Consumer behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Consumer behavior - Essay Example Bargh (2002) explains that motivations are inner forces that cause consumers to take action towards satisfying their needs. When a marketer understands the motivating factors that trigger a consumer to visit a show room or actually recognize a need to buy a car, he can get a competitive edge in the industry. Motivation is an important factor especially for Sunny Nissan as the marketing team of the car should understand the motivational factors that will cause the consumers to pay attention to the brand and actually become motivated enough to purchase the car (Nissan 2009) . However, Michael and Dann (2007) point out that recognizing these motivating factors are essential so that the marketers can use these factors in the advertisements or the sales personnel can use these motivating cues to make the consumer want the brand more and encourage him to buy the car. Folkes (1988) adds that knowing about these motivational factors will give Sunny an edge and the marketing efforts will be p roductive as they will affect the consumers. For example featuring a family in the advertisement and how a better looking car resolves family commuting issues and gives the owner a social acceptance will make the viewer relate it to his own personal needs and he may actually be motivated enough to go pout and buy the car. Motivation as Bagozzi and Dholakia (1999) describe therefore is an attempt to recognize the consumer behavior at a micro level. It is when the marketer tries to understand the consumer at an individual or personal level which is very difficult to assess and gauge. The main motivation theory is based on the need factor. With Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory, the categories of need can be recognized as physiological needs, safety needs, social needs, esteem needs and self actualization needs. As per the theory, Bargh (2002) explains that the need for Sunny will lie under the social need category. This is

Women Maternity Clothing Store (Part 2 of Business Plan) Assignment

Women Maternity Clothing Store (Part 2 of Business Plan) - Assignment Example Majority of pregnant women are working class who require clean and appealing work attire. According to statistics the population between age 15- 19 years are at times jobless with few having successful careers hence need for product that would suit low, middle and high-income customers within the region. The region as described demands warm clothing owing to prevailing weather conditions. Weather is vital in this business and plays significant role in design of merchandises. The region experiences longer winter seasons and shorter summer seasons and is characterized by busy and low season, in this case the busy season for most stores starts during spring break ending around September. United States spring break starts around March influencing sales from maternity stores. This creates an advantage since most pregnant women would vacation away from their home states and would make whole new purchases of maternity clothing (Suttle 1). Those in the northern part require more protective clothing in form of coats and boots as compared to those within southern region due low temperatures, additionally the region is also characterized by storms and hurricane seasons which at times keep consumers away from town centers (Suttle 1). Therefore, the business needs to consider weather aspect in the planning process to avoid unnecessary losses. Despite an upward growth for maternity clothes in recent years, there is current demand for stylish maternity clothes at all pregnancy stages within the region to suit weather conditions (Ranson 1). The figure below shows the map of the target region and the level of unintended pregnancies. Majority are young expecting mothers who value trendy and stylish clothes. The United States is known to be one of the worlds largest countries, occupying an area of approximately 3,679,192 square miles (9,529,107 square

The Population Of Azerbaijan Cultural Studies Essay

The Population Of Azerbaijan Cultural Studies Essay I was born and raised in Azerbaijan and currently I live in Texas, United States. Geographically Azerbaijan is located where East meets West, therefore it is not surprising that the culture in Azerbaijan has been influenced by Western and Eastern set of values. Ive always believed that Azerbaijan has a very unique culture compared to other countries that share the same demographics and religion with it. To the outside world the Azerbaijan culture may seem very modern and Westernized however if one spends considerable amount of time living in Azerbaijan they will realize that the culture in this country is rather conservative. The culture in Azerbaijan has been considerably shaped due to globalization especially during the last two decades. The population of Azerbaijan consists of one racial group leaving very little space for diversity. People that are different race that reside in Azerbaijan are from foreign countries and speak a foreign language. Therefore Azerbaijanis are not very open minded and are not used to being around people that are different than them. Discriminating different races or cultures is considered something acceptable due to lack of exposure to other cultures. In addition to the social circumstances of Azerbaijan acts as a major influence on Azerbaijani society, morals and values. Islam is practiced by 90% of the population and controls every aspect of a persons life. Market exchanges and great religious associations integrate the social system of Islam, and although Islam is the core influence on the life of Azerbaijanis. I was born into a Muslim family and I still practice Islam. I believe the reason behind the conservative nature of Azerbaijani culture is that religion is still taking very seriously in this area. Every culture has negative and positive aspects to it. One of the positive aspects of my culture is that families are very close to each other and are always there for each other. I like and admire this about my culture. However, there is a downside, which is that there is a very little sense of privacy. Everyone always wants to know everything about each others personal life and they feel that they are entitled to know whats going on in other peoples personal lives. In other words there is no respect for privacy and I find this to be quiet embarrassing about my culture. Living in the United States has exposed me to a lot of new things including different social norms. One thing that I really admire about the culture here is how people are professional and organized. I believe being able to deal with all kinds of circumstances in a professional manner shows good manners. I also like how people are organized; it helps society to function better and more efficiently. Most of the people in Azerbaijan are racist towards black people, simply because they have never really interacted with them. A couple of years ago Azerbaijani soccer teams started recruiting African soccer players. This resulted in a number of African soccer players living on my native hometown Baku. Unfortunately they were not very welcome by the local population. People would stare at them, laugh at them and make rude remarks about them. I made friends with couple of them and would hang out with them on regular basis. During these times people would often stare at us and make rude comments. I would always make sure to stand up for my friends and explain that it is wrong to act this way towards them. A few years earlier we a had a class project regarding Geography and everyone was free to come up with a creative idea that involved some foreign country. Every stood in front of the class one by one and explained their project. When it was turn for one of my classmates he opened a map of the world with Middle East and North Korea crossed out in it. He then explained that he would drop a nuclear bomb on North Korea and Middle East and kill everyone that lives there. No one in class said anything including the teacher. I was shocked and wanted to say something but kept quiet. If this incident happened today I would definitely stand up and let him know that he was being ignorant and offer him more information about Middle East. In addition to the social circumstances of Azerbaijan, religion acts as a major influence on Azerbaijani society, morals and values. Islam is practiced by 90% of the population and controls every aspect of a persons life. Market exchanges and great religious associations integrate the social system of Islam, and although Islam is the core influence on the life of Azerbaijanis. The moral value system of Islam is based on the absolute equality of man, irrespective of race, wealth or lineage. The only distinction in Islam is based on piety. I believe that Azerbaijans reaction to westernization has been a negative one due to the fact that previous Western culture has failed to penetrate it. The reason for the Azerbaijans rejection of globalization is because of their social circumstances. Socially, Azerbaijani culture is the opposite of what the fundamentals of globalization are. In Azerbaijan people are interdependent individuals, highly family oriented and they think analytically. In addition, Azerbaijani people do not base their activities on a timeline and are far more lenient in terms of tardiness or leaving a business setting to converse with a friend. Azerbaijani people embody the idea of putting someone else needs before their own as well as choosing to do business amidst their own social circles. The culture of Azerbaijani people to not do business with a stranger is one of the core reasons why globalization does not work there. In order to give a better understanding of how people there view doing business with in their own social circle Id like to tell a story of man whose friends frequent his uncles taxi company and would rather walk if there are not taxis available opposed to calling upon the services of another company. In order to sum up how culture influences each generation differently Ive divided them into three categories. 1-Those who reject westernization as the highest stage of imperialism and cultural invasions based on the idea that it is designed to dominate, intimidate and destroy a cultures heritage. 2-Those who welcome the scale of globalization as the age of modern science, advanced technology, global communications and knowledge-based information. This second group of thinkers debate that its people can no longer remain confined to the boundaries of their heritage 3-Lastly, the third group does not agree with the idea of globalization nor does the group disagree with it. It can be described as a group that is positive neutrality and has a variation of attitudes when it comes to globalization. The reaction of westernization depends of which group of population it is affecting. It seems the first group mentioned above is that of the elderly group around the age of grandparents. This group is made up of individuals who still hold on to tradition and religion allowing it to determine every aspect of their life. With this group Islam is the practiced religion and the traditions of Islam go against the idea of westernized globalization. The third group is made up of those who are middle aged, who at the moment feel indifferent about the idea of globalization. These people still allow specific parts of religion and tradition to dictate their lives yet they still entertain the thought of allowing the change to take place. It is safe to say that this group agrees with Frank Griffel who quoted, Instead of rejecting globalization, the Islamic world is finding its own way of globalization. The two processes use the same means and the same tools and are indeed inseparable. Lastly, the second group is primarily made up of the younger generation. The younger generation is a lot more respectable to the change of things merely because that is the age in which he or she was born and raised in. Since the third group entertains the prospect of utilizing everything good in globalization, that is the idea the middle aged (parents) are passing on to the second group (children of the third group). To the first group the religion of Islam plays a major role in how globalization is reacted upon, however, the way the world is changing and the younger the generations, globalization will soon outweigh the power of religion.

The Iliad of Homer :: essays research papers

The Iliad Outline &explain the qualities of a â€Å"Homeric Hero†. Who best fits the bill? Why?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Homeric hero strives to be the best among his peers. His goal is to achieve the greatest glory in order to earn the highest honor from his peers, his commander, and finally from his warrior society. He strives for excellence in particular areas of human behavior, such behaviors are strength, skill, and determination. These are necessary on the both the athletic and battlefields, it is known as the idea of arete.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Homeric hero judges his own arete by what his warrior society thinks of him. How well the Homeric hero will be remembered and honored is determined upon how well he fights, how his heroic adversity is, and how well he faces death. He feels that society’s attitude towards him is more important than is own attitude. He chooses to act in a way that will make him acquire public approval that he needs in order to have self- esteem.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The greatest insult to a Homeric hero is to with hold the honor that he has earned. He is completely shattered when honor is denied him. The honor that he would not have received would be from a battle, not receiving an appropriate impressive prize, or being judged a loser in a competition he should have won. The highest and most honored prize is called the prize of honor. In the Iliad this prize is the most attractive, intelligent, and skilled female captive. The most absolute honor is everlasting fame. It is the only for of immortality that a mortal can acquire. This places the Homeric hero lower than the gods, but higher than the ordinary man.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Achilles, Hector, Agamemnon, and Patroclus are considered Homeric heroes. Achilles acted childish when he did not receive the appropriate prize. He said, â€Å"you threaten to take away my prize of honor, which I earned and which the Greeks gave to me. Whenever I sack a town, my prize is never as great as yours, even though I am the greatest Greek fighter. Even so, my small prize is my own. So now I will return to my homeland. I refuse to stay here, dishonored, in order to win greater wealth for you!† He is upset that he did not receive a great prize as Agamemnon did. Achilles had worked so hard to earn a prize and Agamemnon had taken the credit for it and gotten the better

The Role of Architecture on the Tourism Industry

On another yet parallel line, architecture has taken the lead in tourism as the main object of tourist activity and has recently generated a specialized type called architecture tourism whereby specialist trips are organized around the cities worldwide to visit contemporary buildings designed by well-known architects as well as historically important or traditionally characteristic buildings (Chivalrous & Cigarillo, 2007).Tourism event, which boomed particularly during sass, introduced a very dense and over arbitration causing; not only major damages to coastal zones via massive constructions, but also to local life by meaner of conversion of local economies for only tourists, which gradually resulting in the decline of these towns during off-seasons, and eventually destroying both local economy and social life. Nonetheless, despite many negative consequences, tourism activity continued its growth and became the center of global social, cultural and economic life.Therefore, the pheno menon of tourism, in which verse parameters play complex roles, necessitates an intense interaction among sectors and disciplines. Among these disciplines, architecture stands out as a leading actor since it not only facilitates investments, synthesizes the requirements of comfort and entertainment or organizes activities, technologies and spaces, but also creates identities and produces the imagery and iconography associated with branding of the tourism investors. Today, hence, tourism industry and architecture are in a comprehensive and very close interaction.As a matter of fact, authentically satirical architectural edifices have always triggered tourism (Stroller, 1989) by their values as either being witnesses to historical events, or representing various phenomena, or merely by their monumentality, originality or other assets. These unique masterpieces or contexts used to render certain destinations more advantageous over the others. Thus, relatively disadvantageous locations in terms of tourist attractions have developed various strategies to overcome their position by the utilization of architecture again (Donald, 2007) due to its representation capacity.One of these strategies has been to create their own iconic symbols through contemporary architecture and its new forms by well-known designers, who are promoted as celebrities, while the other strategy being to simulate unique buildings and cities in these inopportune places which has no relevance to the location of the original. Recently, tourism industry seems to be promoting not only fake copies of historically important or well-known buildings, cities but also their kitsch and eclectic collage, such as monuments, pyramids, palaces, urban plazas and even the whole city f Venice in resorts.

Impact of US Dollar on Canadian Economy Essay

The Canadian Economy is strong. According to the 2001 Canada Yearbook, factors contributing to the country’s economic health are: natural resources; manufacturing and construction industries; financial and service sectors; the ability to span distances using communications and transportation technologies; dynamic trade relationships with other nations; and the ability to compete in a global marketplace (2004). Being the 2nd largest country in the world, Canada’s natural resources accounts for 12. 6% of its GDP growth in 2003. The Energy Sector, Forestry, Mineral Sector as well as Geomatics Sciences are responsible for this growth. Exportation of natural gas, timber and wood products, potash, uranium and other minerals make up for the growth. Geomatics is the science and technology of gathering, analyzing, interpreting, distributing and using geographic information. Since 2002, when the Canadian Government initiated the focus on understanding and mapping its land resources, it became one of the leading suppliers of information, technology and equipment in Geomatics. Today, Geomatics is a $10 to $20 billion dollar industry growing at a 20% rate, and thus is a potential growth area for the Canadian natural resources sector. According to Industry Canada, the Manufacturing and Construction Industries contribute to about 40% of Canada’s GDP, with an actual gross approximately $25 billion in December 2005. The two industries combined showed growth near single digit levels, (manufacturing at 1% GDP and construction at 0. 7% in Dec. 2005) which propelled the 0. 4 over-all GDP, making up for the loss in the Agriculture section at -1. 6% GDP in December 2005 (2006). The services sector in general is boosting the economy. Canada Yearbook states that the sector employs three out of four Canadians in the 21st Century (2004). Though their output is not as tangible as manufactured or natural goods, the services sector is everywhere and serve as the backbone of every economic sector. From the driver of a courier van to the company financial analyst to the service providers in Civil Defense, all the roles belong to the services sector. Together with advances in information technology, the services sector is transforming Canadian Economy into a knowledge-based economy (2006), as claimed by the Canadian Yearbook, where-in its modern products are efficient back-end services, professional consultancy and breakthrough technologies and equipment. Despite the economic transformation, trade is still the main means of business for Canada. As such, relationships with trade partners play a vital role. Among the countries in the world, four markets are in constant and significant trade relations with Canada: United States, United Kingdom, Japan and more recently, China. Among the four, its close neighbor, the United States takes about 75 – 80% of Canada’s trading business. Thus, changes in the Unites States economy, particularly of the US dollar impacts Canadian economy. State of Canada-US Trade Geography and history have provided opportunities for the United States and Canada to be in close business relations. In the natural order of things, free trade between the two nations would be beneficial in toto. However, political and social ramifications have prevented the successful pact since the mid 1800s until such time when, despite the disagreement of Canada’s Conservative Party, the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between US and Canada was effected in October of 1987. The over-all provision is to minimize tariffs of all goods traded between the two countries to a maximum of 1%. With the FTA in effect, trade between the two countries rose to 40% from a pre-FTA level of 25%. However, there is strong opposition from Canada about violations of the United States in the provisions of FTA, to the disadvantage of Canada’s agricultural business. However, seeing the benefits of a free trade zone, Prime Minister elect Jean Chretien improved the FTA and broadened the extend of the free trade to Mexico. Thus, in January of 1994, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between the United States, Canada and Mexico, took effect. Such Agreement involves an immediate and phased release of tariffs and trade barriers for agricultural products traded between the three countries. A macro benefit of NAFTA is a systematic conduct of business within North America because of the creation of an impartial, rules-based system to resolve dispute among the countries. Significant increases in trade activity were observed among the three countries in the first seven years of NAFTA implementation as compared to agricultural trade activities with other markets outside of North America. Canadian agricultural and agri-food exports to the United States and Mexico have increased by 95 percent, reaching $14. 8 billion in 2000. In comparison, Canadian exports of agricultural products to non-NAFTA countries grew by 45 percent during the same period, according to Agriculture and Agri-food Department of Canada (2006). Prior to NAFTA, agricultural import-export activities between Canada and the United States was only at $13. 7 billion. However, this increased $25. 1 billion in 2000, 82% higher, since 1993. Because 61% of Canada’s farming produce are exported to the United States, agricultural exports for the same period grew 92% to reach $14. 1 billion. As a result, Canada’s agricultural trade surplus with the United States has more than tripled since 1993. As summarized by the Agricultural Department of Canada, Horticultural crops: volume exports of tomatoes increased twenty-fold while exports of peppers and lettuce increased seven-fold, and exports of cucumbers increased six-fold. Oilseeds products: soybean oil volume exports increased seven-fold, exports of sunflower oil quadrupled, and canola oil exports increased by 44 percent. Specialty crops: dried beans volume exports nearly tripled. Red meats: beef volume exports more than doubled while pork exports increased by 87 percent. Processed products: roasted coffee volume exports increased nearly seventeen-fold, malt exports increased nearly five-fold, exports of frozen French fries increased four-fold, and pasta exports more than tripled. Following the success of NAFTA and its predecessors from other continents of the world, Canada together with thirty-three other countries belonging to the American Continent are drafting a free trade agreement called Free Trade Agreement Among the Americas (FTAA). With its complex participation, the agreement is still under negotiations. Factors that Influence the Rise of the Canadian Dollar (against the US Dollar) With the rise of the United States as an Economic super power, it naturally assumed a role of having the US dollar as a worldwide currency. Significant markets such as Canada are always compared to the dollar. Moreover, being a majority trade partner of the US, the exchange rate of the Canadian dollar matters significantly over the US dollar. Since 2003, Statistics Canada has plotted the rise of the Canadian dollar against the US dollar and indicated its significant rise against the greenback. There are three factors that may have contributed to this growth: first, the weakening of the US economy brought about by increasing current account deficits; secondly, the worldwide increase in commodity prices; and thirdly, the improved performance of the Canadian economy resulting in trade surplus. Since 2001, there has been a common phenomenon in most major currencies in the world: they appreciated against the US dollar. The Euro and Canadian dollar were two of the strongest performers. When the Euro surpassed the greenback in 2003 analysts predicted that there was no turning back. While the loonie has seen significant appreciation at the rate of 25% since 2001 until 2005, surpassing historical performance by the US dollar. Such appreciation has been driven by the increasing trade deficits of the US. Since 2001, the US has been buying more goods and a service than the country is able to sell. More oil, gas, metals and services were bought with US dollars than were sold outside of the US. Some analysts believe that the on-going War on Terror has been the main source of the deficit. While the country is still figuring out how to address the deficits, major trade partners such as Canada are reaping the benefits of a weakening dollar. At the mercy (or because) of commodity supply, the Canadian economy remained resilient despite the volatility of oil, gas, metals and wood. Being a major supplier of such commodities, precarious world prices came at an advantage. Despite some internal losses as a crude oil refiner, the bottom line effect of this factor remained positive and contributed to GDP. Thus, the increase of the Canadian dollar. Last factor that weakened the dollar from Canada’s point of view is the initiative of its government to attract more businesses through higher interest rates (vs. that of the United States). The over-all effect therefore, of the three factors above is the weakening of the US dollar against the Canadian dollar. Today, the exchange rate of the Canadian dollar is rising and reaching its peak in 2001, at C$ 0. 846 vs. the US$. With such growth, the general assessment of Canadian economists, businesses and external analysts is that this is positive for the Canadian economy, now more than ever. The next sections will have full discussion of the different sectors in the Canadian economy as impacted by the weakening (or strength) of the US dollar. Impact of the US Dollar on Canadian Industries Exports Apart from agriculture and agri-products, steel is another commodity that Canada heavily trades with the United States. Canada’s steel production accounts for approximately two percent of the world’s total supply. This is very small as compared to the Asian producers (Japan, North Korea and Taiwan), which accounts for nearly 40%. Nevertheless, 89% of Canada’s steel export go to the United States while 58% of Canada’s imported steel come from the US. Trade barriers, transportation costs prevent small Canadian steel producers from competing outside of North America. North America’s open market is ideal for small and big steel manufacturers from Canada. Just by its size and high demand, the opportunity for supply is wide. In addition, proximity to such a large market allows for low transportation cost. Just-in-time supply is immediately served without much impact on delivery cost. Furthermore, inventory can be kept low unless preparing for construction peak. Steel pricing in North America is also higher than other export markets by as much as 40% when compared to Japan, where steel importation is minimal due to its own supply. In North America, particularly the United States, steel trade is predicted to continue growth. In this light, sustained and open access to the U. S. market is key to the Canadian steel industry. A slight fallback in the market, for example, experienced in 1995 posed a threat to the industry. Whenever such a slow-down happens, issues related to anti-dumping and government subsidies arise, without any proper venue for address under NAFTA. Unfair trade practice is an issue commonly raised by the US against Canada when market conditions appear to favor Canada’s steel industry. In the same manner, weakening of the US dollar may initiate such a condition when Canada’s steel industry continues to maintain a surplus against the US. Once again is likely to be subject to charges of unfair trading practices by U. S. steelmakers. In 1993, according to Industry Canada, the country had a global steel trade surplus of $580 million and a steel trade surplus with the U. S. of $909 million. While the trade surplus was maintained with the U. S. , the surge in steel demand in 1994 resulted in a dramatic rise in imports and produced an overall international trade deficit of $207 million. The total trade balance deficit increased in 1995 to $349 million as Canadian imports again exceeded exports. However, the steel trade surplus with the U. S. was $1. 0 billion in 1995. Over the period from 1989 to 1995, steel imports have increased from 18. 6 percent of apparent domestic consumption in Canada to 29. 9 percent in 1995. Meanwhile the import share held by the U. S. increased from 8. 6 percent to 17. 5 percent. In the U. S. market, imports increased from 17. 9 percent of apparent domestic consumption in 1989 to 21. 4 percent in 1995, with Canada’s import share increasing from 3. 1 percent to 4. 0 percent. With such steel trade dynamics between the two countries, the weakening of the US dollar means the increase in Canada’s export price. Either more US dollars are needed to purchase the same Canadian product in the 21st century, than during the slump 1990s; or less Canadian dollars are earned for every sale of a Canadian export. At the other end, when Canada imports from the US, the commodities and services become cheaper. Either way, both impacts sales and profits. When sales and profits are volatile, vulnerable small businesses tend to closedown and contribute to unemployment. In order to maintain profit margins, Canadian export companies will need to improve efficiencies. Improvement may come in three ways: production streamlining, outsourcing and amortization gains. When the US dollar is low, it is the best time for companies to reevaluate tools and machinery throughput. Technology improvements will present more-efficient, more-automated processes, which can be useful in improving production efficiency. Since most equipment are bought from the US or are priced in US dollars, lower dollar exchange rates mean cheaper equipment. This is one way that exports companies to maintain profit margins by reducing production cost through efficient machines. In the same line of thinking importing services also come cheaper than when the US dollar is strong. Whether obtaining services from the US, or from East Asia, where intelligent and skilled labor is cheap, outsourcing back-end process in export production always contribute to efficiency. Though this may result to redundancies, macro effects of outsourcing prove to be positive to the bottom line. Lastly, for businesses that amortize US dollar-denominated loans, there will be gains in the amortization payment because of the weakened dollar. Furthermore, during a round-table public forum in 2004, businessmen have suggested that the Canadian government consider lowering interests rates to match that of the US. Doing so will minimize the impact of loans on Canadian dollar-based denominations despite its appreciation. Imports The stronger currency benefits importers. Consumers and businesses benefit from a better Canada-U. S. exchange rate through less expensive imports from the U. S. The depreciation of the dollar lowers import costs and, more specifically, offers cheaper capital goods, making investment in new machinery and equipment in Canada cheaper. Canadian businesses import 80% of equipment and machinery, and with these imports now more affordable, a boost to business investment can be expected. However, some argue that with the loss of revenue, investments in new machinery and equipment would not be substantial.