Market Segmentation, and Product Positioning Essay

For the purpose of this assignment, I am assuming myself as the owner of a plastic molded toy company in United States that manufacturers, and distributes plastic molded toys through retailers across the country and around the world. The company is capitalizing on the strong growth in the children’s toys segment and planning to expand in an aggressive manner throughout the nation. The company offers unique, world class and high quality toys which appeal to children of all ages and nationalities around the world. The operations of the manufacturing plant have commenced and the quality of toys produced by my company is comparable with or even better than those produced by the top toy companies in the country. Mission Statement The mission statement of my company is â€Å"to bring fun and happiness to every child in the world†. The mission statement focuses on three points. First it says that the company has the objective of brining fun and happiness. Second, the company is focused on children. Third the company wants to become a global company to bring fun and happiness to every child in the world. The emphasis is on international growth and expansion. Foreign Market for My Product and Service One foreign market for the toys of my country is France. France is already importing toys from the USA. There is a large market for safe and trendy plastic molded toys, and the toys made by my company comply with the requirements of the EU Toy Directive. The tie up with the French distributor is the first step in globalization. Later my company will set up sales offices in different parts of the world. Later it will open branches and also set up manufacturing operations in several parts of the world. Marketing Plan The marketing plan for my company is to sell three million plastic molded toys during the first year of operation and generate sales revenues of $45 million during the first year. This target is based on the manufacturing capacity of my company and the expected sales figures from distributors. Product: The toys will be made from the finest quality plastic and use high quality additives imported from Germany. The toys will comply with the requirements of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). The toys will reflect the latest trends in toys. Price: The price range of toys will range between $11 and $32. The average price of toys will be $15. Place: The distribution of toys will be done by six national toy distributors. The toys will be available in at least 230 toy stores all over the US. In addition, the toys will be available on at least five websites that sell toys. In addition, one distributor will be appointed in France who will market my toys in France. Promotion: The toys will be advertised on internet banners, websites that sell toys, and social media sites frequented by children. There will also be search engine advertising and advertising on mobile phones. Personal selling will be done by company sales persons in selected twenty stores selling toys. In addition, company sales persons will also interact with distributors to ensure that distributors sell the toys through a large number of consumers. Potential Audiences The potential audiences for my marketing plan are children between the age of 3 and 12 in the US. These children require toys that are safe, attractive, and long lasting. Further, children also love to buy toys that reflect the latest trends. This may mean characters from the latest movies, comic books, or computer games. The needs of the target audience are fun, laughter, and light entertainment. Market Segment The market segment for this product is children between the age of 3 and 12 years in the United States. Dolls will be targeted at girls, video game characters will be targeted at boys, and comic book characters will be targeted at children between 8 and 12. The rationale for this segment is that molded plastic toys in general are preferred by children between the ages of 3 and 12 years. Girls prefer to play with dolls. Boys are interested in video game characters. Finally, comic book and comic strips are targeted  at children between 8 and 12 as these children read comics and comic strips; the toys based on comic characters should be targeted at this segment. Target Market The target market will be children between the ages of 3 and 12 who are located in the six states where the distributors are located. The 230 retailers where the toys are sold are also located in the same states where the six distributors are located. The rationale for this target market is that our company has distribution and retailing access only to those states. SWOT Analysis Strengths: The strengths of my company are excellent quality products. My company is financially strong. The products made by my company are compliant with U.S. Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), and EU Toy Directive. In addition, my company has distribution access to six states in the US. The agreements with six distributors ensure that my company’s products have a comfortable market. Weaknesses: The internet based sales are low. There are no sales of molded toys in other parts of the country. Retailers in other states do not stock our toys. Our company does not have well-known brand recognition. Even though my company has appointed a distributor in France the sales in France are low. Opportunities: My Company has opportunities if it appoints more distributors in the USA. Further, there is land available next to our existing facilities. If our company purchases the land the production of molded toys will increase three times. The larger volume of production at one location will enable my company to realize economies of scale. If my company appoints more distributors in Europe, the sales of my company will increase. Threats: There is strong competition in the molded plastic toys market. Not only top toy makers but even small entrepreneurs make molded plastic toys. The economic downturn leading to low disposable incomes is also a threat to toy sales. Changes in trends during the peak seasons can render large stocks unsalable and can lead to losses. Market Position The market positioning for the plastic molded toys made by my company is moderate in prices but high in quality. The plastic molded toys made by my  company will be safer than, and better in quality than the products of Hasbro, Lego, and Tiger. The rationale for this strategy is that the objective of my company is to persuade more distributors to carry our toys. When the quality of our toys is compared to those of top brands in the market, distributors agree to carry our brand. 5 Cs Strategic Marketing Analysis We carry out the 5 Cs strategic marketing analysis of my company in the following manner: Customers: The customers are children between the age of 3 and 12. In several cases the purchase decisions are made by the parents. Children want plastic molded toys that bring them fun, joy, and happiness. Company: My Company can fulfill the needs of children who want to buy plastic molded toys. My company keeps a close watch on market trends and the changing requirements of children. My company can change its production at short notice and make exactly those plastic molded toys that the children demand. Competition: Small plastic molded toy makers compete on price. They make and sell toys cheap. On the other hand each of the top toys making companies makes plastic molded toys. Companies such as Mattel, Hasbro, Bandai, Lego, Playmates Toys, and Tiger each compete in the plastic molded toys segment. Collaborator: The collaborators of my company are the six distributors plus the distributor in France. The suppliers of plastic pellets are also our collaborators. The suppliers enable our company to use the highest quality of raw materials and make plastic molded toys of the highest quality. Context: The context is that plastic molded toys are being imported at low prices. Barriers to trade have been removed because of WTO. The economy is recovering but the recovery is still slow. The society approves plastic molded toys but looks down on children who play with plastic molded toys instead of electronic or computer games. The technology is coming up with improved computer games and internet based games. References: Bell Melissa J. How to Make Molds for Plastic Toys (2013), retrieved on 23 October 2013 from: http://www.ehow.com/how_5426610_make-molds-plastic-toys.html Daily Motion, Making Magazine, Simple Molding and Casting for Toy Duplication (2013) retrieved on 23 October 2013 from: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xgjgfq_simple-molding-and-casting-for-toy-duplication_school Youtube, Moulding Process for plastic toys in China by ODM Pro (2013), retrieved on 23 October 2013 from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZh7VfxBmcw

Reseach Workoholics Essay

Is a 40-hour work week too much? Should there be a mandatory cap on the number of hours a person can work? Should there be changes in employment laws to give Americans more relaxation time? A workaholic definition is a noun a person who compulsively works hard and long hours. But the definition in a workaholics eyes is a person who â€Å"values work over any other activity†, according to careercast.com. Merriam-webster.com says it’s a â€Å"compulsive worker†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ (Productivity) The reasons for someone to become a workaholic are some people don’t feel their lives are fulfilled unless they’re engaged in constructive activities. The more they work, the happier they are. It’s addictive. Where in the world can they be productive and reap the rewards of their labor but at their job? Workaholics can’t be idle. They need to be constantly working. Proving their value Children who were raised in dysfunctional families, or by perfectionist parents, and were made to feel like their best was never good enough can grow up to be workaholics. Spending their adult lives immersed in their work is a way for them to constantly prove themselves and their worth. Escaping problems and negative feelings another reason why people become workaholics is because they lack a sense of control in their lives. They have problems at home they can’t fix, or they don’t want to deal with, for example. Being at work all the time allows them to escape painful, negative feelings. It also gives them a sense of control they can’t find otherwise. Adrenaline rush working non-stop provides an adrenaline rush to some people. Being extremely busy, rushing to meet unrealistic goals, and pushing themselves beyond their limits gives them that intense feeling they crave. That same adrenaline rush- the increased heart rate, the burst of energy, the heightening of their senses- comes from roller coaster rides and other thrilling activities. In 1965, a U.S. Senate subcommittee predicted that as a result of increasing labor productivity from automation and â€Å"cybernation† in other words, the computer revolution. Americans would be working only about 20 hours a week by the year 2000, while taking seven weeks or more of vacation a year. By the mid-1970s, and especially after 1980, median wages weren’t keeping pace with increases in our capacity to produce. But flattening incomes didn’t derail the consumption train. Americans continued to buy more, in part by going deeper into debt, by having more members of the family enter the workforce and by working additional overtime. By the boom times of the late 1990s, Americans worked more than the notoriously workaholic Japanese. To answer the question of limiting the number of hours you can work I think we would have a happier and healthier society if we worked a little less. As of right now, some jobs require a lot of time and energy. Legalizing mandating the number of hours worked is an interesting idea. It would see a drop in stress levels, more family time and participation and healthier workers. This probably wouldn’t make too many people happy at first, though, and it would take some getting used to. It is a way to raise healthier families and having less levels of stress that are exhibited in really tough jobs, like ER doctors and nurses, and other highly stressful occupations. American work-life balance according to the Center for American Progress on the topic of work and family life balance, â€Å"in 1960, only 20 percent of mothers worked. Today, 70 percent of American children live in households where all adults are employed.† I don’t care who stays home and who works in terms of gender (work opportunity equality for all – it’s a family choice). Either way, when all adults are working (single or with a partner), that’s a huge hit to the American family and free-time in the American household. The U.S. is the ONLY country in the Americas without a national paid parental leave benefit. The average is over 12 weeks of paid leave anywhere other than Europe and over 20 weeks in Europe. Zero industrialized nations are without a mandatory option for new parents to take parental leave. That is, except for the United States. Let’s say someone make $60k/year. Excluding benefits, employee taxes, etc., let’s consider this equivalent to $30/hour. ($30/hour x 40 hours x 50 weeks = $60k). Now they want to figure out the hourly number that he/she use to decide if it’s worth it to do something. For example, if he/she owe a fine on something he/she don’t think they should owe, but it’s only a $5 fine, it’s not worth spending an hour ($30) to contest it. BUT, it’s not clear to me if he/she should use $30/hour for this number, because I’m only working 8 hours/day. Like, if someone is willing to pay me for 40 hours/week at $30/hour, presumably he/she could get one or two more such jobs. Or should she/he divide that by 3 to get $10/hour because really for every 24 hours, they’re only â€Å"able† to earn $30/hour for a third of them? Because some of these activities he/she would be doing in my off-hours (e.g., they’d have to dispute that fine after work). Or is it something in between?

Martin Gansberg Thirty-Eight Who Saw Murder and Didn’t Call the Police Essay

The article by Martin Gansberg, Thirty-eight who saw murder and didn’t call the police, is about an isolated event. I don’t think something like this happens a lot. Normally people would call the police or do something to help the victim. But unfortunately sometimes people can be very cold or even cruel, like in this case. Some people just don’t care about what is going on around them, if someone is in need of help or some cooperation. It’s more typical for those who live in big cities because in a busy urban life, in the crowd current they don’t have a time to stop and analyze what would be the right thing to do and they just don’t want to get involved and put themselves in troubles. In small towns people are more responsive, and the situation like this would less likely to happen. Another thing that is influent is crime and violence scenes that people constantly see on television, internet, movies. People getting used to seeing that on tv all the time in real life perceive it like another show and just watch without any action and some of them even get excited about how it’s all going to end. Luckily I have never been in situation when I had to report a crime in progress, but I know if something happens I am not going to stand there and watch. And hopefully I will never get in situation when I’m the one who needs help and no one helps. The opening line of the Martin Gansberg’s article â€Å"Thirty-eight who saw murder and didn’t call the police† states: â€Å" For more than half an hour 38 respectable, law-abiding citizens in Queens watched a killer stalk and stab a woman in three separate attacks in Kew Gardens. † But it doesn’t mean that they were staying around like in arena watching the killer slaughtering a victim from the very beginning to the end. The author uses little exaggeration to dramatize what happened. It may not be the fact but it expresses author’s position. It shows how angry and disappointed he is, it shows his condemnation. Although writers, especially reporters, have an ethical responsibility to be accurate, little exaggeration and distortion can take a place, what can help author to express their position and their point of view. What matters is what exactly and how much has been distorted. For example, article says that the killer made three attempts to kill the woman. If indeed the victim died from the first attempt and the killer run away after that, but author changed the story to make it more dramatic, that would be very serious distortion of the story.

My Summer at Choate Rosemary Hall

This summer at Choate Rosemary Hall was the best summer that I have ever had so far. The classes were challenging but also exiting at the same time. I really love the classes there because the number of student per one teacher is very small so the teachers give pay more attention toward you. Also, the student gets to know each other more so they can work together better. One of my favorite classes during the summer was Anatomy and physiology because we had a lot of hands on experience with dissection. My favorite dissection in the class is when we get to dissect and explore the anatomy and physiology of a rodent’s body because it was the longest and interesting dissection that we had during the summer program. When we finish with the dissection, our teacher takes a picture of our dissection and sends it to us and we had to label it. Another project that I like about Anatomy and Physiology is the owl pellet. We had to put back together a scattered rodent skeleton together and it was very time consuming. Other than the classes I also like the dorm life was. At home my parent do everything for me but at Choate I had to do everything myself, which made me feel like an adult. Every morning I had to wake up by myself and go to breakfast. My Favorite part about dorm life is laundry. My friend and I always wash our cloths together to save some money and we would just sit in the laundry room talking to each other about each other cultures. One time I forgot my highlighter in my pocket during washing so all of my cloths was ruin. The mistake of putting a highlighter in my pocket turns out really cool because it made one of my shirts really pretty so everyone said that I was the best mistake that I’ve ever made. Choate’s campus was big. On the first day of class I wanted to change my schedule and didn’t know anywhere to go to so I had to run around the campus trying to find the summer program office for almost an hour. Every day I have only 30 minutes for lunch because one of my classes was on the other side of the campus and it would take me 10 minutes to walk there. I think my favorite building at Choate is Hill House because that is my dorm, the dining hall, and it’s also the place that my friend and I hang out before study hours. Hill House has an air conditioned lounge that no one knows. Therefore, it was our secret hideout and our hanging spot. Also every Saturday we held a movie night at Hill House because checks in is at 11 p. m. My favorite part about this summer is spending time with friends that I had made during the program. In the beginning I didn’t know anybody else other than the Memphis Prep scholars so I stayed with them. After the first week I start to know more people so I hang out with other people. We would go to the movie almost every Wednesday because we had nothing to do. Sometime we would go to the library to read mangas and books because some of us had to finish our summer reading list. Usually after we go to the library we would go to the candy shop down the street from the library to get ice-cream. Sometime we would skip dinner at Choate’s dining hall and have dinner at a restaurant that is next to the candy shop. The one thing that I hate the most about this summer program is saying good bye. On the last week of the program we eat dinner together at a restaurant every night or ordering Chinese food, trying to spend as much time with each other as possible. Also, on the last mall trip we would try to buy things to gift each other so that we will remember each other. On the night of the Last Dance we went the basement and talked to each other and signed each other shirts and journals. The last day of the summer program was the hardest day for me because all of my friends were leaving. We cry every time someone is leaving and we would stand there watch them leave and by the end of the day all of my tears were dried up. Attending Choate’s summer program is the best thing that had happened to me. The classes and teachers were great. The campus was big and it made me feel like I’m in college. I had made a lot of new friends that I will never forget. Choate summer program is also life changing for me because I learn how to be independent from my parents and do things on my own. It had expanded my knowledge in Anatomy and Physiology. I also learn that there are a lot of opportunities out there waiting for you to take it and you have to work hard to achieve it. The best opportunity that I had taken this year is to apply for Memphis PREP because without them I wouldn’t know about Choate Rosemary Hall or any other boarding school.

Attributes that compliment for Professional growth

Attributes that compliment for Professional growth Professionally successful people all share a certain set of attributes. These attributes are what differentiates them from average people and helps them achieve all their goals along with organizational goals. If one wishes to become a successful and attain new heights in their career a certain set of attributes are necessary which can be adopted through self-development and self-assessment. Professional focused people always welcome challenges as they believe that challenges are those experience which help to refine one self and are never afraid about failure. There are lots of qualities that sum up a person, but not everybody can put them together to practice. What one must learn is where strength lies and how he can develop other qualities which will make him a complete and through professional. The qualities that count as good professional attributes can be summed up as follows: 1Must be highly motivated and enthusiastic and have a keen desire to continually update knowledge and skills required for the job. 2Must be a loyal employee who is hard working, dependable and trustworthy because it is a it is a two way relationship between an employee and employer. 3The ability to work individually and as part of the larger organizations team. Should have a strong sense of commitments should able to begin a course of action and work through it until its finished. Should have a very strong drive and motivation to continually develop my professional skills. Should have excellent communication skills, both verbal and written. Should have the ability to relate to all types of other people I work with. Should be flexible and adaptable to meet changing conditions or situations. Should have the ability to learn quickly and my common sense helps me respond to the needs of new situations. Should use common sense and the ability to make decisions based on knowledge and good judgement. Must maintain a balanced attitude towards work and home life, giving appropriate consideration to things that matter at home and at work. Must be able to deal with pressure and organize their well, so that work and job demands get proper attention and justice. Should have a sense of humor and be able to join with others and enjoy funny situations. Having mentioned the above attributes, it is possible every person must be blessed with at least few of them. One of the major goal is to first identify how we relate to them, what we already have and ways to develop which are critical to the current job profile. Every time if it would be good to appear a little more professional, just choose to be a little more professional coz that professional attitude helps to build long term relations. There is one absolute requirement for becoming valuable and successful: Accept total responsibility for your life professionally and personally, No blame, no victim-hood, no excuses. For life to get better, one must get better. Its as simple as that. One cannot become a great leader simply by reading about leadership. Similarly, one cannot refine oneself without practicing. So, dive in learn lessons from failures and develop wisdom and to increase proficiency and always remember the path to mastery is Practice.

To what extent does the Wal-Mart motivation mode inspire employees Dissertation

To what extent does the Wal-Mart motivation mode inspire employees - Dissertation Example Aims and objectives of the project Employers find it difficult to encourage its staffs in order to get their maximum commitment at the workplace. Often, employers are seen to overlook the need for motivating employees while the focus remains more on the company’s bottom line. Recently, it has been increasingly realized that the happier is the workforce, the more satisfied is the customer and consequently the healthier is the company’s bottom line. The project seeks to bring forth the policies and strategies undertaken by Wal-Mart for motivating its employees. The aim is to find the extent to which the modes of motivation undertaken in Wal-Mart have been successful in generating a motivated workforce. The objectives of the project is To analyse the different human resource strategies and policies undertaken in Wal-Mart to encourage employees to perform their best in the organization; To identify the HR strategies actually bring about any enhancement or improvement in emp loyee satisfaction and commitment; To identify the drawbacks or loopholes in the present motivating modes based on which improvements can be made (Holbeche & Mayo, 1998, p.5). B. Company Background-Wal-Mart Wal-Mart is a multinational retailer corporation based in America running chains of large warehouse stores and discount departmental stores across the world. It accounts for the eighteenth largest public corporations in the world in terms of revenue. Also accounting for one of the largest private employers in the world, Wal-Mart continues to remain a family owned business, owned and controlled by the Walton family who owns 48% of the stake of the company. Due to the large employee base of the company recruited from different parts of the globe, Wal-Mart has a highly advanced and effective human resource management system. The company has been widening its employee base consistently right from the time of its inception. Since 1980, the company showed very fast growth and by 1987, it has successfully established as many as 1,198 stores, has a workforce of 20,000 employees and sales revenue of $15.9 billion. In order to cater to the widely diverse customer base, the company employs sophisticated and advanced human resource management techniques and strategies in order to ensure the welfare of its workforce, keep them motivated and attain their maximum participation at the workplace (Walmart, 2012). C. Structure of the project The report presents the extent to which Wal-Mart’s present human resource management strategies have been successful in motivating its employees to deliver the desired level of performance in the organization. Firstly it begins with stating the aims and objectives of the research. This is followed by a brief description of the company, its establishment and present conditions in the market. The next part of the report discussed the various motivation theories as brought forth by authors. This section also discusses the views and su ggestions of researchers and practitioners with regards to the application of motivation theories at the workplace. In this context, some of the main theories of motivation are chosen, such as the Content theory and the Process theory. After the theoretical discussion, the present human resource strategies of Wal-Mart are discussed, with reference to its reward system, promotion system and internal culture of the

Mexicos Incomplete Transition to Democracy Essay

Mexicos Incomplete Transition to Democracy - Essay Example Whereas U.S. newspapers assert Caldern the victor, Mexican electoral establishment have up till now to do so, be familiar with the hearing that is evaluation quarrel as the concluding arbiter intended for the race. The precedent months in Mexico have been noticeable by a drive of dread adjacent to Lpez Obrador. What conventional depict as an alarm opportunity is the awfully issue that would have through nearly all to strengthen the country's transition toward democracy: a diplomatic transitory of power crossways ideological lines. When Vicente Fox succeed the most recent presidential ballot vote in 2000, his victory finished additional than seven decades of single-party domination and interrupt a number of the conventional backing set of connections that had distinct Mexican politics. Up till now Fox added the similar variety of market- tilting economic neoliberalism endorse intended for two decades by means of widespread-rule Institutional Revolutionary Party, which attached by the PAN to go by NAFTA in the near the beginning 1990s. As in numerous countries all through Latin America, neoliberalism has disastrous to transport for Mexico. Backside at what time he was on the movement trail, Fox guarantee that he would generate economic expansion of seven percent for each year; the authentic standard was 1.8 percent. Constant through the economy selection up in the initial quarter of 2006, Mexico has not distinguish somewhere near the one million fresh jobs per year that Fox oath. As a substitute, precipitous inequality, unrelenting poverty, and extreme anxiety have determined countless Mexican settler north in search of prospect in the post-NAFTA period cross the threshold Lpez Obrador. The middle-left presidential contender turns out to be an enormously well-liked stature as mayor of Mexico City by really paying consideration to the needs of the deprived. He get underway innovative public works along with shaped pensions plus subsidies designed for the elderly, solitary mothers, and the immobilize. All the way th rough nearly the entire presidential chase, Lpez Obrador census as the obvious frontrunner. He give your word to end particular privileges in addition to sweetheart agreement for the well-off, to lift proceeds by stalk an outbreak of elite tax avoidance, and to enlarge his communal programs countrywide. Lpez Obrador's approaching conquest presented impressive elementary intended for democracy: the prospect of genuine revolutionize. During the months foremost up to the voting, Lpez Obrador's political opponent brawl his contention with unremitting fear-mongering. yet subsequent to electoral bureaucrat talking to the PAN and enforced the party to draw campaign commercial that identify Lpez Obrador a "hazard to Mexico" as well as that declare artificial links with Hugo Chvez, accurate-wing dealing groups chuck the identical sucker thump in surrounding two. They furnish a sequence of "non-supporter" very last-miniature attack advertisement that demonstrate descriptions of the Venezuelan organizer and, wink, affirmed that "Mexico doesn't necessitate an authoritarian." In the meantime, U.S. expert admirer the flames through thinning out threatening allegation of "populism," and opinionated advisor voyage south of the boundary to assist plot the temperament assassination. By means of