TOMS Shoes Marketing Project

Introduction TOMS Shoes was founded on a philanthropic basis, after Blake Mycoskie (the founder) visited Argentina in 2006. Blake was moved by the level of poverty that he witnessed in the villages in Argentina (â€Å"TOMS.TOMS company overview† par. 1). He could not imagine that villagers could not afford a pair of shoes, when he saw children walking bear footed.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on TOMS Shoes Marketing Project specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More He went back to the United States and embarked on a mission of providing shoes to the poor Argentines who could not afford them. This report provides an analysis of the TOMS Shoes marketing project and how its marketing is unique from the competitors. TOMS Shoes Marketing Project The uniqueness of the TOMS Shoes marketing projects is its philanthropic component, as opposed to other cause-related marketing. This project stems out corporate social respons ibility simple business plan ‘One-for-one’. This marketing concept is based on the premise that for every pair of shoe that is sold, one pair is given out to a needy child. The company manages to increase sales and distribution network of shoes worldwide, through this strategy. According to Terence (120), product differentiation is an important strategy to increase volume and market penetration. The TOMS Shoes Company successfully achieves this through production of shoes using a simplistic combination of canvas with shoe-soles that are comfortable, and that accord a casual look. This makes the shoes stand out from the popular ked styling shoes (â€Å"TOMS.TOMS company overview† par. 6). TOMS Shoes collaboration with recognizable and leading brands in the United States enables it to achieve voluminous sales in its target markets. TOMS Shoes worked with Ralph in producing a co-branded Rugby shoe. This collaboration still maintained the One-for-one’ business strategy. In addition, the TOMS Shoes Company has worked with companies such as Lauren and Element Skateboard in promotions of one-for-one campaigns, thus increasing its sales volume. The marketing structure of the TOMS Shoes Company is not dependent on the traditional approaches of marketing such as advertising and billboards. Instead, the company heavily relies on promotional campaigns in marketing its products. The company consistently asks its customers to take their photos, while putting on the shoes from the Toms Shoes Company, and share them with friends and relatives using the social media websites. This move enables the company to create awareness of its brands and social cause to a wider audience. TOMS Shoes also relies on word-of-mouth in supporting its marketing efforts. Word-of-mouth turns out to be more effective in creating its brands awareness, and making customers believe in the company (Terence 59).Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Through the word-of-mouth campaigns, customers usually get excited and eager to participate in events that contribute to increased sales. The customers of the TOMS Shoes Company promote its brand by discussing it with their friends. Finally, the company’s participation in public awareness of the impacts of putting on shoes is a powerful marketing tool for the company. Through these campaigns, it markets its brands efficiently. Conclusion The philanthropic approach to marketing by TOMS Shoes enables it to distinguish its marketing project from its competitors. Its’ contribution towards a social cause is a driving force in its marketing strategy. In addition, the company does not market its products through mainstream marketing platforms. It instead uses social media marketing, as well as word-of-mouth to market its product and create brands. Works Cited Terence A. Shimp. Advertising, Promotion , and Other Aspects of Integrated Marketing Communications, 7th Edition, Thomson/South-Western Publishing, 2007. Print. TOMS.TOMS company overview. 2013. Web. This report on TOMS Shoes Marketing Project was written and submitted by user Silas Nolan to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Romulus My Father Pursuit of Happyness Belonging Essay Essay Example

Romulus My Father Pursuit of Happyness Belonging Essay Essay Example Romulus My Father Pursuit of Happyness Belonging Essay Paper Romulus My Father Pursuit of Happyness Belonging Essay Paper ‘Everything has its own place and function. That applies to people, although many dont seem to realize it, stuck as they are in the wrong job, the wrong marriage, or the wrong house. When you know and respect your Inner Nature, you know where you belong. You also know where you dont belong. ’ Benjamin Hoff Discuss this statement, focusing on how composers of texts represent the concept of belonging. In your answer, refer to your prescribed text (‘Romulus My Father’) and ONE related text of your choosing. You should write no more than 1000 words. Sense of belonging coming from father, in father son relationship. This can be seen in both, Raimond Gaita’s elegiac memoir, ‘Romulus, My Father’ and Gabriele Muccino’s 2006 film, ‘the pursuit of happyness’. Both texts demonstrate the relationship between a farther and his son and the extreme amounts of love and pain that they are willing to go through for the child to make sure that they belong. Both fathers when growing up had no real father figures. Without their fathers a grow with them a be their idol, they lacked a sense of belonging that made them feel disjointed from the rest of society. As a result, when they have their own sons they go the extra mile to provide and care for their son in every way possible. The sons in both texts have a strong sense of belonging to their fathers and trust them in everything. ‘The pursuit of happyness’ subway/bathroom scene demonstrates this love and sense of belonging between father and child. The scene starts with a shot from above the heads of the protagonist, Chris Gardner, and his son, and looks down the subway as the last train of the night leaves and they are left alone in the subway. This metaphorically states how Chris feels, the last train has left without me and my son, every opportunity has passed. The scene then skips to Chris and Christopher sitting on a bench in the railway, with a distance between them. Christopher than gives his father an opportunity to make this experience easier for him, telling Christopher that the machines that he always carries around and is trying to sell, are time machines. Chris leads his son into the bathroom, while he is in the fantasy where they stay the night. Chris is shielding Christopher from the hard times that they are going through demonstrating the love that he has for his son but also the trust and sense of belonging he has in his dad. This is an emotive scene that is made to make the responder feel sympathy. In ‘Romulus my father’, a similar scenario plays out. Romulus’ father died early in Romulus’ life. Romulus lived in poverty and constantly moved between his grandparents and mothers house, but never belonged to either. He left at 13 to find work, but was always on the move, never really belonging anywhere. They moved to Australia where Romulus worked some hours away from Christine his wife and their son, Raimond. Christine neglected Raimond and was unfaithful to Romulus. Romulus believed it to be better if Raimond was to come to the camp where they were working. Romulus and Hora, Romulus’ closest friend, split their shifts so one of them could always care for young Raimond. Raimond is unaware of the sacrifices that his father and Hora gave up, at that age, in their only opportunity of rest in the day to provide Raimond with care and to give him a place to belong. Romulus didn’t have a true sense of belonging to anyone or thing except for Raimond. And for him he would go to the ends of the earth to provide and care for him. Raimonds has had the opportunity to belong and relate to others through what his father has done for him. â€Å"On many occasions in my life I have had the need to say, and thankfully have been able to say: I know what a good workman is; I know what an honest man is; I know what friendship is; I know because I remember these things in the person of my father† The repetition of ‘I know’ expresses how highly he holds up his father and how no one will be able to tell him otherwise.. The tone of the quote, is proud. Roof top scene in pursuit of happyness, where they are play basketball and Chris tells Christopher that he won’t make it in basketball, but realized that this crushed his dream, so then says â€Å"don’t ever let somebody tell you that you can’t do something, not even me†

Analysis of “Nuances of a Theme by Williams”

Analysis of â€Å"Nuances of a Theme by Williams† The title of Wallace Stevens’ poem â€Å"Nuances of a Theme by Williams† implies that he intends to comment on, possibly celebrate, and almost certainly explore the potential distinctions and variations available in the poem by William Carlos Williams titled â€Å"El Hombre.† Stevens includes â€Å"El Hombre,† in its entirety minus the title, in the opening four lines of his poem with the implication (again based on the, at worst, neutral title of Stevens’ poem as well as the seemingly tributary inclusion of â€Å"El Hombre†) that his re-workings and explorations of his colleague’s piece will maintain its essence and, presumably, not bear it much, if any, antipathy. The title, however, proves to be misleading and Stevens’ subsequent lines appear to be less of a nuanced exploration of Williams’ poem than a criticism of what he sees as its faults: namely the sentimentality, anthropomorphizing, and romantic detachedness of t he narrator that is present especially in the first two lines. It is particularly the first stanza of Williams’ poem that Stevens takes issue with and he does so, at least in part, by way of its second stanza. Stevens attaches himself to two phrases, â€Å"shine alone† (3) and â€Å"lend no part† (4), that bookend the second stanza of Williams’ poem and uses them as his access points to the poem. He quotes the two phrases directly, elevating them to the opening words of both of his subsequent stanzas, though in doing so he also very purposefully changes their meaning. The first line of Stevens’ composition, â€Å"Shine alone, shine nakedly, shine like bronze† (5) seems, appropriately, to satisfy the expectations of the title while also being characteristic of Stevens’ playful perspectivist aesthetic tendencies (reminiscent, perhaps, of â€Å"Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird†); beginning with the two-word phrase taken directly from Williams’ piece, Stevens’ proceeds to stretch it into a richer, more textured imperative description of the same â€Å"ancient star† (2) addressed in Williams’ poem. Nonetheless, the succeeding two lines that make up the rest of Stevens’ first stanza diverge from mere variation into what seems to be an invective response to the opening lines of Williams’ poem: â€Å"It’s a strange courage/you give me, ancient star† (1-2). Stevens appears to be concerned with the fact that Williams sort of anthropomorphizes the star, which seems to be the rising sun, and instills it with the ability to give courage. He says of the sun that it must shine like something that â€Å"reflects neither [his] face nor any inner part/of [his] being† (6-7) and, ultimately, â€Å"like fire, that mirrors nothing† (7). Stevens’ deliberate dissociation with the sun (as a stand-in for nature) reflects his belief that one should apprehend nature without embellishing it; that the things of nature should not be used as means to access the triumphs or despairs of humanity. Where in Stevens’ â€Å"The Snowman† it is only with â€Å"a mind of winter† (1) that one can hear â€Å"the sound of the land† (10) without being distracted by â€Å"any misery in the sound of the wind† (8), so must Williams’ sun, in Stevens’ conception, mirror â€Å"nothing that is not there† (The Snowman, 15) if it is to be truly apprehended. With the entirety of Stevens’ first stanza in mind, the variations in his first line (that continues and concludes in the third with â€Å"shine like fire†) read less playfully and more like a slow, deliberate distancing from the humanness of the word â€Å"alone.† For â€Å"alone† is rarely used to describe the state of an inanimate object by itself, which wouldn’t require the recognition of being outside of a society of similar objects since society is limited to animate creatures. So Stevens re-forms the description as â€Å"nakedly.† That first step, though, is only a small step away from animation since it evokes the idea of being without clothes. But the adverb â€Å"nakedly† is, in fact, more commonly used to describe the nature of concepts or ideas, as in â€Å"plainly† or â€Å"blatantly,† and less the physical state of one’s dress. With the second transformation, â€Å"like bronze,† however, the le ss subtle split with animation begins. With â€Å"like bronze† Stevens has reformulated an idea of the sun as merely resembling something. Though it is a man-made something, which, therefore, maintains an inevitable if convoluted connection to the human realm. So, Stevens’ necessarily searches for one more angle, â€Å"like fire,† and the split with humanity is complete; the sun is reduced to something natural, independent of human existence, but, more importantly, it is reduced to precisely what it is. The sun is precisely something that in Stevens’ view should â€Å"lend no part to any humanity that suffuses/[the sun] in its own light† (8-9) as Williams does. For like Stevens declares in his later poem â€Å"Things of August†: â€Å"The rich earth, of its own self made rich,/Fertile of its own leaves† (51-52), so must the shining sun, of its own self shine. It appears that Stevens’ wishes to forget all human history of sun worship and mythology and relish the sun as it is perceived in the moment, in the present, by an individual person. Yet, in communicating his point, Stevens’ says that the sun should â€Å"be not chimera of the morning† (10). â€Å"Chimera† carries the meaning of â€Å"illusion† or â€Å"daydream† as if warning against being tricked into seeing the sun as more than it is, or as something that it is not. But â€Å"chimera† also carries the connotation of the mythical creature that was made of various animal parts and had an intelligence. So in this moment, while Stevens’ argument is ostensibly sustained, he undermines it slightly by constructing it around such a contradictory notion, even if only as a means to negate it. The final three lines of the poem continue in this vein of ridding the sun of any ancient residual meaning. He ironically says the star should â€Å"Be not an intelligence/Like a widow’s bird/Or and old horse† (12-15). These comparisons are ironic simply because Stevens would not grant intelligence to a bird or horse, but he knows that they are often thought of that way. A lonely widow gives more meaning and power to her avian companion and a farmer may attribute wisdom to a horse that has weathered much. Stevens slyly insults the romantic sentimentality of Williams’ poem by putting it on the same level as the foolish and uneducated figures suggested in his closing lines. It seems that Stevens sees Williams’ poem as weak and sentimental. Stevens’ poem is an exercise of his mind on Williams’ theme, enacted to deliberately and systematically gain control over the emotional preoccupations of the poem. I would suppose that, ultimately, Williams would not only have appreciated the criticisms of Stevens, but also would have agreed with them. I feel as though â€Å"El Hombre† is, at least on a basic level, an immature poem of Williams that would not have fit into his later, more distinctly formulated views.

Based on the issue of ways in which the internet has changed political Essay

Based on the issue of ways in which the internet has changed political interactions globally - Essay Example Therefore, internet has offered many services like ease of communication, information flow, entertainment and advent of e-commerce. The foremost and main services provided by internet are the ease of communication in every walk of life. It is one of the few endowments of scientific knowledge that have helped ameliorate the global political interactions. The political sphere of interaction has changed immensely worldwide through internet. The term ‘democracy’ has taken a more direct and greater meaning now. Countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Egypt and Libya are the clear examples of prevailing political instability and the warfare, which more or less has been worsened by the inappropriate and over use of internet; and has affected the political position of these countries globally. Today, nothing is hidden; a single weird movement in a country is spread throughout the world like a wildfire. Perhaps, internet has more often than not steered the country into a more depressing abyss. The countries have never faced such an adverse condition in past, though there were countries who had political instability, faced battles and even wars; but what was different? The difference this time has been internet. Where media is somewhat controlled and is censored by the government depending on scenarios, internet has been flooded with blatant proofs. Furthermore, any sort of news spreads like a wild fire because of the extensive social networking mediums such as facebook, twitter etc. Media in general, cannot talk much about the inside news because of the fact that such news is censored. However, internet –specifically YouTube and face book, have been filled with the proof of terrorism, extremists, unethical conducts of our leaders, which otherwise in media have been either deleted or censored. This has overall led to a change in general awareness of people who were aloof to such acts. Now there is active resistance to its activities and has led to much more

Off-balance sheet banking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Off-balance sheet banking - Essay Example On the other hand, if the customer sells the investment and again deposits the amount in the Bank account, it becomes a liability for the bank. For instance, Citibank maintain an off-balance sheet asset of 960 billion $ which accounts for 6% of the GDP of United States. The formal distinction between On & Off-Balance sheets is quite critical and depends largely on the decisions of management. In true sense, a company would include assets and liabilities in their balance sheet if it either actually owns or for which it is legally responsible. For including an asset or liability in the Balance sheet, the asset or liability has to be probable, measurable as well as meaningful. Otherwise, the financial company or the Bank would treat the assets or liabilities as Off-balance sheet items. For example, a Bank which is facing a legal issue due to non-fulfilment of its liabilities would not include the amounts in its balance sheet until a complete judgment is received, until the amount of com pensation or recovery is delivered through judgment, or may include the risk in its balance sheet if it is negligible until the entire legal process is over. Importance of controlling Off-Balance Sheet Banking and Role of Financial Regulators Over the last thirty years, there has been a scenario of increasing crisis while the banks have increased their portfolio of Off-Balance sheet activity through securitization, mainly short term asset backed by commercial paper. This has produced linkage between the banking system and the shadow-banking system. Thus, the importance of regulation off-balance sheet banking by financial regulators is a very...Fall of Lehmann Brothers is an ideal example. Depositors not only withdrew money from their Bank accounts leading to sharp decline in deposit base of the banks but market investor also refused to invest in the share and stocks of the banks for which the share price of the banks fell steeply. This turmoil in the financial industry leads to incr easing accountability for the financial regulators for controlling Off-Balance sheet banking. Regulators control Off-balance sheet activity of Banks in order to safeguard their solvency and maintain the health of the national economy. Banks are expected to keep their Off-balance sheet assets and liabilities within a safe limit and also diversify the risk of Off-balance sheet activity. Banks are required to do a portfolio analysis of their borrowers through securitization and the offer financing to the selected parties in order to hedge the risk (Greuning and Bratanovic, 2009, p.48). Financing to a single large customer would affect the solvency of the bank based on the projected performance and repayment of a single party. On the other hand, diversifying the asset would reduce the risk the Off-Balance sheet risk. Banks are expected to look at the viability of settlement of funds before lending in Off-Balance sheet items. This would reduce the settlement risk of the Banks. Banks should look into comprehensive country risk in terms of irrevocable commitments, contingent liabili ties and foreign-exchange positions to reduce off Balance sheet risk

Suzuki Case Study Essay Example for Free

Suzuki Case Study Essay This analysis provides the background, SWOT analysis and different marketing alternatives such as positioning the vehicle as a car, compact truck or sports utility vehicle. Later the recommendation is made on which marketing strategies are suitable for the success of the Suzuki Samurai in US market. The analysis has also highlighted in detail the pros and cons of the â€Å"unpositioning† that we propose versus three options of positioning that were considered earlier. We have also evaluated the strength of the marketing research done by Pearlstein in terms of ensuring market of success in US market. In this analysis, there is also the recommendation on how the $2. 5 Million six-month adverting budget should be spent in accordance to the positioning strategy chosen. 2. 0 Situation Analysis 2. 1 The company 2. 1. 1 Company Background Starting business in 1909 as Suzuki Loom Works, the firm was incorporated in 1920 and was to produce textile looms that would surpass the innovation and quality of other competitors. Since foundation Hamamatsu, Japan, SUZUKI has steadily grown and expanded. In 1952, Suzuki created a new type of motor vehicle, a motorized bicycle call the â€Å"Power Free†. This motorized bicycle featured a 36cc two-stroke engine with a double sprocket gear system that enabled the rider to pedal with the engine assisting, pedal without the engine assisting. Suzuki’s first mass produced car in 1955, the Suzulight, was a technical marvel. It included radical innovations for the time such as front-wheel drive, four-wheel suspension, and rack-and-pinion steering. In 1963, Suzuki brings its innovation motorcycle line-up to the U. S. A fast growing line enables them quickly to become a major player in the motorcycle market. Suzuki takes the lead in the all-terrain vehicle market in 1983 by introducing the first four-wheeled ATV. In 1985, Suzuki introduces its automotive line to the U. S, with the arrival of the Samurai. SJ 413 as an upgraded model of SJ410 and designed especially for US market. Today, constantly going forward to meet changing lifestyles, the SUZUKI name is seen on a full range of motorcycles, automobiles, outboard motors and related products such as generators and motorized wheelchairs. The mark trademark is recognized by people throughout the world as a brand of quality products that offer both reliability and originality. More than 45,000 Suzuki people worldwide now create and distribute their work in over 120 countries. Worldwide Suzuki Automotive sales now reach over 2 million each year, surpassing the sales of many other renowned companies such as BMW, Mercedes and Saab. Additionally more than 2. 5 million motorcycles and ATVs are sold each year. Sales of the Suzukis outboard motors also continue to grow. SUZUKI stands behind this global symbol with a sure determination to maintain this confidence in the future as well, never stopping in creating quality products. 2. 2 Product of Suzuki Samurai The Suzuki Samurai was introduced to the U. S. market in November 1985. It appealed to younger consumers with its inexpensive and fun-oriented positioning. This marketing strategy was successful, since over 160,000 Samurais were sold in just three years. The Suzuki Samurai was introduced as an inexpensive multi-purpose sport/utility vehicle. These vehicles were light pickup trucks with back seats, an extended roof, and part-time four-wheel drive intended for use on snow, ice, mud, or off-road driving. Sport/utility vehicles do not have to conform to the same safety regulations that apply to passenger cars. 2. 3 Positioning According to Douglas Mazza, he wanted a fresh approach for his company’s new products, he assigned advertising task to an agency which had no experience in developing campaign for automobiles. The advertising agency found out that the industry practice was to position vehicles according their physical characteristics. They also found out that most advertising was feature/benefit or price oriented. Based on its physical characteristics, the major three positioning for Samurai SJ413 were position as a compact sport utility vehicle, as a compact pickup truck and as a subcompact car, so it should be advertised as a â€Å"tough ittle cheap jeep†. Moreover, the samurai’s size and price distinguished it from all other sport utility vehicles sold in the U. S in 1985. The Samurai was smaller and lighter than the other vehicles, and its $5995 suggested retail price was well below the other vehicles’ $10,000 to $13,000 price range. 2. 4 SWOT Summary 2. 4. 1 Strengths : Suzuki Company followed selective distribution strategy, which allowed the company to achieve higher profitability, dealer loyalty, greater sales support and also higher degree of control over the retail market. Also, their pricing strategy was to sell high volume with low profit margin, which helped company to gain market response for its high quality with low price advantage. Suzuki Samurai has been positioned as a compact sport utility vehicle, a compact pickup truck and a subcompact car. This positioning would be good to place their brand in the particular part of the market where it would receive reception compared to competing products. It also well explained Samurai’s physical characteristics. 2. 4. 2 Weaknesses: Suzuki Samurai set their very low price, which meant it will came up with very low profit margin. The planned dealer invoice rice was $5095, only 7. 5%higher than ASMC’s own landed cost for the vehicle. And they planned to limit the number of samurai dealers, so each dealer might be stressed on as they needed to sell approximately 30 Samurai per month to cover its costs. Samurai was positioned as a sport utility vehicle; however, the market for sport utility vehicle was relatively small. In 1984, it was les than 3% in the U. S market. And it was positioned as a subcompact car, then it might not meet the expectations of the consumers because the Samurai was built on a truck platform, its ride was stiffer and less comfortable than the least-expensive subcompact cars. On the other side, if other consumers start to use it as subcompact car or pick up truck, it will lose its brand image. Thus it might lose potential market, bring trouble for the sales people and increase market confusion among customers. 2. 4. 3 Opportunities: Suzuki Samurai should be unpositioned in the market to get the opportunity to target the entire potential consumers segment. The unpositioned Suzuki Samurai will appeal the users of sports utility vehicles, pick up truck and subcompact cars. That ensures higher consumer acceptance and consumer satisfaction by offering a car for various needs. It would also increase sales and thus add large profit to the company’s income statement by targeting a large customer segments. The unpositioning strategy is better combined with company’s goal that is to establish ASMC as a major car company in the U. S market. The low price of the Samurai can be used as a strategy to impress consumers and to capture great share of the market. And this low price and also encouraged dealership investment in which expanded and increased sales. There will be a good opportunity for Samurai if can build a strong brand image among the potential customers such as some TV advertisement or promotion, in which creating and increasing buyer awareness of the car influencing buyer attitude toward the Suzuki Samurai. 2. 4. 4 Treats: Suzuki Samurai will bring some treats to its competitors if offering a car with different purpose. The broader appeal of the car can reduce sales of its competitors’ who are in the same industry. In addition, it will quite risky for Samurai’s sales if Suzuki overdefine the vehicle, because a product should broad enough to attract a wide range of consumers and meet consumers with different needs. 2. 5 Historical Results According to Appendix 6. 1, in 1984, there were approximately 25100 Japanese vehicles sole among the total of 424810 sport utility cars in U. S market, which was only 5. 9% of the market share. And Suzuki Samurai only had 8. 4% to the Japanese imported cars in the U. S market. In another words, Samurai did not have much market share compared with other Japanese competitors in the U. S automobile industry. In 1985, Samurai has decreased to 4. 6% market share among the Japanese car industry, and only 0. 46% market share of the whole compact sport utility vehicle in the U. S market. However, as compact pickup trucks and subcompact cars, it did not shown any Samurai products in which meant the sales could be very low and unsuccessful during the year of 1984 and 1985. 3. 0 The Market 3. 1 Background Since the introduction of its first production car, the â€Å"Suzulight†, in 1961, Suzuki had sold cars and trucks only in Japan until 1979. It took Suzuki only 5 years to export and distribute its automobiles into more than 100 countries including Hawaii (US). As a global firm, Suzuki captured and maintained its production and R ; D momentum to succeed in international marketing. Aiming at opening the continental US Market, Suzuki Samurai, designed with the US market specifically in mind, was introduced in 1985 in order to establish Suzuki’s brand presence in the United States. 3. 2 Market Entry 3. 2. 1 Exporting Before projecting the Samurai, Suzuki had cooperated with General Motors on a model named under GM as Chevrolet Sprint. Exporting Japanese cars to the US was subject to voluntary restraint agreement (VRA). In 1984, Suzuki’s total VRA quota of 17,000 cars went to GM as Sprints and Sprint’s distribution was limited to its West Coast dealers. GM’s success with Sprint showed Suzuki that a market existed for its cars in the continental United States. 3. 2. 2 Joint Venture – Suzuki + GM (Production in Canada) Japan’s VRA quotas made it impossible for Suzuki to export any cars other than the Sprint to the United States in the foreseeable future. In 1985, Suzuki and GM began negotiations with the Canadian government to build a plant in Ontario producing approximately 200,000 subcompact cars per year. This initiative could help launching more Suzuki automobiles into the US market under its own name by early 1989. 3. 3 Direct Investment – ASMC Market share of Japanese imports in the U. S. automobile market and the overall automobile industry in the US surged during 1984 – 1985. Facing the upcoming entries of other overseas brands, Suzuki was unwilling to wait until 1989 to introduce the Suzuki name into the continental United States. With SJ413 (Samurai), Suzuki had the right product for the market whereas the continental United States was a piece of new land – a dealer network needed to be established, since there was no guarantee that GM would market any Suzuki vehicles other than the Sprint in the US market. Customs clearance issue was solved by exporting SJ413 without a back seat, under which circumstance the vehicle was classified as a truck by the US government. Trucks were not subject to Japanese VRA quotas; instead, they were subject to a 25% tariff, much higher than that on cars (2. 5%). Suzuki management was convinced that the time was right to enter the continental US market and believed the high tariff was worth paying. American Suzuki Motor Corporation (ASMC) was established for the development of a Suzuki dealer network in the United States. 4. 0 Marketing Strategy Analysis 4. 1Entry Strategy The market strategy used by Suzuki varies in accordance to the nature of the Market. This can be evidenced by looking at the strategy used in entering Canadian Market and the entry strategies used in the US market which in some way varied in different times. In Canada the entry strategy was a joint venture which also involved opening the manufacturing company in Canada. In US, the first strategy was to export the Suzuki Samurai manufactured in Japan to the US market meanwhile the later strategy was to export Suzuki Samurai from Canada under its own name, American Suzuki motor Corporation (ASMC) which would keep them competitive in the automotive industry. 4. 2 Distribution Strategy The ASMC under Mazza formulated a strategy to ensure the company achieves its goal of being a major car company in the US. The strategy was: †¢To build exclusive sales facilities for the Samurai which would include showroom, sales office, customer waiting and accessories display area. †¢A minimum of two service stalls dedicated to Suzuki and operated by Suzuki trained mechanics for service and parts. †¢A minimum of three sales people, two service technicians, one general manager and one general office clerk dedicated to the Suzuki dealership. †¢In the long run, with the growth of the product line dealer requirements would expand to include a full, exclusive facility complete with attached parts and services. Limit the number of Samurai dealer network to 47 so that ASMC could guarantee the minimum supply of 37 units per month to enable the dealer to breakeven and earn some profit. Assumption: Dealer has to sell 30 cars per month to breakeven. -If the dealer sells all allocated 37 cars in a month he will be expected to earn a monthly profit of $6300 (See Appendix 1) 4. 3 Pricing Strate gy ASMC’s pricing policy was to sell the basic Samurai at a retail price of $5995 and a dealer price of $5095 which was only 7. 5% higher than ASMC landed cost. The contribution expected by ASMC from each unit sold was $382 (See Appendix 6. ). The ASMC pricing strategy was to sell its high quality product at a competitive price of $5995 which was far below competitors’ price ranging from $10,000 to $13,000. This strategy would enable the company to sell higher volume at considerably low margin. 4. 4 Promotion and Advertising Strategy 4. 4. 1 Product and Positioning Strategy Samurai was planned to be poisoned in the market in three different categories based on its physical characteristics. It could be either, a compact sport utility vehicle (SUV), a compact pickup truck or a subcompact car. See the figure below: Table 4. 4. 1: Market Share 19841985 Ratio of Suzuki to Total Japanese cars import in US8. 5%4. 6% Ratio of Suzuki to Compact Sport Utility Vehicles0. 5%0. 5% Note: The Suzuki sales were only for Hawaii excluding the grey market in Florida and other markets in Puerto Rico, Guam, the US Virginia Islands and Panama. Douglas Mazza wanted a fresh approach for his companys new product so he gave the responsibility to keye/ donna/ pearlstein advertising agency, which had no experience in developing campaign for automobiles. After accepting he offer, Pearlstein and his associates scanned the industry practice for automobile advertising. They found out that the industry practice was to position vehicles according their physical characteristics. They also found out that best advertising strategy was to base on either its feature, benefit or price. It was from physical characteristics that they positioned Suzuki Samurai as a compact sport utility vehicle (SUV), a compact pickup truck or a subcompact car.

Nature of a Diamond :: essays research papers

The unique nature of diamond is heavily dependent upon its composition, crystal structure, and mechanical, thermal, and electromagnetic properties.1 Of those dependencies, composition exacts the most influence over the characteristics. Crystal structure is the repeating pattern of diamond’s composition, and each of the properties are the result of molecular interaction which is determined by composition. Therefore, composition is paramount in the determination of the qualities of diamond. Before its discovery, adamantane was known as decaterpene, the name applied by Decker to his tricyclic hydrocarbon. Decker believed that his decaterpene was similar in structure as the diamond lattice. Decaterpene, as in diamond, was proposed by Decker to be highly structured and strain free.2   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Decker proposed decaterpene in 1924, but that was all it was until 1933 when the structure was proven to exist. Isolated in the petroleum of Hodinin, Czechoslovakia by Landa and Machachaeck, decaterpene became incarnate.3 However, the fact that they found the structure Decker predicted did not mean that his nomenclature would be used to identify the compound. That honor was bestowed upon its discoverers Landa and Machcahcaeck who used the Greek translation of diamond, adamantane, to identify the compound.2 Crude petroleum is separated into its component compounds by fractional distillation. The procedure involves a sample of the petroleum to be heated until the sample is vaporized leaving behind any solid impurities. The resulting steam enters a fractional distillation column in which a temperature gradient had been instilled. The temperature of the column decreases as the steam rises through the column. The idea is that, as the temperature of the column decreases, the vapor temperature will decrease. When the boiling point of a compound is passed, the compound will condense on the sides of the column and be collected in the fraction well at that point. Thus the mixture is separated into fractions of compounds with similar boiling points in a mixture.4 Adamantane’s high boiling point caused it to be one of the initial compounds to condense with the kerosene fraction in the 190o C cut.5 The only problem with the fractional distillation method is that adamantane cannot be extracted in large quantities because it exists in only a small quantity in petrol. The presence of adamantane was found to be only 0.0004% of the composition of petroleum by the fractional distillation method.2 Adamantane is not alone in the petroleum distillate in which it is present.

Canadian Briefing Note (LCBO) Essay

1. Introduction The Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) is a Crown Corporation established in 1927. It operates nearly 600 stores across the province and has a monopoly on the sale of spirits in Ontario.1 LCBO generated nearly $2.9 billion annually for the people of Ontario – including $2 billion in taxes and another $900 million in profits each year, making it the second largest government liquor distributor in the world.2 The former Tories planed to sell the board’s revenue stream while retaining actual ownership. Now, Dalton McGuinty’s Liberals was handing out a workbook to focus groups it had convened, saying that the 600 stores could be sold as franchises. There’s something about the prospect of a $5.6-billion deficit that has encouraged the government to obtain funds from selling its prime asset. However, the Ontario Liquor Board Employees’ Union has been running a successful campaign against privatizing the LCBO, and at same time, National Union of Public and General Employees threw its full support behind a campaign to stop government of from privatizing the phenomenally-profitable Liquor Control Board of Ontario. Should LCBO be privatized now? In this report, first of all, the importance of the issue is discussed, then a detailed analysis of the interests among government, business and public is presented, finally I will draw the conclusion and make a few of recommendations for privatization of LCBO. 2. Importance of the Issue 2.1. Revenue The LCBO is a highly profitable business owned by the government of Ontario. It is also a significant component of the economy of the province. It generates $2.9 billion a year in taxes and profits. The LCBO also contributes to the economy of Ontario in salaries, rents, and the purchase of various goods and services. This sum of money has a multiplier effect on the provincial economy, larger than the original amount injected into the economy. 3 2.2. Pricing and Marketing The LCBO carries a very wide selection of quality-tested products throughout the province at uniform prices. The liquor control boards can, as single buyers, bargain for lower prices and greater special discounts from suppliers and carriers. The privately-owned outlets are fragmented and multiply rapidly and are therefore not centralized in their operations and distribution network. Privately-owned retail outlets also require higher rates of return on their capital costs than control boards, and these higher costs, among others, lead to higher alcohol prices under privatization. 2.3. Employment The LCBO is a progressive employer of a committed and customer oriented workforce who are classified as permanent (amount 3362) and casual, and full-time and part-time.4 LCBO privatization means the laying off of LCBO employees that will lead to huge losses to the treasury and economy of Ontario. Thus the union struggles to organize campaign against the privatization. 2.4. Society Influence Privatizing the LCBO would likely lead to increased access to alcohol, increased consumption and therefore more alcohol-related costs. The significant potential consequences of the privatization of alcohol monopolies include: increased overall population consumption; increased sales to under-aged and intoxicated patrons; increased problems with monitoring and enforcement. 3. Analysis of Privatization 3.1. Government From the aspect of government, it is a current trend that government should not put more intervention in business. Tory said in throne speech: â€Å"The government will sell businesses it should not operate and assets it should not own.† 5 Thus it is reasonable that the former and current minister planned to sell off or partly sell the LCBO. Another reason for privatization may attribute to fiscal deficit, because ministers want to cut its deficit during their terms. The sale of LCBO will obviously resolve its financial problem in short term. However, if we consider it as a financial decision in the long term, it may not be a good choice. Because LCBO is running very well now, it brings an annual dividend of $975 million to government or people of Ontario in 2002-03.6 3.2. Business Many private investors would prefer to buy the franchise of LCBO or directly buy its retail shop. Because LCBO has already established its stable customer base, and have its brand recognizing advantage, it will be a little easy to develop their business in such situation. But due to limit of small scale, its operating cost would be higher than the LCBO, this may lead to high sale price of liquor. And at same reason, it may not control the quality of product as LCBO does. Until now, too many small towns didn’t get LCBO service because they couldn’t support the overhead of a full-sized LCBO store. Sterling, the former minister of consumer and business services, told reporters. â€Å"With our go-ahead to offer franchises to existing retailers in very small markets, we’ll improve service for residents and visitors, while preserving the LCBO’s social responsibility standards.† 5 3.3. Public Most people are satisfied the LCBO’s product and service, and support the board control. Alcohol is special commodity, thus government intervention is needed at this situation, even though LCBO has monopoly status in Ontario area. All LCBO retail employees are trained to Challenge and Refuse service to anyone who appears underage and cannot provide valid ID or appears intoxicated. Last year, LCBO frontline staff challenged 1.2 million would-be customers and refused service to nearly 70,000, about two-thirds of whom appeared underage and could not provide valid ID.7 It is difficult to imagine what will happen if all these retail shops are sold to private investors, they may consider more on their own economic benefit and neglect social liability. Increased alcohol problems such as sale to under-aged and intoxicated patron are very likely happen. 4. Recommendation and Conclusion The privatization of LCBO is a complicated issue, because we should consider the relationship and interests among government, business, and public. On one hand, normally government should not act as a policy decision maker and business operator at same time, which will easily lead to monopoly and against good faith.8 On another hand, we have to consider that alcohol is special commodity, which should be effectively controlled by government based on public interest. Therefore my suggestion is to partly privatize LCBO, it will decrease business monopoly in the market, but government could still occupy large part of share, so it can effectively regulate the operation of business. There are many methods of privatization, and some ideas had been mentioned by government in LCBO history, such as franchise store in rural area, merge with Beer Store, and income trust. The main concern is to find an appropriate way to balance the interests of all parties, and make the privatization go smoothly during a period, not suddenly hit some party’s interests, and untimely be accepted by all groups. In order to achieve this goal, the LCBO and ministry must be more transparent in their decision-making, and more open to consideration of public health interests. From this point of view, government could organize a board which has enough members from different stakeholders, such as employees of LCBO, representative of Ontario citizen, expert of public health and safety, economists, private investor and government officer. They could regularly meet together to discuss the possible method of privatization and collect all kinds of opinion and feedback from society. Although this method may spend more time during policy-decision process, only when the issue is thoroughly discussed and known by public, the rational policy could be made to reflect all party’s interest and untimely encounter less resistance while it is applied. Endnotes: 1. LCBO, â€Å"Business Information†, http://www.lcbo.com/aboutlcbo/businessinformation.shtml (accessed 16 October 2004). 2. LCBO Annual Report 2003, 44, http://www.lcbo.com/aboutlcbo/annualreport2003.shtml(accessed 17 October 2004). 3. Ontario Liquor Boards Employee’s Union, â€Å"LCBO Revenues†, http://www.ourlcbo.com/revenues.htm (accessed 18 October 2004). 4. LCBO Annual Report 2003, 44, http://www.lcbo.com/aboutlcbo/annualreport2003.shtml (accessed 18 October 2004). 5. The National Union of Public and General Employees, â€Å"Ontario opening 150 private rural liquor outlets†, http://www.nupge.ca/news_2001/news_se01/n26se01a.htm (accessed 19 October 2004). 6. LCBO Annual Report 2003, 11, http://www.lcbo.com/aboutlcbo/annualreport2003.shtml (accessed 19 October 2004). 7. LCBO, â€Å"Today’s LCBO†, http://www.lcbo.com/aboutlcbo/todayslcbo.shtml#social (accessed 20 October 2004). 8. Glen E. Randall & David S. Barrows, Business P700 Lecture (McMaster University, 15 October 2004). Bibliography: 1. Daniel Girard. â€Å"Liquor stores could still be up for sale, Harris says†. The Toronto Star, 27 May 1999. 2. Ian Urquhart. â€Å"McGuinty puts controversial Tory ideas into play†. The Toronto Star, 2 Oct. 2004. 3. Nuri T. Jazairi. â€Å"The Impact of Privatizing the Liquor Control Board of Ontario†. http://www.yorku.ca/nuri/lcbo.htm (accessed 18 October 2004). 4. Robert Benzie. â€Å"Eves talked of selling LCBO, insiders say†. The Toronto Star, 31 Oct. 2003. 5. Robert Benzie. â€Å"Eves sought list of assets to be sold†. The Toronto Star, 2 November 2003.

Indigenous Culture Website Reviews Essay

Indigenous People of Arctic Russia What is the main purpose of the website you found? The main purpose of the article was to educate about the people of Arctic Russia. It goes into detail about the oppression of the people and the plan to erase the culture that they hold as an important part of their lifestyle. It also explains the current events that are happening between the state and the indigenous people. What roles and observances are sacred to this indigenous group? The roles that are sacred are the shamans and the sacred sites within the environment that they are located. How, if at all, has the culture or religion of this group changed or evolved over time? Throughout the years, the culture has suffered many ups and downs. The loss of the traditions was beginning to happen due to the interference of people not native to the land or the tribe settling in the area. The state also passed laws and in result has taken land and other resources from them. Currently efforts are being taken to re-energize the resources that were taken from the indigenous people and save some of the resources were not destroyed throughout the years. Has modern society (Western Culture) had an impact on this indigenous group? Western society played a part with the destruction of the resources in Northern Siberia. With the help of the Europeans, both were mainly responsible for the depletion of the land due to petroleum and hydroelectric mining. What is one thing you learned about this indigenous group from the website that surprised you or that you found interesting? The one thing I’m surprised in is the similarities the indigenous people of Serbia and Native of the United States. Both live off the land and had similar problem with the resources. What, in your opinion, makes this website authoritative? Because everybody knows about the native Americans but little is known about the natives of Russia and the trail and tribulations. Question Response Website #2 URL: http://australia. gov. au/about-australia/australian-story/austn-indigenous-cultural-heritage Name of Indigenous culture/religion presented in Web site Australian Indigenous cultural heritage What is the main purpose of the website you found? The purpose is to explain the religion, culture, and the way of life of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. What roles and observances are sacred to this indigenous group? The land is sacred to both cultures. The belief they have is the land is sustained and is sustained by the people. How, if at all, has the culture or religion of this group changed evolved over time? The culture has changed with the introduction of the European culture and the result of the decrease of the culture with the introduction of Christianity. Has modern society (Western Culture) had an impact on this indigenous group? With the introduction of metal, glass and metal within the culture from the Europeans, they understood the ease with using the materials versus just using rock. What is one thing you learned about this indigenous group from the website that surprised you or that you found interesting? I’ve learned that their traditions and way of life is one of the oldest cultures in the world. The culture currently exists today in Australia and there are more than 500 different nations that exist. What, in your opinion, makes this website authoritative? In my opinion is for the tourist that plan to go there for vacation. The site goes into the culture that the aborigines has to offer but not much into the past between the people and the country. ï » ¿Indigenous Culture Website Reviews Essay Name of Indigenous culture/religion presented in Web site Indigenous People of Arctic Russia What is the main purpose of the website you found? The main purpose of the article was to educate about the people of Arctic Russia. It goes into detail about the oppression of the people and the plan to erase the culture that they hold as an important part of their lifestyle. It also explains the current events that are happening between the state and the indigenous people. What roles and observances are sacred to this indigenous group? The roles that are sacred are the shamans and the sacred sites within the environment that they are located. How, if at all, has the culture or religion of this group changed or evolved over time? Throughout the years, the culture has suffered many ups and downs. The loss of the traditions was beginning to happen due to the interference of people not native to the land or the tribe settling in the area. The state also passed laws and in result has taken land and other resources from them. Currently efforts are being taken to re-energize the resources that were taken from the indigenous people and save some of the resources were not destroyed throughout the years. Has modern society (Western Culture) had an impact on this indigenous group? Western society played a part with the destruction of the resources in Northern Siberia. With the help of the Europeans, both were mainly responsible for the depletion of the land due to petroleum and hydroelectric mining. What is one thing you learned about this indigenous group from the website that surprised you or that you found interesting? The one thing I’m surprised in is the similarities the indigenous people of Serbia and Native of the United States. Both live off the land and had similar problem with the resources. What, in your opinion, makes this website authoritative? Because everybody knows about the native Americans but little is known about the natives of Russia and the trail and tribulations. Question Response Website #2 URL: http://australia. gov. au/about-australia/australian-story/austn-indigenous-cultural-heritage Name of Indigenous culture/religion presented in Web site Australian Indigenous cultural heritage What is the main purpose of the website you found? The purpose is to explain the religion, culture, and the way of life of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. What roles and observances are sacred to this indigenous group? The land is sacred to both cultures. The belief they have is the land is sustained and is sustained by the people. How, if at all, has the culture or religion of this group changed evolved over time? The culture has changed with the introduction of the European culture and the result of the decrease of the culture with the introduction of Christianity. Has modern society (Western Culture) had an impact on this indigenous group? With the introduction of metal, glass and metal within the culture from the Europeans, they understood the ease with using the materials versus just using rock. What is one thing you learned about this indigenous group from the website that surprised you or that you found interesting? I’ve learned that their traditions and way of life is one of the oldest cultures in the world. The culture currently exists today in Australia and there are more than 500 different nations that exist. What, in your opinion, makes this website authoritative? In my opinion is for the tourist that plan to go there for vacation. The site goes into the culture that the aborigines has to offer but not much into the past between the people and the country.

Wuthering Heights Essays - British Films, English-language Films

Wuthering Heights Essays - British Films, English-language Films Wuthering Heights I would like to analyze the conflicts that Heathcliff faced throughout the novel Wuthering Heights. Heithcliffs character was very complex. He lived a troubled childhood that is never completely revealed to the reader. All we know is that he was abandoned at a young age and when Mr. Earnshaw discovered him, he was sickly looking. Heathclfidd was then brought to live in this brand new society at Wuthering Heights. Hindly, Mr. Earnshaws son, was jealous of Heathcliff from the start because he felt that his father loved Heathcliff more than himself. Hindlys hatred for Heathcliff was worsened once he realized that he and Cathy had fallen in love. To protect his sister, he slowly turned Heathcliff into a vagabond. This ultimatly forced her to seek love elsewhere. When Heathcliff overheard that Cathy was to be married to another man, Edgar, he ran away from Wuthering Heights. After fleeing Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff was forced to start a new life and obviously succeeded at this because during this time he became very wealthy. Upon returning he confessed to Cathy that he never stopped loving her. When Cathy didnt reciprocate his feelings, Heathcliff became enraged and to spite Cathy, he married her sister in law, Isabelle. At this point Cathy and her husband Edgar were expecting a baby. Heathcliffs marriage sent her into a deep depression. She fell very ill and soon after giving birth to her daughter, Cathrine , she died. Berfore she died though, she confessed to Heathcliff her true love for him. After Cathys death, Heathcliff now became a scornful person, full of hatred. He wanted in the worst way to get revenge on Edgar Linton for stealing Cathy from him. He spent years and years thinking up a valid plan that would drive Edgar to his deathbed. His plan uses Cathrines cousin, Linton, to lure her to Wuthering Heights against her fathers will. When she arrives, Heathcliffs new revengeful side is now revealed. He locks Cathrine up in the house and forces her to marry Linton. When she is finally free to visit her father, Heathcliffs wish is now granted. Her father, Edgar, lies on a deathbed, and dies shortly after Cathrines return. Now Edgars fortune belongs to Linton who as according to Heathcliffs plan dies soon after their marriage. Edgars fortune is now passed on from Linton to Heathcliff. Heathcliffs life persists accordingly for a while until Mr. Lockwood, a new tenant at Wuthering Heights, ariives. He stays in Cathys old room against Heathcliffs orders and during the night gets a visit from her ghost which he immidiatly reports to Heathcliff. This encounter makes Heathcliff realize that Cathy is waiting for him in heavon. Now that he had seen Edgar die and had stolen his fortune from him, he was ready to join Cathy. From this point on he welcomes death and yearns for his and Cathys reunion. Heathcliffs death comes abruptly and the only person to mourn his death is Hareton, his nephew. Heathcliff lived most of his life as a victim, but I think that all of his hardships turned him into a stronger person. Unfortunatly, he not only became hard, but lost all the tenderness in his heart. Over time, he enjoyed seeing people endure pain as he himself was forced to do so many times in his past. The ultimate thing that brought Heathcliff to peace was to die and enter heavon where his beloved Cathy was. Now that they are both in heavon it seems as if Heathcliffs wishes have come true because at the end of the novel, someone comments on seeing Heathcliffs ghost with a woman. That woman is presumably Cathy. Their love was obviously an undying love because even in death they found a way to be together.

The Law of Contract Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

The Law of Contract - Case Study Example Almost all these principles guiding the Contract Law are principles of common law and are mainly based on the human development since ages. Law of Contracts mainly stands on undertakings, promises and acceptances. Birmingham Garden Centre had advertised that the first person that will present all 21 numbered from 1 to 21 coupons printed in The Mail in February and March 2006, on 1st of April 2006, would be able to get a free summerhouse. This caused many people including Jim to collect vouchers carefully after buying the Newspaper every day with editions, and Jim had even dreamt of getting the house for his disabled wife Renee. On the mentioned day, when he presented all the vouchers as demanded, he was told that it was a mere April fool's Day trick. Still this contract cannot be stated as void, because the contract was not illegal2. Contract cannot be termed as viodable3 either because even though there is nothing to prevent a minor from participating in the challenge, it is not specifically for minors. There is no uncertainty and incompleteness in the contract. Terms are clear and definite. Incompleteness need not bother the contract as it is a unilateral contract and meant to be so, almost one-sided. There are no unenforceable clauses like those in American spy contracts. One question that comes to mind immediately is the outrage that the owners of BGC could fool gullible people to that extent. There must be legal remedies against such heartless actions. 1. Whether a contract exists between Jim and BGS In Law of Contracts, unwritten contracts of this kind are called Unilateral Contracts. Usually the offerer asks for an act or information in return to an award; like an amount of money in return to some information, or tracing a pet animal, or some other act by doing which, the promised amount or some object will be paid. These contracts are called Unilateral because only one party appears on the scene and for the other party it is not binding. The second party has not promised anything, and is legally protected. But the first party has made his promise and hence is the promisor. Even though there is no written contract between Birmingham Garden Centre and Jim, there is a semblance of it, because BGC advertised in The Mail that person who collects 21 vouchers printed in The Mail will be entitled for a summer house and Jim, being aware that his disabled wife Renee will have a better life with open air, sunshine and garden, if he manages to get a summer house, has collected all the required coupons and was the first person to present it on the April 1st, as instructed by the advertisement, only to be dampeningly told that it was an April Fools' Day joke. There are many aspects of this case that are thought provoking. To make their presence felt, BGC advertised in the newspapers about the vouchers connecting the vouchers

Turism and Hospitality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Turism and Hospitality - Essay Example Information and Communication Technology (ICT) techniques are seen to be an answer to such a dynamic business environment. Five themes driving the future of international hospitality industry include information technology, assets and capital management, capacity control, safety and security, and management skills (Olsen in Olson and Connolly, 1999). With the example of airline reservation systems in the 60s to the Central Reservation Systems to the current Global Distribution Systems providing holistic tourism products such as information, reservations and linkages with stakeholders, ICTs have become indispensable. Further with the society changing into 'information knowledge society', business organizations are turning to newer information technologies for survival and competitiveness (Gratzer et. al, 2003). Go (in Buhalis, 1998) identifies some of attributes of ICTs acting as drivers of tourism globalisation. These include, 'cost drivers' in terms of increased efficiency, low distribution cost, low communication cost, low labour cost, minimisation of waste factor and facilitator of flexible pricing; 'market drivers' satisfying sophisticated demand, offering flexibility in operation, supporting specialization and differentiation, providing last minute deals and accurate information, supports relationship marketing strategies for frequent flyers / guests, there is quick reaction to demand fluctuation, multiple / integrated products can be offered and results in better yield management, corporate research and marketing research; 'Government and regulatory drivers' such as support from Government, deregulation and liberalisation and 'competitive drivers' as strategic tool, managing network of enterprises, value-added skill building, flexibility, knowledge acquisition and a barrier to entry . ICTs: Implications for Tourism Industry Poon (in Gratzer et. al, 2003) has described the implications for tourism industry caused by information and communication technologies (ICT). These include, change of rules in the industry; change in role of each player involved in the process of value-creation; facilitation of 'new, flexible, and high quality travel and tourism services that are cost-competitive with mass, standardized, and rigidly packaged options' and transformation of tourism from 'mass, standardized, and rigidly package nature into a more flexible, individual-oriented industry.' Marcussen (in Gratzer et. al, 2003) cites the example of European online travel market to be worth 14 billion Euros by 2006. Buhalis (1998) suggest a multi-dimensional strategic framework for use of information technology and illustrates the strategic implications of information technology for the tourism industry. Strategic Framework for Information Technology in Tourism (Source: Buhalis, 1998, pp. 417) Buhalis (in Buhalis, 1998) illustrates role of information technology in facilitating both intra- and inter-organisational communications and functions. Within a tourism organisation, information technology facilitates management functions such as 'strategic planning, competition analysis, financial planning and control, marketing research, marketing strategy and implementation, pricing