John Keats’ “On the Sonnet” and William Wordsworth “Convent’s narrow room” Essay

Two sonnets, â€Å"On the Sonnet† by John Keats and â€Å"Nuns fret not at their convent’s narrow room† by William Wordsworth, address the same subject, the restrictions of the sonnet. Despite the same subject matter, they approach these restrictions using different forms and imagery, and each has his own opinion of the subject. Keats starts off his sonnet using an allusion from Greek mythology: Andromeda, a princess chained to a rock and in danger of being devoured by a sea monster. This was his main idea and criticism of the structure of the sonnet–if poets are chained by the Shakespearean or Italian format, the sonnet will eventually lose its spirit and be devoured over time. He advises his fellow sonneteers to â€Å"fit the naked foot of poesy†, like us wearing shoes by breaking the rhythm and imposing creativity on the form, so the sonnet can endure. This is because it will stand out among mediocre sonnets. Keats` other allusion is to King Midas and his gold; he uses Midas to express how miserly poets have to be with their words and not to use clichà ©s, â€Å"dead leaves in the bay-wreath crown†. His last allusion is to the Muse-Greek goddess of art-to express the creativeness and freedom needed for the beauty of poetry. With â€Å"the weight of too much liberty†, poetry is as restrictive as ever, argues Wordsworth. If these restrictions are too much, do not write a sonnet because like poets who write a sonnet, nuns choose their convents, hermits their cells, maids their looms and bees their foxglove bells: all make this choice willingly. This vivid imagery makes plain what writing a sonnet is all about: a personal choice to chain ourselves because we enjoy it. It is sometimes better to play in a â€Å"scanty plot of ground† then run through the vast open fields and be lost and confused. The restrictions are what makes it more challenging and forces us to create something more beautiful than just prose. Wordsworth finds peace in a restrictive sonnet, like us when we lock ourselves in our room to do the same. Each true to his word and ideas, the poets practice what they preach in their sonnets. Keats does not write his sonnet in any particular known form. It is broken into three parts; ln 1-6: expressing what poetry is like; ln 7-9:  what poets must pay attention to; ln 10-14: what poets must avoid in writing. He follows what he says about â€Å"if we must be constrained†, that he wrote the poem in iambic pentameter. Wordsworth as well does what he says about writing true to the sonnets restrictions. His entire sonnet consists of only 4 rhymes, abba abba cddc cd, and the poem is also broken into three parts, ln 1-7: comparing the sonnet to other things in life, ln 8-9 ½: his statement on the sonnet restrictions, and ln 9 ½-14: why his statement is so. Neither seems to agree about the roles restrictions play in the sonnet–Keats complains about them and tells us how to make the sonnet better, while Wordsworth is saying, take the challenge and enjoy doing it.

Gwen Harwood “Sharpness of Death” and “At Mornington” Essay

Through a critical study of Gwen Harwood’s poetry, the responder’s personal response has a significant effect on their judgement towards her poetry. In The Sharpness of Death, Harwood explores the inexplicable link between life and death, as well as the value of memories in response to the inevitable passing of time. Similarly in At Mornington, Harwood accentuates the value of appreciating life to overpower death and the importance of memories to lessen the effects of time passing. These aspects, which reoccur throughout Harwood’s poetry are universal, timeless, and prevalent to human existence and society. As a result, Harwood’s poetry has been able to endure varying contexts and continue to captive and create meaning for readers. The varying interpretations of Harwood’s work influence the judgement of responders to both the individual poems, and Harwood’s poetry as a whole. The Sharpness of Death explores differing perspectives on death and its irrefutable link with life, encouraging contemporary readers to question their value of death and develop a judgement on the poem and Harwood’s poetry as a whole. Part one of the poem establishes the personas desire to bargain with death, through the demanding tone that is used to address it, â€Å"Leave me alone.† For the contemporary reader, this highlights the desperation to evade death, something many modern responders are able to identify with. As the poem continues, Harwood renders the philosophers attempts to undermine death through analysis, as meaningless. The use of the oxymoron â€Å"complex logic,† highlights the futility of this act, suggesting that death cannot be explained, only experienced. This challenges the value of attempting to understand death for the responder as even those considered the most intelligent living, cannot provide sufficient answers. As the poem continues, the importance of life, rather than explanations, to overcome death is explored. The personification of blossoms in the line, â€Å"blossoms to hold the light that’s gone,† highlights for responders that the beauty of life, as represented by the blossoms, needs to be appreciated and understood in order to come to terms with the darkness that comes after death. The  final part of the poem returns back to first person, giving the poem a cyclical nature, common in Harwood’s poetry. This depicts to audiences the cyclical nature of life and the subsequent inevitability of death. In the final two lines of the poem,â€Å"If I fall from that time, then set your teeth in me,† the negative imagery depicts the persona’s view that only when she has lost the fulfillment that comes with life, will she be able to accept death. This creates a positive judgement for the responder, depicting that their fear of death can subside if their life has been lived with joy. The exploration of the connection between life and death throughout The Sharpne ss of Death, encourages responders to challenge their perception on the connection between to two. The response of audiences towards The Sharpness of Death, brings up questions in relation to the value of memory in response to the passing of time, inevitably impacting upon the judgement of the contemporary reader. In the second part of the poem, â€Å"I hope he found some light beyond that field of black everlasting flowers,† the positive connotation of light highlights the power of memories in overcoming the darkness that is death. For responders, this leads them to accept that their memories are what will alleviate them from the effects of times passing. This image of black flowers is juxtaposed by the description of the Nasturitums in part three of the poem, â€Å"Purest of colours, how they shone.† The metaphor of the flowers depicts the power of positive memories to overcome struggles that have been faced as time has progressed. The personification of light where Harwood says, â€Å"light like a noble visitor stayed with us briefly and moved on,† emphasis es the power of memories which often fade as time goes on. This encourages the contemporary reader to consider what their prominent memories are and thus, consider how their perception of them has changed over time. The rhetorical question, â€Å"How would you ever know me now†¦unless I brought these flowers,† enhances the idea that it is remembered past experiences which enable us to draw a connection between the past and present. For the contemporary reader, this accentuates the value of memories in appreciating life, a consistent theme of Harwood’s throughout her poetry. The sexual imagery in the final part of the poem, â€Å"my tongue sang with his juices,† depicts the strong influence of memories in relation to love in giving power to accept death, when the  passing of time is over. This places death in perspective for responders, as being only one aspect of life, with memories and friendship enabling people to transcend it. Throughout The Sharpness of Death, Harwood’s exploration of the power of memor ies in accordance with the passing of time influences the responder’s perception to a large extent. The connection between life and death is further accentuated through Harwood’s poem, At Mornington, which, similarly to the The Sharpness of Death, challenges readers to develop a judgement towards this inexplicable connection. The first part of the poem depicts the fearlessness and uncertainty of childhood, deriving from a lack of understanding of death. In conjunction with this, the simile, â€Å"was caught by a wave and rolled like a doll among rattling shells,† suggests the powerlessness of the persona to control her direction in life, at a stage where there was no understanding of death. This concept has been experienced by an array of responders, and thus impacts upon their judgment to a large extent. The metaphor which Harwood uses to describe the graveyard the persona is standing in, â€Å"avenues of the dead,† emphasises that everything in life is temporary, with death being the only definitive part. This asserts to the contemporary reader that death doe s not need to be focused upon as it is certain. Therefore life which is temporary and changing, should be valued. In the second last stanza, â€Å"We have one day, only one, but more than enough to refresh us,† the repetition of one highlights the power of even a small part of life being able to assist in overcoming the struggle that thought of death places upon our existence. As the poem progresses, the persona is able to develop a changed perspective on death. The irony in the line, â€Å"at your side among the graves I think of death no more,† highlights the personas acceptance of the cycle of life as a result of the strong friendship they have developed, enticing readers to do the same. Water is used as a powerful motif throughout the poem, highlighting the persona’s acceptance of the inevitability of death, in particular, â€Å"waters that bear me away forever†. This encourages the contemporary reader to also accept this inevitability in order to appreciate their own life. The response of readers to the value of life in accepting death throughout At Mornington, h as a significant impact upon their opinion as it is a concept that is universally experienced and  understood. In accordance with The Sharpness of Death, Harwood’s At Mornington, encourages audiences to develop a judgement in regards to the value of memories in response to the passing of time. The poem begins with Harwood’s memory of her early childhood where she â€Å"leapt† from her father’s arms into the sea. The alliteration to introduce this, â€Å"They told me,† highlights her lack of personal memory of the uncertainty of her childhood and the need of others to reinforce this memory. For many responders, the uncertainty of their childhood was not realised until adulthood, allowing them to appreciate Harwood’s poetry as relevant to their lives. The high modality to describe her memory of believing she could walk on water, â€Å"Indeed I remember,† depicts the prominent memories of the innocent child. This brings responders to consider that while the memory of invincibility is strong, the sense of invincibility itself has been lost as time has progressed. The motif of water is also continued, this time referring to memories, â€Å"on what flood are they borne.† This metaphor highlights that memories are able to cross the boundaries of time, thus emphasising the importance of them to responders who are experiencing the effects of times passing. This motif is continued in the fourth stanza, â€Å"There is still some water left over.† This depicts to the contemporary reader that even when time seems to have reached it’s end, memories still retain the ability to bring back the sense of abatement attached with them. In the final stanza, the metaphor, â€Å"rolled in one grinding race of dreams, pain, memories, love and grief,† highlights that memories are attached to varying emotions and are apart of the race that is life, where the inevitable end is death. This causes readers to consider the importance of the varying memories within their life, to make the journey to the end worthwhile. Through the appreciation of memories in response to times passing throughout At Mornington, responders are able to identify with Harwood’s poetry and thus develop a significant association with it. Throughout Harwood’s poetry, in particular, The Sharpness of Death and At Mornington, a variety of universal and timeless concepts are explored, sparking varying responses from responders. In both these poems, the  connection between life and death, and the value of memories in response to the passing of time is explored. This exploration by Harwood is one that can be related to by a variety of readers, influencing these readers to a large extent, to develop a judgement towards Harwood’s poetry as a whole.

Moon by Chaim Potok

Chaim Potok (35) loves to write about growing up pains and the conflict between family, the development of a Jewish young person and the way in which the young Jew seeks to integrate himself into the culture he is in while trying to preserve his own identity as a Jew. Throughout the passages of his stories, Potok manages to show the ugly social realities through the points of view of his characters. By dealing with such realities and through the interactions of the characters, they are changed and somehow, the world becomes a better place for the protagonist in his novels and short stories. This is also the same pattern he uses in his short story â€Å"Moon.† Moon tends to be reclusive and rebellious because of his own identity as part of the minority. Throughout all of these, he still wishes to be educated because he sees it as a means to become a somebody in the world. Chaim Potok makes frequent reference to his age as a part of the importance of adolescence and the struggles that they go through. Moon, as is the case with a lot of the characters in Potok’s collection â€Å"Zebra and Other Stories†, is disconnected with his parents. His parents tend to be foreign to him and they could not connect effectively. This also partly explains why Moon is reclusive and rebellious. The main character of the short story tends to enjoy music. This is one thing that most adolescents share with, hence, Potok writes an accurate characterization of Moon and his friends. Through the use of music, Moon’s life is taking a new turn and he gains a new perspective of his situation and the reason why he has to strive for his education even though it is hard. Moon’s life changes when he meets Ashraf, a Pakistani teenager who lives in a neighborhood wracked by strife and violence. Given the background of Ashraf and that of Moon, they still managed to establish a friendship that influenced them both. Through the visit of Ashraf to his home, he suddenly had an insight about life, about education, and the ugly realities that are confronting the life of Ashraf and that of his, too. The changes engendered in the life of Moon became even more pronounced when he learns that Ashraf has been murdered. This is the climax of the story yet the incident seems to have helped Moon become a better person and a more determined one. The differences in his lifestyle from that of Ashraf is also an important aspect of his learning. As a child belonging to the middle class, he enjoys a lot of things that Ashraf does not. With this, the main character also saw the vast oceans of differences separating the haves from the have-nots. With this, he develops sensitivity for people like Ashraf who are suffering from difficult circumstances in life. The relationship of Moon with his parents is not a perfect one. In fact, even his parents do have conflicting attitudes toward him. This is due to his rebellious attitude and his desire to be left alone. His parents try to win his affection and ask about his experiences yet he remains unresponsive. Because their life is comfortable and they suffer no lack, Moon developed a self-conscious and selfish outlook of life shared by middle-class teenagers. Although his parents wanted him to learn much about their heritage, he is a difficult nut to crack. Yet, only the loss of Ashraf jolted him to the painful reality of the need to learn about the world and the ugly realities that people have to face in order for them to have meaningful lives. Work Cited Potok, Chaim. Zebra and Other Stories. New York: Laurel Leaf, 2000.

PHILOSOPHY QUESTIONS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

PHILOSOPHY QUESTIONS - Essay Example Furthermore, it is immoral for a society to condemn behavior in individuals that does not harm society or other individuals. 2. Find differences between individuality and the uniform type of personality. What conditions are necessary to develop individuality? Individuality depends on freedom, particularly of expression. (Mill 193) Mill also promotes eccentricity in one’s habits and states that in doing so, one will create his life to suit himself and thus promote eccentric, but useful, habits to gain status as customs of society. Uniform types of personality, he says, are the result of constriction of this natural form of self-expression and result in stifled ways of thinking. 3. What is the relationship between individuality, diversity, originality, development, and freedom? Mill states that â€Å"The power of compelling others†¦.is not only inconsistent with the freedom and development of all the rest, but corrupting to the strong man himself.† (Mill 202). In other words, personal freedom and a disinclination to impose one’s will on others develops originality and individuality. 4. How does Mill define liberty? How does he perceive human happiness? Mill closely defines human happiness as â€Å"†Pleasure and the absence of pain,† (Mill 99) and is in the essence of his definition of what Utilitarianism is; the pursuit of happiness by mankind as a whole. He states, â€Å"Human beings have faculties more elevated than the animal appetites.† (Mill 100) and that because of these â€Å"higher faculties† humans find pleasure—and thus, happiness—in the fine arts, especially. Liberty is in the freedom to choose what manner of lifestyle will promote this happiness in the individual, ideally promoting happiness in others, at the same time, but not necessarily. The only form of personal liberty he finds unacceptable is that which infringes on another’s liberty. 5. What is virtue by Mill? What is the function of reason and emotions in

Analysis essay of television and ads Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Analysis of television and ads - Essay Example Nevertheless, the history of the electronic television as we know it today can be traced back to the genius of three major people, starting with Thomas Edison, who discovered what he referred to as telephonescope, which was a system that allowed pictures and sound to be seen and heard in a different location, from where they were being taken (Abramson, 47). Fundamentally, it is the invention by Edison that first proved it could be able to combine and transmit both light and sound concurrently (Downing, 13). Thus, even the later engineers and inventors who later perfected the art of television production recognized that, the basis upon which the television was developed, was the fundamentals â€Å"which Edison helped to erect† , despite the fact that Edison did not bear any direct relations to the creation of Television (Gutterman, 243). It is his invention that laid the groundwork for its development, through demonstrating the major concept of light and sound combination and t ransmission, all at the same time. Vladimir Zworykin is the other major inventor in the field of Television invention, who consumed two decades, between 1919 and 1939, developing the concept invented by Edison, and finally coming up with the ‘iconoscope’, which was used to scan pictures, which would then be transmitted alongside sound (Downing, 30). Further, another major inventor in the Television development emerged, in the name of Philo Farnesworth who dedicate much of his time in devising a system of transmitting images and sound at the same time, and he finally managed to put up a concept in 1927, which indicated that his system was â€Å"able to transmit an image from one of his early camera tubes, proving that his new system would work" (Abramson, 105). After the inventions, both Zworykin and Farnesworth shared their patents with different broadcasting companies which then used the camera dissectors they had developed to transmit and air content on television se ts. The Television set invention and development can be traced to the work of Paul Nipkow, a technician in Germany, who developed an electronic device that could be used to relay both images and sound, in 1884 (Gutterman, 107). Important turning points in the evolution of the television The major turning point in the history of television occurred with the introduction of the first television broadcast. The first television broad cast that was publicly announced occurred in the USA in 1928, followed by the UK and Germany in 1929, and then France and the Soviet Union in 1931 (Downing, 28). However, the pioneer manufacture of the commercial television set was a German company, Telefunken, which had collaborated with Zworykin to have him share his patented ‘iconoscope’, which was then used to develop the television set by the company in Germany, in 1934 (Abramson, 102). The first type of television that was introduced for broadcasting was the mechanical television, which a pplied mechanical scanning devices to generate and transmit video signals, applying the disk that was discovered by a German technician, and became popularly known as the Nipkow disk, which was a rotating disc that could transmit pictures over a wire cable (Gutterman, 233). However, considering that the picture quality applied by the mechanical te

The Rocking Horse Winner Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Rocking Horse Winner - Essay Example The author has presented the theme of materialism and the negativities associated with the obsession for the attainment of materialistic satisfaction and how it leaves a negative impact on the life of an individual. The Rocking Horse is the story of a family which is living is discontentment despite of the fact that they are financially sound and have enough resources for the running of their family. Hester is particularly the character who is the most obsessed with money and her dissatisfaction and want for more money affects the entire family. The author has tried to explain how materialism fails to fulfill the emotional needs of the human beings and love and emotions are of great importance for a family. Lawrence explains this point by narrating the way in which the family lives and how their needs are not fulfilled despite of the increased money that comes home. He begins by explaining that Hester was a good looking woman who had beautiful children. He explained, â€Å"They live d in a pleasant house, with a garden, and they had discreet servants, and felt themselves superior to anyone in the neighborhood.† With these words, the author tries to express the fact that they had all the necessities which are needed for leading a healthy and happy life but the family was not leading a content life. Lawrence has then tried to explain the dissatisfaction that existed in the house and he has expressed the lack of love and emotions in the family. He has explained the basis for this discontentment which was mainly due to the greed on the part of the mother who wanted more money for the house. The children were not loved by her and she was also aware of this that she could not truly become attached to her children for some reason. There was always an aura of anxiousness in the house which was felt by all the family members in the form of whispers. All the members could hear the house whispering the lines, â€Å"There must be more money! There must be more money!† (Lawrence) These whispers best explain the main theme of the story that there was such an extreme desire for wealth in the house that the people living in the house could always feel this need around them in the form of whispers. This lack of love greatly disturbed Hester’s son who always wanted to be loved by her mother. He wanted to gain her attention which can clearly be seen when he converses with her about luck and tries to explain to her that he is lucky. Hester is blinded by her materialistic wants and she does not pay much heed to the innocent talks of the young boy. The young boy needs affection and care from his mother and this drives him to opt for betting on horse races at such an early age. Not only this, he discovers that if he rides a rocking horse, it assists him in knowing the winner of the race. He keeps on riding this horse frantically without caring about his health for the happiness and fulfillment of his mother’s worldly needs and in doing so he loses his life. The story further stresses upon the shortcomings of materialism and presenting that it not the most ideal way of living life by explaining the gloominess which still persists despite of money flowing into the house. This is narrated by the author when he explains how the mother is not happy to receive t housand pounds as her gift but she rather demands that she should

Buddha teachings..... anything you want that is relavent Essay

Buddha teachings..... anything you want that is relavent - Essay Example These are ‘suffering of suffering’, suffering of change and persuasive. Firstly, ‘suffering of suffering’ is ordinary suffering that result from pain and associated by lower realms of existence such as in the human world. Secondly, suffering of change on the other hand encompasses sadness that results from loss of a happy condition, or that that arises when unhappy condition develops. Lastly, persuasive suffering refers to the internal frustrations. This suffering causes unrest and therefore an individual cannot enjoy any pleasant situations. Every living thing in the universe has desires that it would wish to be quenched. These desires for and attachments to worldly things if not accomplished lead to suffering. Therefore, the entire existence is surrounded by suffering that leads to pain. This is not just the pain of life but rather the uncertainty that exists at the center of the common universe, which arises from a person's intention to keep his life and achieving the true enlightenment. Gods are inclined to be proud and are considered to have a higher status in existence because they have very long life times which seem eternal i.e. they generally occupy the highest realms of existence. ... t origination" All things in the universe arise, abide and cease to exist through numerous causes that exist with the infinite web or interconnection in the universe. As consequence, the chain of interdependence stipulates that everything in the universe is interconnected and interacts with or affects other things in the universe. This chain can also take a perspective that objects have a context for which they are inseparable, or everything that exists is because of other causes or conditions in the universe. In this chain, nothing is absolute because all effects produced in the universe were caused by other effects, and they themselves cause other effects. This is mainly the principle behind the law of cause and effect. For example, for a table to exist seed of a tree must have grown somewhere, sunlight, water and carbon dioxide must have been used in growth of the tree. People had to exist who are a result of people having sex, saw mill and machines had to be designed to convert t he logs to timber etc. This is chain is infinite because each event that contributes to the final product is part of another infinite chain. In addition, the making of the table was as result of another cause and effect The chain of interdependent origination has twelve links or nidanas that explain how a chain of causes leads to other causes. These links are circular in nature as described in the Buddhist wheel of life. The Buddhist wheel of life provides an illustration of the Buddhist teaching. These links are: ignorance which is form of spiritual blindness or the lack of understanding in the teaching of Buddha; volitional formation or karma formation dictates the formation of action, thought process and speech which are essential in determining an individual’s fate; consciousness

Nanomaterials in Consumer Products Research Paper - 1

Nanomaterials in Consumer Products - Research Paper Example At the same time in the business dimension, there are still concerns about the nanotechnology effect on global economics. The use of nanotechnologies is on the rise because it is very effective. There are numerous products on the market with additional ones coming in day after day. Most of the viable products for use by the public are duped as the first generation. Some of the available products in the market include tritium oxide that is used in most of the surface coatings, cosmetics as sunscreen at the same time is employed in some food additives, carbon allotropes are used to produce gecko tape. Lastly, one of the most commonly used material in this technology is a silver. It has been used mostly as an antibacterial in household appliances(Suh et al., 133). Zinc oxide is used in most sunscreens and surface coating, outdoor furniture furnishes, paints and cosmetic. Lastly cilium oxide is used as fuel catalysts. Silver is one of the materials used in the production of nanotechnology equipment. It can be used in food packaging, disinfectants, household appliances and clothing. Further, the silver ionic nanoparticles can be used for washing machines, air conditioners, refrigerators Samsung vacuum cleaners and air purifiers as part of the household appliances used. Silver nano coating is used in most of the Samsung home appliances to protect the household from bacterial infection. Most of the appliances are coated with silver nano that has both antifungal and anti-bacterial effect. Thus, it keeps the place clean and free from contamination by microorganism. For instance, the Samsung fridge is coated with this silicon on the inside hence killing this microorganism by cellular metabolism hence preventing further growth. According to Hoek & Ghosh, (5) the silver nanotechnology is used to sterilise equipment against 650 types of bacteria. The machines do so by eliminating about 400 billion silvers ions that penetrate deep

Strategic planning Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Strategic planning - Assignment Example Strategic planning is an instrument incorporated by management to ensure that all of its components are working towards realizing an organization’s goals. It has long been used to transform, and revitalise organizations in many areas of the world. Businesses, whether profit or non-profit, are incorporating these strategies in order to better their situation in the global market. The political and economic standing in many countries, today, has caused the change in many organization’s plans (Grant, 2005). This is in order for them to have a piece of the market pie while capitalizing on the same. This paper will review strategic planning as a tool, and how it helps organizations grow and develop. Scenario planning is a process of tactical planning that involves the creation of long-term goals/objectives. It helps combat uncertainty in an organization through the short period that it is incorporated. The need to create such a tool is to help an organization find the perfec t environment in which their products, goods, or services can sell and make a profit. Those who practice with the use of such a tool enjoy the benefits it accrues. The need to prepare for the future ensures that analysts and strategists create scenario development in an organization (Grant, 2005). This is to prevent any drawbacks that may try and affect the organization after a certain period. During the implementation of such a tool, driving forces in the economic market are identified. This makes analysts aware of the environment in which the organization is dealing with, and how to penetrate such a market (Grant, 2005). This provides them with adequate time and response to what they need to do in order to make the organization rake in profits. An example of an organization that incorporates the use of scenario development is the Shell Oil Company. They are involved with the purchase and sale of oil in many parts of the world. They have admitted to using strategic analysis to help them in long range decision making processes (Grant, 2005). It is through this admittance that traditional methods of planning are found to be highly ineffective. This is as some other companies confess. The company has praised this tool of planning by saying that; the market identification process is much easier than it was before its inception. Managers of the company claim that the strategy allows them to view future environmental uncertainties; hence enabling them to be more effective than they were before employing such strategies. The utilization of such a technique is seen above with the forecasting of future environmental changes. Managers ascertain that the environment is mostly unpredictable (Grant, 2005). Utilizing such a technique will ensure that the company holds an upper hand over other companies. These are the companies that still incorporate traditional forms of environmental, future forecasting. How does the military deal with barriers to effective decision making In order to have uniformity in a unit, it is imperative that the military commanding officers have jurisdiction over a vast area. However, there are areas in which the decisions made by a commanding officer may present a problem to many in the same base. Some of the barriers to effective decision making include; responsibility bestowed on individuals (Porter, 1998). This is a frighteningly hard problem that many people are exposed to in the military. They are often assigned tasks that many may think are above them. However, once this barrier is broken, since it is a psychological one, everything seems to fall into place for all those involved. Another problem that affects effective decision making for many officers in charge of an army base is the problem of overconfidence. This can be a problem to those around individuals given certain tasks. This is because their overconfidence when it relates to their job can be overly harmful to others. The negative factors that affect

Corrections and Additional Issues in Criminal Justice Essay

Corrections and Additional Issues in Criminal Justice - Essay Example The origins of corrections of the United States criminal justice system date back during the early colonization era; this practice was ascribed from European colonizing countries (May et al, 2007). Corrections generally refer to â€Å"the supervision of persons arrested for, convicted of, or sentenced for criminal offenses† (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2012). Corrections carry varied functions and are performed by different government agencies, which are involved in imposing social control and lessening crimes through punishment and management of those who are sentenced (Stohr et al., 2008). Further, corrections are delimited to three main functions: (1) imprisonment; (2) parole; (3) probation (Garner, 2009). By and large, any offender is not automatically sent to corrections; â€Å"the first exposure most people have to the criminal justice system is the police† (May et al., 2007) after committing any form of legal violation. Before an offender or suspected offender is forwarded to the corrections, the offender will have to undergo a trial on which he or she is given the chance to defend himself or herself against accusations or alleged suspicions; and to clear his or her name. After being found guilty, the offender is now handed in to the corrections, wherein the offender will have to submit to a punishment. In history, punishments were stern and ruthless. Due to deficient resources to construct buildings in which convicted individuals would be incarcerated, early civilizations resorted to some grave punishments; â€Å"defendants who were found guilty were subjected to corporal punishment (physical punishments such as whippings)†¦ or executed soon after the sentence was imposed† (May et al., 2007). However, less inhumane punishments such as shame was also employed as a form of condemnation. With the progression of time, system of executions has likewise progressed into

Marketing Principles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Marketing Principles - Essay Example The main competitor has however been Pepsi Company. The latter for instance has a market share of about 75% in the Asian market. This is compared to 25% of the coca cola company in the same market. One of the main concerns in the company has been the sharp drop in the consumption of the sugary soft drinks. The drop has been witnessed in the United States, which offers the largest market, and the United Kingdom. The major cause of drop has been health concerns. For instance, majority of people with diabetes cannot drink the normal soft drinks. In addition to that, the increased lifestyle diseases have prompted majority of people to seek more healthy drinks. To achieve this, most consumers have shifted to sugarless drinks and fresh juices. This has put the coca cola company in an awkward situation with no option than begin production of sugar free products to maintain its growth and market control. Despite this, there have been allegations that some of the chemicals used as ingredients in the manufacture of coke may cause people to get cancer. It is this fear that has led to a sharp drop in consumptions. In India for instance, there was a sharp drop of about 11% in 2003 after the ministry of health raised health concern issues (Crowley 2000, p.98). To overcome the above challenges, there is need for the company to produce a new product will address the gap in the market. The main challenge has been the need to produce healthy drinks. Although the Diet Coke has been produced to address the problem, it is only found in few markets such as the United States and United Kingdom (Elcock 2000, p.90). The drink contains fewer calories compared with the normal drinks. However, the introduction of the new product does not mean that the company should stop the production of the present products. It is important to note that different consumers have different tastes and preferences. For that reason, the new product is aimed at addressing the gap and the new demand in the mar ket. This is imperative for gaining a competitive edge, in a market that is dominated by other companies such as Pepsi. The latter company has attracted a large pool of clients because it produces some of the most health drinks. In order to facilitate the production of a new product, the coca cola company needs to have an objective strategy. Apart from carrying out a marketing research to collect important information, the 7Ps of marketing mix and new product development process will be considered. This will assist the company make informed decision before making any decision. Task 1 Marketing is a wide concept that involves a number of processes. Firstly, the business communicates to the customers directly through an avenue. The customers get the knowledge of what is being produced in a market. Secondly, marketing is also a strategy employed by a company to gain a competitive edge over its clients. The Coca Cola Company has been using the marking strategy to attract more clients an d retain the current ones. The process involves advertisement and different forms of communications meant to reach the clients. Marketing concepts refer to the process through which the management seeks to fulfil both the identified and unidentified needs of the society. To achieve this though, different marketing orientations such as branding, business and industrial marketing and society

Nursing Education and Competency Essay Example for Free

Nursing Education and Competency Essay Nursing Education and Competency The purpose of this paper is to explore the different paths of education to become a registered nurse. Specially, to examine the educational tracks of the Associate Degree nurse and the Baccalaureate Degree nurse. The question at hand is how do these educational paths differ in the level of competency? First, I will show the difference in educational structure and then examine how these relate to the competency of the nurse following completion of each program. The Associate Degree in nursing came about during the 1950s in an effort to combat a nursing shortage in the Unites States following World War II. An Associate Degree nursing program is a two-year program that is typically affordable and offered at a junior or community college. The focus of this program is â€Å"on the basic sciences and theoretical and clinical courses related to the practice of nursing† (Potter Perry, 2005, p. 16). It prepares the student for â€Å"competent technical bedside† nursing in â€Å"secondary care settings† (Cresia Friberg, 2011, p. 33). Following completion of the two-year program, the student is eligible to take the NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure Examination) and can achieve a license as a registered nurse. The first Baccalaureate Degree in nursing was â€Å"established in the United States at the University of Minnesota in 1909† (Cresia Friberg, 2011, p. 25). It consists of a four-year program on a university or college campus with a larger financial attachment. There are typically two years of general education requirements followed by two years of upper-level nursing education courses. In addition to the basic science, theory and clinical education the program â€Å"include courses in community and public health, beginning research, management and leadership (Cherry Jacob, 2005, p. 81). It prepares the student to become a â€Å"professional nurse generalists for acute care settings, community-based practice, and beginning leadership/management positions† (Cresia Friberg, 2011, p. 33). Following the completion of the program, the student is also eligible to take the NCLEX-RN to receive licensure. Do these two years of additional education make a more competent nurse? â€Å"Over the past several years, policy makers, researchers, and practice leaders have identified that education does make a difference in how nurses practice† (Johnston, 2009). The University of Pennsylvania in an issue of Medical Care released one such  study that supports this in October, 2012 (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2012). It states that: surgical patients in Magnet hospitals had 14% lower odds of inpatient death within 30 days and 12% lower odds of failure-to-rescue compared with patients cared for in non-Magnet hospitals. The study authors conclude that these better outcomes were attributed in large part to investments in highly qualified and educated nurses, including a higher proportion of baccalaureate prepared nurses. (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2012) The current healthcare environment is changing through federal policy, technological advancements, and a growing global multicultural population. These additional years of education are believed to â€Å"enhance the students professional development, prepares the new nurse for a broader scope of practice, and provides the nurse with a better understanding of the cultural, political, economic, and social issues that affect patients and influence† (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2012). The four-year baccalaureate program offers more education to develop these skills giving the nurse the ability to adapt and contribute to these continual changes. Let us now use the following patient care situation of a newly diagnosed patient with Diabetes Mellitus Type II to explore the differences of an Associate Degree nurse (ADN) and Baccalaureate Degree nurse (BNS). A newly diagnosed diabetic needs teaching, the focus of this example will be on how the AND verses a BSN would approach teaching. As stated previously the ADN is prepared at a more technical level, although they share the same basic science and theory as a BSN. After explaining the basics of disease process to the patient, the ADN primary focus may be on the methods of testing blood glucose levels, the correct techniques for drawing up insulin and administration. This is due to the fact that the bulk of their educational training encompassed technical nursing. They would consider proper aseptic techniques for finger stick testing while teaching. Interrupting the results and applying it to a sliding scale of insulin related to food intake and activity. Then teaching the method of drawing up insulin, administration, and sharps disposal. A BSN nurse would teach the basics of the disease process taking the patient’s learning modality into consideration before starting. What is the patient’s ability to learn? Is the patient ready to learn? What is the best method for teaching (audio, visual, written material, or discussion)? What is the  family dynamic and should the family be involved in the teaching? Are there any cultural considerations? The BSN nurse might be inclined to research the topic of teaching new diabetics and find some current evidence based literature to assist in providing the best possible care for this patient. All of these items would have to be taken into consideration before moving onto the task of blood glucose testing, interpreting results and administering insulin. The example above is just a brief look into the thought process that comes with the different tracks of nursing education. A BNS nurse has a larger knowledge base to work from applying critical thinking, evidence based research and cultural consideration into their daily practice. They also possess some of the qualifications to move toward nursing positions in leadership and management. Research is leaning toward the idea that a nurse that has received a Baccalaureate Degree makes for a more competent nurse. National nursing associations support this thought. Policy makers are privy to this information as well. What seems to be a topic of debate now could soon become a reality and change how we educate future nurses. References American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2012, October 24). The impact of education on nursing practice. Retrieved from http://www.aacn.nche.edu/media-relations/fact-sheets/impact-of-education. Cherry, B., Jacob, S. R. (2005). Contemporary Nursing: Issues, Trends, and Management (3 rd ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier, Inc. Cresia, J. L., Friberg, E. (2011). Conceptual Foundations: The Bridge to Professional Nursing Practice, (5 th ed.). http://dx.doi.org/. Johnston, K. A. (2009). The Importance of Baccalaureate Degree in Nursing Education. Retrieved October 2, 2013, from http://www.peoriamagazines.com/ibi/2009/apr/importance-baccalaureate-degree-nursing-education Potter, P. A., Perry, A. G. (2005). Fundementals of Nursing (6 th ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Mosby, Inc.

The World Association Of Travel Agencie Tourism Essay

The World Association Of Travel Agencie Tourism Essay With globalization of economy the world wide communication has increased tremendously along with the touring activities. These touring activities may be for recreation business or any other purpose. A travel agency is an agency that makes the necessary arrangements for travelers (Referenced from, Concise Oxford Dictionary 9th addition Page 1485). The travel agent is supposed to be an expert who can make the knowledge of various destination available to his clients regarding mode of travelling paper work like Passport, Visa and money exchange, Hotel Accommodations for stay like hostels etc, Car rental, connectivitys and local tour etc. A new aspect of tour agency has developed recently i.e. Internet Traveling Agencies using the internet facilities. In terms of the business a travel agency can be defined as a retail business selling products and services which are related with the travel activities. A travel agency works on behalf of the suppliers of such facilities like Airlines, Cruise Companies, Car Rental, and Hotels etc. According to the work a travel agency may specialize into holiday package, business tours, educational tours etc. A new dimension of traveling has emerged i.e. Medical tourism related with services provided to a patient. HISTORY Cox and kings is supposed to be the pioneer company in the field of modern touring. It started in 1758 as Recreation Company for the wealthy customers of a private bank. Thomas cook followed Cox and Kings with establishment of the chain of agencies in 19th centaury with a partner i.e. mid land railway. They sold their own product to the public as well as other tour packages from different tour companies. Other pioneers travel agencies include polytechnic tourism association, co- operative wholesale society and Dean Dawson. All these travel agencies are of British origin. In America the pioneers in the field are Brownell Travel. With development of commercial aviation in 1920s the travel agencies become more and more popular in the public further boom was there in the post-war period with development of mass- market packet holidays specially developed for the working class customers in British owned colonies. OPERATONS AND FUNCTIONING A travel agency is mainly an agent which sells products and services relative with the traveling on behalf of the suppliers. They do not have a ready stock in hand unless a customer request for the same. Most of the travel agencies thrive on commissions given to them by the suppliers In uae7% commission is paid by the airlines to the travel agencies. These agencies have direct links with hotel chains cruise lines and airlines for their activities. RESOURCES AND REVENUE STRUCTURE A travel agency has got two means of revenue earnings i.e. commissions and professional fees. Commissions: These are the main source of income for most of the travel agencies. A travel agency is paid commission by the suppliers of the products and services like airlines etc. Usually the commissions are supposed to be given on a fixed ratio basis. However in case of an agency providing higher volume of business to the supplier it may demand a higher percentage for its services. It is called as override. To enhance their business a travel agency may prefer to pass on some part of this commission to its preferred customers in order to fetch more business. This is the reason that some time a ticket of an airlines is available at a higher price when purchase from a open market and at a lesser price with the agency. Travel agencies also help the airlines to fill their empty seats at the last minutes. Professional fee: A travel agency may charge professional fee from its client if it is not getting commission from the service provider. This may be a percentage premium of the total cost of tour or may be charged on a flat rate basis. Other commercial activities: These include travel insurance, providing travel guiding time tables, car rental and on site Bureau de change services provided by the travel agencies of large chains. A standard fee may be charge for the same. Promotional Activities:- Travel agencies have to take help of print and electronic media for their promotions. This constitutes a major expenditure. This may include hoardings, advertisements and other professionals advertising Apart from this the other expenditure are usually administrative and liasoning activities. Liasoning activities are supposed to be vital to get business in bulk. Sales:- There are four stages of sales sequences for a travel agency :- Enquiring about needs of a customer. Development of a personal rapport with the customer. Good presentation of the products and services and their major suppliers. Actual sales. ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY IN PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES A better customer satisfaction may be generated if a travel agency uses adequate technologies to provide instance services to its clients. CUSTOMER PROTECTION: SURETY BONDS Like all other business travelling too has a risk of commercial failure so majority of the travel agents have the insurance policies against such calamities. These are called surety bounds and are well advertise by the travel agencies if they have this facility. This means that the clients are guaranteed either the refund of the money or an equivalent holiday according to their preference. These bounds are usually provided by IATA (International Air Transport Association), ATOL ( Air Travel Organizers Licensing), ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents and ASTA (American Society of Travel Agents.) HOLIDAY SUPER MARKET CONCEPT A new concept known as Holiday Super Market Concept has developed in recent years after low cost no frill airlines started their international operations. This is a mass market package holiday in which the clients choose their holidays from brochures on racks. TYPES OF TRAVEL AGENCY There may be many classifications of travel agencies as follows:- According to their specialization. According to geographical operations. According to size. According to specialization Leisure Travel Agents: These agencies operate like tourism ambassadors of foreign companies. or example A company having its head quarter say in Japan might set up various offices around the world to promote tourism to that country. These travel agency will work to promote the business of their mother company in Japan acting as a general sale agent for that company. Business Travel Agents:- with globalization of the economy a new phenomena of globalization of business has emerged requiring a frequent travelling of higher executives and policy makers of a company to different countries. Their needs may be different from those of holiday tourists. To cater this class of travelers a travel agency will have to specialize in this field so as to guide them to have better deals for their business. Abu Dhabi is a place of interest for both type of travelers due to its world class airport, improved infrastructure, and high connectivity as well as presence of large number of places of tourist interest. Medical Tourism: A new dimension called as Medical Tourism has been added to the tourist activities worldwide. This phenomena has emerged because of the fact that there is considerable differences exist between the cost of medical facilities in developed companies and those of so called developing countries. This is also called Medical Tourism, Health Tourism or Global Health Care. A travel agent specialized in medical tourism should have the working knowledge of specialized surgeries like Joint Replacement , Cardiac Surgeries , Psychiatry, Alternative medicines etc. and should be able to guide its client in this regards. According to Geographical Operations: There are two types of travel agencies depending on their areas of geographical operations :- Out Bound Travel Agency :- These are located in the country of the traveler. These are traditional multi- destination agencies. In Bound Travel Agency:- These are located in the country of destination or more commonly at a place of certain major events like sports events these are usually independent and cater to a special market (Niche Market) they deliver and expertise on that location only. Out bound travel agencies are usually much larger than the in bound agencies, the former being a chain of agencies in most of the cases while the letter are usually small individual travel agency Classification according to size In USA these are classified as under :- Corporate Owned Chains. National / International Franchises. National Membership Associassion. Independent agencies. Corporate Owned Chains:- These are the large chains and usually owned by the international giants like Cox and Kings etc. They have got a consistent policy about their products and services, commissions, fees and their operations. National / International Franchises:- They too have a consistent policy of their operation and their prices. National Membership Association:- These are usually less commissions focused as they rely more on their member ship fee. Independent agencies :- These usually do not have any brand affiliation their policies and operation may vary according to the needs and means of an individual client . Other classes Cargo Travel Agencies:- These travel agencies specialise in shipping cargo from one destination to other. Freighter travel: This may be considered as special class of travelling. Some of the cargo companies may ferry passengers along with the cargo. The clients of such companies / agencies are usually the budget travelers like retired persons, students etc. Who have got plenty of time. Internet Travel Agencies With the development of internet the clients have started planning their own business tours with the help of this facility. These are also called as travel agency this allows the travel agents to let their clients to compare a wide verity of facilities like Hotels, Car Rental Airlines Tickets and need of Paper work according to their destination for example you may not get entry into Arab Countries if you have got Stamp of Israel on your passport for VISA purpose. There is a palpable threat that the traditional travel agencies may be greatly affected because of the introduction of Internet in the business. However this threat is not real. The use of internet for travelling purpose provides you both facilities i.e. convince of self served booking through Internet and that of taking help of a professional person when you need it. Many travel agencies created their own websites with detailed information of their services like online booking. Examples of major online travel agencies are cheap tickets, Voyages sncf.com, Hotwire.com, orbitz and travelocityand expedia etc. A system called as GDS or Global Distributed System is also used for computer reservation. It is a subsidiary of travel port which allows these agencies to book or sale airline tickets, hotel booking and car rentals and other services related with traveling. Travel agencies using GDS facilities include Galileo CRS, Sabre, worldspan etc. While trying online booking with the help of internet travel agency one must keep the following aspects in mind:- Different airline for entire tour Different airlines for different parts of the tour Connectivity and alternative modes of transportation Hotel accommodation or alternative accommodation available at the destination point Positioning Flights. Management of dates of visit with different locations in case of multiple destination tours Different Airports and their connectivity Different routing. Split Ticketing: Consideration of advantages and disadvantages of split ticketing with regard to the period of tour, possible stay time at a particular destination point so as to take maximum advantage of stay. Loop-holes.: These are the unfair means of business i.e. the gross difference between the advertised facilities in a product and the ones actually provideds on the spot. Paperwork and formalities A good online travel agency must be capable of advising its clients over all these issues. A travelogue or travel literature is travel writing with literary value which typically records the experience of its authors touring a place or geographical area. One must take the help of this type of literature while seeking the advice of a web based travel agency. Travel literature may be a cross cultural or transnational in nature. It may also cover a big geographical region within the same countries or different countries. The Tourism Industry is diverse and includes many sectors including: accommodation, transportation, food and beverage, attractions, events and conferences, adventure tourism, travel trade, and tourism services. The Tourism and hospitality industry integrates general management concepts with the professional knowledge that is required by the tourism and hospitality industry. A typical travel agent acquires knowledge and skills in communication, research and analysis of the travel related problems with their solutions and organizations of tours. Examples of typical travel agents are:- Adventure Travel Guide. Events planner. Tour guide. Camp counselor. Naturalist Cruise Director. Travel Planner. Recreation Director. All of them are specialist of their field of travel related activity and help the travelers to organize their tours in a most fruitful manner. Take Over Activities in Travel Business:- Like all other business take over practice is common in this field. Such activities may be of two types:- Vertical Integration. Horizontal Integration. Vertical Integration:- some travel agencies may have large business and may be able to take over the other travel agencies with low value of business. A vertical integration means taking over of a firm having a different but related business. For example A large chain of tour operator may take over an airline with the aim to be benefitted from the lower cost of allocation air travel services to its customers. Sometimes this activity may be very complex and many facts have to be considered before under taking such type of activity. This means that in vertical integrated system of business one organization should be able to offer a travel package to the customers through its own resources with no help from outside. In this type of integration the business will be able to control its cost of operation in a more effective manner. However problems may arise if the business grows too large to be operated efficiently by the available number managers. Many tour operators indulge in wrong business practice by branding different part of the whole business differently and giving each part a different name this is supposed to be un- ethical. It is the right of the customer to know whether a relationship persists between the tour operator and the travel agent. Horizontal Integration:- This is a business activity when an agency of offering one travel product takes over another one which offers the same travel product or service this can be exemplified by taking over of GO by Easy Jet in 2002. Ethics of Travel Agency:- Being a part of the hospitality industry a travel agency must follow the rules of hospitality ethics which may vary from one geographical area to another. Contemporary Ethics:- In modern western world, hospitality is not related with protection and survival. It is associated with etiquette and entertainment. However, it still requires showing respect for guests, providing for their needs and treating them fairly. The hospitality to strangers, personnel friends and relatives may vary according to the culture and sub-culture. South Central Asia:- In south central Asia the hospitality has a strong code of conduct specially in the people called as Pashtus. These people have an ancient set of ethics stressing on Milmastiya or Hospitality. The feeling of hospitality is so great in Pakhtunsitan is such that it is also nick named as The Land of Hospitality . Middle East:- In middle east, it is a cultural to take care of foreigners and strangers. These ethics are reflected in many Biblical commands. Arab World :- In Arab World, there is set of stern obligations for both host and guest. It believes that a bond is formed just by eating salt under one roof. An Arab story tells about the extent of feeling in this regard. It tells us about a thief who tasted something to know if it was suger. He realized that it was salt and thus put back all that he had stolen and left the place. Greco Roman Ethics:- According to the Greco-Roman philosophy hospitality is a divine thing the host is expected to make sure that the needs of his guest are fulfilled. Indian Ethics:- The principle of Atithi Devo Bhava or The Guest is God is the driving force of hospitality for this reason the Indian approach towards guest at home and in all social situations is that of graciousness. Swot Analysis of Travel Agency of Business Being a secondary business activity travel agency business is affected by many factors like boom and crisis in other business activities, war and disturbances, natural calamities etc. Strengths:- The strength of a travel agency lies in its goodwill and a business profile giving distinct market advantage upon which one can capitalize the market plan following is a list of points of strength for a a travel agency:- A thorough knowledge of history and geography of the area of operation. Excellent relationship with product suppliers like airlines, hotels and car rental. Membership with strong association. Strong reputation in the market. Well placed location. Good contact with press and media. Adequate financial resources. Excellent customer list with high customer loyalty. Availability of good destination specialist. Low customer to employee ratio. Customer attentive staff with excellent communication skill. An unique with high end service offering. Weakness:- Being a secondary business activity travel agency business can be affected by many factors like calamities, war or economic slump. Being a comparatively new business activity the exploration of opportunities is still not complete. Finding good employees with necessary skills and customers centric attitude is a difficult and challenging task. Offering new and exiting trips at a regular interval and maintaining high quality is also a task which is difficult to achieve. Many times it is very difficult to find a proper location. For a new business set up financial aspects are also very important as traveling is a business requiring large volume of money. Opportunities:- A good working knowledge of international, national, regional and local trends is a must to fetch the fortune from the existing opportunities in travel agency business. One can find a number of opportunities with the help of ever changing social atmosphere of contemporary world. UAE is called the Land of opportunity .Following is a list of possible opportunities for a new travel agency. It is a growing market that is yet to be adequately explored. Growing numbers of professionals with boom in latest technology of computer science and internet. Globalization of economy. Better Connectivity Abu Dhabi International airport is a well connected transportation hub of the world.It served 9.02 million passengers in 2008 with a growth of 30.2% on 2007.The total number of passengers is expected to reach 50 million as the Abu Dhabi is expected to become a major Transportation hub in Middle East. Improved public transport system :- Public transport system of Abu Dhabi consists of buses, taxis and airplane. There will be a huge expansion of public transportation with completion of 130 km of metro and 340 km of tramway and bus rapid transit(BRT) routes. This is expected to be completed within the government plan called as Surface Transport master Plan DEMOGRAPHY: More than 75% population of Abu Dhabi consists of expatriates from different part of world like UK, India, Pakistan Other countries of South East Asia pacific Asia, Africa and china. This demographical pattern provides an excellent opportunity for travel related business. Business boom resulting into a positive trend of economy with increased spending capacity of general people. Financial capabilities of the management to spread over head expenditure in a number of events. Growing economy after last recession. Affective use of print and electronic media for mass communication. Emerging trend of group travelling and budget travelling involving more and more people in traveling activities. Tax structure of UAE favors business personales Threats:- Being a secondary business activity travel agency business is affected by many factors like boom and crisis in other business activities, war and disturbances, natural calamities etc. The travel industry will be affected in a negative way by a slump in the economy. The terrorist activities in a geographical area will badly affect the travel relative business in that area. Entrance of other service provider in the area of operation Low fair no frill cheap airlines are the threat to the travel agency business as they give facilities for the travelers to make their own arrangements for travel Latest trend of home entertainment like TV watching, etc has a negative impact on travel agency business. Marketing Plan of a Travel Agency To make a marketing plan for a travel agency the study of following factors is considered to be essential:- Situation analysis. Market needs. Market trends. Market growth. Market summary. Situation Analysis:- The analysis of the basic needs of the traveling market according to the situation is the primary need of a travel agency. It must be realized that the trends in the travel activities are ever changing and their analysis is always necessary to make program according to the situation. Market Needs:- The market needs in traveling may vary according to the clients. The needs of a wealthy client may be entirely different from those of a budget traveler. Selection: The selection of services according to the need of the client is a basic and essential recruitment of travel agency business. Accessibility:- The services and products of a travel agent must be accessible for its target client. Customer attention:- Contemporary business ethics follow the principle of customer delight FEE Structure: With emergence of low cost budget airlines commission of travel agency has been affected badly compelling them to impose fee. The service fee of a travel agency should be such that it should not be taken as a bitter pill by the client. MARKET TREND IN TRAVEL AGENCY BUSINESS:- Holiday making is the main reason of travelling worldwide. The second reason of travelling is business tours. For holiday making a traveler usually prefers an inbound tourism while a business tours may be both inbound and outbound according to the need of the business. Emerging medical tourism usually has an outbound dimension. With the growth of economy after last recession tourism is again gaining popularity as a leisure activity globally. Over 922 million international tourist was recorded in 2008 with a growth of 1.8% compared to 2007.However 2009and 2010 have felt a dip due to global slowdown and threat imposed by H1N1 influenza virus. A WTM report in November 2010 has announced a slow recovery of travel industry after the crisis. A report by Euro monitor International, a leading market trend analysis firm gives an insight into the upcoming trend of travelers in near future. There are seven regions of focus in travelling sector. North America UK Europe Middle East Africa Asia Latin America NORTH AMERICA: -The trend in North America is called as that of deprivation holidays The clients enroll themselves in boot camps with an aim to improve their health and balance. This trend has a positive impact on growth of spas and camps. UK: The trend of travelling in UK is that of Middle East Investment. Many companies from Middle East have shown their interests in Brands of UK including Luxury hotels, private jet operators and travel retailers(travel agency) with London emerging as a Hot spot for the luxury travelers . EUROPE: In Europe the business travelers have revolutionalised the tourism business with Smartphones based on GPS . It was their need to take help of mobile travel technology to make last minute change of their schedule which compel them to use mobile applications offering such services like flight booking ,travel guide, tourist information etc. Middle East:- this region is seeing a post Iraq war boom with support by GCC countries . Gulf investors are coming in Iraq with an upward trend in business tourism and revival of travel industry Africa:- South Africa is fast developing as world hub for world class space technology and astronomy. There is a growth potential for astrotourism attracting all classes of travelers from independent ones to families, amateur astronomers to professional ones creating more and more demand for accommodation to observe clear night sky. Latin America:- Latin Americas is characterized by poor infrastructure for travelling and lack of tourism services resulting in a slump of travel agency business . Due to vast territory Latin America has countless opportunities for travel agencies for travelers interested in exploring the interiors of this geographically isolated area. Asia:- Asian countries are characterized by emotional touch in hospitality business creating a special type of brand loyalty. Different hotel locations use different scent s as brands. MARKET GROWTH;- An average 4% growth of tourism industry has been anticipated by World Tourist Organization(UNWTO) . e- commerce has made the tourism products one of the most traded business items on the internet. New products have also been added to the list of high-tech facilities like space tourism ,airship hotels ,space elevators and hydropolis(underwater hotels).All these have a direct and positive impact on travel agencies. GROWTH OF TOURISM IN TOP 10 COUNTRIES (Period 2006-2009) Rank Country Regional Market International Tourism Receipts (2009) Tourism Receipts (2008) Tourism Receipts (2007) Tourism Receipts (2006) 1 USA North America $93.9 bln $110.0 bln $97.1 bln $85.8 bln 2 Spain Europe $53.2 bln $61.6 bln $57.6 bln $51.1 bln 3 France Europe $49.4 bln $55.6 bln $54.3 bln $46.3 bln 4 Italy Europe $40.2 bln $45.7 bln $42.7 bln $38.1 bln 5 China Asia $39.7 bln $40.8 bln $37.2 bln $33.9 bln 6 Germany Europe $34.7 bln $40.0 bln $36.0 bln $32.8 bln 7 UK Europe $30.0 bln $36.0 bln $38.6 bln $34.6 bln 8 Â  Australia Oceania $25.6 bln $24.8 bln $22.3 bln $17.8 bln 9 Â  Turkey Europe $21.3 bln $22.0 bln $18.5 bln $16.9 bln 10 Â  Austria Europe $19.4 bln $21.6 bln $18.9 bln $16.6 bln Source: The world tourism organization report **bln : Billion TOP SPENDER COUNTRIES ON TOURISM Rank Country Regional Market International Tourism Expenditures (2009) International Tourism Expenditures (2008) International Tourism Expenditures (2007) International Tourism Expenditures (2006) 1 Germany Europe $81.2 bln $91.0 bln $83.1 bln $73.9 bln 2 Â  United States North America $73.2 bln $79.7 bln $76.4 bln $72.1 bln 3 Â  United Kingdom Europe $50.3 bln $68.5 bln $71.4 bln $63.1 bln 4 Â  China Asia $43.7 bln $36.2 bln $29.8 bln $24.3 bln 5 Â  France Europe $38.5 bln $41.4 bln $36.7 bln $31.2 bln 6 Â  Italy Europe $27.9 bln $30.8 bln $27.3 bln $23.1 bln 7 Â  Japan Asia $25.1 bln $27.9 bln $26.5 bln $26.9 bln 8 Canada North America $24.2 bln $27.2 bln $24.7 bln $20.6 bln 9 Â  Russia Europe $20.8 bln $23.8 bln $21.2 bln $18.1 bln 10 Â  Netherlands Europe $20.7 bln $21.7 bln $19.1 bln $17.0 bln Organizations of travel agencies For obvious reasons various organizations of travel agencies were formed by their members. Following is a brief account of impotents associations and organizations of travel agencies:- Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA):- This is a legal organization establis

Setting Up A Subway Franchise Marketing Essay

Setting Up A Subway Franchise Marketing Essay My idea is to set up an established franchise. Thus a Subway Franchise. My decision was based on the idea that there is a gap in the market for this particular business especially in the South Norwood area. The only well known sandwich outlet is Subway and although it is already a well-established brand name, I believe that in the correct location my own store will have the potential to make a lot of profit and survive. My businesses unique selling point will be giving my customers the choice to choose which fillings or types of breads they wish to eat for their sub. There are nearly two million different sandwich combinations available on the SUBWAY menu. This flexibility will give the customer their needs and we will gain the loyalty. I believe that in the correct location my own Subway franchise will have the potential to make profit and survive. I will be answering the question: Is it feasible for Subway to expand by establishing a second sandwich outlet in Central Croydon. It is a well-known brand but in the UK not many customers are familiar with this established name. I will make sure these potential consumers know it. I plan to do this by identifying an opportunity in the market and if there is a gap. I plan to use forecasts to see whether my business will be successful such as cash flow and break-even. Using finance available it will help me to launch an excellent franchise opportunity. I have found out Subway is one of the best franchises to set up and a number one entrepreneurial opportunity. Despite this, as there is a highly competitive market that my business would have to enter, having a brand that consumers trust and identify will lead the sandwich bar gaining a stable market share, and loyal customers in a short space of time, and also some of the risk will be reduced.  Overall, buying into a franchise enables entrepreneurs like me to have an opportunity to provide a known product from an established brand with a proven operating system a lready in place. Projects Aims Objectives Aims are the long-term intentions of a business while the objectives are needed to fulfil these overall aims of a business. The main aim of this project is to conduct a sufficient feasibility study in order to evaluate whether or not my business will be successful or not. If my business is likely to fail I would like to assess what factors resulted in this failure and in turn what factors resulted in its success. If it is not feasible then at the end of my project I would like to draw some sort of conclusion about what could have been done to make my business much more successful especially in the case that my business fails. Despite being a franchise and a well-known brand in sight of my potential customers, this feasibility study could endeavour failure and from there I could see what actually could have been enhanced. If it does prove to strive to success, I will be able to identify the best place to set it up, what products to market consumers want/need and at what price. Moreover, I would like to assess what factors resulted in the failure of my business, and what factors contributed to the success of my business, and at the end of the project evaluate what could have been done to improve the business being a success. By doing this I will look into what makes a business strive into success, such as location, the competitors, products to be aimed at potential customers and whether there is actually a demand in the market for a well-known franchise as this. Information will be retrieved through primary and secondary sources and research. I intend to use primary research in order to identify, suitable locations, current prices of my local competitors, products that are needed and wanted by consumers in the market, the right promotional methods in order to attract potential consumers and to establish the target market. In addition I shall use secondary research to find out statistics on most products sold/brought, the period of time in which consumer spending is at its highest, and where and any information retrieved by competitors on consumer spending patterns within the market, or successful marketing strategies. All project results will be used to determine and evaluate my project and backup final decisions. I will need to remember that I will need long-term profit in order to survive. Business Aims Objectives Aims should be an expression of all parties of the business, i.e. employees, shareholders. The set aims should be long-term and everyone within the firm should work to achieve them. Aims can encourage commitment within a firm, i.e. giving employees a long-term job within the firm. Most firms do not spend quantities of time on trying to define their aims, particularly true of small firms where communication levels are quick and easy to transfer information such as my firm Subway. Aims are a basis in which I will set my objectives. These can be influenced by the business culture and the workforce culture. Delegation can take place, in order to allow different departments to focus on different aims. This allows analysis of the success of the objective easier. My aims are: Produce quality products at a competitive price. Bridge the gap between social classes by giving everyone high classed products. In co-operate consumers needs and wants in products. Increase consumers value of living. Turn luxury products into necessity products due to high quality and the purpose/function to the consumers. Produce a profit making business. Design a company whereby customers satisfaction is achieved and a friendly service is offered. Primary Objectives: Will the new Croydon store prove to be adequate in all areas, but most importantly will it be profitable, to a sufficient level of return? Secondary Objectives: Collect the previous years accounts and financial reports for Subway, and evaluate the present situation. Investigate whether there is land available to expand its property. To obtain marketing data. Find out the start-up costs and initial investment for the outlet for expansion. To diversify the business. Using the retrieved raw data, produce forecasted accounts and evaluate the firms financial position in the future. Decide whether a change in price is needed or adding or removing of items is needed to the existing menu. Assess the time scale of the expansion. Methodology Examine existing accounts of the business to whether the firm has enough capital for expansion. I am going to do this by finding out the profitability, liquidity and the efficiency of the firm using ratio analysis from the Trading Profit and Loss account and the Balance Sheet. I will find out using an appropriate website, where I want to open the outlet. This will highlight all the surrounding stores and vacant properties. I will use this as a basis to find a vacant suitable site for the new Subway Restaurant. Once an appropriate site is chosen, I will choose whether to lease or buy a free hold property. I am going to prepare a questionnaire for the customers visiting the restaurant and do a survey of the people in the area to find out their views about the recognised brand name Subway and whether the target market for the product is aimed confidently to the correct consumer market. Retrieve information from the Subway website on costs that will be needed to be incurred, such as the start-up costs and initial investment. Investigate the ways in which the business can diversify, for example introducing other types of catering services such as catering for special occasions. To forecast the firms Trading Profits and loss account. Balance sheet and cash flow forecast if the restaurant was to expand. By using Ratio analysis, I intend to analyse the firms financial position in the future. Upon my findings in my questionnaire I will decide whether extra items should be added to the present menu. Using Decision-Making Techniques such as decision trees and critical path analysis to help reach a decision and estimate the minimum time that could be taken to complete a possibly problematic process. Mission Statement The main objective of a mission statement aims to set and/or tell, stakeholders and shareholder of what the overall purpose of the business is. This involves stating what the business intends to achieve and sets the theme for setting objectives and strategic methods. It shows the businesses reason for existing; why it has been set-up in the first place its intentions. However, in the likeliness of setting a positive and achievable mission statement, a criterion has been set for business to follow. SMART (smart, measurable, agreed, realistic, time specific), allow businesses o analyse the mission statement and to see how success full it would be. As a general not the companies overall mission statement would be to become the biggest and best-value store in the market. Mission statements shows the businesses reason for existing, why it has been set-up in the first place (intentions). Existing Subway missionary statement: To provide the tools and knowledge to allow entrepreneurs to successfully compete in the Quick Service Restaurant industry worldwide, by consistently offering value to consumers through providing great tasting food that is good for them and made the way they like it. SWOT analysis This is a tool, which is used to review internal and external business environments. The benefit of doing this is to assess the businesses current activities and base decisions on them. It is an effective way of identifying my Strengths and Weaknesses, and of examining the potential Opportunities and Threats my business might face. By carrying out an SWOT analysis and using the SWOT framework it will help me to focus into areas where my business will show strengths and where the greatest opportunities lie. My strengths are any resources and capabilities that can be used as a basic for developing a competitive advantage over other sandwich outlets. Strengths: Being a small sole trader franchise means that I will have a closer relationship with the customers, thus receive ideas and build a personal relationship with them. Then begin to build a loyal customer base. Eventually I can promote and adapt my products to the needs of the consumers. I have a good location for my business that is easy to access and is viewable by consumers. Thus creating awareness for consumers to come in and purchase a product. Establish competitors, which have identified consumers spending habits. Makes it easier to establish a business whereby, their needs and wants are already aware. A market-led business that is dedicating to consumers means that you will be giving the consumers what they need, which would make them, happier-delighted. Ultimately, returning back for more purchases. An excellent worldwide reputation in place means a long trading period could be portrayed. Finding a trustworthy supplier is guaranteed, someone who is willing to take a chance on a new established franchise. My Weaknesses are anything, which cannot be included as strength, are things that the business would do badly, that it is ineffective at or that it has a poor reputation for. Weaknesses: Low start-up capital- without capital, the business will find it hard to start-up and get loans to fund its strategies. No credit from suppliers- without credit, it may be hard to pay back debts and have money left over for re-investment into the business. I will have a small amount of staff, as I will not be able to pay for more than I need, so when my staff are absent I will not have any form of backup for them. I have no experience in Marketing which means that I may not market Subways initial products effectively thus losing out on valuable profit, but also on customer loyalty if I market it imperfectly. My cash flow will be unreliable in the early stages of business, thus I will not have any chances to buy things if I see an opportunity for it. Opportunities are anything, which present an opportunity for profit and growth because of its strengths or because of the elimination of its weaknesses. Opportunities: New technology may cut down the time and improve the quality of my products. Company expansion, i.e. increasing capacity inside for eat in. To gain Market share by diversifying myself from other companies: innovation of products and new product range. Increase demand for quality general-purpose products. Competition may be engrossed with rivalry between each other that they dont take much notice in own growth. The introduction of speciality breads and more exotic fillings will extend the possibilities of the sandwich from a simple snack into a meal. Threats of a business arise from activities of competitors and from failing to take opportunities or to build on successes. Threats also come from complacency, a lack of rigour, and from falling profits, perhaps due to rising costs. Threats: Established, wealthy competitors. All fast food chains, including McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, Pret A Manger, OBriens, and Benjys. Competitors enforcing new tactics to destroy new competition in which we couldnt battle against due to low capital. For example lowering of prices, advertisement campaigns etc. A possibility of competitors using destroyer pricing. In which we would not be able to operate if we lowered costs any more. If my competitor starts a Price war I will not be able to compete, thus risk of losing customers or falling into bankruptcy. Lack of trained, specialised employees. Shift in consumer tastes will mean that I will need to alter my product selling to fit there needs. There is always a chance of new competitors trying to take some market share. Furthermore, I realise that by having so many opportunities and no experience I can easily make the wrong choice, which could lead to huge opportunity costs. Moreover, most of the opportunities identified to me, are also identified to my competitors, and because they have more capital, and even greater customer loyalty, being able to take advantage of these opportunities will prove difficult. Lastly the weakness of not having any experience means that making decisions will be hard, and being able to react to competition actions would be difficult or even futile. As a result of my SWOT analysis I come to the conclusion that continuing with the business idea would be unpractical, but with a lot of hard work and luck, the firm may be successful, however not enough to compete with competition such as Pret A Manger or Burger King but surviving to some extent. PESTLE Analysis This examines the external environment and the global factors that may affect a business. It can provide a quick and visual representation of the external pressures facing a business, and their possible constraints on strategy. It is usually divided into five external influences on a business- political, economic, socio-cultural, technological and green. The analysis examines the impact of each of these factors and how they interplay with each other in the business. The results can then be used to take advantage of opportunities and to make emergency plans for threats. Political: It might include a consideration of legislation, such as consumer laws, regulation, such as control of certain companies, political pressures and the government view of certain activities. Factors that could affect are Government legislation such as taxes on products and interest rates. This will affect the business when determining the selling price of the products. In order to make a profit after taxation, the price will have to be increased; however the price must also be appealing to the customer and rival that of your competitor. Healthy and safety legislations will have to be taken into account especially since my business deals with food. Improving the health and safety rules according to the regulations set by the franchise would do this. Economical: This might involve the analysis of a variety of economic factors and their effects on business. They might include: consumer activity such as spending patterns, economic variables such as inflation, and government policy such as exchange rates. These areas are global, but it is also important to look at factors affecting my own industry. Economic issues are the focus of future potential of profit making. This can involve the level of demand and the price in which the product will be sold for. This needs to be compared with other organisations prices in order to lure consumers. Despite the fact that this is a franchise and costs are already set up, if however the cost of floor rises, then for my firm or other food retailers the price of floor is a crucial economic measure as without it we cannot make our product and sell them at a cheap price. The current employment rates have increased in the past few years due to economic factors. Not only does this suggest that I have a wider selection for recruitment, being able to choose the most multitasked workforce. I also have the negative effect that money consumers are without money and are unable to spend. This can be a decrease in sales of the whole market, and competition will become fierce in attempt to get loyalty from remaining consumers. In addition exchange rates can affect my business if deciding to import goods form abroad, or basing the factory in overseas. This can easily increase cost and promote a move back to the United Kingdom. Laws on competitive pricing, patterned ideas and quality standards can all affect the way in which my business is run. These laws can limit the companys expansion and take longer than expected. Social: Social factors I must examine are consumer attitudes to my product industry, environmental issues (e.g. organic food versus food made in a lab), attitudes to health, wealth and age (the elderly dont want to be treated different from others). Added complications when looking at social and cultural factors are differences in ethnic and social groups. Not all groups have the same attitudes and this impacts how they view products and services. E.g. Muslims eating pork. Also the fact that Muslims eat Halal would affect my business because meat that is sold at Subway is prepared normally and not using the traditional Halal method. Thus, I will lose sells on these major ethical and cultural groups. However, another factor to consider is that location is dependent on the amount of customers I lose, if there are many Muslims in the area then sells will decline, if not many I will benefit on other ethical groups buying my products. Therefore location can still play a part with profit, especi ally to my target audience. Technological: This might involve the analysis of a variety of economic factors and their effects on business. They might include: consumer activity such as spending patterns, economic variables such as inflation, and government policy such as exchange rates. Fixed and variable costs of the business and the effect of changes in product and labour markets. Other economic factors include income growth, debt saving levels (which impact available money) and consumer business confidence. Increased security methods may include real-time CCTV cameras and hidden cameras around the store to reduce pilferage; this can be mainly located by the cashier tills, as it is highly likely consumers could cause nuisance around these areas. Production methods may introduce, faster production, meaning products are out in the market much quicker and a cheaper price. In addition quality is not sacrificed. Production methods will make producing quicker and possible with a higher quality level. Giving way to the innovation of products. Although with this new advancement I will need staff that can use it e.g. EPOS till ware and also the capital to by and or train people to use it. Green issues involve the interest of the organisations and its interaction with the environment. We need to monitor how we treat the environment with production methods especially, in order to comply with the current laws. Target Audience The SUBWAY chains target market is adults between the ages of 18 and 49 who eat quick meals and are looking for good-tasting options. Also, the SUBWAY chain wants to increase its consideration set among frequent fast-food consumers who lead an active lifestyle and are seeking a balance of nutrition, taste, and value. The target audience is an important factor when setting up my business, as I will be relying on this to make my business a success. My business is a sandwich store that sells food, food is one of the five basic needs and this means that everyone needs food in order to survive. Although this is the case it doesnt mean everyone will eat the food that I will provide. For example young children will not come to my shop to eat large subs so therefore I will need to attract them by selling them a specially tailored kids meal containing simple food with everything inside. In this way I am maximizing my target range. Here is a plan about how I hope to attract other age groups: Young Children: I will be selling them the KidsPak consisting of simple food with a small sub sandwich with different choices of fillings called Deli-Style Sandwiches and a drink. Teens: I hope to encourage teens to my shop by selling a delicious variety of sub sandwich fillings of their choice, promoting certain menus such as 7 under 6 with less than 6 grams of fat. Also selling sweet desserts such as cookies. Adult: I plan on encouraging adults who are fast-food consumers, who lead an active lifestyle and are seeking a balance of nutrition, taste, and value. For example a great choice of salads for those who are watching their calories. Healthy, nutritious meals for those who are health conscious will be available rather then going to stores where fast-food is full of fat such as McDonalds. If they want to eat something during their break at work, a quick meal is available at Subway. Business Structure I choose to do a privately held franchise as all Subway ® outlets are franchised and there are no company-owned units. I feel my business will face less risk if I open a franchise. I can benefit from a Subway experience and enjoy it. I feel my enthusiasm will reflect upon my customers. Another reason why I have chosen to open a franchise into Subway is that in the US it has been voted franchiser of the year by Entrepreneur magazine in all categories, in the past 11 years out of 15 years. Despite that it is the fastest growing franchise in the world (see appendix) with an estimated 25,000 stores worldwide in 2005, bearing in mind that in year 2000 there was only 14,662 stores. Now Subway has beaten the number McDonalds outlets in the US, which is astonishing and the main headlines. With people like Jared who has made Subway even more successful by eating a diet only based on Subway, he has gained his desired weight and distributed what his diet consisted to the public, making Subway even more profitable. From this enormous approval, hundreds of children have decided to improve their quality of life by adopting healthy habits. I have chosen to become a sole trader, because I think it is the best option in my position. I feel I havent enough capital and experience to become a private limited company, and this option is not really open to me if I were go into a franchise. I like to run the business to my satisfaction, and this reflects my decision to open as a sole trader. Market Research: Primary Research Questionnaire as primary research is a lot cheaper, as I am only starting up a business and will not have a lot of capital. Hard to justify bank loan for primary research and can be a waste of money. I will not send any questionnaires out to people as may not receive them back. I will actually approach people in certain areas and ask them questions myself. Means I will get a straight answer rather than bias and have full concentration of interviewee. Analysis of Questionnaire: Question 1- What gender are you? It is essential to know the gender of the person to recognize which one visits the restaurant the most. It will allow me to establish the target market or audience. I can find out trends such as whether more males or females enjoy eating sandwiches. From this I can concentrate more on that particular target market determined. Question 2- In what age range are you? Age would be essential to see whether children would purchase a kids meal that is available at Subway. If I know this, I can effectively cater my advertising to them. From this it will give me a clearer picture of the answer instead of a biased or narrow one. Asking this question will allow me to find out what the target market is. From the established franchise Subway, it mentions how the target market is adults between the ages of 18 and 39- specifically students and families with young children. Question 3- Which borough do you live in? I need to know which borough the potential customer is living to find out if the Subway franchise would best be located in a borough where people know what a Subway Restaurant is. This will increase sales to those potential customers who are loyal to this well-known brand. This will enable me to find out how far they live from chosen location and if their answer will have valid information. There is no point locating my Subway in an area where most cannot reach or locating it where customers have never heard of a Subway brand. Question 4- Have you ever heard of a Subway Sandwich Restaurant? Obviously, in this question I will be able to find out if the customer actually knows what a Subway is and whether they really need to carry out the other questions relevant to the franchise. If they have ever heard of this franchise then they can refer to question 12 and to answer questions only on a basis of sandwiches and not to the franchise itself. Question 5- Have you ever visited one? This will ask whether they have visited a subway, as I need to know whether they are actually familiar with the franchises prices, meals available and food. This will give me an answer that is genuine and not made of assumptions and predictions. If the customer has visited a Subway then this question can be linked to answers requiring their knowledge of a Subway for example their favourite fillings that follows on from this question. Question 6- How often do you eat in sandwich bars? I would need to know how often the customer eats in sandwich bars to meet demand. This will also help me decide how many times I can change special offers available in store depending on how much they visit the store. This along with the question about your age will help me to find out what type of person is able to travel to sandwich bars or my franchise on a daily basis. These people will be my main focus, who I will be promoting to, as these are the people who will be going to my shop a lot. Question 7- What opening hours should a new sandwich bar have? I would like to see which hours are preferable for the potential customer so they can visit it at their chosen time. Question 8 How much would you spend on a meal in a sandwich bar? This will allow me to allocate a price for a typical average meal in Subway. I would also be able to see if consumers are willing to purchase high-priced goods. Or if they choose the option where they want to pay a low price. I will judge my prices based on this. Question 9 Which fillings do you prefer the most in your sub sandwich? Allow me to determine what is the most popular filling to the customers choice and for me to determine which filling will be most in demand. Therefore I can stock up on the most popular fillings ready for the huge demand. I can make sure there is enough supply, during the first few months. From my answers I can then use the fillings as a focal point when advertising to consumer. It will also help me find out which filling I will need to buy the most of. Question 10 Would you like it to be a takeaway or eat in Restaurant? I would like to see whether accommodation for sitting in store needs to be provided or not depending on the results from the survey. From then suitable costs will be established on refurbishment of accommodation sitting. Question 11 Where do you find out special deals about Subway? If the potential customer has many responses to this question, I will then be able to promote deals in the first few months to attract customers to my franchise. Those special deals will be promoted in different ways in the advertising sector e.g.- leaflet drop-ins and newspaper. This question is to help me find out the best way of advertising. By finding out which of the existing methods used by Subway is the most effective. By doing this I will be able to use this method when advertising my business. Question 12- When buying a sandwich what places do you prefer to visit? This will help me identify my local competitors. Those are stores that actually sell sandwich products e.g.- Greggs. I need to know the main reason why customers go to Subway to see whether they have actually heard of a Subway and have given a genuine reason not based on assumptions. By identifying the sandwich stores they visit, I can begin a list of my local competitors. Question 13- Why do you go to Subway, or any other sandwich store? I asked this question to give me a prediction of why people choose Subway over other competitors. Also whether the majority of my sales are based on impulse buying, something that businesses cannot rely on heavily to cover costs, or treats or groceries. Rather it will give me an angle to push my sale at e.g. if for impulse buying I will advertise snacks instead of heavy food. Question 14- Do you enjoy sandwiches as a healthy alternative from other junk foods? This will allow me to reckon whether they really find sandwiches a healthy alternative to junk foods and if they prefer eating this nutritious meal from burgers or pizzas. I would be able to see if sandwiches are a popular good to buy. Question 15- Are you vegetarian, or dont eat certain meats? My market is low fat in nature. If a lot of my customers are vegetarian, I can introduce no meat sandwiches. This goes the same for Halal meats. If I experience a low number of people eating meats, than instead of buying Halal meats, which are expensive, I can introduce more vegetarian meals to cater for there needs. 16. Are you conscience about the amount of calories or amount of fat you eat? Although all my products are low in fat, this answer can help me to gain awareness. My pronouncing that my products are all low in fat, people who have answered this question yes, will seek out my product, because of its low in fat nature. Recommendation: These external factors that affect my business can have a positive effect, however, I believe in the short-term will have a negative effect. For example, in light of technological improvements, my business will need to have money, to take a