Ikea report Essay Example for Free

Ikea report Essay Executive summary This report describes the importance of market research, the target market and market segmentation. How a business can use a situation analysis and SWOT to provide a direction for Ikea. This examines how types of customers and buyer behaviour will impact marketing strategies. Evaluates as a key marketing strategy for Ikea as a case study. Analyses marketing strategies can be used to achieve marketing objectives and describes some ethical and legal things that a business must manage and respond to while marketing. Business Overview Ikea is a well-known global brand with hundreds of stores across the world. In order to improve performance, it must assess its external and competitive environment. This will reveal the key opportunities it can take advantage of and the threats it must deal with. Ikea responds to both internal and external issues in a proactive and dynamic manner by using its strengths and reducing its weaknesses. Through this, Ikea is able to generate the strong growth it needs to retain a strong identity in the market. Ikea’s passion combines design, low prices, economical use of resources, and responsibility for people and the environment. The companys products, processes and systems all demonstrate its environmental stance. For example, clever use of packaging and design means more items can fit into a crate, which means fewer delivery journeys. This in turn reduces Ikeas carbon footprint. Ikea believes that there is no compromise between doing good business and being a good business. It aims to go beyond profitability and reputation. Ikea is intent on becoming a leading example in developing a sustainable business. This will create a better everyday life for its customers. Market research When Ikea conducts market research it is important that the business first determines its information needs. The business should have some idea about the type of information it is looking for. It could vary from customer profiles or brand awareness through to attitudes towards certain new products. Once its information needs are established, the business can determine the most appropriate research method. This is primarily done by IKEA group although individual stores would use sales reports in order to  gather data about the types of customers and popular products that are particular to the area or store. The Target Market The target market is a group of customers for whom a particular product has been developed. The business hopes that these people will buy the product when it is made available in the marketplace. Some products appeal to all consumers, while others have limited appeal. A business needs to understand the nature of consumer markets. The three types of markets Ikea appeals to are Consumer, Mass and niche. The products in Ikea produce are universal to all and with their flat pack design they fall into the niche market. Ikea focuses on meeting the customer demands and satisfying their needs. Ikeas main focus is that of the selling orientation. Market segmentation Market segmentation is the process of breaking down a total market into small markets It allows businesses to focus their efforts and resources on a section of the market. By focusing on a particular target group, It would consider the features that consumers of this target group would be looking for in a product, the appropriate promotional strategies to generate awareness of and sustain interest in the product, and the most suitable pricing policies and distribution channels. Market segmentation and product/service differentiation,Demographic segmentation, dividing consumers into groups based on selected demographics, so that different groups can be treated deferent Situation analysis and SWOT Situation analysis is the way in which a business can examine the current position within the market and provides them with direction for their marketing campaign. SWOT is the first stage of planning and looks at the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats involved in a project or business venture. For example, one of Ikeas key strengths is its strategic aim to use no more material than necessary in the production of each item. One particular table, the NORDEN table, uses knotty birch wood. The knots in this wood usually mean it is rejected by other retailers and manufacturers as unsuitable for use. However, IKEA has made the knots part of its design feature. Types of customers. psychographic segmentation, this is based on lifestyle and personality, values and interest, Ikea does not divide the store into sections but you have to walk through the whole store before you can exit, this is a strategy to sell more products. The types of customers vary from people, households, firms, educational institutions, government, clubs and societies, religious organisations. The customers that account for most of Ikeas sale is the bold customer. Ikea is a business that is not aiming towards a purchase occasion but the usage rate of their product, being household items they aim for their products to last well and function to a good quality standard. Ikea has a good user loyalty with a wide range of buyers from the types of customers. Consumers see how affordable Ikea products are and how well they last, as long as they don’t mind putting the product together. The buying process would not be different from Ikea customers but the free yearly catalogue gives purchasers time to plan a trip to Ikea as the Ikea stores are not usually located conveniently due to the large floor space required to house their product. Ikea stores are not usually located outside the inner metropolitan area for this reason. There are psychological, sociocultural, economic and government reasons why people shop or don’t shop are Psychological segmentation Branding. Ikea is ranking 41 in the world’s most valuable brands. The brand name alone is worth 8 million. The brand image for Ikea stands for affordable, contemporary design and its flat pack product range that gives Ikea its identity. The brand name or logo essentially provides a message to the people of the quality and value associated with that product, when they see it they immediately form judgements on the quality, a strong brand name is essentially enhancing the relationship between a business and its customer. Marketing and strategies Product Ikea’s products are tangible, Product matters because it is the reason that customers go to Ikea in the first place. Ikea has the market in flat pack furniture and the unique design attracts customers and meets their needs, this product could include the prestige of owning the product which would also relate to psychological factors. Place Place matters because it is how the customers access the product. The Ikea experience is more than just products, it is a retail concept laid out in such a way that families, singles, couples etc. can enjoy shopping for furniture. A day at Ikea has been described as more of an outing than a shopping trip. Price Price matters because it is at the heart of the Ikea concept. Flat pack furniture cannot compete on price with upmarket, fully assembled pieces, so it is essential that Ikea continues to keep its prices below the competition. Price including pricing methods, market and competition based, Competition based pricing is the commonly used pricing strategy. Promotion Promotion is the most public aspect of marketing and it matters because it helps to drive customers into the stores in order to buy furniture. Ethical and legal. Ikea is recognised as a business that is both legally and ethically a responsible business that looks beyond profit and develops a positive workforce with these practices, advertising is very powerful in developing the wrong or wright idea and misleading advertising is bad ethics. Developing products in 3rd world country is considered unethical because they get payed well below minimum wage. Ikea produces environmentally responsible products, the flat pack design would be argued that it minimizes wastage and the cardboard would be environmentally friendly. The role of consumer law deals with Deceptive and misleading advertising which could be false information about products features and content, false special offers which don’t exist and  overstating the benefits that a product will provide to the consumer. Price discrimination, giving preference to some retail stores by providing them with lower prices than is offered to the competitors of those retailers. The competitor and consumer act aims to discourage the price discrimination in the business environment. Implied conditions and warranties is a great way for a business to ensure the product will last at least the warrantee time, this attracts customers and the consumer expects the business to fulfill their legal obligation to provide a refund or replacement or the product if there is a manufacturing problem within the warranted date, regardless the business by law. Resale price maintenance, this aims to balance the profit maximization of a business, Ikea ensures that the quality of a product in one country doesn’t differ from another. A manufacturer cannot refuse to sell the goods to a retailor if the retailor intends to sell the product for below the recommended price.

Racism Essay -- essays research papers

Discrimination - Racism   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Racism, the belief that one race possesses inherent traits that make that particular race superior, or racial prejudice. Discrimination has always been an issue globally, and within our nation. While it was more commonly accepted and practiced decades ago, it is still quite prominent in the hearts of many people worldwide and is demonstrated through their behavior. It was common practice to keep slaves, or people who submit entirely to another’s will, for work, and other duties. Slaveholding was allowed in the United States until 1865, when Amendment XIII was ratified. The date June 19th, 1865 is when the last slaves were said to be freed. Human Rights are basic fundamental rights, such as freedom from unlawful imprisonment, torture, or execution, which should be granted to all peoples. Civil Rights are mainly nonpolitical rights, such as personal liberties, that are included in the amendments to the US Constitution.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Segregation is the s eparation of different races/groups in living arrangement, social situations, and educational facilities, or other areas open for discrimination. The United States made the first step towards desegregation in 1954 with the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Brown v. the Board of Education. That case overturned the previous pro-segregation decision in Plessy v. Ferguson, and stated that separate but equal educational facilities were not, in fact, equal, and o...

Personal Action Plan

In the last few years I have gone through some major life altering experiences. Everything from losses that were important; including a loved one, a long friendship, gainful employment and a serious illness which affected one of my sources of income, loss of hopes and dreams. I became depressed about all the traumatic events which were happening in my life. The most painful experience, such as the loss of a loved one; due to divorce, a medical illness, or losing everything as a result of putting all my trust into a relationship that ended. All these life altering events took away my sense of control and caused great emotional upheaval. These traumatic events caused more distress for me than I could ever imagine. The end of my marriage has been the most painful experience in my life. Ending a twenty year union and losing my best friend was shocking because of the fear of not knowing what to do or feeling a sense of everything being hopeless had the biggest impact on my life, Even being diagnosed with breast cancer did not have this impact on my life. I started to feel and think as though every event of my life was predetermined and my entire course was laid out for me and no matter what I did or how I tried to avoid it, my life would unfold in some predetermined way. I felt as though there was such a thing as fate or destiny, but in the back of my mind I wondered, what about free will? I thought I was suppose to have the freedom to choose my actions but I felt as though free will was negated since existed. In order for me to find resolve in my pity and my life which had become depressing and stressful, I had to learn everything I could about the changes that were negatively impacting my life. The more I knew about them, the better I thought I would be able to deal with them. I started asking questions such as: What’s the worse thing that can happen? What do I stand to lose because of this change? How is this change affecting me now? Who or what is in control of the effects of this change now? Is there a way to minimize the negative effects of the change? What result do I want to avoid? What result do I want to create? The first thing I decided to do with my life was to move away and get a fresh start. At this point I was not really concerned with financial resources because I was always taught to save for a rainy day. As far as the pain of my marriage I found that women who lose their husbands may be more willing to seek out emotional support. I found this support in a relationship I cultivated and it developed into a friendship which replaced all the voids I felt in my personal life. I always wanted to pursue my educational goals and the new relationship helped pave the way for me to go back to school to finish some educational goals I wanted for myself. It also made a way to get my family back together under one roof. Through everything I now realize traumatic life events and major changes are an inevitable part of life. From the loss of a loved one, personal illness, financial set-back, to starting a new job or moving into a new home, changes throughout life are constant. I now know I moved beyond these crisis and disappointment and made my life better. The changes that seem to cause me the most problems are the changes that I feel I had no control over. Since dealing with traumas and changes I understand that I had no control over such external events. I realize that I cannot change the traumas or crises; they can only change themselves. Creative personal growth has been an ongoing process for me to commit to as a way of developing personally. It is about my psychological and spiritual growth and development. A key component of creative self-growth is to take full responsibility for my life. It is about bringing forth my highest potential as a human being. The benefits of undertaking any form of personal growth were many, including healing family wounds, gaining more confidence and self-esteem, learning to trust myself, forgiving others, developing compassion and kindness toward myself and others, increasing inner peace and a sense of well-being, developing the ability to cope better and meet challenges with more ease, feeling more comfortable in expressing myself, having more skills in creating loving relationships and looking at life's challenges as opportunities to grow and learn for myself. One of my biggest strengths is my communication skills. I work very well with all kinds of people, and understand that everyone has different perspectives about projects and work tasks — so when I work with others I realize that everyone comes to the table with different priorities and objectives. I keep this in mind when I communicate tasks that need to be accomplished with positive reinforcement and awareness of what others are working on. Another strength is my flexibility to handle change. I was able to turn around a negative working environment and develop a very supportive team. I am a hard worker, very punctual, determined, able to prioritize, I believe in myself and I am self confident. One of my greatest strengths I've acquired during my education is good analytical and planning skills. This will benefit me and challenge to set goals and try to achieve them, at the same time, I'm driven by the thoughts of success; I have full commitment to my work. I am highly energetic; I love to learn new things, I process good interpersonal skills; along with being well organized and like to be neat with all my work; I am a good helper towards those who need it. I am a team player and work well with others, I am a quick learner and I possess great problem-solving skills. I'm sometimes told that I am a bit too slow, that's only because I want to do the best job I can. I guess you could say I'm a bit anal when it comes to perfection. I am very headstrong. I really like to be challenged in my job, and I just want to learn as much as I can in my position. At the end of the day I need to be able to look back on my day and feel good about the job that I've done. I guess you could call it sense of self worth. That's why I always put my all into everything I do. I used to have trouble with procrastinating, now I have learned to write down a list of things that I need to do, and I keep a calendar to keep track of deadlines, I have found that this not only helps me to finish things on time, but it has also helped me to be more organized. A weakness of mine would be the fact that I get nervous when speaking in front of groups. I haven't had a lot of experience with this over the past several years. I'm little egoistic when it comes to winning things and get a little ruthless too. I lose patience sometimes when I am not in a position to complete the assigned job in time. I have to work on having more patience and giving myself a break because I always want everything done at once. I am too focused on my work and I need to find more time to relax and I need to develop some after hour’s hobbies. I am a workaholic person and love to dedicate myself to the work I am doing. But at the same time I forget to keep a balance between other things which I am trying to improve on. The big irony is that my future is in much better shape even though I focus most of my attention on the present. By making my present reality as enjoyable as possible, my motivation has just been soaring. I’m working from a state of joy instead of a feeling of obligation. I’ve actually created the very situation I was hoping money would someday grant me. I imagined what I would do if I was already rich beyond my wildest dreams. I saw myself spending lots of time working on personal growth, doing all sorts of interesting experiments, and then sharing what I learned with others. I thought to myself, â€Å"That would be a truly incredible life for me. † Today I’m so happy it’s almost ridiculous. I couldn’t even have imagined being this happy on a daily basis two years ago. And I certainly wasn’t depressed back then, I was at least content. But now my emotional state is highly positive, not just neutral. I stopped seeking happiness in the future and instead looked for ways to create it right now. In order to reach my goals I know I need to start small. I cannot afford to take on more than I can handle too soon, especially since some of my goals are outside of my knowledge and current abilities. I do not want to get discouraged when I realize that my goal of running three miles a day has fizzled out after two weeks because I cannot seem to get past one mile a day. I feel when you start small and set mini-goals for yourself; you are much more likely to succeed also by setting goals that are attainable by assessing the reality of the situation and gathering information. It is great to aim big, but not so big that you can't reach your goal. I was taught by my maternal grandmother to write down your goals, because until you do, it is still a dream. I want to be able to see my goals every day. My goal is long-term and I feel to reach it, I need to write down concrete steps on how I will achieve it which can provide gratification so I will feel as though I am making progress. My affirmations and positive words along with statements I use repetitively help to build my self-confidence and change my attitude and behaviors. I print affirmations on note cards and type them into a screen saver on my computer. Since I have a strong sense of self-motivation, I believe the skill can be acquired by using positive affirmations. A social network can be a powerful motivational force as well as a safety net if I encounter issues along my journey. I have reached out to friends and family to encourage me and to provide support until I achieve my goals.

Expressing Enthusiasm or Joy in Words

Sometimes you’d like to express just how much you really, really want to do something. In other words, you’d like to express your enthusiasm. Another way to put this is to say that you’re pumped and you want tell to tell the world just how stoked you are about something.  Use these phrases to express enthusiasm for something you are doing, or to support someone else.   to be pumped to be very excited and physically ready to do something Im pumped to welcome Mario Stranger to the stage!Are you pumped for vacation next month? to be stoked to be very enthused about something Shes stoked about her trip to Tahiti next week.No, Im not stoked about the test. I hate tests! Expressing Enthusiasm for Something You are Doing These expressions are used to express something about your own projects. You can also use these forms to state that someone else is excited about his / her own project. Below you will find expressions to use when supporting or showing your enthusiasm for someone else.   Subject be (really, very, quite) excited about something Use this form for a special event or opportunity: I’m very excited about working with Tom on the new project.I’m quite excited about my new car! Subject be (really) looking forward to something Use this form when you are anticipating a meeting or other event in the future. This expression is common in business settings: I’m really looking forward to opening the new store next week.She’s looking forward to taking some time off work. Subject cherish   Use  cherish  on special occasions as this form is quite strong: I cherish the time I spend with you.Jack cherishes every opportunity to speak to a client. Expressing Enthusiasm with Adjectives Here is a text full of adjectives that express your enthusiasm for a person, place or thing:   Its amazing that youve come to this site to study English. Just the fact that you found this site shows awesome dedication to learning English. I think youre an incredible student! The  adjectives amazing, awesome, fantastic, incredible  and  unbelievable  are  known as extreme  adjectives and express your enthusiasm. Used at the right moment, these adjectives add special emphasis and are used to show enthusiasm and joy. Be careful not to use these too often as they lose their impact when overused. Here are a few examples of appropriate moments to use these adjectives: Wow, that’s amazing! I’ve never seen a sunset like that before!Look at that mountain. It’s awesome! I Can’t Believe It! The phrase I can’t believe is often used to express something that surprises you in a good way: I can’t believe how much fun that ride was!I can’t believe how much I love you! Expressing Enthusiasm for Someone Else Here are a number of  phrases used to express enthusiasm when we hear someones good news. Subject be   (so, really, very) happy / excited / delighted   for you / them / him / her Use these adverbs and adjectives in combination to express happiness for someone: I’m really delighted for you. Good luck!She’s so excited for her husband. Congratulations! / Congratulations on the / your ... You can express enthusiasm for special achievements by beginning with congratulations: Congratulations on your new house!Congratulations! You must be a proud father! Subject must be   (so, really, very) happy / excited / delighted Use the modal verb of probability  must to express your belief that what you say about someone else  is true: You must be so excited!She must have been thrilled! That’s great / fantastic / wonderful! When someone shares their enthusiasm they expect you to react to their good news. Here are some phrases to help you spread the joy: Your wife is pregnant. That’s fantastic!That’s great! You should be proud of yourself. I’m (so, very, really) happy for you. Use this phrase to express that you truly wish someone the best: I’m really happy for you. I’m sure you’ll be great at your new job.I’m so happy for you and your husband. Would you like a boy or a girl? You deserve it! Use this phrase to express joy when someone has worked hard for an achievement. You deserve it  is also used to say that someone deserves a special gift or consideration. I heard about your new job. Congratulations! You deserve it.Lets go out to dinner. You deserve it. At Work Here is a dialog that might take place at work. Two colleagues are speaking, so they feel comfortable sharing their joy. Notice how each expression of enthusiasm is used. Practice this dialog with a friend or classmate. You can raise your voice to show your enthusiasm.   Colleague 1: Hi Tom. Do you have  a moment?Colleague 2: Sure, what’s up? Colleague 1: I’m really stoked about the new project.Colleague 2: Why’s that? Colleague 1: I’m really excited about the opportunity. If things go well with this, who knows what will happen!Colleague 2: I’m really happy for you. I’m sure you’ll do a great job! Colleague 1: Thanks. I hope so.Colleague 2: Of course, you must be very proud of yourself. Colleague 1: Yes, to tell you the truth, this is something I’ve wanted for a while.Colleague 2: Well, you deserve it! Colleague 1: Thanks. I appreciate it.Colleague 2: My pleasure. Between Friends Its always great to share your enthusiasm with those close to you. Heres a dialog to share with your friends: George: Doug, Doug!! Annie’s pregnant!Doug: That’s fantastic! Congratulations! George: Thanks. I can’t believe we’re going to have another baby!!Doug: Do you know the sex? George: No, we want it to be a surprise.Doug: Really, I’d want to know so I could buy all the right stuff. George: You have a point. Maybe we should find out.Doug: In any case, I’m really, really happy for your two. George: Thanks. I just had to share the good news.Doug: Let’s go get a beer to celebrate! George: That’s a good idea!Doug: My treat. Expressing enthusiasm is just one of many language functions. This is the opposite of  expressing sadness  and calls for very positive words.  Learning language functions can help you learn specific vocabulary for specific situations.