Sunday, October 13, 2019
Expanding the Horizons of Beauty Through Fiction, Poetry, and Drama Ess
Departing from a lover might often seem painful; yet, it is precisely with the departures that one learns about the nature of true love. In the poem â€Å"A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning,†John Donne offers a beautiful insight into this subject. As he consoles his wife by asserting that their love is everlasting, the poet develops a theme that unifies the poem and allows the reader to identify his intention. The theme, therefore, is especially important as it serves as a central point around which all the other elements are structured. As John Donne explores the nature of unconditional love, he employs metaphors, symbolism, and tone as the three main elements that reinforce the theme and contribute to creating a poem that both moves and connects to the reader. Throughout the poem, Donne employs metaphors extensively to emphasize the spiritual dimension of the love he shares with his wife. In the first stanza, the author compares his leaving with the death of â€Å"virtuous men†(line 1). As these men â€Å"whisper to their souls to go†(2), the lovers ought to accept the departure like the men are able to detach their bodies from their souls, and separate peacefully. As he continues to comfort his wife, he invites her to â€Å"make no noise†(5) and suggests that there should be â€Å"No tear-floods, nor sigh-tempests move†(6). This comparison of her crying with floods engages the reader because it sounds unconventional. Unlike most wives when their husbands leave, Donne’s wife is to remain quiet as he departs. The noise of her tears would reveal their love to the â€Å"laity†(8) and that would disrupt their happiness. By making a distinction between them and the common people, Donne is suggestin g that there is something holy about their love. Thus, thes... ... poem taking him in a journey to go beyond the lines and feel the message deeply. Therefore, the author succeeds in describing the nature of true love, a love that endures distance and transcends time and space. Likewise, although we may get separated from the poem physically after reading it, we cannot help but remain profoundly connected after our farewell. Works Cited Walker, Alice. â€Å"Everyday Use.†English 120. (Professor Theresa Sweeney). Fontbonne University. 2012. Handout. Hayden, Robert. "Those Winter Sundays." The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature: Reading, Thinking, Writing. Ed. Michael Meyer. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. 551. Print. Wilson, August. "Fences." The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature: Reading, Thinking, Writing. Ed. Michael Meyer. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. 1517-1566. Print.
Saturday, October 12, 2019
Casella wines ? Export success :: essays research papers
1.Identify its international markets      US and North America identified o     Distribution network – 44 states. o     Size – initially estimated 20-30 thousand cartons to 100 thousand cartons, reality was 20 to 200 thousand. o     Annual sales $3 million.      UK o     Some regional supermarkets hoping to expand to majors.      Mainland Europe o     Some beginning sales. 2.Describe and analyse the reason for its international expansion      Increase sales/find new markets – domestic market oversupplied      Minimise competitive risk      Economies of scale      Cushioning economic cycle      Comparative advantage o     High cost of labour and land in US. 3.Explaing the influences on this business in the global market Political Tensions between free trade and protection      Globalisation seeing removal of barriers      Eg. Quotas, tariffs, subsidies – statistics      Exports of wine have increased from 3% of sales to 52% of sales in 2002. this equals $2.3 billion dollars or 414 million litres      US greatest source of export growth      Australia’s export policy has led to major reforms in the Australian wine industry      ‘Rationalisation of wine production’ leading to overall efficiency giving them cost advantages over their competitors and reshaping of distribution lines.      4th largest wine exported in the world with 5% of global market International organisations and treaties      1994 Uruguay multilateral agreement (WTO)      Agreement to reduce protection on agricultural products (wines/grapes) by 36% by 2000      UK has the largest export market of wine Trade agreements      US and Australia have strong trade relations and trade agreements War in the Middle East Weak economic conditions Social Consumer tastes      Global markets have been increasingly integrated      Growing demand for mass market, high quality wines and a recognisable brand      Marketing of wines ‘other benefits’ has increased consumption globally      Strong economic growth period sees wine viewed as a luxury good, something consumers buy when they feel conditions are good as their incomes are increasing. Also at this particular price range fluctuations do not vary with economic conditions      Strong market for Australian markets taking off in the US Financial      Currency fluctuations      Weak Australian dollar has helped making Yellow Tail a better taste at $7 and a lower price than its Californian counterparts which are hobbled by high cost of land and labour      Currency fluctuations would have to get way about 70 cents for Casella to be unprofitable without a price change Legal      None mentioned 4.Explain the strategies used by the business to achieve its target markets
Friday, October 11, 2019
Has the improvement in high street retail logistics made us all more loyal customers??
Introduction To most businesses, the main objective is to make profit for the shareholders and satisfy the needs and interests of all the other stakeholders in the business. However, profit making is gradually getting more difficult as the liberalisation of markets has led to massive competition in most industries (Kumar et al., 2013). Consequently, companies have had to evolve in order to remain competitive and achieve their goals and objectives both in the short-term and in the long-term. One of the means commonly used by companies to ensure sustainable profitability is through capturing the loyalty of customers. The more loyal the customers are, the more businesses get recurring income and reduce the costs of doing business (Pepe et al., 2011). The retail stores in High St have been in the process of improving its services to their clients and the general public. This is with the aim of improving the levels of customer loyalty and thus increasing sales (Alessandra, 2007). This paper explores t he logistical improvements that have been made by high street retail companies to make their service to customers more effective. It seeks to establish if those improvements have related to customer loyalty to the company and to the brand. This will be achieved through the critical analysis of the supply chain and the detailed evaluation of the systems employed in relation to the benefits gained by High Street Logistics in its business. Findings and Analysis on High Street Retail Logistics Agrawal and Smith (2009) define retail logistics as the flow of goods from the suppliers to the stores and then to consumers. There is a specific logistical model through which this flow is managed to ensure efficiency and cost effectiveness in the process of doing business. The level of competition in high street retail is very high and all companies need to have a competitive advantage in order to be able to survive and thrive in the industry (Bruce & Daly, 2011). As such, there is need for companies to evolve and adapt to the latest trends so as to continue being profitable. Customer loyalty is critical in the performance of retail stores globally. The cost of retaining customers is far much cheaper than that of acquiring new customers thus reducing the cost of doing business for an organisation (Chan & Ip, 2011). The other advantage that is derived from customer loyalty is that the loyal customers will help in the marketing process of the brand name (Alessandra, 2007). Statistics from McKinsey.com (2013) indicate that more people tend to use brands, products or services that have been recommended by people that they know. Thus, such references can only be made by customers who are loyal to the company or brand. To make the customers loyal, retail stores have come up with incentives to entice their clients to continue shopping with them (Lawfer, 2004). Such incentives have involved logistical changes which have improved over the years and part of such an improvement is multichannel retailing. This section intends to address some of these logistical improvements that have been made by high street retail stores. Multichannel Retailing Within the last decade, there has been a shift of retail logistics principles from the traditional modules to the multichannel retailing (Waters, 2010). This evolution has been facilitated and necessitated by technological advancement, the rise and expansion of the internet, and change in purchasing habits. Convenience for the customers has been the primary focus in the evolution of the logistical processes where the needs and wants of the clients are met through all means possible (El-Manstrly et al., 2011). The level of logistical improvements by companies is dependent on how forward thinking the companies are. The future oriented companies have put in place measures in its logistical process to ensure that needs of their techno savvy clients are met in the best way possible (Agrawal & Smith, 2009). As a major improvement in the retail logistics in high street retailing, multichannel retailing is termed to be customer centric and transformative to the manner in which the both custo mers and the retailers relate (Miller, 2012). The process starts with research of the tastes and preferences of the consumers even before the products are stoked. The emerging trends of the market are also monitored and scientific analysis conducted to ensure that the company is able to predict the needs of the customer (Poloian, 2009). The anticipation of what the customers need has been able to help in satisfying the needs of the customers better and more effectively thus creating a perfect relationship between the company and the customers. This in turn fosters customer loyalty to the highest levels (El-Manstrly et al., 2011). Multichannel retailing involves the use of multiple channels to facilitate trade and other transactions, which include after sale service to existing and potential clients, browsing for the desired goods and services, purchase of the goods and services, returning of faulty goods and post sale services to the clients (Poloian, 2009). Based on the channels that a company uses to make sales, the logistics of the retail company are customised to suit the clientele and the goals/objectives of the company. For instance, Argos only used to sell to their clients through their retail stores. However, there was need to develop an online presence in order to be as competitive as companies such as Wal-Mart (Miller, 2012). As a result, the company started an online store which has turned out to be very effective and profitable. Customers prefer the online store as they can window shop without much hustle and get better prices for the goods and services that they need (Pearson, 2012; Grewal et al. , 2011). The online stores also created a need for delivery systems to be part of the logistics package. The goods that have been purchased by the clients are delivered to their door steps for their convenience. Multichannel retailing has contributed towards increasing customer loyalty because regardless of what could be termed as an inconvenience to make a purchase via one channel, there is always an alternative. As such, customer needs are catered for in a better manner, which also increases loyalty (Bruce & Daly, 2011). Even though researchers have established that multichannel retailing is highly beneficial for customers, the fact that customers are always looking for better deals – especially when shopping online – makes it challenging for a single business or brand to maintain certain loyal customers. This is especially when other brands are also trying to attract the same customers (Pearson, 2012). Data Mining Data mining has been one of the most conspicuous forms of improvement in the retail logistics that has been experienced in high street retailing. It is conducted by companies by reviewing the shopping trends of their clients and enables them to make predictions on the types of products or service that will be needed by their clients (Kantardzic, 2011). For instance, a company can check on its online stores which goods have been purchased most and by what category of their customers for instance, the products could have been purchased by female customers with young children and from a specific region of the country or part of the city (Linoff & Berry, 2011). By possessing this data, the store can be able to stock the product for an anticipated need or to maximize on the profitability of the product. The same case applies to seasonal products which need strategic stocking for limited resources not to be wasted (Phan & Vogel, 2010). Clipper, the leading retail and high value logistics company in the United Kingdom investigated the changes taking place in the retail logistic that are taking place in high street retailers presently and that are anticipated in the near future (Clipper Logistics, 2013). The company notes that in today’s ever changing world, high street retailers cannot afford to lack creativity and innovativeness the way that they do business (Clipper Logistics, 2013). Thus, it is necessary for companies to formulate strategies that will give them a competitive edge over their competitors. In some cases, however, companies have been sued for mining client data through unauthorised means (Kantardzic, 2011). Whereas data mining is intended to provide more customized customer services that will increase customer loyalty, such incidents are detrimental to the achievement of this objective. For companies that use the appropriate means to mine data and provide services tailored to meet the needs of clients, there is a definite potential of increased customer loyalty (Linoff & Berry, 2011). Other Logistical Improvements Many retail logistics companies offer a full redesign of a company’s logistics system, which includes fully automated or semi-automated warehousing systems which run most the retail channels for their clients (Agrawal & Smith, 2009). The other service that is offered is inventory management for the purposes of improving the shelf availability of the products and services. Distribution to clients and dealing with suppliers is another role that has been taken over by retail logistics companies as service providers (Poloian, 2009). Most of the high street retailers have outsourced these services while others have decided to have an in-built system but seek the consultancy services of retail logistics companies. No matter the approach taken, the main aim is to improve on service delivery, reducing the costs of doing business and ensuring that the customers’ needs are met (Bruce & Daly, 2011). Many high street retailers also have follow-up surveys to ensure that the quality of customer service is up to the required standards. With the current level of internet accessibility among consumers, if feedback is not collected from the clients directly, it is received on social media platforms where most clients air there grievance (McKinsey.com, 2013). To avoid such situations, logistics of retail high street retailers have undergone several improvements to ensure prompt and adequate communication with customers (Phan & Vogel, 2010;Grewal et al., 2011). All these improvements that have been made by companies have been done with the aim of increasing customer satisfaction as well as improving their competitive edges (McKinsey.com, 2013). This has also led to an increase in customer loyalty for high-street retailers. Conclusion All businesses have to evolve at one point or another in order to remain relevant in the business world. High street is no different from other competitive markets for retail business and most companies have come up with ways and means to ensure that their retail logistics are up to the latest standards and that all the customers are satisfied. Improvements in the logistical processes, such as the delivery of goods, e-commerce through mobile applications and online store and the innovation in new channels for retail, have played a great role in customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction in turn translates into more sales for the company and most importantly it translates to customer loyalty. The level of customer loyalty has been enhanced through the new services that have been brought about by the improvement in the logistics of these companies. However, the fact that some logistical developments require a lot of customer information has raised some scepticism among several custom ers. Based on technological advancement, the level of competition in the market and the changing consumer needs, more changes and improvements are still expected. Recommendations Although much has been done in the retail logistics sectors, there is still more to be done through technological advancement. Application of artificial intelligence to the logistical process is recommended for the retail stores to serve the purposes of automating processes and making predictions of future consumer trends with higher accuracy (Bodhani, 2012). The use of artificial intelligence will not only raise the integrity of the companies and the transactions in which they are involved, but will also aid in fully satisfying the needs of the customers even without the mentioning of the needs by the clients (Phan & Vogel, 2010). Such high quality services will lead to customer loyalty and thus profitability of the high street retail stores. One of the limitations of this recommendation, however, is the fact that it needs a lot of financial capital to implement. References Agrawal, N. M., & Smith, S. A. (2009). Retail supply chain management quantitative models and empirical studies. New York: Springer. Alessandra, A. J. (2007). Stairs of customer loyalty. New Jersey: Electronic & Database Publishers. Bodhani, A. (2012). Shops offer the e-tail experience. Engineering & Technology, 7 (5), 46-49. Bruce, M., & Daly, L. (2011). Adding value: challenges for UK apparel supply chain management–a review. Production Planning & Control, 22 (3), 210-220. Chan, S. L., & Ip, W. H. (2011). A dynamic decision support system to predict the value of customer for new product development. Decision Support Systems, 52 (1), 178-188. Clipper Logistics. (2013). Evolution vs Revolution. ‘Death of the High StreetRetrieved July 18, 2014, from http://www.clippergroup.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Future-Forum-Conference-Brochure.indd-2.pdf El-Manstrly, D., Paton, R., Veloutsou, C., & Moutinho, L. (2011). An empirical investigation of the relative effect of trust and switching costs on service loyalty in the UK retail banking industry. Journal of Financial Services Marketing, 16 (2), 101-110. Grewal, D., Hall, K., & Robertson, J. R. (2011). Innovations in retail pricing and promotions. Journal of Retailing, 87, 543-552. Kantardzic, M. (2011). Data mining: concepts, models, methods, and algorithms. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. Kumar, V., Sharma, A., Shah, R., & Rajan, B. (2013). Establishing profitable customer loyalty for multinational companies in the emerging economies: a conceptual framework. Journal of International Marketing, 21 (1), 57-80. Lawfer, M. R. (2004). Why customers come back how to create lasting customer loyalty. Franklin Lakes, NJ: Career Press. Linoff, G. S., & Berry, M. J. (2011). Data mining techniques: for marketing, sales, and customer relationship management. London: John Wiley & Sons. McKinsey.com. (2013). Reorganizing to build customer loyalty. Retrieved July 18, 2014, from http://www.mckinsey.com/client_service/organization/case_studies/improving_on_success Miller, J. (2012). Preparing the High Street for online shopping. Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal, 6 (2), 122-130. Pearson, B. (2012). The loyalty leap: turning customer information into customer intimacy. New York: Penguin Publishers. Pepe, M. S., Abratt, R., & Dion, P. (2011). The impact of private label brands on customer loyalty and product category profitability. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 20 (1), 27-36. Phan, D. D., & Vogel, D. R. (2010). A model of customer relationship management and business intelligence systems for catalogue and online retailers. Information & Management, 47 (2), 69-77. Poloian, L. G. (2009). Multichannel retailing. New York: Fairchild Books. Waters, C. D. (2010). Global logistics new directions in supply chain management. London: Kogan Page.
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Web Site Publishing Process
Web Site Publishing Process The first step to publish a brand-new web site is to find the best host for your needs. There are many different options for Web hosting. The best one is going to depend on the type of site that is being created. Almost all sites will fall under one of the next three categories: personal or hobby site, small business site, or Ecommerce or high-traffic site. It is going to be the size, complexity, and expected traffic load of the site that are going to need to be considered when shopping for a host. Personal and Hobby sites are typically used for sites that will be used to communicate with friends and family and/or share information about hobbies with other people. These sites will typically be small and have low-traffic. Personal and Hobby sites are easier to publish and less expensive. There are two free options in this category. The first is your internet service provider as most of them give customer’s access to a personal Web page as a part of their regular service. This option does have strict limits on the amount of bandwidth the website is able to use though; too many pictures can push the website over the limit. The second option is free web hosts. This allows someone to get a free site and the host gets to advertise on it, although storage and download amounts are an issue here too. With this option the host is able to shut down the website if it exceeds the bandwidth allotment until the next month when the bandwidth counter restarts. Small business sites are sites that will contain basic company information. These sites are typically called â€Å"brochure sites†. This is because the information in the website can probably be found on a printed advertisement brochure. These are pretty simple sites, but because they are still a business the creator will want a reliable host and will not be shut off unexpectedly. The creator will choose their own domain name. Ecommerce sites are sites where individuals and/or small businesses start to sell products and services online and collecting online payments. These types of sites can get a little pricey when trying to find a host because these sites will need a working shopping cart system, an online merchant account, and a Web host that supports all of that. Once the needs of the host have been determined and you have a valid domain name the next step will be to publish the website. There are three basic options: FrontPage extensions, HTML editor with FTP (File Transfer Protocol) capability, or a standalone FTP program. FrontPage does not work well with an FTP process as it uses FP extensions. HTML editor and the standalone FTP program both use the FTP process to upload all files for the website. Check List: ?Find the right host ?Create a valid domain name ?Design the website ?Publish the website The two web hosting companies that I am going to compare are hostgator. com and hub web hosting. Below is a list of what each offer: Web Hosting CompanyWeb Hosting EssentialsWeb Hosting ExtrasWeb Hosting Review HOSTGATOR. COM? $4. 95 Monthly ?Unlimited Disk Space ?Unlimited Bandwidth? Host Unlimited Domains ?Unlimited Databases ?Fantastico Installer PHP + MySQL Hosting ?Unlimited MySQL DBs ?cPanel Control Panel ?Supports Ruby on Rails? Top Reseller Web Host ?SSH Access ?SiteStudio Web Builder ?24/7 Support ?Instant Backups ?45 Day Guarantee HUB WEB HOSTING? $3. 95 Monthly ?Unlimited Disk Space ?Unlimited Bandwidth? Host Unlimited Domains ?No Downtime Transfer ?Buisness Hardware ?Free Blogging Software ?Free Website Builder ?Unlimited Email Accounts? Top Simple Web Hosting ?PHP5,My SQL5, Perl5 ?Free E-commerce Tools ?24/7 US Support ?Over 8 Special Offers ?90 Day Guarantee The first hosting site is hostgator. om. This site offers site hosting for $4. 95 a month which includes unlimited disk space and unlimited bandwidth. Hub web hosting offers site hosting for $3. 95 a month which includes unlimited disk space and unlimited bandwidth as well. They each offer a lot of extras like unlimited domains. The difference is that Hub web hosting is a simple web hosting site, while hostgator. com is a little more technical. I would consider using hub web hosting for my own Web site as it seems to be more for the beginner website developer and seems to be easier than the other.
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Discussion Question 1 Week 4 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words
Discussion Question 1 Week 4 - Assignment Example The restaurant will require about $150,000 in order to be operational. The Smart fast food restaurant will be organized as a partnership business. This is because I intend to start the business in partnership with Mr. Johnson. We will hire three kitchen cooks who will be involved in preparing the fast foods. We will also need to hire one waiter and two customer support staff. Moreover we will also need to hire two sales persons. I will act as the human resource manager while Johnson will act as the sales manager. However, the Smart food restaurant aims at increasing the number of the employee as the business progresses. The Smart fast food restaurant will be stated with a capital base of $150,000. Johnson and I will contribute $50,000 as the starting capital the rest of capital will be borrowed from commercial banks. The following is an outline of the proposed financial plan This refers to the amount of money needed to cater for the initial cost in order to start a business. It includes the money required to purchase all the materials required to a start the business. In this case smart food restaurant requires about $80,000 for its start up cost. The monthly expenses refer to the cost the business is likely to incur at the end of the month. These costs include the cost of paying for insurance, and the cost of paying its employee. In this case the Smart fast food restaurant will require $50,000 to cater for its monthly cost This refers to the various sales estimates that the business aims at achieving at the end of certain period. In this case, the Smart food restaurant estimates that at the end of the month it will make sales worth $120,000. The smart fast food restaurant will mainly target to sell its food products to the business people found in the Los Angelis town. This is because most of the business people find it hard to leave their business to a have lunch in a hotel. The business will also target the college students since they also like
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Informative Speech-Marriage customs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
Informative Speech-Marriage customs - Essay Example Each of the culture has unique dress code, cuisine line, ceremonies in their respective weddings all poles apart from each other. For example: Asian brides usually wear red on their wedding day while, European wear long white gowns (Gokulsing and Dissanayake, 2009). Though there are many traditions in many cultures but by performing this ritual there’s only one goal and one intention which is to unite two souls, two hearts and two individuals into one (Smith, 2003). The topic of my speech is arrange marriage customs in India and the steps needed for it. India is rich and vast when it comes about their culture and their weddings are considered as the most colorful weddings of Asia (Smith, 2003). Arranged marriages are those marriages in which both the family of about to be bride and groom sit together and plan the wedding. Usually the partner of either the girl or the boy is chosen by the parents, communal elders or by matchmakers. In arrange marriages a lot of things are considered like religion, ethical values, class, education, background and a lot more things which at least should be of exact match or should be equal (Srinivasan, 1997). In India it is supported that a parent will never consider something bad for the child. Parents are one of those people who are present at every stage of your life as a guide. As marriage is an important decision of one’s life so how parents at such stage can make wrong decision or suggestion (Visweswaran, 2011). Arrange marriages also involve choices, it’s wrongly said that it does not. Usually nothing happens with the affirmative signal of the bride and the groom (Viharini, 2010). The first step thus is to select a life partner, which is usually done by the parents or elders (Stephen, 2010). Although not everyone demands dowry, still usually it’s quite difficult for the family of the bride to search an adequate life partner for her and to send her off with enough
Monday, October 7, 2019
7 Discussion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
7 Discussion - Essay Example In this way the individual relies on his or her character. Philosophers such as Plato, Hume, Aristotle etc have discoursed on virtuous character yet there seem not to be an agreement on exactly what ought to be counted as virtuous behavior. According to this philosophers virtue can only be equated to knowledge thus one who has knowledge and especially so the knowledge of good is regarded to have virtuous character (McMurray, 2000). The fact the children are born with no sense whatsoever of right or wrong it is prudent to assert that this good judgment is acquired from the society. The child will be taught by society members a number of mannerisms deemed acceptable such as honesty, respect and live in harmony with the existing systems. Without the society and culture would mean that the child relies on instincts thus will only have to act in a way that is likely to be beneficial to him or her. The society has also ensured there is a way to reward virtuous behavior thus encouraging its members to be virtuous. There are many moral stories and the like which give examples of individuals that have prospered in the society as a result of being virtuous. In the same way others are encouraged to live a virtuous life such that they are able to benefit in a similar manner. It is not easy to live a virtuous life thus there is normally some obstacles one has to overcome. According to some of the virtue theorist, it is easy for human beings to practice vice especially when the society is reluctant to punish the behavior and encourage virtuous living. It is for this reason that there are laws of the land and the justice system to encourage the people to live in harmony with one another. Alternatively there are those opposed to this theory citing the fact that character is in born. There are times when one has to rely on his character to perform some acts which the society is opposed to.
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