Europeans and Africans Essay

The two stages of contact between Europeans and Africans in the modern era, according to Morel, were the slave trade and the â€Å"power of modern capitalistic exploitation†. In the first he describes the horrors of the African slave trade that had occurred in the 1700-1800’s, the way the slaves were captured from their homes and transported in terrible, torturous conditions to their destinations. Morel sees this as horrific, but also acknowledges that despite the fact they were put through so much they were able to continue to multiply and have more children, even in slavery. Morel felt that the exploitation of the African nations will be even more devastating because it will bring European work ethics and culture to the Africans, thus changing their entire way of life and taking away the vitality of their culture. In general, the history of European domination over Africans was extreme. They would dominate them, either by making them slaves or taking away their land and using the natural resources of their homelands for their own benefits. 2. How did Europeans abuse and exploit Africans? What benefits did they bring to Africans, if any? The Europeans abused and exploited the Africans because they had weapons that the Africans did not. They had guns and other forms of technology and weaponry that could dominate the Africans and keep them under their control, taking away their way of life and leaving them to die. The Europeans did not bring any benefits to the Africans except that the slave trade was ceased when the Europeans realized that they could overcome the Africans and were better off exploiting the natural resources of their countries. In a way, this was perhaps a benefit in one respect but a curse in another. 3. This book was written in 1920. How did Morel see the future of European domination in Africa playing out over the course of the twentieth century? Morel sees the future of European domination in Africa playing out over the course of the twentieth century in such a way that he Africans are overtaken by weapons and the technology of the Europeans. He sees the Europeans as using all of the terrible weapons they have to win control of the continent, not only man made weapons but because they will bring disease to the African people. He also feels that when the European system of work and exploiting the environment will eventually kill the Africans from their soul outward to their body because it is so different from their own way of living and what is important to them, like the environment and having a relaxed way of life.

International accounting standard IAS Essay

We say Impairment has taken place when an asset’s carrying amount exceeds its recoverable amount. Carrying amount is the amount at which an asset is recognized in the balance sheet after deducting accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment loss. And recoverable amount is the higher of an asset’s fair value less costs to sell (sometimes called net selling price) & its value in use. Also the fair value is the amount obtainable from the sale of an asset in a bargained trasction between knowledgeable; willing party’s . on the other hand value in use is the discounted present of estimated future cash flows expected to arise from the continuing use of an asset and from its disposal at the end of its useful life. Impairment of goodwill involves two steps: 1) Screening step 2) Computation step Impairment is calculated at a reporting unit level. Impairment is calculated when the carrying Amount of the goodwill for a reporting unit exceeds its implied fair value. A reporting unit is an operating segment, or one level below an operating segment. The Goodwill for one reporting unit may be impaired, while the goodwill for other reporting units may or may not be impaired Calculation of goodwill for impairment involves two major steps: Step 1: Identify impairment by comparing the fair value of each reporting unit with its carrying amount including goodwill. Assign assets acquired and liabilities assumed to the various reporting units. Assign goodwill to the reporting units. Determine the fair values of the reporting units and of the assets and liabilities of those reporting units. If the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, there is potential goodwill impairment. The impairment is assumed to be due to the reporting unit’ goodwill since any impairment in the other assets of the reporting unit will already have been determined and adjusted for.. If the fair value of a reporting unit is more than its carrying amount, there is no impairment goodwill and Step 2 can be avoided. But where the result is vice versa step two can not be avoided a since goodwill impairment as taken place. Step 2: measuring the value for both tangible and intangible assets (impairment of goodwill) Step 2 is more complex than step1 because it requires that the fair market values of each of the identified tangible and intangible assets and liabilities of a reporting unit be estimated first before calculation takes place Value of Reporting Unit = Value of Identified Assets + Value of Goodwill = (Value of Reporting Unit- Value of Liabilities) = (Value of Identified Assets-Value of Liabilities) + Value of Goodwill = Fair Market Value of Equity = Fair Market Value of Net Assets + Fair Market Value of Implied Goodwill Summary and Conclusions Financial Accounting Standard 142 requires that goodwill emerging from acquisitions be tested to determine whether it has impaired or not because FAS 142 requires firms to effectively undertake a market test to see if Goodwill has been impaired. This test is completed in two steps as mentioned above. Reference: 1. International accounting standard IAS 36 2. Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) 142.

HAT task 3 Essay

SARS is known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. SARS was identified in late February 2003 by Dr. Ubani World Health Organization epidemiologist, but the first case of SARS was seen in November 2002 in the Guangdong Province of Southern China. The SARS was particularly seen within the healthcare workers and in their family members. The most of cases were fatal. Due to the unknown respiratory disease and it was spreading fast among people. World Health Organization (WHO) was notified. By the time WHO was involved, there was already 305 cases and five deaths of an unknown disease were reported (Christian, 2003). A medical doctor who was caring infected personnel in Guangdong Province in February 2003 was the source of transmission of the infection. This doctor traveled to Hong Kong and stayed in the hotel at ninth floor for one night. During his stay at the hotel, the virus was spread among the other guests who were staying in the ninth floor of the hotel. From there, these guests a nd visitors implanted outbreaks of cases to the various hospitals of Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Singapore. Concurrently the SARS was spread worldwide by air as infected individuals travel back to their home to United States of America, Canada (Toronto), and other countries of the world. (Christian, 2003). From November 2002- July 2003, there were a total of 8,098 possible cases of SARS were reported to the WHO from 29 different countries. From 8,098 cases, 774 deaths were reported. The ratio’s of mortality was reported to be Singapore was 14%, Hong Kong 17%, France 14%, and Canada 17% (Sars basic fact, â€Å"2012). The SARS epidemic was contained in July 2003. Data SARS is severe respiratory disease, and corona virus causes it. Corona viruses usually related to respiratory disease in some animal kind. Usually SARS has about 4-6 days of the incubation period. The most people started to feel sick within 2-10 days of exposure to the virus. The first primary symptom is high fever then it followed by headaches; generalized weakness and body ache, chills; rigors are common symptoms of the disease. Ten to  twenty percent of patients did experience some diarrhea. The first 2-10 days, patient also experienced nonproductive cough, shortness of breath, and hypoxia as disease progressed. The initial phase of the disease, the chest x-ray, doesn’t show any changes and are negative. As the disease progressed, the chest x-ray shows some interstitial infiltrates this means development of pneumonia. Because of the development of pneumonia, about 15-25% of patients require mechanical ventilation, despite mechanical ventilation half of the patient’ s still die. The risk of dying with SARS increases with advanced age and any other underlying medical condition for example diabetes. The death rate of 10% can increase to 50% in patient’s older than age of 60 (Parashar, 2004). Blood test shows decline in absolute lymphocyte count with normal to low white blood cell count. About 70-90% of patient showed a lymphopenia and 30-50% showed thrombocytopenia throughout peak stage (Parashar, 2004). Liver and renal functions need to monitor closely. The treatment of SARS usually supportive and also depends on the patient’s clinical picture. SARS treatment is usually similar to pneumonia antipyretics for fever, oxygen for hypoxemia, and ventilation in severe cases. There is no known supportive data on the effectiveness of the vaccine or antiviral agents (Trivedi, 2011 P. 1). The epidemiological data on SARS approximated mortality rate between 14-15%. During the epidemic, there were 8098 possible cases of SARS with 774 (9.6%) dea ths reported in different 29 countries (Parashar, 2004). The highest rate of cases was reported in China and Hong Kong. There were also some cases in Taiwan, Singapore, and Canada. Most of patients who got the virus were between 25-70 years of age. There were only few cases under 15 years and younger. The most of people were infected before the global alert was issued. There were only 27 cases of SARS in United States with no deaths. SARS transmission among people was fast and it made difficult to control the outbreak. Early Recognition and initiation of isolation of infected people is necessary. It is also essential to provide information to the infected communities and initiation of a global alert was also helpful to contain the spread of SARS. Route of Transmission Corona virus causes SARS, and it is usually found in some animal kind. Thirty percent of SARS cases were found in people who were handling food. Corona virus is usually spread by close contact with infected respiratory droplets of the sick person. The major mode of transmission is a close person to person contact. An infected person sneezes or coughs in the air and their droplets spread about 3 feet in distance. If a healthy person is standing nearby (about three feet) than the droplets enters into their mucus membranes of the nose, eyes, and mouth. The SARS can be spread by touching an infected object and then touches your nose, eyes, and mouth. The close contact also means sharing your eating or drinking utensils, kissing and hugging, and talking and standing by sick person. There is no evidence data on airborne transmission. The transmission can be prevented by identifying and isolating the infected object. The most important step to stop transmission of any disease is hand hygiene either using alcohol based hand sanitizer or simple hand wash with soap and water. Wearing proper mask is also important since droplets spread SARS. Graphic Representation Effect on Community SARS outbreak had a high effect on communities of all over the world. It did affected communities economically and psychosocially. According to the World Health Organization, airline industries lost business approximated from 30,000 to 140,000 million US dollars. Due to the outbreak people were canceling their flights to Asian countries. Effected communities also suffered psychosocially. Some ethnic groups experienced discrimination and quarantined. The affected communities suffered from fear and anxiety. People stop going out due to the spread of disease. Many schools and borders were closed for a course of time. To decrease stress and anxiety among people education about SARS was given. People were taught about signs and symptoms of the disease and how the disease was spread. Education was also given on how to control infection such as covering mouth or nose during coughing or sneezing, wearing mask at crowded places, using tissues to contain mucus, and the importance of hand washi ng with soap and water. Protocol Every state has a protocol how to report a communicable disease. These protocols help health care provider to prevent the outbreak of a communicable disease. When health care provider finds a case of SARS, the  initial step is to isolate the infected person. The second step is to notify state and county health department about the possible case of SARS. The Center for Disease Control should also be notified about the case. According to the Center for Disease Control, it is mandatory for healthcare worker to report † All persons requiring hospitalization for radio-graphically confirmed pneumonia who report at least one of three risk factors for exposure to SARS-CoV, any clusters of unexplained pneumonia especially among health care workers, and any positive SARS-CoV test results† (â€Å"In the absence,† 2005). The main step for any heath care facility is to arrange for the SARS laboratory test. Once the SARS laboratory test is confirmed, and it is positive in the infected person. The next step is to do further testing of the sick person such as chest x-ray, blood cultures, pulse oximetry, the sputum sample for gram stain and culture, complete blood cell count, influenza A and B test to rule out viral illness, and urine test Legionella and pneumococcal antigen (â€Å"In the absence,† 2005). Sick person should admit as an inpatient and placed on droplet precautions. Family or Friends and any possibly exposed people to the sick person should be notified and assessed for signs and symptoms of the disease. Modification of Care Air quality index (AQI) is used for to monitor the air quality outdoors. The air quality index is used to notify public about the air pollution. It helps the patient who has respiratory illnesses such as asthma, emphysema, bronchitis either acute or chronic, flu or SARS and the old people and pediatric population. These people fall under a sensitive group. According to Environmental Protection Agency, the air quality index scale is 0-500, but in United States it never exceeds above 200 (â€Å"Patient exposure and,† 2014). This is the reason in most of the cases the index is usually shown between 0-300. Increase number of air quality index represents increased air pollution. Air quality index number is 100 or lower is usually decent. If the air quality index is higher than 100, it is not healthy for the sensitive group. Even air quality index of 51 can cause symptoms in people with respiratory problems. Air quality index number of 51 represents moderate air quality. It is essen tial to teach patients about air quality index website www.airnow.gov so they can continue to monitor air quality. The days of poor air quality index, the people who have respiratory problems  should plan to stay home or indoors as much as possible. They should avoid exhausting activities or exercising outdoors. The people should also keep windows and doors closed and keep checking the air quality index and plan their activities accordingly. If the affected person cannot stay inside, he or she should wear a mask before going out. People should be educated about triggers what makes their disease exacerbation, about signs and symptoms of their disease such as Shortness of breath, cough, and wheezing. They should keep their rescue inhalers nearby in case of emergency. It is also necessary to teach them about when and where to get medical attention. Affected people can be benefited from antihistamines, nebulizers, and decongestant. Reference Christian, H. (2003). Sars reference 10/2003. (Third ed., Vol. October, p. 170). Flying publisher. Retrieved from http://www.sarsreference.com In the absence of sars-cov transmission worldwide: Guidance for surveillance, clinical and laboratory evaluation, and reporting version 2. (2005, May 03). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/sars/Surveillance/absence.htm Parashar, U. (2004). Severe acute respiratory syndrome: review and lessons of the 2003 outbreak. International Epidemiological Association, 4(33), 628-634. Retrieved from http://ije.oxfordjournals.org/content/33/4/628.full Patient exposure and the air quality index. (2014, March 12). Retrieved from http://www.epa.gov/o3healthtraining/aqi.html (â€Å"Sars basic fact,† 2012)Sars basic fact sheet. (2012, July 02). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/sars/about/fs-SARS.html Trivedi, M. N. (2011). Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). Retrieved from http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/237755-overview The World Health Organ ization. Retrieved on November 27.2012 http://www. who.int/csr/sars/en

Reading Response Question 2 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reading Response Question 2 - Research Paper Example Ergo, with an educated crop of youth, posterity would be supplied with learned men to manage the affairs of the nation. He recalls that the original settlers who had created the foundation on which America was built had received a good education in Europe and juxtaposes them with the present youths who are not thought to be of the same caliber owing to lesser academic aptitude. To this end, he proposed that an academy should be opened for the sake of educating the youth and the state or any other organization with an interest should provide teachers and learning materials, which will be updated and improved with time as par the educational demands (Franklin 87). Furthermore, the members of the cooperation should strive to regularly visit the school so as to mentor the students and assist the masters as well as serve as inspiration to the proteges. The academy, he suggested should be located in the city or not very far rom it, that way, the youths within who would be undergoing traini ng could be closely observed by the community. The Rector should be an outstanding scholar and well versed in the sciences arts and languages, he should have masters of his caliber and it is also crucial that all have excellent mastery of the English tongue. The students should be trained in both academic and non-academic pursuits such as would strengthen them both physically and spiritually. They should be rendered physically active through wrestling, swimming running reaping and any other appropriate exercise. The scholars in this academy should distinguish themselves from other youth by the peculiarity of their habits, which should reflect studiousness and great self-discipline. As pertains to the content taught therein, he suggests several disciplines and justifies their necessity. The English language is to be taught by grammar and it should encapsulate the works of great writers such pope Cato, and Tillotson, it should also include reading and pronunciation skills. Their writi ng skills can be honed through the writing of letters to each other all which should be read and revised under the supervision of a qualified master. History should also be introduced so the learners may benefit from the experience and leisure that is contained in knowledge of past diverse past events such as Greek and/or world history. This should be combined with geography in which the scholars would be taught to read and interpret maps as well as point out specifically where certain historical events took place. Franklin further proposes that learner could benefit from knowledge of ancient customs of different cultures and religious education. Through the constant examinations of the rise and fall of man’s character, learners should be schooled in matters of morality which has substantial advantage in that it inculcates virtues such as temperance frugality and persistence among others. An in-depth study of historical events will undoubtedly, according to Franklin serve to inspire the learner to do great things and also learn from the experiences and mistakes of their forbearers. He argues that learning of language such as Latin is crucial since many

Economic of Ocean Resources Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Economic of Ocean Resources - Assignment Example This thus makes the management and conservation of the international public good vital to both those bordering the water bodies and those who do not, failure to conserve the water bodies effectively has myriad economic ramifications as portrayed in the discussion below. Ineffective management of oceans refers to the lack of effective administrative policies to regulate the use of the international public good thus permitting everyone to use the ocean as they wish. Among the numerous uses of oceans include navigation thus transportation of goods, sports and tourism among many others. While the ocean offers such primary services to the people, they constitute part of the global ecosystems often surviving numerous species of aquatic wildlife (Erwin, Cornelis and Timothy 5). Failing to manage the ecosystem thus permits those who use the resource to pollute the waters while those engaging in fishing to overfish even some of the endangered species in such ecosystems. The consequences of a polluted ocean are dire. These affect every citizen of the globe despite their relationship with such water bodies owing to the production of impure public goods. As a public good, the consumption of the oceans requires the ocean to remain pure and conducive. This implies that the governments that border the water bodies must formulate effective policies that govern the use of the ocean often safeguarding the interests of the natural ecosystems found in the oceans. Among the major factors that pollute the water, include oil spillage and garbage management. The large oil tankers among other vessels that use the ocean must ensure effective and considerate use of the resource in order to curb instances of spilling oil among other types of impurities into the oceans. Additionally, industrial cities situated strategically along the water bodies must manage their wastes effectively in order to curb dumping of industrial refuse into the ocean.  Ã‚  

International Trade Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

International Trade - Essay Example Political realities do influence international trade. Countries that are facing political instability are most avoided for trade as there is great deal of uncertainty there, nobody knows when their policies do get amended and the trading partner has to face loss. Trade barriers such as tariffs and quotas are other political tools that are used by governments to control the amount and composition of international trade happening in their economy (Oh & Reuveny, 2010). There are also some countries that avoid much trade with each other due to their rivalry and differences that eventually affect their economies. India and Pakistan, besides being neighboring countries avoid much trade with each other. However, unofficial trade continues between them for many years amounting around billions of dollars. US has imposed embargo over Cuba (Schwab, 1999); at the same time ongoing trade between mainland China and Taiwan shows an example that trade can even flourish even in the presence of hostile relations (Yu, 1997). This world has now become a global village and there is huge interdependence of countries on one another. Under developed, developing and developed nations all require trade with each other to grow, sustain and flourish their nations. Importance of no nation can be undermine thus limitations of political influence is a better idea. As for today, no nation can survive and grow in isolationism (Fioretos,

Discussion Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 75

Discussion - Assignment Example . This poem clearly brings out the theme of courage well. Unlike his peers who strive to impress the visiting audience, Michael chooses to do what he perceives right in his eyes even though he knows the backlash he would receive from the society. Since beginning of time, those who act contrary to the norms of the society are the ones who make a difference on earth. Like a child, he is at peace with what he does and loves. Like a rose has both the male and female parts, he blends both masculinity and feminism. Cultural conflict is the dominant theme in this poem. Different races and cultures are always in conflict with each other and in a bid to advance their ideologies or to prove their superiority over others; most conflicts end up in bloodsheds. In Casual Wear, a tourist woman falls victim to a vicious attack by the terrorist. While the odds are one to nine that she will be at the place of the attack, she ironically ends up there and is killed. The tourist may have come from a nation that was in conflict with the terrorist’s country. She wears extravagantly in a country that fashion is not taken seriously. Just like her clothes did not matter to the terrorist, so was her life. The main cause of terrorism is cultural differences. Using force or violence to counter terrorism will only result to more violence. The best method to stop terrorism would be to accept other people’s cultural, ideological and religious beliefs. Stereotyping people will only lead to more resentment. For example, Muslims are portrayed as terrorists in most Hollywood films. This should be banned. Ballad of Birmingham is based on a real life bombing of an African-American church in 1963. The poem begins with a girl begging her mother to go to a freedom march, but her mother refuses. She however allows her to go to church where she believes is secure. Unfortunately, the church is attacked by arsons and the little girl dies. The message that is clear is

United States Health Care Reform and Accountable Care Organizations Research Paper

United States Health Care Reform and Accountable Care Organizations - Research Paper Example The U.S. health sector is very inefficient in terms of cost levels and in order to bring this down this paper discusses the implementation of Affordable Care Organizations and whether or whether not they will be able to remedy this situation. If indeed, ACOs benefit the health sector over the years as predicted by studies the U.S health sector will be able to lower costs and increase the quality of their health care. The United States Health Sector has gone through many reforms over the years and has recently been subjected to the Affordable Care Act which calls for Accountable Care Organizations within the sector to increase its efficiency of functioning. With the ACA up and running, the health sector seems to have a much better chance of improvement, however this wasn’t always so. Body President Harry Truman initiated the idea of a socialized healthcare program in the United States in the period 1945-48 but was put down by the American Medical Association (AMA). However, Medicare was finally made operational in 1965 under President Johnson’s socialist regime. (Oliver, Lee and Lipton, 2004). From the end of the 1960s to the end of the 1990s prescription drug coverage was never an independent factor that fell under the responsibility if Medicare. It was only until the end of the Clinton regime that this issue came to light. Towards the end of 2003, President Bush added the coverage of prescription drugs under Medicare which was one of many other changes to the organization. The implementation of these changes will increase tax burden on the population by roughly in the bracket of $400-550 billion in the future. The population had a 60/40 negative/positive stance about the new reforms respectively. (Oliver, Lee and Lipton, 2004). There was a gigantic increase in the price of medical drugs around this time and Medicare’s expenditure which used to amount to $700 million in 1992 was costing Medicare around $6.5 billion in 2001. Obviously, their costing system was hugely defected. (Oliver, Lee and Lipton, 2004). The explosive increase in the price of prescription drugs also allowed greater power to pharmaceutical companies who realized that on this scale the stakes were larger and politics came into play; since the drugs were too costly the federal government would have to sponsor their coverage. (Oliver, Lee and Lipton, 2004). Another issue that has remaine d persistent where American healthcare is discussed is that of the racial partiality with respect to adequate healthcare provision. In 1993, it was estimated that the life expectancy of African Americans was roughly 7 years less than that of white Americans. This difference was attributed to mortality rates and the differences in income distribution. But the truth according to research was that black Americans were not allowed as much health care as their white counterparts. (Bhopal, 1998). There are also language barriers to effective health care provision in the United States. A research paper describing this situation tells of a situation of this boy called Raul who spoke little English, his mother who spoke no English and was describing his condition to a doctor and the doctor who spoke very little Spanish. His mother was telling the doctor that her son had been dizzy the day before; the doctor took it to mean that Raul had been looking a little yellow. When confirmed from Raul, the doctor was told that his mother was saying that Raul had been

Research about human organ donation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Research about human organ donation - Essay Example The society has always been a victim of many medical complications and organ transplantation has been embraced in treatment and procedures administered to patients who suffer from related health problems. Having to understand the exact meaning of organ transplantation would give us a vivid insight about the subject matter. The whole process is a surgical procedure where an organ or a tissue is removed and placed into another person. (Clinic-Clevaland 1). Organ transplantation can be broadly defined as moving of an organ from one body to another. The other type of organ transplantation includes transfer of organ from the donor site to another in same person’s body. The organs which can be transplanted are thymus, intestine, pancreas, lungs, liver, kidneys and heart. The tissues which can be transplanted are heart valves, veins, nerves, heart, skin, cornea, tendons and bones etc. There is a range of organs and tissues that that can be transplanted. These include the heart, liver, lung, kidney, ear, intestine, cornea, skin, middle ear, bone, bone marrow, connective tissue and many others. The donation aspect is inspired by a number of issues hence our concern on the ethical aspects involved. The donor in one case might be inspired to be involved to save a life without getting nothing in return. Patients with such difficulties as kidney failure are a good example of such beneficiaries. There have been many cases of lives saved through such donations (Price and Akveld 19-30). A donation might come from a living person or can be extended soon after their death. The organ donor can be living or dead. The definition of dead donor can be circulatory death or brain dead. As per medical authorities, the tissues except cornea can be recovered from the donors who have been declared as the circulatory deaths till 24 hours after cessation of heartbeat. Most of the harves ted

Historical or Contemporary Leader Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Historical or Contemporary Leader - Essay Example From the discussion it is clear that Gandhi should be regarded as a pioneer of using non violent method is the primary method in gaining independence as the majority of the leaders before him relied on violence. The possibility of improvement is assessed in the next paragraph. The vulnerabilities of Gandhi are also explored together with the manner in which he tried to overcome them. The paper also provides insight into what the author learned why studying the legacy of this prominent leader. The rest of the paper features application of Kouzes and Posner view of leadership to Gandhi’s experience. It is argued that he employed all exemplary methods of leadership. It is also argued that the best theory that can describe his leadership is transformational leadership theory and the relevant evidence is provided.This paper stresses that  if one examines the life of Mahatma Gandhi, one will be able to see that he did not pay much attention to theoretical aspects of leadership. Th at is why he did not produce any comprehensive definition of it in writing. However, the way he interacted with his followers might be regarded as suitable way to explore what leadership meant to him. Thus, based on this observation, it is obvious that for Gandhi leadership was a unique relationship between people when one of them was directing the common efforts to achieve a particular goal. One should also keep in mind that leadership philosophy of this prominent individual consists of the following elements.

CHURCH VISIT - WESTMINSTER ABBEY IN LONDON Essay

CHURCH VISIT - WESTMINSTER ABBEY IN LONDON - Essay Example There are four large statues of Moses, St. peter, St Paul and another of king David on either side of the alter which give the whole building a serene feeling of holiness. The pulpit where the sermon is conducted is made of gilded wood and from where the sermon is conducted on Sundays. As I walked the length of the abbey, I reached an entrance on the end where the evensong is conducted. There is where I met vergers, who looked as though they were on guard duty at the door, but when I asked them about the evensong, they let me in pleasantly and gave me a program which explains the service; they also added my name to the list of people to sit in the quire. From their on, I just watched what other people were doing and copied them. We were then later issued with pamphlets with the week’s services and music along with the evensong service sheet; which basically tells one when to stand and sit or when to respond. The service then soon began when the whole congregation was signaled to arise in the singing of the poem Tallis in manus tuas, Domine (after Thomas Tallis). The poem was also in the pamphlet issued to the rest of the congregation and soon, I was in rhythm with the rest of the congregation in the recitation of the Tallis in manus tuas, Domine (Tallis, pg 89). Soon after, we completed reciting the Tallis in manus tuas, Domine the preacher who had been seated at the alter came in to the pulpit and gave a brief reading from the Bible only and excluded a sermon. After the reading, the choir which mainly consisted of around thirty boys who were seated at the quire and wore red robes, arose and what followed left me speechless. The boys’ singing of Purcell Lord, how long wilt thou be angry was really the most wonderful thing I have ever heard (Tallis, pg 112). Just like me the rest of the congregation was left also wanting for more. I guess its one of the major reasons why the

Two contrasting religious Essay Example for Free

Two contrasting religious Essay Compare the similarities and differences in the practices and beliefs of individuals from two contrasting religious or secular groups. In M1 I will be discussing the similarities and differences of Islam and Christianity. I will be discussing about the religions origins, worship, festivals, clothing, beliefs and diet. Origins A similarity of Islam and Christianity is that they both believe in one God (Christianity Jesus) (Islam Allah). A difference is that both religions have different countries of origin. Islam originated from Makkah and Madina which is situated in Saudi Arabia and Christianity originated from Jerusalem in Israel. Islam began in the 7th century, God sent his message through the prophet Mohammed showing how to worship God, and how to perfect life. Islam spread through East Asia, Central Europe and North Africa. Today Islam is recorded to be the fastest growing religion in the world. Christianity developed in the 1st century; Christianity came from the religion Judaism Christianity began with the apostles of Jesus. Christianity mostly spread because Jesus and his disciples went from town to town preaching about the Jewish law. Christianity is practiced in USA, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, China, Germany, Philippines, United Kingdom, Italy, France and Nigeria. The first mosque was built in Madina. The first Christian church was founded in 33AD in Jerusalem. Worship A similarity of Islam and Christianity is that they both have holy places they worship at. Christians worship at a church usually on a Sunday; Muslims worship at a mosque, Muslims usually go to the mosque on Fridays or any day of the week. The difference is that they worship on different days. Muslims can pray together or by themselves and can pray at home or workplace as long as the place is clean and quiet. Christians and Muslims worship to get closer their Gods. Christians can worship at church or home they can also pray by themselves or in a group; Christians pray to get closer to God. A difference is that Islam requires Muslims to pray five times a day and with Christianity Christians are require praying once a day or more if they want to. Christians and Muslims both pray to get closer to God. A similarity is that both religions both religions have holy books that they read. A  difference is that Islam has the Quran and Christianity has the Holy Bible. Christians and Muslims read their holy books to learn more about their religions and for guidance through their lives. Christians and Muslims read their holy books to gain knowledge too. Festivals A similarity of Islam and Christianity is that they both have one main festival they celebrate Christians celebrate Christmas on December 25th Muslims celebrate Eid the date for Eid changes every year Muslims will celebrate Eid after Ramadan. A difference is that Christianity has a specific time of the year to celebrate Christmas and Eid moves from time to time every year. Both religions celebrate these festivals by having a big feast, spending time with family and buying new clothes. Christmas in the birth of Jesus during this period Christians usually exchange gifts, spend time with friends and family, wear new clothes and have a big dinner which is call Christmas dinner. Eid is the celebration of Ramadan; Ramadan is the periods when muslims fast for 30 days and they are allow to eat after sunset. The day after Ramadan is Eid, Eid is when muslims spend time with family and friends, eat, and buy new clothes to wear. Beliefs Some of the similarities are that both religions believe in one God, and both have a holy book they believe in. A difference is that Muslims believe in seven main things; Belief in God, belief in the prophets, belief in the angels, belief in the holy book which is the Quran, belief in the judgement day, belief in life after death and belief in the good and bad. Christians believe that God is the father of Jesus. Another similarity is that both religions believe in life after death. Christianise believes in the Bible, they believe in God, they believe that God sent Jesus they believe that God came through Jesus as a human form. Muslims believe in that Mohammed is the last messenger, they believe you go to heaven or hell on the day of judgement and Christians also believe you go heaven or hell once you on the day of judgement. Clothing A difference of clothing is that Muslims women cover their hair with a hijab (head scarf) this is by choice. Christianity doesn’t require women to cover  their hair. Some Muslims men can cover their hair with a topi if they want to. Christianity doesn’t require men to cover their hair. Some women can wear a long dress called jilbab. A similarity is that both religions require you to dress modesty. Muslims women wear theses because you are not allowed to show your figure (jilbab) and they wear the hijab to not show their beauty so no one is looking at them in the wrong way. Is it written in the Quran that you can cover your hair and it says that you should wear clothing that doesn’t show your figure. Diet A difference is that Islam requires Muslims to eat only certain foods like halal meat. Muslims aren’t allowed to eat lard, pork, any foods with gelatine and food or drinks that contain alcohol. Christians believe that God has given them the animals to eat as well to have and take off. Some Christians may eat only fish on Good Friday or just one or two meals. During lent Christians may give up something they really like, like chocolate until Easter Sunday. Christians may eat bread and drink wine every Sunday to remember Jesus and what he did. Bibliography About.com Islam (2013) Islamic Clothing Requirements Available at http://islam.about.com/od/dress/p/clothing_reqs.htm [accessed 24/09/13] Atschool (December 2007) Christmas the story, customs and traditions, Available at, http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/carolrb/christmas/christmas1.html [accessed: 24/09/13] Christianity.org (2013) Worship Available at, http://www.christianity.org.uk/index.php/worship.php [accessed: 24/09/13] Copyright global tolerance limited (2009) Faith and Food Available at http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/carolrb/christmas/christmas1.html [accessed: 24/09/13] Copyright Inter- Islam (1998-2001) Diet in Islam, Available at http://www.inter-islam.org/Lifestyle/diet.htm [accessed: 24/09/13] Wood Jenny (1988) Islam for children, Available at http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/carolrb/islam/glossary.html [accessed: 24/09/13] Greenstar (2013) ISLAM, Available at http://www.greenstar.org/Islam/ [accessed 25/09/13] Religion answers (2013) how did Christianity begin? Available at, http://religion.answers.wikia.com/wiki/How_did_christianity_begin [accessed 25/09/13] Darul-arqam (2012) why must Muslims go to the mosque for prayers on Fridays Available at, http://www.darul-arqam.org.sg/what-is-islam/brief-history-of-islam/ [accessed 25/09/13]

Factors Affecting Labour Turnover Commerce Essay

Factors Affecting Labour Turnover Commerce Essay This proposal is on the factors that affect labour turnover of Life insurance Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. A Life insurance company relies on a stable Agency force to sell and service its Life insurance products to enable it make profit from the Life policy. The exit of an Agent affects the servicing of the policies sold with negative impact on Companys profitability and investable fund for the nations economic development. Therefore, the objective of this study is to identify the factors, find out how and to what extent they affect labour turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. It will also seek to find solution to the problem and make recommendations. This study will benefit the management and Agency Managers of the company, other Life Insurance companies, current and potential investors in Life insurance companies as well as government and its Agencies. The study will make use of descriptive research design which will involve field survey of targeted respondents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. The target population will be the regional managers, sales managers and the Agents at its branches in Nairobi numbering about 200. A sample of 15% will be taken using simple random sampling technique. The data will be collected by the use of questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics which will include tables, charts, diagrams and frequency distribution measurements such as mean, mode and median. OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS Life Insurance Life Assurance is an aspect of Financial Planning which provides for the payment of a capital sum to the dependants of a policy owner on his death or to the policy owner on survival to policy expiration, in consideration of the payment of a smaller, often regular, amount to the Life office Life Insurance Sales Agent Life insurance agents specialize in selling policies that pay beneficiaries when a policyholder dies. They also sell other varieties of Life insurance products such as annuities that promise a retirement income, Health insurance and short-term and long-term-disability insurance policies. Agents may specialize in any one of these products, or function as generalists, providing multiple products to a single customer. They earn commission and other benefits for their effort. TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURES ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS LIMRA Life Insurance Marketing and Research Association AKI Association of Kenya Insurers IIAA- Independent insurance Agents of America COP Certificate of Proficiency OMLAC Old Mutual Life Assurance Company CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION This chapter will focus on background of the study, statement of the problem, objectives of the study, the hypothesis or research questions, significance, scope and limitation of the study. 1.1 Background to the study Life Insurance is an aspect of Personal Financial Planning which enables somebody to provide for his future financial needs at old age and that of his or her dependants in the event of unforeseen circumstances. Such unforeseen circumstances are premature death, Total Permanent disability resulting from Accident or Critical illnesses which may reduce or terminate a persons income earning capacity. The risk of premature death is one of the major personal risks faced by most individuals. The financial consequences resulting from the death of a breadwinner before adequate resources have been established for dependents can be severe. Life insurance is a major source of financial protection against premature death. There are three main sources of life insurance protection which are individually purchased, Employer-sponsored and Government sponsored life insurance coverage. The dependable source is the individually purchased Life insurance protection because the other two may not be available to an individual. Life Assurance is a service premised on a promise to pay a certain amount of money in future in the event of the occurrence of a stated contingency which usually depends on the duration of human Life. Hence, the best form of selling this service is one on one personal selling through a Sales Person traditionally called an Agent. One major problem facing Life insurance Companies in selling their products and hence, profitability is the high rate of labour turnover of their Agents. A Life insurance company relies on a stable Agency force to sell its Life insurance products. These products are usually long tern going for a minimum of five years in duration. The profitability of a policy to the Life insurance Company depends on the consistent servicing of that policy by the Agent. When an Agent leaves an insurance Company when the policies he sold are still in their early years, such policies will no longer be serviced. Hence, the Company will lose in terms of future in-flow of investible funds, lost of commission that has been paid in advance to the Agent and payment of surrender values arising from lapsed policies. This situation threatens the survival of Life insurance companies and it has attracted the attention of some writers and researchers. According to Leverett et al (1977), the death of the independent Agency system as it exists today has been predicted for several years. Increased competition from newer sources, such as the entrance of Life insurance companies into the property-liability field, as well as traditional competition from the direct writers of insurance, tends to reinforce the foundation for such a prophesy. The attraction and retention of new agents into the independent agency system is vital to the continued successful existence of that system. A number of studies have indicated that the retention rate for agents recruited into the Life insurance industry is very low. According to one study, the two year and five year retention rates for 13 large life insurers in the United States were 39 and 13 percent respectively. Furthermore, the retention rate for smaller life insurers was found to be even less than for their larger counterparts. These figures are not totally unexpected given the lack or inadequacy of training and educational programs offered to new life insurance recruits. LIMRA (2009) points out that, it has been of great concern to many managers, the fact that only 5% of sales representatives who join the industry remain in the industry and become successful sales representatives. Out of the 5% only 2% become high achievers in the industry. Despite the fact that those on commissions earn more than majority of the salaried people, it has remained a very challenging field especially for the young people from college and university who would wish to earn good money easily and fast. Burand (2010) notes that over time, agents retention in the life insurance industry remains a perennial challenge for companies operating within the traditional career agency system. According to LIMRA (2010), 68% of agents leave companies within their first two years. Many managers presuppose that retention rates correspond with a companys effectiveness in building its sales and Organization in general. Company bottom lines would benefit substantially from increased retention rates. 1.1.1 Background to the Scope of Study Old Mutual Life Assurance Kenya belongs to an International long-term savings, protection and investment Group. The Group provides life assurance, asset management, banking and general insurance in 33 countries (Africa, Europe, the Americas and Asia). It has over 15 million customers and approximately 55 000 employees. The vision of the group is to be their customers most trusted partner passionate about helping them achieve their lifetime financial goals. The group was founded in 1845 and has expanded from their origins in South Africa in the last decade through organic growth and strategic acquisitions. It is listed in the UK, South Africa and three other African exchanges. Old Mutual Kenya (OMK) started doing business in Kenya in the late 1920s. The vision of the company is the same as its parent company but limited to East Africa. The mission statement of the company is as follows through understanding and meeting our customers needs, we will profitably expand our market for wealth accumulation and protection in Kenya. 1.1.2 Background to the Population Area and organizational Chart Old Mutual has 16 retail marketing outlets throughout Kenya including 4 in Nairobi. The retail marketing arm is under the jurisdiction of the Head of Sales who is at the head office. The head of sales is part of the executive management who reports on the activities of the sales force. The head of sales is assisted by head of channels who oversees the activities of the Branch managers in different locations. Under the Branch Manger are Sales managers who manage the Agents. 1.2 Problem Statement The Insurance industry has suffered astronomical losses resulting from high rate of labour turnover among Agents especially the new agents. The new agents are the sales representatives who have been with the company for less than four years. Annual report published by LIMRA international in 2004 pointed out that four year agents retention has not been able to move above 13 percents. This translates to 87 percent of the new agents in the insurance industry leaving their respective companies within the first four years of signing the contract. An agent in the insurance industry especially life insurance starts becoming profitable only after the third year of their contract in the company. This is because the initial years are characterized by huge training cost, initial allowances which are not tied to production and forward-earning commission system. This results in high expenses for the firm in the early years of recruiting an Agent with the hope of recouping the cost gradually from the future earnings of the Agent. This implies that most of the insurance companies have been incurring huge losses because of consistently poor retention rate of the new agents. Insurance agents retention has become a matter of concern as the Association of Kenya Insurers (AKI) highlighted in the 2011 report concerning developments of the tied agents in the insurance industry in Kenya. AKI report (2010) observed that lack of personal development of many Agents who join insurance industry is an issue that requires attention by the industry if the industry is to remain relevant in the country. Lack of personal development among the agents has been cited as an important factor that affects agents retention in the industry. A Life insurance company relies on a stable Agency force to sell its Life insurance products. These products are usually long tern going for a minimum of five years in duration. Agents are paid commission for any policy sold. The commission is structured in such a way that a substantial percentage up to 50% of the premium is paid in the first year and between 10% to 40% is paid in subsequent years up to the fifth year or sometimes end of the policy term. The profitability of a policy to the Life insurance Company depends on the consistent servicing of that policy by the Agent. If an Agent leaves an insurance Company when the policies he sold are still in their early years, such policies will no longer be serviced. Hence, the Company will lose in terms of future in-flow of investable funds, loss of commission paid in advance for future services of the Agent and an early lapse of such orphan policies. The economy also suffers because it will be starved of investable funds which aid the economic development of the nation. Old Mutual Life Assurance Kenya has experienced a drop in its number of Agents in the past years. While it had 500 Agents in 2010, they currently have about 200. This has also reflected in the revenue of the company from the individual life Insurance segment of the company. The premium income generated by the Agents for the past four years is represented in the following table. Table 1. Premium Income of Agents in Old Mutual Life Ass. Co. Kenya (2008 2011) Year Premium Income (Kshs 000) Difference Percentage Difference 2008 386,367 2009 378,056 (8,311) (2%) 2010 376,496 (1,560) (0.41%) 2011 349,429 (27,067) (7.18%) Source: OMLAC (2012) The graphical representation of the above situation is shown below. Figure 1. Premium Income of Agents in Old Mutual Life Ass. Co. Kenya (2008 2011) Source: OMLAC (2012) Life insurance premium from the sales Agent should increase in geometrical progression with positive cumulative effect on the revenue of the company. If the premium from new policies sold is added to the premium of existing policy holders, it should lead to increase in premium income from year to year. However, the reverse is the case in Old Mutual where premium income from Life insurance Agents has declined from Kshs 386 million in 2008 to Kshs 349 million in 2011. This represents a drop of 9.56% in premium income in 2011 compared to 2008. It is against this premises that this study will focus on factors affecting labour turnover of Life Insurance Agents in Old mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. 1.3 Objectives of the study The objective of the study will include the following: 1.3.1 General Objective To investigate the factors that affect labour turnover of Life insurance Agents in the Life insurance industry in Kenya. 1.3.2 Specific Objectives To find out how remuneration affects the turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. To determine the effects of training on the turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. To investigate how physical work environment affect labour turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. To establish to what extent job satisfaction affects labour turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. To determine to what extent level of education affects labour turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. 1.4 The Research Questions The study will seek information to answer the following research questions: To what extend does remuneration affect turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? To what extent does training affect turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? How does physical work environment affect labour turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? How does job satisfaction affect turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? To what extent does level of education affect labour turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? The Significance of the Study The findings from this study will benefit the organization and its stakeholders, the life insurance industry, government and other researchers in this field. The top management of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited consisting of the Managing Director, the head of sales and head of channels who are likely to use the findings to understand the reasons behind labour turnover of Agents in the company. It will also help the Regional and Sales managers of Old Mutual Life Assurance Kenya to improve on their management techniques towards reducing labour turnover of Agents in their region and sales unit. The Sales Agents will also benefit from the study by using the recommendations to improve on their sales performance and create the personal willingness to stay with the company The findings of the study will also be of immense benefit to the government, especially the ministry of finance, and the commissioner of insurance who will use it to formulate policies that will improve retention of Agents in the Insurance industry. The stakeholders of Old Mutual Life Assurance Limited which include customers, investors and the public will also benefit from the study by understanding the factors that affect labour turnover of Agents in the company. Lastly, it will also benefit other researchers in this field who may use this report for further studies. 1.6 Scope of the Research Study The scope of this study will be found in the Life Insurance industry of Kenya. However, due to time and limited resources, the focus will be on Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. Since this study is on factors affecting labour turnover of Agents, the research will concentrate on the Agency force of the company which has about 200 Agents nationwide. For the same reasons above, the study will concentrate on the Agency force in Nairobi which is about 100 in number. The researcher will take sample from the research population. The period of study will be up to 30th September 2012. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction This chapter will critically analyze literature related to the study. This will include the issue of labor turnover in general and its effect, special attributes of Agents engage in selling services and Agent turnover in Life insurance industry. 2.2 Labor Turnover Labor turnover is the ratio of the number of employees that leave a company through attrition, dismissal, or resignation during a period to the number of employees on payroll during the same period. One of the 14 principles developed by Henri Fayol is stable labor turnover. He postulated that there should be stability of tenure of personnel in an organization. This is because a high labor turnover is harmful to the organization. Employee turnover refers to the rate at which employees leave jobs in a company and are replaced by new hires. A high employee turnover rate implies that a companys employees leave their jobs at a relatively high rate. Employee turnover rates can increase for a variety of reasons, and turnover includes both employees who quit their jobs and those who are asked to leave. Average employee turnover rates differ among industries; for example, in 2006, average turnover rates in the United States varied between around 15 percent annually for durable goods manufactu ring employees to as high as 56 percent for the restaurant and hospitality industry, according to Nobscot Corporation. According to a freelance writer, Shelley Frost, Employee turnover is a natural part of business in any industry. Excessive labour turnover decreases the overall efficiency of the company and comes with a high price tag. Understanding the effects of losing a high number of employees serves as a motivator to work toward reducing the labour turnover rate for higher profits and a more appealing work environment. The writer identified some cost associated with labour turnover as follows. Each employee who resigns costs the company money. All of the money invested into that employee through training, education and licensing walks out the door with the employee. When you hire a replacement, the company spends money on those same areas to prepare the new hire for the position. The company also pays to advertise the vacancy and may incur costs for drug testing, physicals and moving expenses. The company could pay 1/3 of the yearly salary of the new employee in costs. Labour turnover rates cost the company time in addition to money. Managers or human resources staffs spend time conducting exit interviews, advertising the job, recruiting candidates and interviewing. Supervisors and colleagues are often left to cover until a new employee is hired and begin working. The new employee may take several months to fully learn the job and achieve competency in the position. When the staff changes frequently, the employees who stay have a difficult time building a positive team dynamic. A group of employees learns to work well together, only to have one or more members leave. This leaves the staff in limbo until a new employee starts. The personality and work ethic of the new employee may vary significantly from the previous employee. Labour turnover can hurt overall morale of employees. The overall productivity of the workplace tends to decrease with high turnover. Since a new employee has a period of adjustment, he wont complete tasks as quickly as the person he replaces. Group projects that rely on the new team member may slow down, which affects experienced employees productivity levels. The loss of momentum when an employee resigns may also affect morale. A high turnover rate affects the continuity of service to clients and other employees. This is particularly difficult in an industry that relies heavily on relationships with clients. For example, a client who purchases products from a company on a regular basis may grow tired of getting a new salesperson or customer service contact every few months. Consistent relationships with clients help build a stronger loyalty to the company. The company is also better able to provide consistent, high-quality service with well-trained staff that doesnt change often. 2.2.3 Life Insurance Agent According to Independent insurance Agents of America (IIAA) (2009) an agent is a person who performs services for another person or an organization under an express or implied agreement and who is subject to the others control or right to control the manner and means of performing the services. The other person is called a principal. Rosenberg (2004) expresses the same opinion in different words by saying that, Insurance agents are sometimes referred to as insurance sales agents whose main obligation is to help clients choose insurance policies that suite their needs. There are two types of agents as classified by LIMRA (2007), some agents are captive or tied agents who mainly work for an insurance company and only sell that companies products, the other category of agents called independent or free lance Agents, are those who work for various insurance companies and sell insurance products of many insurance companies. The independent or free lance Agents are usually registered and licensed companies popularly referred to as brokers. 2.2.4 Qualification for becoming an Insurance agent Frankas (2010) says that, for Insurance sales agents job, most companies and independent agencies prefer to hire college graduates-especially those who have majored in business or economics, high school graduates are occasionally hired if they have proven sales ability or have been successful in other type of work. In fact, many entrants to insurance sales agent jobs transfer from other occupations. According to LIMRA (2007), College training may help agents grasp the technical aspects of insurance policies and fundamentals and procedures of selling insurance. As per the recommendation of AKI (Association of Kenya Insurers) regulations, every insurance agent must have done C.O.P (Certificate of proficiency in insurance) which is a proficiency certificate to transact insurance business in Kenya. Various employers are also placing greater emphasis on continuing professional education as the diversity of financial products sold by insurance agents increases. (Holt, 2010). An Insurance sales agent who shows ability and leadership may become a sales manager in a local office. As noted by U.S Bureau of Labor statistics (2010) a few advance to agency manager. However, many agents who have built up good clientele prefer to remain a sales agent. Some particularly in the property and casually field-establish their own independent agencies or brokerage firms. 2.2.5 Resourcing strategies George (1990) has pointed out that before selecting an agent there has to be a great process than just interview. He asserts that pre-hire assessment like testing and call center simulations have become essential tool in the industry. Tett (2000) of employment Technologies Corporation says that, for the insurance industry to succeed in improving agents retention there has to be simulation centers where the applicants would be given the opportunity to experience what they expect to find in the field and how sales are like. According to Ashly (2000) it is good to control; the flow of less-interested candidates before they reach the interview stage. Sometimes the applicant knows better than the hiring specialist that he or she is not the right sampling the job. Tom (2009), and Peter (1999) agree that accepting agents without checking their interests in the initial selection stage leads to poor retention of the agents. Nevertheless Srivivas (2003) warns against relying too heavily on the simulation. He says that simulation can be very effective for providing people with some exposure to what the job is likely to be. On the same note Banks (2010) disputes the other authors by pointing out that simulation are too artificial such that good candidates get left behind because they do poor simulations Wright (1992) asserts that simulation is only good to give a job presentation. 2.2.6 Agents Remuneration According Armstrong, (2006) Remuneration is the compensation an employee receives in return for his or her contribution to the organization. Luthans (1992) asserts that Remuneration occupies an important place in the life of an employee, his or her standard of living and status in society. Groholdt (2001) points out that, Motivation, loyalty, and productivity depend upon the remuneration he or she receives. For the employer too, employee remuneration is significant because of its contribution to the cost of production, besides, many battles (in the form of strikes and lock outs) are fought between the employer and the employees on issues relating to wages or bonus. Life insurance sales professionals typically earn all or most of their income through commission, which means that they get a certain percentage of every sale they make as well as residual income when clients continue to make payments. For this reason, an agent has the potential to earn much more than he would at an average hourly job. As with any other commission-based job, if an agent fails to perform, he will not be able to earn anything. Even if he does sell a substantial amount of insurance one month, he may not be able to sustain these sales numbers from month to month, and this may result in an unstable level of income. Cravens, Ingram, Loforge and Youngs, (1993), explored the relationships between compensation/control systems and performance and retention. Their results indicate that the type of control system, that is management control versus commission control, is correlated to several measures of success and agents retentions. They found out that sales performed and agents retention was more affected by commission control than by management control. 2.2.7 Agent Training Employee development is something that most people imagine as intrusive all-day group training sessions. Unfortunately, this dreaded approach to employee development is just the opposite of how employee development should occur and feel to employees. Employee development can manifest itself in many forms of training, evaluations, educational programs, and even feedback. If executed correctly, the effects of training on agent performance can often encourage growth within the worker and the organization itself. One of the larger aspects of developing Agents skills and abilities is the actual organizational focus on the Agent to become better, either as a person or as a contributor to the organization. According to Organizational Behavior by Robert Kreitner and Angelo Kiniki, (2009) its been shown that employees that receive regular, scheduled feedback, including training, along with an increase in expectations, actually have a higher level of worker output. Kreitner and Kiniki refer to this as the Pygmalion Effect. The hope is that agents who receive training in line with their individual or organizational goals will become more efficient in what they do. Organizations should look at the positive effects of training on agent performance, and consider agent development as a targeted investment into making the front line worker stronger. More importantly, development plans that include train-the-trainer (training that trains agents to become trainers of a skill) can provide exponential benefits to the organization. This training can be anything from how agents can do their own jobs better to these agents being groomed to replace their supervisor. In addition, agents who are invested as a trainer might be further inclined to stay with the organization, and possibly reduce agent turnover. Along with supporting the organization, agents might recognize that most types of agent development provide them benefits. Agent development programs that range from certifications to education reimbursement, to even basic sales skills training, have a certain cost to the organization that can easily be considered a benefit to the agent. Such awareness on the part of the agent can also lead to greater loyalty to the organization as well as enhanced job satisfaction. Training and education that can be added to the agents resume are big ticket items in terms of compensation plans, and should be treated as such. Beyond agent training and certification courses, evaluations and counseling sessions are another form of agent development. They provide performance feedback and allow agents to be aware of changes to both their work goals and the overall objectives of the organization. Agents who do not receive feedback on a regular basis usually end up feeling as though they might be forgotten by their supervisor, and this pattern may even lead to feelings of dissent among the Agency force. Going back to the Pygmalion Effect, agents who have consistent knowledge of their levels of performance, and who feel that their supervisors are placing expectations on them, generally perform better on an individual basis. Agents are required to attend meetings, seminars and programs to learn about new products and services, learn new selling skills and receive technical assistance in developing new accounts. Churchill, Ford, Hartley, and Walker, (1998) explored role variable, skill, motivation, personal factors, aptitude, and organizational/environmental factors in the retention of agents. The study found that, on average, single predictors or sales performance accounted for less than 4% of the variation in salesperson performance. Aptitude accounted for less than 2% skill levels slightly more than 7%, motivation accounted for 6.6% role perceptions was by far the best predictor, accounting for as much as 14% of the variation in performance. Personal variables (age, height, and sex, completion, and dressing) accounted for 2.6% while organization and environmental factors accounted for about 1%. They concluded that personal characteristics, while important, are not as important as the influencing factor s such as, training, company policies, skill levels, and motivation. 2.2.8 Physical Work Environment The physical work environment can be identified as a place or location where somebody works. Performance experts agree that the physical work environment has a significant impact upon employee performance and productivity. By physical work environment we mean the building structures, office layout, tools, furniture, space, noise level and surrounding of

Effectiveness of E-Marketing

Effectiveness of E-Marketing Virtual Era- New Features In Marketing Cap Synopsis Aim: The purpose of this study is to analyze the current practices going on in the Indian market in terms of using the virtual market and virtual marketing as tool to enhance bottom top line and for a better penetration. It would also throw light on various marketing strategies can be synchronized with web marketing for better and optimum results. Objective: The study would predominantly give an idea about the effectiveness of E-Marketing in contemporary scenario wherein most of the companies are using it as the most effective tool to ensure that their product or services are being reached to masses, because of the pervasive nature of web market its another feather in the cap of market. This thesis depicts how a small sized Business-To-Business company can create an e-marketing plan. For this purpose, this thesis would incorporate most of the industries that are into the business of serving customers with their product services. The thesis first carries out a literature study to explain the concepts and methods related with the e-marketing activities. Furthermore, the case company is introduced. Since an e-marketing plan is similar to a marketing plan, the products, target markets and competitors are also introduced among others. During the case study, the advices and the strategies are proposed. Since the thesis has a â€Å"hands-on implementation† feature, some of the strategies are implemented by sticking to the â€Å"action plans† in an iterative way. Doing so, thesis depicts evaluation for the recommended strategies. Finally, conclusions and areas for future work are presented along with the â€Å"Lessons Learned† during the project. Methodology: The method used for finding the relevant information for the research is mentioned below: 1) Secondary Research a. Internet Assistance b. Books, Articles working papers c. Magazines Journals 2) Primary research Primary research would predominantly look on analysis part of consumer behavior to track their behavior of web marketing. a. General Observation on site I. Closer observation on shoppers Behavior II. Functionality of Industry III. Impact of E-Marketing b. Questionnaire I. Sample size would be 100 II. Multi-dimensional Sampling III. Factor Analysis c. Focus Group Interview I. General Discussion with customers d. Interview I. Extensive Meetings with Industry people.Based on this I will conclude that whether consumers are being affected by the ways of web marketing of industries or not or what should be the modus operandi of companies to allure their target audience. Virtual market Forty nine of the Worlds leading food, beverages, and consumer products companies have joined hands to form the largest business to business e-Market place Transora.com. The new company is the first of its kind owned by the consumer products industry. Transora will help consumer products companies across the world to streamline business transactions with their buyers, suppliers and distributors through the internet. Transoras services will span the entire supply chain-from suppliers to manufactures to retailers-and provide procurement, vendor, and product catalogues, online order management, supply chain collaboration, and financial services. The companies have committed nearly us $ 250 million for funding Transora (CBI News Bulletin, July/august 2000) The buzz word viral marketing and coral advertising and virtual marketing refers to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks produce increase in brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives (such as product sales) through self replicating viral processes, analogues to the spread of pathological and computer viruses. It can be word of mouth delivered or enhanced by the network effects of the internet. Viral promotions may take the form of video clips, interactive flash games, Adver games, EBooks, brand able software, images, or even text messages. The goal of marketers interested in creating successful viral marketing programs is to identify individuals with high social networking potential and create viral messages that appeal to this segment of the population and have a high probability of being taken by another competitor. The term viral marketing or virtual marketing has been also used pejoratively to refer to stealth marketing campaigns- the unscrupulous use of astroturfing on line combined with under market advertising in shopping centers to create the impression of spontaneous word of mouth enthusiasm. Internet marketing Internet marketing also referred to as marketing, web marketing, online marketing or eMarketing is the marketing of products or services over the internet. The internet has brought media to a global audience. The interactive nature of internet marketing in terms of providing instant response and eliciting responses is a unique quality of the medium. Internet marketing is sometimes considered to have a broader scope because it only refers to the internet, email, and wireless media, but it includes management of digital customer data and electronic Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. Internet marketing ties together creative and technical aspects of the internet, including design, development, advertising, and sales. Internet marketing also refers to the placement of media along with different stages of the Customer Engagement Cycle through search engine Marketing(SEM), Search Engine Optimization(SEO), banner ads on specific websites, email marketing, and web 2.0 strategies. In 2008 the New York Times, working with co score, published an initial estimate to quantify the user data collected by large internet based companies. Counting four types of interactions with company websites in addition to the hits from advertisements served from advertising networks, the authors found the potential for collecting data upward of 2500 times on average per user per month. eMarketing EMarketing is a subset of e business that utilize electronic medium to perform marketing activities and achieve desired marketing objectives for an organization. Internet marketing, interactive marketing, and mobile marketing for example, are all the form of e marketing. eBusiness EBusiness means utilizing electronic medium in everyday business activities. There are several levels of involvement in when it comes to EBusiness. For example where one organization relies completely on e business the second one way chooses a mixed presence and means of doing business. Difference Difference between eBusiness, eCommerce, and eMarketing †¢ eBusiness is a very broad entity dealing with the entire complex system that comprises a business that uses electronic medium to perform or assist its overall or specialized business activities. †¢ eCommerce is best described in a transactional context. So for example an electronic transition of funds, information, or entertainment falls under the category handled by principles of eCommerce. Technically e commerce is a part of e business †¢ eMarketing is also a part of e business that involves electronic medium to achieve marketing objectives. E marketing is set on a strategic level in addition to traditional marketing and business strategy. Difference between e marketing and interactive marketing eMarketing is a broader term that describes any marketing activity performed via electronic medium. Interactive marketing is generally a sub of eMarketing that involves a certain level of interaction. Difference between eMarkeitng and internet or web Marketing: There is no real difference between eMarketing and internet or web marketing. However, with the arrival of mobile technologies such as PDAs and 3G mobile phones, as well as interactive television, both terms would see eMarketing and internet or web marketing as subtly different, for example chaffy; Internet {or web} marketing is achieving marketing objectives through applying digital technologies. eMarketing is achieving marketing objectives through use of electronic communications technology. Whilst this distinction is wholly acceptable, it is difficult to see where the distinction lies between digital technologies and electronic communications technologies, especially with the convergence of technologies such as mobile devices. Advantages of eMarketing Following are some of the advantages of e marketing: à ¼ Reduction in costs through automation and use of electronic media. à ¼ Faster response to both marketers and the end user. à ¼ Increased ability to measure and collect data. à ¼ Opens the possibility to a market of one through personalization. à ¼ Increased interactivity. Disadvantages of eMarketing Following are some disadvantages of eMarketing: à ¼ lack of personal approach , à ¼ Defensibility on technology, à ¼ Security, privacy issues, à ¼ Maintenance costs due to a constantly evolving environment, à ¼ Higher transparency of pricing and increased price promotion, à ¼ Worldwide competition through globalization. eMarketing Plan eMarketing plan is a strategic document developed through analysis and research and is aimed at achieving marketing objectives via electronic media. eMarketing plan represents a sub set of organizations overall marketing plans supports the general business strategy. Every good eMarketing plan must be developed in line with the organizations overall marketing plan. In a broad sense e marketers generally start by analyzing the current micro- and macro economic situation of the organization. eMarketers must observe both internal and external factors when developing an e marketing plan as trends in both micro environment elements are: pricing, suppliers, customers. Examples or macro environment are: socio economic, political, demographics and legal factors. In order to reduce a viable e marketing solution, e marketers must first understand the current situation of the company and its environment, profile, segment the target market and then strategically position the products as to achieve optimal response with the target market. This is generally achieved through SWOT analysis. By assessing organizations strengths and weaknesses and looking at current opportunities and threats one can devise an e marketing strategy that can improve the organizations bottom line. eMarketing(in brief) eMarketing is essentially a part of marketing. But à ¼ What is the difference between eMarketing and internet or web marketing? à ¼ What are the eMarketing tools? And how do marketers plan for eMarketing? The American marketing association definition 2004 is as follows: Marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders. Therefore e marketing by its very nature is one aspect of an organizational function and a set of process for creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders. As such an aspect, eMarketing has its own approaches and tools that contribute to the achievement of marketing goals and objectives. This also helps us to differentiate between eMarkeitng and eCommerce, since eCommerce is simply buying and selling online: What are the eMarketing tools? The internet has a number of tools to offer to the marketer. à ¼ A company can distribute via the internet e.g. amazon.com, à ¼ A company can use the internet as a way of building and maintaining a customer relationship e.g. Dell.com, à ¼ The money collection part of a transaction could be done online e.g. electricity and telephone bills, à ¼ Leads can be generated by attracting potential customers to sign up for short periods of time, before signing up for the long-term e.g. which.co.uk, à ¼ The internet could be used for advertising e.g. Google Adwords, Finally, the web can be used as a way of collecting direct responses e.g. as part of a voting system for a game show. How do marketers plan for eMarketing? There are two ways to looking it; à ¼ An existing organization may embark upon some eMarkeitng as part of their marketing plan. à ¼ An organization trades solely on the internet and so their marketing plan focuses purely on eMarketing. The marketing plan in either case is the next step, whether focused upon eMarketing or all, marketing. The next lessons focus upon a tailor-made eMarketing plan which conforms to the Acronym AOSTC {from our generic marketing planning session} Situation analysis for VIRTUAL marketing The situation analysis for eMarketing bridges the internal audit and competitor research. It answers the question where are we now in terms of our marketing (internal v/s external perspective)? The analysis literally considers your eMarkeitng situation by considering the fit between internal and external factors. There are similarities with traditional concepts and techniques, but you need to focus upon digital commerce. Here we consider the 5ss of internet marketing, the customer life cycle, and the application of SWOT analysis. The Customer Life Cycle (CLC) The customer life cycle is a tool that creation and delivery of lifetime value to customers i.e. CLC looks at products and services that customers need throughout their lives. It is market oriented rather than product oriented. Key stages of the customer relationship are considered. SWOT analysis-ranked and weighted SWOT analysis is a tool for auditing an organization and its environment. It is the first stage of planning and helps marketers to focus on key issues. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Some of the problems that you may encounter with SWOT are as a result of one of its key benefits i.e. its flexibility. Since SWOT analysis can be used in a variety of scenarios, it has to be flexible. To overcome these issues, one should employ a power SWOT. SWOT analysis-Power SWOT SWOT analysis is a marketing audit that considers an organizations strengths, weaknesses opportunities and threats. Our introductory lesson gives you the basics of how to compete your SWOT as you begin to learn about marketing tools. As you learn more about SWOT analysis, you will become aware of a number of potential limitations with this popular tool. This lesson aims to help you overcome potential pitfalls. Some of the problems that you may encounter with SWOT are as a result of one of its key benefits i.e. flexibility since SWOT analysis can be used in a variety of scenarios, it has to be flexible. However this can lead to a number of anomalies. Problems with basis SWOT analysis can be addressed using a more critical power SWOT. Power is an acronym for personal experience, order, weighting, emphasizing detail, and rank priorities. This is how it works. How do you the marketing manager fit in relation with the SWOT analysis? You bring your experiences, skills, knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs to the audit. Your perception or simple gut feeling will impact the SWOT. Often marketing managers will in adversely reverse opportunities and strengths, and threats and weaknesses. This is because the line between internal strengths and weaknesses, and external opportunities and threats is sometimes difficult to spot. For example, in relation to global warming and climate change, one could mistake environmentalism as a threat rather than a potential opportunity. Too often elements of a SWOT analysis are not weighted. Naturally some points will be more controversial than others, so weight the factors. One way would be to use percentages e.g. threat a=10%, threat b=70%, and threat =20 %{ they total 100%} Detail, reasoning, and justification are often omitted from the SWOT analysis. Where one tends to find is that the analysis contains lists of single words. For example, under opportunities one might find the term technology. This stage word does not tell a reader very much. What is really meant is: Technology enables marketers to communicate via mobile devices close to the point of purchase. This provides the opportunity of a distinct competitive advantage for our company. This will greatly assist you when deciding upon best to score and weight each element. Once detail has been added, and factors have been revived for weighting, you can then progress to give the SWOT analysis some strategic meaning i.e. you can begin to select those factors that will most greatly influence your marketing strategy albeit a mix of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threatens. Essentially you rank them highest to lowest, and then prioritize those with the highest rank e.g. where opportunity c= 60% opportunity a= 25% and opportunity b = 10% you marketing plan would address opportunity c first, and opportunity b last. It is important to address opportunities primarily since your business should be market oriented. Then match strengths to opportunities and look for a fit. Address any gaps between current strengths and future opportunities. Finally attempt to rephrase threats as opportunities (as with global warming and climate change above), and address weaknesses so that they become strengths, Gap analysis would be bridge the gap between them. Competitor research for Virtual marketing (External perspective) As you plan for eMarketing and during the plans implementation, one needs to play careful attention to the activities of competitors, so competitors research for eMarketing is essential when attempting to answer the question where are we now (external perspective). There are a number of approaches that can be employed, with the emphasis on each approach shifting depending upon the nature of our e business and market. Here are some key tools of competitor research for eMarketing. à ¼ Use search engines. Ø General topics such as Google, yahoo And msn Ø Type names of competitors Ø Type industry, product or term Ø Search ‘down in to a directory structure e.g. yahoo Ø Search a competitors web site Ø Product information , press released, job opportunities Ø Pricing information Ø Distribution information such as where to buy. à ¼ Hunt for trade associations Ø Search for personal pages or blogs Ø Different perspective e.g. fans, ex-employees. Ø e.g. v www. blogger. com , v www. myspace. com, v www. youtube. Com. à ¼ Ask your target market. Ø Send question to named personnel, newsgroups, personal pages, mailing lists. Ø Conduct a survey using. Ø Buy secondary reports e.g. data monitors, mintel. à ¼ Newsgroups and post queries, Ø newsgroups on bulletin boards or forums Ø Deja. com(Google) Ø Read online financial information Ø research public companies Ø iii.co.uk ample up Ø ft.com up à ¼ Read online competitive information. Ø e.g. hoovers.com paid for, inus à ¼ Study demographic reports Ø statistics.gov.uk/ census in up Ø census.gov inus à ¼ Original source material Ø Business source elite, newspapers, Kellys compass. à ¼ Monitor special interest material Ø Business source elite, newspaper, Kellys, compass. à ¼ Monitor special interest material. Ø E.g. marketing week (BSE), campaign (BSE), marketing (BSE). à ¼ Use a professional researcher EMarketing Mix The eMarketing mix is essentially the same as the marketing mix. it is simply the adaption of price, place product, and promotion to the eMarketing context. Of course one could also include physical evidence, people, and process when marketing planning for an online service. Below are a series of lessons that consider how markets can apply the eMarketing mix to their organizations own product, service, brand, or solution. E marketing price The eMarketing mix is simply an adaptation of the traditional marketing mix and ‘P for price. However, the internet has influenced how online businesses price in a number of ways. E Marketing Place {Place tactics as part of the eMarketing mix.) The e marketing space consists of new internet companies that have emerged as the internet has developed, as well as those pre-existing companies that new employ eMarketing approaches as part of their overall marketing plan. For some companies the internet is an additional channel that enhances or replaces their traditional channel of place. Pre Existing companies that have adopted eMarketing These are traditional companies that trade on the internet, Banking and financial services e.g. HSBC bank. Banks and financial services have benefited tremendously from the popularity of internet usage. There is a mixture of new online banks and traditional banks, both offering online banking services. Essentially banks no longer need to invest in high cost, high street selling unit i.e. old fashioned town-based banks. Labor costs have also been reduced since much of the traditional banking bureaucracy is done using it and the use of overseas call centers has meant that salaries are much lower. Software also means that customers can be retained by using Customer Relationship Management (CRM) eMarketing approaches. E marketing product Considered product as part of the marketing mix. Two previous tools for product decision-making have been introduced- Product Life Cycle (PLC) and the three levels of a product. Both of these tools and equally applicable to the context of e marketing and can be easily applied to include e marketing and product. For example a product marketed solely online will go through a life cycle in the same unpredictable way as a product marketed through any traditional channel (PLC). Products marketed online will have a core benefit tot eh customer, be an actual tangible product, with augmentation that ads value such as insurance, warranties and so on three levels of a product). Although tools actually specify the term ‘product, they can be easily adapted to include brands. Services or solutions. E marketing product/business matrix (depicted below should be used in conjunction with Product Life Cycle (PLC) and the three levels of a product. It represents additional tools for audit that bridges existing businesses and new online start-us, and existing products and new products. It allows marketers to categories those marketing on the internet as an online extender, an online alternative, an online innovator (existing business), and Oran online innovator (online start-up). Let us look at it in more detail; A- Online extender An on line extender is an existing business that has a strategy whereby it extends its marketing activities to the internet. It could be any traditional, terrestrial organization that has historically grown through using traditional channels of distribution to get existing products, brands, services, or solutions to market. B- Online alternatives The online alternative is a new start-up that uses the internet as an original channel of distribution to get products, brands, services or solutions, currently available elsewhere, to, arekt. Some segments may be better targeted with this online alternative for example remote or fragmented markets. C and d- Online innovators Online innovators come in two forms; C- Online innovators are existing businesses that see a benefit to launching new and innovative products, brands, services or solutions online by leveraging new technology. Existing businesses have a wealth of knowledges and learning that underpin their moves onto the web. Remember, the internet is not a business paradigm shift (at last not yet) and so current business approaches are often adapted for the internet. Existing businesses have experience. D- Online innovators are start-ups that seize the opportunities to launch new and innovative products, brands, services, or solutions online. Deposit not having as much knowledge and learning as some of their competitors, they are flexible and can move much more quickly. Start-ups often experience. We have already considered product as part of the marketing mix. Two previous tools for product decision- making have been introduced product life cycle and the three level of a product. E marketing promotion Ø It looks at ways of increasing the popularity of your website by looking at the internal optimization of the website itself. It considers many important ways of building your traffic, including Search Engine Optimization (SEO) approaches. Ø It looks at ways of increasing the popularity of your website by looking at external sources of internet advertising. Ø Lesson internet marketing and promotion: internet advertising. Ø This lesson looks at ways of increasing the popularity of your website by looking at external sources of internet advertising. Ø Pay per click advertising Ø Google ad words. Google ad words are a Cost per Click (CPC) online advertising program. Identically that means that you decide upon key word that relates closely to your product or service. Using Googles tools, you price how much it would cost your per click for your chosen keyword- this could be lucent, $1.50 or more, depending on the popularity of the keyword. So the keyword marketing would be more expensive than the keyword marketing cheese china because of its level of popularity. You then allocate a budget, and pay Google by credit card. You can control the length of your campaign, or end it as soon as the money in PPC management (Pay per Click Management) or recruit a verified Google awards professional. Adverts appear alongside Google search results- so go to Google and search for marketing. The ads appearing alongside the main search results are cps. Ads also appear on selected content websites-such as www.chichesteuk.com-look at the adverts along the top, and down the right hand column- this is where ads based upon the keyword chic ester would appear. You only pay for adverts that get clicked- not for page views- so you pay nothing if your advert is simply viewed. There is also an opportunity for ‘Smart pricing whereby you pay more for the advert if a sale is guaranteed e.g. you have a website based upon fishing- you write a review of a new type of fishing rod, the visitor then sees an ad for the same rod in an ad words text ad running on the same page then clicks on it and buys from the advertiser. Adwords is a very targeted and controllable way of online advertising hence the huge rises in income and profit for Google over recent times. EMarketing Price (Pricing tactics as part of the eMarketing mix.) The eMarketing mix is simply an adaption of the traditional marketing mix and ‘P for price. However the internet has influenced how online businesses price in a number of ways. International pricing and competition give consumers access to the lowest price for any generic good. For example, British consumers benefit when buying products from the United States since there is almost two dollar to the pound. Conversely this makes British goods more expensive to the American consumer. So it is cheap to buy spectacles from a us website and then to import them into the UK (even including transport costs and import taxes) Online auctions are a popular and innovative way of pricing, for example ebay. Here you register with the online auction company as a seller and/or a buyer. You can place an item into auction where buyers bid against each other. The highest bidder wins. The auction websites takes a commission. The commission is factored into the price you pay. Greater access to pricing information, more quickly and in a format that makes pricing comparable and transparent. There are a number of sites that will compare and contrast prices for the same or similar goods and services e.g. prices on car insurance. Pricing could also include the cost of an online advertising medium such as Google ad words. Here an online supplier would buy a keyword located in a text or image based advert onto Googles own search engine or onto a website belonging to a Google publisher. For example you search term hair straightness on Google and you are directed to a site about hair dressing. On this site is plenty of information about hair straightening, placed next to some contextual adverts. You click on the advert and you are taken to a site selling hair dressing supplies. You buy the hair straightness and your supplier pay a small ‘Pay-Per-Click fee which is split between Google and their publisher. This is factored into the price you pay. Traditional pricing tactics used in eMarketing Of course the internet marketers still has a whole selection of the more traditional pricing approaches to choose from that can be adapted to eMarketing scenarios: Premium pricing e.g. selling music via iTunes. à ¼ Penetration pricing e.g. giving away free subscription to land grab market share for new start ups such as youtube.com and myspace.com. à ¼ Economy pricing e.g. selling basic products and services online likes basic design or paperclips. à ¼ Price skimming e.g. new product launches online such as albums or games. à ¼ Psychological pricing e.g. products and services sold at 99p or $99.99 (price point perspective). à ¼ Product line pricing e.g. subscription 1 @ free, subscription 2 @ $10.00(with added value) and subscription 3 @ $49.99 for 10 year. à ¼ Pricing variations e.g. budget airlines selling tickets online where the first tickets bought are the cheapest, and the last ones bought tend to be more expensive. à ¼ Optional product pricing e.g. selling a holiday online with travel insurance. à ¼ Captive product pricing e.g. once you buy virus software from one brand, your updates must also come from them. à ¼ Product bundle pricing e.g. buying internet access which comes with free online phone calls. à ¼ Promotional pricing e.g. betting incentives, such as free dollars to gambles online for current customers that gamble on football games to tempt them to play online pocker, or vouchers with codes sent by email as rewards e.g. Amazon.com. à ¼ Geographical Pricing e.g. Microsoft pricing in different currencies in different international markets. Search marketing {Overture and yahoo} Overture is the yahoo equivalent of Googles ad words. Now known as yahoo Search marketing, overture has a series of sub-products that make up its internet marketing program. Here some examples: 1) Sponsored search: Displays your advert at the top of the search engine results. So your potential customers search for a ‘keyword and your advert appears at the top of the results page. Again, as this ad words, the advertisers bid against each other to obtain the position that will generate the most convertible traffic to their site. Popular keywords will cost more-obviously. 2) Local advertising: Gets your business listed in yahoos business directory. So if you wish to promote products in specific regions next to specific search keywords, this is a much targeted geographical services. Overture h Effectiveness of E-Marketing Effectiveness of E-Marketing Virtual Era- New Features In Marketing Cap Synopsis Aim: The purpose of this study is to analyze the current practices going on in the Indian market in terms of using the virtual market and virtual marketing as tool to enhance bottom top line and for a better penetration. It would also throw light on various marketing strategies can be synchronized with web marketing for better and optimum results. Objective: The study would predominantly give an idea about the effectiveness of E-Marketing in contemporary scenario wherein most of the companies are using it as the most effective tool to ensure that their product or services are being reached to masses, because of the pervasive nature of web market its another feather in the cap of market. This thesis depicts how a small sized Business-To-Business company can create an e-marketing plan. For this purpose, this thesis would incorporate most of the industries that are into the business of serving customers with their product services. The thesis first carries out a literature study to explain the concepts and methods related with the e-marketing activities. Furthermore, the case company is introduced. Since an e-marketing plan is similar to a marketing plan, the products, target markets and competitors are also introduced among others. During the case study, the advices and the strategies are proposed. Since the thesis has a â€Å"hands-on implementation† feature, some of the strategies are implemented by sticking to the â€Å"action plans† in an iterative way. Doing so, thesis depicts evaluation for the recommended strategies. Finally, conclusions and areas for future work are presented along with the â€Å"Lessons Learned† during the project. Methodology: The method used for finding the relevant information for the research is mentioned below: 1) Secondary Research a. Internet Assistance b. Books, Articles working papers c. Magazines Journals 2) Primary research Primary research would predominantly look on analysis part of consumer behavior to track their behavior of web marketing. a. General Observation on site I. Closer observation on shoppers Behavior II. Functionality of Industry III. Impact of E-Marketing b. Questionnaire I. Sample size would be 100 II. Multi-dimensional Sampling III. Factor Analysis c. Focus Group Interview I. General Discussion with customers d. Interview I. Extensive Meetings with Industry people.Based on this I will conclude that whether consumers are being affected by the ways of web marketing of industries or not or what should be the modus operandi of companies to allure their target audience. Virtual market Forty nine of the Worlds leading food, beverages, and consumer products companies have joined hands to form the largest business to business e-Market place Transora.com. The new company is the first of its kind owned by the consumer products industry. Transora will help consumer products companies across the world to streamline business transactions with their buyers, suppliers and distributors through the internet. Transoras services will span the entire supply chain-from suppliers to manufactures to retailers-and provide procurement, vendor, and product catalogues, online order management, supply chain collaboration, and financial services. The companies have committed nearly us $ 250 million for funding Transora (CBI News Bulletin, July/august 2000) The buzz word viral marketing and coral advertising and virtual marketing refers to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks produce increase in brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives (such as product sales) through self replicating viral processes, analogues to the spread of pathological and computer viruses. It can be word of mouth delivered or enhanced by the network effects of the internet. Viral promotions may take the form of video clips, interactive flash games, Adver games, EBooks, brand able software, images, or even text messages. The goal of marketers interested in creating successful viral marketing programs is to identify individuals with high social networking potential and create viral messages that appeal to this segment of the population and have a high probability of being taken by another competitor. The term viral marketing or virtual marketing has been also used pejoratively to refer to stealth marketing campaigns- the unscrupulous use of astroturfing on line combined with under market advertising in shopping centers to create the impression of spontaneous word of mouth enthusiasm. Internet marketing Internet marketing also referred to as marketing, web marketing, online marketing or eMarketing is the marketing of products or services over the internet. The internet has brought media to a global audience. The interactive nature of internet marketing in terms of providing instant response and eliciting responses is a unique quality of the medium. Internet marketing is sometimes considered to have a broader scope because it only refers to the internet, email, and wireless media, but it includes management of digital customer data and electronic Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. Internet marketing ties together creative and technical aspects of the internet, including design, development, advertising, and sales. Internet marketing also refers to the placement of media along with different stages of the Customer Engagement Cycle through search engine Marketing(SEM), Search Engine Optimization(SEO), banner ads on specific websites, email marketing, and web 2.0 strategies. In 2008 the New York Times, working with co score, published an initial estimate to quantify the user data collected by large internet based companies. Counting four types of interactions with company websites in addition to the hits from advertisements served from advertising networks, the authors found the potential for collecting data upward of 2500 times on average per user per month. eMarketing EMarketing is a subset of e business that utilize electronic medium to perform marketing activities and achieve desired marketing objectives for an organization. Internet marketing, interactive marketing, and mobile marketing for example, are all the form of e marketing. eBusiness EBusiness means utilizing electronic medium in everyday business activities. There are several levels of involvement in when it comes to EBusiness. For example where one organization relies completely on e business the second one way chooses a mixed presence and means of doing business. Difference Difference between eBusiness, eCommerce, and eMarketing †¢ eBusiness is a very broad entity dealing with the entire complex system that comprises a business that uses electronic medium to perform or assist its overall or specialized business activities. †¢ eCommerce is best described in a transactional context. So for example an electronic transition of funds, information, or entertainment falls under the category handled by principles of eCommerce. Technically e commerce is a part of e business †¢ eMarketing is also a part of e business that involves electronic medium to achieve marketing objectives. E marketing is set on a strategic level in addition to traditional marketing and business strategy. Difference between e marketing and interactive marketing eMarketing is a broader term that describes any marketing activity performed via electronic medium. Interactive marketing is generally a sub of eMarketing that involves a certain level of interaction. Difference between eMarkeitng and internet or web Marketing: There is no real difference between eMarketing and internet or web marketing. However, with the arrival of mobile technologies such as PDAs and 3G mobile phones, as well as interactive television, both terms would see eMarketing and internet or web marketing as subtly different, for example chaffy; Internet {or web} marketing is achieving marketing objectives through applying digital technologies. eMarketing is achieving marketing objectives through use of electronic communications technology. Whilst this distinction is wholly acceptable, it is difficult to see where the distinction lies between digital technologies and electronic communications technologies, especially with the convergence of technologies such as mobile devices. Advantages of eMarketing Following are some of the advantages of e marketing: à ¼ Reduction in costs through automation and use of electronic media. à ¼ Faster response to both marketers and the end user. à ¼ Increased ability to measure and collect data. à ¼ Opens the possibility to a market of one through personalization. à ¼ Increased interactivity. Disadvantages of eMarketing Following are some disadvantages of eMarketing: à ¼ lack of personal approach , à ¼ Defensibility on technology, à ¼ Security, privacy issues, à ¼ Maintenance costs due to a constantly evolving environment, à ¼ Higher transparency of pricing and increased price promotion, à ¼ Worldwide competition through globalization. eMarketing Plan eMarketing plan is a strategic document developed through analysis and research and is aimed at achieving marketing objectives via electronic media. eMarketing plan represents a sub set of organizations overall marketing plans supports the general business strategy. Every good eMarketing plan must be developed in line with the organizations overall marketing plan. In a broad sense e marketers generally start by analyzing the current micro- and macro economic situation of the organization. eMarketers must observe both internal and external factors when developing an e marketing plan as trends in both micro environment elements are: pricing, suppliers, customers. Examples or macro environment are: socio economic, political, demographics and legal factors. In order to reduce a viable e marketing solution, e marketers must first understand the current situation of the company and its environment, profile, segment the target market and then strategically position the products as to achieve optimal response with the target market. This is generally achieved through SWOT analysis. By assessing organizations strengths and weaknesses and looking at current opportunities and threats one can devise an e marketing strategy that can improve the organizations bottom line. eMarketing(in brief) eMarketing is essentially a part of marketing. But à ¼ What is the difference between eMarketing and internet or web marketing? à ¼ What are the eMarketing tools? And how do marketers plan for eMarketing? The American marketing association definition 2004 is as follows: Marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders. Therefore e marketing by its very nature is one aspect of an organizational function and a set of process for creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders. As such an aspect, eMarketing has its own approaches and tools that contribute to the achievement of marketing goals and objectives. This also helps us to differentiate between eMarkeitng and eCommerce, since eCommerce is simply buying and selling online: What are the eMarketing tools? The internet has a number of tools to offer to the marketer. à ¼ A company can distribute via the internet e.g. amazon.com, à ¼ A company can use the internet as a way of building and maintaining a customer relationship e.g. Dell.com, à ¼ The money collection part of a transaction could be done online e.g. electricity and telephone bills, à ¼ Leads can be generated by attracting potential customers to sign up for short periods of time, before signing up for the long-term e.g. which.co.uk, à ¼ The internet could be used for advertising e.g. Google Adwords, Finally, the web can be used as a way of collecting direct responses e.g. as part of a voting system for a game show. How do marketers plan for eMarketing? There are two ways to looking it; à ¼ An existing organization may embark upon some eMarkeitng as part of their marketing plan. à ¼ An organization trades solely on the internet and so their marketing plan focuses purely on eMarketing. The marketing plan in either case is the next step, whether focused upon eMarketing or all, marketing. The next lessons focus upon a tailor-made eMarketing plan which conforms to the Acronym AOSTC {from our generic marketing planning session} Situation analysis for VIRTUAL marketing The situation analysis for eMarketing bridges the internal audit and competitor research. It answers the question where are we now in terms of our marketing (internal v/s external perspective)? The analysis literally considers your eMarkeitng situation by considering the fit between internal and external factors. There are similarities with traditional concepts and techniques, but you need to focus upon digital commerce. Here we consider the 5ss of internet marketing, the customer life cycle, and the application of SWOT analysis. The Customer Life Cycle (CLC) The customer life cycle is a tool that creation and delivery of lifetime value to customers i.e. CLC looks at products and services that customers need throughout their lives. It is market oriented rather than product oriented. Key stages of the customer relationship are considered. SWOT analysis-ranked and weighted SWOT analysis is a tool for auditing an organization and its environment. It is the first stage of planning and helps marketers to focus on key issues. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Some of the problems that you may encounter with SWOT are as a result of one of its key benefits i.e. its flexibility. Since SWOT analysis can be used in a variety of scenarios, it has to be flexible. To overcome these issues, one should employ a power SWOT. SWOT analysis-Power SWOT SWOT analysis is a marketing audit that considers an organizations strengths, weaknesses opportunities and threats. Our introductory lesson gives you the basics of how to compete your SWOT as you begin to learn about marketing tools. As you learn more about SWOT analysis, you will become aware of a number of potential limitations with this popular tool. This lesson aims to help you overcome potential pitfalls. Some of the problems that you may encounter with SWOT are as a result of one of its key benefits i.e. flexibility since SWOT analysis can be used in a variety of scenarios, it has to be flexible. However this can lead to a number of anomalies. Problems with basis SWOT analysis can be addressed using a more critical power SWOT. Power is an acronym for personal experience, order, weighting, emphasizing detail, and rank priorities. This is how it works. How do you the marketing manager fit in relation with the SWOT analysis? You bring your experiences, skills, knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs to the audit. Your perception or simple gut feeling will impact the SWOT. Often marketing managers will in adversely reverse opportunities and strengths, and threats and weaknesses. This is because the line between internal strengths and weaknesses, and external opportunities and threats is sometimes difficult to spot. For example, in relation to global warming and climate change, one could mistake environmentalism as a threat rather than a potential opportunity. Too often elements of a SWOT analysis are not weighted. Naturally some points will be more controversial than others, so weight the factors. One way would be to use percentages e.g. threat a=10%, threat b=70%, and threat =20 %{ they total 100%} Detail, reasoning, and justification are often omitted from the SWOT analysis. Where one tends to find is that the analysis contains lists of single words. For example, under opportunities one might find the term technology. This stage word does not tell a reader very much. What is really meant is: Technology enables marketers to communicate via mobile devices close to the point of purchase. This provides the opportunity of a distinct competitive advantage for our company. This will greatly assist you when deciding upon best to score and weight each element. Once detail has been added, and factors have been revived for weighting, you can then progress to give the SWOT analysis some strategic meaning i.e. you can begin to select those factors that will most greatly influence your marketing strategy albeit a mix of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threatens. Essentially you rank them highest to lowest, and then prioritize those with the highest rank e.g. where opportunity c= 60% opportunity a= 25% and opportunity b = 10% you marketing plan would address opportunity c first, and opportunity b last. It is important to address opportunities primarily since your business should be market oriented. Then match strengths to opportunities and look for a fit. Address any gaps between current strengths and future opportunities. Finally attempt to rephrase threats as opportunities (as with global warming and climate change above), and address weaknesses so that they become strengths, Gap analysis would be bridge the gap between them. Competitor research for Virtual marketing (External perspective) As you plan for eMarketing and during the plans implementation, one needs to play careful attention to the activities of competitors, so competitors research for eMarketing is essential when attempting to answer the question where are we now (external perspective). There are a number of approaches that can be employed, with the emphasis on each approach shifting depending upon the nature of our e business and market. Here are some key tools of competitor research for eMarketing. à ¼ Use search engines. Ø General topics such as Google, yahoo And msn Ø Type names of competitors Ø Type industry, product or term Ø Search ‘down in to a directory structure e.g. yahoo Ø Search a competitors web site Ø Product information , press released, job opportunities Ø Pricing information Ø Distribution information such as where to buy. à ¼ Hunt for trade associations Ø Search for personal pages or blogs Ø Different perspective e.g. fans, ex-employees. Ø e.g. v www. blogger. com , v www. myspace. com, v www. youtube. Com. à ¼ Ask your target market. Ø Send question to named personnel, newsgroups, personal pages, mailing lists. Ø Conduct a survey using. Ø Buy secondary reports e.g. data monitors, mintel. à ¼ Newsgroups and post queries, Ø newsgroups on bulletin boards or forums Ø Deja. com(Google) Ø Read online financial information Ø research public companies Ø iii.co.uk ample up Ø ft.com up à ¼ Read online competitive information. Ø e.g. hoovers.com paid for, inus à ¼ Study demographic reports Ø statistics.gov.uk/ census in up Ø census.gov inus à ¼ Original source material Ø Business source elite, newspapers, Kellys compass. à ¼ Monitor special interest material Ø Business source elite, newspaper, Kellys, compass. à ¼ Monitor special interest material. Ø E.g. marketing week (BSE), campaign (BSE), marketing (BSE). à ¼ Use a professional researcher EMarketing Mix The eMarketing mix is essentially the same as the marketing mix. it is simply the adaption of price, place product, and promotion to the eMarketing context. Of course one could also include physical evidence, people, and process when marketing planning for an online service. Below are a series of lessons that consider how markets can apply the eMarketing mix to their organizations own product, service, brand, or solution. E marketing price The eMarketing mix is simply an adaptation of the traditional marketing mix and ‘P for price. However, the internet has influenced how online businesses price in a number of ways. E Marketing Place {Place tactics as part of the eMarketing mix.) The e marketing space consists of new internet companies that have emerged as the internet has developed, as well as those pre-existing companies that new employ eMarketing approaches as part of their overall marketing plan. For some companies the internet is an additional channel that enhances or replaces their traditional channel of place. Pre Existing companies that have adopted eMarketing These are traditional companies that trade on the internet, Banking and financial services e.g. HSBC bank. Banks and financial services have benefited tremendously from the popularity of internet usage. There is a mixture of new online banks and traditional banks, both offering online banking services. Essentially banks no longer need to invest in high cost, high street selling unit i.e. old fashioned town-based banks. Labor costs have also been reduced since much of the traditional banking bureaucracy is done using it and the use of overseas call centers has meant that salaries are much lower. Software also means that customers can be retained by using Customer Relationship Management (CRM) eMarketing approaches. E marketing product Considered product as part of the marketing mix. Two previous tools for product decision-making have been introduced- Product Life Cycle (PLC) and the three levels of a product. Both of these tools and equally applicable to the context of e marketing and can be easily applied to include e marketing and product. For example a product marketed solely online will go through a life cycle in the same unpredictable way as a product marketed through any traditional channel (PLC). Products marketed online will have a core benefit tot eh customer, be an actual tangible product, with augmentation that ads value such as insurance, warranties and so on three levels of a product). Although tools actually specify the term ‘product, they can be easily adapted to include brands. Services or solutions. E marketing product/business matrix (depicted below should be used in conjunction with Product Life Cycle (PLC) and the three levels of a product. It represents additional tools for audit that bridges existing businesses and new online start-us, and existing products and new products. It allows marketers to categories those marketing on the internet as an online extender, an online alternative, an online innovator (existing business), and Oran online innovator (online start-up). Let us look at it in more detail; A- Online extender An on line extender is an existing business that has a strategy whereby it extends its marketing activities to the internet. It could be any traditional, terrestrial organization that has historically grown through using traditional channels of distribution to get existing products, brands, services, or solutions to market. B- Online alternatives The online alternative is a new start-up that uses the internet as an original channel of distribution to get products, brands, services or solutions, currently available elsewhere, to, arekt. Some segments may be better targeted with this online alternative for example remote or fragmented markets. C and d- Online innovators Online innovators come in two forms; C- Online innovators are existing businesses that see a benefit to launching new and innovative products, brands, services or solutions online by leveraging new technology. Existing businesses have a wealth of knowledges and learning that underpin their moves onto the web. Remember, the internet is not a business paradigm shift (at last not yet) and so current business approaches are often adapted for the internet. Existing businesses have experience. D- Online innovators are start-ups that seize the opportunities to launch new and innovative products, brands, services, or solutions online. Deposit not having as much knowledge and learning as some of their competitors, they are flexible and can move much more quickly. Start-ups often experience. We have already considered product as part of the marketing mix. Two previous tools for product decision- making have been introduced product life cycle and the three level of a product. E marketing promotion Ø It looks at ways of increasing the popularity of your website by looking at the internal optimization of the website itself. It considers many important ways of building your traffic, including Search Engine Optimization (SEO) approaches. Ø It looks at ways of increasing the popularity of your website by looking at external sources of internet advertising. Ø Lesson internet marketing and promotion: internet advertising. Ø This lesson looks at ways of increasing the popularity of your website by looking at external sources of internet advertising. Ø Pay per click advertising Ø Google ad words. Google ad words are a Cost per Click (CPC) online advertising program. Identically that means that you decide upon key word that relates closely to your product or service. Using Googles tools, you price how much it would cost your per click for your chosen keyword- this could be lucent, $1.50 or more, depending on the popularity of the keyword. So the keyword marketing would be more expensive than the keyword marketing cheese china because of its level of popularity. You then allocate a budget, and pay Google by credit card. You can control the length of your campaign, or end it as soon as the money in PPC management (Pay per Click Management) or recruit a verified Google awards professional. Adverts appear alongside Google search results- so go to Google and search for marketing. The ads appearing alongside the main search results are cps. Ads also appear on selected content websites-such as www.chichesteuk.com-look at the adverts along the top, and down the right hand column- this is where ads based upon the keyword chic ester would appear. You only pay for adverts that get clicked- not for page views- so you pay nothing if your advert is simply viewed. There is also an opportunity for ‘Smart pricing whereby you pay more for the advert if a sale is guaranteed e.g. you have a website based upon fishing- you write a review of a new type of fishing rod, the visitor then sees an ad for the same rod in an ad words text ad running on the same page then clicks on it and buys from the advertiser. Adwords is a very targeted and controllable way of online advertising hence the huge rises in income and profit for Google over recent times. EMarketing Price (Pricing tactics as part of the eMarketing mix.) The eMarketing mix is simply an adaption of the traditional marketing mix and ‘P for price. However the internet has influenced how online businesses price in a number of ways. International pricing and competition give consumers access to the lowest price for any generic good. For example, British consumers benefit when buying products from the United States since there is almost two dollar to the pound. Conversely this makes British goods more expensive to the American consumer. So it is cheap to buy spectacles from a us website and then to import them into the UK (even including transport costs and import taxes) Online auctions are a popular and innovative way of pricing, for example ebay. Here you register with the online auction company as a seller and/or a buyer. You can place an item into auction where buyers bid against each other. The highest bidder wins. The auction websites takes a commission. The commission is factored into the price you pay. Greater access to pricing information, more quickly and in a format that makes pricing comparable and transparent. There are a number of sites that will compare and contrast prices for the same or similar goods and services e.g. prices on car insurance. Pricing could also include the cost of an online advertising medium such as Google ad words. Here an online supplier would buy a keyword located in a text or image based advert onto Googles own search engine or onto a website belonging to a Google publisher. For example you search term hair straightness on Google and you are directed to a site about hair dressing. On this site is plenty of information about hair straightening, placed next to some contextual adverts. You click on the advert and you are taken to a site selling hair dressing supplies. You buy the hair straightness and your supplier pay a small ‘Pay-Per-Click fee which is split between Google and their publisher. This is factored into the price you pay. Traditional pricing tactics used in eMarketing Of course the internet marketers still has a whole selection of the more traditional pricing approaches to choose from that can be adapted to eMarketing scenarios: Premium pricing e.g. selling music via iTunes. à ¼ Penetration pricing e.g. giving away free subscription to land grab market share for new start ups such as youtube.com and myspace.com. à ¼ Economy pricing e.g. selling basic products and services online likes basic design or paperclips. à ¼ Price skimming e.g. new product launches online such as albums or games. à ¼ Psychological pricing e.g. products and services sold at 99p or $99.99 (price point perspective). à ¼ Product line pricing e.g. subscription 1 @ free, subscription 2 @ $10.00(with added value) and subscription 3 @ $49.99 for 10 year. à ¼ Pricing variations e.g. budget airlines selling tickets online where the first tickets bought are the cheapest, and the last ones bought tend to be more expensive. à ¼ Optional product pricing e.g. selling a holiday online with travel insurance. à ¼ Captive product pricing e.g. once you buy virus software from one brand, your updates must also come from them. à ¼ Product bundle pricing e.g. buying internet access which comes with free online phone calls. à ¼ Promotional pricing e.g. betting incentives, such as free dollars to gambles online for current customers that gamble on football games to tempt them to play online pocker, or vouchers with codes sent by email as rewards e.g. Amazon.com. à ¼ Geographical Pricing e.g. Microsoft pricing in different currencies in different international markets. Search marketing {Overture and yahoo} Overture is the yahoo equivalent of Googles ad words. Now known as yahoo Search marketing, overture has a series of sub-products that make up its internet marketing program. Here some examples: 1) Sponsored search: Displays your advert at the top of the search engine results. So your potential customers search for a ‘keyword and your advert appears at the top of the results page. Again, as this ad words, the advertisers bid against each other to obtain the position that will generate the most convertible traffic to their site. Popular keywords will cost more-obviously. 2) Local advertising: Gets your business listed in yahoos business directory. So if you wish to promote products in specific regions next to specific search keywords, this is a much targeted geographical services. Overture h