Free Essays on Conflict Resolution

Why Conflict Happens It is natural as human beings for us to have conflicts especially when working amongst teams. â€Å"In our marriages or relationships, with our children, with friends, with co-workers, in politics-we all accept conflict as a normal part of the equation†. (Swenson, 2000 p.215). There are many types of conflicts such as emotional conflict and cognitive conflict to name a few. There are many reasons that conflicts arise in every day life. These conflicts may be as simple as who should speak first in a presentation, or as complex as team members not doing their share of the work load in the group. Why these conflicts occur and how we deal with them are crucial to creating a resolution and moving on to better ourselves. Emotional conflict, also known as A-type conflict, usually occurs when it is personal. You can become very defensive and resentful. According to Guetzkow & Gyr in â€Å"Tolls for Teams† it is rooted in anger, personal friction, personality clashes, ego, and tension. Emotional conflicts usually occur in teams when someone fears another’s increasing powers or trying to lessen the threats from other group members. Cognitive conflict, also known as C-type is just the opposite of emotional conflict in that it is impersonal. C-type conflict tends to be more confrontational rather than about anything else. Group members often find this type of conflict when discussing plans and projects. Although conflicts are considered to be a negative thing it is said that between the two types of conflicts it is best to have C-type because even though there is a conflict you can tend to be more productive because the group members are forced to consider the ideas of the other group members. How to deal with these types of conflicts can be very challenging. When trying to rectify an A-type conflict you simply need to turn it into a C-type conflict. The best way of doing that ... Free Essays on Conflict Resolution Free Essays on Conflict Resolution Why Conflict Happens It is natural as human beings for us to have conflicts especially when working amongst teams. â€Å"In our marriages or relationships, with our children, with friends, with co-workers, in politics-we all accept conflict as a normal part of the equation†. (Swenson, 2000 p.215). There are many types of conflicts such as emotional conflict and cognitive conflict to name a few. There are many reasons that conflicts arise in every day life. These conflicts may be as simple as who should speak first in a presentation, or as complex as team members not doing their share of the work load in the group. Why these conflicts occur and how we deal with them are crucial to creating a resolution and moving on to better ourselves. Emotional conflict, also known as A-type conflict, usually occurs when it is personal. You can become very defensive and resentful. According to Guetzkow & Gyr in â€Å"Tolls for Teams† it is rooted in anger, personal friction, personality clashes, ego, and tension. Emotional conflicts usually occur in teams when someone fears another’s increasing powers or trying to lessen the threats from other group members. Cognitive conflict, also known as C-type is just the opposite of emotional conflict in that it is impersonal. C-type conflict tends to be more confrontational rather than about anything else. Group members often find this type of conflict when discussing plans and projects. Although conflicts are considered to be a negative thing it is said that between the two types of conflicts it is best to have C-type because even though there is a conflict you can tend to be more productive because the group members are forced to consider the ideas of the other group members. How to deal with these types of conflicts can be very challenging. When trying to rectify an A-type conflict you simply need to turn it into a C-type conflict. The best way of doing that ...

Coring preparation, preservation, and handling Research Paper

Coring preparation, preservation, and handling - Research Paper Example When seeking to form a description of a core, it is essential that one place the lay out of the core on a table. This will be essential in checking the amount of the core and compare it to the coring report so as to ensure no core material was lost during the transportation process (Fjar, Holt, Raaen, Risnes, and Horsrud 125). In case of any alterations or damage, it is important to note such details. The numbering placed on the containers should be noted against the cumulative depth reported. This then creates a better understanding of the core, and offers a chance to check on the orientation and continuity with respect to the top of the core. If the records show the downhole gamma-ray logs, then it would be advisable to verify the same by comparing the to the core gamma-ray logs. This verifies the consistency of the cored interval depths with the log depths. The core features such as composition, texture, color, and porosity types should also be noted. After getting this information, the cutting of stabilized or unstabilized cores will depend on the plug sample methods or the plunge cut technique. This will prepare it for preservation (Fjar, Holt, Raaen, Risnes, and Horsrud 127). The purpose of preservation is to maintain the chemical and physical properties inherent in the cores as close as possible to the reservoir data. The impact noted should be in relation to the intended utility of the core afterwards. The failure to create an impermeable barrier around the sample could lead to wettability alterations, loss of interstitial water, precipitation of the salts, and damage to the mineral fabric (Morton-Thompson and Woods 105). The methods of preservation differ depending on the intended achievements. Six methods have been developed which include sealing the core in airtight metal-cans, dry ice freezing, plastic bag seals, using plastic, steel, or aluminum tubes to seal, wrapping in plastic tape or metal foil, as well as using plastic coatings. Notably,

Business Law, Employment Law or Labor Law in Danskin Inc Essay

Business Law, Employment Law or Labor Law in Danskin Inc - Essay Example In this situation, the employee, the hurt party, is called the plaintiff while the employer, the source of grievance, is the defendant. This paper will examine a particular employee-employer dispute and the possible laws and remedies, if any, that are applicable to this case. The following are the facts of the case. 53- year old Kayte Clark is a Vice President for â€Å"Danskin Inc.† Clark is good-looking, enthusiastic and energetic. The employees like, respect and follow her. Legally blind after she acquired an eye disease twenty-three years ago, Clark has not been promoted to Senior Vice President twice because the company does not believe she can handle the stress or manage well because of her disability. Clark allows union representatives to send information paraphernalia to the company employees. Danskin Inc. top management is upset with Clark’s action and threatens to fire her. Clark explains the law forbids her to stop employees from being informed about the union. Danskin Inc. management is not satisfied with Clark’s explanation. Employees are informed that Clark did not have authority regarding the union representatives and are ordered not to speak to the union people. After a week, Clark has presented a one-time offer retirement package which does not include normal retirement benefits, insurance coverage, social security payments until the age of 59 or buy-out funds. Clark does not respond and is terminated after two weeks. Clark sues Danskin, Inc. Under federal laws, Danskin Inc. is accountable for two reasons. The first is the attitude Danskin Inc. management showed towards its employees and the union agents. The right of the employees to join or form labor organizations is provided in Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act or NLRA.  

Heritage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Heritage - Essay Example The repairs, alterations and exterior modifications protected the heritage values of the hall. This concept paper seeks to show the historical significance of Petone Labour Hall and the continued importance and identity to the community heritage despite its conversion into mainly a cinema hall. Under the severance, it is identified by the Map Number B5 on location 52 Bay Street, formally refered to as Petone Labour Hall and the legal description is Lot 70 DP 51.The building was constructed using bricks and reinforced with concrete. It comprises a large hall, a stage and a smaller lecture room located at the back. The Light House that is run in partnership with Upper Hut’s luxury 40-seat art house cinema has two theatres where unlike other theatres popcorn is prohibited (Leach et al n.pg). The special features in the Light house include the proposed insulation controls sound effects. The Light House is designed to screen movies that appeal to a larger and wider audience than those in the big chain multiplexes. Alongside the two theatres there are licensed coffee shops. The building was used mainly for entertainment purposes and now that it is a cinema hall, it does not mean it serves a different purpose. However, this preserved the building’s heritage value an d also restored its role as a community entertainment center (Leach and Moulis n.pg). The new face of the building has different accessibility levels from the ground, as well as, the ticketing area and the coffee shops. There are five cinemas access levels from the ground and in every level there are seats set aside for people with disabilities. For example, there are hearing loop for sound transmits directly to the hearing aid for individuals with hearing impairments. It also has an infrared system that consists of listening receiver and a transmitter. This feeds sound into the transmitter then to the individual

Of Mice and Men Characters Essay Example for Free

Of Mice and Men Characters Essay In the novel, Candy and Curleys wife play a large part of the ideas that Steinbeck wants to convey through Of Mice and Men. Steinbeck shows this via the events and treatments that these two characters undergo. Their speech and actions also indicate major themes in the world they were in and how desperate the era was. Candy presents an element on the sadness in the novel; hes a unfortunate man whos passed his expiry date. Hes been involved in an accident and lost his arm and by this, he has been reduced to the swamper of the rank- a very low status job. Steinbeck may specifically choose this job for candy as a swamper (a cleaner) tends to be a job that woman generally work as and in this job, they often gossip a lot like Candy does. He does this as it is the only pleasure that he can experience in his sad rotting life. This paints the portrait of how sad Candys background may be and soon this is elaborated on even more in future events. In the middle section of the book, we see how Candy is bullied by Carlson into having his best friend- his dog put down. We know that Candy is very close to his dog as Steinbeck actually chooses to describe the dog very similarly to Candy. They are both old, physically impaired and get described generally as a liability. Steinbeck chooses to describe the dog as ancient which produces strong imagery of a dog being similar to an old antique. Although it may possess positive connotations, it is obvious due to Carlsons reaction that the dog is old, dirty and has no purpose anymore. Soon after as Carlson enforces the idea, Candy desperately tries to dismiss it. It states how he looked helplessly which shows how reluctant he is but knows there is no other possible outcome. Carlson even shows utter disrespect to his dog by pointing at it with his toe. By using his tower, he suggests that the dog is on par with the lowliest part of his body and doesnt require the effort to use his hands. Nevertheless, Candy shows no aggression to this outrageous act and concedes to Carlsons insensitive actions. Steinbeck may choose these chain of events to show how a cruel world the characters and people had to live in. It really puts forward survival of the fittest and shows how depressingly cheap life is since people can easily walk over you when youre unable to fight for yourself. Even after all the abuse he has received, Candy is still able to show kindness to others. At the point where Candy overhears Georges dream, he slowly asks whether he can join them. We know that he isnt greedy at this point since he repeatedly mentions how he would willingly try his best with jobs such as cook or hoe despite he aint much good. He also says how he is willing to give up all his money he received when he los' his hand and this just shows how he is desperately giving all he has to help them only for a little in return. Steinbeck emphasises how emotionally willing Candy is that he would trade in the compensation for something irreplaceable to him for the benefit of others. This makes the reader sympathize with Candy and understand how strong dreams are in life; how they give people hope, the strength to keep living and the strength to be a nice person again. Curleys wife on the other hand is the complete opposite. Her story plays a large part in the novel as it shows how dreams can crush peoples hope as easily and they give people hope. Throughout the novel, we have always seen Curleys wife as the problem. She is described as poison and jailbait by George which initially makes readers dislike her. We feel that she can cause the downfall of our newly made friends dreams so she is instantly given a hostility status by Steinbeck. However, he may deliberately do this to create a larger impact when we learn why she may possibly act the way she does. At earlier stages of the novel, we learn how Curleys wife loves and seeks attention. Steinbeck describes how she was standing at the doorway blocking off the sunshine in the doorway deliberately. This implies that she wants the men in the bunkhouse to look up due to the sudden change as she purposefully blocks the light off so that they would do so. It also describes how she was heavily made up that she was making a large effort to attract attention of the men. The word heavily also has connotations that she was trying to hard to an extent where it had negative effects on her. This may also symbolize her character through physical features- that her personality has been corrupted and turned ugly. In the final stages of the book, we learn what has driven Curleys wife to act in this aggressive way. Although she speaks to groups of men with hostility, when its one on one, it runs a lot more smoothly and she seems like she enjoys herself. This has a large contract since there is juxtaposition between section 4 and 5. We see her nasty side where she mock George, Lennie and Candys dream calling it baloney and scoffs at it yet even herself who has been crushed by her own dream may secretly believe. This shows that beneath this angry cover of hers, may be a vulnerable person who only feels the bitterness and jealousy of others happiness hinted by the phrase secretly believe. Steinbeck states this about the cowboy magazines to suggest what type of sad life people live in however, within dreams still lies hope but people are afraid to admit to the hope since they are scared of the criticism others show. This idea is developed implicitly mainly by the word secret. Through this attitude, people have become cynical and cold over the time which is what Steinbeck may want to show us. Curleys wife shares with Lennie her dream in section 5. The fact that she has never told anyone (which she states herself) shows how underneath all the bitterness she has experienced, the memory of the dream she once had (or partially may still have) changes her to be kind and share her deepest secrets with a stranger. On the other hand, Lennie may be an exception since he is nuts implying that he may be able to keep this secret. Furthermore, we learn how Curleys wife left home since she had a hunch that her mother stole her letters. The word stole in this context possesses quite negative connotations since Curleys wife directly accuses her own mother for betraying her. However, this was most likely an excuse and lie to herself since she couldnt bear the reality of having her dream crushed by the stranger who created it. This yet again emphasises how strong dreams were at this time which broke lives altogether. Compare how female speakers are presented in Havisham by Carol Ann Duffy and one poem from the Pre-1914 Poetry Bank. The two female speakers in Havisham and The laboratory both are presented as rather mentally unstable people. They both have experienced rejection from a man and feel belittled or embarrassed by this. However, their reactions and response to this rejection differ to a huge extent. The speaker in Havisham is shown to have rotted away being devoured by her bitterness whereas the speaker in Lab seemed to be slightly more insane driven by her jealous feelings of insecurity to try and kill someone. The bitterness from the character in Havisham is clear from the start. She describes the man who left her as a beloved sweetheart bastard. This use of oxymoron shows several possible connotations. By putting two very opposite words together- one stating strong affection and one stating utter most hate, the idea that beneath the hate she holds against him lies love for him. Elaborating on this may suggest how she may hate him as she cant have him or even because she actually still loves him deep inside. Above all, this suggests how she cant seem to let go of him and move on which presents her mental state to the readers. Likewise in Lab, we understand the feelings of the speaker through clever use of language. For instance, Robert Browning chooses to say devils smithy. Devil automatically conjures the sense of evil or corruptness whereas a smithy is somewhere where things are made such as weapons (blacksmith). These combined imply that a creation of evil with malicious intent is occurring in the poem. Soon after we discover that the protagonist has experienced similar rejection to that of Havisham. He is with her suggests that the man he wants is with another woman. By referring to them as he and her, it creates an enigmatic feeling or even that their names are insignificant and it is purely the concept that she has been left for a woman who is better than her which causes her rage. We know that she is also jealous when the speaker wishes for the other woman breast and her arms and her hands to drop dead. She specifically chooses these body parts implying that these are the parts which the other women best her at and this is why she hates them. In Havisham, the speakers reaction to this rejection was simply to rot with it burning them. She continues to feel this bitterness as suggested with the word Spinster. This word possesses a harsh consonance sound as if she spits it out with such disgust. It is also a one word sentence which emphasises it and also makes it out to be some what of an insult. The word stink and remember following afterwards reinforces this as if shes being driven crazy by the thought of people calling her a spinster. Thus all she does for the rest of her days is rot in her hate. We get the impression that shes been doing this for years since she describes how her dress yellowing- yellowing suggesting dirtying from the years its been on her. On the otherhand, the speaker is Lab is made out to be more malicious than having thoughts of hate. As she makes the poison, she describes the creation with very vivid verbal details. Grind away, moisten and mash up create strong imagery and each of the verbs hold strong care in creating something. By suggesting this care and importance that has gone into the poison, it seems that she really relishes the creation. And finally as she fantasises about how delicious the event would be, she thinks about how the dying face would be branded into the male characters mind. She wants to mentally scar him with the horrendous image possibly for punishment or to make him see how ugly the other woman is when she becomes shrivelled suggesting how her face would become contorted with agony. As she describes this with such detail and precision, the poet presents to us how malicious and bitter the speaker is. A thus through use of language and theme, the poets have successfully produces a very clear image of the bitter, hate filled speakers and how theyve become this way and even how they have dealt with this. The speaker in Havisham rotting and yellowing opposed to the minion in Lab who relishes in the thought of killing and branding someone with the scarring image of death.

The Essence Of The Marketing Concept

The Essence Of The Marketing Concept Market segmentation can be defined as the process of breaking down the total market for a product or service into distinct sub-groups or segments where each segment may conceivably represent a separate target market to be reached with a distinctive marketing mix. Segmentation and the subsequent strategies of targeting and positioning start by recognizing that increasingly, within the total demand/market for a product, specific tastes, needs and demand may differ. It breaks down the total market for a product or service into individual clusters of customers, or segments. Here, customers who share similar demand preferences are grouped together within each segment. Effective segmentation is achieved when customers sharing similar patterns of demand are grouped together and where each group or segment differs in the pattern of demand from other segments in the market. In most markets, be they consumer or industrial, some kind of segmentation can be accomplished on this basis. 2 Targeted marketing efforts Most companies realise that they cannot effectively serve all the segments in a market, and must instead target their marketing efforts. For example, in developing a new car, the manufacturing firm will have to make a decision on many issues, such as should it be a two-, four-, or five-seater model, with a 1000, 2000 or 3000cc engine? Should it have leather, fabric or vinyl seats? The over-riding factor when deciding these issues is customer demand. Some customers (segments) may want a five-seater 2000cc model with leather upholstery, while others may prefer a four-seater with a 1000cc engine and fabric seats. A solution would be to compromise and produce a four-seater 1500cc model with leather seats and fabric trim. Clearly, such a model would go some way to meeting the requirements of both groups of buyers, but there is a danger that because the needs of neither market segment are precisely met, most potential customers would purchase from other suppliers who could cater for their specific requirements. Ironically, one of the biggest post-war car failures was the much heralded and much hyped American Ford Edsel car. This is a car that was produced following extensive marketing research, the results of which were aggregated, and the end product was a car that satisfied the true needs of very few buyers making it the most spectacular flop in modern motoring history. Target marketing is thus defined as the identification of the market segments that are identified as being the most likely purchasers of a companys products. Specifically, the advantages of target marketing are: Marketing opportunities and unfilled gaps in a market may be more accurately appraised and identified. Such gaps can be real (e.g. sweet, strong, harsh or mild) or they can be illusionary in terms of the way people want to view the product (e.g. happy, aloof, silly or moody). In the case of the former, product attributes can fulfil these criteria whereas for the latter these attributes might well have to be implanted in the minds of customers through an appropriate advertising message. Market and product appeals through manipulation of the marketing mix can be more delicately tuned to the needs of the potential customer. Marketing effort can be concentrated on the market segment(s) which offer the greatest potential for the company to achieve its goals be they goals to maximise profit potential or to secure the best long-term position for the product or any other appropriate goal. 3 Effective segmentation Theoretically, the base(s) used for segmentation should lead to segments that are: Measurable/identifiable Here, the base(s) used should preferably lead to ease of identification in terms of who is in each segment. It should also be capable of measurement in terms of the potential customers in each segment. Accessible Here, the base(s) used should ideally lead to the company being able to reach selected market targets with their individual marketing efforts. Meaningful The base(s) used must lead to segments which have different preferences or needs and show clear variations in market behaviour and response to individually designed marketing mixes. Substantial The base(s) used should lead to segments which are sufficiently large to be economically and practically worthwhile serving as discrete market targets with a distinctive marketing mix. The third criterion is particularly important for effective segmentation, as it is an essential prerequisite when attempting to identify and select market targets. In segmentation, targeting and positioning, a company must identify distinct subsets of customers in the total market for a product where any subset might eventually be selected as a market target, and for which a distinctive marketing mix will be developed. The following represents the sequential steps in conducting a segmentation, targeting and positioning exercise for any given product market. Select base(s) for segmentation and identify appropriate market segments. Evaluate and appraise the market segments resulting from the first step. Select an overall market targeting strategy. Select specific target segments. Develop a product positioning strategy for each target segment. 6. Develop an appropriate marketing mix for each chosen target segment in order to support the product positioning strategy. 4 Segmentation bases in consumer product markets Geographic segmentation consists of dividing a country into regions that normally represent an individual sales persons territory. In bigger companies, these larger regions are then broken down into areas with individual regional manager controlling salespeople in distinct areas. In international marketing, different countries may be deemed to constitute different market segments. Demographic segmentation consists of a wide variety of bases for subdividing markets, and each of these is now discussed: Age is a good segmentation variable for such items as clothes where the fashion-conscious young are more susceptible to regular changes in style and older segments are perhaps more concerned with such factors as quality and comfort. Sex is a strong segment in terms of goods that are specifically targeted towards males or females and again an obvious example is clothing. Here, fashion is a powerful element when purchasing, and a whole industry surrounds this criterion. Income as a segmentation base is more popular in certain countries like the USA than others who regard such matters very privately. Social class is possibly the single most used variable for research purposes. It is universally used. The National Readership Survey divides everybody into the following categories as shown in Figure 1: A Upper middle class (higher managerial, administrative or professional) which comprises about 3 per cent of the population B Middle class (intermediate managerial, administrative or professional) which comprises approximately 10 per cent of the population C1 Lower middle class (supervisory, clerical, junior administrative or professional) containing around 25 per cent of the population C2 Skilled working clsass (skilled manual workers) who comprise around 30 per cent of the population. D Working class (semi- and unskilled manual workers) or around 27 per cent of the population E Lowest levels of subsistence (state pensioners with no other income, widows, casual and lowest grade earners) who form the remaining 5 per cent, or thereabouts, of the population. Figure 1 Social class and grade structure Education is often related to social class, because, as a generalisation, the better educated tend to get the better jobs. It is generally acknowledged that a persons media habits are related to education. Accordingly, newspapers design to aim their news and newspaper content towards the upper or lower ends of the social spectrum, and encourage advertisers to target their advertising appropriately, depending upon whether an advertisers product has an up-market or down-market appeal. In fact they publicise their readership profile of the percentage of ABC1, etc groups that actually read their newspapers or magazines and this information is ascertained through independent auditors. This is done principally to alert advertising agencies who will place their clients advertising according to the social classes towards at whom their products are targeted. Nationality or ethnic background now constitutes a growing and distinctive segment for potential target marketing. Food products, clothing and hair care products are obvious examples of products that fit into this segmentation variable. Political is perhaps a less obvious segmentation base. An individuals political leanings might well influence the way he or she behaves in terms of purchases made. Such purchases are of course reflected in the types of newspaper and other media that is read, and this, in turn, contains advertising which is aimed at people who read such media, so political leanings might be more significant than it initially seems. Family size will have an effect on the amount or size of purchases, so this is certainly a meaningful segmentation variable. Family life cycle is a logical follow on to the above and this will tend to determine the purchase of many consumer durable products. This is based on the notion that consumers pass through a series of quite distinct phases in their lives, each phase giving rise to different purchasing patterns and needs. For example, an unmarried person living at home will probably have very different purchasing patterns from someone of the same age who has left home and is recently married. Wells and Gubar have put forward what is now an internationally recognised classification system in relation to life cycle and these stages are shown in Figure 2: Bachelor stage young single people not living with parents (which gave rise to the category of YUPPIES or young, upwardly-mobile persons) Newly marrieds no children (sometimes referred to as DINKIES meaning double income no kids) Full nest I with the youngest child being under six years of age (sometimes referred to as ORCHIDS meaning one recent child, heavily in debt) Full nest II is where the youngest child is six or over Full nest III is an older married couple with dependent children living at home Empty nest I with no children living at home, but the family head is in work (sometimes referred to as WOOPIES meaning well off older persons) Empty nest II where the family head is retired Solitary survivor in work Solitary survivor retired (unkindly referred to as COCOON meaning cheap old child-minder, operating on nothing) Figure 2 Family life cycle segmentation base SAGACITY is a refinement of the family life cycle grouping system. This is a system that believes that people have different behavioural patterns and aspirations as they proceed through life. Four main stages of life cycle are defined as: Dependent (mainly under 24 living at home) Pre-family (under 35s who have established their own household, but without children) Family (couples under 65 with one or more children in the household) Late (adults whose children have left home or who are over 35 and childless) Income groups are then defined as being in categories: better off and worse off Occupation groups are defined as white (collar) or the A, B and C1 social groups and blue (collar) or the C2, D and E social groups The system works as shown in Figure 3: Life cycle Dependent Pre-family Family Late Income Better off Worse off Better off Worse off Occupation White Blue White Blue White Blue White Blue White Blue White Blue Approx % 7 7 5 5 11.5 10.5 2.5 7.5 10 7.5 9 18 adults UK (NB Because of rounding, total figure does not add to 100%) Source: Research Services Limited Figure 3 Sagacity Life Cycle Groupings Type of neighbourhood and dwelling (ACORN) is a relatively new segmentation base. Its underlying philosophy the fact that the type of dwelling and area a person lives in is a good predictor of likely purchasing behaviour including the types of products and brands which might be purchased. This classification analyses homes, rather than individuals, as a basis for segmentation. It is termed the ACORN system (A Classification of Residential Neighbourhoods). The source of this is the 10-yearly population census that is undertaken during every year ending with one the next being due in 2001. The system was developed by Richard Webber for Consolidated Analysis Centres Incorporated (CACI). It breaks down the census of population into various categories of homes as shown in Figure 4. Acorn Type of dwelling Approx % UK population Group A Agricultural areas 3 B Modern family housing, higher incomes 18 C Older housing of intermediate status 17 D Poor quality older terraced housing 4 E Better-off council estates 13 F Less well-off council estates 9 G Poorest council estates 7 H Multi-racial areas 4 I High status non-family areas 4 J Affluent suburban housing 16 K Better-off retirement areas 4 U Unclassified 1 (Source CACI) Figure 4 ACORN Classification system These ACORN classifications are further sub-divided into yet smaller groupings. For instance, Group C which refers to Older housing of intermediate status, is broken down into: C8 Mixed owner-occupied and council estates C9 Small town centres and flats above shops C10 Villages with non-farm employment C11 Older private shousing skilled workers Mosaic system This system is an extension of the ACORN system except that this is based upon individual postal codes (or zip codes). Each postal code in the UK consists of up to seven letters and figures. An individual postal code represents approximately ten dwellings and each of these groups of dwellings is given an individual Mosaic categorisation, of which there are 58 categories. The idea of mosaic comes from the notion that if a different colour was ascribed to each category and superimposed on a map of the UK the resulting pattern would resemble a mosaic. The full Mosaic listing is not reproduced here, but by way of illustration some of these are described below: M1 High status retirement areas with many single pensioners 1.0% of population M15 Lower income older terraced housing 1.5% M25 Smart inner city plats, company lets, very few children 1.5% M33 Council estates, often Scottish flats, with worst overcrowding 1.3% M46 Post 1981 housing in areas of highest income and status 0.2% M50 Newly built private estates, factory workers, young families 3.3% M57 Hamlets and scattered farms 0.7% Taken together, the demographic bases described constitute the most popular bases for segmentation in consumer product markets, since they are often associated with differences in consumer demand. As such, they are meaningful to advertisers. For instance, occupation and social class are linked because of the way that occupation is used to define social class. It is, therefore, relatively easy to reach the different social classes through their different media and shopping habits, although boundaries between the purchasing power of different classes become blurred when, for example, skilled manual workers are able to earn higher incomes than their counterparts in lower or intermediate management. Direct or behavioural segmentation appeals to marketing people as it takes customer purchasing behaviour as the starting point for segmentation. Such bases include: Usage status when a distinction might be made between say light, medium and heavy users. Brand loyalty status where customers can be divided into a number of groups according to their loyalty, or their propensity to repurchase the brand again. Status categories are: Hard core loyals who purchase the same brand every time Soft core loyals who have divided loyalties between two or more brands and purchase any of these on a random basis Shifting loyals who are sometimes called brand switchers in that they buy one brand, and stay with it for a certain period, and then purchase another brand and stay with it for a certain period. They may then return to the original brand Switchers who show no particular preference or loyalty to one particular brand, so their purchasing pattern cannot be clearly determined. Benefits sought is a segmentation base that determines the principal expectation(s) that a purchaser is seeking from the product. For instance, in the case of an automobile oil, purchasers might be looking for cheapness, a well known brand, its viscosity or its engine protection reputation. Occasions for purchase also falls under this category. An example here relates to the purchase of holidays. Lifestyle or psychographic segmentation is based on the idea that individuals have characteristic patterns of living that may be reflected in the products and brands which they purchase. The advertising agency, Young Rubican, has come up with a classification system called Four Cs where C stands for consumers. These categories are: Mainstreamers or the largest group who do not want to stand out from the crowd. They are the biggest segment (over 40 per cent of the population) and tend to purchase branded products over supermarket brands. Reformers are people who tend to be creative and caring, many doing charitable work. They are largely responsible for the purchase of supermarket brands. Aspirers are usually younger people who are ambitious and keen to get on at all costs. Their purchases tend to reflect the latest models and designs. Succeeders are those who have made it and do not see the need for status symbols that aspirers seek. They like to be in control of what they are doing and this includes their purchases where they generally have very clear and firm ideas of what they see as a good product and what they see as being a less useful product. 5 Segmentation bases in industrial product markets Segmenting an industrial product market introduces a number of additional bases, uses similar bases and also precludes some of the ones more frequently used for consumer product markets. Such bases are: Type of application/end use e.g. adhesives for home, office and industrial use Geographical e.g. North, South, East and West regions or by country Benefits sought Closely related to the above, but in terms of what the product actually does for the buying company e.g. detergents for general cleaning or detergents that are actually used in the production process Type of customer e.g. banks or insurance companies or people who purchase for public authorities Product/technology e.g. fibres for the carpet industry or the clothing industry Customer size e.g. larger customers might receive different treatment to smaller customers and this is called key account selling whereby the sales manager deals directly with major accounts Usage rate e.g. light users or heavy users; regular or sporadic users Loyalty of customer e.g. regular purchasers of the companys products and sporadic purchasers. The treatment accorded to loyal customers might differ to that given to occasional customers Purchasing procedures e.g. centralized versus decentralized purchasing (which can affect the buyer/seller relationship); the extent to which purchasing is carried out by tightly defined, or more flexible, specifications which allows the seller more latitude in terms of making suggestions, the extent to which purchasing is by tender (i.e. by some kind of closed bidding system) or by open negotiation Situational factors considers the tactical role of the purchasing circumstances. In some purchasing situations it requires a more detailed knowledge of the customer whereas in others the buyer/seller relationship is kept strictly to commercial matters Personal characteristics relate to the people who make purchasing decisions As with consumer markets, industrial market segmentation may be on an indirect (associative) or a direct (behavioural) basis. A variety of bases may be also be used in conjunction with each other in order to obtain successively smaller sub-segments of the market. The essential criteria given earlier for bases of consumer market segmentation being identifiable, accessible, substantial and, most important, meaningful are equally applicable to bases for industrial market segmentation. A nested approach has been suggested on the basis of a hierarchy from the broad to the specific (See Figure 5). DEMOGRAPHICS OPERATING VARIABLES PURCHASING APPROACH SITUATIONAL PERSONAL CHARAC- TERISTICS Figure 5 A nested approach to segmentation in industrial markets At the centre we have people who actually make buying decisions and their personalities must be considered. Then come situational factors that look at the tactical role of the purchasing situation. This demands customer knowledge. Purchasing approaches examines customer purchasing practices (e.g. who actually makes buying decisions, or the decision making unit). Operating variables allow a more exact pinpointing of potential and existing customers within the final category that is demographic variables, or the broad description of the segments related to customer needs and patterns of usage. 6 Effective segmentation Once market segments have been identified, the marketers task is to assess these various market segments. This appraisal should be in relation to sales and profit potential, or in the case of a non-profit organization, their ability to add to organisational aims. This means that each segment should be viewed in terms of its overall size, projected rate of growth, actual and potential competition, nature of competitive strategies and customer needs. Companies that decide to follow a concentrated or a differentiated targeting strategy must decide which of the segments in the market they wish to serve. Such a decision to select specific target markets must be based on some of the factors outlined earlier, including resources, competition, segment potential and company objectives. There are four characteristics that make a market segment particularly attractive: It has sufficient current profit and sales potential to meet the organisations aims and objectives Competition in the segment is not too intense There is good potential for future growth The segment has some previously unidentified requirements that the company has recognised and is now in a position to serve especially well 7 Product positioning A company has to develop a positioning strategy for each segment it chooses to serve. This relates to the task of ensuring that a particular companys products occupy a planned for place in chosen target markets, pertinent to opposing competition in the marketplace. The notion of product/brand positioning is applicable to both industrial and consumer markets, and the key aspects of this approach are based upon the following suppositions. All products and brands have both objective attributes (e.g. sweet/sour; dark/light; fast/slow) and subjective attributes (e.g. modern/unfashionable; happy/sad; youthful/elderly). Potential purchasers might think about one or more of these attributes when deliberating which product and/or brand to purchase. That potential customers have their own thoughts about how the various competing products or brands rate for each of these particular attributes. In other words, the positioning of the brand along the parameters of these attributes (eg entertaining on the one hand to mundane at the other extreme) takes place in the mind of the customer. Once this is done, it is possible to establish important attributes in choosing between different brands or products, together with the customers perception of the position of competitors products in relation to these characteristics, and then establish the most advantageous position for the company within this particular segment of the market. The final step in the appraisal of segmentation, targeting and positioning is developing appropriate marketing mixes. This involves the design of marketing programmes that will support the chosen positional strategy in the selected target markets. The company must therefore determine the 4 Ps of its marketing mix, i.e. what price, product, distribution (place) and promotional strategies will be necessary to achieve the desired position in the market. There are four acknowledged strategic options for target marketing: Undifferentiated marketing where there is one single marketing mix for every potential customer in the market. Differentiated marketing where there are many marketing mixes for different segments of the market. Concentrated marketing which has a single marketing mix for a segment of the total market. Custom marketing which attempts to satisfy each individual customers requirements with a separate marketing mix. 8 Summary We can now appreciate how marketing begins to work. Having defined the purpose of segmentation we have looked at the obvious and the less obvious bases for segmentation in both consumer and industrial markets. We have also ascertained that used well, the techniques and concepts described in this chapter can contribute significantly to overall company marketing success. Market segmentation, targeting and positioning decisions are thus more strategic than they are tactical. Segmentation variables should be examined in detail, especially new segments. These should then be authenticated in terms of viability and potential profit. Targeting investigates specific segments in terms of how they should be approached. Positioning relates to how the product is perceived in the minds of consumers and a suitable marketing mix should then be designed.

English Views of the Native Americans :: essays papers

English Views of the Native Americans After reading chapter three of Unger's American Issues, I now have a better understanding of how English settlers looked upon the lifestyles of the Native Americans. Four key people that have led to this understanding are Hugh Jones, Hugh Henry Brackenridge, William Penn, and John Heckewelder. In their essay's they give accurate accounts of how the Native Americans lived, through their eyes. I also see how European beliefs reflected their views and how this set the stage for conflict among these groups. In Hugh Jones' essay titled, "Characteristics of the Indians," he basically gives a factual account of how the Indians live their daily life. Although his account is mostly factual, his European biases do play a major role in his interpretation of Indian ways. In one instance, in describing the Indians rejoicing and war dances, Jones says that they used, "the most antick [sic] gestures, in the most frightful dress, with a hideous noise" (Unger, p. 43). To Jones and other Englishmen their dress may seem frightful and the noise may sound hideous, but that is his opinion. To the Indians this is normal and a way of life. This just shows the white man's ignorance to the culture of the Native Americans. In a second instance Jones's describes the Indians in their "finest dress." He states that the Indians believe they are looking their best when they are ridiculously dressed. Once again he is giving his opinion of the definition of what is considered ridiculous to the English. Jones also pokes fun at many of the traditions of the Indians, for example, the way they wear their hair or the painting on their faces. He notes this as being comical and also uses sarcasm in portraying these traditions. Jones' essay provides many useful facts about the Indian way of life, but his European biases prevent him from disclosing the actual truth. Hugh Henry Brackenridge has a very opposing view towards the Indians. Jones never really gives his personal opinion on whether or not he liked the Indians, but Brackenridge make his view very clear. He makes this apparent in the title of his essay, "The Indians Have No Exclusive Claim to America." Brackenridge supports this notion with many references to the Bible. He states that "The whole of this earth was given to man, and all descendants of Adam have a right to share it equally" (Brackenridge, in Unger, p.