A SWOT and marketing analysis of Virgin Media

A SWOT and marketing analysis of Virgin Media Services marketing are a form of marketing which focuses on selling services. Services can be tricky to sell and the marketing approach for them is much different than the approach for products. Some companies offer both products and services and must use a mixture of styles; for example, a store which sells phone also tends to offer services such as helping people select phone as contract and providing broadband service and phone repair. Such a store must market both its products and the supporting services it offers to appeal to customers. When people market services, the goal is not to get customers to buy a product, but to get people to do business with a particular company, often in a specific location. For example, virgin media offers broadband and internet service: It provides phone, internet and TV service for the customers, both on-site and in to-go form in many cases. When the company markets itself, it must convince people that it is preferable to other broadband and that its facility is worth the trip. Virgin Media is an innovative new media company that was formed as a result of a merger between NTL and Telewest and then a re-branding as Virgin Media. Its main strength lies in the branding and the innovation that the name Virgin offers. Internally, Virgin Media is the only company in the United Kingdom that offers all four of the main media services, i.e. digital television, broadband, fixed line telephone and mobile phone packages. The ability to offer these products all together in one bundle is the unique selling point of Virgin Media and clearly sets the company apart from its competitors. Swot analysis Swot analysis is the most important and first stage of planning. It is a feedback mechanism to make new strategies for any organisation. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats are the four components of a swot analysis. Weaknesses and Strengths are correlated and examine the internal part of the business analysis whereas Opportunities and Threats deal with the external environment of business operation. Weaknesses and strengths refer to aspect of marketing, finance, manufacturing or organisational structure. Swot analysis helps clarifies the objectives of the organisation Strengths In offering these combined services, the company has substantial economies of scale as it is able to combine many of its generic roles such as administration and finance, thus allowing the company to price more competitively for the benefit of its customers. Due to its perceived leading brand name in the media, Virgin Media has managed to secure an ongoing contract with Sky, extending further still its inclusive offering to its customers. Technical ability and infrastructure are also two of the key internal strengths of the company, which have been exploited to produce a market leading position. Weaknesses Despite this, the company does have some internal weaknesses that need to be managed. The merger between NTL and Telewest is still relatively new and there are cultural clashes between the two styles and the emerging Virgin style. In recent years, there have been several redundancies and outsourcing of customer services, in an attempt to bring down costs. This has resulted in a degree of unsettled behaviour and lack of loyalty from staff. Due to the size and complexity of the growing organisation, there are likely to be ongoing conflicts which will need to be managed if this cultural shift is not to impact on the customer experience. Opportunities and Threats Externally, the opportunities and threats facing Virgin Media are ever changing. The media sector is developing an exceptionally fast pace, resulting in both opportunities and threats for companies such as Virgin Media. Opportunities are widely available for Virgin Media, predominantly in offering value added services such as online gaming or more reliable broadband connections. Bundling these media services together, as Virgin Media has already done offers yet further opportunities within the media sector, in terms of grasping greater market share. Consumers like simple, one-stop shopping when it comes to the media options available; this is something that Virgin Media can continue to exploit, particularly now that it has signed an agreement with Sky. Threats to Virgin Media come from other similar media companies such as Orange or BT who remain as large players in the market. In particular, Virgin Media is rumoured to have difficulties with its infrastructure reliability, which could potentially allow competitors such as BT to increase market share. The media sector as a whole is extremely fast moving; therefore, the main threat is that Virgin Media may fail to keep pace, thus losing its customer base to another more innovative company. The flower of service Facilitating elements(services) Information: Customers often require information about how to obtain and use a product and services. They may also need remainders and documentation. Example, Of virgin broadband information services are: Direction to service site and using instruction, warning and insurance, terms and condition of services. Order taking: Many goods and services must be ordered or reserved in advance. Customer needs to know what available and may want to secure commitment to delivery Billing:How much do I owe you? .Customers deserve clear, accurate and intelligible bills and statements. Payment: Customer may pay faster and more cheerfully if Virgin makes transactions simple and convenient for them. 2) Enhancing services: Consultation: Value can be added to goods and services by offering advice and consultation. Safe keeping: Customers prefer not to worry about looking after the personal possessions that they bring with them to a service site. Exceptions: Customers appreciate some flexibility in a business when they make special request. They expect it when not everything goes according to plan. Hospitality: Customers who invest time and effort in visiting a business and using its services deserve to be treated as welcome guests. User Preparation When implementing new system, it is important that personnel, employees, managers and others in the organization are prepared for it. This process is also called process of readying the decision makers, managers, employees, and stakeholders for a new system. In this regard, user training becomes very essential, because without it the success of the system cannot be guaranteed. This process of user preparation is planned and executed properly and involved a lot of arrangement, and consideration (Stair Reynolds, 2008). Virgin Media, the UKs leading fibre-optic broadband provider currently has almost 60,000 SME and public sector broadband clients, but has announced that it is looking to grow this significantly. Virgin Media has unveiled plans to target the small and medium business customers of its rival broadband giant BT. The move comes soon after BTs commitment to undercut Virgin Medias residential super-fast broadband prices, with its new fibre-optic broadband service which BT is rolling out this year. There is a very big market up for grabs, as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) spend about  £18bn a year on IT and telecoms. Virgin Media currently have revenues of about  £600m pa from business broadband customers and this is forecast to rise to about  £1bn pa in three to five years. Virgin Media chief operating officer Andrew Barron said: This is another step forwards. Weve been working in the business division for 18 months on getting the business processes to the right level. Weve improved it dramatically. We can use the fibre-optic network to differentiate ourselves. Marketing communication Mix: The marketing mix is the set of controllable tacticle marketing tools that the firm blends to produce the Response it wants in the target market (Melewar. T.C., Saunders.J, 2000) Marketing communications are the means by which firms attempt to inform, persuade, and remind consumers directly or indirectly about the products and brands that they sell. A company s total marketing communication mix also called promotion mix (Kotler, 2005) consists of specific blending of advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, public relations, and direct marketing tools that are used by company to pursue its advertising and marketing objectives. The marketing communication activities which contribute to the marketing of any new or existing product: by creating awareness of the brand; linking the right associations to the products image in the consumers memory, facilitating stronger consumer-product connection etc. Current extended marketing mix marketing mix. People People is one of the elements of service marketing mix. People define a service.. In case of service marketing, people can make or break an organization. Thus virgin media nowadays are involved into specially getting their staff trained in interpersonal skills and customer service with a focus towards customer satisfaction. In fact many companies have to undergo accreditation to show that their staffs are better than the rest. Definitely a USP in case of services. Process Service process is the way in which a service is delivered to the end customer. The process of a service company such as virgin media in delivering its product is of utmost importance. It is also a critical component in the service blueprint, wherein before establishing the service, the company defines exactly what should be the process of the service product reaching the end customer. Physical Evidence The last element in the service marketing mix is a very important element. As said before, services are intangible in nature. However, to create a better customer experience tangible elements are also delivered with the service. Physical evidence is used as a differentiator in service marketing. This is the service marketing mix (7p) which is also known as the extended marketing mix Position Positioning in different areas is not always easy (I can say it is too difficult). Virgin Group was aware of the difficulties so they had to think about the Virgin brand name. They have never entered in a business before doing solid researches and analysis. They have reviewed the industry and tried to look from customers eyes. They were aware of the trade-offs they had to think before entering a new business venture and they have never underestimated the risks behind new entrance. Advertising Virgin Media launched to much fanfare in February 2007, with a public relations event and an expensive advertising campaign which covered major UK television channels, newspapers and billboards. In an effort to increase awareness of the group and its services, Virgin Medias campaign used bright red colours to portray its brand image. Recent[update] television advertising featured actress Uma Thurman and comedienne Ruby Wax, and currently[update] features actor Samuel L Jackson, whilst the print advertising features bold typography. Virgin Media also sponsored the Channel 4 reality TV show Big Brother until the end of the ninth series. Virgin Media Business/ On Thursday 11 February 2010, Virgin Media announced that its business division would be rebranded as Virgin Media Business with immediate effect. The company, which had been operating as ntl:Telewest Business, is now the largest B2B brand in the Virgin Group. This marked the end of the NTL and Telewest being used by the company. Virgin Media Business is the UKs only telco with a national fibre optic Next Generation Network. Organisations working with Virgin Media Business include London City Airport, Arqiva, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Partnership and South West Water. Consumer behaviours Understanding how consumer behaviour is changing will be an important requirement of Virgin Medias upcoming music offering and, should they become law, the Governments legislative proposals will also require measurement of the level of copyright infringement on ISPs networks. Deticas CViewà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ technology potentially offers a non-intrusive solution which enhances our understanding of aggregate customer behaviour without identifying or storing individual customers data. Consumer Segment We face intense competition from a variety of entertainment and communications service providers, which offer comparable broadband internet, television, fixed line telephony and mobile telephony services. In addition, technological advances and product innovations have increased, and will likely continue to increase, the number of alternatives available to our customers from other providers and intensify the competitive environment. See Risk Factors-We operate in highly competitive markets. However, we believe that we have a competitive advantage in the U.K. residential market due to the superior technical capabilities of our cable network over the network of the incumbent BT, which many of our competitors rely on to provide their services. We also face intense competition in the mobile telephony market, primarily driven by increased pricing pressure from both established and new service providers, evolving customer needs and technological developments. We offer most of our products on a stand-alone basis or as part of bundled packages designed to encourage customers to subscribe to multiple services. We offer broadband internet, fixed line telephony and mobile telephony and data services throughout the U.K., and currently offer television services exclusively in areas served by our cable network Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning (STP) Before start think about marketing (4P), you must understand what is STP. Terms of STP include : market strategy; target markets; positioning; market segmentation and target markets; market segmentation and demographics Segmentation Segmentation : Identifying all segments for the product/service. Many of the resources listed in module 3 will be helpful to you when you develop segments. To be useful, segments should be: Measurable Accessible (can you reach them) Profitable Distinct from one another the objective of segmentation is to find attractive markets. Strategies include Break market into components Regroup into market segments Select which segment to target Targeting Virgin Media is currently number two in the home broadband market in the UK, but it obviously doesnt want to be left behind when it comes to broadband on the move. The company has its own-brand mobile phone service, so its wasnt that much of a leap for it to add mobile broadband into the mix. Virgin is offering mobile broadband via a number of different deals. For example, if youre already a Virgin customer using its XL (20Mb) or L (10Mb) cable broadband packages or its ADSL Bundle 1 offering, you can get mobile broadband with a 1GB usage allowance for an additional fiver a month. If youre on one of the lower-end home broadband deals you can get the same package for a tenner a month. However, for this review were looking at the standard retail pack which targets people who dont already have a Virgin service. This deal costs  £15 a month on an 18-month contract for a 3GB monthly download allowance and a free USB modem Positioning. Positioning is an essential component and skill in good marketing. Perceptual maps are used to determine the position of a product, firm, person, service or idea. Positioning maps or perceptual maps can be simple, yet very effective marketing tools. One definition of Positioning Theory is: the science of perceptual strategy. It is based on a theory that strategy can only be planned in the mind of the consumer, not the marketplace*. It is important to understand the levels of competition because positioning applies at all levels of competition. For example: Product Level Corporate Level Industry Level The STP Process The growing use of the STP process has occurred as a direct result of the prevalence of mature markets, the greater diversity in customer needs, and the ability to reach specialized or niche segments. As such marketers are increasingly segmenting markets and identifying attractive segments (i.e. who to focus on and why?), in order to identify new product opportunities, develop suitable positioning and communications strategies (i.e. what message to communicate), and effectively allocate resources to key marketing activities (i.e. how much should we spend and where?). Organizations will often commission segmentation research when they want to re-scope their marketing strategy, investigate a declining brand, launch a new product, or restructure their pricing policy. Organizations operating in highly dynamic environments seek to conduct segmentation research at regular intervals, to keep in touch with changes in the marketplace. STP refers to the three activities segmentation, targeting, and positioning SOURCES 1. Virgin Media, fourth quarter 2007 results presentation, February 2008. 2. Carphone Warehouse Plc fourth quarter trading update, April 2008. 3. Domestic Competitive Market Review, 2004, Ofgem.

Planning a Karaoke Party :: Process Essays

You're sitting at home planning a party. You've got your list of invitees down. A cupboard full of chips and dips, and a cooler full of beer. You go to your computer and start putting together some mix Cd's of your favorite music. As you gather the songs you notice yourself singing along with one, and your eyes widen, lit up as you a struck with an idea. "I should have Karaoke at my party!" Brilliant! What could be more fun that a Karaoke party? The answer: a lot of things, if you're not careful! While Karaoke is a pass time enjoyed by people of every age, race and gender, it's also something you have to be in the mood for. So what happens if people show up to your party and aren't in the mood for Karaoke? Get them in the mood. There are three basic steps to throwing an amazing Karaoke party, and it all starts with invitations. Step 1: Inviting your guests With any luck, everyone at your party will have a blast, but do you know who won't? The people who don't show up! Karaoke is always fun with a good sized crowd, but if you aren't careful, you may loose half of your guests. It's all about how you present your invitation. There are two different types of people you will be inviting to the party; people who love karaoke, and people who like karaoke. The difference is this... People who LOVE karaoke - Make sure they know this is a karaoke party! This will be the smaller of the two types, but they are also the most important. They will go out of their way to attend, and you will need them during the party. People who LIKE karaoke - The easiest way to help ensure they will come is to avoid mentioning karaoke, and just tell them you are having a party. Why? While it is true that they enjoy karaoke, if they realize your party will focus around this activity, come party day they may think, "I'm not really in the mood." With people who just like karaoke, this can often be the case, and the number of people attending can make or break a party. Step 2: The supplies First and foremost is the karaoke machine. RENT ONE! Unless you own a professional karaoke machine, you should get one. This might seem a little expensive, if you buy yourself a cheap one and then try to supply yourself with a good selection of music, you'll end up spending a lot more, and getting a lot less.

Character breakdown

Set at a fictional university, all the characters reside in a fraternity sponsored house within the confines of university grounds. All the characters are an attempt to break stereotypes, and come from regularly viewed backgrounds found in American society. Marcus Pullman Senior, African-American middle-class from New York. Marcus Pullman is not a star athlete, or the campus drug dealer. He is as about as average as they come, with a good GPA, an interest in football and baseball, but an even stronger interest in environmental issues and obtaining a degree in political science. He is one of many American families from the middle-income band, with a father who is a NY firefighter and a mother who works as a legal assistant at a law firm. Marcus is part of a small statistic, an alarming statistic of overall African-American males in universities in America. According to an article in 2004, â€Å"today, black men make up 41 percent of the inmates in federal state, and local prison, but black men are only 4 percent of all students in American institutions of higher education† (Maxwell). It has to be said, however, that circumstance is everything, and whilst Marcus is part of a 4% statistic, he is also one of   â€Å"17% of blacks age 25 and older who had a bachelor’s degree or more in 2005† (US Census, 2007). Marcus has been in the fraternity since his Freshman year and is seen as a figurehead of the house. Simon Li American-Asian, Freshman, music student from Louisiana. It isn’t unusual for there to be a diverse ethnicity in fraternities, but it is also been cited as something as irregular. According to some fraternity members, this comes down to simply just a matter of comfort. â€Å"Minorities don't rush because they are intimidated by the stereotypically white Greek system,† Ngan said. On the other hand, â€Å"a lot of minorities do rush, they are just more comfortable hanging out with people of the same ethnic background.†(Brubaker, 2000). Simon Li is a ‘Rushee’ and a freshman music student from Louisiana. He is a second generation American-Asian, with roots in China. According to the census bureau, Louisiana has a registered American-Asian population of 1.4% (2005) with 2.5% of firms owned by Asians in the state. Simon Li’s parents own and operate a chain of successful auto-part stores – and nothing related to restaurants or grocery stores, as is often the stereotype. Having grown-up in Louisiana, Simon has a soft spot for anything Cajun, as well as an interest in music – from country to bluegrass. His predominant interests do not lie with traditions, but with incorporating grassroot sounds with techno, or club music. Dermot â€Å"Ozzie† Sullivan Australian, Sophomore, medical student. International students continue to make-up a large percentage of undergraduates at American universities. According to Hahn-Koenig, within Philadelphia, â€Å"more than 11,000 are enrolled in the city alone, with thousands more studying elsewhere in Pennsylvania† (2007). Whilst the Australian university system is considerably good, Dermot has come to America to broaden his horizons. His family is part of the wealthy upper-class in Australia, which avails him the high tuition fees and ability to apply for a student visa. Despite Australia being a part of the Visa Waiver Program, Dermot would have had to apply for a F-1 visa in order to study in America (State Dept, 2007). Dermot is an easy-going guy who is hard-working but also knows how to enjoy life. He appears to be a well-liked sort on-campus. Victor Henson Sophomore, member of a neo-nazi group. The antagonist of the characters. Victor is a Caucasian American from a poor background in middle America. He has not known his father, and his mother continues to struggle to make ends meet and keeping a family. His family are like many who should have seen better times after Clinton’s welfare reforms, but still suffer from poverty conditions. The Anti-Defamation League have cited a 12% decline in anti-Semitic activities, in recent surveys, however â€Å"it is disturbing that there are still an average of about four anti-Semitic attacks per day in America† (ADL, 2007). Victor indulges in many on-campus parties, and unsurprising is his overindulgence in alcohol. He is the student who is trying to fit in, and is a â€Å"Rushee† of the fraternity. SCRIPT Scene: Outside the campus library. It is a noticeably Fall day, and overcast. Marcus (leaving the library): Hey, Ozzie! How’s it going? Ozzie (seated on the stairs of the library): Gudday, Marcus. Yeah, s’alright, I reckon. Weather’s a bit foul, eh? Marcus (looks up briefly, smiles): Definitely going to rain. Hey, you seen that new rushee? Uh, Victor I think his name is. Ozzie: Yeah, yeah, I have. Saw him last night. Was hammered something nasty, I tell ya. Looked real green in the bushes (laughs) Marcus: Drunk? Ozzie: Aw, totally smashed, mate. Marcus: Hm, well Freshman, I suppose. But, listen, you think you can have a talk with him? See what he wants from joining a fraternity, and if he’d fit in. (slaps Ozzie on the arm with a book) Be a spy, eh? Ozzie: Yeah, yeah. Sure. Check ya later, eh? Marcus and Ozzie part ways. Scene change: Ozzie is in the frat house with Simon, who is ‘plugged in’ to a laptop and appears to be listening to music. Ozzie throws a screwed up paper ball at him. Simon (loudly): What? Ozzie demonstrates to remove the earphones, and Simon does. Simon (normal volume): What? Ozzie: Ya seen that new kid? Victor? Simon: Yeah, he was looking a little rough in the kitchen. Told him to clean the dishes for us. Ozzie: Smooth move, mate, smooth move. Hey, what ya think of him? Simon: Meh, he’s okay, I guess. He doesn’t say much to me. Ozzie: Hm, fair enough. I’ll go talk to him. Marcus wants the scoop on him, see if he’ll fit. Simon nods and plugs back into his laptop. Ozzie goes to the kitchen where Victor is struggling in removing a pair of rubber gloves from his hands. Ozzie: Hey mate, lemme give ya a hand. Hah – get it. Victor: Yeah, I got it. Ozzie: Jeez, no humor, eh? Victor: Sorry, still hungover a bit.. and†¦ (voice trails off) Ozzie: What’s up? Feelin’ a bit crock still? Victor: Huh? Ozzie: Ill. The hangover†¦ Victor: Nah, not the hangover. Just†¦ hey, I can talk to you right, yeah? Ozzie: Sure, mate. We’re all brothers. Or, well.. you â€Å"might† be, eh? (smiles) Victor: Yeah, I guess.. well.. I don’t know. Seems really†¦ well†¦ Ozzie: What? Victor: Well, why are they in charge here? Ozzie: Who ya mean? The seniors? Victor: Nah.. well yeah.. but†¦ nevermind. Ozzie: Something bothering you, you know you can tell me. Or Marcus even, mate. Victor (sneers): I don’t think so. Ozzie: What? Marcus? Nah, he’s cool, mate. Don’t need to worry about him. He’s a good egg. Victor: Egg? Rotten, more like. His sort are nothing but trouble. Ozzie: His sort? What Greenpeace Al Gore types? (laughs) Victor: No†¦ his â€Å"sort†. Ozzie: Don’t get you mate†¦ you mean New Yorkers? Victor (laughs): Yeah†¦ New Yorkers. Whatever. Victor leaves, sees Simon still plugged in and shakes his head. Ozzie looks perplexed and follows Victor out of the house. Ozzie: Wait up. So, I don’t get what you meant in there. Victor: You want me say, for real? Ozzie: Yeah, mate. For real. Victor: I don’t trust Marcus. His type are nothing but trouble, they take advantage of everything. Ozzie: Wait, wait.. his type? What’s his type? Victor: Black, man. I got to spell it out, or what? You fucking blind? Blacks are nothing but trouble. Ozzie: Woah.. woah†¦ you can’t be serious†¦ Victor: Yeah†¦ well maybe I am. He’s always getting up in my business. Ozzie: Well you are trying to join the fraternity†¦ Victor: Yeah, well screw it. I don’t want to be a black man’s brother, ya know. Ozzie: Jesus†¦ well.. yeah, I don’t think I want you around either†¦ Marcus walks up to them outside the house. Victor falls silent but stares at Marcus. Ozzie is stunned, but looks serious. Marcus notices the uneasiness quickly. Marcus: Everything alright? Victor (snorts): Yeah, man. Victor walks away, and Marcus looks at Ozzie questioningly. Marcus: Ozzie? What happened? Ozzie: I dunno mate†¦ I really dunno†¦. References _. Lousiana State Quick Facts. Census Bureau. (available from: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/22000.html ) _. New York City, Black History Month, 2007. Census Bureau Press Release, February, 2007. (available from: http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/007862.html ) _. Anti-Semitic Incidents in US. Press Release. Anti-Defamation League, 2007. (available: http://www.adl.org/PresRele/ASUS_12/4993-12.htm ) _ . Student Visas. US State Department, Bureau of Consular Affairs. (Available from: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/types/types_1268.html ) Brubaker, C. â€Å"Greek system concerned with diversity† The Cavalier Daily, April 5, 2000. (available: http://www.cavalierdaily.com/CVArticle.asp?ID=3898&pid=564 ) Hahn-Koenig, A. â€Å"Coming to America.† OneBigCampus.com 2007 (available: http://www.onebigcampus.com/article_comingtoamerica.htm ) Maxwell, B. â€Å"On campus, grim statistics for African-American men.† St. Petersburg Times, January 4, 2004. (available from:

Influence of Spain in the New World essays

Influence of Spain in the New World essays Spains political experience was one of the most interesting and extraordinary in the history of modern Europe. It encompassed Portugal, part of Italy, the Netherlands, and large parts of the New World. In the early years of the eighth and ninth centuries the Muslims controlled all of Spain except for some small Christian kingdoms in the north. In the ninth century the Christian states began a re-conquest to push all the Muslims out. By the middle of the thirteenth century Granada was all that remained of the Muslims in Spain. The marriage in 1469 of royal cousins, Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, eventually brought stability to both kingdoms. Isabella's niece, Juana, had bloodily disputed her succession to the throne in a conflict in which the rival claimants were given assistance by outside powersIsabella by Aragon and Juana by her suitor, the king of Portugal. Both Isabella and Ferdinand understood the importance of unity; together they effected institutional reform in Castile and left Spain one of the best administered countries in Europe. Ferdinand and Isabella resumed the re-conquest; dormant for more than 200 years, and in 1492 they captured Granada, earning for themselves the title of Catholic Kings. When it comes to the liberating of Spain from the Muslims, I believe that for the stability of the country they were justified in pushing the Muslims out. Having said that, I do have some issues with the massacre of the Jews and the threat of death to get them to convert. Some Jews were given only four months and ordered to leave the kingdom or convert to Christianity. Under the edict, Jews were promised royal "protection and security" for the effective three-month window before the deadline. They were permitted to take their belongings with them - except "gold or silver or minted money". There were a number of the New Christians that continued to practice of their fathers in secret, a situati...

Biography of Coco Channal essays

Biography of Coco Channal essays Coco Chanel, The first women to create clothing for women that is both attractive and useful. Chanel was one of the first women to run a large, successful business in the fashion industry. Today, its hard to imagine the controversy Chanel stirred up simply by making womens clothing beautiful, comfortable and practical. Chanel understood that women wanted a sense of style and professionalism in their fashion. The clothes she created changed the way women looked and how they looked at themselves. Coco Chanel fulfilled the American Dream through definite actions, personal accomplishments and worthwhile contributions to America. Coco started off at the age of nineteen when she worked at a tailor shop with her young aunt Adrienne. Coco sewed extremely well, so she began to do alterations on her own, but she had higher ambitions and did not plan on being a seamstress for the rest of her life. At this point in time she was seeing a man named Etienne Balsan, he asked Coco to be his mistress and move to his new estate that he had just bought. She agreed to go since she did care for him and for once in her life she wouldnt have to take care of herself. Balsan loved the horse races very much; he had his own horse stables at the estate. He would have many friends over and they would always go horseback riding. Coco didnt enjoy horses or the clothes women wore while riding, tight fitting jackets and long loose skirts. So Coco decided to switch it up a bit. Coco always admired mens clothing, so she had a tailor make a riding outfit consisting of jodhpurs and leather pants that ended at the knee; she wore this with a loose shirt and a scarf. Many women admired Coco for her astonishing ensemble. Coco designed also with hats. She would buy the plainest hats at large department stores then redesign them. Balsan loved her designs, so he offered Coco an apartment he owned in Paris. So she ...

Promotional Aspects of Rolex Company Research Paper

Promotional Aspects of Rolex Company - Research Paper Example Adopting an effective marketing mix ensures the satisfaction of customer’s needs thus success. However, knowing the needs of customers and meeting them is normally very challenging undertaking. Therefore, before launching a product in the market, a company must take into consideration all the marketing mix, including product, price, place, and promotion. The careful evaluation of all the elements of the marketing mix ensures the development of a product that meets the needs of customers in a market. Even though there may be countless of organizations that have excelled in marketing services and products, Rolex watch company stands out as the greatest marketing genius of the 21st century. Founded in 1905, Rolex has grown to become one of the world’s most valuable brands. The company ranked as Forbes’ 68th most valuable brands in 2013 (Beckwith, 2011). Rolex specializes in the manufacture of wristwatches in the world. Most of the best watches in stores today are ma nufactured by the company. Rolex was the first company to manufacture a waterproof watch in 1926. The company’s watches are not just appealing in terms of appearance, but also in terms of quality. Rolex watches are worn by some of the world’s most famous athletes, including Tiger Woods, Roger Federer, Phil Mickelson and Lindsey Vonn, just to name but a few. The success of Rolex is mainly attributable to the promotional strategies that the company adopts. The company has adopted an aggressive promotional campaign that encompasses advertising, sales promotion, public relations and individual sales. The promotional strategies that the Rolex have adopted over the past years has ensured that its product become a household brand. In creating brand awareness for its watches, Rolex have adopted some of the best promotional strategies ever witnessed. Advertising Rolex advertising campaign is just exceptional. The most striking feature about Rolex is that it has narrowed its mar keting campaign messages, which are consistently relayed across all mediums. In fact, Rolex has stayed away from the use of the mainstream advertising mediums, such as radio and television ads that are not targeted at a precise audience (Stevenson, 2011). At the same time, Rolex has stayed away from using broad strokes of ads that are occasionally used by large promotions such as the purchasing time commonly used during big sporting events. Instead, Rolex has largely focused on major events that attract special consumers with the ability to buy its expensive watches whose prices range from $5,000 to $100,000 (Beckwith, 2011). For instance, the Rolex Sports car Series and the Rolex 24 Hours held in Dayton attracted both race fans and sport car owners with the ability to spend large sums of money participating in the event. This also offered Rolex a perfect opportunity to advertise its quality and expensive watches. Rolex also advertises it watches during golf tournaments, as well as during yachting events that normally attract wealthy audiences with the ability to buy its expensive watches (Stevenson, 2011). Apart from sponsoring sports series that attract wealthy audiences with the ability to purchase expensive items like its watches, Rolex also, sponsor individual sport personalities to help promote its watches. Currently, Rolex has signed great deals with famous golf giants such as Tiger Woods, Gary Player, Arnold Plamer, and Jack Nicklaus. Rolex has also signed great deals with famous tennis players, such as Roger Federer as a means of promoting its expensive watches. A closer look at the past commercial ads that Rolex had run in the past, it is clear that the company has a

Assignment 9 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

9 - Assignment Example Measured by Interviewing patients about how easy is it for them to obtain healthcare services, by assessing the utilization of the healthcare services and lastly structuralwherebypresence or absences of healthcare facilitating resources are assessed. The term cost may refer to the amount of money spent by a company in the production or creation of goods and services. Cost may also refer to the amount of money which is spent in production of good or product. Another meaning of cost is the total amount of money that the seller sets for a product which includes both cost of production and the added cost to make the profit. Quality measures are tools that track and measure the quality of healthcare services offered by eligible hospitals and professionals within the healthcare system. These tools use the data obtained from the healthcare provider’s ability to offer service. However, quality measures impact health care through measuring various aspects of patient such as health outcomes, patient safety, population and population health, clinical processes, and among others. There are several facts about medical tourism. First, medical tourism has been around for thousands of years. Second, there are 458 International hospitals in the Joint Commission around the world. Thirdly, one may spend less time at a hospital and a lot of time at the hotel during a medical trip. The fourth fact is that one’s companion can make a medical trip successful or can break it. It is cost saving. Also, it enables patients to receive high standard medical care not provided at their home countries. It also provides patients with an easy access to immediate medical care with less or zero time. Language and cultural barriers are disadvantageous to medical tourists. The legal permits and paperwork can be very demanding. Misinformation about the kind of treatments and their equivalent costs can destroy the whole objective of medical vacation. The health care