Consumer Behavioral Study On Buying Coffee Marketing Essay

Consumer Behavioral Study On Buying Coffee Marketing Essay Investigate and find out why do people willing to pay more for Coffee Bean coffee than a normal coffee shop. Discuss the importance of finding out of consumer behavior. One of international food company, Coffee Bean, offers more expensive coffee, if compared with other coffee shop, the price of Starbucks coffee is more than triple but there are many people who like to go and drink a cup of coffee at Coffee Bean. There are several factors found that why people keep going to Coffee Bean. Body Product, its Quality One of factors that people like to spend more for Coffee Bean is due to its qualified products. One of Coffee Bean products is as we know as coffee which is considered as the main product of Coffee Bean. Coffee Bean has put a lot of effort to search the finest coffee bean in the world. Even people are in sleep, there is someone from Coffee Bean who is trying a cup of coffee. Furthermore, Coffee Bean has a variety of coffee flavours. Coffee Bean tries to satisfy its customers with their different types of favourite coffee with its well-trained baristas. Usually, each coffee drinker has its own favourite which is the most tasteful and aroma to suit customers. Coffee Bean suits them with 22 varieties of coffee and 20 kinds of tea. Coffee and tea can be categorized mainly Bottled drinks, Brewed coffee, Chocolate and Espresso beverage, yogurt. Not only that, Coffee Bean serves like bakery, hot breakfast, salad and fruit snack plates etc. In the comparison between Coffee Bean and a normal coffee shop, at the normal coffee shop does not entertain customers with a variety of flavours even it is hard to find good roasted coffee. Coffee Bean is famous because of its products to increase satisfaction of each customers taste that makes people willing to pay more for the drinks or delicious food in Coffee Bean. Place Another factor of the popularity is the location which Coffee Bean chooses. Coffee Bean can be found internationally. It can increase a consumption and identity of Coffee Bean from customers. Coffee Bean has a very strong team to select the place in which there can be high demand for an area that people can drink coffee and make their discussion with friends, colleagues, workers and many more. Starbucks eases the access to people to find and walk into its stores worldwide. Figure .1.2.1 Coffee Bean in Kinta CityOn the other hand, Coffee Bean usually opens stores in busy town and tourist spots such as shopping malls and hotels which are luxury and ambiance places all over the world, and the taste of coffee in Coffee Bean is different from the coffee that are available in the normal shop. These factors increase effectiveness of distribution channel of Coffee Bean. Coffee Bean, its best chosen locations that comfort people to find finest coffee taste around the world. They can release their stress by drinking a cup of coffee in coffee bean because of the quiet condition. The place of coffee bean is relaxing and comfortable and this makes everyone to choose coffee bean when they want to discuss or have an informal meeting. When we are at a normal coffee shop, we cant concentrate on our job or for students; they cant even concentrate when they are doing their assignment because of the noisy environment. So this is why consumers prefer and are willing to pay for a higher price for Coffee Bean. Coffee_Bean.jpg 12coffeebean.jpgcoffee_bean_master_franchisee_city_food somke.jpg Figure 1.1.2.2 Smoking area and non smoking of coffee Bean In addition, in Coffee Bean, there are two areas which are non-smoking area and smoking area. So non- smokers can enjoy their time with their favourite coffee drink without any cigarette smell or smoke. Staff Staff in Coffee Bean is well train and they are polite. They are train manners by the supervisor of Coffee bean so they are very friendly, kind and always smile. Also they are required to know how to speak English because Coffee Bean has foreign customers so they need to know the international language. Figure 1.1.3.1 Staff in coffee Bean  [1]  Staff s is required to wear uniform and this will give consumer a very good impression. In normal coffee shop, the waiters or the staffs sometimes wear their own clothes during working times and that will look untidy and uncomfortable for consumers. Figure 1.1.3.1 show the staff wear black cap and brown or black uniform. For example in normal coffee shop, when consumers order drinks, they difficult to order because they do not know who waiters or waitresses are. uniform.jpg Brand Recognition Another factor is strong brand recognition of Coffee Bean. Coffee Bean is well known by its people and its market especially its competitors. Coffee Bean is very strongly recognized company in the world as a coffee retailer. In this generation, most of people may hear the name of Coffee Bean and half of people may taste its finest coffee too. Once people hear Coffee Bean they can think of its finest coffee, luxury designed environment and its staff attitude toward customers. Those facts can improve the recognition of the company and they will keep falling customers into deeply tasteful coffee of Coffee Bean. Lifestyle Consumers are willing pay more for Coffee Bean coffee than a normal coffee is the lifestyle. In the modernization, people are open-minded for everything. People like to enjoy their lives without limit. Especially, middle of 20 to 30 aged people like to go nicer and cooler place to enjoy their moment. They like to use and wear expensive things then why not they like to drink expensive drinks that they can get highest satisfaction. Promotion People like to spend for Coffee Bean coffee is the promotion. Coffee Bean has seasonal promotions to attract more customers to walk in. For example, Coffee Bean makes events for any special days which people celebrate internationally such as Christmas, valentine, calendar new year and Chinese new year etc. During these special days, Coffee Bean sells event products which reflect features of each day. 161977_189809951041140_2369883_n.jpgThe-Coffee-Bean-Tea-Leaf-Christmas-Cake-Promotion.jpg Figure 1.1.6.1 Promotion of Christmas and Valentines Day Psychology Coffee Bean is luxury and comfortable concept place. Inside Coffee Bean is quiet and comfortable and there is music playing. It encourages people to talk with their friends and family in quiet with nice melody that relax people from stress. Nowadays, it is a war outside without a gun and bullets. It means there is a lack of place that people can find comfort. Coffee Bean provides that place to people who really need the peace that influence people emotionally. It also can be happened that some people drink coffee at Coffee Bean because of it is not for everyone can effort. On the other hand, there are some people that want to drink expensive coffee because they want to be seen cool. Importance of Consumer behaviour Consumer behavior can be defined as the metal and emotional processes and the physical activities that people engage in when select, purchase, use, and dispose of products or services to satisfy particular needs and desires. As customers, they benefit from insights unto their own consumption-related decision such as what they buy, why they buy, how they buy and the promotional influences that persuade them to buy. The study of consumer behavior enables them to become better, that is, wiser, consumers. As marketers, it is important for them to recognize why and how individuals make customers consumption decisions, so that marketers can make better strategic marketing decisions. So marketers must understand consumer behavior to develop successful strategies and identify target market segments. Moreover, awareness of emerging trends in the consumer marketplace is essential for quick recognition of and response to problems and opportunities with sound marketing strategies. Conclusion In conclusion, Coffee Bean is very famous to people who like to drink a cup of coffee. Even though the price of Coffee Bean coffee is more expensive than a normal coffee shop people are willing to pay more for Coffee Bean coffee. There are several factors that may influence people purchasing decision for Coffee Bean. Firstly, one of factors is the product. Coffee Bean provides a variety of coffee and tea and snacks or food. There are more choices that allowed customers to choose highest satisfaction of the product. Secondly, the place of Starbucks is another factor that influences consumer decision. Coffee Bean has opened more than 16,000 stores in more than 50 countries that make people to experience much easier. The next is staff; staffs of Coffee Bean are very kind and friendly so customer can relax and feel comfortable. There are some more factors considered such as brand recognition, lifestyle, promotion, and psychology that can influence consumers purchasing decision. Consumer behavior is very important to any organization to be aware and keep focusing on. Once the organization become outdated about consumer patterns that means the organization is out of the market or will be sooner. The organization should carry studies about consumer behaviours and factors that influence consumers final decision. Question 4 Friends and society opinions on the products and services are always one of the factors influencing individual buying behavior, comment on how facebook enhance the impacts from friends and society towards buying behavior. 2.1 What is Facebook? Facebook is the largest social network in the world. Its first name is Facemash which was named to start the service when Mark Zuckerberg was Grade 2 Harvard University in on 28 October 2003. Then on 4 February 2004 under the name of The Facebook begin to services thefacebook.com. In June 2004 the company moved to California Palo Alto. After that PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel was the first investment and in 2005 purchased domain name facebook.com for $ 200,000 and then took off in the name The name of right now, facebook as continue to use. Initially, facebook is available only to Harvard University students. But In Stanford, Columbia, Yale has been expanded to the area, Ivy League Universities, New York University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA and Canada, most universities have been expanding into areas. In September 2005, high school student also has expanded and the end of 2005 more than 2,000 college and high school have a network of more than 25,000 was produced. Thereafter until the member area for some companies also can make and finally in September 2006 more than 13 years old, anyone with an e-mail address was able to join. In addition, in 2006, from Yahoo offer undertaking $ 1,000,000,000 but reject the offer received and it is received investment $ 250,000,000 from venture capital investment. 2.2 How Facebook enhance impact the Buying Behavior Buying behavior is the decision processes and acts of people involved in buying and using products so need to understand what factors influence when consumer purchase and analyze buying behavior. There are many factors which actually influence or affect consumer buying behavior, such as comments or ideas or even suggestions from friends, advertisements and etc. Nowadays, one of the biggest influence is by Facebook, one of the social network which came to be part of everyones routine since everyone logs into Facebook at least once a day. This is the main reason why Facebook influences a lot on someones buying behavior. Moreover, Facebook isnt just a social network, it has got advertisements with promotions or some companies create a page for themselves and promote their pages on Facebook. 2.2.1 Status Figure .2.1.1 Example of status and commentsIn Facebook, friends can give comments about the specific product that someone wants to buy. For example, if user wants to buy laptop so put update her status as Sony vs Toshiba which one is better? Friends will start putting comments to her status, probably their opinions and pros and cons of products of Sony and Toshiba or even suggesting another similar product such as Samsung or Fujitsu. In other words, user will get to share own ideas with friends on Facebook, which will actually make the user skim through on the advantage and disadvantages of the product user is willing or planning to buy. And also, some of users friends who might have used the product or have the product could upload the photos of it which means user can have an idea of its specifications and its closer view before purchasing. As mentioned earlier, there are advertisements shown in the page of Facebook which means, user might be aware of any promotions or discounts o f the specific product on Facebook which would be better for the user.untitled.bmp 2.2.2 Group Some people using Facebook, when people are interested in something for example K-POP fans, people will make a page for themselves and other people want to be one of the members in the group, all people need to do is to click on the like button. And group members will be updating each other on the specific coming event or post and even link videos about it. So, for example if a person wanted to buy a Samsung camera, and there is a group in Facebook under Samsung camera, so, that person can actually join the group and get to know more about it or even compare with other models or other products. Figure .2.2.1 group of Samsung Camera samsung.bmp This picture is one of group of Samsung Camera page. It shows that now what is new product and give some information. A group of Facebook will share the value system based on the experience from who already used product. This is a greater opinion to impact the buying behavior, as same group member, other membership will trusty to the member and stop or buying the product. Furthermore, almost every group or society also has a closer communication; the opinion of the society will direct enhance impact the buying behavior. EX1.bmp Figure 2.2.2.2 This Figure 2.2.2.2 shows that many group members comment their opinion about Samsung camera EX1 whether it is good or not 2.2.3 Video Figure 2.2.3.1 Another factor that Facebook nowadays influences a lot on consumer buying behavior is because of the videos shared in Facebook. For videos, people can actually link any types of video from YouTube or wherever to their Facebook profile, which means people can share the videos as people wish because people might feel the product of the video is interesting, so people hope can share out for other people in Facebook. Some of the companies make their companies account and add their advertising video. It will help to customer understand easily what they doing business and what product they selling. In addition, some customer also add the video when they use the products so it can know how to use the product and more consider whether it will be suitable for themselves. For example Figure 2.2.3.1 shows an advertisement of Ipad 2 on the Facebook. 2.2.4 Advertisement Figure .2.4.1 Advertisement in FacebookAdvertisement is known as a paid for communication. It is used to develop attitudes, create awareness, and transmit information in order to gain a response from the targeted market.ad.bmp Figure 2.2.4.1 is one of the advertisements advertised in Facebook and usually displays 4 or 5 advertisements. When log in the Facebook, users can see many companies or shops had set their advertisements on the right hand side of the page. This is because a lot of people use Facebook around the world, so, advertisements in Facebook are more trustworthy. Advertisements can attract users and able to attract users are interested in the advertisements, and users will eventually click and read it. After that if users feel that it is good or suitable and meet their needs or wants, they might decide to buy it. In addition, some advertisements can be seen many times when users are logged in Facebook. It is also able to attract users in a way that, if the users of Facebook see advertisement many times, they want to know what the advertisement is about. As a result, some of the users will be interested in it and subsequently, will be considering of purchase. Finally, Facebook is one of the largest social networks in the world which has enhanced impact to the users buying behavior such as status, group, video and advertisements. .Nowadays, Facebook is not only for making friends or communicating with friends. When users want to buy something, Facebook can help them to buy better product or service. If a user writes status what he or she wants to buy, his or her friends can comment about the product whether it is good or not. Also he or she can find the groups or videos and get more information about the product. Lastly, advertisements also help the process of purchasing in a sense that the users may be able to click on the advertisements on the right side of the page if they are interested.

Did The Cold Wars Ending Cause Globalisation Politics Essay

Did The Cold Wars Ending Cause Globalisation Politics Essay Was globalization a cause or consequence of the end of the cold war? Globalization is a concept that is difficult to define. Due to the ambiguity surrounding what globalization actually constitutes, different political theories can have different views on globalization. In reference to whether globalization was a cause or consequence of the end of the Cold War, it can be argued that globalization was both and cause and consequence, depending on what theoretical approach is taken by the individual, as this essay will demonstrate. Globalization is a recent term which essentially encompasses a number of different concepts to explain a worldwide sense of interconnectedness. To understand globalization one needs to think of it as an extensive series of relationships which connect the economic, social, technological and cultural aspects of our (and other peoples) lives. Essentially globalization refers to movement, specifically an awareness that these relationships are changing with increasing speed and volatility as a result of the increasing ability for people, information, goods and services and even ideas to transgress the globe with relative ease, resulting in the relative de-territorialisation of social, economic and cultural activity and ideas within states. However, we must keep in mind that globalization is not homogenous and means a number of different things to different people. The Cold War (1939 1991) was a period of assumed conflict between the Soviet Union (USSR) and the United States of America (USA). Competition between the USSR and the United States was assumed because neither state directly engaged each other in military conflict. However, each state was vying for the dominance of opposing social and value systems (Zimmermann 2003: 20) which resulted in large increases in military spending for both countries, military coalitions with other nations (often resulting in proxy wars) and most famously a nuclear arms race (Duffield 2007: 25-26). The result of this was uniquely bipolar world structured in terms of liberal democracy [versus] socialist communism (Zimmermann 2003: 11) The end of the Cold War (generally thought of as the period from 1985 1991) ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union, an event which can be contributed to a number of events (Spellman 2006: 60). By examining the underlying factors for these events, from both a realist and liberalist perspective, we can come to an understanding of how globalization can be argued to be both a cause for the end of the Cold War and a consequence of the end of the Cold War, depending on which viewpoint is taken by the individual. We are able to use the tenets of realism to argue that, essentially, the end of the Cold War also ended the bipolar structure of the world (which inhibits globalization) thereby allowing globalization to take place. Realism holds the belief that the international system exists in anarchy meaning that there is no higher power to enforce rules upon that state. The bipolar structure of the world can be considered to be an example of anarchy in the global system in light of the fact that during the Cold War, states aligned themselves with either the United States of America or the Soviet Union, according to whether they were more inclined towards socialism or democracy, (Zimmermann 2003: 37) resulting in two distinct global blocs (eventually symbolised by NATO and WARSAW). A realist argument for this bipolarity could be that, in the absence of any meaningful international institution which could guarantee the security of state members, the survival of the state is its primary interest and comes above anything else. Consequently individual states believed that supporting one of the two superpowers would guarantee them this security if their sovereignty was threatened by another state. It can therefor e be argued that due to such multi-national alliances the structure of the world became very bipolar, inhibiting any form of globalization, which relies on the de-territorialisation and interconnectedness of states. Realism also proposes that international institutions are meaningless. At this time the United Nations proved ineffective as it relied largely upon the continued goodwill and co-operation of the Soviet Union and the United States of America (Romero 2005: 127). The end of World War II saw deterioration in relations between the USSR and the USA resulting in the Cold War which lead to the United Nations body (the formerly meaningful overarching power) becoming insignificant. Since globalization, to an extent, relies on the co-operation of states with each other the inefficiency of the United Nations at this time symbolizes the lack of co-operation between states, preventing globalization from taking place. A realist could argue that the hegemony of the United States of America over the USSR lead to the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the period leading up to the end of the Cold War the United States was able to dominate the Soviet Union diplomatically, economically and in terms of military strength as illustrated by President Regans ability to unite the western world in a stance against the Soviet Union (Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation 2008), the thriving U.S economy (compared to the USSR which was stuck in an extended period of stagnation) and the largest peace time military build-up in U.S history which the Soviets were unable to equal. (Zimmermann 2003: 223) This domination had a number of consequences for the Soviet Union including public discontent, a call for change in the face of communism and a move towards the fundamental principles upheld by the west nationalism, individualism and free market capitalism (Spellman 2006) which resulted in the collapse of the Soviet Unio n in 1991. The end of the Soviet Union had the effect of breaking the bipolarity of the world structure by removing the barriers inhibiting globalization, thereby allowing globalization in the form of increased connectivity and concomitant dependency (Zimmermann 2003) to take place. In this realist context globalization is a consequence of the end of the Cold War. In contrast, the liberalist perspective is that globalization caused the end of the Cold War, predominantly through denationalisation of power, resulting in the collapse of the Soviet Union. The overall approach or aim of liberalist theories is to promote individual freedom, rational thinking and human progress by removing the barriers that obstruct equality. In 1985 the Politburo elected reform minded Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Unlike previous secretaries Gorbachevs view of the world included the desire to end the conflict between the United States and the USSR, however many consider his reforms to have been extemporaneous, providing fewer and fewer tools to deal with the crises of the Soviet Union. In fact [Gorbachevs] policies accelerated these crises, (Romero 2005: 86) and to have lead to the decline of the USSR. In an attempt to bolster the Soviet Union and lift it out of a extended period of economic stagnation Gorbachev implemented a number of liberal based policies such as glasnost (political policy of freedom) and perestroika (reconstruction) (Young 1999: 109) thereby effectively removing ba rriers to individual freedom, realistic thinking and human development posed by the formerly oppressive policies of the socialist state. Gorbachevs policy changes can be argued to be in part, contributed to the effects of globalization, in the sense that Gorbachev had been influenced by western (non-socialist) principles when making his reforms which supports the argument for globalization, that state interconnectedness de-nationalizes state power. Liberalist theory places emphasis on individual freedom and rights, it considers the existence of the state to solely promote and preserve the rights of its individual citizens; an inability to do this will result in the breakdown of the state. Mikhail Gorbachevs glasnost and perestroika reforms had unintended consequences for the authority of the communist state over its people. The reduction of communist control over the people under glasnost resulted in the Politburo losing control of the media. With new found freedom to speak out against the state, the media readily exposed the past and present inadequacies and failures of the USSR to the public and more importantly the rest of the world. For example: the countrys current economic difficulties, Chernobyl disaster and former endorsement of Adolf Hitler during World War II were all events which exposed the fault lines in [an] already weak state (Duffield 2007: 53). The public became dissatisfied with the so called positives of sovi et life as the negative aspects of the Soviet Union were brought into the spotlight, and readily expressed their dissatisfaction, threatening the existence of the USSR. Essentially the result of the glasnost and perestroika reforms made the Soviet Union more globalised in the sense that state power was de-nationalised and distributed among institutions (Zimmermann 2003: 59-60) such as the free media which had the ability to spread ideas about the state amongst the public and people outside the Soviet Union, ideas which contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union and therefore the end of the Cold War. The inability of the Soviet Union to represent the best interests of the public resulted in an uprising against the USSR which was catalysed through globalization. In a notable incident in Poland the oppressed people of the Solidarity movement were able to protest the ban on Solidarity. Gorbachev, through glasnost, had weakened the ability of the Soviet regime to impose its control over its republics, for Poland this meant no leaders to restore central authority (Spellman 2006: 192) which allowed the polish to protest without excessive oppression. To liberalists this can be considered to be an act of globalization in the sense that ideas of the Solidarity movement were able to transgress the territorial borders of the state enabling American president Ronald Reagan to seize upon the opportunity to extend a hand of support to the millions behind the iron curtain who looked to the west for help by placing economic sanctions of Poland to protest Solidarity resulting in Soviet non-interv ention in the affair (Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation 2008) which in part contributed to the collapse of the USSR for the reason that other constitute republics followed Polands lead in a move away from socialism (Spellman 2006: 87) mitigating the Soviet power base Liberalists would consider the rise of the people against the socialist state as inevitable due to the fact the only purpose of the state is to promote and preserve the rights of its individual citizens something which the predominately communist Soviet regime was not doing. Globalization as an ever increasing state actor acted upon the bipolar structure of the world, slowly breaking it down as co-operation between states and an emphasis on freedom, equality and free market capitalism increased in the eastern bloc (Romero 2005: 57-58) which resulted in domestic actors and structures within the USSR challenging the socialist regime of the country cumulating in a breakdown of the USSR and the end of the Cold War As demonstrated globalization can be considered both cause and a consequence for the end of the Cold War depending on the theoretical approach taken and which facets of that theoretical approach are applied to the situation. Considering this, the question of whether the globalization was a cause or consequence of the end of Cold War has no definitive answer when applied alongside political theoretical framework and merely constitutes an opportunity for the individual to appreciate the arguments of different theoretical approaches.

The New Deal Essay examples -- U.S. History

Do you know what it’s like to live in a cardboard home, starve, and raise a family in poverty? Unfortunately, most Americans in the 1930s went through this on a day-to-day basis. In 1929 the stock market crashed. Many people lost their life savings; they invested everything they owned in a failing stock market. The country was falling, everyone needed strong leadership and help from the government. Devastation and desperation started on Thursday, October 24, 1929. There was a strong sense of panic in the air at the Stock Exchange. The stocks were dropping, alarmingly fast; the worried American tried desperately to keep their savings. Markets began to steady again on Friday and Saturday only to sweep back down the following Monday. By Tuesday the twenty-ninth all doubt was erased, many Americans lost everything they had on Black Tuesday (Andrist and Stillman 190). President Herbert Hoover made a decision and refused to provide emergency relief. Hoover believed that it was â€Å"strictly a state and local responsibility.† Most local organizations were far too small to handle this big of a situation (Andrist and Stillman 193). America needed a change, a change that would come at the next election time. Immediately following Herbert Hoover in the presidency line, Mr. Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) became America’s 32nd president. This democrat, inaugurated on March 4, 1933, won the 1932 election against Hoover by a landslide. The new president made a promise to his citizens, â€Å"I pledge you, I pledge myself, a new deal for the American people.† He reassured Americans that he would change their lives. He promised to get people back to work and back in their homes (â€Å"New Deal Timeline 1). For the hundreds of thousands of unemployed work... ... still be living in a time very similar to the Great Depression. However, the New Deal did help to solve America’s problems, it did not end the depression, unemployment, or poverty; it did provide a sense of security to American citizens, and insure hope in their country (â€Å"New Deal† 3). Works Cited Andrist, Ralph K., and Edmund O. Stillman. The American Heritage History of the 1920s & 1930s. New York: American Heritage/Bonanza, 1987. Print. "Franklin D. Roosevelt - American Heritage Center, Inc." FDR Heritage. Web. McElvaine, Robert S. The Depression and New Deal: A History in Documents. New York: Oxford UP, 2000. Print. "New Deal." The Reader's Companion to U.S. Women's History. Ed. Wilma Mankiller, Gwendolyn Mink, Marysa Navarro, Barbara Smith, and Gloria Steinem. n.p. Web. 6 Mar. 2012. "New Deal Timeline." Xroads.virginia.edu. Web. 9 Mar. 2012.

The Impact of Gender on Family Life Essay -- The Social Construction o

Conceiving of gender as a social construction rather than a biologically assigned identity helps explain historical fluctuations in men’s and women’s practices and in culturally bound definitions of appropriate male and female behavior. Hansen argues that an individual’s gendered behavior is influenced by culturally constructed notions of what is appropriate for good mothers or good fathers or good people to do when caring for children (Hansen 7). The perception of American families as â€Å"small, self-reliant units headed by a breadwinning father and cared for by a stay-at-home mother† (1) has considerable influence over family life. This cultural construction affects everything from childrearing to networking to the workplace and individuals must consciously strive to break away from these roles. Both clinging too and attempting to break from these roles can have significant effects on one’s family experience. For the past two centuries at least, the tasks of child rearing and caregiving have been assigned primarily, though not exclusively to women (Hansen 6). Arlie Hochschild presents the idea of a gender strategy as â€Å"a plan of action through which a person tries to solve problems at hand, given the cultural notions of gender at play† (7). This is something that is necessary for â€Å"not-so-nuclear† families in order to function and get by. Women are â€Å"located at the structural nexus of domestic work, child rearing, and paid labor, they nonetheless exercise some discretion about how they act on and interpret their situations† (7). Many women take into consideration where it is appropriate to take a stand for a equality or when they should back down for the sake of a marriage or to prevent fighting within the family. Men and wome... ...ry have shaped the mindset of the people. The idea is so solidified in our minds that a complete change may never be able to occur. Either way, the most important factor for changing the family dynamic will be time. Works Cited Cherlin, Andrew J. Public and Private Families: An Introduction. 6th. New York: McGraw Hill, 2010. Print. Hansen, Karen V. Not-So-Nuclear Families: Class, Gender, And Networks of Care. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2005. Print. Johnson, Michael P. A Typology of Domestic Violence: Intimate Terrorism, Violent Resistance, and Situation Couple Violence. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 2008. Print. Tichenor, Veronica Jaris. â€Å"Gendered Bargain: Why Wives Cannot Trade Their Money For Housework† from Earning More and Getting Less: Why Successful Wives Can’t By Equality. 2005. Rutgers University Press. Print. The Impact of Gender on Family Life Essay -- The Social Construction o Conceiving of gender as a social construction rather than a biologically assigned identity helps explain historical fluctuations in men’s and women’s practices and in culturally bound definitions of appropriate male and female behavior. Hansen argues that an individual’s gendered behavior is influenced by culturally constructed notions of what is appropriate for good mothers or good fathers or good people to do when caring for children (Hansen 7). The perception of American families as â€Å"small, self-reliant units headed by a breadwinning father and cared for by a stay-at-home mother† (1) has considerable influence over family life. This cultural construction affects everything from childrearing to networking to the workplace and individuals must consciously strive to break away from these roles. Both clinging too and attempting to break from these roles can have significant effects on one’s family experience. For the past two centuries at least, the tasks of child rearing and caregiving have been assigned primarily, though not exclusively to women (Hansen 6). Arlie Hochschild presents the idea of a gender strategy as â€Å"a plan of action through which a person tries to solve problems at hand, given the cultural notions of gender at play† (7). This is something that is necessary for â€Å"not-so-nuclear† families in order to function and get by. Women are â€Å"located at the structural nexus of domestic work, child rearing, and paid labor, they nonetheless exercise some discretion about how they act on and interpret their situations† (7). Many women take into consideration where it is appropriate to take a stand for a equality or when they should back down for the sake of a marriage or to prevent fighting within the family. Men and wome... ...ry have shaped the mindset of the people. The idea is so solidified in our minds that a complete change may never be able to occur. Either way, the most important factor for changing the family dynamic will be time. Works Cited Cherlin, Andrew J. Public and Private Families: An Introduction. 6th. New York: McGraw Hill, 2010. Print. Hansen, Karen V. Not-So-Nuclear Families: Class, Gender, And Networks of Care. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2005. Print. Johnson, Michael P. A Typology of Domestic Violence: Intimate Terrorism, Violent Resistance, and Situation Couple Violence. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 2008. Print. Tichenor, Veronica Jaris. â€Å"Gendered Bargain: Why Wives Cannot Trade Their Money For Housework† from Earning More and Getting Less: Why Successful Wives Can’t By Equality. 2005. Rutgers University Press. Print.

Heat and Dust Essay

The era of the Victorian women spanned 64 years and concluded several changes in attitudes. The common thinking about women in the Victorian era was that a woman? s position was limited to domestic work and the care for her children. The stereotype of the distribution of roles was women staying by the hearth with their needles whilst men wielded their swords. Women had to bear a large family and to maintain a smooth family atmosphere whereby men did not need to bother himself about domestic matters. A gentlewoman ensured that the home was a place of comfort for her husband and family from the stresses of Industrial Britain. Victorian dresses show typical excessive style elements such as V-waists, layering of trims and bell sleeves. The Victorian head of household dressed his woman to show off family wealth. Additionally, there were great differences between members of society by the end of the Queen Victoria? s reign but the most instantly apparent difference was through the garments worn. Not only the dress code symbolized the status of a Victorian woman but also the circumstances she lived in. A wealthy wife was supposed to spend her time reading, sewing, receiving guests, going visiting, letter writing, seeing to the servants and dressing for the part as her husband’s social representative. In contrast, for the very poor of Britain society it was common to wear fifth hand clothes and to eat the pickings left over in a rich household. Whether married or single all Victorian women were expected to be weak and helpless so that they looked like â€Å"fragile delicate flowers incapable of making decisions†. Besides, if a woman took a lover it was not made public because if that became the case she would be cut by society. Instead, men could amble along to one of their gentlemen? s clubs and always find a â€Å"warm welcome†. Relationships in 1887 were quite artificial. A married woman could not own property and became a chattel of the man. A divorced woman had indeed no chance of acceptance in society again. At the end of Victorian times things changed and many women adopted the tailor made garment that showed their more serious concern to be recognized as thinking beings with much to offer society beyond being a social asset for a husband. New inventions such as sewing machine or railway and the capability to use those led to new thinking and women of all classes felt the dynamic atmosphere of change as much as men. Many women joined the Fabian Society, a group of non revolutionary thinking socialists and others sought reform for more practical dress, better education, the right to take up paid work and better employment prospects.

Customer is King: Evolution of the Retail Food Industry Essay

It is common understanding that you cannot have a business if you do not have customers to buy the product you produce or services you deliver; therefore customer is an integral part of every business. There was a time when customers was treated less critical and vocal by the businesses and markets was treated just as dumping grounds for the products, however this situation does not prevail anymore because of the tremendous transformation happening in the retail food industry since last five decades. Today customers have more choices than ever before, through more diverse channels. Even the expectations of customer are higher than ever before. Companies who fail to leave up to the expectation are finding hard to get or retain the customers- Majority of the unsatisfied customer do not complain they just change the suppliers. Therefore retailers have realised that the only way to sustain in the competitive market is by being customer centric. (Barnes & Glynn, 1993) Today every businesses treat customer as king and aware that only exceptional level of customer service can differentiate them from the competition in an increasingly saturated marketplace. Customer is often treated as the asset of the company and considered in the strategic level decision making. Therefore I certainly agree with this frequently used marketing cliche â€Å"customer is king†. To better explain my position I have presented my views based on two contexts. The first being how customer is king? This is explained by describing the customer’s role in the evolution of the retail food industry and its implications. The second being why customer is king? This is explained by detailing the significance of customers in the retail food business. The evolution of the retail food industry and its implications: Retail food industry has undergone a tremendous transformation in the last five decades, these transformations can be classified into four different phases- Predevelopment, Development, Saturation and Decline phase (Terbeek, 1999). During the predevelopment phase shopping was a social event, relationships between the customer and grocer was important. Shopping experience was logical, retail was more of a personalised business where the customer was treated as an individual and his or her needs were well known and understood by the businesses. Also there existed a long term personal relationship between the businesses and the customer (Steidtman, 2005). Therefore during this phase more emphasis was given to the customer and customer service, however this situation did not prevail long. During the development phase, small and neighbourhood stores started to decline due to the raise of supermarket. Customers were no more trusting grocer rather they started to trust brands. No longer there existed a personal relationship between the businesses and the customer. Even management was centralised and employees were ignorant of the customer behaviour, old values which existed during the predevelopment stage relating to employee and customer relationship almost disappeared, the customer becomes a consumer. However due to logistics efficiency and introduction in new model of central buying and distribution of standard products to standard stores led in the decline of product prices. Even though retailer was the ultimate connection to the customer but manufacturer had more control over the market demand and retailer was just acting as distributor. Manufacturer assumed that every market was standard and started using push marketing model to sell his products, therefore emphasis on customer was neglected and customer service was taken a backseat (Terbeek, 1999) During the saturation phase the competition between the retailers intensified, there was a rise of many stores even the products increased from 8000 to 30000 items and above, which resulted in making a decision making stressful for the customers. However the growth of the industry slowdown and the real growth for supermarkets came from taking businesses away from each other. Marketing cost intensified because of the competition between supermarkets, even value created by supermarkets become less easy to distinguish because of the availability of the identical products in every store. Therefore Price become the way for many stores to differentiate them, which gave rise to the new mantra of super markets called â€Å"more products and lower prices†. Competition among the manufacturers also heated up which led retailers to get better incentives for the self-space. Therefore retailers was busy concerned on making deal money which was more profitable then customer service, Customer was almost invisible and the relationship between the retailer and the customer no longer existed(Terbeek, 1999). During the decline phase the might of the supermarkets reduced drastically by the entry of fast food chains and low cost department stores (Wal-Mart, Target etc. – which started competing for the stomach share of the consumer. Therefore retailers try to differentiate themselves by introducing new merchandising strategies such as home meal replacement and solution selling, also another strategy for growth was geographic expansion through consolidation and globalisation. Retailers were more concerned on making profits and increasing market share, however even in this phase they neglected the fact that customer is one of the important ass et and failed to be customer oriented. Therefore retailers still moved even further away from the customer. Following the decline phase of the retail food market is the â€Å"current† (2000+) situation which can perhaps be termed as the frictionless phase (Terbeek, 1999). It’s not surprising that in this phase, the focus is once again on the customer. The one size fits all concept of retail is no longer applicable and there is need to deliver personalized services and products on an individual basis to distinguish them from others and to stay ahead in the market. Therefore customer has become the central focus in this era, even the retailers have realised that customer service, customer loyalty and customer retention plays a major role in sales and profitability of the concern. Thanks to Technological transformation, which has enabled retail to return to what it once – a personalised business, today businesses have realised that customer is a strategic asset of the organisation and treating customer as a â€Å"King† is vital for the long term sustainability. Significance of customers in the retail food business: The food and beverage market is often the largest industrial sector in developed economies. In the US, expenditures on food in both retail stores and food service establishments account for nearly 30 percent of all retail spending. Food retailing alone is among the largest of all retailing sectors in most countries(Gomez, McLaughlin, & Wittink, 2003). The most recent Consumer Expenditure Survey from the Department of Labour indicates that 58 percent of food expenditures are on food consumed at home and Groceries represent a $700 billion business in US alone (George, 2005). Due to the market size today retail sector is not only growing in the rapid pace but also becoming more competitive, even the customers have become more demanding than ever. Retailers have realised that the only way to sustain in the competitive market is through differentiation; Rita Heise of Cargill says differentiation must be a top priority of almost any company today (Tuck, 2003). Today differentiation in terms of pricing, product offering are also becoming commonplace so companies need new ways to differentiate themselves. In the verge of finding differentiating strategies, retailers have realised that the only way of differentiating them form others is by being customer centric(Gomez et al. , 2003). Today customers are vital for the retail businesses, treating customers like a King is really important because this leads to more satisfied customers. The more satisfied the customers are, the more loyal the customers will be- which in turn helps in maintaining customer loyalty. Therefore customer satisfaction, customer loyalty and customer retention all these three terms are interrelated which has a significant impact on the profitability, sales and market share of the businesses. Customer satisfaction: Customer satisfaction and retention are generally considered among the most important long term objectives of firms (Cooil, Keiningham, Aksoy, & Hsu, 2007). The satisfied customers will remain loyal to the company and also create a positive brand image by word of mouth. In recent research of over 1,000 kiwis, respondents said they were twice as likely to tell others about a bad experience over a positive one. With stories being told online, rather than person-to-person, they are accessible to a much wider audience and live on long after the initial compromising incident occurred (Meyer, 2011). Therefore businesses which fail to meet the customer expectations will not only lose customers but also may create a negative brand image. Linking customer satisfaction and customer loyalty/retention: The marketing concept suggests that a satisfied buyer will likely return to purchase again, or at least, consider purchasing again(Keith, 1960). According to Reichheld and Sasser repeat customers cost less to serve than new buyers, benefiting a firm’s cost structure. Additionally, maximizing customer retention rates and minimizing customer defections are primary strategic objectives for most firms because of the competitive retail environment and low switching costs(Reichheld, 1990). Customer satisfaction is positively linked to loyalty and customer retention, therefore businesses should be customer oriented in order to maximise the profits, market share and also to increase the sales. Linking profitability or market share to customer satisfaction and customer loyalty: According to one study, a 2 percent increase in customer retention has the same effect on profits as cutting costs by 10 percent. Similarly, a 5 percent reduction in customer defection rate can increase profits by 25-125 percent (Min, 2011). It is logical that both satisfaction and loyalty are directly related to profitability(Pleshko & Baqer, 2008). Loyal and satisfied customers will increase the customer base by positive word of mouth advertising, which in turn increase the market share and also the sales, even lowers the market retention costs. Satisfied and loyal customers gives businesses a clear understanding about their needs and wants which helps the retailers to grow businesses and profits based on their deep knowledge and understanding of customers. Satisfied customers also create brand equity and even retailers will be insured with better protection during downturn- due to more loyal customers. Therefore today retailers are continuously focusing on keeping their customers happy and satisfied. Businesses which do not satisfy the customers run the risk of customer base eductions, smaller sales and also lose the market share for the retailers who serve better to the customers. Being customer centric cannot be treated simply as the strategy of an individual company because modern food system is complex, dynamic and international (Schaffer, 1998). It includes suppliers of farm inputs, agricultural producers, packaging suppliers, processors and manufacturers, commodity merchants, wholesalers, food retailers, restraints, institutions, and facilitating industries etc. (Schaffer, 1998). Therefore to be successful and competitive, all the players in the food system should be customer centric. Businesses in the food supply chain have realised this and every businesses are taking customer centric approach in the recent years. Today’s retail market in the developed world are becoming more customers centric and treating customers as Kings because retailers have realised that customer centric approach is directly linked to profitability of the firm and also can become a key source of competitive differentiation. By excelling at the strategic customer-centric approach can deliver a superior shopping experience that could not only result in consistently high customer satisfaction but also might encourage customers to shop more often and spend more with their favoured retailers. Therefore we can say that today businesses have realised that customers have the power to dictate their profits, market share and also the sales in the businesses, so treating customers as Kings has become vital for the retail businesses success today.

Colonial System (Summary)

The Philippine condition was a reflection of the political, economic and socio-religious developments of Spain. During the 16th and the 17th century almost all European monarchs adopted the political idea of absolutism as well as the economic system of mercantilism. Under the system of mercantilism, the king was involved in extensive intervention of any economic life to foster national growth. The Spanish government was highly centralized in form.All the Spanish governmental powers were all undertaken by this council; executive, legislative and judicial, and were transmitted to all governor-generals in each respective colony. The royal orders and edicts became the guides of any governor-general in administering the Philippines. He was at first appointed by the Viceroy of Mexico and later by the monarch of Spain. His vast powers and the distance of the Philippines from either Spain or Mexico shaped natural tendencies of a governor-general to be abusive. The Philippines was divided int o provinces and special districts.They were known as alcaldias and each under the charge of an alcalde mayor. The special districts were the unconquered regions or corregimientos, where Filipino resistance still went on. Unlike the governor-general, the alcalde mayor never had any legislative power. Only judicial cases over his towns were under his jurisdiction cases involving the amount of not more than Php200. The church prevailing principle of adaptation greatly influenced the Spanish government to relatively retain the prehispanic political structure of the Filipinos.In the beginning of Legaspi’s conquest, the office of gobernadorcillo, which is equivalent to the present town mayor, was heredity; opened to descendants of the datu or chieftains. The mayor political change in the choice of a gobernadorcillo came in 1847, when the Spanish Crown directed and sent the first Spanish Code of Laws for the native Filipinos. The election laws of 1847, according to Arcilla, required the following qualifications: a) he must be a native born; b) he must be 25 years old; c) able to read and write in Spanish; and d) never been guilty of any crime.The election was set in November, for a term of 2 years. The cabeza de barangay remained appointive; all were under the supervisory of the local priest and the alcalde mayor. The governadorcillo was tasked to supervise the collection of taxes in his town and pay the difference from his pocket if the collection of the taxes would not tally to the defective; inadequate census prepared and estimated by the Spanish friars. What made the Philippines government form unique was the union of church and state.By virtue of the Patronato Real, the Spanish king had the right to rule lands discovered, with a duty of supporting the material needs of the church in those lands. In other words, the king had the right to command and demand what was necessary to carry out the task he accepted from Rome, in order to help spread the Christian religion. The mighty Philip II, who had assumed these religious rights, seemed that his interest was in his mind, so, when we speak of the church in the Philippines during the Spanish regime, we mean particularly the Spanish church serving the ends of Spanish empire.The marriage between the church and state enabled the religious to occupy and dominate significant governmental positions. Historians acknowledge the fact that the real representative of the Spanish Crown was the church not the state. The Spanish Church was too conservative while they were responsible for the Christianization of the Filipinos they were also deterrents to nation’s progress thus, in the 19th century the Filipino propagandists, reformists and revolutionists demanded their expulsion from the Philippines.