Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Ethical Issues Associated With Marketing And Advertising

Ethics are moral guidelines which govern good behavior. Acting ethically is doing what is morally correct. When business acts ethically, it is said they are practicing good business practice. Acting ethically is not similar to acting lawfully because Ethics are concerned with what is right and wrong whereas law is concerned with what is lawful and unlawful. So Legal and ethical issues are closely related as they both deal with issues affecting the society in general. Ethical issues associated with Marketing and Advertising: Ethical issues in marketing arise from conflicts of interest among parties doing business with each other. Ethical marketing efforts and decisions should meet the expectations of the various players in the marketing effort (Halbert Ingulli, 2012). Each party has its own expectation on how the business relationship is supposed to be. Advertisements are the most common marketing methods used by businesses. Ads last longer than word of mouth or networking and ads have a greater potential to reach large number of people especially in the digital age. Every aspect of the marketing and advertising are subjected to many regulations. When a product is being marketed and advertised to a particular group, there must be legal and ethical consideration of how this will affect the people you are targeting. In recent years, there have been various scandals relating to the manipulation of the FDA rules and regulations especially in pharmaceutical industry.Show MoreRelatedOnline Advertising Methods For Advertising1719 Words   |  7 Pages Online Advertising Methods Background Every day, marketing professional come up with new ways in which they can market their products to consumers successfully. Marketing of products has significantly changed following the invention of the internet. The enormous popularity of the internet in the past decade has opened doors for marketers in a manner that one could not have imagined twenty years ago. Marketers utilize the internet for the purpose of advertising products in a great way than otherRead MoreEthical Issues With Ethical Marketing Essay1333 Words   |  6 PagesIssues with Ethical Marketing Ethical problems in marketing starts with conflicts and disagreements. Each party in the marketing transaction brings expectations of how the business relationship will exist and how the transaction should be conducted. Some ethical problems in marketing research aren’t always the invasion of privacy and stereotyping. Selective marketing is used to discourage the demand from undesirable markets or just by disenfranchising them altogether. Examples of unethical marketRead MoreEthical Guidelines For The Marketing Industry1562 Words   |  7 PagesWhen it comes down to ethical guidelines it is pertinent that every industry have them. However, when consumers think of the marketing industry, they tend to think those are the most unethical people participating in those jobs. Marketing too has some ethical guidelines, but to what extent are they being followed to have consumers thinking otherwise? Marketing is supposed to make honest claims and satisfy the needs and wants of the cus tomers. It is supposed to develop brand loyalty, to in turn increaseRead MoreEthics Of The Health Care Industry995 Words   |  4 Pagesin Healthcare Marketing Ethics in the health care industry are one of the most important cornerstones of patient care. Making ethical decisions, being vigilant in the lack of ethical decision making, and being proactive in the reporting and advancement of ethical practices are important factors for marketing professionals such as physicians and other health care professionals to be wary of. Conduct by pharmaceutical representatives and ethical practices in the marketing of pharmaceuticalRead MoreThe Global Pharmaceuticals Market Is Worth Us $ 300 Billion A Year814 Words   |  4 Pagesallowing them to increase the demand and the prices of their products. Over the last 40 years the marketing practices of the pharmaceutical companies have changed the direction of marketing towards physicians to marketing directly to the consumer. This has transformed the pharmaceutical market and has brought out on foreseen profits to the companies. This form of marketing has also brought forth ethical debates t hat question a pharmaceutical company’s responsibility to communicate risk of their productsRead MoreOpinion On Telstra Advertising Campaign1725 Words   |  7 PagesOpinion on Telstra Advertising Campaign. From the literature, Telstra has been a long term sponsor of the Australian Olympics team but currently it is not the sponsor of the team. The issue is that Telstra has been using the advertising campaign ‘I go to Rio’ and have a similar advert stating they are ‘Official Technology Partner of Seven’s Olympic Games Coverage’. This is contrary to the real situation since the team had a different telecommunications partner during the Rio 2016 Olympics. The AustralianRead MoreAdvertising Improves The Standard Of Living954 Words   |  4 PagesAdvertising Improves the Standard of Living As with advertising educating the consumer, experts and critics debate whether advertising improves or harms the population s standard of living. Advertisements help create a large demand for products. Because of this, companies purchase a wide variety of these products in bulk, which lowers the cost for them per unit. Then in turn, they can sell these products to the consumer for a lower price. Without advertisements, companies would only buy a limitedRead MoreThe Ethical Marketing Strategy Of Pharmaceutical Advertising1451 Words   |  6 Pagessome of the ethical issues associated with this marketing strategy? Pharmaceutical advertisements has been the subject of deliberation for more than a century. Pharmaceutical advertising and marketing make up a large fragment of the activities of pharmaceutical corporations. These publications can be extremely informative as long as they are analytically evaluated. However, the data enclosed in promotional material may be scant or errone ous. Assuredly, the pharmaceutical marketing activities hasRead MoreDeontological Ethical Analysis of Direct-to-Consumer Pharmaceutical Marketing1357 Words   |  6 PagesDeontological Ethical Analysis of Direct-to-Consumer Pharmaceutical Marketing In Deontological ethics, morality of an action is based upon the particular action’s adherence to moral laws independent of their consequences (DeGeorge 62). Direct-to-consumer marketing of pharmaceuticals has had heated debate with logical arguments from those for, and for those against allowing such practices to exist. I do not believe the marketing of the prescription medication to be solely unethical but moreRead MoreThe Ethical Appropriateness Of Direct Consumer Advertising Of Drugs Essay1246 Words   |  5 PagesWhat facts would you want to know before making a judgement on the ethical appropriateness of direct consumer advertising of drugs? I believe in the case where pharmaceutical companies are advertising with television commercials or paid advertisements within magazines are well within moral and good ethical standards. Consumers can choose to remain on the same television channel or read an advertisement within a magazine to become more educated about a specific pharmaceutical. However, in the case

Monday, December 16, 2019

The Epidemic Of Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever - 1893 Words

Introduction Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a severe and often deadly illness named after a river in the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaà ¯re) where it was ï ¬ rst identiï ¬ ed in 1976 with a high case fatality rate lying between 50 and 90%. Outbreaks between 1972 and 2007 are shown in Table 1. The disease ï ¬ rst came into the limelight in 1976 in Zaà ¯re and Sudan in 1976 [17]. Its origin is still unknown and it is widely believed that Ebola virus is transmitted to humans from discrete life cycles in animals or insects, but regardless of the original source. Person-to-person transmission is the means by which Ebola outbreaks and epidemics progress. Bioterrorism threats as well as emergence of new pandemic and drug-resistant variants of known infections require development of the tools that would adequately predict occurrence of epidemics, assess efficiency of countermeasures, and optimize the efforts directed towards provision of biological safety. Mathematical modeling has emerged as an important tool for gaining understanding of the dynamics of the spread of infectious diseases. The need of accurate models describing the epidemic process are vital, because infectious diseases outbreaks disturb the host population and has ï ¬ nancial and health consequences. There is also the need to use sound statistical analysis methods to test the ï ¬ t of such models to observed data to account for uncertainties by means of probabilistic models. The optimization of the control of anShow MoreRelatedEbola Essay851 Words   |  4 PagesEbola Impact on Human Health amp; Hygiene Essay Historically Ebola has had a serious impact on human health and hygiene and still does due to the fact of no vaccine or treatment being discovered, but thanks to improvements in scientific and medical knowledge the virus itself is now controllable. Ebola is the virus Ebolavirus (EBOV), a viral genus, and the disease Ebola hemorrhagic fever (EHF), a viral hemorrhagic fever (VHF). The virus is named after the Ebola River Valley in the DemocraticRead MoreEbola: More Research is Needed To Find a Cure Essay899 Words   |  4 PagesEbola Hemorrhagic Fever is a severe and often deadly illness that occurs in humans and primates. Ebola viruses are members of the filovirus family. The Ebola virus causes the infection of this disease. There are four subtypes of the Ebola virus that have occurred in humans: Ebola Sudan, Ebola Zaire, Ebola Ivory Coast, and Ebola Bundibogyo. There was also a case of Ebola that occurred in a non-human in Reston, Virginia. The Zaire virus was the first Ebola virus discovered and it is also consideredRead MoreThe Ebola Virus1631 Words   |  7 PagesThe Ebola Virus A virus is an ultramicroscopic infectious organism that, having no independent metabolic activity, can replicate only within a cell of another host organism. A virus consists of a core of nucleic acid, either RNA or DNA, surrounded by a coating of antigenic protein and sometimes a lipid layer surrounds it as well. The virus provides the genetic code for replication, and the host cell provides the necessary energy and raw materials. There are more than 200 viruses thatRead MoreThe Ebola Virus Essay1307 Words   |  6 PagesDisease name Ebola hemorrhagic fever (Ebola HF) Four identified subtypes of Ebola: (4)  · Ebola-Zaire, Ebola-Sudan, Ebola-Ivory Coast (cause disease in humans)  · Ebola-Reston (cause disease in non-human primates only) Means of Transmission Person-to-person transmission Direct contact of blood, secretions, semen, vomit, diarrhea (1) or organs of infected person Sexually transmitted - â€Å"Transmission through semen may occur up to 7 weeks after clinical recovery, asRead MoreEssay about Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever1267 Words   |  6 PagesEbola Hemorrhagic Fever Ebola hemorrhagic fever (Ebola HF) is a severe, often-fatal disease in humans and nonhuman primates (monkeys and chimpanzees) that has appeared sporadically since its initial recognition in 1976. The disease is caused by infection with Ebola virus, named after a river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire) in Africa, where it was first recognized. The virus is one of two members of a family of RNA viruses called the Filoviridae. Three ofRead MoreEbola Virus Disease : History, Transmission Pathogenesis951 Words   |  4 PagesEbola Virus Disease: History, Transmission Pathogenesis The Ebola virus disease (EVD) was initially discovered in 1976; which originated from the Ebola River Valley in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). EVD is a severe, often fatal disease affecting humans, and nonhuman primates. Outbreaks occur in Africa affecting mostly the central and western portions of the continent. Formerly known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, but the recent outbreak illustrates viruses’ ability to manifest itself withoutRead MoreEbola Virus Is An Infectious Organism1515 Words   |  7 PagesEbola is one of the deadliest viruses known to mankind! Ebola was originally named Ebola hemorrhagic fever due to its hemorrhagic nature. It is a rare but deadly disease caused by infection from an Ebola virus vector. Ebola can be contracted by humans and nonhumans such as monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees. The Ebola virus has been detected in blood and many body fluids, including: saliva, mucus, vomit, feces, sweat, tears, breast milk, urine, semen, and vaginal flu ids (Willett 16). Ebola can lingerRead MoreOutbreak of Ebola792 Words   |  3 PagesEbola was first recognized in 1976 as the cause of outbreaks of disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then known as Zaire) and in Sudan. About three hundred people in each of the two nations were infected with the virus, resulting in a mortality rate of 88% in Zaire, and 53% in Sudan (Bulletin of the WHO 1978). The disease as it was discovered spread through direct contact of unmans to humans, and then thought, from non-human primates to humans. The epidemic was a result of unsafe andRead MoreEbola Outbreak Of West Africa1655 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction In the late 1970s, the international community was alarmed by the discovery of the Ebola virus. (Schwarz and Siegl, 1996) It was the ‘causative agent’ (Peters and Peters, 2015) of EHF (Ebola hemorrhagic fever). Ebola stems from a virus family know as Filoviridae. The virus targets various parts of the body causing a critical sickness of fever, diarrhoea, vomiting and in severe cases bleeding. However, infections do not always lead to death. ‘In previous outbreaks, 40-90% of known infectionsRead MoreThe Ebola Virus Essay1208 Words   |  5 Pages In the year 1976, Ebola climbed out of its unknown hiding place, and caused the death of 340 people. Fear gripped the victims faces, and uncertainty tortured their minds. The people of Zaire waited outside clinics, churches and in their homes for a treatment of the horrible disease, but there was no cure. They were forced to watch people die, hoping that they would be saved from the violent death of the Ebola virus. From the year of 1976 to the present date of 1996, researchers have searched for

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Nursing Jobs for Journal of Project Management- myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theNursing Jobs for Journal of Project Management. Answer: Designing and analyzing nursing jobs Nursing is an ideal job that that requires a lot of patience, mental stability and perseverance. It cannot be considered as a mere job; rather it can be asserted that nursing is a service to humankind. It is quintessentially a philanthropic approach. Getting into nurse jobs requires establishing an emotional connection with the patients and with their family members. It is an full time responsibility that requires to look into all the nook and corners that may affect the patient like hygiene factors, maintaining quality of requirements, having strong communication skills and adapting flexible schedule of work (Pournader, Tabassi Baloh, 2015). The nurses are also required to keep an optimistic approach towards all the issues that may crop up and build up strong interpersonal skills. An ideal nurse dedicated towards his or her profession must have a problem resolving attitude. Job Enrichment Strategies A Particular job can be enriched in terms of quality emphasizing on the job opportunities, strategic planning and controlling. Job enrichment also considers the factors like focusing on the concept of self-monitoring, working in team mechanisms and enhancing knowledge by taking training and development methods. Apart from that job rotation strategies also focuses on job rotation and peer monitoring. Job Enlargement Strategies There are a number of strategies involved to enlarge a job sector. The most common way to ensure the enlargement of job is enlarged by adding complex woks of similar kind to the position (Duffield et al., 2014). Focusing at work variation and keeping the employees engaged also enlarges the job. The other ways of enlarging a jobs are to make sure that the staffs attains training programs and at the same time it opportune the employees to have a taste of all the variation of a single job. Hr planning and recruitment: Certain factors affect the recruitment process of nurses in hospitals and health care centers. A thorough environmental scanning of the same would critically evaluate the factors affecting the hiring and recruitment of staffs. One of the major factor is labor market that invites unnecessary applicants for a job role when the market is saturated. The negative and the positive brand image of the hospitals also impacts on the recruitment process and the type of employees chosen. Further, there are additional factors like political stability of the place, unemployment rates and threat of competitors that influences the recruitment process. The externally focused recruitment in the context of short term recruitment include processes like Casual calling, directly recruiting, internship offers to schools, colleges and universities and hiring of labor on contract basis (Hoffmann, Inderst Opp, 2016). The long term recruitment on the other hand includes strategies like hiring employees on recommendations, referrals, from consultancy and from external agencies and firms. External recruitment strategies: Its advantages to diversify workforce External recruitment strategies are popular because it is unbiased, thus maximum diversity can be maintained (Phillips Gully, 2015). The other processes like casual calling and direct recruitment allows all ethnicity and races to apply for the job. Internship recruitment from schools and colleges ensures diversified work culture. Total rewards: Direct compensation for Nursing Jobs The compensation philosophy is broadly dependent upon the payment practices and the annual reviews of the company. The payment practices are unbiased and transparent that allows professional advancement of the employees in particular area, thus attaining institutional goals and objectives. The annual reviews on the other hand opportune the employees to work and perform better. It acts as motivation to the employees. Valuation of the job: Nursing is less a job and more of a approach. It is an ever-positive approach to serve humanity. The wages are not considered as the prime objective in this profession. It can be regarded as the most profession without much of bribery and forgery scene. Compensation package: The compensation packages are designed in a way that rewards and gives recognition to the employees, offers promotion to the deserving employees and other activities like team outing. Base pay and variable pay: Base and variable pay are the type of compensation package that companies uses to wage the employees. The variation within the pay scale helps the company to mark the basic pay of the employees and thus can alter the other variables of the entire salary. Total rewards: Employee benefits and services: Under voluntary benefits, the company offers medical insurance, health insurance, and security insurance. The prime reason that company offers voluntary benefits to the employees is employee security (Jessen, 2015). It induces an urge within applicants to join the company and employees show better loyalty towards the company. Job related service: In terms of Positive investment, certain program like training and development processes are undertaken that trains the employees to execute their work in perfection. It increases the production of the company and attracts more clients to the company. Flexible benefits program: Flexible benefits program is advantageous to the employer as it enables the employer to satiate the need of the employees (Cascio, 2018). The employer can keep a complete control of finance and the employer controls the employees. The recruitment process is also easier. Reference List Cascio, W. (2018).Managing human resources. McGraw-Hill Education. Duffield, C., Baldwin, R., Roche, M., Wise, S. (2014). Job enrichment: creating meaningful career development opportunities for nurses.Journal of nursing management,22(6), 697-706. Hoffmann, F., Inderst, R., Opp, M. M. (2016). Only time will tell: A theory of deferred compensation and its regulation Jessen, J. T. (2015). Job satisfaction and social rewards in the social services.Journal of comparative social work,5(1). Phillips, J. M., Gully, S. M. (2015). Multilevel and strategic recruiting: Where have we been, where can we go from here?.Journal of Management,41(5), 1416-1445. Pournader, M., Tabassi, A. A., Baloh, P. (2015). A three-step design science approach to develop a novel human resource-planning framework in projects: the cases of construction projects in USA, Europe, and Iran.International journal of project management,33(2), 419-434.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Market Analysis LOreal

Introduction L’Oreal was established in 1909 in the personal care industry in France. The firm’s operations involve the production of diverse cosmetic and beauty products. The firm has managed to penetrate the global beauty and cosmetic market. Currently, L’Oreal ranks as the largest cosmetic organisation in the world. L’Oreal has adopted internationalisation as one its business level strategies in an effort to maximise its profits.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Market Analysis: L’Oreal specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The firm has targeted China as one of its marketing destinations. Currently, the firm ranks as the second largest skincare and beauty firm in China. Procter Gamble leads the market as it has introduced all its major brands in the Chinese market. Likewise, L’Oreal has introduced most of its brands in the Chinese market such as Maybelline New York and Lancome. In a bid to market its products successfully in the Chinese market, L’Oreal has adopted the concept of localisation in its marketing processes. The firm has set up a research and innovation centre in China. Moreover, the firm has established manufacturing centres at Yichang and Suzhou. Liu (2013, p. 178) argues that the ‘degree of market localisation is reflected in the effort made by an organisation to match local customer needs or requirements and it is measured by its local market orientation’. The manufacturing centres enable L’Oreal to produce most of its professional and mass products, which allows the firm’s products to align with the market needs. Despite its localisation efforts, the firm has not fully localised all its products such as Yue Sai, which is still manufactured in the international market. This paper entails a comprehensive analysis of L’Oreal’s marketing efforts in China. The paper also recommends the ad justments that L’Oreal should consider in order to enhance its market dominance. International market evaluation The world is experiencing a growing trend with regard to the rate of inter-connections and inter-dependencies (Andexter 2008). It is imperative for businesses to develop sufficient competitiveness in order to stay relevant in the international market. Understanding the prevailing market condition is one of the ways through which organisations can remain competitive. Aswathappa (2010, p. 501) asserts that the ‘existence of uncontrollable and controllable factors makes international marketing more complex as compared to domestic marketing’. Firms that have adopted the concept of internationalisation have trouble in understanding the international market. However, surviving in such a market requires an organisation to align its marketing strategies such as marketing mix to conform to the prevailing market needs. The uncontrollable factors in the internati onal environment relate to forces emanating from the political, social, economic, technological, cultural, ethical, competition, and the legal environments. The external business environment is characterised by diverse market changes.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Firms do not have control of most external forces such as technological changes. Consequently, it is imperative for marketers to ensure that their products and services align with the prevailing market changes. Such an adjustment will enhance an organisation’s competitive edge. Aswathappa (2010, p. 501) further argues that the ‘varying environments may rule out uniform marketing strategies across countries’. According to a study conducted by the World Bank, it is projected that China will outdo the United States as the largest world economy in a few decades to come. Currently, the Chinese consumers are experiencing a remarkable increment in their purchasing power. Subsequently, they are in a position to purchase luxury products. Moreover, the Chinese have undergone a significant change in their purchasing behaviour, as evidenced by their preference for premium consumer products such as skincare and beauty. The attractiveness of the Chinese beauty and skincare market has attracted a large number of multinational cosmetic companies over the past two decades. Some of the major industry players include Procter Gamble, L’Oreal, Shisedo, Amway, and Unilever. The firms have developed adequate competitiveness by integrating marketing expertise, product development, research and development, and effective financial management. By 2010, the aforementioned five cosmetic companies dominated the Chinese cosmetic market. However, the firms only covered 40% of the total market. Moreover, the firms faced intense competition from local firms such as Jala and Shanghai Jahwa w hose products were effectively positioned in the local market. Consequently, there is a significant market potential in the Chinese cosmetic and beauty market. Moreover, the likelihood of L’Oreal succeeding in China is evidenced by the view that a large number of consumers are appreciating the international brands. This trend is mainly evident amongst urban consumers in tier 1 cities such as Shanghai and Beijing. Consumers in these cities are increasingly becoming sophisticated with regard to consumption of beauty and cosmetic products. One of the factors that have increased their level of satisfaction relates to growth in the rate of information explosion on premium cosmetic and beauty brands. Therefore, western brand names and images do not have substantial potential to attract Chinese consumers. Therefore, it is imperative for firms intending to enter the Chinese market to understand the prevailing market dynamics for such a move will give the firm’s management team insight on the most effective strategies to adopt in order to succeed. Global branding and standardisation Marketing in the international market presents businesses with an opportunity to expand their businesses and enhance their brands. Multinational corporations face diverse challenges in their marketing efforts (Ghantous 2008). However, branding in the international market is a major challenge for most businesses.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Market Analysis: L’Oreal specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Glynn and Woodside (2009, p. 27) define a brand as ‘a name, symbol, design, term, or a combination of all which is intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors’. Therefore, branding enables an organisation to differentiate its operations from its competitors. Subsequently, an organisation is in a posit ion to address the consumers’ emotional and functional demands. Consequently, surviving in the Chinese market beauty market will depend on the quality of marketing strategies adopted. There are different options that multinational corporations can integrate in their operational and strategic marketing decisions (Ghantous 2008). Integration of global branding is one of the strategies that multinational corporations can integrate in their operations. Global brand strategy is mainly integrated in companies’ effort to attain market success in their new markets (Malaval 2001). Global branding strategy does not entail developing a product for the total global market. One the contrary, it entails modifying a particular product to meet the specific market needs (Malaval 2001). Standardisation and localisation are some of the strategies that businesses can integrate in an effort to attain market dominance. Kotler, Pfoertsch, and Michi (2006, p. 89) propose that global ‘br anding strategy is characterised by the strong focus on increasing profitability by reaping the cost of reduction that come from standardisation’. Standardising an organisation’s global branding strategic leads to the development of a strong market position; furthermore, standardisation improves an organisation’s brand image in the international market and leads to improvement in an organisation’s brand and perceived prestige and quality. L’Oreal hired a renowned Paris-branding agency in order to reposition Yue Sai brand. The Chinese external business environment is very complex (Liu 2013). Therefore, in a bid o survive in such a market, it is imperative for businesses to integrate a high degree of localisation. This move will enable a firm to cope with the market, which can be characterised by being disorderly, fragmented, and dominated by fluctuating levels of corporate control by the Chinese government. Such controls have made major multinationa l companies in China such as Wal-Mart to lose substantial market opportunities (Liu 2013). The tight control imposed by Wal-Mart headquarters with regard to its Chinese market has led to ignorance of the Chinese culture. Ignoring the Chinese culture is a major challenge in an organisation’s effort to attain market dominance. In an effort to penetrate the Chinese market, L’Oreal adopted the concept of standardisation as evidenced by the introduction of the Yue-Sai in 1992. The product was initially owned by Yue Sai Kan and was specifically targeted to the Asian women. In a bid to meet the beauty and skin care needs amongst the Asian women, L’Oreal identified Yue Sai as a potential product that was designed for the Asian market.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Consequently, L’Oreal purchased Yue Sai from the initial entrepreneur. The decision to acquire Yue Sai was perceived by many marketing analysts as a strategic move that would enhance L’Oreal’s effort to penetrate the Chinese market. The acquisition was in line with the firm’s mission, viz. ‘beauty for all’. L’Oreal also acquired another Chinese brand known as Mininurse. Consequently, L’Oreal has developed a strong market position in China through acquisition and licensing. Standardisation enables an organisation to set the desired standard of quality. Through standardisation, an organisation is in a position to maintain the uniformity of its products in the international market. Moreover, standardisation enables an organisation to widen the market for its products. Glynn and Woodside (2009, p. 26) assert that standardisation ‘assures the consumers that the goods are pure and uniform in quality and performance’. Afte r acquiring Yue Sai, L’Oreal undertook a comprehensive product improvement and development in an effort to ensure that the product aligns with the Chinese skin needs. This move led to the introduction of the Vital Essential line in 2007. The product was developed using ganoderma mushroom extracts. In China, the mushroom is considered to have medicinal value and such a move illustrates the firm’s commitment to align its products to the Chinese culture. Market targeting, segmentation, and strategic positioning The market for a particular product or service is comprised of several different segments. Every segment has specific consumer characteristics and buying behaviours, and thus in a bid to capture the prevailing market demand, it is imperative for marketers to understand the heterogeneous market. This goal is only achievable via the concept of market targeting and segmentation. Targeting entails narrowing down to specific needs of the consumer. Furthermore, targeting can be defined as the process of selecting the most effective market segment. Shimasaki (2009, p. 102) asserts that targeting ‘lets one to focus and tailor products to the specific preferences of the best customers’. Market segmentation is the process through which the total market is divided into homogenous subgroups. The marketing strategy for every segment varies from one segment to another. The market segments have unique promotion, pricing, product, and distribution strategies (Shimasaki 2009). On the other hand, positioning entails the process through which an organisation intends its customers to view the available products. According to Shimasaki (2009, p. 102), ‘positioning conveys a product’s value to the buyer and solves the customers’ problems’. An organisation’s positioning strategy determines the effectiveness with which the consumers understand the product or service value. In a bid to attain an effective market position , it is imperative for businesses to integrate a comprehensive differentiation strategy. L’Oreal is cognisant of the importance of market targeting, segmentation, and positioning. In the process of penetrating the Chinese market, L’Oreal segmented the market by using age as its core demographic market variables. During its initial market entry phase, the firm adopted concentrated market targeting strategy. Concentrated targeting strategy entails selecting a specific market segment and concentrating the marketing efforts on the identified segment (Lamb, Hair McDaniel 2012). Concentrated targeting strategy enables organisations to understand the consumers’ motives, needs, and satisfaction. As a result, the firm is in a position to develop a specialised marketing mix. L’Oreal targeted women as the core customers. China has undergone significant transformation with regard to personal care and beauty over the past few decades (Jian 2013). The younger generati on in China is more receptive of beauty and cosmetic products as compared to the older generation as is evidenced by the increment in consumer spending with regard to premium beauty products. Consumption of beauty and cosmetic products has increased significantly amongst young male and female consumers. It is estimated that the Chinese cosmetic and beauty market is growing at a rate of 13% annually. It is estimated that the country will continue growing at a rate of 10% (Fu 2013). The graph below illustrates the markets’ growth over the past decade. Source: (Fu 2013) The high growth potential in China is one of the factors that motivated L’Oreal to enter the market. However, the firm was forced to standardise and localise its products in order to meet the beauty and cosmetic needs for the Chinese women. For example, L’Oreal was forced to acquire and improve its main product, viz. Yue Sai, in line with the Chinese herbal medicines. The concept of localisation ha s played a critical role in enhancing the firm’s success in China. Moreover, the process of continuous product improvement enabled the firm to align its operations with the changing lifestyle amongst the Chinese women. The modern Chinese women can be defined as proud, confident, and aware of their role in society. Therefore, the firm was forced to align Yue Sai to the changing consumer behaviour. During its acquisition, Yue Sai had not developed an optimal market position despite its strong market position, which means Yue Sai’s market performance was relatively poor. Its sales were relatively low as compared to previous years. This aspect presented L’Oreal with a major challenge in its quest to attain the desired level of competitiveness. L’Oreal had a relatively poor market reputation with regard to its effectiveness in acquiring and integrating other brands and this element would dampen the firm’s future acquisition efforts. Moreover, most Chine se did not perceive Yue Sai as being an inspirational brand. Therefore, they preferred foreign brands such as Shiseido, Lancome, and Estee Lauder. Moreover, the brand was characterised by an uncertain business model. L’Oreal was concerned on how it would maintain Yue Sai’s dominance as a new lifestyle brand and a brand that leads to improvement in the level of confidence amongst the Chinese women. Moreover, L’Oreal intended to position itself as the dominant Chinese icon, which symbolises luxury. L’Oreal recognises the importance of adopting an optimal positioning strategy in order to succeed in marketing the Yue Sai brand. The positioning strategy will determine the degree of market acceptance of the brand by the Chinese. In its positioning effort, L’Oreal ensured that Yue Sai brand delivers value to customers. Consequently, the firm considered matching its distinctive capabilities with regard to product development and improvement, which enabled the firm to reposition Yue Sai as a brand that addresses the Chinese women’s beauty needs. Moreover, the firm has recognised the importance of exploiting the Chinese heritage and history in marketing the Yue Sai. Moreover, the firm is cognisant of integrating the concept of affordability in its value proposition efforts. One of the value propositions that the firm should consider entails offering products that contribute to improvement in the consumers’ perception. The firm should ensure that Yue Sai gains market relevance and an enduring market position amongst the target consumers. Such a positioning strategy will contribute in improvement in the level of customer loyalty. Marketing strategy Marketers are faced by a major challenge emanating from prevailing marketing fluctuation and changes (Ferrell Hartline 2013). Therefore, in a bid to survive in such a market, it is imperative for marketers to adopt optimal marketing strategies. Marketing strategies contribute to delivery of value to customers and fulfilment of their needs and wants. Ferrell and Hartline (2013, p. 22) argue that the ‘combination of continual change and the people-driven nature of marketing makes developing and implementing marketing strategy a challenging task’. The marketing strategy is comprised of different components, which constitute the marketing mix. The marketing mix is comprised of different variables, which address varying customer and product-related issues. In an effort to penetrate the Chinese market, L’Oreal has integrated the concept of marketing mix. The firm has focused on diverse marketing mix variables such as promotion, distribution, product, and pricing. L’Oreal was committed towards ensuring that Yue Sai brand gains market acceptance after the acquisition. Consequently, the firm adopted the concept of standardisation by integrating the Chinese culture and heritage in the process of improving the Yue Sai brand. L’Oreal ensured that aspects of the Chinese traditional medicine were integrated in the process of producing Yue Sai. The Chinese appreciate their cultural heritage and culture in their consumption process. Some of the elements that they hold with high esteem relate to health, medicine, and food. Moreover, most Chinese are conversant with their country’s traditional medicine. Subsequently, they enlist diverse ancient medicinal practices such as herbs, acupuncture, and other practise in an effort to enhance their health. This trend is evident in all the age groups, and thus to succeed in such a market, it is imperative for businesses intending to enter the Chinese market to take into account the Chinese culture. With regard to promotion, L’Oreal adopted diverse marketing communication methods. The main marketing communication methods included advertising and public relations. In its advertising process, the firm has adopted the press and television as the main marketing communi cation mediums. In a bid to reposition Yue Sai, L’Oreal allocated a substantial amount in its marketing communication budget. The amount was utilised its marketing processes through television and print media. The advertising campaign featured Du Juan, who is a renowned Chinese supermodel. In a bid to attract potential customers, the firm ensured that a high level of creativity and effective designing were integrated in the television commercials. For example, during the advertising campaign, the firm adopted the tagline ‘I hold my future in my hand’. The other slogan was adopted included ‘I look forward to every day with confidence’. Consequently, the firm was in a position to appeal to the Chinese women’s emotions. However, the high cost of advertising through these mediums hindered the firm’s effectiveness in creating awareness In its effort to create awareness through public relations, L’Oreal contracted renowned Chinese pers onalities and celebrities to endorse its products. Some of the major personalities included singers, athletes, actors, and actresses. Eighty percent (80%) of the firm’s marketing communication efforts were focused on skincare product and 20% on makeup. Furthermore, the firm had not adopted effective public relations’ channel as it had not adopted new media platforms such as Weibo, which were famous platforms in China. In a bid to enhance its effectiveness with regard to market awareness, L’Oreal should have considered increasing the size of its marketing communication budget. According to Ferrell and Hartline (2013), consumers are very sensitive towards price in their purchasing patterns. Consequently, it is imperative for managers to adopt an effective pricing strategy. Initially, the firm adopted the premium-pricing strategy. However, the attractiveness of the Chinese market led to entry of a large number of industry players, which diminished the attractivenes s of Yue Sai amongst most departmental stores that carried the product. Moreover, most consumers started preferring premium brands offered by competitors, which presented a major challenge to L’Oreal. In a bid to eliminate this challenge, L’Oreal should have considered adjusting its premium pricing strategy in the process of marketing the Yue Sai brand. This move would have ensured that the product is integrated effectively in its brand portfolio. Such an adjustment on the firm’s pricing strategy would determine the extent to which a large number of consumers would incorporate Yue Sai brand in their consumption patterns. Ensuring effective and efficient market accessibility is another factor that L’Oreal should consider in marketing the Yue Sai brand. This goal is achievable via adopting a comprehensive distribution strategy. The distribution strategy should entail effective selection of distribution channel. Considering the view that L’Oreal deals with tangible products, it is imperative for the marketing manager to ensure that the customers access the firm’s products easily. This move will increase the likelihood of maximising its sales revenue. Currently, the firm’s distribution channels in China are ineffective and the firm’s management team should consider a number of decisions in order to improve its efficiency with regard to the distribution of products. Some of these decisions relate to market coverage, establishment of distribution centres, adoption of optimal order processing strategies, warehousing, and specific channel members. Currently, L’Oreal has established a number of distribution centres in different parts of China. Some of the firm’s departmental stores are located in Shanghai and the firm distributes its products through 550 departmental stores, 430 cosmetic stores, and through 98 Watson and Manning. However, the firm faces intense competition from other competitors who include Aupres, Lancome, and Herborist who have established a strong level of market dominance. In a bid to survive in the Chinese market, it is imperative for the firm to consider improving its distribution efficiency by integrating emerging marketing communication channels. One of the options that the firm should consider entails the emerging e-commerce portals. Moreover, the firm should also consider expanding its market by adopting the concept of franchising, which will increase the product’s market reach. Consequently, the firm will increase the likelihood of marketing its products to a large number of customers. Conclusion The case study illustrates L’Oreal’s effort to enter the Chinese beauty and cosmetic market. Marketing in the international market presents multinational corporations with an opportunity to increase the level of profitability. This assertion arises from the view that international marketing enables an organisation to market its products to a large number of potential customers, which leads to increment in sales revenue. Despite the above benefits, international marketing is a major challenge to a large number of multinational corporations. Consequently, it is imperative for multinational corporations to adopt optimal marketing practices. One of the elements that that multinational corporations should take into account entails developing a comprehensive understanding of the international market environment. Therefore, a comprehensive marketing analysis and evaluation should be conducted. The analysis should focus on diverse market variables such as the political, legal, ethical, social, technological, and economic environments. Such an analysis will give marketers insight on the most effective marketing strategies and practices. The market environment varies from one country to another. The analysis shows that there is a high market potential for beauty and cosmetic products in China. The market potential emanates f rom the high youth population in the country. Moreover, China is undergoing a significant market transformation with regard to consumer attitude on beauty and cosmetic products. Most Chinese consumers prefer consuming local products. Despite the high market potential, China is characterised by unique market environment. Consequently, it is imperative for businesses to adopt effective market entry strategies. In a bid to survive in such a market, it is imperative for market entrants to understand the market, which will aid in determining the most effective market entry strategies. In the process of entering the market, L’Oreal adopted the concept of acquisition. The firm acquired Yue Sai, which a local Chinese brand that had substantial market potential. This move enabled L’Oreal to localise its product offering effectively. However, the acquired product was not effectively designed, and thus L’Oreal was forced to undertake additional improvement by integrating t he Chinese culture in its product development. The case study also shows that Yue Sai was not effectively marketed and this aspect motivated the firm to integrate effective marketing practices such as targeting, positioning, and market segmentation. In order to survive in the Chinese market, it is imperative for L’Oreal to allocate a substantial amount of money in its marketing budget, which will aid the firm in conducting a comprehensive marketing research. Consequently, the firm will be in a position to undertake effective product improvement. Moreover, the firm should consider improving its marketing communication by integrating emerging marketing communication platforms such as social media, which will enhance the likelihood of the firm attracting a large number of potential customers. Reference List Andexter, T 2008, Analysis and evaluation of market entry modes into the Asia-Pacific region based on the examples of a German SME in the industrial goods business, Verlag, N ew York. 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Shimasaki, C 2009, The business of bioscience: what goes into making biotechnology product, Springer, New York. This case study on Market Analysis: L’Oreal was written and submitted by user Brady W. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.