In what ways, and to what extent, did McCarthyism impact upon American Research Paper

In what ways, and to what extent, did McCarthyism impact upon American society in the early 1950's - Research Paper Example The investigation involved conducting analyses on human behavior induced by McCarthy’s anti-Communist rhetoric as well as examination of the victims of McCarthyism whose involvement helped shaped societal ideologies supportive or opposed to McCarthy’s paranoia. SUMMARY OF EVIDENCE Joseph McCarthy was expertly versed in utilizing rhetorical arguments to foster support for the agenda of removing legitimate or perceived Communist threats from within the United States and that stemming from international society. After emerging from World War II, nations torn apart by war began to polarize, creating centralized authorities from fractious ruling regimes torn apart by warfare. This centralization ultimately led to the development of The United States and The Soviet Union as superpowers, based on militaristic and economic growth. Coupled with ongoing threats of atomic warfare, now posing a risk from nations that had managed to procure atomic resources, Communism became a very negative connotation sparking fear from members of government. It was believed by many in the early 1950s that Communism represented a moral threat to the fabric of society and an antagonistic ideology. â€Å"You the American people could hope†¦even at this late date, how rapidly the sands in the hourglass of time are running out -- realize that, as of tonight, we are winning a war, winning it – I beg your pardon – losing a war, losing it deliberately and disgracefully, losing it at the tune of American blood which will continue over the weeks and months ahead† (McCarthy 2). The aforesaid quotation from McCarthy in 1952 illustrates the methodology by which McCarthy was able to foster support for his agenda, appealing with pathos, the ability to create an emotional response from an audience by appealing to suffering and experiences endured by a national population fatigued from years of difficult warfare. McCarthy established a sense of urgency through his r hetorical arguments, indicating that there must be a community-wide effort, involving all patriotic Americans, to identify and remove the threats of Communism to the United States. The McCarthy movement gained national prominence in the early 1950s, enhanced by growing support from the Catholic community in the U.S., support from the Kennedy family which was gaining notoriety and influence in government, and such organizations as the American Legion and anti-Communist women’s groups such as The Minute Women of the USA (Nickerson 2). Under social learning theory, society will often imitate the behaviors of others when they are considered credible and attractive role models. Under this theory, society will continue to model such behaviors when they witness these actions being reinforced and applauded by the social environment (Bandura 47). Groups such as the American Legion and The Minute Women of the USA regularly published anti-Communist sentiment in the form of leaflets and posters that publicized support for McCarthy’

Little Children Movie Review Essay Example for Free

Little Children Movie Review Essay You couldnt change the past. But the future could be a different story. And it had to start somewhere. This final statement sums up the message of the Little Children, a film opus of Todd Fiend, that talks not merely about a love affair of two married persons, but the story of struggle and redemption of common folk living in an upper-middle class suburban Boston. This notwithstanding, the film also shows a stereotypical, albeit real depiction of the contradictions in such a neighborhood – the soccer moms, the disempowered husbands, better called ‘house-bands’, and the bored housewives in terrible need of an ego boost. The film review shall mainly quote dialogue from the film, in order to showcase fully the power of this story about suburban Northeastern America. Sarah Pierce is a successful academic and campus figure, but has since lost all glory upon her marriage to Richard, and subsequent birth to Lucy, a self-assured little girl who refuses to do everything Sarah requests. She currently suffers from an absolute absence of love in her relationship with Brad, shattered further with her catching Richard in a fit of masturbation, while wearing her panties around his head. Moreover, she eternally despises the pretentious moms she sees in Lucy’s playground all the time. The lines with sarcasm are clearly suggestive of her clear disdain for the mothers, to wit – Mary Ann: He should just be castrated. Just snip, quick and easy. Sarah Pierce: [sarcastically] You know what else you should do? Nail his penis above the entrance to the elementary school. Thatd really teach him a lesson. This initial situation of Sarah inextricably creates the objective conditions for the future love affair with Brad, because one cannot reasonably expect, despite promises made at the consummation of marriage that she can eternally be faithful in the wake of the loveless situation that she is in. Her disempowerment as an intellectual by becoming a fulltime housewife living in a sea of pretentious women around her also gives further ammunition, albeit personal isolation from her community-at-large, for the blossoming of a new yet forbidden relationship with Brad. The other player in this love affair is Brad Adamson, a ‘house-band’ whose career is at a standstill – he failed the bar exams twice, and his wife is a successful documentary filmmaker, named Kathy. In such as situation, he feels absolutely helpless, in view of the fact that it is his wife that serves as the breadwinner of the family, and his main task for every given day would be to accompany their child Aaron during his playtime. Without an actual career to speak of, and a similarly successful past as Sarah, it is without a doubt a situation which would create the necessary conditions for his decision to enter into an affair with Sarah – them hopeless beings supposedly full of potential, now finally united. The proverbial meet-cute of film may be the scandalous yet affirming prank they pulled against the pretentious mothers in the playground, when Sarah and Brad hugged each other, to the absolute disdain of the mothers. The prank unleashed their long-kept longings of spontaneity and passion, long gone in the running of their marriages and only to be found again in each other’s embrace. Sarah, as the formerly empowered intellectual, possesses almost the same ridicule at Richard as what she has against the pretentious mothers, to wit – Brad Adamson: You have a nice place here. Sarah Pierce: You think? Yeah, Richard does pretty well for himself. Brad Adamson: Oh, yeah? Whats he do? Sarah Pierce: He lies. They shall soon engage in passionate love-making during a fierce rainstorm, but only after Brad realizes that their feelings for each other are mutual, as shown by a picture kept by Sarah in her study. Nonetheless, the couple in the affair approach their forbidden relationship, with great fervor, but a bit unsure, with even a tinge of guilt and remorse, particularly on the part of Brad, to wit – Brad Adamson: Do you feel bad about this? Sarah Pierce: No, I dont. Brad Adamson: I do. I feel really bad. The other characters in the movie are as interesting as the two main love-struck protagonists. Ronnie McGorvey is an indecent exposure offender, having served prison time and has since moved back into the neighborhood with his mother. Ronnie seems to have been unreformed in his perverted ways, when he masturbates yet again during a date set by his mother, ruining the date, and destroying all hopes of him ever finding love. His return, nonetheless, is met with great protest by Larry, Brad’s teammate in touch football, and a disgraced police officer. His protests turn violent at times, not content with the mere handing out of flyers and posters about Ronnie, but also vandalizing his house, and almost assaulting Ronnie and his mother. Their seemingly grown-men, good vs. evil conflict reaches a terrible turn when a drunken Larry goes to Ronnie’s house with a megaphone, waking the entire neighborhood and shaming fully Ronnie and his mother. As his mother tries to stop Larry from further his drunken actions, he pushes her to the ground, triggering a heart attack which would soon take her life. Nonetheless, before entering death’s door, she writes a note to Ronnie with a chest-pounding plea – â€Å"Please be good boy. † This triggers Ronnie to go on a fit of rage for losing his mother, ending in castrating himself, in pursuit of his mother’s request at death. Larry would soon realize how grave his mistake was and looks for Ronnie, and bring him to the hospital for medical attention. The stories of Ronnie and Larry ironically show the awkward sense of justice and reason disgraced persons in the community pursue to redeem themselves to their loved ones and to the community. Ronnie, in the most dramatic expression of remorse and love to his dead mother, has cut of his testicles – the physical object of his sexual perversion, in order to unrealistically undo the hurt feelings of his mother created by his former acts. But despite the spectacle of it all, the drama attended by it, there is no point in doing such. The mother is dead, and the date has been left crying. On the other hand, Larry, the disgraced police officer, puts the law into his own hands by maligning Ronnie’s person and by engaging into overt acts of harassment and violence in pursuit of this. The objective is clear, that despite his failure as an officer of the law, he himself continues to be an upright man, rejecting sexual depredation and moral turpitude in the person of Ronnie. He does his brand of redemption to a serious fault, notwithstanding through aimless grandstanding, by lumping together Ronnie’s person to that of his mother, by vandalizing her property and pushing her to the ground in pursuit of his shame campaign. By doing such, he fails in the end, because the object of vigilante-ism is not the person whose life was lost, but some innocent person whose continued life could have influenced Ronnie towards full redemption from his sins, without need of castration, nor the spectacle of it. Meanwhile, the affair between Brad and Sarah becomes all the more serious, to the point that Kathy herself now witnesses the truth of the affair through the tacit sexual tensions between the two during a dinner. They have even agreed to run away together, as when two young star-crossed lovers would leave their unyielding parents in pursuit of their hasty, yet seemingly ‘true’ love. In pursuit of this, Sarah even declares the situation to Mary Ann, to wit – Mary Ann: Oh thats nice. So now cheating on your husband makes you a feminist? Sarah Pierce: No, no, no. Its not the cheating. Its the hunger the hunger for an alternative and the refusal to accept a life of unhappiness. The two were prepared to leave their loveless homes, their young children and their real spouses to perfect the ‘love’ long lost, and which now they have found through one another. This feeling of seemingly ‘great love’ is expected, but appears clearly as one that is fleeting, one that is artificial, one that was created by the sordid personal experiences of their lives, where the affair’s function was a mere outlet of a love that is merely not sought, but never absent, in their own homes. Such is how their love is that in the film’s climax, at the supposed point of no return by meeting on the night they agreed upon to run away for love, the family and the past they have left pull them back, not through force, but by circumstances that put everything back into its proper perspective. Sarah’s Lucy gets lost, and a panicked mother searches for her relentlessly in the playground where she left her, only to soon find her along under a street light. It is on this moment, that the bubble of ‘love’ in the affair is completely pierced, that the idea of the absence of love is merely in her mind, nothing more, and Lucy is the personification of that love, that has never been absent, but as stated above, a love merely unsought. Brad himself experiences a similar piercing of the ‘love bubble’, in the exact moment towards their scheduled departure for love. Brad, the confident but now disempowered lawyer-to-be, has failed to leave his goodbye letter to Kathy when he met a serious accident while trying some skateboard tricks. No clue has been given as to why he failed to leave the note to Kathy, but what can be surmised is that he probably felt the same as Sarah had, the inability, at the final instance, to create the actual physical wedge between his past and his supposed future with Sarah. This unstated inability to leave is further buttressed by Kathy’s rush to the hospital to meet Brad at the emergency room doors, showing that despite acting as the breadwinner of the family, she is not without love for her husband, and that, as in Sarah’s case, Brad’s idea of a loveless home is again, a love merely unsought, waning and almost at the point of death, yes, but present with the ability to be roused to life again. In all these, the film shows who the real Little Children are in this story of suburban America – it is the adults who allow their feelings to get in the way of principled contemplation of relationships and love.

Maintaining Diversity in a Workplace

Maintaining Diversity in a Workplace In this review I am going to show how different public services have different methods of services so basically, this written opinion will show information about different methods used in the public services to make sure that they have a many different kinds of people or things all the workers in a company or country. I will gather some of the information, on workplace such as; policies and procedures, bullying and teasing and threatening over and over again in a mean way in workplace etc. In the public services there are different methods on how they can place certain policies and legislations in place with the government to make sure that services meet the standard needs of the public within matters of health and diversity. To meet these requirements, services have their own procedure and methods that are normally mentioned in the service policy so that can deal with their problems when they have any. Some of the organizations or services can be quite fixed on how to create their style of diverse workforce; I think they do that so that different groups of people that work with them can enjoy their work. Services also show they have an equal diversity by having a variety of religious meals that it can have a certain standard to those who are religious or any other such as vegetarian or diet meals, but not everything has to be about meals when some of the services provides things like prayer rooms or a room that can be used to concentrate and forget about everything else. Rooms that have been there and always will be there would be such things like toilets and changing rooms for male and female. In recent years the most services forbid woman to be either in the front line or to be alone when on patrol now the police service are trying to recruit more female officers as well as more people from minority groups with an aim to have a more many different kinds of people or things all the workers in a company or country who can relate more to the public. Not so long ago, it has been brought up that there is still institutional treating people badly or unfairly because of their race within the Police force, this, as well as many other reasons such as negative making prejudiced mental pictures, informal bias and ideas you think are true from related to a group of people with the same race, culture, religion, etc. minority groups themselves are reasons why people from minority groups are less likely to join. The Police have introduced some ways to try and create a more many different kinds of people or things all the workers in a company or country. Some of these methods include, improving the data collected on the age, male/female status, family and cultural characteristics, race and disability of their members so that these can be analyzed and tested/evaluated to see which areas are weakest and need strengthening to make sure that the officers reflect and relate to the community they are working in. Another way according from this source (Simpleask.co.uk) is positive advertising, for example, the Could you? series of actions to reach a goal which is the polices national putting something into use series of actions to reach a goal which once set up, the police received expressions of interest from nearly 100,000 people, 40% of whom were found to be women   They set up targets regularly for the different areas to recruit and keep/hold related to a group of people with the same race, culture, religion, etc. minority officers and females. In 2003 The City-based Police decided to allow foreign nationals to sign up to join the police force for the first time to help meet related to a group of people with the same race, culture, religion, etc. putting something into use targets due to being told that 25% of its all the workers in a company or country had to include people from minority backgrounds. Since then the police have been working hard to create a more many different kinds of people or things all the workers in a company or country. The police also have been doing different kind of searching; police officers that stop and search are now searching their kind of gender

Cosmic Life and Death of a Star Essay examples -- physics science spac

Conception Nebula as Star Nurseries Stars are born in the interstellar clouds of gas and dust called nebulae that are primarily found in the spiral arms of galaxies. These clouds are composed mainly of hydrogen gas but also contain carbon, oxygen and various other elements, but we will see that the carbon and oxygen play a crucial role in star formation so they get special mention. A nebula by itself is not enough to form a star however, and it requires the assistance of some outside force. A close passing star or a shock wave from a supernova or some other event can have just the needed effect. It is the same idea as having a number of marbles on a trampoline and then rolling a larger ball through the middle of them or around the edges. The marbles will conglomerate around the path of the ball, and as more marbles clump together, still more will be attracted. This is essentially what happens during the formation of a star (Stellar Birth, 2004). If the nebula is dense enough, certain regions of it will begin to gravitationally collapse after being disturbed. As it collapses the particles begin to move more rapidly, which on a molecular level is actually heat, and photons are emitted that drive off the remaining dust and gas. Once the cloud has collapsed enough to cause the core temperature to reach ten-million degrees Celsius, nuclear fusion starts in its core and this ball of gas and dust is now a star. It begins its life as a main sequence star and little does it know its entire life has already been predetermined. Although this may sound like a simple enough process there are actually several variables that must be just right for birth to happen. For one, the mass of the collapsing particles is crucial and ther... ...e times the mass of the sun. In this case gravity is overwhelmingly strong and is able to crush the neutron star towards zero mass. The result is a black hole with a gravitational field strong enough to not even let light escape (Brusca, 2004). Bibliography Brusca, Stone. Cosmos, Physics 304. Arcata, CA: Dr. Stone Brusca, 2004. Miller, Coleman M. Introduction to neutron stars. University of Maryland. 22 Nov. 2004 Star death: post- main sequence evolution of stars. 22 Nov. 2004 Stellar Birth. 11 Jan. 2004. 22 Nov. 2004 Tyler, Pat. Supernova. NASA’s Heasarc: Education and Public Information. 26 Jan. 2003. 22 Nov. 2004 Cosmic Life and Death of a Star Essay examples -- physics science spac Conception Nebula as Star Nurseries Stars are born in the interstellar clouds of gas and dust called nebulae that are primarily found in the spiral arms of galaxies. These clouds are composed mainly of hydrogen gas but also contain carbon, oxygen and various other elements, but we will see that the carbon and oxygen play a crucial role in star formation so they get special mention. A nebula by itself is not enough to form a star however, and it requires the assistance of some outside force. A close passing star or a shock wave from a supernova or some other event can have just the needed effect. It is the same idea as having a number of marbles on a trampoline and then rolling a larger ball through the middle of them or around the edges. The marbles will conglomerate around the path of the ball, and as more marbles clump together, still more will be attracted. This is essentially what happens during the formation of a star (Stellar Birth, 2004). If the nebula is dense enough, certain regions of it will begin to gravitationally collapse after being disturbed. As it collapses the particles begin to move more rapidly, which on a molecular level is actually heat, and photons are emitted that drive off the remaining dust and gas. Once the cloud has collapsed enough to cause the core temperature to reach ten-million degrees Celsius, nuclear fusion starts in its core and this ball of gas and dust is now a star. It begins its life as a main sequence star and little does it know its entire life has already been predetermined. Although this may sound like a simple enough process there are actually several variables that must be just right for birth to happen. For one, the mass of the collapsing particles is crucial and ther... ...e times the mass of the sun. In this case gravity is overwhelmingly strong and is able to crush the neutron star towards zero mass. The result is a black hole with a gravitational field strong enough to not even let light escape (Brusca, 2004). Bibliography Brusca, Stone. Cosmos, Physics 304. Arcata, CA: Dr. Stone Brusca, 2004. Miller, Coleman M. Introduction to neutron stars. University of Maryland. 22 Nov. 2004 Star death: post- main sequence evolution of stars. 22 Nov. 2004 Stellar Birth. 11 Jan. 2004. 22 Nov. 2004 Tyler, Pat. Supernova. NASA’s Heasarc: Education and Public Information. 26 Jan. 2003. 22 Nov. 2004

I Am From

I'm from â€Å"Let's eat! † and â€Å"Man I sure am stuffed† Cheesy chicken spaghetti and rich death by chocolate. Burned bacon and slimy squash given to the dog to avoid eating. I'm from pineapple cheese pizza with caramelized pineapples atop And creamy chicken Alfredo with delicious golden strands of pasta. I'm from nana's homemade brownies and double chocolate chip cookies Stirred slowly and mixed with a â€Å"secret† recipe and baked with ark chocolate shavings For special occasions such as 4th of July parties and birthdays.FAMILY/MUSIC I'm from a song shared with Shelby. Air Guitar is our main profession. Driving in circles with the windows down Just to find the perfect song to live to Until we were pulled over for screaming the lyrics to We Can't Stop. I'm from Mac Miller blaring through my headphones and car speakers. I'm from Linkin Park. The Lumineers A Day to Remember And always: Maroon 5. Until I grew older and closer to God, and discovered TobyMac.I'm from a brown playful puggle we named Slade; Being lazy and sleeping on any soft surface in 2003. I'm from Alice, the playful powerful puppy. And Daisy our loveable Boston terrier Who chewed up all my socks with her sharp puppy teeth. And unfortunately had to be put down when my step brother was born.I'm from drinking hazelnut coffee beside Shelby on my front porch. Or near the sounds of the waterfall from the creek behind her house. I'm from Heather Hannel in Columbus, Ohio where horses run wild.Silly laughs and precious secrets shared between us. Heathers kindness and guidance Help me through life. I'm trom dreaming And living And my red 2001 Chevy Cavalier. I'm from The Voice And the Carroll family. I'm from wishing and playing and working at ArbVs. Like making roast beef sandwiches. And working with my best friend, Shelby. I'm from stormy Forks, Washington Beautiful Paris, Extravagant England, Exhilarating Disney World. I'm from here. Now. Face-timing my friend and typing my poe m.

Glow Stick Experiment - Rate of Chemical Reaction

Glow Stick Experiment - Rate of Chemical Reaction Who doesnt love playing with glow sticks? Grab a pair and use them to examine how temperature affects the rate of chemical reactions. Its good science, plus its helpful information for when you want to make a glow stick last longer or glow more brightly. Glow Stick Experiment Materials 3 Glow sticks (the short ones are idea, but you can use any size)Glass of ice waterGlass of hot water   How To Do the Glow Stick Experiment Yes, you can just activate the glow sticks, put them in the glasses, and see what happens, but that wouldnt be an experiment. Apply the scientific method: Make observations. Activate the three glow sticks by snapping them to break the container inside the tube and allowing the chemicals to mix. Does the temperature of the tube change when it starts to glow? What color is the glow? Its a good idea to write down observations.Make a prediction. Youre going to leave one glow stick at room temperature, place one in a glass of ice water, and place the third in a glass of hot water. What do you think will happen?Conduct the experiment. Note what time it is, in case you want to time how long each glow stick lasts. Place one stick in the cold water, one in the hot water, and leave the other at room temperature. If you like, use a thermometer to record the three temperatures.Take data. Note how brightly each tube glows. Are they all the same brightness? Which tube glows the most brightly? Which is the dimmest? If you have time, see how long each tube glows. Did they all glow the same length of time? Which lasted the longest? Which stopped glowin g first? You can even do math, to see how much longer one tube lasted compared with the other. Once you have completed the experiment, examine the data. You can make a table showing how brightly each stick glowed and how long it lasted. These are your results.Draw a conclusion. What happened? Did the outcome of the experiment support your prediction? Why do you think the glow sticks reacted to temperature the way they did? Glow Sticks and the Rate of Chemical Reaction A glow stick is an example of chemiluminescence. This means luminescence or light is produced as the result of a chemical reaction. Several factors affect the rate of a chemical reaction, including temperature, concentration of reactants, and the presence of other chemicals. Spoiler alert: This section tells you what happened and why. Increasing temperature typically increases the rate of the chemical reaction. Increasing temperature speeds up the motion of molecules, so they are more likely to bump into each other and react. In the case of glow sticks, this means a hotter temperature will make the glow stick glow more brightly. However, a faster reaction means it reaches completion more quickly, so placing a glow stick in a hot environment will shorten how long it lasts. On the other hand, you can slow down the rate of a chemical reaction by lowering the temperature. If you chill a glow stick, it wont glow as brightly, but it will last much longer. You can use this information to help glow sticks last. When you are done with one, put it in the freezer to slow down its reaction. It may last until the next day, while a glow stick at room temperature would stop producing light. Are Glow Sticks Endothermic or Exothermic? Another experiment you can perform is to determine whether or not glow sticks are endothermic or exothermic. In other words, does the chemical reaction in a glow stick absorb heat (endothermic) or release heat (exothermic)? Its also possible the chemical reaction neither absorbs nor releases heat. You might assume that a glow stick releases heat because it releases energy in the form of light. To find out whether this is true, you need a sensitive thermometer. Measure the temperature of a glow stick before activating it. Measure the temperature once you crack the stick to start the chemical reaction. If the temperature increases, the reaction is exothermic. If it decreases, its endothermic. If you cant record a change, then the reaction is essentially neutral as far as thermal energy is concerned.

Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy

Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy Introduction Marketing strategy is basically incorporation of strategic way of thinking in the field of marketing. It is the process that enables an organization to focus its resources to greater opportunities to enhance sales and attain competitive advantage (Cravens Piercy, 2006, p. 6).Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Marketing strategies are normally based on the concept of consumer satisfaction. Marketing strategy is most effective when it is integrated into the business strategy. In such case, it defines how the organization engages with its customers, makes plans and handles its competitors (Cravens Piercy, 2006, p. 8). Given the fact that customers are the major source of the company’s income, marketing strategy is highly linked to sales. The main aim of marketing strategy is to align marketing with business goals and objective s (Kriemadis Terzoudis, 2007, p. 30). Marketing strategy also acts as a foundation for the marketing plan and vice versa. Marketing strategy entails a set of action that enhances marketing plan. For that reason, marketing strategy is the foundation of marketing plan intended to satisfy market needs and accomplish marketing goals (McDonald, 2002, p. 13). In most cases the marketing strategy combines business goals, policies and activities into one. Marketing strategy thus acts as the reference point for all the marketing activities within an organization (Cravens Piercy, 2006, p. 10). The aim of this paper is to develop a marketing checklist for Adidas Company that would focus on corporate or organizational capability, competition, target markets and business environment. Marketing checklist is meant to provide direction for the business managers on factors to consider when formulating and implementing marketing strategy.Advertising Looking for assessment on business econo mics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The marketing checklist also helps to enhance the current marketing activities and to establish prospective opportunities. The checklist is also meant to help the company to effectively service the requirements of the target market. Market Analysis Global Sporting Apparel and Footwear Market The competitors of Adidas company are spread all over the world. The price margin between these companies is small and consumers can switch to different products with ease (Kriemadis Terzoudis 2007, p. 32). Athletic footwear being the most premium products, these companies focus more on the quality and durability of sports shoes since consumers are also looking for good quality and value for their money. In addition to large multinational companies dealing with similar products, for instance, Puma and Nike, competition also come from local companies found in different market segments. Three quarters of the world athletic apparel market and about 20% of the global shoe market belongs to localized companies (Pulendran, Speed Widing 2003, p. 478). The massive economies of scale are a major barrier for new entrants into the industry. Entering this market calls for enormous capital investment for developing and promoting a highly innovative product (McDonald 2002, p. 3). In addition, most consumers are looking to buy high quality products from reputable companies with already strong brand names.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Creation of a company with highly innovative products and strong brand name in the global market takes a very long period of time, thus makes it very hard for new entrants to survive in this industry (Kriemadis Terzoudis 2007, p. 29). Consumers possess the bargaining power and can always switch to rival products when forced to. As a result, the global sports apparel and footwear market is characterized by low price margins and highly innovative products of both small and big manufacturers. Consumers have numerous brand names to choose from, with large price variations. The market also lacks complements and as a consequence consumers have higher bargaining power because they are not tied to specific products (Claycomb, Germain Droge 2000, p. 221). Competitive Environment Competitive business environment refers to the number and type of competitors within the industry (Salicru, 2010, p. 5). Competition varies from one market segment to another and therefore it is the responsibility of the marketing managers to formulate suitable marketing strategies for each segment (Keegan, 2002, p. 70). In addition to other factors, high competition in the market complicates the matters in the business environment. Businesses under such conditions normally face high uncertainty and advanced marketing strategies (Salicru, 2010, p. 5). The biggest rival of Adidas is Nike, which controls a third of the global market in sportswear, considerably higher than Adidas. In addition, there are other smaller competitors found in different corners of the world. In Asia we have Li Ning which is China’s largest sports shoe company. All these companies hoping to conquer Adidas Market share but with more advanced marketing strategy Adidas has been able to counter all of its rivals (Kriemadis Terzoudis 2007, p. 30). The Adidas group uses numerous marketing strategies to place its products into the global market.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Its target market includes big events such as the Olympic Games, EUFA Champions Leagues and FIFA World Cups. One of the strategy used by the company to reach its target market include acquisition of right of sponsorship. In addition, the group has entered into sponsorship deals with big clubs and famous sports icons worldwide (Andreasen Kotler 2003, p. 4; Kriemadis Terzoudis 2007, p. 32). The Marketing Environment Successful businesses are those that have adapted to their surrounding environment. Organizational contact with the environment squarely lies within the marketing domain and the development of suitable marketing strategies (Kotler Armstrong, 2001, p. 25). Over the past twenty years, most business literatures have paid a lot of attention in the area of marketing strategy. The reason behind the growing interest is mainly attributed to the remarkable transformation in the business environment (both internal and external environments). Nonetheless, literatures in strategic management and strategic marketing focus on the external business environment (Cravens Piercy, 2006, p. 8). Social Environment Social environment encompasses the trends and demographic factors in the target market, for instance, societal attitudes or demographic shifts that can either have a negative or positive impact on the marketing strategy. An example of demographic shifts is the education levels in the Asian Market which have forced the company to spend more money on staff training and promotional activities. The high population in China and Indian has led to more focus in the Asian market (Kriemadis Terzoudis 2007, p. 33). The increasing passion for sports has led to re-branding of Adidas products. Adidas has benefited massively from its efforts to re-brand its products to the highly fashionable line of products for multi-use and active lifestyle. The group is working hand in hand with the leading fashion designers to develop products that are highly fashionable for active and casual use. Re-branding has made Adidas gain immense inroad with the female consumers. The majority of the female consumers desire products that powerfully incorporate fashion, comfort and functionality. Female consumers have always remained untapped market segment (Claycomb, Germain Droge, 2000, p. 22). Economic and Political Environment Economic environment refers to the overall economic state and condition of a given state or region. The general state and condition of the economy normally have considerable impact on the company’s decision making process (Salicru, 2010, p. 12). Countries/ regions with the sound economic condition and high consumer purchasing power generally attract a high number of investors. This does not mean that companies do not venture into areas which are unhealthy economic-wise and have lower consumer purchasing power. Adidas group has been able to develop products that suits different market segments (Salicru, 2010, p. 14). Understanding the pol itical environment of the targeted market is very important especially for companies venturing into foreign markets. Political environment encompasses government policies and regulations that could have a positive and negative impact on the marketing strategies (Chaneta, 2002, p. 23). Being a multinational company, Adidas has also entered into agreements and negotiations with different governments in matters related to laws and regulations (Dibb, Farhangmehr Simkin, 2001. P. 409). Technological Environment Technological environment comprises of computers and computer systems used to manage businesses today and the infrastructure that supports these systems and processes (De Mooij, 2005, p. 101). Changes in technology enhance the vibrancy and intricacy of the business environment (Cravens Piercy, 2006, p. 33), which increases the complexity of marketing strategy developed by businesses (Chaneta, 2002, p. 24). Adidas Company has a strong reputation for incorporating technology on it s product line. The company is planning to build on this reputation by introducing new product lines that incorporate advanced technology to improve the performance of athletes. For instance, introducing athlete shoes with embedded microprocessor to monitor, measure and provide data on the athlete’s body, terrain and body impact. The issue of cost will be very insignificant since Adidas has already developed Adidas 1 which incorporates a microprocessor. The innovative nature of Adidas products has helped the Adidas brand maintain its technological prowess in the global market (Kriemadis Terzoudis, 2007, p. 33; Dibb Farhangmehr Simkin, 2001. P. 411). Internal Environment Internal business environment refers to internal conditions that have considerable impact on the decision-making process and general well-being of the business (Salicru, 2010, p. 6). Internal environment includes organization culture, staff commitment and competence, and internal control and evaluation mecha nism (Chaneta, 2002, p. 28). Organizational culture could positively or negatively impact the formulation and implementation of the marketing strategy. This depends on the compatibility of the organizational culture with the environment. Innovative culture in Adidas Company has facilitated the formulation of credible strategies and smooth implementation of marketing strategies (Keegan, 2002, p. 77; Kriemadis Terzoudis 2007, p. 32). The company is well endowed with analytically competent staff. These employees are capable of analysing problems and opportunities and coming up with remedies and strategies for the same (Pulendran, Speed, Widing, 2003, p. 479). They are also able to use a number of analytical and marketing tools such as SWOT analysis, Ansoff matrix and product Lifecycle analysis among others. Analytical competency not only enhances the role of staff in strategic marketing but also increases the company’s autonomy (Salicru, 2010, p. 9). The company’s emplo yees are also loyal and highly committed and always put more effort during the formulation and implementation of the marketing strategies. Increased staff commitment ensures effective assessment and management of the marketing strategy (Huczynski Buchanan, 2007, p. 7). Strategy evaluation and monitoring process is very important because of the constant changes in the market and consumer preferences. Hence, efficient evaluation and monitoring process put in place by the company positively impacts marketing strategy (Keegan, 2002, p. 19). Corporate Capability Numerous studies have been carried out regarding the development of core competencies to improve the performance and competitive advantage of organizations. The resource-based theory of the firm emphasizes on both the tangible and intangible capabilities (Hall, 1993, p. 608). Therefore, the main responsibility of any organization is to establish those capabilities that give its competitive advantage over its rivals. These capabi lities are normally rare, intricate and implicit. They are rare because they are not easy to copy, intricate because they are related to a number of factors that are linked to greater consumer value and implicit because they are permanently entrenched in the company (Johnson Scholes, 1999, p. 5). According to Hall (1993, p. 611), the main building block for any form of business strategy is a core competency. However, according to him, core competency is different from capability. He defines core competence as the blend of technological entities and production expertise that forms the basis for all the products of any given company, for instance, the incorporation of technology (GPS tracking devise) in sportswear by Adidas company (Dibb, Farhangmehr Simkin, 2001. P. 411). Consider a company like Adidas which has moved from sporting footwear to global sporting apparel and footwear. Experts attribute the success of this company to its core competency in sportswear. However, they argu e that even though its core competency has significantly contributed to its success in the global sporting apparel and footwear industry, the success cannot be attributed to the underlying competence alone. After all there are other well known companies, for instance, Nike and Puma which are successful designers and producers of sporting apparel and footwear. Hence, what gives the company a competitive edge over the competitors is its focus on capabilities (Stalk, Evans, Shulman, 1992, p. 65; Dibb, Farhangmehr Simkin, 2001. P. 411). Some of the company’s capabilities include incorporation of technology in its products and product realization which entails studying the needs of the market and providing products that meet those needs (Stalk, Evans, Shulman, 1992, p. 66). From the above example it is apparent that core competencies and capabilities are two different but complementary features of corporate strategy. They highlight the behavioural aspect of marketing strategy a s opposed to the traditional structural dimension of marketing. Therefore, both core competency and capabilities represent the universal model of corporate strategy (Vorhies Harker, 2000, p. 155). Targeted Market Target market refers to the prospective customers of the company’s goods and services. In other words, target market is the group of individuals and businesses that are targeted for sales and marketing (McDonald, 2002, p. 33; Lauren, 1999, p. 3). Effective identification of the potential client base generally helps to identify marketing strategies that can be incorporated into the business plan. Once this group is identified the four P’s of marketing (that is price, product, place, and promotion) are applied to determine the best product or service that fits a particular market segment (De Mooij, 2005, p. 4). Adidas is also putting a lot of emphasis on the emerging new markets in Asia and Latin America. Adidas has already beaten Nike in some of the Asian mark ets such as Japan and India and are divided over the Chinese market. The group has also seen the rise in its sales volume in Latin America. Adidas group has achieved this by collaborating with the local apparel manufacturers, sports clubs and sports personalities. These collaborations have enabled them to easily acquire vital information of different market segments. For instance, in China most of the commercials and advertisements include the Chinese-American Basketball icon Yao Ming which has enabled the Adidas to gain inroad among the Chinese Youths. Adidas is also collaborating with the local sports fraternity to increase interest in sports. Initially, such gestures do not create a lot of buyers, but in the long-run it generates interest in sports and markets Adidas brands (Kriemadis Terzoudis 2007, p. 34; McDonald 2002, p. 6). Conclusion Marketing strategy is a process through which companies can make best use of opportunities to enhance sales and attain sustainable competitiv e advantage using the available scarce resources. Marketing strategies are normally based on consumer satisfaction models and are more effective when integrated into the business strategy. However, there are a number of factors that have significant impact on the formulation and implementation of marketing strategy. They include internal and external environment, corporate capabilities, targeted marketing, and the level of competition among others. Corporate capabilities dictate the behavioural aspect of marketing strategies. Environmental factors and competition can either represent opportunities or a threat to the existing market strategies. References Andreasen, A.R., Kotler, P. (2003). Strategic Marketing for Nonprofit Organizations. 6th ed. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall Chaneta, I. (2002). 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