Personal Narrative: Lost Wallet Essay examples -- essays research pape

A wallet, or purse for some, is a precious item in which most people carry things more essential than money towards everyday life. If some people were to lose that portable safe, they may be offset for the rest of that day. The person without that wallet could be upset and depressed for awhile. Maybe something of great special value was in that wallet. This person could have these feelings for a long time, until they find their belongings by which case they are filled with joy. I, personally, keep anything I may have interest in knowing where it is, in my wallet. I am very good about always having my wallet and never losing it...until recently. In my wallet, I store very personal items such as my license and some pictures. Among other things, I have my money, like everybody else, and gift certificates for stores. This summer, I went to Danville, Kentucky with my family. I drove down there with my wallet and took it everywhere with me, like I would any other time. Well, when someone doesn't have pockets, then it is hard to keep their wallet right next to them at all times. I was ca...

Flight 93 :: essays papers

Flight 93 Flight 93, the flight that crashed near some fields in the outskirts of Pennsylvania. But what was it doing there? What caused the plane to miss its target and crash? These answers may soon be revealed when detectives can finally examine the planes black box, found just recently. Many answers however can be found through other pieces of info that have come up along the way during the investigations. For instance, the multiple calls made to family members as well as 911 from the frantic passengers. Mark Bingham for instance called 911, as well as his mom telling her he loved her and that the plane was being hijacked. Another man called 911 screaming that they were being hijacked and that he heard some sort of explosion and saw white smoke coming from the plane. Then there was Tom Burnett, who called his wife saying the hijackers had already stabbed to death one passenger and that he intended to do something about it. A Jeremy Glick called his relatives saying the same, that he and some other passengers were intending to fight the hijackers. These calls brought up the thought that perhaps some passengers on board had fought the hijackers, keeping them from controlling the plane, and sending it crashing to the ground. Another theory is that the pilot, Jason Dahl might have purposefully crashed the plane to prevent the hijackers from taking it over. Or perhaps that Dahl had cut off the planes fuel with out the hijackers being aware. It was said that the plane looked like it went straight down; and that the plane had almost completely disintegrated on impact leaving a hole several feet deep. Another theory was that perhaps the U.S. Military had shot down flight 93 as to prevent it from taking aim at another important government building. But these claims have been sharply denied by Pentagon officials. The FBI says to the question if it has been ruled out or not that it is â€Å"kind of a loaded question.

Promote equality and diversity in work with children and young people Essay

These were put into place to ensure that all organisations and agencies involved with children between birth and 19 years should work together ensure that children have the support needed to be healthy, stay safe, enjoy and achieve, make a positive contribution and ahieve economic well-being. The key aspect of the Act was to overhaul child protection and chilren’s services in the UK. Every Child Matters has been futher developed through the publication of the Children’s Plan 2007 which sets out to improve educational outcomes for all children. Race Relations Act 1976 and 2000 This places a statutory duty on schools to promote race equality. It makes it against the law for a person to be discriminated against, whether directly or indirectly. Schools are expected to improve the educational achievements of all children and to promote equal opportunities and good relations between different racial groups. Schools are also required to have a race equality policy which is linked to an action plan. Disability Discrimintaion Act 1995 and 2005 This made it illegal for services (shops and employers) to discriminate against disabled people. According to this Act, a person has a disability if ‘he /or she/ has a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his /or her/ ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities’. Now it is a statutory requirement to encourage the inclusion of children with disabilities into mainstream schools. The Disability and Discrimination Act 2005 builds on the 1995 Act by requiring all schools to produce a Disability Equality Scheme. This must set out ways that schools promote equality of opportunity and promote positive attitudes towards pupils, staff and others who are disabled. Also, there must be an Accessibility Plan in place which identifies how th school will increase access to the curriculum improve the physical environment and provide information in a range of ways to meet the needs of individuals with diability. SEN Code of Practice 2001 The Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 strengthened the rights of parents and SEN children to mainstream education. It made significant changes to the educational opportunities that are available to children with disabilities and special educational needs. Human Rights Act 1998 The United Nations first set a standard on human rights in 1948 with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In 1998 the Human Rights Act gave a further legal status to this. The basic human rights are: the right to life freedom from torture and degrading treatment freedom from slavery and forced labour the right to liberty the right to fair trial the right not to be punished for something that wasn’t a crime when you did it the right to respect for private and family life freedom of thought, conscience and religion, and freedom to express your beliefs freedom of expression freedom of assembly and association the right to marry and to start a family the right not to be discriminated against in respect t of these rights and freedoms the right to peaceful enjoyment of your property the right to an education the right to participate in free elections the right not to be subjected to the death penalty. UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 The UK signed this legally binding agreement in 1990. It leads on from the Human Rights Act and sets out the rights of all children to be treated equally and fairly and without discrimination. 1.2 The imprtance of promotiong the rights to participation and equality of access All pupils should be able to fully access all areas of the curriculum. The advent of the Every Child Matters framework and the focus on personalised learning in all sectors of education has also made this high on the agenda. The reasons for this are: Human rights: – all children have a right to learn and play together – children should not be discriminated against for any reason – inclusion is concerned with improving schools for staff as well as pupils Equal opportunities in education: – children and young people do better in inclusive settings, both academically and socially – children and young people should not need to be separated to achieve adequate educational provision – inclusive education is a more efficient use of educational resources Social opportunities: – inclusion in education is one aspect of inclusion in society – children need to be involved and integrated with all of their peers. We always have to be aware of the needs of different pupils, whatever these may be. These may become more apparent as we get to know individual pupils. These who may be vulnerable could include pupils: – pupils with special educational needs – those who speak English as an additional language – who are new to the school – pupils are gifted and talented – whose culture or ethnicity is different from the predominant cultture of the school – who are in foster care – whose parents’ views are not consistent with those of the school. 1.3The importance and benefits of valuing and promoting cultural diversity All schools must be aware of the importance of valuing and promoting cultural diversity. Most schools are actively include a number of strategies to ensure that children from all cultures feel welcome in school. These may be: – words are displayed in a variety of languages in classrooms and in different areas of the school – other languages spoken in different lessons or during registration – themed days, festivals and celebrations from other cultures discussed and explored – representations from other cultures found in books and learning resources, and displayes around the school – parents involved in ‘finding out’ sessions with children. These will have a number of benefits for children and young people – mainly that they will grow up in an environment which values cultural diversity and enables us to learn from one another. If children and young adults are finding out about other cultures and belief systems from an early age, they become more open and accepting towards each other. Children from all backgrounds need to know that the culture and status is valued as this helps them to feel settled and secure. This in turn contributes to the being able to learn. If they feel isolated or anxious, it is more likely that learning will be difficult for them. Outcome 2Pudersant the importance of prejudice and discrimination on children and young people 2.1Ways in which children and young people can experience prejudice and discrimination There are many ways in which children can experience prejudice and discrimination in school. There is a big pressure on children to fit in and to conform with expected appearances and behaviour that they may be discriminated against and bullied that they may be discriminated against and bullied if they do not. In school, all staff needs to be vigilant to ensure that children respect and embrace diversity. Children can experience prejudice and discrimination in the sam way as adults due to race, religion, age, sex, culture or ethnicity. We can focus on: – comments about a child’s appearance or clothes – children not interacting with others who may be ‘different’ – children being excluded because they are boys or girls – children only socialising with otrs of the same race or ethnicity. 2.5How to challange discrimination Whenever we witness discriminatory behaviour and comments, we have to challenge, record and report the incident. Children sometimes say things without understanding the impact on others, also the consequences. It should be made clear to them that their comments are not acceptable and that everyone in school should be treated fairly and with respect. Outcome 3Support inclusion and inclusive practices in work with children and young people 3.1What is meant by inclusion and inclusive practices Pupils are all have an equal right to education and learning. Equal opportunities and inclusion should take account not only of access to provision on school premises, but also to facilities outside the school setting. All organisations that offer educational provision must by law ensure that all pupils have access to a broad and balanced curriculum. The school should ensure that inclusive practices are a matter of coures within day-to-day provision and that any barriers to inclusion are identified and removed.

Jacksonian Democracy Dbq Essay

During the 1828 election when Jackson ran for office the second time he succeeded, as he did previously, but this time nothing stood in his way of becoming president. The Jacksonian Democracy that Jackson had brought into the government when he was elected was a true democratic movement that was dedicated to it’s egalitarian views. Although, in this time period the equal rights ideas were still mainly for the white men, disregarding women, African Americans, and the Native Americans. The Jacksonian Democracy was a large force in the individual rights for the working class, as interpreted in Document A; â€Å"The Working Men’s Declaration of Independence†, by George Henry Evans, as he says, â€Å"‘But when a long train of abuses and usurpations’ take place, all invariably tending to the oppression and degradation of one class of society, and to the unnatural and iniquitous exaltation of another by political leaders, ‘it is their right, it is their duty:’ to use every constitutional means to reform the abuses of such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.† In his writing he quotes parts of the declaration to make a point that what the forefathers had said could be used to represent the working class, and to make a point that it was the government’s duty to protect such men from the lack of opportunities that the government failed to give them and the rights that they failed to protect i n the previous year with various government leaders. When Jackson was re-elected in 1832, the renewal of the National bank was vetoed by Jackson, and some think that it’s simply because he had a strong dislike for the men that were for the bank. In his veto message, Document B, Andrew Jackson stated that, â€Å"It appears that more than a fourth part of the stock is held by foreigners,† and Jackson had had a strong dislike for foreigner’s, chiefly the British, since he was a young boy, â€Å"and the residue is held by a few hundred of our own citizens, chiefly of the richest class.† It could be interpreted through this that Jackson, along with his dislike for Clay, wanted to keep the American government and economy ruled solely by the Americans, not an outside force like the French and British. Andrew Jackson was a strong believer of Nationalist values, and his values contributed to the way he saw individual rights. Jackson viewed the nation as a whole, and just being American – granted, if you were a white male, not of Irish descent – than you it was your right to have the same liberties as everyone else. You could vote, own land, run for office, and have the same opportunities as someone from the upper class if you were among the poorest in the country. Among the many equal rights opportunities, many reform movements began to take place that brought a new light to the Jacksonian government. Public education became something that every child could receive until they reached the age of a secondary school student, and having every child receive education was a large part of his equal rights value. The two other reforms were for the criminally insane/mentally insane, the Asylum movement, led by Dorothea Dix, and the Woman’s rights movement. Although Jackson didn’t believe in the same rights of man and woman, the movement went along with the equal rights and opportunities of his government. With the three new reforms taking place in the United States, they benefitted from the others. Women were able to secure jobs as nurse and school teachers, but with many rules, the insane were able to escape from the criminal and terrible conditions they were residing in, and children, whether they be male or female, could receive a prop er education. One of the largest movements of the day was the Second Great Awakening – a religious movement. Many people were given more freedom when it came to their religion, some converting, others not. Those who converted to the newly introduced religions were able to express their religious beliefs, while one hundred years prior they could not as openly. Although some religions were seen as improper, they weren’t as harsh to those of other religions as they may have been in the past. As a result of the changes in the American lifestyle, members of the Jacksonian Democracy believed that it was their duty to preserve the nation in the way that they had seen it, and in their eyes they viewed themselves as â€Å"the guardians of the United States, political democracy, individual liberty, and equality of economic opportunity†.

Brand Management Summary Essay

Constructs: * Consumer based brand equity: The differential effect of brand knowledge on consumer response to the marketing of the brand. It involves consumers’ reactions to an element of the marketing mix for the brand in comparison with their reactions to the same marketing mix element attributed to a fictitiously named/unnamed version of the product or service. * Brand knowledge: a brand node in memory to which a variety of associations are linked: * Brand image: set of brand associations in a consumers’ memory. It are perceptions about a brand as reflected by the brand associations held in consumer memory. Brand image is defined by: * Type of Brand associations: * Attributes: Non-product related or product related. * Benefits: Functional, experiential or symbolic. * Attitudes * Favorability, Strength and Uniqueness of Brand associations * Brand awareness: recall and recognition by consumers. It is about the strength of the brand node or trace in memory. Findings: * A brand is said to have a positive (negative) customer-based brand equity if consumers react more (less) favorably to the product, price, promotion, or distribution of the brand than they do to the same marketing mix element when it is attributed to a fictitiously named or unnamed version of the product or service. * Favorable CBBE can lead to enhanced revenue, lower costs, greater profits, larger margins, less elasticity, increased marketing communication effectiveness and licensing opportunities. * Pricing, distribution, advertising and promotion strategies stimulate CBBE. * Building CBBE requires creating a familiar brand name and a positive brand image. * Measuring CBBE can be done (1) indirectly by measuring sources of brand knowledge or (2) directly by measuring the effects of brand knowledge on consumer response to elements of the marketing  mix. * Managing CBBE: (1) take a broad and long-term view of marketing a brand (2) specify the desired consumer knowledge structures and core benefits for a brand (3) consider a wide range of traditional and nontraditional advertising, promotion and marketing options (4) coordinate the marketing options that are chosen (5) conducting tracking studies and controlled experiments (6) evaluate potential extension candidates. Implications: * Marketing activity can potentially enhance or maintain consumers’ awareness of the brand or the favorability, strength or uniqueness of certain associations. * This enables making short- and long-term decisions better and more insightful. Article 2: Esch, Franz-Rudolf, Tobias Langer, Bernd H. Schmitt and Patrick Geus (2006), â€Å"Are Brands Forever? How Brand Knowledge and Relationships Affect Current and Future Purchases,† Journal of Product & Brand Management, 15, 2, 98-105 Constructs: * Brand attributes: awareness, image, perceived quality, perceived value, personality, and organizational associations. * Brand knowledge attributes: awareness and image, where awareness is a necessary condition to build brand image. * Brand relationships: * Satisfaction: the exchange aspects of a relationship. It’s about giving vs. receiving. * Trust: the feeling that is the outcome of a communal relationship with a brand. * Attachment: a longer-lasting, commitment-inducing bond between the brand and the consumer. Satisfaction and Trust lead to brand Attachment. * Behavioral outcomes: Current purchase behavior and future purchase behavior. Findings: * Current purchases are affected by brand image directly and by brand awareness indirectly. * Future purchases are not affected by either dimension of brand knowledge directly, but brand knowledge does affect future purchases via a brand relationship path that includes brand satisfaction, brand trust and attachment to the brand. Concluding, brand knowledge is not sufficient to build long-term brand relationships. However,  relationship variables are critical for predicting future purchases as well as current purchases. * Brand awareness does not significantly affect brand satisfaction and brand trust. * Brand awareness affects brand image and both are direct determinants of current consumer purchase behavior. Implications: * Currently, brand managers measure brand awareness and brand image. They should also consider brand relationship measures and develop strategic and tactical initiatives that ensure that consumers are satisfied with the brand, trust it and feel attached to it if they wish to achieve long-term success. Lecture notes (27-08-2012): Introduction to Brand Management Once, products were un-differentiable, often sold loose, the quality varied significantly and many people made the same thing. To make buyers prefer your ‘commodity’, brands were introduced: * A name, sign or symbol intended to identify the goods & services of one (group of) sellers and to differentiate them from those of competition. It creates reputation, awareness and prominence. Organizations perceive brands as physical products, where customers perceive it as psychological products, since they want to buy brands and not simply products. A product is anything that can be offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use, or consumption that might satisfy a need or want. It consists of 4 levels: Core benefit, tangible product, augmented product and total product. * A brand is a product, but one that adds other dimensions that differentiate it in some way from other products designed to satisfy the same need. It makes products different in a rational, tangible, symbolic, emotional and intangible way. In reality, the most valuable assets are intangible ones. A brand is important for * Customers because: it’s an identification of a production source, it assigns responsibility to the maker, it reduces risk, it reduces search cost, it forms a bond / pact with the maker of the product, it is a symbolic device, and a sign of quality. * Manufacturers because: it allows identification to simplify handling or tracing, it allows legal protection of unique features, it’s a signal of quality level, it endows unique associations to products, it’s a source of competitive advantage and a source of financial returns. As long is something is perceived as different, from the product category, it is branded. It should be given a label and provided a meaning. Types of things that can be branded: 1) Physical goods 2) Services 3) Retailers & Distributors 4) Online products and Services 5) People and Organizations 6) Sports, Arts and Entertainment (experience goods like Walt Disney and Pixar) 7) Geographic Locations 8) Ideas and Causes. Brands Fail because market conditions change, where some companies fail to adapt (inertia). Business Challenges & Opportunities: * Savvy customers: More experienced customers demand more than respect. * Brand proliferation: few products are ‘mono’ branded nowadays. Often, complex brand families and portfolios are required. * Media fragmentation: New methods of communication arise (internet) and expenditures appear to shift from advertising to promotion. * Increased costs: Developing new products is costly so team up with other brands. * Increased competition: Differentiation becomes more difficult, markets start to be more mature and low-priced competitors arise. Consider brand extensions. * Greater accountability: Engage short-term performance orientation, make sure you have your figures right. Customer Based Brand Equity: (1) Differential effect that (2) brand knowledge has on (3) consumer response to the marketing of that brand. Marketing a product should make the consumers’ response more favorable compared to not branding the product. Types are: * Consumer brand equity: A positive, strong, active and unique meaning of the brand. * Financial brand equity: enables earning more in  the short and long run. The Strategic Brand Management Process (to build, measure and manage brand equity): 1. Identify and Establish brand positioning and values: It is your attempt to get in the mind of the consumer in a distinct and valued place. This includes mental maps, a competitive frame of reference, points of parity & difference, core brand values and brand mantra. It is also about who is in your market. 2. Plan and implement brand marketing programs: The mixing and matching of brand elements (visual or verbal?), integrating brand marketing activities and leverage of secondary associations that convey meaning to consumers. 3. Measure and interpret brand performance: Use brand value chains (how will our activities influence what customers think, feel and do), audits, tracking, and equity management systems. What is a Business Value Chain: a. Customer brand equity management goal: build, sustain, and leverage a strong, active and unique meaning of the brand. b. Financial brand equity goal: to enable more earnings in the short and long run. 4. Grow & Sustain brand equity (how to improve things): concepts that are used are brand-product matrixes (shows all brands and products sold by one firm), brand portfolios and hierarchies, brand expansion strategies and brand reinforcement and revitalization. The 6 deadly sins of branding: 1. Brand Memory loss: don’t forget what a brand stands for, don’t change identity. 2. Brand Egoism: overestimating your (supplying) capabilities and importance. 3. Brand Deception: Don’t include fictional ingredients that appear healthy or try to cover the reality of your product. 4. Brand fatigue: Companies are bored with their brands, causing a lack of creativity. 5. Brand paranoia: Too much focus on competition instead of product quality. 6. Brand irrelevance: Not staying ahead of the product category’s market. Lecture notes WC week 1 (29-08-012 / Red Bull Case): Sources of brand equity for Red bull: * First mover advantage, premium pricing, and special ingredients  (taurine). * New market creation (energy drink), and an all round occasion product. * Sampling often, source efficacy, cool image, limited availability, and specific associations such as sports and athletes. Their strategy is a global approach. Tactics are always similar, and sports are always important. How does the marketing program contribute to the brand equity: * They have a broad positioning, aiming for high quality and high price, being a premium product and being exclusive. Some terminology: * Disruptive products are those that break the rules, the normal way of doing business. * They do so ‘below the line’ by using exceptional promotion activities. * They do so ‘above the line’ by using out of the box marketing. * Share of voice: Share of expenditures on advertising, as a share of the product category. * Share of belly: Share in all types of drinks consumption. * The most important things for branded products are involvement and interest. * ‘Jump on the bandwagon’ means following the mainstream (Bullit vs. Red Bull). Why are Red bull’s advertisements so successful and how do they maintain their marketing monumentum? * High integration and a consistent program. * Limited availability, which causes buzz marketing. * Their ads use a specific humorous tone of voice, which builds awareness. Findings of the energy drink experiment: * All energy drinks increase blood pressure. Placebos only do so under high motivation. Red bull and brand extensions (the key to success is a ‘fit’ with your brand): * What did they do already? Shots, different tastes, Red Bull cola, Premix with alcoholics, refrigerators, and using different sizes. * Which ones were successful? Different sizes, sports events, magazines, shows, and the flagship store that sells a lot of merchandise. * Which ones were unsuccessful? Different tastes, Cola, and energy shots. Week 2: Branding Objectives: Values, Identity and Positioning Article 1: Brown, Tom J., Peter A. Dacin, Michael G. Pratt and David A. Whetten (2006) â€Å"Identity, Intended Image, Construed Image, and Reputation: An Interdisciplinary Framework and Suggested Terminology,† Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 34, 2, 99-106 Constructs according to CED (Central, enduring, and distinctive organizational level of analysis): * Identity: An individual’s self-difinition / who are we as an organization. * Organizational identity: the property of a social group rather than an individual. * Intended Image: mental associations about the organization that organization leaders want important audiences / stakeholders to hold. * Construed image: Mental associations that organization members believe individuals or multiple people outside the organization hold about the organization. * Reputation: mental associations about the organization actually held by others outside the organization. Findings: * Image concerns what an organizational member wants others to know about the organization, while reputation is a perception of the organization actually held by an external stakeholder. * Corporate associations belong with the stakeholder, not to the organization. They may be influenced by a variety of outside sources: competitors, industry analysts, consumer activists and the media in addition to communications from the company. Implications: * Not mentioned Article 2: Coleman, Darren, Leslie de Chernatory and George Christodoulides (2011) â€Å"B2B Service Brand Identity: Scale Development and Validation,† Industrial Marketing Management, 40, 1063-1071 Constructs: * B2B service brand identity: the strategist’s vision of how a B2B service brand should be perceived by its stakeholders. It consists of the following scale dimensions: * Marketing Culture: unwritten policies and guidelines which provide employees with behavioral norms. It’s also about the importance an organization places on the marketing function. * Client relationship management: relationships with customers are the  cornerstone of industrial marketing. Therefore, the quality of CRM is very important. * Corporate Visual identity: logos can simplify the process of communicating brand benefit by being visual metaphors. They also help distinguishing a brand. * Integrated marketing communications: they help an organization’s brand identity manifest. For B2B, communications focus on organization rather than products. * Brand personality: The strength, favorability and uniqueness of the brand personality association. It should be easy to describe by clients, and f avourable. Findings: * After two factor analyses, the paper chose to rename some dimensions: * Employee & client focus: The organization treats employees & clients as an essential part of the organization, will help them in a responsive manner, will discover and respond to their needs, and top management is committed to providing quality service. * Corporate visual identity: Our font and logo is an important part of our visual identity, which makes us recognizable. * Brand personality: Associations are extremely positive and favorable, and clients have no difficulty describing them. * Consistent communications: There’s a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of all communication tools. Furthermore, Advertising, PR and Sales are providing consistent messages. * Human resource initiatives: There are employee-training programs designed to develop skills required for acquiring and deepening client relationships. Moreover, the organization regularly monitors employees’ performance. * The model is now empirical instead of conceptual. In addition, it is a synergistic network since all dimensions are highly correlated. Implications: * When managers want to asses the effectiveness of B2B service brand identity efforts, they should focus on either one or multiple of the above mentioned dimensions and measure them over time. Article 3: Chernev, Alexander, Ryan Hamilton and David Gal (2011) â€Å"Competing for Consumer Identity: Limits to Self-Expression and the Perils of Lifestyle  Branding,† Journal of Marketing, 75, May, 66-82 Constructs: * Self-expression of lifestyle and social identity: this is enabled by a huge degree of customization for certain products and also by social media. Findings (keep in mind that all findings discuss short-term effects): * Consumer brand preferences are a function of the activities they were involved in prior to evaluating a given brand. This finding holds because the need for self-expression is finite and ultimately can be satiated. This means that the need for self-expressive brands decreases as the number of alternative means of self-expression increases. * The extent to which consumers use brands to express their identities is not limited to self-expressive brands in the same category but it is also a function of the availability of alternative means of expressing identity. Satiation is caused by: * Personal brand relevance: how close is the brand related to your identity. Brands evaluated later in a set were more likely to be rated lower or equivalent in terms of personal relevance. * Perceived brand uniqueness: How brands are perceived to be different. * Consumers’ willingness to pay. * Increasing the prominence of self-expressive brands that are already a part of a consumer’s identity is likely to weaken future brand preferences. This holds between and across product categories. This effect is more pronounced for symbolic than functional brands: * Brand associations should be distinguished: Functional and symbolic associations. * Increasing the need for self-expression (e.g. by threatening identity) has the effect of strengthening brand preferences. * Self-expressive behavioral acts such as product customization can lead to identity saturation, weakening consumers’ brand preferences. Implications: * Brands might possibly compete across categories and become a part of a person’s identity. * Lifestyle branding has proven to be successful for many brands. However, managers may be trading fierce within-category  functional competition for fierce across-category symbolic competition when doing so. All self-expressive brands could end up competing with one another, and possibly even non-brand self-expressive items and social media. * More practical: It might be unattractive to have a shop with self-expressive products next to another shop selling such (Apple Store). Article 4: Naresh, Sheena G. (2012) â€Å"Do Brand Personalities Make a Difference to Consumers?,† , Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 37, 31-37 Constructs: * When associated to image, brand uniqueness or identity is the arrangement of words, ideas and associations that structure the total perception of the brand. * Brand personality: the set of human characteristics associated with the brand. It makes brands more interesting, memorable, and it makes people more aware. The Big 5: * Sincerity: Down to earth, honest, wholesome, cheerful (Douwe Egberts). * Excitement: Daring, spirited, imaginative, up to date (Porsche). * Competence: reliable, intelligent, successful (ABN AMRO). * Sophistication: Upper class, Charming (Mercedes). * Ruggedness: Outdoorsy, Tough (Levis, Nike, Marlboro). * Brand personality statement: what personality managers want their consumers to perceive. * Brand personality profile: what the consumers are thinking and feeling about the brand. Findings: * Sentimental brand personalities are common for all fast moving consumer goods. Secondly, most FMCGs are characterized as young, successful and inspiring. Finally, success, friendliness, trendiness, uniqueness, modernization and glamour are often found. Implications: * Marketers should focus on strengthening their strategies by emphasizing personality traits of their brands. This can cause strategic changes in brand positioning or communications. Lecture notes Week 2 (03-09-2012): If your customers don’t know who you are, they won’t buy. You have to show who you are in order to do business. The circle of brand management: * Strategists propose an identity by using a certain strategy marketers and PR build on this strategy by choosing a position and messaging this position (potential) customers generate a brand image based on these messages strategists can again build a strategy to reposition the image of the consumers.  §1: Brand Identity: How strategists want the brand to be perceived: * It explains whether an ad suits the brand, whether new products should be launched inside or outside the brand boundaries, how far can we change our communication style regionally and internationally, or whether sponsorship would ‘fit’ the brand. * Definition: the unique composition of physical, social and psychological components of a brand as far as they are crucial, lasting and remarkable. * What’s the vision & aim of a company, what makes it different, what are its values, what need is the brand fulfilling, what is its permanent nature, and what signs make it recognizable. * Aspects: CED: Central, Enduring (whether it’s consistent over time) & Distinctive. * Components: Physical (external characteristics, logo), Psychological (experiences, character, point of view), Social (spokesperson, category, relationship, users).  §1.1 Heritage, consisting of history, consistency, passion and leadership. Effects are: * (1) Authentic real (2) trustworthy safe (3) intimate warm (4) expert excellence in performance and experience. * Sources are people, the firm itself, and region & nation; human capital, social capital, cultural capital & natural capital. * Country of origin is very important, and countlessly many papers have covered it.  §1.2 Personality & Values: * For the Big Five personality indicators/dimensions, see page 9 article 4. * Prototypical cues help distinguishing things between product categories. It also helps in creating expectance. * Values are stable,  desirable modes of conduct or abstract end-states that direct behavior. Milton R. defined 18 instrumental & 18 terminal values that can be used to find identity. * Core brand values: abstract associations that characterize the 5 to 10 most important aspects or dimensions of a brand. These serve the foundation of a brand strategy, and in particular the POPs and PODs (see page 11). For BMW this would be stylish driving, for Marlboro the cowboy life. * Brand Mantras: the ‘heart and soul’ of a brand: a 3-to-5 word phrase that captures the essence or spirit of the brand positioning and values. Malibu: seriously easy going. Here, campaigns are more about context rather than content; the expression of the brand is more important than the brand itself. Brand mantra’s consist of: * (1) Brand function (Authenticity for NIKE), (2) Descriptive modifier (Athletic for NIKE), (3) Emotional modifier (Performance for NIKE). * Implementing a mantra requires: communication simplification inspiration.  §1.3 Vision: The brand’s dream about the future. It is about shaping the category and improving customers’ welfare. Visions are provocative and can guide short-term behavior by communicating direction. The Brand Identity Prism to the left discusses (1) physique (features, symbols, attributes), (2) Personality, (3) Culture (set of values), (4) Relationship (beliefs and associations), (5) Reflection (consumers’ perception) and (6) Self-image (What the consumer thinks of himself).  §1.4 Brand Image: How the brand is actually perceived: * Identification: Brand awareness & category structure. * Qualification: Brand associations & meaning structure.  §2 Brand Positioning: The part of the brand identity and value proposition to be actively communicated to a target audience. It is the act of designing the company’s offer and image so that it occupies a distinct and valued place in the target customer’s minds. The following paragraphs represent the steps that should be taken when positioning a brand.  §2.1 (step A) Frame of Reference: Who is the target customer and who are the main competitors? Here, we define category membership: * Target markets can be defined by  segmentation. Segmentation can be done on the basis of consumers (descriptive, behavioral, psychographic or geographic) or B2B (nature of the goods, buying conditions, demographics). Combinations are also possible. Criteria: * Identifiability, size, accessibility, responsiveness. * Take into account that there are different types of competition, namely on product type, category or class. In addition, competition may occur at benefit level rather than attribute level (see paper 3 page 8). * When comparing at category level, 1 brand is the reference brand and several others are compared to that. If you’re the reference brand, consider improvements on prices and quality. Be aware that decreases in attributes hurt more than for non-reference brands. When you’re not a reference brand, any POD from the reference brand is a loss. Therefore, reference brand have competitive advantages. * Prospect theory: Extra value diminishes as available gains increase. * When you’re launching a new brand, all ‘usual’ category characteristics will first have to be transferred. ‘Creating’ a category is not advised and very expensive (Subway food). Copying prototypical cues can be used by the follower brand to be accepted in the category (e.g. fast food using Red & Yellow / McDo).  §2.2 (step B) POPs & PODs are chosen after defining the frame of reference: * Points of Parity: How is the brand similar to others in the category, how can they be associated and compared. Moreover, which associations are shared? Category POPs are necessary to be a legitimate and credible product offering within a category. Competitive POPs negate PODs of competitors. * Points of Difference: How is the brand different to others in the category? It’s about brand associations that are unique to the brand and favorably evaluated by consumers. They can be functional (performance related) or abstract (imagery-related). They’re also closely related to unique selling propositions, competitive advantages and distinctive competences. They’re more difficult to obtain than POPs. PODs and POPs can be defined using the following typology: Intrinsic product differentiation, Design/Style differentiation, Symbolic Differentiation, Channel Differentiation, Price Differentiation, Customer Service differentiation, Customer intimacy differentiation. Choosing PODS and POPs  is based on: * Desirability: Relevance, distinctiveness and believability. * Deliverability: Feasibility, communicability and sustainability.  §2.3 (Step C) Establishing POPs and PODs: This can be difficult since many POPs and PODs are negatively correlated (e.g. High quality and low price). Methods that can solve this problem are (1) separation of attributes (2) Leveraging equity of another entity (3) redefining the relationship.  §2.4 Use and usage situation: What is the brand promise and consumer benefit? And what is the occasion when the product will be consumed? The best moment to confront customers with product (advertisements) is when they really need it (e.g. In India, detergent ads are place on top of buses, since everyone does their laundry on the balcony where they see these tops).  §2.5 Statement and tags Are the current looks and ingredients compatible with its positioning? There are multiple elements that will evaluate and choose a brand positioning: 1. The Target audience 2. The compelling benefit 3. The reason why customers should believe the PODs 4. Product Name 5. Product Category Week 3: Special Branding Strategies Article 1: Keller, Kevin Lane and Philip Kotler (2012) â€Å"Branding in B2B firms† in: Handbook of Business-to-Business Marketing, edited by Gary l. Lilien and Rajdeep Grewal, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, UK. Constructs: * B2B branding: might not be needed because buyers are experienced and fully informed, it’s more about the buying experience, it involves  unnecessary costs, effects are only short-term, calculating ROI is difficult, brand building is complex and because it doesn’t significantly influence the buyers’ final decision. Findings: * The Brand Management Scorecard: a. Managers understand what the brand means to customers. b. The brand is properly positioned.  c. Customers receive superior delivery of the benefits they value most. d. The brand takes advantage of the full repertoire of branding and marketing activities available to build brand equity. e. Marketing and communications efforts are seamlessly integrated. The brand communicates with one voice. f. The brand’s pricing strategy is based on customer perceptions of value. g. The brand uses appropriate imagery to support its personality. h. The brand is innovative and relevant. i. For a multiproduct, multi-brand firm, the brand hierarchy and brand portfolio are strategically sound. j. The firm has in place a system to monitor brand equity and performance. * Steps to build and manage a strong brand: a. Ensure the organization understands and supports branding and the role of brand management. Moreover, internal branding is important (next two steps): b. Horizontal and vertical alignment: branding efforts should be understood by all. c. Brand mantras: (see p10  §1.2) will consistently reinforce and support the brand. a. A General Electric application: for this firm, more then a brand mantra was integrated successfully through 11 different businesses. d. Adopt a corporate brand strategy if possibly and create a well-defined brand hierarchy: (Carefully) decide on brand architecture (distinctive brand elements applied to the different products sold by the firm). Corporate branding is preferred. e. Corporate credibility: competence in delivery and satisfaction for the client. It depends on expertise, trustworthiness and likability. f. Brand hierarchy: Significantly different sub-businesses require sub-brands. g. Frame Value Perceptions: Strive for differentiation and value rather than  commoditization. Framing is about how clients currently think and choose among products and services, and then determining how this ideally should be. h. Link non-product-related imagery associations: Apple is perceived as an innovative brand, where Microsoft is more of an aggressive firm. Consider how dimensions of corporate credibility affect decisions of the B2B customer. i. Uncover relevant emotional associations for the brand: Security, social approval and self-respect definitely play a role. In addition, how do risk and feelings influence a customers decision making? j. Emotions and decision-making: Ultimately, individuals rather than organizations make purchasing decisions. These people are influenced by emotions & ratio. k. Segment Customers carefully and develop tailored branding and marketing programs. Should there be a uniform image within and across firms? l. Segmentation within organizations: the ‘buying center’ brings together initiators, users, influencers, deciders, approvers, buyers and gatekeepers. People fulfill multiple of these tasks, but all should be approached with identical messages. m. Segmentation across organizations: careful customer analysis is required for successful segmentation. Implications: Not mentioned. Article 2: Desai, Kalpesh Kaushik and Kevin Lane Keller (2002) â€Å"The Effects of Ingredient branding Strategies on Host Brand Extendibility,† Journal of Marketing, vol. 66, (January), 73- 93. Constructs: * Line extensions: minor product changes in the host brand, possibly already introduced by others in the category. When these changes are branded, they’re further defined as: * Slot-filler brand expansions: the level of one existing product attribute changes. * New attribute expansion: an entirely new attribute or characteristic is added to the product. * Self-branded ingredient: the host brand includes and creates a new self-brand. * Co-branded ingredient branding: using associated brands as ingredients (Dell & Intel) that are supplied by another firm. Findings: * For Slot-filler expansions, a cobranded ingredient facilitates initial expansion acceptance, but a self-branded ingredient leads to more favorable subsequent category extension evaluations. Subjects appeared not to credit the host brand for the cobrand association in evaluating subsequent extensions, and if anything, they held it against the host brand. * For new attribute expansions, a co-branded ingredient leads to more favorable evaluations of both the initial expansion and the subsequent category extension. Because a self-branded ingredient did not help ‘broaden’ the equity of the host brand, and because the host brand may have lacked credibility, an extension involving a self-branded ingredient was less favorably evaluated. * Should ingredients be branded? Yes, it improves the competitiveness of the host brand and it’s a signal of quality when combining high quality brands. Implications: * Besides helping improve the competitiveness of the host brand, the new attribute can, in some cases, expand the usage of the host brand. * Co-branding might enhance short-term equity of a host and its value, even under low fit. However, in the long-term co-branding will require more fit to the category. After all, they’re borrowing and not generating equity themselves. * Evaluations of slot-filler extensions suffer after the cobrand that was originally used in the expansion is dropped from the extension. Article 3: Gussoni, Manuela and Andrea Mangani (2012) â€Å"Corporate branding strategies in mergers and acquisitions,† Journal of Brand Management, I 350-213IX, 1-16 Constructs: * Corporate name is a strategic marketing asset and carries the corporation’s reputation. * Mergers & Acquisitions: can be classified as: * Conservative: the new entity adopts the acquirer’s or the target’s corporate name. * Innovative: the new entity uses a mixed or new name. * Horizontal: if the combining entities are active in the same  industry and produce similar goods & services. * Vertical: if the combining entities are active in the same industry but at separate production stages (buying buyers or suppliers). * Divisional acquisition: acquiring /merging only some divisions of companies. * Diversification: if the combining entities are active in separate industries * Financial investments: if a financial investor, typically a private equity investment firm, acquires a manufacturing or service company. Findings: * Divisional acquisition, vertical integrations, diversifications and the sectors involved do not affect the probability of the strategy being innovative. * Inventing a new name for a target is unusual. * Innovative brand strategies are more probably in the case of mergers (as opposed to acquisitions), horizontal M&As and financial investments. More specifically, a mixed name is the preferred option since value and reputation of both names will be involved. * When doing a financial investment, the acquirer doesn’t transfer it’s name, but chooses between keeping the acquired name or changing it in case of bad reputation. * Horizontal M&As tend to extend the name of the acquirer to the target. Implications: * Management and chanting of brands and corporate names may have a profound impact within organizations. Therefore we recommend carefully interpreting our and other studies regarding naming strategies. * Marketing during a M&A process is often underestimated. Article 4: Ilicic, Jasmina and Cynthia M. Webster (2012) â€Å"Celebrity co-branding partners as irrelevant brand information in advertisements,† Journal of Business Research Constructs: * Celebrities are identified as co-branding partners, where two brands (one being the celebrity) are paired with one another in a marketing context such as an advertisement. * Their should be a match between the  celebrity and brand image to achieve positive effects on consumer attitudes. * A celebrity not only provides consumers with relevant brand information when they convey characteristics pertinent to the brand but also when they mention information relevant to the endorsed brand. * Irrelevant information provided by a celebrity endorser also aids in making a judgment about whether the brand is able to deliver the benefit according to the consumer. This holds regardless of whether relevant brand information is also present. * Dilution effect in marketing: Dilution of consumers’ beliefs might occur when a celebrity provides both irrelevant and relevant brand information. This effect is present regardless of whether consumers perceive the celebrity to match or mismatch th e brand. Findings: * When a celebrity co-branding partner does not provide information about the partner brand nor brand benefits but plays a peripheral role, consumer judgments in the ability of the partner brand to deliver benefits, their purchase intent and their match-up perceptions become less positive. * Consumer brand benefit beliefs and purchase intentions show evidence of a dilution effect only when consumers perceive a mismatch between the celebrity and brand and when presented with irrelevant information supplied by a celebrity in addition to relevant brand information. When purely relevant information is presented, dilution does not occur. * Dilution occurs on perceived brand benefits, purchase intentions and match-up perception between the celebrity and the brand. Implications: * Ensure that a celebrity co-partner does not provide irrelevant brand information within advertisements to avoid brand benefit belief, purchase intent and match-up dilution. * Advertisements should feature an irrelevant and incongruent celebrity in combination with relevant brand information.

Flu Vaccination- Benefits and Contra-indications Research Paper

Flu Vaccination- Benefits and Contra-indications - Research Paper Example Active immunity allows the immune system to recognize infected bacteria or viruses as soon as the body comes in contact with them and triggers the production of anti-bodies to tackle them. Vaccination against diseases resists the spread of harmful illnesses in a society, contributing towards a healthy environment. Influenza, more commonly known as Flu, is a respiratory illness that is contagious and is characterized by symptoms like fever, body ache, coughing, sneezing and cold. It can become an epidemic because of its viral nature and once initiated, it is imperative to contain the spread of this disease through proper medication and vaccination. Flu vaccination is generally an annual vaccination program that encourages individuals to ensure protection from the attack of influenza through the year. Since influenza is of several types, it ensures protection against the most major kinds of this disease. It generally offers protection from two strains of type influenza A (H1N1 and H3N2) and one strain of type influenza B. This vaccine can be administered through vaccine injections called flu shots, or through inhalation. Flu vaccination is not mandatory but encouraged in many countries by their respective health ministries. It is more commonly given to young children, pregnant women, elderly, or individuals with health conditions that make them susceptive to such diseases.

The Technology of Netflix Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Technology of Netflix - Research Paper Example There are not many companies properly involved in the online renting of movies. Moreover, Netflix plays by keeping its cost low as it tries to attract customers to frequently use its services instead of getting movies from stores or going to cinemas. Analysts believe that Netflix is now facing a tough competition in the face of other companies such as Amazon and Apple, which have also started to provide online movie services at an affordable rate. Furthermore, the cost differentiation strategy used by Netflix has been pretty successful is retaining â€Å"frequent watchers† who use the service frequently. Alongside, the company’s differentiation strategy has allowed it to get accessed by customers who avoid going to stores and want to watch movies from the comfort of their homes. Porter’s Five Forces model was discovered in 1979 by Mr. Michael E. Porter of Harvard Business School. This model is used to give five factors that can be used to determine the stage of rivalry within a business. This would subsequently be used to determine the attractiveness of a market. Market attractiveness can be understood in terms of the overall profit levels achieved by an industry. To start off, Porter’s Five Forces model consists of the following five forces, namely threat of new entrants, bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining power of customers, the threat of substitutes and competitive rivalry in an industry. The application of each of these factors to Netflix will now be done to show how this business model works. The easier it is for new corporations to come into in the same business line as Netflix, the tougher would the competitive environment be. For any competitor to start up an online movie rental company, it would require enormous sums of money. Considering the amount of investments that would need to be made in setting contracts