Movie Review Coco Essay Example

Movie Review: Coco Essay Few film production companies could imagine that an animated film with death as its center would appeal to a wide audience. The question posed at the heart of Coco, the latest Pixars film is if a person can honor his family along with pursuing his dreams. The film whirls around an aspiring 12-year-old Mexican boy Miguel Rivera (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez) who dreams of becoming a musician, against the fact that his family proscribed music after his great-great-grandfather left his family for music. Despite the familys hatred for music, Miguel covertly plays guitar and covets to become a popular musician like Ernesto De La Cruz. On Dia de Muertos(Day of the Dead), Miguel fights with his family about performing in a local music talent show, which doesnt go well with music-loathing Riveras and especially his abuelita (voiced by Renee Victor), who gets agitated and smashes Miguels guitar like a pinata. After fighting with his family, Miguel finds himself a guitar in the tomb of his idol, Ernesto De La Cruz(voiced by Benjamin Bratt), a well-known musician. Without realizing a thing, Miguel robs a guitar from the crypt and plays it, which gets him transported to the Land of the Dead. The films about how he returns back to the world of the living and his adventures in the land of the dead. Stunning visuals with sophisticatedly ordered and intensely striking storytelling being the trademarks of the best movies of Pixar Animation Studios, Coco will also thrill the audience with Pixars usual verve and style. The land of the dead with skeletons walking and talking with a glaze of fluorescent flower petals paved upon the streets is visually appealing. This whole imaginative journey in the land of the dead is full of mindblowing sights and creatures which is worth getting lost in. The brilliant, colorful visuals and a mysterious chain of adventures that happen throughout the film is what makes Coco interesting like other Disney-Pixar films. We will write a custom essay sample on Movie Review: Coco specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Movie Review: Coco specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Movie Review: Coco specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer

Civil Rights Movement Timeline From 1951 to 1959

Civil Rights Movement Timeline From 1951 to 1959 This  civil rights movement  timeline chronicles the fight for racial equality in its early days, the  1950s. That decade saw the first major victories for civil rights in the Supreme Court as well as the development of nonviolent protests and the transformation of Dr. Martin Luther King  Jr. into the movements preeminent leader. 1950 The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down the segregation of African Americans in graduate and law schools. The initial case was fought by Thurgood Marshall and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Marshall used this win to begin building a strategy to fight the â€Å"separate but equal† doctrine established in 1896.   1951 Linda Brown, an 8-year-old girl in Topeka, Kan., lives within walking distance of a whites-only elementary school. Because of segregation, she has to travel by bus to a more distant school for African American children. Her father sues the school board of Topeka, and the U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear the case. 1953 The Highlander Folk School in Monteagle, Tenn., which runs workshops on organizing protests for individuals such as union organizers, issues invitations to civil rights workers. 1954 The Supreme Court decides Brown v. Board of Education on May 17, arguing that separate but equal schools are inherently unequal. The decision legally prohibits school segregation, declaring it unconstitutional. 1955 Rosa Parks attends a workshop for civil rights organizers at the Highlander Folk School in July.On Aug. 28, Emmett Till, a 14-year-old African American boy from Chicago, is killed near Money, Miss., for allegedly whistling at a white woman.In November, the Federal Interstate Commerce Commission forbids segregation on interstate buses and trains.On Dec. 1, Rosa Parks refuses to give her seat to a white passenger on a bus in Montgomery, Ala., sparking the Montgomery Bus Boycott.On Dec. 5, the Montgomery Improvement Association is established by a group of local Baptist ministers. The organization elects the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.,  pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, president. In this role, King would lead the boycott. 1956 In January and February, whites angry about the Montgomery Bus Boycott bomb four African American churches and the homes of civil rights leaders King, Ralph Abernathy, and E.D. Nixon.On court order, the University of Alabama admits its first African American student, Autherine Lucy, but finds legal ways to prevent her attendance.On Nov. 13, the Supreme Court upholds an Alabama district court ruling in favor of the Montgomery bus boycotters.The Montgomery Bus Boycott ends in December, having successfully integrated Montgomerys buses. 1957 King, along with Ralph Abernathy and other Baptist ministers, helps found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in January. The organization serves to fight for civil rights, and King is elected its first president.The governor of Arkansas, Orval Faubus, obstructs the integration of Little Rock High School, using the National Guard to block the entry of nine students. President Eisenhower orders federal troops to integrate the school.Congress passes the Civil Rights Act of 1957, which creates the Civil Rights Commission and authorizes the Justice Department to investigate cases of African Americans being denied voting rights in the South. 1958 The Supreme Court decision Cooper v. Aaron rules that a threat of mob violence is not reason enough to delay school desegregation. 1959 Martin Luther King and his wife, Coretta Scott King, visit India, the homeland of Mahatma Gandhi, who won independence for India through nonviolent tactics. King discusses the philosophy of nonviolence with Gandhis followers. Updated by Femi Lewis.

A Little Fox Never Hurt Anyone

A Little Fox Never Hurt Anyone A Little Fox Never Hurt Anyone A Little Fox Never Hurt Anyone By Kate Evans We all know that good looking women are described as foxy. But foxes, with their rusty color and reputation for craftiness, can be used in many other colorful, unique, and descriptive expressions. For example, A foxs sleep is when one feigns indifference while keeping a close eye on someone. A wise fox will never rob his neighbors hen-roost, meaning a thief should steal from people far from home so as not to get caught. Theres my personal favorite, I gave him a flap with a fox-tail, which means that I made a fool of someone. To set a fox to keep the geese would be someone who trusts those who should clearly not be trusted with important tasks. If its a case of the fox and the grapes, then someone really wants something, cant obtain it, so they pretend they never wanted it in the first place. And of course, theres the often relevant when a fox preaches, take care of your geese. So, go off and flap someone with a fox-tail or just try and work one of these expressions into your next short story! Apollo Theater, Ms. Brown had the limo pull to a stop before a 100-foot-long Chyna Doll billboard, featuring a very foxy Foxy, clad only in a blue feather bikini. (www.nytimes.com) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:45 Synonyms for â€Å"Food†Awoken or Awakened?Ulterior and Alterior

Evidence course work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Evidence course work - Essay Example Legal principles aim at promoting the rights of children throughout the administration of justice. This means that the legal system needs to uphold the fact that children, including individuals aged 17 years, are people in their own right and thus possess obligations and rights. These rights and obligations must be taken into consideration and respected by judicial and administrative authorities. 17 year olds enjoy special rights at police stations. The purpose of this paper is to examine the array of legal rights endowed on 17 year olds while in police custody for interviewing. The paper will further make pertinent recommendations to enhance the level of protection offered to juveniles in the initial stages of the juvenile justice process. Background International, regional and national legal principles hold that children possess special interests, needs and rights, which must be appreciated in all stages of the criminal justice system. This means that the administration of justice, both criminal and otherwise should always be guided by principal principles of non-discrimination, which are aimed at upholding the best interests of the juvenile. The European Convention on Human Rights is one of the most relevant regional legal principles that countries in Europe seek to incorporate into their domestic legal systems in order to provide guidance on the treatment of juveniles within the justice system3. The Convention has influenced the creation and implementation of legal provisions such as the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) and the Human Rights Act 1998 with the view to enhance the protection of juveniles’ rights in all spheres of life. Notably, recent court cases have revealed that PACE is inadequate in its protection of juveniles since it promotes the treatment of 17 year olds as adults during interviews at the police station. In R. (on the application of HC) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2013] EWHC 982 (Admin) (QBD (Admin)) , the court ruled that the failure to revise PACE 1984 Code C in a manner that differentiates between adults and 17 year olds is a direct contravention of the government’s legal duty under the Human Rights Act 19984. PACE 1984 Code C allows police officers to treat 17 year olds as adults5. For instance, police officers are allowed to delay juveniles’ phone calls to their guardians on the pretext that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the exercise of the right to a phone call will impair the investigations. PACE Code C considers juveniles as all individuals who seem to be below the age of 17 years in the absence of evidence to the contrary6. Since the ratification of the Children Act in 1908, the criminal justice system has maintained that young offenders must be treated differently from adults in all stages of the justice process. Other legal principles such as remand and sentencing legislation, for instance, Criminal Justice Act 2003, Powers of Criminal Cou rts Sentencing Act 2000 and the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 also differentiate between those below and over the age of 18 years7. Additionally, the Prison Service Instruction 08/2012 describes children as all individuals under 18 years. Under Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) a child is essentially a person under 18 years, unless the law applicable to the child delineates that majority is attained at a

Fixed Base Operator Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Fixed Base Operator - Essay Example Hence, gradually there was a shift in early decades to bifurcate the jobs between pilots and the technicians. Now the two are totally different fields and much more such fields have been introduced in support of operations. The rationale has been that each and every person in aviation field has a well-defined job and that it is interwoven to such an extent that all these fields work together just to keep an aircraft high up in the air safe. The airport is one of the most vital elements in our air transportation system. A well-equipped airport provides a variety of facilities for the aircraft and for crews and passengers. These include runways and taxiways, which may be lighted for day and night use; a terminal building with lounge areas for passengers, and possibly a restaurant and shops; automobile parking lots; ramp areas and hangars for aircraft storage; and maintenance shops for aircraft and avionics. In the United States, there are about 13,000 airports and 4,000 heliports (land ing sites for helicopters). About 5,000 of these landing facilities are used by the public. It may surprise you to learn that only about 650 airports are served by airlines; most of the Nation's airports are used by general aviation pilots and their aircraft. The atmosphere at these airports is usually a lot less hectic and pressured than the environment at a major airline facility. Some airports are owned by municipalities, states, counties, and cities. Others are operated as privately owned businesses. A fixed base operator (FBO) is a retail firm that sells general aviation products or services at an airport. The FBO may employ one or two people, or it may have as many as one hundred workers. One or more of the following services are offered: aircraft fueling; airframe, engine, and/or instrument repairs; avionics sales and service; aircraft modifications; flight training; ground school; aircraft rentals and sales; and air taxi service and charter flights. Student pilot training ha s been rising in recent years, as have sales of new general aircraft both of which have been traditional sources of income for many Fixed Base Operators. Services. The services offered by a modern FBO may include any or all of the following: Aircraft fueling, de-fueling and oil dispensing: This aspect is normally carried out by professionals from various oil companies under

Gangs of Youth Essay Example for Free

Gangs of Youth Essay Tattoos, graffiti in the walls, foul language, drugs, guns and violence are the most popular notions for â€Å"street gangs†. Street gangs are prevalent ever since the 19th century, when there was a surge of immigrants in the United States. They are an identity, a fearful group of people who organizes a variety of delinquent activities. Though gangs have been widely used in popular culture, as observed in the invention of slang words, baggy pants, hip-hop and rap music, they are a threat to society. Gangs are not really cool as what is being portrayed in our television sets. The following questions, which were taken from GWC, Inc. [1997], provide us some ideas on how to assess whether our community or school is suffering from severe gang activity. 1. Do you have graffiti on or near your school? 2. Do you have crossed out graffiti on or near your school grounds? 3. Do your students wear colors, jewelry, clothing; flash hand signals; or display other behavior that may be gang related? 4. Are drugs available in or near your school? 5. Has there been an increase in physical confrontations or incidents of threats, abuse, or intimidation in or near your school? 6. Is there an increasing presence of weapons in your community? 7. Do students use beepers, pagers and cellular phones? 8. Has there been a drive-by shooting in your neighborhood? 9. Have you had a show-by or a display of weapons near your schools? 10. Has there been an increase in the truancy rate and/or daytime burglaries? 11. Are there an increasing number of racial incidents in your community or school? 12. Does your community have a history of gangs? 13. Is there an increasing presence of informal social groups with unusual names? If most of the answers are yes, then your community or school is definitely in need for an effective gang prevention program. But before doing so, I will first discuss about the proliferation of street gangs, its history and its impact to the society especially to the youth. I will also provide recent reports on the current statistics in some areas; then I can now dwell on the useful measures on how to fight and avoid gang activity. What are gangs? The Children’s Health Encyclopedia [n. d. ] mentioned that there are a couple of definitions of gangs, specifically, youth gangs. In general, they are a â€Å"loosely-organized association† who were formerly alienated by the society. They are headed informally by a leader. The members are usually between ages 12 to 24 and they have a gang name to identify themselves. The members of the gang share something in common in them. Usually they have the same race or ethnicity, same social class or some characteristic that are usually defined by some form of a symbol, usually represented by tattoos, graffiti, clothing or even hand signals. According to Safe Youth [2007], gangs are most of the time male-dominated and have their own territory. Such male members have experienced a loss of a male figure at home. For females, they often participate in gang activity during family crisis or drug addiction. They have been characterized to be run-away-from-home youths. Moreover, another characteristic of these gangs is that they may either be a subsidiary of a larger group of gangs. Some gang organizations have their respective mother groups whom they share similar attributes and culture. It is also common for such gangs to have their own set of rules and codes of conduct. Some even have weird rituals of their own. They treat each other as kin or family; since in the first place, they were formed because they felt some kind of alienation with their respective lives. Gangs can compensate and nurture the members a sense of belongingness. They also can gain power and influence especially when they cooperate to fight for their own endeavors. They gain confidence and self-worth especially when gang members are promised to be given protection or better yet a higher social status. They do organized crime activities in order to get what they want. These activities are violent and nature and such can threaten a lot of lives. According to the U. S. Department of Justice, groups must be involved in criminal acts before they are deemed to be called as gangs. Such acts, according to Johnson and Muhlhausen [2005], can vary from extortion, robbery, smuggling, drug trafficking, arms trafficking, and defending their territory. Basically, there a two types of gangs, city and urban/rural gangs [Green, 1999]. In cities, gangs are situated in a particular â€Å"turf† or â€Å"hood†, unlike in urban/rural areas, gangs are dispersed and some needed to travel in order to be with their members. According to Green [1999], there three indicators of gangs: saggin’, flaggin’, and braggin’. Sagging is manner of dressing. Gangsters are usually wearing loose clothes like baggy pants and caps that are tilted in a different manner. Some gangs have a unique style, which makes them distinct from other gangs like hairdos and leather jackets. Flagging is the show of colors. Gangs have a branding color which represents them. Last is bragging, which is self-explanatory. They brag about being gangsters though they are very secretive about their activities. History Johnson and Muhlhausen [2005] stated in their paper, â€Å"North American Transnational Youth Gangs: Breaking the Chain of Violence† that youth gangs can be traced even as far as the end of American Revolution. They said that such violence was heightened during the immigration and population shifts during the early 1800s, 1920s, 1960s and in the latter 1990s. Though in Europe, gangs are already popular in the 14th Century. It was reported in the 1999 National Youth Gang Survey that gangs in the United States are composed of 47 percent Hispanic members, 31 percent African-Americans, 13 percent Caucasian, 7 percent Asian and 3 percent others. These can traced from the 10 to 12 million undocumented Hispanic aliens in 1970s and 1990s. The most popular Hispanic groups are Calle 18 and Mara Salvatrucha. They were the first gangs to accept members from other nationalities as well as recruit outside their own territory. Outside means that even the youth, as young as elementary and middle schools are involved in the use of weapons, stealing money and selling drugs. The GWC, Inc. [1997] believed that gangs use children because if ever they are caught, they will not go to jail. It was also said by Johnson and Muhlhausen [2005] that during the 19th century, Irish and Italian street gangs were greatly concentrated in the East Coast cities, while African-American gangs were mostly in Los Angeles especially during the 1960s and 1970s. When you migrate, most probably the neighborhood the family is exposed are much disorganized, thus leading to exposure to crimes and gang activities. Statistics As shown by the GWC, Inc. ’s Gang Guide [1997], the FBI thinks that there are around 400,000 youths who are members of gangs in the United States. Moreover, the Journal of American Medical Association believes that 94 percent are active gangs in the cities. Such cities according to the American Street Gang can include up to 40 different gangs. In the Children’s Health Encyclopedia, in between the years 1996and 2001, over 90 percent of the largest cities in America are reported to have gang activities in their area. Between 1998 and 1999, it was studied that there was a 27 percent increase in gang membership in the suburban areas while 29 percent in rural areas. Gangs do not only involve the minorities like the Latinos or the African-American, all nationalities or ethnic groups, despite economic class and geographical setting are highly involved in gangs. Earlier we said that males dominate that gangs and females are only involved usually when she experiences family problems and had run away from home. It was discovered by A. Campbell in his research that female gang members have experience a larger risk in gang membership. According to Johnson and Muhlhausen [2005], the reported gang activity in 1970 was 270, by 1998, it increased by whopping 800 percent with 2,500 cities. In a comparative study of gang members and youths-at-risk in Cleveland, it was found that 44. 7 percent of gang members were reported to committing auto theft, as compared to 4. 1 percent of non-members. Moreover, 40. 4 percent of gang members said that they have participated in â€Å"drive-by shootings†, while only 2. 0 percent of non-members have done so. Furthermore, 34. 0 of gang members have been reported to intimidate or assault crime victims or witnesses, compared to none from the non-members. 72. 3 percent of gang members acknowledged that they have assaulted rivals, compared to 16. 3 percent. More so, 17. 0 percent of gang members have committed robbery compared to 2. 0 percent of non-members. We can conclude in this study that being involved in gangs exposes one to be more at-risk even greater than those who are already at-risk yet non-members of gangs. According to Safe Youth [2007], recent studies reveal that member of youth gangs join before they reach 18 years old. In contrast to the notion of the public, such members do not commit to a long-term membership. In a span of one year, only one-half to two-thirds remain in their gang. To heighten our claim earlier that gang members are more at-risk than at-risk non-members, Howell and Decker [1999] revealed that youth gang members have higher drug usage rate than non-gang members. Moreover, Battin-Pearson, et al. [1998] said that delinquency rates are higher for gang members, which includes the use of illegal drugs, display of violent behavior and even the rate of being arrested. Between 1989 and 1995, it was reported by the United States Departments of Education and Justice that the percentage of gang activity doubled. This heightens the strong correlation of gangs with the proliferation of guns and drugs inside the school campuses. However, there is contradiction with the study. Chandler, et al. [1996] believed that gangs have not been the cause of victimization inside the schools although it was found to contribute to the dangerous atmosphere. Presence of gangs in school has even brought protection to students who are part of the minority groups. It was reported in the 2002 and 2003 National Youth Gang Surveys that 4 out of 10 large cities in the United States have experienced 10 or more gang homicides [Egley, 2005]. In Los Angeles and Chicaga, half of the reported 1,000 homicides were gang related. This also implies a frequent use of firearms. Risk Factors In the study of Johnson and Muhlhausen [2005], if the following risk factors increase, it was believed that the youth has higher probability of joining a gang: marginal neighborhoods, family, academic problems, peer groups, drugs and violence. Marginal Neighborhoods involve a more dangerous environment and most of these neighborhoods are highly exposed to drugs. Johnson and Muhlhausen [2005] said that those who are living in these neighborhood are thrice more likely to join gangs. More so, such neighborhoods who are highly exposed to drugs like Marijuana, youths are 3. 6 likely to join a gang. Youths with families headed by a single-parent are 2. 4 more likely to join gangs than those families who are headed by a complete set of parents. As mentioned earlier, those males who missed a father figure will seek out such companionship in gangs. More so, with a broken family, it is much easier for a child to acquire belongingness and love from a gang. However, as long as families promote violence, and there is low parental care and love in the family, a youth will be highly misguided, leading to gang membership. Academic problems lead to higher gang membership because as already mentioned earlier; gangs can lift low self-esteem individuals. Since academic failure contributes to low self-esteem, such youth are 3. 6 times more prone to join the gangs. When there is low commitment to study in school, a child is more likely to join a gang, since it can mean that he or she prefers other activities. Such activities as we know can be more violent in nature, and may or may not be done within the school premises. Peer groups are great motivators for the youth to join a gang. When you have friends who are members of such gangs, you are also twice as likely to join too. Peer pressure is sometimes very hard to resist because friendships are broken if you cannot do a favor for a friend. We know that people do need companionship especially in school and it is difficult if we do not have friends around. They are a source of protection as well. Drugs and violence can evidently trigger gang membership. Youths who already use Marijuana, are 3. 7 times more prone to join gangs. This is definitely true since where else can you get such drugs but from those gangs. To be able to get it easier, one should join them. Moreover, it was revealed that if the youth has been engaged in a violent behavior before, they are 3. 1 time more prone to join the gangs. Lonnie Jackson [1998], the author of Gangbusters: Strategies for prevention and intervention also provided a list of risk factors. It includes again the exposure to crime and violence during the â€Å"formative years†. Role models from a particular ethnic group can also increase the likelihood to gang involvement. It also includes lack of parental control. Moreover, the lack of equal economic opportunities can also be the reason for gang involvement. The lack of â€Å"social and recreational activities† for the children, few employment opportunities and unmet employment qualifications and skills can trigger gang involvement. Youth enticed to power, money and drugs are evidently more likely to join these gangs. Immediate gratification is very attractive for some youths and this encourages them to join the gangs. Moreover the lack of sense of belongingness and security, as well as powerlessness will lead the youth to those gangs. Another source of gang influence would be the popular media. Though there is no substantive evidence, violence seen in films, even song lyrics from hip-hop or rap music can increase pressure in joining gangs since gang life are usually being portrayed with such glamour and power that even kids imitate them. Kids these days are dressing up like gangsters even though they are not, and it can be reason why they join gangs. They think it so cool. Impact of Gangs in Schools Gangs in school will obviously increase the violence in schools, though we cannot directly blame the gang members for them. According to Trump [1993], students enrolled in schools with evident gang presence are twice more likely to fear of being victims of violence, than those whose schools without gangs. In an interview of Boyle [1992], he said that gang members perceive schools as evils and forms of incarceration. They see school as a place for gathering and hosting violent activities. What is worse is that, even gang members who are already suspended or kicked out from school can be found in the campus with their fellow gang mates. They use school as a form of a hang-out place rather than a place for learning. Burnett and Walz [1994] said that gangs can broaden its reach even influencing the youth in gang-free schools, causing a wider influence and greater involvement in criminal activities. According to Chandler et al. [1998], youth gangs are correlated with issues in delinquency especially during elementary and secondary schools. The National Center for Education Statistics [2005] have reported that most students in urban schools are most probably report the existence of street gangs in their school with 31 percent, compared to suburban students and rural students with 18 percent and 12 percent respectively. According to Thompkins [2000], security officers, security cameras, and even metal detectors can serve as a means of deterrence, yet these causes fear among the people on school, knowing that such security was brought about by the heightening of gang activity in the school. Impact of Gangs on its Participants Most of the gang members are already involved in delinquent acts even during the time that they are not still members of the gang [Burnett and Walz, 1994]. Most likely, such delinquent acts will be heightened. They will be frequently involved in drug abuse, as well as violence against their neighbor and a lot more. There are many consequences of being involved in such gangs. If ever they do not follow the rules of their gang leaders, most likely they will be victims as well, facing more punishments than those who are non-members. Also, if the gangs were discovered, they can be arrested and put into detention. When they grow up, they can be put into prison. Gang life distorts a lot of healthy relationships especially if it is for long term. The gangs have so much power over their members and can limit their own capacities. It can deprive them their own ambitions and aspirations. They bring chaos to the community and it can break families. It is more likely to happen that a youth can be dropped out early in school. When this happens, there is less chance for the child to be employable in the future, thus increasing unemployment rate together with crime rate. Moreover, it can also bring about early pregnancy or teen motherhood, which brings about an unstable family and lack of parental care. We already discussed earlier that such families are more likely to produce delinquent children. Thus, we see a cycle going on in here. If you expose your child to an unstable environment, most likely, he or she will carry it in the future. Economic impact of youth gangs There are in fact economic costs associated to youth gangs just like any other crimes. Medical expenses are actually large, especially to those who were victimized. In a year, $655 billion are spent in the United States because of crimes and it was believed that a huge amount can be attributed to gangs [Fight Crime: Invest in kids, 2004]. In Los Angeles Hospital trauma center, it was revealed that $5 million was spent to the 272 gang-related gunshot victims. It was also reported that youth gangs turned to be entrepreneurial organizations, involving hard core drug operations in various numbers of states. An example of which is the Black Gangster Disciples Nation [Burnett and Walz, 1994]. It actually has a hierarchy with several officers with specialized jobs. They have a chairman, with board of directors who are in charge in the drug trafficking in their areas. They have regents, who are in charge in the drug supply as well as in overseeing the â€Å"drug† stores. They also have area coordinators, who are in charge in collecting revenues from several spots. They have enforcers who are like their police and punish members who cheat. Last are the shorties, or the â€Å"interns† who composes the staff in the drugs selling spots. So evidently, such gang is already very organized and they have climbed their way up because of their wider influence and power. How to fight gang activity Gang activities are very serious issues that need to be addressed. A lot of youths are being misled to another path, damages their lives, the lives of the people around them as well as their future. But, it’s never too late to pull them out of their misery and prevent those kids who are about to be victimized. The National Education Association developed a â€Å"Safe Schools Framework† in order to aid schools and communities to pinpoint the gangs in their areas [Safe Youth, 2007]. They are recommending cooperation among schools, families and communities in developing strategies in alleviating gangs in their areas, as well as promoting safety and security in the campus. We adopt three components of the framework: prevention, intervention and suppression. Under prevention, we should aim to prevent the youth in getting involved in gangs, as well as in gang-related activities. This includes heightened awareness and education of the negative consequences of joining gangs, and testimonials from former gang members discouraging them to be involved. By intervention, we mean that we create possible alternatives for the youth in terms of their after-school or extra-curricular activities. More so, we provide counseling for those who are already in trouble, and promote part-time jobs for students. By suppression, we should use adequate measures in identifying, isolation, punishing and rehabilitating criminal offenders [Safe Youth, 2007]. In order to fight the existence of gangs in the schools, we should promote policies like adapting a school uniform, implementing curfews to discourage delinquent activities at night, encouraging students to be punctual, as well as enforcing strict policies on underage drinking and bring of deadly weapons in schools. During the 1930s, the Chicago Area Project has already started in bringing about recreational activities and self-improvement campaigns in order to convert gang members [Johnson and Muhlhausen, 2005]. However, it only increased crime since they treated as gangs as a group. In other states, they have strict anti-gang laws but were not effective in enforcing laws. In states like California, Minnesota and Virginia, they have established gang task forces but it was observed that their success greatly relies on the sustainability of their efforts, a variety of strategies and strong political will. It is very difficult to do that for all the states. The U. S. Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention has recommended several strategies like after-school activities, dropout prevention, parent-training programs, efficient tracking of former offenders, job programs and many others. However, many failed to reduce delinquency [Johnson and Muhlhausen, 2005]. Other programs were also seen to be ineffective, like the GREAT (Gang Resistance Education and Training) which used police as instructors in schools on the dangers of gang participation. During their evaluation, the program has no significant effect on gang membership [Johnson and Muhlhausen, 2005]. Moreover, the on-the-job training provided by the Department of Labor had produced counterintuitive results. Instead of preventing the disadvantaged youth, it actually increased the arrests related to gang activity. It was suggested by Johnson and Muhlhausen [2005] that the following strategies must be used. First, they should foster stable neighborhoods. It is very important for the government to ensure the safety of the environment of the people. They know that an unstable neighborhood produces delinquent activities, thus by enforcing policies that could enable a more secure neighborhood will be of great help in reducing gang membership. Second, they need to reduce illegal immigration. We know for a fact that gangs were formed due to alienation and a sense of discrimination from the society. By requiring stricter requirements for labor and immigration, we are also ensuring the safety of these people and help the rise of gangs in the country. Third, there should be strategies to â€Å"deny time for gang activities†. Parents should be aware that they play a great role in forming the behavior of their children. They should help their children in avoiding being influenced by those groups by telling the possible dangers of gang membership. Fourth, there should also be an emphasis on the prevention on the individual. Counseling programs must be strengthened, helping students to overcome their family problems and encourage them to find happiness in other things, instead of resulting to drugs and violence. Last is to ensure that the suppression is a product of collaborative efforts of several different agencies. An enforcement of a policy will not be successful if people do not have a general consensus about it, or do not cooperate. Strategies must also be simultaneously be implemented in order to make the campaigns against gang violence to be systematic. We still have a long way to go in eliminating gang violence. However, if we start now at our own homes, we can prevent these children from being involved in such gang activities. There are various tools to assist them. We need to focus on the sustainability and effectiveness of those tools in order to ensure success. Bibliography Gang. (n. d. ). Encyclopedia of Childrens Health. Retrieved April 22, 2008, from Answers. com Web site: http://www. answers. com/topic/gang Howell, J. (2006). The Impact of Gangs on Communities. NYGC Bulletin. Retrieved April 22, from IIGC Website: www. iir. com/nygc/publications/NYGCbulletin_0806. pdf. Green, F. (1999). Street Gangs in School. Retrieved April 20, 2008 at Keys to Safer Schools Website: http://www. keystosaferschools. com/Newsletter%20Vol. %208%20pg%203. htm. Safe Youth. (2007). Gangs fact sheet. Retrieved April 20, 2008 at National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center Website: http://www. safeyouth. org/scripts/facts/gangs. asp. Burnett, G. and G. Walz. (1994). Gangs in the Schools. Retrieved April 20, 2008 at Eric Digests Website: http://www. ericdigests. org/1995-1/gangs. htm. Johnson, S. and D. Muhlhausen. (2005). North American Transnational Youth Gangs: Breaking the Chain of Violence. Retrieved April 20, 2008 at Heritage Website: http://www. heritage. org/research/urbanissues/bg1834. cfm.

A Critique of Compulsory Schooling :: Education

â€Å"The knowledge of the world is to only to be acquired in the world, and not in a closet.† Thus said Lord Chesterfield, who understood the fact that locking children away is not the best way to teach them. It is a painful reality that students are not being educated, but rather simply being schooled, and most people who understand street slang know that â€Å"to be schooled† is to be beaten down. This terminology is not a coincidence. Compulsory schooling is eliminating society of its most vibrant sources of variety, and teaching children that no work is worth finishing, and that they must depend on someone else’s word in order to survive. John Taylor Gatto, NY State Teacher of the Year in 1991, describes how society is slowly becoming sterile due to a lack of variety – when children are locked away in their classroom prison cells, and senior citizens are locked away in retirement homes, there is no one from which to find an alternating viewpoint. Schools tear children away from their families when they could be using the time to learn something from their parents, or their grandparents. There is a reason why mythological wise characters are always aged, and children are tragically missing prime opportunities to spend time with these experienced individuals. God forbid they should actually learn something that might be applicable to them later in life, as opposed to the standardized material that will be forgotten as soon as the next test is turned in. Schools tear at the very source of variety – the family. If all children are herded up into a single institution, they are less likely to think critically enough to recognize oppression or hypocrisy from the higher-ups (the ones making money). For example, drivers constantly relay stories about how traffic cops have tried to take advantage of them by making up laws and assuming that the offender is not critical enough to question his authority. Tickets are given and fines are paid over false premises, and no one wonders why. People like traffic cops feed off of the ignorance that is pumped out of these schools – indeed, it is often their best source of monetary gain. The victims in these situations always feel absolutely betrayed. However, schools often play out similar scenes, and yet it is rare to find a student who understands this betrayal. They are placed under the supervision of strange adults – many of whom simply go through the motions in order to earn their paychecks – and are expected to place unbending faith in the words that these adults utter.

Macroeconomics Paper

With the decline on the disposable income of every household in the economy, domestic consumption started to deteriorate creating a negative impact on various industries including the housing industry. It was identified based form the data collected by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics that the compound annual rate of the housing industry’s CPI for February 2008 was equal to 2.8 percent, with November 2007 exhibited the highest changes from its preceding month equal to 0.4 percent, as compared to the 4.2 percent of February 2007. This only means that the rate of increase in the prices of housing units starts to slow down but still remains high considering the disposable income every household currently have. Furthermore, employment rate plunges down along side with the housing market as August 2007 recorded the highest lay-off on the history of housing market equivalent to 21,000 as compared to only 1,000 lay-offs happened last August 2006. With this large number of workers laid-off from their jobs, plus the increasing number of bankrupt housing companies, employment rate started to decline. Though the GDP of United States remains high despite of the turmoil in the housing market, but its GDP growth rate significantly decline from 2006 to 2007 from 2.6 percent to 1.5 percent respectively. This only means that housing market still imposes barrier towards the economic growth of United States. Housing starts was down by 28.4 percent from 2006 to 2007 as consumers cuts their demand on housing units due to limited budget and high cost. In order to prevent the said depression of the housing market, federal government continued slashing down their interest rate to guide housing companies to recover financially since housing sales has been declining since 2006. Last January 2008, the Federal Reserve cut the interest rate to 3.5 percent in order to stabilize the economy and prevent the impeding economic recession (Presse, 2008). Furthermore, it was also identified that new home sales declined by around 46 and 30 percent on 2006 and 2007 respectively. The said record was the lowest annual home sales since 1995. The above identified economic factors help most of the economists and market analysts in determining the future performance of the housing market as well as of other industries in the economy. In this regard, the aim of this paper is to identify various macroeconomic factors that affect the performance of the housing market and how it affects the behavior of the entire housing market. Furthermore, discussions on the future condition of housing market will be presented in order to easily understand how economists and market analysts projects the performance of housing market. Expect also at the end of this paper alternatives that would address macroeconomic factors that negatively affects the stability of the housing market and its evaluation that will serve as the guide in choosing the appropriate solution for the instability of the housing market. Conclusion Based from the given data, arguments and examples above, it is therefore clear that housing market is indeed performing inefficiently due to various macroeconomic factors. Depletion of consumer’s disposable income made significant negative effects to various macroeconomic factors that later on serves as the source of instability of many industries in the economy including the housing market. Furthermore, the projections of most economists and market analysts regarding the future condition of the housing market greatly affects how financial institutions establishes their lending transactions with the housing companies which adds up to the financial problems of the latter. With the aid of fiscal and monetary policies of the federal government, the issues concerning the instability of the housing market are solved. References Presse, A. F. (2008). Fed Slashes US Interest Rates to 3.5%. Retrieved April 3, 2008

Academic and Professional Skills Development Essay

There is a new world in the academic and the post academic the students must adapt themselves to. The world has become increasingly competitive and there is an exponential expansion of knowledge and information and this means that the students who will survive in this new world order are the ones who will adapt to keep up with this highly dynamic world. The way universities used to be has changed and they are now not only centres of disseminating knowledge, but also centres of promoting change (Soontiens, 2002). This change is not just intellectual change, it is all encompassing change that makes a complete makeover of the raw material it receives in the formative years and gives out a refined product that is well shaped to tackle the emerging issues in the world. Gone are the days when having a degree was something to be cerebrated by all and sundry. Nowadays, if you have just the undergraduate degree, you are just another first among equals and you do not have any competitive advantage over millions of others who have a first degree like you. This means that learning is a life long process and this world belongs to those who understand this fact (Verville, 1990). This is because the world is now being moved by knowledge and information, and these are two highly dynamic facets; how else do you acquire them apart form engaging seriously in lifelong learning (Soontiens, 2002). Even the world economies have changed from the conventional heavy economies to the modern knowledge based economies where knowledge and information and not machineries and physical labour are now the drivers of the economies. The most powerful thing right now in the world is information and knowledge and students must dedicate their lives to continuous process of learning to be able function in this highly knowledge driven world (Soontiens, 2002). Another important element that the universities are emphasizing today is critical thinking. Thinking is important but critical thinking is what differentiates a smart student or even worker from the rest (Soontiens, 2002). The more the world is changing, the more the problems are evolving and the solutions to these problems must be found for progress to take place. These problems cannot be solved by ordinary thinkers; they can only be solved by critical thinkers. This is another area that the universities are focusing on. They are out to churn graduates with acute problem solving skills by teaching them how to make critical analyses of life situations (Soontiens, 2002). For the students to be said that they have adequate problem solving skills, they must be able to use some habits of the mind and one of these habits is formation of perspectives; which involve the organization of arguments into parts and then separate the most important from the least important. It also involves separating opinions from facts and then the value of each is appreciated (Verville, 1990). This is the basis of critical thinking. Another habit of the mind that is involved in critical thinking is analysis. After forming perspectives, it is important to ponder on the arguments in a way that is reflective. This involves the use of logic and also knowing the limits of the analysis. The other critical habit of the mind that is involved in the process of critical thinking is imagination (Soontiens, 2002). This is the disposition to make an evolution of your view of an issue using contemporary and conventional patterns that will suffice now and in the future. A university that is not equipping its students with the aforementioned abilities is in a very wrong path. The workplace, just like the academic arena has changed significantly. Education alone cannot help one to fit in the contemporary work environment because of its highly social and flexible nature. Thus the universities are putting this into consideration by ensuring that they do not mould academic giants and social dwarfs who cannot fit in today’s workplace. They are churning out all round products that are readily prepared to face the challenging job market and the demanding workplace (Verville, 1990). That is why you see in the workplace today, people are not necessarily doing what they studied. Education students are working in banks, Law students are working as news reporters and so on. This means that one thing that the universities are teaching very well is flexibility: do not just follow one line, there are many things you can do there with your education. In the workplace, the workers must be able to work as a team and individually.   There are some more habits of the mind that can help them to fit well in the highly challenging, demanding and evolving workplace (Soontiens, 2002). One of these habits of the mind is empathy. Empathy involves sensing reasonable views, revering all views and honoring the one that is the most persuasive. The other habit of the mind is communication which is the ability to take the duty of explaining ideas in a clear, truthful and sober way that respects all those who are listening to them or seeing them being communicated.   The other habit of the mind that ought to be developed is that of commitment. This is the recognition of the necessity to act when there is an action worth attention and being patient to the situation one has stepped forward to respond to (James, 2003). The current generation takes the flak for the many ills that are happening in the society. The generation has been labeled as irresponsible, insensitive and morally corrupt and the universities are taking measures to ensure that all the raw materials they receive will be devoid of the aforementioned tags by the time they are being churned out as products. This means that apart from just giving the intellectual knowledge, they are also equipping the students with skills that will make them responsible members of the society who can be trusted to take over the leadership from the old conservative generation that is far beyond the benefit of the modern information and knowledge revolution. This means that there are programs that are teaching leadership skills, social welfare skills and may other skills that can make the students reliable members of the society (Verville, 1990). The habits of the mind that can help the students to become more responsible members of the society include, value which is the choice to apply a pattern of behavior that is intellectual and ignoring the patterns that are less productive. The other habit of the mind is inclination that includes the tendency to apply the aforementioned behavior without pressure or motivation (James, 2003). Sensitivity is another habit of the mind that will make the students to become more responsible members of the society because of its ability to perceive opportunities and threats and also emphasizes the appropriateness of applying behavior that is intellectual in pursuit of opportunities and in evasion of threats. Capability is a habit of the mind that will help the students in application of the basic intellectual skills that are central to behavior while commitment on this platform means the desire to reflect and improve the behavioral performance (James, 2003). In conclusion, university students in the contemporary world must adapt to the knowledge and information that is expanding markedly. They must be life long learners who think critically and are flexible to be able to fit in this highly dynamic world. They must be problem solvers who can work independently and in a team. The education system today, apart from teaching the basics of education is also teaching the students to become responsible citizens who are open minded and can communicate with people from allover the world.   This new approach by the universities is a step in the right direction and should become a global concept inherent in all the academic systems. As illustrated in the essay, this new mode of learning borrows heavily from Costa and Carrick the Habit of the mind and it puts a whole new psychological dispensation to the world of academia that will ensure the mind must change for the individual to embrace the change in the society.

How to Develop Editorial Values with Help Scouts Greg Ciotti [PODCAST]

How to Develop Editorial Values with Help Scouts Greg Ciotti [PODCAST] Publishing great content that makes your clients successful is the real challenge of marketing. Having editorial values that help your team stay on the same page while creating customer-focused content is the key to success. Today’s guest, Gregory Ciotti, content marketing manager of Help Scout, can help your team create your own set of editorial values and find the connection between content marketing and customer success. Learn how to make your customers more successful, which, in turn, contributes to your success! Some of today’s highlights include: The lowdown on Help Scout: What it is, what they’ve been doing, and Gregory’s role as content marketing manager at the organization. How Gregory defines great content: something that solves a problem, something that contributes to business goals, and content that serves as a positive representation of the company. The elements of Gregory’s editorial values, including strategy, tactics, and examples. Gregory suggests some objectives to consider when creating content. What Gregory means by â€Å"vivid writing.† Being clear and imaginative is a challenge, but necessary to make you and your customers successful. How to use content to provide context between prospective customers and your product or service. Methods for gathering customer feedback to help you better understand what to cover in your content. Powered by PodcastMotor Actionable Content Marketing powered by By 00:00/00:00 1x 100 > Download file Subscribe on iTunes Leave Review Share

Accenture Social Media Analysis

Accenture Social Media Analysis MKT 436 Ian Cartmill Zach Crawford Edwin Huang Tyler Whitsett Introduction Accenture PLC is one of the leading consulting firms in the country and has developed an extensive social media platform to expand its reach in the business world. Accenture currently has a network of social media across many platforms including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn. Through Facebook and Twitter, Accenture segments its markets by region, type of service, and career options by making a Facebook page or Twitter account exclusively for that market. With Accenture’s YouTube page, a wide variety of videos ranging from video blogs to educational content on company growth. Finally, through LinkedIn, Accenture profiles its different services as well as connects with professionals who would be looking for their services. In addition to the traditional social media sites, Accenture operates many different applications through Facebook, iTunes, Google Play as well as its own online publication, Outlook. After a description, an analysis will be given to measure the performance of Accenture’s social media’s efforts. Finally, recommendations will be given on how Accenture can improve their efforts to reach a wider audience. Social Media Description Accenture’s Facebook and Twitter presence is extremely large which is shown by the numerous pages on these sites. Currently, Accenture has over â€Å"40 different pages on Facebook and 30 different Twitter handles† (A1), each catering to a particular market. About half of these pages are targeted based on the region or country in order to provide information exactly aimed a country’s business environment. Within each of the country’s pages, discussions and interactions occur with customers and users through contests, interviews, philanthropic endeavors in the region done by Accenture, and information the company provides on different industries. Usually the country’s page will display resume opportunity linksin order to keep acquiring new talent for the company. If career opportunities are not listed on this page, an individual career page is listed to provide information on career opportunities at Accenture in that region. On Accenture’s main Facebook and Twitter pages, different examples of management, operations, marketing, and other strategies are presented so all customers can see the level of analysis they will receive from an Accenture team. Also, articles written by Accenture are shown on the pages that range from work events to in depth stories on industry trends constantly are posted weekly. Finally, the last sets of pages on Facebook and Twitter are used to provide customers with an in-depth look into the different services provided by Accenture. For example, the Sustainability Services Facebook page provides links to articles and case studies on sustainability in a business in order to reduce cost and create efficiencies (http://www. facebook. com/accenturesustainabilityservices). They also engage their customers and users through surveys, games and other actions that keep users coming back to their page. In addition to Accenture’s Facebook and Twitter pages, YouTube and LinkedIn provide a unique and different way to reach out to their customers. Through their YouTube account, Accenture is able to provide different types of new information to both current and potential new customers with its â€Å"251 videos† (A1). For example, a Capital Markets video blog is used to describe different topics related to capital markets and the process of managing the risks with them. In another set of videos, a video podcast shows different traits of a high performance business model that can be emulated by other companies. All content that is put up on the YouTube account is used to attract new customers to what Accenture does and provide existing clientele insights as to how Accenture’s strategies can better their companies. This is a more casual look at Accenture’s customer attraction actions. For a more formal approach to gaining new customers and staying connected with current clients, LinkedIn is utilized. With LinkedIn, Accenture can professionally show their â€Å"core competencies as well as present customer recommendations and feedback† (LinkedIn). They also demonstrate their corporate culture through employee reviews and insight. To go along with Facebook and Twitter, they also have a careers page to continue acquiring talent in every medium possible. Beyond the typical social media realms in which most companies are involved in, Accenture has also grown into new areas that differentiate themselves in the social media marketing. This is done through Accenture’s online journal, Outlook, and the development of apps to further their marketing efforts. Outlook provides a unique connection to existing and potential customers by giving articles that can be anything from industry specific trends or news to skill and service actions. This demonstrates the level of expertise Accenture can provide to new customers, and assist in providing additional offerings to their current customers. Finally, after all traditional online forms of social media are exhausted; Accenture also provides many of the same marketing sites in the form of mobile apps for the iTunes and Google Play markets. This gives customers the ability to see all content and information on the go as most business people are. These applications include a mobile version of Outlook and other service specific applications (Google Play). Social Media Analysis Although Accenture has tapped into the most popular social networks, they don’t utilize them to their full potential. Their main strength across the social networking platforms is the ability to reach current and potential customers, employees, future hires, students, and anyone who might be interested in what Accenture has to offer. An example is their applications through iTunes and Google play. On iTunes they â€Å"have 14 mobile apps and on Google Play they have 11 apps compared to Ernst amp; Young’s 6 apps on iTunes and 3 apps on Google Play† (A1). Some apps are duplicates; some are strictly for employees, while others are for the public. The apps range from a National Postal Forum to Financial Services to Lux in Arcana. Since it is available on iPhone and Android platform, they are targeting the most popular smartphone users. Another metric to consider how large their social network presence is their main Facebook page, Accenture has over â€Å"145,000 likes compared to E amp; Y with 15,000 likes† (A1). With these many options and a well-known presence, they are able to increase their brand awareness and position themselves as knowledge experts in that field. Another strength Accenture has with their social platforms is that they are continuously adding content to them. On their Twitter feed, they â€Å"tweet an average of 66 times a week along with additional links in the message compared to E amp; Y’s 20 tweets a week† (A1). On their Facebook , they post â€Å"39 times a week compared to E amp; Y’s 2 times a week† (A1). More tweets and posts, enables them the opportunity to be noticed more by the market. This is shown through how many Facebook users are talking about them. Accenture has over â€Å"2,000 users posting about them compared to E amp; Y’s 390 users talking about them† (A1). A weakness of their social networks is the lack of integration across the different platforms. An example is their YouTube and Twitter page. In their description, it only provides a link to their home page instead of including their Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, iTunes store, and Google Play. (About Accenture). After an analysis of their YouTube channel, we determined that they could include more in their descriptions by including a summary of the video, tags, and follow up information. They need to make it easier for users to dive further into Accenture if necessary. Another weakness of their social networking strategy is that it does not incorporate a form of a push/pull strategy. Their current push strategy is not creating an atmosphere of a two way interaction. On their pages, they do not engage or follow up with the users to keep them coming back. Although they ask questions in their tweets, they are not going out of their way to search for potential topics they could enlighten a user about. From comparing Accenture’s social media networks to Ernst and Young’s networks, they both use the same platforms but Accenture has a larger social media presence with more content. In Twitter, Accenture has over 62,000 followers with over 5500 tweets compared to E amp; Y’s 37,000 followers and 2,600 tweets. On LinkedIn, Accenture has over 600,000 followers with 179,000 employees on it compared to E amp; Y’s 364,000 followers and 114,000 employees on LinkedIn. Accenture has the most presence and content in every category except for the amount of YouTube videos they have. Accenture has 251 compared to E amp; Y’s 485. Managerial Recommendations The heart of a successful e-commerce strategy is the ability to attract and engage a potential customer by offering easy access to a variety of different information channels about your company. Although Accenture offers many different informational channels that explain who they are and what services they can offer to potential clients, these channels are not easily accessible. When doing a simple search of Accenture on Google, you initially see a link to Accenture’s website along with a few key words with vague descriptions. In order for Accenture to attract and gain new clients they need to have access points to all of their different social networks. These social media access points will allow Accenture to promote its marketing message to a larger business demographic who will feel more comfortable operating in one of these social media domains. Accenture also needs to do a better job at educating its customer base by explaining who Accenture is as a company and what kind of services they offer to potential clients. As it stands now customers who go on Accenture’s company website have to navigate through web page after web page to find a simple description on which the company is and what services they offer. Accenture’s homepage is full of key words and links to other parts of the company’s website. I would recommend that the include information on value added services that would differentiate itself for competitors. Accenture should elaborate on its many value added services that it has done in the past on projects that reduced cost, improved performance, innovative features, speed responsiveness and customization. These value added services will not only attract and sustain customers it will also help Accenture’s bottom line by causing customers to pay a higher premium for services rendered. Since most of the services that Accenture offers to its customers are intangible they need to do a better job at trying to make their services feel more tangible, instead of just offering detailed, long worded business plans and short, non-descriptive statements on services provided. Accenture could further demonstrate services that they provided to past customers through cost savings graphs, efficiency improvement charts, and customer testimonials. Also, to reduce customer uncertainty and address any questions a potential customer might have I would recommend that Accenture have a live web assistant messaging service on their home page. This service would allow the customers to speak in real time to a customer service representative. These simple tweaks to Accenture’s homepage will reduce some of the unknowns and risk that all customers undoubtedly face when searching for a new company to do business with. In order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of B2B marketing Accenture should adopt a CRM system like its lead competitor Ernst amp; Young did to manage its client customer base. Ernst amp; Young adopted a CRM software called Aprimo to perform the following functions: targeted direct e-mails, ongoing lead management, inbound interactions via Web form submission, Webcast registration and follow-up, and project management (task assignment and follow-up) for their national and regional marketing teams (Shadick, 2012). Many of the components of the information within Ernst amp; Youngs Aprimo CRM system are shared with customer relationship departments within the firm. For example, opportunities are collected from events, tradeshows, sponsorships, webcast and direct communications, which are then distributed to the appropriate individuals for follow-up (Shadick, 2012). With the adoption of CRM systems like Aprimo, Accenture would have real-time access to client’s interest and inquires allowing them to tailor their response to new and existing client’s needs. Conclusion In Conclusion Accenture is a very dynamic B2B company that utilizes virtually all of the media outlets available to educate and attract new customers. Accenture’s B2B marketing campaign is unique in the fact that it leverages its current ongoing business initiatives with its own customer base through an online Journal called: Outlook. This journal boldly talks about what Accenture is doing now and in the future for its client base. This and many other creative marketing/informational channels that Accenture has created brings assurance and a sense of trust to customers who are uncertain with partaking in a service that really doesn’t produce a tangible outcome and cost thousands, if not millions, of dollars to perform. Works Cited Shadick, David (2011). Ernst amp; Young Better Manages B2B Marketing with Aprimo Marketing, Sun. 17 Nov. 2012. lt;http://www. information-management. com/issues/20030301/6410-1. htmlgt;. Services. Linkedin n. pag. LinkedIn. Web. 17 Nov 2012. lt;http://www. linkedin. com/company/accenture/products? trk=tabs_biz_productgt;. Apps by Accenture. Google play n. pag. Google play. Web. 17 Nov 2012. lt;https://play. google. com/store/apps/developer? id=Accentureamp;hl=engt;. Accenture. About Accenture n. pag. YouTube. Web. 17 Nov 2012. lt;https://www. youtube. com/user/Accenturegt;. Appendix A1 – Social Network Metrics

Marketing communications Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Marketing communications - Essay Example Advertising using these mediums has changed perspectives of brands in our minds. Furthermore, marketing tools such as aiming below-the-line marketing, direct marketing, personal selling, door-to-door selling are now being used to sell customized products to the customers just like the way they want it. Now customers can also enjoy the luxuries just by a click of a mouse or a remote on a TV to shop online, order through the phone or book products through telemarketing. A company can use many different mediums of communicating their intended message to the customers as mentioned in the preceding section. However, due to resource shortage, companies do efficient resource allocation which in the marketing world is known as adopting the right Marketing (Promotion) Mix. The Promotions Mix is the specific mix of advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, public relations, and direct marketing that an organization uses to pursue its marketing objectives. The promotional mix itself is part of the wider marketing mix; it is one of the four P's of marketing, product, price, and place and of course promotion itself. First and foremost it is important to consider the relative strengths and weaknesses of each component/tool of the promotional mix in deciding... Typical advertising media include Yellow Pages, local newspapers, radio, television advertisements, trade journals, exhibitions and websites. The advantage of advertising is that it can reach a large and geographically dispersed audience It has a low cost per exposure, though the overall costs of making advertisements and producing and airing them might be high. Advertising also tends to create brand recognition Reinforces product existence (by consistently repeating key messages) Dramatizes company/brand Builds brand image The disadvantages can be its impersonal outlook lack of direct feedback (one-way communication) As mentioned earlier it is expensive Personal selling Personal selling is a very effective form of promotion since it allows customization according to the needs of the customers. For example it can be a presentation by a company's sales force for the purpose of making sales and building customer relationships Personal selling is very effective marketing tool for building customer relationships as personal interaction allows for feedback and adjustments; Buyers are more attentive; Sales force represents a long-term commitment; Allows for direct and immediate response to customer feedback; Disadvantages are that it is one of the most expensive of the promotional tools both in terms of time and money. But it must be borne in mind that active networking with existing customers, business associations and even suppliers can play an important role in promoting the business to a wider target audience. Sales promotion Sales promotion usually constitutes short-term, specific incentives to encourage the purchase or sale of a product or service. A large variety of sales promotion tools can be used such