Group Based Presentation Essay Example

Group Based Presentation Essay Recently I have been successful in gaining a three-month work placement with Superdrug and have been placed in the marketing department.I have been given the task of doing a marketing audit together with my colleagues.We choose Superdrug because it is a very well established company. Together we tried to work as a team to do each task.First of all we did an Organisational and Environmental Audit also known as a SWOT and PESTEL analysis.Identifying the Organisational Audit or Micro-Environment Audit for SuperdrugThe micro environment includes those forces that impact on the Superdrugs ability to serve its customers. These are often referred to as internal forces as the company has direct contact with them. The company has the potential for level of control over these forces and may be able to reverse or lessen the impact of a negative trend or encourage a marketing opportunity. Superdrug should take these forces and trends into account when developing a marketing strategy.Included in the micro-environment are the following factors:1. Superdrugs own internal environmentIn developing marketing plans, Superdrug must consider the other departments within their organisation, such as top management, finance, research and development, purchasing, manufacturing and accounting. All these departments have their own objectives that must be considered and many of them will provide information relevant for the marketing plan.2. The marketing channel firmsSuppliers and intermediaries need to be examined before Superdrug develops a marketing strategy as their activities can significantly impact on the Superdrug organisation. Suppliers product availability needs to be monitored as well as their price and overall performance. Suppliers and intermediaries that appear to be becoming less `amicable over time may need to be reviewed. Intermediaries are firms that assist in the distribution process and their performance and attitude towards the product need to be monitored closely as they often have direct contact with the end customers.3. The relevant customer marketsSuperdrug must examine all five of its customer markets closely and look for changes in their particular needs and wants. These markets include:* Consumer markets individuals and households that purchase goods for their own consumption* Industrial markets organisations that purchase for use in their production process* Reseller markets organisations that buy goods and services to resell them to the end consumer* Government markets government agencies that purchase goods to transfer them to their customers who need them.* International markets overseas buyers including any of the above categories.4. CompetitorsFor Superdrug to be successful they need to satisfy consumers needs and wants better than their competitors. Therefore it is important to monitor the trends and behaviour of your competitors. Identifying customers perceptions of your competitors and their strengths and weaknesses is impo rtant.5. The organisations publicsA public is any group that has an actual or potential interest in, or impact on, Superdrugs ability to achieve its objectives. These could be financial, media, government, and citizen-action, local, general or internal publics. Increased attention from these groups may require you to make changes in your marketing strategy.Source: Kotler, Adam, Brown and Armstrong (2003). Principles of marketing, 2nd Edition, Prentice-HallIn the SWOT we mentioned then Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of Superdrug:Strengths -à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug have loyalty schemeà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug only leading specialise in body care productsà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug is the best known retail name in the UKà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug is a market leadersà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug are more competitive in priceà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug operates over 700 stores in high street and shopping mall locations throughout the UK.Weaknesses-* Undifferentiated Products or services (i.e. in relation to your competitors)* High price needed* High cost structure or high expenditure* Too many brands,* Too much competitors* Low budgetOpportunities* Lower cost* Cheaper workforce* Larger market* A developing market* Takeovers Mergers, joint ventures or strategic alliances* Moving into new market segments that offer improved profits* Customer needs not fully fulfilledThreats* National laws and directives* Competition from existing/new competitors* The cost of developing R;D against other competitors* EU laws* Competitors have more access to channels of distribution* New regulationsIn the PESTEL analysis or Macro-environment which consisted of Political, Economical, Social, Technological, Environmental, Legal. Or dem ographical.The findings we found included:DemographicDemographic trends are those concerning the human population in terms of size, density, location, age, sex, race, occupation and many other statistics.These influence Superdrug through the population of teenager s i.e. 17-27 years olds Superdrug main target audience is 17-27 years olds if there are less in the population this will affect their decision in production.EconomicEconomic trends are those factors that affect consumers buying power and spending pattern.Superdrug will be influenced by the economic trend because it would want to market its product in a rich environment so they can make maximum profit.NaturalThe natural environment includes those natural resources that are included in production or that are affected by marketing activities. Trends in this environment include shortages of raw materials, increased cost of energy, increased levels of pollution and government intervention in natural resource management. As Superdrug consumers are becoming more environmentally aware, these trends are having a more significant impact on As Superdrug marketing strategies.TechnologicalThe technological environment consists of forces that affect new technology, hence creating new product oppo rtunities and market opportunities. This faster pace of technological change is also causing shorter product life cycles, higher research and development budgets, concentration on minor improvements, and increased regulation.The influence of technology will affect Superdrug in many ways.This faster pace of technological change is also causing:* shorter product life cycles within Superdrug* higher research and development budgets within Superdrug* concentration on minor improvements within Superdrug* Increased regulation within SuperdrugPolitical and legalMarketing decisions are strongly affected by laws, government agencies and pressure groups in society. Trends in the legal and political environment include, increased legislation regulating business, changing government agency enforcement, and the growth of public interest groups.Superdrug will be influenced by political and legal factors; this includes pressure from local government agencies that limit various organisations for ex ample legislation such as competition i.e. monopoly, fair trade practices, environmental protection, product safety, truth and honesty in advertising, packaging, labelling and pricing. Superdrug will be influenced to abide by these regulations otherwise they will be penalised. E.g. Microsoft was fined for monopoly.Social culturalThe cultural environment consists of forces that affect societys basic values, perceptions, preferences and behaviours. Some cultural values, such as the idea that people should have a job, persist over time Superdrug will be influenced by social and cultural trends For example, the number of people that believe in physical fitness and a healthy diet has been increasing in recent years. This will influence Superdrug to market their ideas more and increase productivity, and just maybe the price.How the information from the Audit contributes to the Marketing Planà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ A framework for identifying and analysing strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and thr eats.à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ The force to analyse a situation and develop suitable strategies and tactics.à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ A basis for assessing core capabilities and competences.à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Helps to identify potential problemsà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Comparisons against competitorsà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Accurate segmentation of marketsThe information we found would help us in our marketing plan to identify any potential obstacles, problems and solutions.The Benefits of the above are that it will let Superdrug know what it is good at Superdrug could then specialise it what it is good at. In addition Superdrug will be aware of it weak points and will develop solutions to become stronger. Superdrug will also know its opportunities and will do everything to take advantage of this Furthermore it will develop solutions to any threatsMarketing EthicsPressure from the general public often arises to control the activities of businesses. Two such movements currently operating are consumerism and environmentalism.Consumerism a n organised movement of consumers whose aim is to improve the rights and power of buyers in relation to sellers (Kotler et al, 1994).Environmentalism an organised movement of concerned citizens and government seeking to protect and improve peoples living environment (Kotler et al, 1994).Organisations are responding to consumerism and environmentalism in order to better serve their customer needs. Many companies are focussing on the long term performance of the marketing system. This long term focus is driving the emerging popularity of five principles.Consumer-orientated marketing Superdrug are viewing their activities from the customers perspective.Innovative marketing- Superdrug is seeking real product and marketing improvements rather than unnecessary features.Value Marketing- Superdrug is putting most of their investment into value-building marketing investments rather than activities that merely raise sales in the short term.Sense-of-mission marketing- Superdrug is redefining their mission from a broad social perspective rather than a narrow product one.Social Superdrug are considering a combination of consumer needs and wants, their own requirements, and the consumers and societys long run interests before making a decision. Nowadays competitors want to design desirable products rather than useful, pleasing or deficient products.Superdrug need to develop corporate marketing ethics to ensure all their employees act in a manner which is considered moral. Not all guidelines can solve the dilemmas that Superdrug face. Under a public marketing concept Superdrug must look beyond the mere legal requirements and develop standards based on personal integrity, corporate conscience and long run consumer welfare. There are several principles that might guide the formulation of marketing ethic codes. These include the principles of consumer and producer freedom, curbing potential harm, meeting basic needs, economic efficiency, innovation, and consumer education an d information and consumer protection. These principles are based on the idea that a Superdrugs goal is not merely to make profits but also to maximise life quality.Here are some of the Marketing Ethics Boots and Superdrug haveà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Boots ethics in marketings is to build customer trustà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrugs is against animal testingà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Boots want to be open and transparent, and communicate their progress to customersà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrugs is minimising the production of wasteà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ No animal testing of any kind is undertaken or commissioned by Boots Group PLC or its subsidiary businessesà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Responsible energy management and to cost effective energy efficiency throughout all stores and Regional Distribution Centresà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Reducing the amount of fuel used by our HGV fleetà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Minimising the environmental impact arising from the use of materials and services provided in building,shopfitting, repairing and maintaining premisesà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Mi nimising the production of waste, ensuring its safe disposal and maximising recycling wherever practicableà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Ensuring good environmental practices amongst our own-brand suppliers and including environmental issues in buying decisionsà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Minimising the use of unnecessary packaging; maximising recovery and recycling, with totalcommitment to packaging waste regulations and meeting our obligations contained thereinà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Working with suppliers of own brand pulp derived products and wood products to use material from well managed forestsà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Bringing to an end all testing on animals of cosmetic and toiletries products, and their ingredientsà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Being aware of the environmental issues surrounding the use of our own brand products and to taking appropriate actionà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Ensuring acceptable environmental, health safety, and employment conditions in own brand product suppliers in developing nationsSource: www.boots-plc.com, www.superdrug.comHow the differences in marketing ethics affects SuperdrugThe differences in Marketing Ethics strongly affect Superdrug Marketing mixProductà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug will have to differentiate their productPriceà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug will have to use psychological pricingPlaceà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug will have to locate their business close to their target audiencePromotionà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Superdrug will have to promote their business more better than competitors

Biography of Abigail Adams, Wife of John Adams

Biography of Abigail Adams, Wife of John Adams Wife of the second President of the United States, Abigail Adams is an example of one kind of life lived by women in colonial, Revolutionary and early post-Revolutionary America. While shes perhaps best known simply as an early First Lady (before the term was used) and mother of another President, and perhaps known for the stance she took for womens rights in letters to her husband, she should also be known as a competent farm manager and financial manager. Known for: First Lady, mother of John Quincy Adams, farm manager, letter writerDates: November 22 (11 old style), 1744 - October 28, 1818; married October 25, 1764Also known as: Abigail Smith AdamsPlaces: Massachusetts, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., United StatesOrganizations/Religion: Congregational, Unitarian Early Life Born Abigail Smith, the future First Lady was the daughter of a minister, William Smith, and his wife Elizabeth Quincy.  The family had long roots in Puritan America, and were part of the Congregational church.  Her father was part of the liberal wing within the church, an Arminian, distanced from Calvinist Congregational roots in predestination and questioning the truth of the traditional  doctrine of the Trinity. Educated at home, because there were few schools for girls and because she was often ill as a child,  Abigail Adams learned quickly and read widely. She also learned to write, and quite early began writing to family and friends. Abigail met John Adams in 1759 when he visited her fathers parsonage in Weymouth, Massachusetts.  They carried out their courtship in letters as Diana and Lysander.  They married in 1764, and moved first to Braintree and later to Boston.  Abigail bore five children, and one died in early childhood. Abigails marriage to John Adams was warm and loving‚- and also intellectually lively, to judge from their letters. Journey to First Lady After almost a decade of rather quiet family life,  John became involved in the Continental Congress. In 1774, John attended the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia, while Abigail remained in Massachusetts, raising the family.  During his long absences over the next 10 years, Abigail managed the family and the farm and corresponded not only with her husband but with many family members and friends, including Mercy Otis Warren and Judith Sargent Murray.  She served as the primary educator of the children, including the future sixth U.S. president, John Quincy Adams. John served in Europe as a diplomatic representative from 1778, and as a representative  of the new nation, continued in that capacity. Abigail Adams joined him in 1784, first for a year in Paris then three in London. They returned to America in 1788. John Adams served as Vice President of the United States from 1789-1797 and then as President 1797-1801. Abigail spent some of her time at home, managing the family financial affairs, and part of her time in the federal capital, in Philadelphia most of those years and, very briefly, in the new White House in Washington, D.C. (November 1800 - March 1801). Her letters show that she was a strong supporter of his Federalist positions. After John retired from public life at the end of his presidency, the couple lived quietly in Braintree, Massachusetts.  Her letters also show that she was consulted by her son, John Quincy Adams. She was proud of him, and worried about her sons Thomas and Charles and her daughters husband, who were not so successful.  She took hard her daughters death in 1813.   Death Abigail Adams died in 1818 after contracting  typhus, seven years before her son, John Quincy Adams, became the sixth president of the U.S., but long enough to see him become Secretary of State in James Monroes administration. It is mostly through her letters that we know much about the life and personality of this intelligent and perceptive woman of colonial America and the Revolutionary and post-Revolutionary period.  A collection of the letters was published in 1840 by her grandson, and more have followed. Among her positions expressed in the letters was a deep suspicion of slavery and racism, support for womens rights including married womens property rights and the right to education, and full acknowledgement by her death that she had become, religiously, a unitarian. Resources and Further Reading Akers, Charles W. Abigail Adams: An American Woman. Library of American Biography Series. 1999.Bober, Natalie S. Abigail Adams: Witness to a Revolution. 1998. Young adult book.  Cappon, Lester J. (editor). The Adams-Jefferson Letters: The Complete Correspondence Between Thomas Jefferson and Abigail and John Adams. 1988.  Gelles, Edith B. Portia: The World of Abigail Adams. 1995 edition.  Levin, Phyllis Lee. Abigail Adams: A Biography. 2001.Nagel, Paul C. The Adams Women: Abigail and Louisa Adams, Their Sisters and Daughters. 1999 reprint.Nagel, Paul C. Descent from Glory: Four Generations of the John Adams Family. 1999 reprint.  Withey, Lynne. Dearest Friend: A Life of Abigail Adams. 2001.

Portrayal of Modern Women by Contemporary Women's Magazines Research Paper

Portrayal of Modern Women by Contemporary Women's Magazines - Research Paper Example Because of the many roles women play, they often seek advise from various sources. One source that they may find consistently reliable are women’s magazines because these depict articles set in the modern times, and assumed to promote modern values. At a time when information is so much easier to acquire from various media sources including television, radio and the internet, concrete reading materials are still conveniently available and preferred by many readers (Stevens, Maclaran & Catteral, 2007). It would be interesting to explore how contemporary magazines depict women and what priorities they should have in life. Although contemporary women’s magazines such as Glamour and Cosmopolitan claim to empower modern women to be more assertive and independent in achieving gender equality, the message sent out from their content (emphasis on the importance of women’s beauty and their success in relationships) seem to endorse traditional femininity ideologies, which put women in a role subservient to men in a patriarchal society. Since magazines may have a great influence on how women think, it is crucial to understand the subliminal and overt messages such media format feeds them. The research question that will be explored in this paper is: â€Å"How are women portrayed in contemporary women’s magazines and what messages are conveyed to them?† The significance of finding answers to this question will provide enlightenment on how society views women, how women view themselves and how such views guide their value formation, attitude and behaviors. Theoretical Framework This paper is guided by the Sexual Script Theory by Gagnon & Simon (1973) and the Objectification Theory by Frederickson & Roberts (1997). Scripting theory is premised on the concept that individuals have subjective understandings that determine their choices and qualitative experiences. Sexual Script Theory, specifically focus on the subjective understanding of a p erson about his or her sexuality that determine his or her sexual actions and experiences related to sex. Scripts are cognitive devices used to guide people in their behaviors. Sometimes, such behaviors are â€Å"self-fulfilling prophecies† to support the scripts upheld by the person. For example, if one’s sexual script is to be desirable in order to be liked as a person, then that individual will exert all efforts to look attractive and behave in a seductive manner. Similarly, and to more specifically illustrate the Sexual Scripting theory, the Objectification theory explains how females internalize an observer’s view to be the primary view of her physical self. This means that if a woman gets accustomed to being seen as an object of desire, she becomes socialized to treat herself as such and behaves accordingly (Frederickson & Roberts, 1997). Vulnerable to judgment of society, women vigilantly monitor themselves with the knowledge that being positively viewed by others means more opportunities. Studies have shown that how a woman’s body appears to others can determine her life experiences. Physical attractiveness seem to matter more to females than to males. Women deemed unattractive by their co workers are described more negatively and given less regard than comparatively unattractive men (Bar-Tar & Saxe, 1976; Cash, Gillen & Burns, 1977; Wallston & O’Leary, 1981). Physical attract