The Benefits of Social Media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Benefits of Social Media - Essay Example From the discussion it is clear that with the popularity of digital media, consumers of most products and services have developed an easy flair with the use of social media. This line of consumer behaviour whereby most consumers spend greater parts of their lives on social media gives marketers an obligation of channelling their marketing through the social media. This is a course that has been extensively justified in this report. The report takes a look at the benefits of social media from a marketing perspective. Also, the impact of social media in cost saving marketing and viral spreading of content of marketing have also been emphasised in detail.This study highlights that the dominant role that digital media and for that matter the internet plays in modern business engagements. The digital media and the internet have become avenues for the promotion of both globalisation and competitiveness among modern businesses. This is a fact that cannot be denied, given the extent to which organisations of different outlook depend on digital media and the internet at large to execute business functions. The impact of digital media on modern business was the fact that digital media fits almost every aspect of business engagement in a typical modern organisation. With this said, the current report seeks to single out marketing as an aspect of business engagement to look at how digital media influences marketing in any typical modern organisational setup.

Literary Analysis of Bartleby the Scrivener Essay Example for Free

Literary Analysis of Bartleby the Scrivener Essay Bartleby the Scrivener could be described as a story about getting rid of its title character, about the narrators attempt to get rid of Bartleby, and Bartlebys tenacious capacity to be always there. It is the story of an unnamed lawyer and his employee, Bartleby, a copyist of law documents. Confronted not only with Bartlebys refusal to do work (first to read copies against the original, then to copy altogether), but also with the contagious nature of the particular words of his refusal (Bartlebys peculiar I would prefer not to), the narrator concludes that, before Bartleby turns the tongues any further of those with whom he comes into contact, he must get rid of Bartleby. At the same time Bartleby feels mobbed in his privacy (27) when the other office workers crowd him behind his screen, they in turn are invaded by his idiosyncrasy his private idiom prefer. Bartlebys presence breaks down the clear distinctions between public and private, professional and domestic, between privacy and the mob. By pinpointing Bartleby as the cause of infectious language (language turned bad), the narrator wants to stop the course of a process (the turning of tongues) already in progress. But getting rid of Bartleby is as tricky as getting rid of a chronic condition; the narrator emphasizes a phrase which appears textually in italics: he was always there (20). Bartleby is, as the narrator calls him, a nuisance (40), an intolerable incubus. As a character in the story with a body, he moves very little, but the few words he speaks break out at unexpected moments in the office. Every attempt the narrator makes to control the passive Bartleby and his infectious language fails hilariously (Schehr 97). The narrator experiences a curious tension between the impossible imperative (on the level of the story) to get rid of the subject, and the impossibility (on the level of the narration) to write his complete biography (Bartlebys history). Thus, Bartleby is also a fable about writing history or biography. In attempting to write what he thinks of as Bartlebys biography, the narrator merely misnames his writing project, or he emphasizes it from the wrong point of view. In search of Bartlebys origins, the narrator does not simply narrate (as he thinks) the history of Bartleby the Scrivener; he relates rather the story of his own anxiety vis-a-vis Bartleby. In particular, he relates his anxiety over the scriveners silence and modes of breaking that silence; for we could say that, rather than speaking very little or in particular ways, Bartleby has particular ways of occasionally breaking silence. It is this violence in speech, this unexpected eruption, which the narrator fears. The narrator, whose acquaintances describe him as an eminently safe man, who likes nothing better than the cool tranquility of a snug retreat (4), is thrown decidedly off kilter when faced with what he terms Bartlebys passive resistance (17). Bartlebys weapon is his total indifference to truth, whereas the narrator seeks a second opinion on truth from the other office mates. Bartleby could be seen as the one solid block around which the narrator writes his own story about truth rather than the truth about the Bartleby story. Bartlebys passive resistance actually generates the story confronted with it, the narrator creates theories (his doctrine of assumptions, for instance), carries on debates with himself, and seeks the counsel of others all with the opaque Bartleby as the core. In reconstructing Bartlebys story, the narrator follows an implicit logic which he never directly states. It is the logic of cause and effect. (He is not deliberately hiding this logic, but because he takes its validity for granted, he never comments on it critically. ) Believing in the possibility of finding a specific, locatable, and nameable cause to Bartlebys condition (as he is able to do with the other office workers, Nippers and Turkey, whose moods vary according to their diets and the time of day), the narrator thinks that by eradicating the cause of the problem, he can alter the effects, the effects of Bartlebys speaking condition in the office space. McCall follows the same logic as the narrator in seeking causes of Bartlebys behavior. He mentions remark that when the narrator asks Bartleby to run an errand for him at the post office, that is probably the last place, if the rumor is correct, that Bartleby would ever want to go. (McCall 129). The narrator never considers that his line of reasoning might be faulty — that Bartlebys condition may not be linked to a specific, locatable, nameable cause. We as readers may be placed in the same position as the narrator in that we never know either the origin of Bartlebys condition; we witness primarily its effects, or symptoms, in the story. These symptoms reside not only in Bartleby as individual character, but in the very way the narrator tells the story about that character. Rather than speaking about the cause of Bartlebys condition, one could more aptly speak about the ways in which its effects are spread to other characters within the text. When the narrator impatiently summons Bartleby to join and help the others in the scenario of group reading, Bartleby responds, I would prefer not to (14). Hearing this response the narrator turns into a pillar of salt (14). (Faced with Bartlebys responses and sheer presence, the narrator oftentimes evokes images of his losing, then waking to, consciousness. ) When he recovers his senses, he tries to reason with Bartleby, who in the meantime has retreated behind his screen. The narrator says: These are your own copies we are about to examine. It is labor saving to you, because one examination will answer for your four papers. It is common usage. Every copyist is bound to help examine his copy. Is it not so? Will you not speak? Answer! (15) The narrator is exasperated when Bartleby does not respond immediately to the logic behind his work ethic. These are your own copies we are about to examine. It is labor saving to you. Examining or reading copy is a money saving activity, from which every member of the office profits (four documents for the price of one reading! ). Every copyist is bound to help examine his copy. To the contract the lawyer emphatically demands from his employee, a bond based on an exchange of reading, Bartleby replies three times, gently, in a flutelike tone, I (would) prefer not to (15). By refusing to read copy, Bartleby refuses to consent to the economy of the office. It is perhaps only to another type of reading, one not based on a system of exchange and profit, which Bartleby consents. Although the narrator says he has never seen Bartleby reading — not even a newspaper (24) — he does often notice him staring outside the window of the office onto a brick wall. Staring at the dead brick wall (in what the narrator calls Bartlebys dead-wall reveries) may be Bartlebys only form of reading, taking the place of the economy-based reading demanded of him in the process of verifying copies. About halfway through the story, the lawyer/narrator visits his office on a Sunday morning and, discovering a blanket, soap and towel, a few crumbs of ginger nuts and a morsel of cheese, deduces that the scrivener never leaves the office. Realizing the full impact of Bartlebys condition, he states, What I saw that morning persuaded me that the scrivener was the victim of innate and incurable disorder. (25) The narrator clearly locates the disorder in Bartleby. Seeing himself in the role of diagnostician and healer, he himself is faced with the hopelessness of remedying excessive and organic ill (24). The narrators concern about an individual medical cure should more aptly be a concern about an obsessively private rhetorical debate or a dangerously idiomatic group contagion (Perry 409). Despite his assumption that Bartleby is incurable, or perhaps precisely because he can effect no cure, the narrator beleaguers himself throughout the story with questions or commands to do something about Bartleby (McCall 9). If the private mans disorder can be passed on to another (one) person, what happens when the condition is let loose out of close quarantine into the public space of the office? Bartleby walks a precarious tightrope between comedy and tragedy (Inge 25). The tragic dimension often resides in the narrators turning inward on himself (a sort of tragic compression), then putting himself on trial, an interior moment of accusation which eventually results in the collapse of the narrative in a single sigh or exclamation (Ah, Bartleby! Ah, humanity! 46). The comic effects are often related to the authoritarian attempt (and failure) to contain the spread of idiom as contagion (Perry 412). If Bartleby has been a figure for tragedy in the lone meditation of the narrator, he becomes a figure for comedy in his contact with his office mates Nippers and Turkey. The more the narrator tries to regulate the contact between the three, the more hilarious — and significantly out of control — is Bartlebys influence. The effort to contain or control tends actually to promote the epidemic proportions of the narrative. It is the narrator himself who uses a vocabulary of contagion in relation to Bartleby. He says he has had more than ordinary contact (3) with other scriveners he has known. Bartleby exceeds this already extraordinary contact he has been touched by handling dead letters (Schehr 99). Some critics reproduce the narrators language of contagion in talking about Bartleby. McCall, in his study on The Silence of Bartleby, describes our response, the collective readers response, to reading the tale: As we go through the story, we watch with a certain delight how Bartleby is catching. We root for the spread of the bug. (145) In a somewhat less delighted vein, Borges says, Bartlebys frank nihilism contaminates his companions and even the stolid man who tells Bartlebys story. (Borges 8) In the office scenes where the employees and boss come inevitably together, the bug word is Bartlebys prefer. Nippers uses it mockingly against the narrator as a transitive action verb when he overhears Bartlebys words of refusal to the narrators plea to be a little reasonable. Bartleby echoes, At present I would prefer not to be a little reasonable (26). If Nippers is suffering from his own peculiar and chronic condition of indigestion, he takes on the symptoms of Bartlebys condition when he exclaims to the narrator, Prefer not, eh? – Id prefer him, if I were you sir, Id prefer him; Id give him preferences, the stubborn mule! What is it, sir, pray, that he prefers not to do now? (26) Whereas later in the story the narrator totally loses his critical skill to catch himself in his speech, in this exchange he is still able to articulate the effect Bartlebys word is having on him. He notes anxiously, Somehow, of late, I had got into the way of involuntarily using the word prefer upon all sorts of not exactly suitable occasions. (27) It is this qualifier not exactly which is of particular interest. Bartlebys use of words is not exactly wrong. Prefer is so insidious because it is only slightly askew, dislocated, idiosyncratic. As McCall accurately notes about the power of Bartlebys I prefer not to, one must hear, in the little silence that follows it, how the line delivers two contradictory meanings, obstinacy and politeness. (152) The line calls just enough attention to itself so as to attract others to its profoundly mixed message (its perfect yes and no) in an imitative way (McCall 152). Prefer is as inobtrusive, as contagious, and as revolutionary as a sneeze. The narrator lets it out of his mouth involuntarily. When Turkey enters the scene and uses the bug word without realizing it (without Nippers italicized parody or the narrators critical comments), the narrator says to him, in a slightly excited tone, So you have got the word, too (27). In this pivotal sentence, the verb get implies to receive (as in to receive a word or message), but more strikingly for our discussion here, it implies the verb to catch one catches the word as one would catch a cold. The narrator attempts to monitor the contagion by naming the bug and pointing it out to the others. But the word mocks everyones will to control it prefer pops up six times in the next half a page — four times unconsciously in the speech of one of the employees, and twice consciously (modified by word) in the narration of the lawyer. Bartleby could be described as a story of the intimacy or anxiety a lawyer feels for the law-copyist he employs. The narrator arranges a screen in the corner of his office behind which Bartleby may work. Pleased with the arrangement of placing Bartleby behind the screen in near proximity to his own desk, the narrator states, Thus, in a manner, privacy and society were conjoined (12). The narrator idealizes the possibility of a perfect harmony between privacy and community in the work environment, but it is precisely the conflict between these two spatial conditions which generates the story, defining not only Bartlebys idiocy, but the narrators as well. The narrator most characteristically encounters Bartleby emerging from his retreat (13) or retiring into his hermitage (26). The screen isolates Bartleby from the view of the narrator, but not from his voice. Works Cited Borges, Jorge Luis. Prologue to Herman Melvilles Bartleby in Herman Melvilles Billy Budd, Benito Cereno, Bartleby the Scrivener, and Other Tales, ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987 Inge, Thomas M. , ed. Bartleby the Inscrutable. Hamden, CT: Archon Books, 1979. McCall, Dan. The Silence of Bartleby. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1989. Melville, Herman. Billy Budd and Other Stories. New York: Penguin Books, 1986. Perry, Dennis R. Ah, Humanity: Compulsion Neuroses in Melvilles Bartleby. Studies in Short Fiction 23. 4 (fall 1987): 407-415. Schehr, Lawrence R. Dead Letters: Theories of Writing in Bartleby the Scrivener Enclitic vii. l (spring 1983): 96-103.

The Pearl :: essays research papers

The Pearl By John Steinbeck   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The setting of the story was primarily in an impoverished Mexican-Indian community in La Paz, roughly around the 1900s.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kino is a prime example of a developing character. From beginning to the end, he develops drastically. At the beginning, he was thought out to be a good loyal husband, but as time went on, he became a selfish, greedy individual who would do anything for money. Juana was Kino’s young wife. She was respectful, and very tolerant towards Kino. Coyotito was Kino and Juana’s only child. Juan Tomas was Kino’s brother, and Apolonia was his wife; both had four children, and very little is known about both of them. The doctor was a very stout, and greedy man, and didn’t heal, or treat his patients if they didn’t have money.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The conflict began when a scorpion stung Coyotito. He became very ill, and the doctor refused to cure Kino’s son for the reason that they had no money. On that very same day, Kino found the pearl that would change his life, as well as the people around him. The pearl brought great danger to Kino and his family. Everybody in the community knew about Kino’s finding, which resulted in everybody desiring the pearl.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ever since King Midas' lust for gold, it appears to be that man has acquired a greed and appetite for wealth. Kino, Juana, and the doctor have all undergone a change due to money. They’re all affected by their hunger for wealth and are the base for their own destruction, and the destruction of society. The theme of The Pearl is mainly of man's self-destruction through greed, and the hunger for wealth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are several different symbols in this story. The scorpion that stung Coyotito could simply mean the vulnerability and the possibility of danger that Kino and his family face ahead. The pearl may also symbolize evil, and how it brought the radical change in Kino and his wife.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pearl was thought to be the stability and prosperity that Kino hoped for his family. However, there were also alternate feelings of jealousy and greed in the community. The pearl was intended to solve all of Kino’s problems, but it ended up destroying his life, dreams, and the death of his son.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kino lived with his wife Juana, and his baby son Coyotito in a brush hut. Coyotito got stung by a scorpion, and got very ill.

Lisa Bright & Dark Essay -- essays research papers

John Neufeld is the author of â€Å"Lisa Bright & Dark†. He lives and works in New York City these days. He was educated at Yale. His style of writing are usually touching stories. Finding information about John Neufeld is quite difficult since the Internet nor the book has provided any help whatsoever. Lisa Shilling is the main character of this book. She is just sixteen as she slowly loses her mind. Lisa is quite an example of teenager with problems which is why she’d be classified as a very real character. Her dangerous state of mind reflects the realism that this does happen. Her moods are forever changing. Lisa’s motivation as a teenager is to live her live normally. This is hard to do since she is in need of help. Many can relate to Lisa and her illness because it is among teenagers today. Her mother and father snub her off completely overlooking her serious unstableness. Luckily, she has friends that care enough to help her. The main conflict of this book is the struggle to convince Lisa’s parents that she is ill and needs serious help. Her parents did not pay attention in the beginning when Lisa started to act a little different. This is rather understandable. Lisa was in school and pricked herself with a needle that drew blood. Many told Lisa’s stubborn parents that she needed a psychiatrist. They simply refused to accept the fact that their daughter was in need of anything. When Lisa even screamed out that she needed help, they simply wouldn’t understand. She even w...

Social Media as Marketing Tools-a Case of Coca-Cola

Back ground of Coca-cola Coca-cola started in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886 by Dr. John Stith Pemberton. He was a local Pharmacist. After producing Coca-cola syrup he carried it down to another pharmaceutical store on the street, where it was sampled and pronounced as exceptional. The sales of the drink called Coke thereafter, began. It was not at first sold as bottled drink; rather it was sold from the fountain for five cents a glass. Carbonated water was later combined with the newly discovered syrup to produce the drink known as coca-cola today.Coca-cola is known all over the world for its unique taste which its competitors have not been able to beat. Dr. Pemberton partner with a man called Frank M. Robinson-a bookkeeper- to create the name Coca-cola. After considering the advertising aspect of the product, Robinson came up with the unique name known as â€Å"Coca-cola† today. Coca-cola was first advertised in The Atlanta Journal, through the journal the citizens were in vited to taste â€Å"the new and popular fountain drink†. While the product tasting were ongoing, series of advertising campaigns were also put in place to aggressively promote the newly found drink.The people passing by were invited to try the drink with the hope of passing the message across after tasting. During the first year, the average sales of coca-cola rose to nine drinks per day. Dr. Pemberton never realized the future prospect of the drink he created; therefore, he sold a portion of his business to different partners. In 1888 before his death, he sold the remaining part of Coca-cola to Asa G. Candler-An Atlanta business guru, who later proceeded to buy additional rights and completely took over the operation of Coca-cola (The chronicle of Coca-cola). Coca-cola brand imageCoca-cola is a leading name brand in the carbonated drink industry therefore; the name plays a major role in the sales of the product. With a very strong distribution channel that makes the product s readily available everywhere in the world and a unique brand image that places the product on the mind of it targets audience so much that, Coca-cola becomes an addiction within some quarters. This background knowledge gives Coke the greater opportunity to service a larger geographical population in various capacities (Coca-cola marketing mix 83). Coca-Cola’s brand personality reveals the positioning of its brand.Coca-cola strategically positioned it products in the mind of it targets group that they see the product as part of their daily lives and this strategic brand positioning often plays a major impact in taking decision. The association between the brand and the consumers sometimes result in brand loyalty and invariably makes the purchasing decision easier for the consumers. Coca-cola packaging system remains one of their strengths in the market. Although the bottling of Coca-cola has undergone series of transformation all through the years throughout the world but th e brand remains consistent in its distinctive taste all over the world.In other words, the product remains the same both in taste and packaging globally (Coca-cola marketing mix 83). The age of social media marketing Social media marketing is the process or strategy of using social media websites like, facebook, twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, MySpace etc. to promote a company and its products. Over the years technology has brought about changes in the way we do business. The new age of technology has undoubtedly altered the ways most companies also conduct their business activities. This technology inclined age therefore, makes buying decision easier for the target market segment.Earlier before the advent of social media; media outlet were limited to radio, TV and various print media, this made it easier for the advertiser to reach their â€Å"mass audience† using promotions through these available medium then. The media proliferation gave birth to various media channels which i n turn have allowed consumers to have options when it comes to media usage as a result of modern invention. It is very germane to note at this point, that the media availability really have a sporadic impact on consumers’ behaviors. Such impact include: Interactivity, Customization and Social interaction (Social marketing meet interactive media).The social media network has therefore, becomes so important that it is a must have for any company that wants to be relevant in the 21st century. It has contributed to the development and success of many companies in various ways. The case of Coco-cola is not an exception among the companies who are strategically using the social media marketing tools to draw followers to their brands. According to Jack Yan, The purpose for brands in any social media approach must be to serve the organization both internally and externally†¦ He went further to state the nine goals of social media usage by a brand.Such goals include: * Building a sense of membership or citizenship with the organization * Promoting communication and acceptance of the brand * Encourage the audience to engage in dialogue about the brand * Building positive brand association * Building brand awareness * Acting as a channel through which information about the brand can be obtained * Inform the consumers of the vision behind the brand * Help the organization to maintain a competitive ground * Act as a channel to know if the brand is been properly communicated to the consumers and * Build a perceived quality of the brand (Social medial in branding).Coca-cola effectively combines the above mentioned goals in its social media usage through the huge numbers of followers on its social medial page. Its continuous utilization of social medial marketing tools like Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, has undoubtedly given the company an insight into what the consumers are saying about its brand. Coca-cola facebook utilization Facebook is one of the fastest gro wing social networks with over 400 million users all over the world, it has both young and grownups as active users (Facebook: challenges and opportunities for Business communications students).Coca-cola is one of the most popular brands on Facebook along with celebrity artiste icons like Lady Gaga, Rihana and Eminem. Coke has over forty-one million fans (www. facebook. com/cocacola). Coke is the 15ht most popular Facebook page†¦ (usatoday. com) On Facebook, Coca-cola has over 35 million â€Å"like†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦according to Wendy Clark-Coke senior vice president of integrated Marketing, she says†¦Ã¢â‚¬ having all the fans respond to coke is meaningful. This is because; such responses are likely to generate more sales for the brand coke.She went further to lay emphasis on how such colossal responses from the fans on face book are to the advantage of coca-cola (usatoday. com). The nature of the social media networks site deliberately makes it possible to share information among the users. Facebook has a high utility growth and this allows sharing of information among† all friends in one-place solution† achievable (Too many Facebook â€Å"Friends†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦). More so, through its viral distribution of messages, Facebook allows target consumers to pass messages and ads to friends with ease.The online messaging allows comments to be passed on transmitted messages like ads (Viral advertising in social media†¦). Coca-cola understands this behavior, therefore, it virally engaged its targets audience through series of information about its brand. Coca-cola twitter utilization Twitter was introduced in 2006 as a blogging site that permits users to share different kinds of messages online vial medium called tweets (Follow me! Global Marketers’ Twitter use). Through these medium users are able to share messages and comments on various issues going on around them.Twitter has one hundred and sixty million users and send an upward of n inety million message everyday (Twitter as a medium of message). Coca-cola has over five hundred and thirty thousand followers on twitter (Twitter, Inc). These followers are constantly engaging in various topics about the brand coca-cola on the webpage. Through the twitter page consumers are informed about any ongoing promotion and program of Coca-cola. Twitter also stands as one of the avenues through which the consumers get information about any new ads message concerning the brand.The twitter –verse according to Clark, has a profound impact on how coke deal with consumers feedback. Coke monitors the questions posted on Twitter and answers them. Clark says twitter has brought changes to coke customer service approach. More staffs are now been put on twitter’s page to respond to the ongoing traffic demands of the twitter page (usatoday. com). Coca-cola YouTube utilization YouTube is a none-paid for social media website that enables users to upload their videos and sha re them through the internet (Peers or expert? ). It was created in 2005; it has over a 100 million videos per day.This massive number account for 60% of all online videos. The nature of YouTube broadcasting allows the users to share their opinions online concerning the videos they have seen through rating (Social interaction and co-viewing with YouTube: Blending Mass Communication†¦). Coke employs the use of YouTube for advertising purpose through which the viewers can pass comments on their advert. The use of YouTube by Coca-cola gives the viewers the opportunity to view and pass comments on their ads. These commentaries generated helps coke in furthering their creativity when else they plan another advert.The reason has been that such commentaries are not immediately receivable under the traditional TV adverts. Though there are many other sites through which one can upload videos but coca-cola YouTube engagement gives better viewing opportunity in terms of marketing to the l arger audience. A scene from an advertisement provided by coca-cola on YouTube†¦ Result of the brand The social media world has invariably changed the nature of the modern day business approach and it has so far brought so many challenges and success to those brands using them to promote their products at different stages.Coca-cola through the social media utility has been able to generate millions of followers and viewers all over the world. These viewers in turn promote the brand through their spending on Coca-cola brands. Coca-cola has over 2 billion people drinking coke globally. A success story that is linkable to its creative prowess and leveraging with social media network sites like Facebook, twitter and YouTube (Coke’s social media success†¦). Coca-cola through the usage of these media continues to build an empire of loyal followers.Coca-cola having built these enormous followers does not just live them to communicate in isolation, rather the company strate gically put a monitoring body in place that responds to the followers queries and provide immediate response. Wendy Clark in an address recognized that â€Å"social listening† is very important in social media; it is necessary to communicate back to the followers. She said†¦Ã¢â‚¬ forget about the† like† button. It’s all about the â€Å"share†. It’s the most important. She concluded by saying that whatever content the company has to create must be shareable.She shared the story of a man who through immediate response from the Coca-cola twitter’s team went ahead and purchased a Vitamin water drink-an extended brand of Coca-cola (Coca-cola VP Talks†¦). A result oriented communication! Connectivity Coca-cola through it social media connect various groups via online activities. This engagement gives the opportunity to the consumers to share their experiences about the products among themselves. It also allows Co-ca cola to have fe edbacks on how the brand is doing in the market place.These feedbacks help in developing marketing strategies for the brand. From the ongoing, it is certain that Coca-cola social medial presence and engagement with its consumers has not only created awareness and loyalty for the brand; it has also generated increase in sales for the brand through its huge cyber group followers. As a result of its involvement with its followers, the brand is able to connect globally with the consumers at various locations all over the world within a particular circle-the social network.It is therefore, very necessary within this paper to recognize the fact that, social media as a marketing tool plays a significant part in the brand’s ability to reach its target audience. References 1. The chronicle of Coca-cola: Birth of a refreshing idea: Retrieved on 05/02/2012, from http://www. thecoca-colacompany. com/heritage/chronicle_birth_refreshing_idea. html 2. Coca-cola marketing mix 83: Retrieved o n 05/02/2012, from http://www. bilara. hubpage. com/hub/coca-cola-0 3. Coca-cola Fans page: Retrieved on 05/03/2012 from http://www. facebook. com/cocacola 4.Twitter, Inc (us): Retrieved on 05/03/2012 from http://www. coca-cola. com/en/index. html 5. Coke’s media success makes a lot out of little: Retrieved on 05/03/2012 from http://www. millwardbrown. com/global/blog/post/2011-12-19/coke-s-social-media-success-makes-a-lot-out-of-a-little. aspx 6. Coca-cola VP Talks about the keys to social media success: Retrieved on 05/03/2012 from http://www. marketingpilgrim. com/2011/04/coca-cola-vp-talks-about-the-keys-to-social-media-success. html 7. Brandtzaeg, P. , Luders, M. , & Skjetene, J. (2010). Too many Facebook â€Å"friends’?Content sharing and sociability versus the Need for privacy in social Network sites. International Journal of Human-computer interaction, 06-, 26(11/12), 1006-1030. doi: 10. 1080/10447318. 20010. 516719 8. Chu-chuan, C. (2011). Viral Advertising i n social media: Participation in facebook Group & Responses among college-Age users, Journal of Interactive Advertising, 12(10), 30-34 9. Decarie, C. (2010). Facebook: Challeges & Opportunities for Business Communication Students. Business Communication Quarterly, 73(4), 449-452. doi: 10. 1177/1080569910385383 10. Harisdakis, P. , & Hanson, G. 2009). Social Interaction and co-viewing with YouTube: Blending Mass Communication Reception and Social Connection Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, (53(2), 317-335. doi: 10. 1080/08838150908270 11. Hye-Jin P. , Hove, T. , Hyun Ju. , & Mikyyoung, K. (2011). Peer or expert?. International Journal of Advertising 30(1), 161-188. 12. Hill, R. P. , & Moran, N. (2011). Social marketing meets interactive media. International Journal of Advertising. 30(5), 815-838. doi. 10. 2501/IJA-30-5-815-838. 13. Kwon ES & Sung, Young Jun (2011), Follow me! Global markers ‘Twitter’ Use.Journal of Interactive Advertising, 12 (10), 4-16. 14. S avage, N. (2011). Twitter as medium and message communication of The ACM, 54(3), 18-20. doi: 10. 1145. 1897860. 15. Yan, J. (2011). Social media in branding: Fulfilling a need. Journal of Branding Management, 18(9), 688-698. doi: 10. 1057/bm. 2011. 19 Abstract The social media group is very relevant in the modern day marketing strategy, it is very crucial for any brand that wants to be successful in today’s marketing operation to fully utilize the numerous advantages associated with this viral tool in marketing communications.This paper examines the results of, and the utilization of three social media tools by Coca-cola to connect, and create awareness among its target audience. The strategic use of these social media tools-Facebook, Twitter and YouTube eventually leads to more sales for Coca-cola brand. Table of contents Background history of Coca-cola———————————————â₠¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€-i Coca-cola brand image—————————————————————-ii The

All about Pygmy Goats essays

All about Pygmy Goats essays When most people think of pygmy goats they might not think of them as I do. They are fun, intelligent, animals, and they make wonderful pets. Pygmy goats have often been confused with Nigerian Dwarf goats, and Pygora goats. These breeds of goats may have some pigmy in them but they are bred different and have different goat breeds in them. There is so much to learn about pygmy goats, I will talk about several things including; how old a Pygmy should be before being bred, how expensive a Pygmy goats is to keep as a pet, what type of housing you may need, and how to feed them properly. Those are just some of the things that I will talk about. The Pygmy Goat was originally called the African Dwarf Goat. The Pygmy Goat first came from a former French Area off the West Coast of Africa. Heinz Ruhe brought the Pygmy Goat to the United States in 1959. By the 1970's interest in the Pygmy Goat began to grow to the point that registries for the Pygmy Goats were established to define breed type. In 1975 the incorporated National Pygmy Goat Association was formed. The Pygmy goat is a domesticated animal. They stand about 16-23 inches high, and weigh between 50-55 pounds. Pygmy goats are sometimes called African Pygmys, because that was where they were first seen. Pygmy goats were first seen in the United States in the 1950s in the zoos. They can also provide milk and meat, milk more common then meat in the United States. They use goat meat in Arabic countries, and over seas. Goat meat in the U.S. is not very popular, but there are some people out there that do eat it, or raise them for meat. Female goats are called does; males are called bucks; and young goats are called kids. Goats have the reputation for their odor, but generally only the males have an odor. The reason males have an odor is because they have scent glands as well as smaller scent glands in other places of there bodys. Pygmy goats are often kept as...

Special Event In My Life Essays - Holocaust Literature, Night

Special Event In My Life Essays - Holocaust Literature, Night Special Event In My Life A Mothers Love As the years go by I have encountered many remember able moments from my first horse to the terrible car accidents. No matter if, it was good or bad times nothing can or could surpass to compare to the gift of becoming a mother. There are so many memories wrapped in this these packages of happiness, joy, and even times of fear knowing they dont come with instructions, but to learn as time goes on. From the first moments as a mother when coming into my world was like a new beginning of the chapter of life. All my worries and fears of becoming a mother had been washed away, I knew that moment of time life wasnt going to be the same. I was going to take life day by day and enjoy my life with my new family not to be so concerned about the small details that life brings. My life has become complete, I feel as though with this fresh start that myself as one can complete my dreams and hopes to a better future for us. As the long nights drag on to days and months of studying go by I feel a moment of quitting, then I watch them both sleeping without a concern in the world only wanting to keep their image of the safe and peace of theirs dreams t come true. Each day watching them grow brings me back to memories of my childhood. How your birthdays seemed like almost like the best day compared to Christmas morning, and knowing that my children are feeling and imaging those same thought as I did so long ago. The hours go by as though they are seconds, the seasons flash past as though there is no stopping. One moment, to look back on my past of those special times of my and know it isnt over because I have my children to relive those special times all over again.

Freud and Happiness essays

Freud and Happiness essays Born in 1856 in a small European town, Sigmund Freud would grow to be one of the most important thinkers in recorded history. From a young age, he attempted to understand the human mind and explain its tendencies. In doing so, he successfully managed to make countless enemies and critics. His ideas in response to the puzzles of human existence often conflicted with those of his audience, and I am in this number. In his novel Civilization and Its Discontents, Freud presents theories on happiness, none of with which I agree. Freud describes happiness, understood by us as pleasure, as everyones main goal in life. According to Freud, all humans strive after happiness; they want to become happy and remain so(25). Mankind struggles in everything to avoid feelings of displeasure and pain while attempting to experience feelings of joy and delight. Freud named this concept the pleasure principle, and he thought it to be the gist of life. I, on the other hand, do not believe that the pleasure principle is everyones driving force. First of all, people have different goals in life, starting with the most basic goal of survival. Besides that, though, people seek love, praise, wealth, and reproduction. However, different people do not hold these goals in equal esteem because no one is the same. Secondly, the need for happiness is important, but not vital. We can survive if we are not always experiencing pleasure, but for some individuals, sterility is devastating, and for others, the loss of love can lead to suicide. Freud believed that the pleasure principal is prevalent in humans at all times but can never be satisfied. He said that the principle dominates the operation of the mental apparatus from the start(25). Right when we are born, the pleasure principle is working inside of us. As infants, we cry if we are hungry or in pain, and we enjoy the warmth and security of our mothers arms. Day in and day out...

Ambiguous adventure-by cheikh hamiduo kane Essay

Ambiguous adventure-by cheikh hamiduo kane - Essay Example The parents are not so sure that hey want to send their children to a new place where they will encounter a totally different way of life from what they have been used to at home(Kane, 8). Samba is one of those sent to France for a better education. However, the Most Royal lady fully appreciates the risks that will come with that decision. She says of the children who will be sent away to France: â€Å"Perhaps the very memory of us will die in them. When they return from the school, there may be those who will not recognize us† (9). The first part of the book prepares the reader for the main theme of change and its impact on the characters. The Most Royal Lady foreshadows what would happen years later when many young people went to get education from the west. Many of them could not cope with the pressure of living in two worlds and they ended up forgetting where they had come from. Having been used to the normal life of his countrymen while schooling at the local French School, it is quite hard for Samba to grasp or come to terms with the French culture. One of the major cultural clashes that Samba faces is the difference between his traditional Islamic ways and the open Western way of life in France (12). He finds his situation ambiguous when he finds himself separated from the Islamic way of life which he has known all his life. In France, he becomes entangled in the French life and this leads to a loss of spiritual identity. This is what makes him feel ambiguous, because he is in a situation that he feels he cannot fit in, and the place where he fits is thousands of miles away (17). Samba feels some kind of emptiness since he cannot reconcile the beliefs and values that he was brought up to hold dear to and those of the Western culture. He goes through self conflict, although he does not forsake or forget his African ways. The conflict emerges from the fact that he realizes that as much as he cannot really accept

Welfare Feminism in Britain Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Welfare Feminism in Britain - Essay Example It is difficult for us to perceive woman's role as a 'job' because of the surroundings in which it takes place, particularly the family. The institution of the family in modern, post-war society has been subjected to much sociological and psychological examination. During the past seven years it has also been a focus of controversy on the political Left, amongst feminists, socialists, and radicals of all kinds. It has come under attack; it has been defended. Often this debate, originally political, has taken on a highly moralistic flavour, and while it is true that political passions are, ultimately, moral passions, morals about the family has all too often prevented a constructive analysis of this institution as it exists in our contemporary society. Yet it is not hard to understand why the subject should arouse passion; the same reason makes it hard to perceive woman's role within it. (Wilson, 1977, p. 8) A woman has always been subjected to physical care that is mediated by means of on-going emotional and physical relationships of the most intense kind; whether sexual or parental, a woman in particular are reared almost from birth, certainly from early childhood, to conceive of happiness and emotional fulfilment in terms of their future relationship with husband and children. To many it therefore seems alien or even blasphemous to discuss these relationships as jobs undertaken for the capitalist State. Nonetheless, such is the peculiar nature of the family. It plays what is in many ways a repressive role on behalf of the State, not only psychologically but also at the level of economic functioning, and yet at the same time offers the individual a unique opportunity for intimacy, comfort, and emotional support. According to Juliet Mitchell (1971) the individualistic competitiveness of the wider modern society is truly a 'prison of love' for woman. And the Welfare State has always been closely connected with the development of the family and has acted to reinforce and support it in significant ways. (Basch, 1974, p. 79) This it has done by offering various forms of service, both in money and in kind, and also by means of forms of social control and ideology. Thus the Welfare State is not just a set of services, it is also a set of ideas about women's role in society, in family, and not least important socially. In Victorian society women were, for the first time, valuable because they did not work. It was her status as a non-worker that gave woman as wife and mother a very special ideological role. The single woman was society's reject, for celibacy was not highly valued (so that the attempts within the Church of England to start religious orders for women could be seen as radical) while the fallen woman's lot was to be completely outcast (Basch, 1974, p. 81). Yet work had to be found for the army of surplus middle-class spinsters and to them fell the task of teaching their impoverished married sisters how to be better wives and mothers. So grew up a paradoxical situation that still marks social work today; whereby middle-class women with no direct experience of marriage and motherhood themselves took on the social task of teaching marriage and motherhood to working-class women who were widely believed to be ignorant and lacking when it came to their domestic tasks. (Wilson, 1977, p.

Censorship of Artistic Freedom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

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Campus Museum 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Campus Museum 2 - Essay Example 5. They serve not only render visible the processes that are invisible, but mediate everyday experience. Nevertheless, it is also the art to operate as lo-fi digitally storage media and distinctly tactile. The process of creating the art is through grouping 6 bits into pixel colour RGB values. This makes the images have 64 hues, which are then mapped to a custom woven colour palette. Stearns mixes eight colours of yarn on a satin weave using variations created it. On the back of the piece, the key to the patterns of bidding is given. The decoding of the original sourced binary data is achievable by the way Stearns did direct mappings from binary data to forming an image, and from the image formed to weave pattern (Doherty 1). The process that Stearns used in creating this art is complex since he translated digital data from program that are familiar such as Microsoft word. I think that Stearns is making a visual correlation between digital pixels and machine stitching while rendering impalpable digital data into physical objects. I like the piece of art because of its smooth, tender and multi-coloured

Introduction to Universal Design for Learning -Guiding Questions Assignment

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Campus Museum 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Campus Museum 2 - Essay Example 5. They serve not only render visible the processes that are invisible, but mediate everyday experience. Nevertheless, it is also the art to operate as lo-fi digitally storage media and distinctly tactile. The process of creating the art is through grouping 6 bits into pixel colour RGB values. This makes the images have 64 hues, which are then mapped to a custom woven colour palette. Stearns mixes eight colours of yarn on a satin weave using variations created it. On the back of the piece, the key to the patterns of bidding is given. The decoding of the original sourced binary data is achievable by the way Stearns did direct mappings from binary data to forming an image, and from the image formed to weave pattern (Doherty 1). The process that Stearns used in creating this art is complex since he translated digital data from program that are familiar such as Microsoft word. I think that Stearns is making a visual correlation between digital pixels and machine stitching while rendering impalpable digital data into physical objects. I like the piece of art because of its smooth, tender and multi-coloured

Social media plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Social media plan - Essay Example Moreover, social media marketing is cheap compared to other channels of marketing activities. Under such circumstances, it is necessary for companies to give more attention to social media marketing instead of sticking with the traditional marketing activities such as print ads and television ads. Even though Apple Inc. is one of the biggest and most valuable companies in the world, it failed to utilize the opportunities in social media effectively for the promotions of its products. Apple seems to be having immense faith still in the abilities of traditional advertising using print and television media. It is imperative for Apple Inc. to use the opportunities in social media more effectively, in order to sustain its success in the market. The purpose of this paper is to analyse how Apple’s traditional marketing strategies such as print ads to promote its latest products can be transformed to social media marketing The twenty first century has already witnessed many revolutionary changes in business and marketing circles because of the introduction of new technologies such as internet and social media. While introducing social networks, even the founders of social networks never thought about the business prospects of their new venture. According to the definition given by Brake and Safko (2009), social media is a collection of applications made with the assistance of Web 2.0. These applications can assist in sharing content such as information, knowledge and opinions. It is also possible to share audio files, video files and photos through social media. Facebook, Twitter, Google plus, MySpace, LinkedIn, Skype, YouTube, etc are some of the most popular social media at the moment. According to Rouse (2006), social networking is a process in which a person expands his or her business or social activities through individuals. Social media started to contribute more in business than in socializing in recent times. Social media help business people

Marketing techniques Essay Example for Free

Marketing techniques Essay Introduction The businesses and products I chose happened to be, Nike and their Mercurial football boots, and Sony and their PS3 gaming console. I chose these products because I think they are both reasonably diverse, and in their time, both these products have experienced a range of sections within the product life cycle. For example, due to Nike’s football boots having to be constantly refreshed and renewed due to high competition, they have experienced, each sector, a number of times. In contrast, the Sony and their PS3 have also experienced similar experiences. For example, due to this specific console being one of the most successful and exclusive gaming consoles of all time, the overall competition has been reasonably low, and due to this, this certain product has seen the product life cycle at a very different perspective by experiencing each sector at a much slower rate. Product The diagram presented above dictates the process in which businesses go through, when marketing. Every business will follow this strategy when they advertise and market a product in order to gain the most sales, and to generate a substantial amount of profit. For example, the first stage of this Product Life Cycle is the Development. This stage entitles a business to conjure up a selected idea, in which they will later hope to produce as a product and then sell. The development stage is where the business will discover the blue prints of their product and how they will later market it. In other words, the development stage provides a foundation for the selected product as it will be built as a prototype to be later sold to the public in order to increase sales and profits. This certain stage is very secretive within any organisation. Other businesses do not want to let their competitors have knowledge of what they’re producing, in case they steal and release the idea before, a nd generate a mass of publicity, sales and profits. The next stage is referred to as the introduction stage; this is  where the business launches its completed product for the first time. This certain sector is vital as it will later determine how successful the product is, and whether it should be develop further. Within the Introduction stage, sales begin to grow slowly if the product begins to generate publicity, this is usually due to the lack of knowledge people have about your product, and it is also due to the lack of advertising. However, a business may not want to advertise straight away, as they may waste money on advertising a product that their piers may not essentially want or need. Therefore, business tend to use the certain advertising scheme, known as informative advertising, this includes small processes in which a business can build their products reputation or publicity. If this section of the product life cycle is successful, businesses can later develop on their products, thus enabling them to create further marketing schemes, beneficial to them, in regards to their sales, profits and annual turnover. The next stage within the Product life cycle is, Growth. This is where a business’s product begins to increase in sales, rapidly. This is due to increased demands, and the fact that all the business’s persuasive marketing schemes are working, thus increasing sales and profits. The growth sector within this product life cycle basically classifies how successful a business is, by being within the growth sector; this indicates that the business’s product is successful and popular. The fourth and pen ultimate stage is known as the Maturity stage. This is where a selected product, created by a business begins to sustain profits, and generate sales slowly. This stage takes place after the growth stage, due to many factors such as an increase in product competition due to the publicity of your product, as well as an increase in advertising due to businesses trying to sustain the success of their product. After this stage, comes the final stage, or otherwise known as the Decline. This stage entails a business’s product to begin to drop in sales, reduce in publicity and popularity, it begins to lose its appeal and competition becomes stiffer and bigger, therefore fewer units are sold. At this stage, advertising is either halted or completely stopped, and possibly the production of the item may decrease in activity in order to retain money and boost the production on other marketing schemes/ideas. Brand: Nike, Inc. Nike, Inc or Nike is a very popular and successful business that originated  in the early 70s. This business firstly began, known as Blue Ribbon Sports in 1964, however, 7 years later saw them changing their name into what we know them today as; Nike Inc. This organisation specialises in sports apparel and accessories. This sport based business sells items within sports such as Football, Rugby, Golf, Basketball, Cricket, tennis, athletics and pretty much every other sport. However, I feel they are extremely notorious for their very professional and popular football boots. For example, Nike have earned international success and have worked with the likes of Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Neymar, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Mario Balotelli, Wesley Sneijder, Wayne Rooney and Landon Donovan in regards to promoting their Football related range of goods. However, in regards to my product, Nike has formed many advertising schemes with players such as Zlatan Ibrahimovià „‡ (left) and Cristiano Ronaldo (right). Product: Nike Mercurial Vapor This certain product is a very popular and renowned piece of sports apparel. This certain product is linked with football, as they are, a selected type of football boot. This variation of football boot comes in many shapes and sizes, this enables the product to appeal to all different, acquired tastes, and overall this will help the brand Nike Inc, reach out and attract customers. However, my reasoning for choosing this brand would be its placement within the product life cycle, due to increased and increasing competition, businesses such as Nike Inc have to constantly refresh and renew their produce, in order to maintain customers and as a business become more appealing and modern/stylish. Therefore, I believe these products fluctuate between growth and Maturity, for example, due to the competition, new boots are brought out every couple of months or year, this causes older boots, and their predecessors to be regarded as â€Å"old†, â€Å"boring† or â€Å"out of fashion†. Therefore, each boot only has a selected amount of time, until the next big style or football boot gets released. Like I mentioned before, I believe this product is mainly situated within the growth sector, as each boot only obtains a selected amount of time to succeed and become appealing, until the next brand gets released; therefore, it’s time to mature and become a cemented item is limited. Brand: Sony Corporation Sony Corporation, or Sony, is a very successful and popular Japanese multinational corporation that specialises in electronics, game systems and game entertainment. Sony is one of the leading providers of game entertainment in today’s society; they have produced some iconic titles/products like the PS1, the PS2, the PS3 and its most recent addition, the next generation of console, known as the PS4. These gaming, entertainment systems have altered and revolutionised the way we play virtual games, and they have truly made their mark on gadget history. Sony is a Japanese business that began in 1946, its name, at the time stood as Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo, however, since 1958, this iconic brand has been referred to as Sony. Product: Sony, Play station 3 The product I will be using during this task will be Sony’s, award winning creation/product, known as the PS3. I believe this product has been very, very successful, and I think I it will be an ideal product to evaluate and analyse. For example, seeing as this certain console is one of few gaming entertainment systems to be released in the modern era, the competition is reasonably low, therefore, its time during the product life cycle has sustained and gradually evolved into being a product within the Maturity sector. However, due to recent events, a new range of console appeared, formed by the same brand; Sony. This new range of gaming console is referred to as, the next generation of gaming entertainment, and this specific console is known as the Sony PS4. This PS4 was released into stores and gaming retailers on such dates as the 15th of November 2013 (for North American Citizens), the 29th of November 2013 (for European Citizens) and 22nd February 2014 (for Asian Citizens); and as of March 2nd 2014, this product has already sold as many units as 6 million worldwide. Because of this, the Sony PS3 will eventually fall into the declining sector within the product life cycle, due to decreasing demand, decreasing popularity and a decrease in advertising and production. This certain factor is one prominent reason why I have chosen this product to feature within my coursework. Promotion The promotional process within a business is where an organisation would advertise a selected product to either inform existing customers of new modifications to their products, or to advertise a new product they have just created and finished. The methods and messages business use when displaying their products are very important, as it can overall determine the outcome/success of the product. For example, businesses want to sustain and attract new and existing customers by using persuasive and informative promotional materials, and if their promotional schemes do not achieve this substantial amount of money can be lost, thus negatively affecting the business and potentially damaging the business. There are many forms and ways in which business can promote their products for example: Advertising – Through TV, radio, magazines, newspapers, internet Direct selling – directly approaching and â€Å"targeting† customers, e.g. public speakers, telesales, door salesmen Direct Marketing – Leaflets, mailshots, emails Point-of-sale – selling point stands, free samples, vouchers, offers Incentives – loyalty cards, bonus points or point systems i.e. these exist on many crisp and cereal selling brands Public Relations – Ensuring the organisations name is well known and grown or growing publicity. Catchy slogans, and brand names or e.g. sponsorships like Nike’s Cristiano Ronaldo sponsorship deals Sales Promotion – special offers, deals, sales to attract customers All these ways are commonly used by business in order to boost the publicity and overall speculation on their product, as every business needs to achieve a certain amount of customers, in order to generate profit. As well as these promotional ideas/methods, businesses also use certain features like AIDA. This stands for (A) Attraction, (I) Interest, (D) Desire, (A) Action. This diagram is used to represent a customer’s approach to reviewing a product. For example, when seeing a advert that appeals to them, these (potential) future customers will have a mental review of the product, and over a period of time, this AIDA process should unravel and take its formation. This is a process in which many businesses follow, in regards to promoting and releasing their product/ideas so they can identify what techniques to use, when advertising and promoting their products. For example, firstly comes the Attraction of the product, businesses want to represent their newly formed product as a new revolutionary item that will  benefit someone in every way, where it’s needed. Therefore, business will present their item as â€Å"cool†, â€Å"modern† and highly â€Å"anticipated† despite it’s not even released yet. This is in order to obtain the focus of customers and to gain their attention to their product. The success rate in which businesses do this will determine how many people will feel encouraged to buy your product, an increase of this will overall benefit the business and generate them with increase/grown profits. Secondly comes Interest, this is where business aim to achieve the focus and publicity of their product . Because of this, businesses want people/customers to gain an interest to their product, they want people to feel they need and have to purchase it. If a business successes within this stage, this could impact the business in a number of positive ways. For example, an increased amount of people interested within your product could mean, an increase in profits, and this will most certainly benefit a business. Businesses do this by containing people within their adverts or promotional materials looking happy with the product, or featuring famous figures in order to promote how stylish a product can be. Like I briefly mentioned, businesses want customers to feel the need to have their product, this stage is referred to as the Desire stage, this is where business feature many promotional materials in order to obtain the attention of customers and make them feel the need to want to buy and purchase their product. Again businesses can do this through featuring famous figures like Cristiano Ronaldo in order to promote their new product. By doing this, many fans of these famous figures may feel desired into purchasing the product as they deem it as stylish or maybe they just feel loyal to the role model/celebrity who promoted it. Finally features the stage/section known as Action. This the physical side to this AIDA cycle, for example Action is where the customer/reviewer will eventually purchase the good and use it/consume it for its purpose. Within this cycle, businesses don’t really have to do anything more at this stage, the customer has bought their product, all the business can do now is wait and assume the certain client has grown fond of their product, thus potentially forming them into an existing customer/loyal consumer. What are the promotional techniques used by your businesses? Within the two businesses I have chosen, there are multiple promotional techniques. Within the paragraphs displayed below, I will present this and eventually outline their strengths,  weaknesses, and comparison with compe titors and their differences. Nike Inc, Mercurial Vapor: For this selected product, I found many promotional schemes, however, I commonly found promotional processes within the advertising side of promotion, and these TV advertisements included famous footballers like Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimović in order to boost the attraction of their product as well as the desirability. For example, some screen shots/links of the adverts collected: Advertisements: Cristiano Ronaldo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWVYwppLPdE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mdgTR5ZyDs Zlatan Ibrahimović: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqVk1FHYeFY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SBnk3lKzzg Strengths: Within this set of Nike commercials, I thought the real strengths and positive aspects had to be the way in which they want people to perceive their products. For example, within each advert/promotional technique, they indicate how their style of football boot could change the way in which you perform, and how it can alter your abilities. For example, within the Cristiano Ronaldo adverts, it depicts Ronaldo, running through a whole team, easily with such pace, the advert then finished with the simple statement of: Be fast. Be Mercurial. This would indicate to customers that their special brand of football boot could enhance their abilities and the way they perform on the football pitch. For many football fans, and aspiring football players, these factors may be very important and this may encourage them to buy the item as they desire the certain traits these products supposedly provide. This is also a good way of advertising, because when people purchase this variation of football bo ot, it’s another way of advertising, however it’s free. For example, potential customers may see other people wearing the advertised boots, and this may cause them to feel jealous due to them knowing what the boots supposedly provide trait wise, as well as the fact, their favourite footballer may be the cover of that  certain brand, therefore they could feel further experiences of jealousy. This factor is very important because, in modern day football, the competitiveness between aspiring players may be extremely high, therefore each player wants/needs a certain factor such as new boots that may pose them with an â€Å"advantage† over everybody else/their opponents. Overall this will encourage more people to purchase Nike’s product as the certain products may feel increasingly desired, thus potentially increasing their profits and reputation. I also feel strength of these advertisements is the involvement/featuring of worldwide known sports figures like Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimović. Many young people interested within sports and football idolize over certain role models like these players, therefore, when these people see the Nike adverts featuring them, they feel obliged to purchase the certain piece of sports apparel in a way of supporting their role model. Therefore, Nike can use this to their advantage by exploiting how these players â€Å"benefit† from their products, and how it will reflect on their customers. For example, many fans and expiring footballers may feel, that wearing the same football boot as Cristiano Ronaldo or Zlatan Ibrahimović will grant them with their abilities and skill. Because of this, Nike’s advertisements can easily attract more customers by featuring these great athletes, thus potentially boosting their profits due to increased attraction and desirability. Weaknesses: Within these adverts, I felt it was very hard to find a significant weakness; however, I came to the conclusion of their adverts potentially degrading people. For example, due to the adverts representing how football players could be boosted/enhanced by the certain football boot, certain people who may desire the item, however can’t afford it may feel, when they play football, they do not have enough skill or power when on the pitch in comparison to people wearing these advertised boots. Because of this, many people may feel degraded, and they may also feel potentially weaker as a footballer, and this could potentially have a negative effect on Nike due to some people possibly feeling depressed about their abilities when being reminded of their products and their brand faces like Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimović. Therefore, Nike may suffer some reductions in customers,  therefore a decrease in overall profits. Comparisons with competitors: When comparing to competitors, I believe Nike is probably at the best stage, I believe Nike is at the top of their game. For example, I think the way in which these commercials are conducted, represent these products with style, professionalism, power, speed, agility, and skill, precision. Because of this, I believe Nike’s target audience has been expanded for example, due to the professionalism and smart appearance of these products and their commercials, elder customers may also be enticed to purchase the products, as well as young, aspiring players. I also feel Nike made the correct choice when choosing players like Cristiano Ronaldo when advertising their products. For example, over the past couple of years, Ronaldo has accomplished many individual and joint awards and has successfully earned his place as the one of the best, if not the Best player in the world. Because of this, more people may have been enticed to buy Nike’s products, thus potentially booting their profits and overall reputation. Sony, Play Station 3: Again, with this certain product, I found Sony Corporation used many promotional techniques in order to advertise their product, especially within television, posters and billboards. For example: Links: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyTlxHwuPZY – Long Live Play Michael https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqkNPcUMffU – PS3 Baby Commercial Strengths: Within these Sony, PS3 commercials/promotional material, I found that theses commercials had many aspects about them that were positive. One of these was the engagement to the audience a special individuals that are avid console gamers. For example, within the Long Live Play commercial, a group of gaming characters formed in order to celebrate the background character known as Michael who controlled their stories, as he PLAYED their games. I believe this is a positive effect as certain people may recognise these gaming characters, therefore they already obtain some variation of emotional  attachment to them, because of this, more people may be attracted to Sony’s products. For example, by seeing characters from certain games they have played may trigger many good memories of these people playing these games when they were younger. Because of this, they may feel encouraged to buy the console in order to recap on old memories, because of this, and increased amount of people buying Sony’s products will mean, and increased amount of profits, thus benefitting Sony in a number of ways. Another strength could be the suspense during the commercial. For example, the Long Live Play commercial depicts a group of characters speaking and celebrating about this person called Michael, however, customers watching the commercial don’t’ actually get told who this Michael is and why he’s important until the very end. I believe this is a very good promotional technique as this may cause customers having to watch the entire commercial as they are curious to whom Michael is, and by that time, they are drawn in and notified of the brand â€Å"Sony – PS3†. This suspense could ideally cause more people to remember the commercial, and overall these factors could increase the amount of people wh o will buy Sony’s products, thus increasing their profits further. Weakness: In comparison to the Nike commercials, I felt there were more negatives within these certain promotional methods, especially within the first commercial I watch, the PS3 baby commercial. I feel there were certain negative, such as how vague the promotional method was, for example, I don’t feel and can’t seem to analyse any form of message or purpose into why Sony depicted a baby doll, glancing at their product and making a series of different noises. If anything I believed this certain commercial was quite weird, and if I were to watch this commercial, my initial reaction would probably deter me from buying this product,, as I found little about the product itself, and the way I think the commercial was conducted was very strange and dysfunctional. I believe this would overall be a negative effect in regards to Sony. For example, if people are deterred from buying you product, due to your commercial, this could result in reduced sales and ultimately a decrease in your a nnual turnover. I also find, within the Long Live Play commercial, if you were new to gaming and unaware of some of the figures within the production, the advert wouldn’t really appeal to you,  therefore the way Sony aimed to increased sales through this promotional method may not work as well as hoped. For example, how do you expect to connect with some of the characters when you’re un aware of their story/history? Ultimately this could affect the turnover and sales created through this product and it could mean less people may purchase Sony’s products, thus potentially affecting their profits. However, in relevance to my last point, it could also be perceived as a positive, for example, if some people are unaware of certain characters, this may leave them questioning their purpose, and why they’re there. Because of this, people unaware of this information may feel the need to purchase a games console and some related game titles in order to find understand why certain characters were within the commercial. Due to this, businesses like Sony who sell gaming systems may receive increased sales due to people new to games, and are searching for a correct platform to play on. Overall this would positively affect Sony as sales may increase, as well as profits, thus benefiting the company economically. In comparison to their competitors I feel Sony don’t feel the need to input as much effort into their advertisements. They seem to focus on sales promotions within shop windows like Game or Game Station. I also feel Sony withdraw from increased advertising as it costs money, and they seem to find leaving their customers without that many details, It might give them an increased chance in regards to buying the console as the negative effects of the product may be unknown until purchased, this is beneficial to Sony as again, more sales mare be generated, thus a potential increase in profits. Pricing Strategies Used Pricing strategies is another word for the structure, and how businesses decide to sell their goods, and depending on these products, the type of pricing may change. Nike, Mercurial Vapor: The first pricing strategy I think Nike use in regards to this specific product happens to be the strategy known as Promotional Pricing. This is where businesses provide offers, and sales on their certain products. And in Nike’s case I believe this is exactly what they do, for example, considering the competition for this variation of product is very high, businesses like Nike have to constantly circulate new products and new Mercurial Football  boots, otherwise, their competitors will receive the upper hand and potentially an increase in customers due to less competition and other competitors not releasing new, updated stock. So, businesses like Nike release new stock/products like Mercurial Football boots in order to maintain their customers interest, therefore a majority of their older stock falls into the category of sales, deals and special offers. For Example: For example, Nike cut down this special type of Mercurial Football boot down from  £55.00 to  £43.00, a  £12.00 price decrease. Nike also follows the pricing strategy of Price Skimming. For example, when Nike first releases a new rendition of the Nike Mercurial Football boot, the price is initially, extremely high. I believe they do this because they know people would pay so much, just to stay up to date and modern in regards to the latest range, I also believe they do this because they know they are going to later decrease the price, therefore they initially sell their products at an extremely high price, just to take advantage of the limited time it’s going to be that price for to ensure they may generate a major profit per unit, thus potentially increasing their sales and overall increasing their profits. For example: The screen shot displayed above represents how much Nike initially release their Mercurial Vapor range at, later this price will decrease as new boot ranges will circulate, and this certain style will eventually go decrease in fashion/popularity. Sony, Play Station 3: The Sony PS3 has been around for around for around 7 – 8 years now, therefore the pricing strategies Sony used may or may not have changed during the products long lasting existence. Over that period of time, the Sony PS3 has been altered, re-mastered and perfected, therefore the pricing has obviously had to be changed, and considering the release of the new PS4, the Sony PS3 price has probably fluctuated at an even greater scale. One of the price  strategies the Sony PS3 withheld was, Price Skimming. Sony needed and has used this strategy due to the products huge market life. In order to generate and receive the most sales/turnover, Sony needed to keep the price as high as they could until something like the PS4 appeared. For example, since its release, the Sony PS3 has maintained a price between  £400  £150, therefore within that 8 year product life bracket, Sony has only cut the pricing down from around  £250, and like I mentioned before, Sony did this in order to generate the highest amount of sales/turnover in order to sustain a substantial amount of profit. Sony have also used the pricing strategy known as promotional pricing, for example, since Sony and their consoles involve features such as buyable accessories and games, Sony seem to release the occasional deal which involves a mix of a variety of games, certain gaming related accessories and obviously, the console itself. These deals appeal to many people as they receive the highly anticipated console as well as many other beneficial features. However, businesses like Sony use these added features in order to boost people’s encouragements as they believe the deal is better than it actually is. This is beneficial to the business as it overall could result into increased sales/profits due to deal prices and bundles potentially being sold for more than the individual console. This then leads me on to my next and final pricing technique, for example, business use the pricing strategy known as Psychological pricing. This is where businesses sell products at a price to deceive customers and trick them into thinking it’s cheaper than what it really amounts to. For example, many businesses sell items ending in 00.99, this is due to it seeming like it’s much cheaper than the price following it, for example, people feel they’ve received a great deal off an item for  £19.99 instead of it being  £20.00, despite it’s one penny less, your eyes deceive you and it seems to look like a much smaller number/price. For example, in regards to Sony, their PS3 has been usually sold at a price ending within 00.99 in order to trick and deceive people, thus causing Sony, to generate an increased amount of money, thus boosting sales and potentially enlarging the business’s profit. For example: As you can see, this certain retailer has applied this strategy on order to generate a increase within each unit sold. This will overall benefit Sony as  more money will be generated within their company, causing them to receive a positive cash flow. Place Nike: Nike is business that specialises within sports apparel and sports related accessories, therefore you will find most Nike goods within common Sports retailers. For example, popular European stores like Sports Direct, JD sports and the Nike shop will supply these related goods as they are all featured within the same business sector – Sporting and Leisure activities. These products produced by Nike are supplied within these stores as Nike is a multinational brand, and it’s becoming increasingly popular, therefore, over the past couple of years, the demand for Nike produce, such as Mercurial Football boots has increased. Because of this, businesses like Sports Direct and JD sports want to sell their goods as Nike will cause them to generate increased profits due to increase popularity of Nike products and increasing demand for the certain stock, supplied by Nike. This is beneficial to both stores, for example, Nike will receive money through the selected stores Nike stock sales as a percentage of this money will be generated and transacted to them, as long as Nike provide these businesses with suitable and updated stock. The only negative I can picture could be the certain percentage of the money Nike might receive, for example, this percentage may be quite low, and therefore it might actually negatively affect Nike as they may spend more money manufacturing and transporting the goods than what they receive in return. Sony, Play station 3: Since Sony and their PS3 is categorized as a gaming entertainment system, the stores that usually sell this product are gaming retailers like, Game, HMV, Game station, and CEX, however, since PS3 became a worldwide product, they have gradually been sold within basic superstores like Tesco, Wall mart, Sainsbury’s, Morrison’s, ASDA and Waitrose. Again, due to the products speculation and overall success, these businesses decided to get in touch with Sony and sell their produce (PS3) as they were certain its success will provide them with increased sales, and overall profits. Many businesses like  Tesco also bought the stock in order for more people to enter their stores, fro example, by increased amounts of people entering a Tesco in search for a PS3, they may buy a certain drink or product provided by Tesco, and because of this Tesco and other superstores selling the PS3 may have also generated increased product/stock sales and well as potential increased profits. Much like the positive effect presented above this will also overall benefit Sony, as an increased amount of businesses wanting to sell their produce, will mean an increase in funding and overall boost in the finances within the organisation as more money will be externally inserted within the company. The only negative again could possibly be an insufficient amount of money to compensate for the immense amount of demands from businesses wanting to sell Sony’s products, however their funding/money should cover it, thus evading this problem and providing Sony with no real negative issue in regards to this problem. Evaluate the marketing techniques used by a selected business Nike: After evaluating and analysing Nike and their Mercurial Vapor football boots, I have resulted in a conclusion, and have formatted my final opinion, on their way of marketing. I personally believe Nike used very smart and successful marketing strategies, as the popularity of their business represents how they have globally attracted people to their brands, and sports apparel. For example, in regards to their Product, I believe the way they’ve dealt with the growing/fast competition really functions well within their business. For example, Nike has adapted and became accustom to bringing out and releasing new products, like football boots every couple of months/year in order to sustain the interest of their customers and target audience. For example, they need to sustain each of their products like the Mercurial Football boots within the growing sector in regards to the product life cycle, until the next brand or style of boot gets released. Without these certain functions, and Nike standardized approach, I doubt the business would be as successful as it has been over the past few years, this certain function has certainly helped Nike achieve success, sales and profits; and these are all very beneficial features within an organisation. Due to these factors, I also believe Nike has breached its customers’ expectations; they have released consistent and fashionable products, much  like the rapid production and competition of football boots, and they are definitely one of the best within their selected sector of Sports and Leisure apparel/equipment. This is why I believe Nike could be regarded as one of the best, if not the best football boot producers/retailers within the world, and I believe they are definitely one of the feared businesses, in regards to their competitors like Adidas, Puma, Umbro, Sondico and Warrior. Secondly, I believe Nike’s Promotional sector is also very effective, for example, as I mentioned previously, I believe the way Nike advertise and present their products is very professional, stylish and smart in regards to their appearance. And because if this, I believe Nike’s target audience is expanded, for example, by appealing to an increased amount of people, Nike’s football boot sales may increase, therefore Nike may even result in an increase within profits; thus benefiting the business further. I also believe Nike conducted their sponsors very professionally and successfully as well. For example, Nike and their range of football boots obtain sponsorship deals with players like Zlatan Ibrahimović and the two time Ballon d’Or winner; Cristiano Ronaldo. I believe these deals have secured Nike’s success, for example, due to players like Ronaldo promoting their produce, an increase amount of people have been encouraged to buy their products , like the Mercurial football boots; thus boosting their sales, revenue and overall, profits. Again, in comparison to their competitors, I believe Nike are the best in their business sector. For example, the way they’ve conducted each commercial, poster or other promotional source, they do it with certain features that I feel provides them with an edge in regards to attracting and generated desiring customers.  Within Nike, I feel their pricing strategies were extremely good / beneficial to the organisation, and I believe, there isn’t any other form of strategy that I would follow, in terms of generating sales, and ultimately profits. For example, I believe the strategies they used were very good, in regards to their products, and how it will function with their target audience/customers. For example, one of the pricing strategies they used was, promotional pricing, this is where business sell their goods by offering certain deals and sales and cutting down the price in order to attract and generate an increased amount of customers. I believe it was  convenient for a business like Nike to use this certain strategy, as the football boot market is very competitive, and new boots will have to be released every couple of months/ year. Because of this, it’s only right if they cut down the price on their other goods by introducing sales, offers and other forms of promotional pricing, in order to attract more customers, and potentially increase sales/profits. Another form of Promotional pricing that Nike conduct is the strategy known as Price skimming. This is where businesses initially release their item at a very high price; however, as it progresses through the product life cycle, this price tends to decrease in order to benefit the business and customers by producing potentially more sales, thus more profits, as well as a cheaper price, therefore increasingly affordable. Again in Nike’s case, this is mainly due to the strong, competitive market. For example, new products like Mercurial football boot s will have to be released, therefore the stock referred to as the old stock will slowly come down in price as new products and goods get released. This will benefit Nike as the cheaper prices could attract more customers, because of this, Nike could face an overall sales increase, and this sales increase could eventually lead to the increase in Nike’s profits. Nike could improve the sales of this by promoting these reductions in such things as Television Adverts or posters, combined with popular retail stores such as Sports Direct. By promoting these reduced offers, more people within their target audience may feel interested to purchase their products, due to this Nike’s sales and overall profit may lead to an increase. Within these advertisements further deals with popular sports personalities such as Cristiano Ronaldo could take place; further promoting these reduced products, ultimately leading to more people having a desire or wanting for these items, resulting in an increase in Nike’s sales and profits. I believe the way Nike sells their produce, like their Mercurial Vapors is very convenient and bene ficial to the organisation. Therefore I believe these certain pricing strategies are very effective and this specific range of marketing techniques are very successful in terms of generating the business with increased sales and overall increased profits. Nike has overcome their competitors by formulating certain schemes to override their opponents and receive increased customers, sales and profits. Like I mentioned previously, to strengthen this, Nike could promote their discounted and reduced prices  even more. For example, since a new style or variation of their products such as Football boots are renewed monthly in order to maintain a controlling position within the Market, a vast amount of their old products are slightly forgotten about in regards to customers and their target audience. Therefore I think it would be highly beneficial to Nike if they compensated more for the promotion of their older products with reduced prices as it could overall increase the sales of their business, and ultimately lead to increase publicity. More people would be interested to purchase these promoted items with reduced prices, creating a larger attraction to the Company (Nike) and its products, either new or old. Further promotional materials with sports personalities would also help solidify their position, as certain sporting figures may attract a larger audience to their business, increasing the publicity and knowledge of their products; this would be highly beneficial to Nike as it may result in increased sales, ultimately leading to an increase within profits, further benefiting the organisation. However, if I had to make one improvement I would say the pace at which the company skims the prices off its products. For example, many times I have been looking at popular football boots and noticed how the prices are extraordinarily high. For example, popular football boots promoted by famous athletes sometimes cost over  £200. For children, and sometimes adults, this type of money to compensate is nearly impossible, or considered a â€Å"waste†. This high price may result in push factors for people in search for the adequate balance I regards to sporting goods such as football boots, people will look for price, fitting and appearance; and if the price is high, it may deter people from purchasing it, ultimately reducing Nike’s sales, potentially leading to a decrease in profits. By increasing the rate at which these products are reduced, and shortening the period they are sold at a very high price for, more people may be attracted to buying and using the product, thus promoting the business’s content furthermore, and ultimately leading to an increase in profits due to increased customers and sales. Lastly, within the marketing sector, comes the section known as Place. This basically refers to where the products are actually sold. For example, for Nike this is the common sports retailers like Sports Direct, JD sports and  more. This encourages greater sales as the product is widely available. For example, it would be common to provide businesses who have generated success, prior to you letting them sell your specific items. Therefore, it was only beneficial for businesses like Nike to sell their good to businesses like Sports Direct who are very successful and have generated an array of customers in search for products like Nike’s Mercurial football boots. This will benefit them as the business’s success could potentially mean, more people might purchase Nike’s products, like their Mercurial Vapors, therefore Nike would benefit as they could potentially result in an increase within profits, and sales. Another way Nike may be able to improve the promotion and success of their sporting related goods could be the increase in personal customization, for example, many people buy and purchase products such as football boots to stand out within their selected sport, by allowing your customers to personalize a product, catered to their wants and desires will enable an increased level of individuality. For example, this customisation technique may allow people to feature their own personal initials and colour combinations on their selected Nike products. Also, this certain function should not only be introduced via the internet, but also via located outlets. This would enable people and customers to receive a visual on how their selected product would appear. Certain physical features such as a wider Nike product customisation would potentially lead an increased amount of customers, for example, like I mentioned previously, within their selected sports, people want to stand out, in order t o attract attention or an increased chance of remembrance. Therefore, by allowing people to customize their personal products whether it is tops, shoes, boots, shorts or even tennis rackets, a wider audience may be attracted. Ultimately this may increase Nike’s sales, leading to an increase in their overall profits. The only recommendation for Nike, in my opinion would be if they were to provide more promotional pricing methods in order to prevent certain items falling into a decline, for example, due to the high competition within the market in regards to football boots, they have to release new boots, every couple of months, therefore the â€Å"older† boots decline in price and popularity quickly. In order to prevent this, I think Nike should increase the amounts of offers within their football boot range; this will potentially increase sales and even boost profits as an  increased amount of people would be encouraged to purchase Nike’s products due to the falling/cheaper prices. Again this will benefit the business as more money could be generated, and this could possibly mean Nike may sell more, thus increasing their overall sales.