photographers and dedicated service staffs, Dazzling Brides will be able to deter any hiccups that might occur. It has been a trend for brides to have their wedding photos taken overseas, for example in Malaysia, Taiwan and many other counties where packages are attractively price. However Dazzling Brides is confident that with wedding gown designs that are exclusives and unique in line with great service and a holistic approach of making the bride-to-be experienced a memorable event; the thought of engaging in overseas packages will be greatly eliminated as every step will be conducted at home. This form of convenience will allow brides an opportunity to have more time to concentrate on other wedding preparation that can be massive. Marketing Plan Wendy 7.0 ORGANIZATION PLAN 7.1 Human Resource Plan As marriage is serious matter as it happens only once in a lifetime so everyone in Dazzling Bride must take customers wedding day seriously. Hence, it is of paramount importance that everyone shares the same values and fit with the companys culture. Regardless of positions, we will be very selective and, there will be a set of guideline that the candidates must fulfill during selection. On the job training will be carried out by management to help with individuals learning process and to improve them as time evolves. In this fast moving fashion lifestyle industry, it is vital to stay updated on latest desired item in the market. Thus, we will encourage all to expose to the latest MTV, magazines, bridal shows and exhibition to gain insights. There will be challenging but achievable objectives to optimize potential. While on the job, their performances will be observed and if they fail to meet standards, they will be terminated within 2-3 months. Rewards and remuneration will be tied t o performance (incentives trips and bonus) (Refer to Appendix X for detailed human resource plan). 7.2 Structure In order to be successful and to uphold the standards of top quality bridal products and services, we will cultivate a culture so that everyone is motivated and will put in 101% effort. Fostering people with strong professional skills and characteristics People with a dream (Flexible and daring to make decision), common value, and strong commitment with cohesive attitude. Fun working environment to pursue dreams, encourage innovation/creative, to grow and contribute to goals with minimal politics. Processes, systems and decisions open and transparent. Honest, ethical and socially responsible business behavior. Culture that allows opportunity for changes, growth, good communication and company that truly cares. Incentives to encourage collective success. In addition, we have a defined organization structure (Hisrich et al., 2010) that layout key personnel, roles and responsibilities to direct efforts at all levels. This helps to maintain a strong strategic fit with its mission and provide clear business direction. The organization structure help management to stay on top of happenings and ensure that there is continuous review of operation and capital budgets, exploring opportunities for growth and expansion, supporting day to day activities, ensures business objectives are made, resolving conflicts, ensure proper use of assets and develop network of information sources (Refer to Appendix X for detailed organization chart). 7.3 Equipment / Procurement Equipments to be purchased will consist of office, stock, indoor photo-shoot and showrooms equipments OFFICE SHOWROOM INDOOR SHOOT Fax / Phone Cash Register Sewing Machine Camera Calculator Signage / Banners Shelves/Racks Tripod Desk / Chairs Bags Scissors / Pins / Measuring Tape / Sewing Kits Studio strobes (lighting) + Stands Computers Chairs and Tables Stationery Backdrop and Props Copier NETS/ Credit Card Terminal Decoration Reflector Filing Cabinet Dye Set-Up Stereo Dressing table Misc. Supplies Filing Cabinet Telephones Changing Room (Portable) Forms/Contracts Telephone Installation Mirror STOCK Hangers Vacuum Cleaner / Cleaning items Racks / Hangers Bridesmaid dress samples Iron / Steamer Window Display Fixtures Evening Gown / ROM Dress / tea dress samples Mannequins Coffee Maker and Supplies Crinolines / Can Can Sofa Curtains Accessories samples Business Cards Changing Room (Portable) Jewelry Mirrors Shoes Groom suit samples Bridal gown samples Flower bouquet samples Portrait, wedding album and photo frame samples 8.0 Financial Plan TBA 9.0 EXPANSION PLAN/ EXIT PLAN 9.1 Expansion Plan At the end of the third to fourth year of operation, Dazzling Brides vision will be to expand organically by not only providing new range of beautiful exclusive wedding gowns for purchases or rent. We will consider opening up another shop that will provide extended services for a wedding industry and diverse our business model to cater to other services. We will provide brides to be with a venue to conduct their wedding ceremony with live bands packages if needed, transportation for bride and families, wedding decoration and source out gifts for guest and even catering services. Aside from that we will also extend our business by collaborate with the Indians and Malay community so as to provide the necessary wedding needs. In addition we would also participate in Singapores Bridal Bazaar Fair where the latest wedding gowns range will be showcase. 9.2 Exit Plan However if the expansion plan were to come in short or if Dazzling Brides fail to generate positive income we will decide to sell the business as a management buyout (MBO) where new group of management will still be able to continue the business in a different management style and elevate the business further. 10.0 Milestone (Summary) TBA Appendix 5a: Map of Bugis Street and Primero Place (Extracted from Streetdirectory, 2011) Appendix 5b: Primero Place (Extracted from Streetdirectory, 2011) Appendix 5c: Analysis of Primero Place General and Accessibility (extracted from ShowNearby, 2011) Appendix 5d: Analysis of Primero Place Parking and Transportation (extracted from ShowNearby, 2011) Appendix 6: Pictures of the offices (Real Estate Listings Singapore, 2011) Job Specification for Bridal Designers, Photographer, Coordinators, Seamstress and Make Up Artist (Stone, 2005): JOB SPECIFICATION Position: Bridal Designers x 2 Date: 20 March 2011 Selection Criteria Experience: To advise clients on the design of the gown. Design and develop bridal gowns and suits in accordance to the needs of customers. Source merchandise / materials and liaise with suppliers. Singaporean / PR and Malaysian (female) preferred. Qualifications: Diploma or Degree in Fashion Design/ Fashion Marketing/ Fashion related. Skills, Abilities and Knowledge: Minimum 2 years experience. Well versed in Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop. Has good fashion sense, market foresight and capable to conduct material sourcing. Personal Qualities: Pleasant personality and meticulous in work attitude. Passion for bridal fashion, creative thinking, and a team player. Able to handle stress and customer oriented. Excellent English / Mandarin communication skills. Special Requirement: Keen to work irregular hours (including Weekends / Public Holidays). Remuneration: Salary range from SGD 2000 to 2300 with attractive benefits. JOB SPECIFICATION Position: Photographer Date: 20 March 2011 Selection Criteria Experience: 1 to 2 years  in bridal and lifestyle photography. The right candidate will need to have highlyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¨developed creative skills both with the camera and in Photoshop. Singaporean / PR and Malaysian preferred. Skills, Abilities, Knowledge and Personal Qualities: We require somebody who is a good in communication; works well with people and is able to meet deadlines with quality work. Studio and outdoor lighting and knowledge are needed. Fluent English and Mandarin with high levels of social energy is a must, as there will be high demands for clients interaction and teamwork. Special Requirement: Keen to work irregular hours (including Weekends / Public Holidays) and keen to travel. Remuneration: Salary range from SGD 1500 to 2000 with attractive benefits and travel allowance. JOB SPECIFICATION Position: Coordinator x 2 Date: 20 March 2011 Selection Criteria Experience: Attending to customers and establish good rapport with clients. Co-ordinate appointments and follow up between internal departments and customers. Perform daily administrative duties (ordering inventories, coordinating with printers, florists etc) to meet the needs of the operations. Other ad-hoc duties when required. Singaporean / PR and Malaysian (female) preferred. Qualifications: Diploma  holders with 1 to 2 years  of sales co-coordinating administrative experiences. Skills, Abilities and Knowledge: Well versed in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop and Microsoft office. Able to communicate with customers independently and able to handle artwork. Personal Qualities: Pleasant personality and meticulous in work attitude. Good organizational competence with excellent follow-up skills. Presentable, pleasant personality and Service-oriented in achieving customer satisfactions. Excellent English / Mandarin communication skills. Special Requirement: Keen to work irregular hours (including Weekends / Public Holidays). Remuneration: Salary range from SGD 1800 to 2100 with attractive benefits. JOB SPECIFICATION Position: Seamstress x 2 Date: 20 March 2011 Selection Criteria Skills, Abilities, Knowledge and Experience: 1 to 2 years  experience in sewing / measurements (textile). Singaporean / PR and Malaysian (female) preferred. Personal Qualities: Willing to learn and can communicate with basic English and Mandarin. Special Requirement: Keen to work irregular hours (including Weekends / Public Holidays). Remuneration: Salary range from SGD 1300 to 1500 with attractive benefits. JOB SPECIFICATION Position: Make-up Artist x 2 Date: 20 March 2011 Selection Criteria Skills, Abilities, Knowledge and Experience: 1-2 years strong experience in MakeUp Artistry. Singaporean / PR and Malaysian (female) preferred. Qualifications: Professional Makeup Certification. Personal Qualities: Willing to learn and can communicate with basic English and Mandarin. Willing to travel and good interpersonal skills. Special Requirement: Keen to work irregular hours (including Weekends / Public Holidays). Remuneration: Salary range from SGD 1800 to 2000 with attractive benefits and travel allowance. Organization Chart Outsource Audit Committee and Secretary Managing Director (Plans / Analysis and Management) (Photographer) Associate Director (Financial Matters) (Designer) Associate Director (Human Resource and Administration) (Make-up Artistry / Consultant) Bridal Designers x 2 Gown design and material sourcing Photographer Indoor, outdoor shoot and artwork Make-up Artist x 2 Indoor, outdoor shoot and actual day Make-up Seamstress x 2 Sewing, Alteration and Measurement Coordinator x 2 Serving customer, coordination of operation