The differences between offshoring and outsourcing

The differences between offshoring and outsourcing OFF-SHORING is moving a part or whole of a process from home country to another country but to a unit of the same company. It usually involves setting up a process in a country where the firm also has its unit. [1] e.g. MNCs having their offices in multiple countries may be involved in off-shoring processes. IBM, HP off shoring to India to make use of the talented engineers pool. For many years international trade has just been about trading completed products across the globe. But due to technology and transportation ease, it has lead to tasks being off shored thus adding value to global supply chains. [2]This is usually done to reduce cost, increasing pool of innovation; expanding into new markets, recruiting for special skills in every country, thus developing a strong human resource and various such reasons. OUT-SOURCE on the other hand involves one company doing a task for another. [1] Outsourcing may not only aid cost reduction but also help in achieving operational excellence.eg payroll outsourcing to HR consultancies .E.g. Accenture. [4]This helps in resourcing the operations from the best work pool in the desired functional area. Figure 1 OFF-SHORE OUTSOURCING is like a combination of the two. It involves both, getting another company from another country to perform a task or process of a firm. Globalisation has been the key driver to such activities. Earlier such activities were performed by relatively low skilled workers. These activities were primarily seen in manufacturing industries but now it has explored into service sector and attracted high skilled work. Increased competition ,need for reducing cost ,skilled and cheap workforce has driven globalisation, but these also attract high effort and risk thus making it advantageous and disadvantageous at the same time.eg Massachusetts General hospital in USA offshore outsourcing interpretation of CT scans to radiographers in India. [1] We will hereon discuss primarily on OFF-SHORE OUTSOURCING. The discussion would consider two parameters, firstly the advantages and disadvantages of Off-shore outsourcing on Western economies like UK USA and emerging economies like India, China, Brazil, Kenya and secondly its effect on the respective workforces. Offshore outsourcing is beneficial for the western economies in various ways, such as the production or service providing costs are high in these economies owing to the high living cost, area cost, transportation and telecommunication cost. Thus if companies from these economies move off-shore and outsource their production or services task it would cost them less, this would also give them a strong grounding for competing globally . E.g. Loake UK based shoe manufacturer offshore outsources its process in France India and then the final assembly takes place in UK. The cost saved can be invested in home country. Off-shore outsourcing also helps western economy companies in expanding their clientele in new unharnessed markets with great potential, their thus the company grows globally E.g. The western universities get major funding through international students from India and China due to outsourcing, attraction of students by various educational advisor companies like Edwise(India), Chopras(India). Microsoft has offshore outsourced its IT work to India; this has led to increased recognition of Microsoft there and thus increased sales. Off-shore outsourcing also fosters round the clock working, harnessing the time zone differences. E.g. Many USA firms outsource their system management to Indian software engineers, thus when the companies close down in USA the computers can be updated or fixed via software engineers in India (K Dice India Pvt. Ltd.)[9] due to the approximately 12 hr difference in time zone. [1][3][7] .Offshore outsourcing may also boost innovation. Flexibility, off load work: You can create capacity for higher margin work in internal sources. This of course creates flexibility in the company ensuring the optimum utilization of the available resources within the company. MachroTech offers you an  offshore outsourcing model  which combines the best of its onshore and  Offshore Software Outsourcing  resources, to provide you with the flexibi lity to operate your business flawlessly [7]. Western companies can benefit from operational excellence by outsourcing specific consultants to bring out high performance .e.g. PWC, TCS are being outsourced by companies to carry out financial or HR consulting. Thus western economies can benefit from various offshore outsourcing like software development, managing HR tasks like pay rolls, legal outsourcing, RD, interpreting CT scan, medical transcription, accounting (PWC), data entry etc. Due to globalization and linking of economies across the globe, this would result in benefits for the emerging economies too. Majorly, the GDP of exports increase in the emerging economies .Their local currency becomes strong .Foreign direct investment in these economies increase. This leads to development of these economies. Poverty and malnutrition is on the verge of eradication in these economies.[8] Other not so direct effect of offshore outsourcing over emerging economies are adopting new mannerisms, developing English as a primary business language thus reducing linguistic issues, increasing the standard of living of people in emerging economies. Off-shore outsourcing may also be from emerging markets to developed economy market serving as offshore outsourcing destination. E.g. Nasscom the premier trade body and the chamber of commerce of the IT-BPO industries in India has offshore outsourced its financial reporting to McKinsey (UK).[5][6] As it has been mentioned earlier Off-shore outsourcing also has its own disadvantages, for the western companies or the emerging market companies it would mean loss of control over the production or service. This may be because the offshore outsourced company may not work diligently. This will lead to production losses or unsatisfactory service to the customers. With time zone difference follows the problem of communication, transparency of work. Linguistic barriers and cultural misfits all these impacts business on the long run. [10] With offshore outsourcing increase, the imports to the western countries increase thus increasing trade deficit. [3] Off-shore outsourcing also brings along various risks: Project execution risks that would mean loss of full transparency in how the work is being done. Whether the personnel offshore or company offshore is working diligently and not showing a slack behaviour towards their duties. Intellectual Property risks that pertain to sharing the sensitive details and technological details of the company with the outsource destination company. This usually leads to counterfeiting of pharmaceuticals, luxury products etc. and thus this may lead to less sales for originally producing companies and greater sales for the companies that outsource since they have the technical know- how and produce and sell the same goods at a lower rate. Various other legal risks are also seen [11]. Now to discuss about the advantages and disadvantages due to offshore-outsourcing in western company and emerging market countries with respect to their workforce. As far as offshore outsourcing is concerned any company when involves any other company in its process has to deal with organisational culture change, thus workforce have to accept the change n move on or else they might be laid out. Western economy workforce has some advantages. If it gets some of its task outsourced like it may help the employees in moving to higher jobs, higher salary, higher standard of living, good incentives. [1] According to Rajan n Wei(2004)the number of jobs that loose on outsourcing are gained back due to in sourcing[3].Employees can choose to work in rotational shifts, thus giving them flexibility in working hours, since offshore outsourcing provides round the clock working options. English being their own language they have fewer language troubles, since its the basic business language. But offshore outsourcing has major disadvantages for the workforce of the western countries because the basic minimum wage in these countries are higher than in emerging market companies thus mass layoffs are happening. To retain their jobs the western company employees have to work at lesser pay, what makes matter difficult is that in these countries cost of living is very high and thus low salary will lead people to poverty. According to AT Kearneys 2011 Global Services Location Index (GSLI) the top three positions in outsourcing destinations are occupied by India, China, and Malaysia [13]. So automatically outsourcing brings in many advantages to emerging economy workforce. It brings great employment opportunities to these emerging economies. This is due to availability of skilled and yet cheap labour. This helps in increasing the standard of living of all the people, this leads to happier family life, better educated kids, more hygiene, health, socially conscious people helps the country and its economy as a whole. Knowledge base of the people increase. Due to outsourcing companies working round the clock, it gives rise to rotational shifts this leads to flexible working hours, and thus theres job that suits to everyones timing. There is a lower chance of brain drain. The workforce is more dedicated, and thus the results are great. This leads to motivation and better working. [3] The developing country workforce learns the western style of working, thus becomes more organized, independent and goal oriented. There are a few disadvantages too for the workforce of emerging economy companies like due to time differences between the home and host country ,employees may unwillingly have to work at rotational shifts.eg TCS employees join the company at regular office timing but the work begins only in accordance to the country that has outsourced work at TCS ,thus long working hours. Thus the workforce works under stressful condition. They get paid lesser than their western country counterpart. Emerging market companies usually have unhealthy or unethical working environment .E.g. Tesco, ASda Primark outsourcing to Bangladesh but using child labour and unhealthy conditions. [14] Linguistic issues, cultural misfits also pose to be de-motivating for the workforce. Thus offshore outsourcing tries to reduce the difference between the emerging and western economies, creating the world a knowledgeable, friendly, culturally one place to live in. Although everything has its pro and cons, its the riskier thing that fetches more. So I consider offshore outsourcing very lucrative.

vicksburg :: essays research papers fc

Battle of Vicksburg The Battle of Vicksburg, The Civil war that in my opinion cut our nation in two, Americans fighting Americans. This was a very important battle that was fought westward it was the turning point in the war. The Union forces under General Ulysses S. Grant on July 4, 1863, General Ulysses S. Grant with the largest force, about 67, 000 men. Vicksburg is the last spot on the Mississippi River. May through July in 1862, several attempts to seize Vicksburg were made by Adam. These Ventures failed because the guns used on the ships could not be directed effectively against the confederate batteries high on the bluffs, and because the confederate troops far outnumbered the Unions sent against them. Between Cairo, Illinois, and the Gulf of Mexico, the Mississippi River twists and winds for nearly 1,000 miles. Having control of Vicksburg and the Mississippi River was a huge benefit in the war. The River was important to both the American Government and to the Confederate forces in the west. Confederate forces made artillery batteries ready to take Union ships. Before the Civil War, Vicksburg, Mississippi had become one of the most prosperous and advanced towns on the old Southern frontier. The city was the center of trade; it was crowded with boats carrying all kinds of goods. By early 1862 the peaceful town had become one of the most important spots in the whole confederacy. From the beginning of the war in 1861, to protect their most prized possession, the Confederacy but up protective points along the river. After fighting their way south from Illinois and north from Gulf of Mexico, Federal forces eventually captured post after post. Until the summer of 1862, only Vicksburg and Port Hudson appeared to be major spots to the Union of the two posts, Vicksburg was the strongest and most important. The city Sate was high over looking a bend in the river, protected by artillery and dangerous swamps. So far the city had rejected Union efforts to force into submission. In order to protect the Mississippi Valley, Confederates made a line of defense, which ran from Columbus, Kentucky, overlooking the Mississippi River through bowling green to Cumberland Gap where the bright flank was secure on the mountains. On the Mississippi River, south of Columbus, forts were also placed on island number 10 and on the Chickasaw Bluffs north of supported Jackson St.

Maniac Magee :: essays research papers

Maniac Magee is about a boy who struggled throughout his life. His name was Jeffrey Lionel Magee, sometimes known as Maniac Magee. His parents died in a trolley accident when he was three years old. He is patient, determined, and he really wants to be loved and understood. He spent eight years in bizarre household of his Aunt Dot and Uncle Dan, who hated each other but refused to divorce. They lived in the same house without speaking to each other, using Magee as their go-between. He tried to have them talk to each other but he failed, so in the middle of his school concert Magee screamed: â€Å"Talk to each other†, and then ran away. That was the beginning of his run and search for a real home. He ended up in the town of Two Mills, two hundred miles away from his aunt and uncle. The Jeffrey meats a black girl called Amanda Beale, who introduced him to the town and told him that this town is divided by race into East and West Ends. It is with Amanda and her family that Magee found a home. In Two Mills, he was called â€Å"Maniac Magee† after defeating John McNab, a giant five feet eight twelve year old child, in a baseball game. McNab was a member of the Cobras, a survivalist gang who hates and fear blacks. Magee has a strong sense of jus tice, a thirst for knowledge, and an amazing lack of fear. The only time that he showed fear in the book was when he did not walk out on trolley trestle where his parents were killed, not even to help a frightened little boy. Magee then met a new friend called Earl Grayson, an old man at the zoo. Magee helped Grayson how to read and then he found a home with him at the zoo bandstand.

Secondhand Smoke :: Argumentative Persuasive Example Essays

How Secondhand Smoking Affects Us   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As most of you know, smoking is bad for your health, but what some of you might not know is that you don’t actually have to smoke to be harmed by smoking. Lung cancer, which is the leading cause of cancer deaths in men and women, is mainly caused by cigarette smoking. Secondhand smoking causes approximately 2 percent of lung cancer deaths each year. It causes respiratory disease, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), middle ear disease, and asthma attacks in children.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Imagine a room full of young, healthy second-graders with a Joe Camel cigarette in their hand, smoking; that is basically what secondhand smoking is like. It has toxic and carcinogenic effects that are practically the same as smoking a cigarette. Children from birth to 2 years of age are especially vulnerable to secondhand smoke because their lungs are not fully developed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The EPA estimates that secondhand smoking is responsible for between 150,000 and 300,000 lower respitory infections in infants and children under 18 months of age yearly, which result in between 7,500 and 15,000 hospitalizations each year. Children exposed to secondhand smoke are also more likely to have reduced lung function and symptoms like coughing, excess phlegm, and wheezing. Secondhand smoking can lead to a buildup of fluid in the middle ear, the most common cause of hospitalized children for an operation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Asthmatic children are especially at risk. Exposure to secondhand smoke increases the number of episodes and severity of symptoms in hundreds of thousands of asthmatic children. Between 200,000 and 1,000,000 asthmatic children have their condition worsened by secondhand smoke.

Narrative and Narration Essay

Narrative and narration in films are the way in which the audience follows the plot. The difference between narrative and narration is only really clear when both are understood properly. Narrative is basically the way we see all the events in a film unfold. E.g. ‘Blair Witch Project’. A group of film students go into the woods to film a documentary about the myth of the Blair Witch. What we see is the people film everything that they do. We see (in a nutshell) them get lost, get scared and then looking at a wall. Narration is the process through which a film conveys or withholds narrative information, the way the story is told. Narration concerns the actual arrangement and presentation of the story in the film, the way the film distributes story information in order to achieve specific effects. E.g. in the ‘Blair Witch Project’ the story conveys the idea that there is ‘something’ out there, but it withholds all the information on the thing by never showing anything out of the ordinary. Once these two are understood we have to look into the two other effects to do with narration. These two are omniscient and restricted narration. Omniscient narration is where the audience is subjected to information from many sources such as ‘Lock Stock and two Smoking Barrels’. The film switches from one character to the next all the time, thus we never get to know one character more that any other. Plus it gives the audience more information than any of the characters, so we have an advantage over them all, which creates a feeling of suspense because the viewer is on the edge of their seat wondering if a certain character will find out a specific piece of information. Restricted narrative is where the film conveys the narrative to the viewer via one character. E.g. ‘Get Carter’. In this film we get almost all of the information from Jack Carter. He is in almost every scene. The advantage of this is that you know everything Jack knows, also everything that he doesn’t know. This is used in the British gangster genre film because is ads mystery to the question what will happen to our man (Jack  Carter) next. Tzvetan Todorov’s theory of narrative structure is a very simple way of explaining filmic narrative. The following is a point from the theory followed by an example of this from the film ‘Armageddon’. â€Å"A state of equilibrium†. Everything in the world is fine. People getting on with their run of the mill lives. The main star is seen grafting on an oil rig. â€Å"A disturbance of that order by an event†. NASA discover a big ass rock coming to earth at an enormous speed. We also see New York get hit by a meteor storm which emphasises the enormity of this event because the rock was able to squash such big and strong city like New York. â€Å"A recognition that the disorder has occurred†. NASA devises a plot to stop the rock ending all life on Earth, by sending a bunch of drillers to land on it, dig a hole, set of a nuclear bomb and come home heroes. â€Å"A return or restoration of a NEW equilibrium†. The rock is blown to shreds and th e world is saved, so that now everyone can continue grafting for pittance just like before. The new equilibrium is emphasised by the shot of the wedding at the end with the photo of the people who died during this event, so there is less characters so its different from the original equilibrium. This new equilibrium is necessary or otherwise there would be no difference between the start and the end of the film so it would be pointless to watch it if nothing interesting has happened in the main event. So when a film is viewed in this way we get a better understanding of the plot because we realise that its not a straight linear concept, but a circular one. Otherwise how do we get back to the equilibrium if it goes straight. But it can also be argued that it is not a circular process because its not going back to a equilibrium like before but back to a new equilibrium so effectively its going in a linear structure. The narrative in the film is driven by attempts to restore equilibrium. But Todorov’s theory does not end there. Oh no. Todorov also argues that narrative involves a transformation. The characters or the situations are transformed through the progress of the disruption. E.g. Halloween. In this film Laurie Strode starts out as a geeky teenager who is more concerned with her lessons than boys. â€Å"Shit, what, I forgot my chemistry book†. â€Å"Hey Laurie I just got you a date with that boy you like. Oh no please tell me you didn’t. I sure did. OK th en you gotta ring him on  the morning and cancel the whole thing†. But then at the end of the story (which concludes at the end of the sequel Halloween 2) she is a much stronger character. This is emphasised with the character in Halloween H20 where we see how much she has moved on from geeky teenager to a confident, strong, energetic mum. Vladimir Propp believes that the characters in a film have a narrative function in the text. Characters are there to help provide a structure for the text. He found eight basic characters who perform a certain function. Following are the eight characters and with examples of their counterparts in some famous films. The HERO. In ‘The Matrix’ Neo is the person who on a quest for something gets drawn into a world of UN-reality and comes out the unlikely hero after being trained to realise the truth. This is a common action/thriller genre film technique, because it helps the audience feel related in a way to the hero because you realise that it could happen to anyone of us. This is used in ‘Enemy of the State’. Will Smith is the usual nothing and ends up learning how to outsmart the American Government, which are so hard to outsmart apparently. The VILLAIN. In Halloween the villain is the maniac killer Michael Myers. As with most horror films at least the villai n (a killer more times than not) is a psychopath. E.g. ‘Friday the 13th’, Mrs Voorhees is the shock killer, her son was killed in the opening of the film. ‘Nightmare on Elm Street’. Freddie Kruger is the mysterious killer who slashes people up in their sleep. In ‘Night of the Living Dead’ zombies are the weird dead things that try and kill everyone. In ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ its a family of freaks that lure people in and then kill’em. These are the films that scare people. The Villains that shock people are the ones that you cant see. Such as the devil in ‘The Exorcist’ or the witch in ‘The Blair Witch Project’. The reason why the films worked was because the viewer was taken into a world of un-reality and this scared people. It let them be witness to what reality would be like in a unreal society. But more recent horror attempts such as the ‘Scream’ trilogy and ‘Children of the Corn’ use real people as the freaks who go on killing sprees. This kind of film scared film fans because it gave the impression that anyone can turn into homicidal maniacs. These film’s wer e not as praised as the old fashioned films by big horror fans such as myself because  it tries to play the audience into believe something which is already happening in the world, whereas most people go to see films to get away from reality, the new sort of horror film just shows you real life situations. The DONOR. In my view the donor in 90% of films is the narrative. The reason being that in most films the plot is for the good guy to defeat the bad guy. This can be by arresting them, killing them etc., but it doesn’t really matter. The donor provides the object for the hero to go for, or the heroes goal, and this in most films is the neutralisation or stopping of the bad guy. So when looked at like this we see that its the films presentation that provides the goal for the hero. The DISPATCHER. The dispatcher in a film is the person who sends the hero on their way. In the film ‘The Lion King’ the dispatchers are Nala and Moustapha. The reason why it’s these two is because they persuade Simba to go after Scar and regain his kingdom as the king. These are one of the key characters in the story because if it wasn’t for them the hero would no nothing to try and fix the situation. The FALSE HERO. The false hero in the film ‘The World Is Not Enough’ is the character Electra. She appears to be on the side of the hero (James Bond) but then turns against him. She provides him and M with informati on that appears helpful to their cause but we then realise that its part of a trap, between her and the bad guy. This character is very important to the flow of a film because it provides the viewer with a reason to then go on and hate that character, because we relate to the hero and as that person has screwed the hero we therefore feel that she has screwed us to. So in a way it personalises the character with the audience. The HELPER. The helper in a film is the person that seems knowledgeable in a certain aspect of the plot and then goes onto help the hero. The helper in ‘Halloween’ is Sam Loomis. This character is usually a person who for some reason knows the actions of the bad guy. In the case of Sam Loomis he is the doctor of Michael Myers. This helps him know what the killer will do next. He tells the sheriff that the killer will return to Haddonfield to try and kill his one surviving relative Laurie Strode. If it wasn’t for this character the hero would have no chance of stopping the bad guy because he knows absolutely nothing about it. Its also the same in ‘E nemy of the State’. The helper Gene Hackman (Brill) is the person who knows all about surveillance, the US governments capabilities, so therefore can help the hero (Will Smith) overcome the  challenge that the narrative of the film has set out. The PRINCESS. The princess in a film is the sexual reward for the heroes good work. The princess in ‘Armageddon’ is played by Liv Tyler and is the reward for the partial hero’s (Ben Afflleck) hard work in saving the planet from total destruction. The princess character is very important to the conclusion if the film because it is possible for the men to relate to it. The way is that the typical family picture in the world today still is that man goes out to work, women cleans the house and kids go to school. The man comes home from work and gets some sex for all his work, just like the hero in the film. Also like in ‘Gone in 60 Seconds’, Angelina Jolie is the reward for Nicholas Cage’s efforts at stealing 50 cars in one night. The FATHER. The father in ‘Armageddon’ again is Bruce Willis. The role of the father is to reward the hero for a job well done. In ‘Armageddon’ the reward for good work is being able to live with the fathers daughter, because the father rewards him for good work by staying on the rock and choosing to die himself. The father in the film also acts as the man with all the knowledge that holds the group together. In ‘Gone in 60 Seconds’ the father Auto (Robert Duval) acts as the all powerful, all knowledgeable person who’s been there before and therefore is the person who can guide all the younger ones in the right direction. All of these eight points of characters carry the film. Not just one but all of them. When looked at in greater detail Propp’s theory we realise that its the way we sub-consciously look at the characters that makes the viewer thank anything of a certain film. In conclusion narrative and narration are the key elements that make a film what it is. All the above theories are vital, when it comes to reading a film in detail. These theories are useful because they make us view the film in a different way than you normally would. They help you to understand what the importance of certain characters and effects are. They help the viewer view key elements in totally different ways and to understand them in a much deeper detail than before. E.g. When I first saw ‘Halloween’ I saw Sam Loomis as an old doctor who seems a bit crazy upstairs. I thought his importance in the film was minimal and that he was only there to involve a British dude; and now when I watch the film I can realise how important his character is to Laurie Strodes quest to kill the Shape. If it was not for  him no one would have any idea of his intentions and that he would return to Haddonfield. So basically you’re decision as to weather you like a film or not can be identified by breaking down the certain aspects of a film down into questions. I.e. How do the films narrative functions effect you’re overall perception of the film.? How does the films narration effect the way you perceive the film. When you look at Todorov’s theory of narrative structure how does your view of the film change from the one you had of it before you compared it to the points Todorov makes in his theory? How does Propp’s theory of characters and narrative function make you look at the characters when you also look at the eight points outlined in his theory? All this along with all the stuff to do with camera movement, use of sound, use of lighting, use of Mise-en-scene and the way the plot is portrayed all help you understand a film in a deeper way than before.

It205 – Hardware Replacement Project

Hardware Replacement Project IT/205 – Management of Information systems June 24, 2012 Cristina Oliver Hardware Replacement Project The IT department is implementing a new CRM solution in its corporate offices. The hardware currently in use is out of date and will not support the CRM application. The hardware must be replaced prior to deployment. Resource: Ch. 11 of Essentials of Management Information Systems Write a 1,050- to 1,750-word paper that addresses the following: How do the five major variables of project management—scope, time, cost, quality, and risk—relate to this scenario?What considerations must be applied when selecting projects that deliver the best business value? What factors that influence project risk? What strategies would you recommend for minimizing this project’s risks? * The Information Technology department is implementing a new CRM (Customer Relationship Management) solution in its corporate offices but what we found is that the current hardware is out-of-data and will not support the new CRM application, so to implement the new CRM solution we must upgrade all the hardware prior to deployment of the CRM application.The assessment of scope, time, cost, quality and risk are the five variables needed to consider when planning out this project of the hardware replacement for the CRM application. â€Å"Project management refers to the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to achieve specific targets within specific budgets† (Laudon & Laudon, 2011, P. 397). The project managers’ position is to align the project to meet the necessary target in which they must estimate resources required for the work (materials and people), plan the work, assign and direct the work, report progress, analyze the results, acquire materials, and assesses the risk.In implementing the CRM project we see that the project scope is to have all hardware replaced. Hardware that would be replaced are desktops , servers and possibly handheld devices. Prior to installation of hardware to the corporate offices there will be installation of the software which includes operating systems, standard company applications and the new CRM application, testing of the applications and hardware in the test environment prior to testing on the production network and just before replace of the hardware to the offices there will be education training and then a small department rollout to verify and finalize any risks.We need to figure a realistic time to achieve our target on the CRM project as time. What will be needed is to break down each component into separate tasks and activities so each team has time to accomplish their tasks. Remember that each task given is dependent for the next task to succeed. This give a schedule of when the project may be completed. â€Å"Costs are based on the time to complete a project multiplied by the daily cost of human resources required to complete the project† (Laudon & Laudon, 2011, P. 399). Costs also include the hardware, software and real estate of where someone sits when doing the work.The project manager is responsible for developing the budget as well as monitoring the expenses of the ongoing project attempting not to go over their projected budget. Quality is the indication of how well the project is going and also how well the end result satisfies the objects requested by management. Quality defines the workmanship, accuracy and the timelines of the information produced by the new system being implemented. Quality grants a more positive outcome within the project team as well as management. Risk are something that happens with all projects as they are potential problems that threaten the success of a project.The problems that could arise can prevent a project from meeting it’s timelines by increasing time and costs, lowering the quality of the output or possibly preventing the project altogether. When given the project t imeline it is normally given some of the risks involved with each tasks and within the project there is the attempt to give buffer time should those risks appear. Considerations that must be applied when selecting projects that deliver the best business value are benefits and costs. In the long or possibly short are the benefits that can regain costs and possibly or will increase financial gains for the business.The company needs to realize the CRM application; if it will indeed benefit from this application and that the application covers all aspects of what the required objectives. Obviously if the company purchases the CRM application and doesn’t meet the requirements then the project will not reap the benefits or costs. Other considerations are training and maintenance of the hardware, software and application. Without training of the application how would one know how to use it to its full potential? Training is planned and designed for the various users and departments. With the CRM application each department will have their specific requirements as to what they will use it for and what they can and cannot access. The IT group will be trained on how to support the application and how to maintain and upgrade when needed. This leads into maintenance which is never cost effective but normally mandatory for reasons of fixing application bugs or hardware upgrades and even operating system updates. Factors or levels that may influence project risk are size of the project, structure of the project and the level of technical expertise (SME – Subject Matter Experts) of the IT staff and project team.Other considerations are consultants if the IT staff is does not have the technical expertise although proper training or shadowing will need to be involved of the consultant to an IT staff. Other factors such as not clear or straightforward requirements or even new technology that the project team does not know the technology can influence the project ri sk. Even user acceptance of the application is a major factor as some don’t like change or fear new products. There are many factors that can influence the risk of the project.Strategies that I would use to minimize the project risk would be to recruit people whom are SME with products that we are looking to implement, recruit project managers that are expertise in information technology and use the correct tools to manage the project and the deliverables. Implement the proper changes management in advance to have the changes documented in case need to revert back and make sure everything is tested in a test environment prior to placing into a production environment. Train the staff and end-users to make sure everyone is comfortable with the new system.People fear change and to have an in-depth training program will allow the end-users more comfort with the product and in themselves. The number strategy I would use to minimize project risk is communication. Making sure that e veryone is on the same page with the deadlines and deliverables. Understanding the timeframe and what need to be done to accomplish the project. The project team needs to see the possible risks that are involved and how they could avoid these risks and make sure they are all documented.I believe that the best practices for managing this project are hiring project managers that have managed successful project in the IT field and have them communicate with the leads of the IT teams to set realistic timeframes to measure the progress of the tasks to overall meet the deliverables and the end date of the project. Communication to the company executives to make sure they understand the timeframe of the project and the implantation of each task and what dates they will be accomplished as well as verifying what are the requirements of management for the project.With regards to all this the project manager will put a project plan with timeframes and risks to hand out to all the project team and management so everyone understands what is involved and what deadlines each team needs to make. Make such dates will show quality to management and the company allowing a much smoother transition to the new CRM application and hardware. Reference Laudon, K. P. , & Laudon, J. P. (2011). Essentials of MIS (9th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Consumer Buying Behaviour on Soft Drinks Essay

What influences consumers to purchase products or services? The consumer buying process is a complex matter as many internal and external factors have an impact on the buying decisions of the consumer. When purchasing a product there several processes, which consumers go through. These will be discussed below. 1. Problem/Need Recognition How do you decide you want to buy a particular product or service? It could be that your DVD player stops working and you now have to look for a new one, all those DVD films you purchased you can no longer play! So you have a problem or a new need. For high value items like a DVD player or a car or other low frequency purchased products this is the process we would take. However, for impulse low frequency purchases e. g. confectionery the process is different. 2. Information search So we have a problem, our DVD player no longer works and we need to buy a new one. What’s the solution? Yes go out and purchase a new one, but which brand? Shall we buy the same brand as the one that blew up? Or stay clear of that? Consumer often go on some form of information search to help them through their purchase decision. Sources of information could be family, friends, neighbours who may have the product you have in mind, alternatively you may ask the sales people, or dealers, or read specialist magazines like What DVD? to help with their purchase decision. You may even actually examine the product before you decide to purchase it. 3. Evaluation of different purchase options So what DVD player do we purchase? Shall it be Sony, Toshiba or Bush? Consumers allocate attribute factors to certain products, almost like a point scoring system which they work out in their mind over which brand to purchase. This means that consumers know what features from the rivals will benefit them and they attach different degrees of importance to each attribute. For example sound maybe better on the Sony product and picture on the Toshiba , but picture clarity is more important to you then sound. Consumers usually have some sort of brand preference with companies as they may have had a good history with a particular brand or their friends may have had a reliable history with one, but if the decision falls between the Sony DVD or Toshiba then which one shall it be? It could be that the a review the consumer reads on the particular Toshiba product may have tipped the balance and that they will purchase that brand. 4. Purchase decision Through the evaluation process discussed above consumers will reach their final purchase decision and they reach the final process of going through the purchase action e. g. The process of going to the shop to buy the product, which for some consumers can be as just as rewarding as actually purchasing the product. Purchase of the product can either be through the store, the web, or over the phone. 5. Post Purchase Behaviour. Ever have doubts about the product after you purchased it? This simply is post purchase behaviour and research shows that it is a common trait amongst purchasers of products. Manufacturers of products clearly want recent consumers to feel proud of their purchase, it is therefore just as important for manufacturers to advertise for the sake of their recent purchaser so consumers feel comfortable that they own a product from a strong and reputable organisation. This limits post purchase behaviour. i. e. You feel reassured that you own the latest advertised product. OBJECTIVES. * To understand the major factors influencing consumer buying behavior. * To know and recognize the types of buying decision behavior. * To understand the stages In the buying decision process. NEED OF THE STUDY * To understand why consumer make the purchases that they make SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS Scope of the study The scope of the study is to get the first hand knowledge about the buying behavior of consumers towards different brands of Soft drinks in VVISM students. The scope is restricted to study the factors affecting the preference of consumers while choosing a soft drink in VVISM college students. This is done to avoid perceptual bias and for providing objectivity to the study. Limitations of the study Sincere efforts have been made to collect authentic and reliable information from respondents, however the report is subject to following limitations: * Some respondents were reluctant to give the information, so their responses may be biased. * Time could be a major limitation as it may have affected the inferences drawn in the study. Only 20 respondents have been contacted due to time constraint. * Sample may not be the true representative of the universe. * Study was conducted in VVISM, Hyderabad only. So the results of the study may not be applicable in other areas. CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE REVIEW OF LITERATURE SUMMARY OF 10 ARTICLES 1. Consumer buying behavior and market segmentation(By Rabbitat) According to the marketing guru Phillip Kotler, a human need is defined as a state of felt deprivation. A human want on the other hand is a need shaped by the individuals culture and society. Understanding what consumers need and how these needs can be made into wants is what effective marketing is all about! For instance a customer need may be thirst, and any drink such as a bottle of water could satisfy this need. However at the point of purchase effective marketing determines what the customer will want to purchase in order to quench their thirst. For example a good advertisement for coke could steer the customer away from the bottled water section and towards the fizzy drinks. On the other hand an effective ad for ice lollies, an indirect competitor, could steer the consumer away from the fizzy drinks. Therefore the more effective the marketing, the easier it will be to get the cash out of the customers hand! It is then obvious that Marketing is all about understanding consumer needs and steering the customer toward Your product by creating certain wants in the minds of the customer. To do this marketers should be aware of the consumer buying behavior process: Buyer recognition: the consumer has to realize there is a problem or need that needs to be fulfilled. The effective marketer will identify there is a difference between the actual state of the consumer and the desired state, and try to fulfill this state of deprivation. Information search: in this stage the buyer considers all the alternatives present. For instance, according to the example above, the customer would look at all thirst quenchers such as fizzy drinks, bottled water, juices and ice lollies. The most information a customer gains about alternatives is through commercial sources, such as advertisements and campaigns. However information about intangible products in the service industry would mostly come from personal experience or experience from others. Evaluation of alternatives: this is where all the information is gathered and evaluated to help make the purchasing decision. These three stages are important, for marketers to understand consumer behavior and what influences purchasing of a certain product category and brand. Purchase decision: this is the stage where purchasing of the most preferred alternative takes place. However the product category, brand, reseller, timing and quantity all play a role in the purchase decision. Post purchase decision: good marketers maintain a good relationship with the customer even after the purchase has been made. This is to reduce any chance of cognitive dissonance that the customer may experience with the product. To reduce the negative effects of customer cognitive dissonance, good after sales services could be provided along with effective advertising. This will attract more customers via word of mouth and generate repeat purchases. 2. Break the Resistance of Consumer Buying Behavior(By Darrell Zahorsky) Buyers today are a fickle group. Who’s to blame them? Bombarded with an endless selection of products and services, making a good purchase decision isn’t easy. What can your small business do when your potential buyers won’t buy? 5 Stages of Consumer Buying Behavior 1. Need Awareness: The beginning point of most purchasing is your potential buyer recognition of a need in their life. This need can be established by encountering a problem or prompted by a company’s marketing. 2. Information Search: With the rise of the Internet, it has never been easier for buyers to research their purchase. Make sure your small business is in the game by providing educational material on your website. 3. Check Options: After an information search, the customer will evaluate all the available options. Options include wanted features, pricing, and company credibility. 4. Purchase Decision: This is the moment when the customer wants to buy. Deals are easily lost when you keep selling to the customer. There’s an old adage in sales, when the customer says, â€Å"I’ll take it,† keep your mouth closed, and close the deal. 5. Post Buying Behavior: An overlooked piece of consumer buying behavior is what occurs after the purchase. The buyer will look for reinforcement from media, friends, and other sources confirming they made the right decision. Cognitive dissonance or â€Å"buyer’s remorse† happens when the buyer begins to feel the purchase wasn’t right for them. 3. Simple Purchases Aren’t Always so Simple(By S.L. O Brien) Purchasing decisions include many factors that most consumers are not even aware of. Five steps are involved in nearly every purchase made: need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase Decision and finally post purchase behavior. even the simpler purchases can include any or all of these steps. Purchases are further influenced by such things as personal psychological and social issues. A good market researcher will study the thought process undergone by consumer, compare it with their demographic data and use the resulting information to market their products. Simple purchases aren’t always so simple 4. Nowhere to hide: buyer behavior in a connected world(By Paul Gibler) Window shopping isn’t dead, it has simply moved into a different dimension. This is a dimension where your business has â€Å"nowhere to hide† or can be â€Å"completely hidden† given the power of the Internet. Your business, be it a manufacturer, supplier or retailer needs to understand the changing nature of buyer behavior facilitated by the Internet. Whether buying through a virtual, real or multi-channel storefront, the options consumers use to learn about products, compare products, or shop prices have multiplied exponentially. The greater transparency created by these tools has made it critical that you understand and incorporate them into your business and marketing plans. Before the days of the Internet, buyer behavior often focused on word of mouth recommendations and feedback; in-store questioning; listening to, watching or reviewing ads; or reading print reviews in vertical publications or from multi-line authorities like Consumer’s Report. Today, the options for information search and product comparisons have multiplied beyond consumer’s processing ability. While this creates an opportunity for high service marketers with high touch products it has also generated the need to understand how consumers are behaving in their product purchasing activities. Consumers are continuing to look for ways to stretch their dollar while getting the best quality product that satisfies their needs. This has led them into â€Å"brick and mortar† stores like Costco, Wal-Mart, Aldi and Trader Joes to buy their food and staples; but it has also led them online for more complex purchases. 5. Consumer Buying Behavior and Manipulation(By Lance Winslow). We all know there are ways that that businesses use to manipulate our buying behavior to get us to buy more. We know there are many techniques and other stimuli, which affect us and we know that they are often employed in businesses. Generally we accept this even we actually stop to think about it. We probably determine that it is inappropriate and somewhat unfair. Yet we all participate in the impulse shopping and it seems to make us feel good to buy things,as a reward for our labours,with the money we have made. Certain music in stores will assist in helping retailers sell more. Certain room temperature at retailers,book stores,cofeeshops will increase impulse buying,which are generally amongst the highest priced items and definitely the highest profit items. 6. The Importance of Changing Customer Buying Behavior(By Stephen Diorio) The broad-scale adoption of new technologies has empowered consumers in previously unimagined ways. As a result, customer buying behavior is adapting to these new technological advances so rapidly that marketers sometimes cannot keep pace. Web sales are growing faster than catalog and store sales. Most direct marketers are now at least experimenting with online transactions. In the last year, for example, Lands’ End experienced 300 percent growth in e-sales while paper catalog sales growth slowed to 10 percent and margins shrank. 7. Types of Buying Decision Behavior(By Raja Vikram) Buying decision differs from person to person. Depending upon the need of the person,the decision gets changed. Various types of buying behavior are : Complex buying behaviour : This situation involves the high level of involvement from consumers and the same with the difference among brands. Dissonance reducing behavior : This involves high involvement of the buyer but a less significance difference among the brands. Habitual buying behavior : Here,there will not be any kind from the customer. Here the purchase happens depending upon the brand familiarity. Variety seeking buying behavior : Here the customer involvement is low but there will be significant difference among brands. 8. Characteristic Affecting Consumer Purchase Behavior(By Dhanan Sarwo utomo) People buy different products from different brand to satisfy their need. Consumer purchases are influenced strongly by cultural, social, personal and psychological characteristic . although marketers cannot control such factors , they must give attention to them. Marketers are always trying to spot cultural shifts in order to discover new product that might be wanted. For example the shift toward informality has resulted more demand for casual clothing and simpler fashionable products. 9. Consumer shopping behavior:How much do consumer save? (By Rachel Griffith) This paper documents the potential and actual savings that consumers realize from four particular types of purchasing behavior: purchasing on sale; buying in bulk (at a lower per unit price); buying generic brands; and choosing outlets. How much can and do households save through each of these behaviors? How do these patterns vary with consumer demographics? We use data collected by a marketing firm on all food purchases brought into the home for a large, nationally representative sample of U. K. households in 2006. We are interested in how consumer choice affects the measurement of price changes. In particular, a standard price index based on a fixed basket of goods will overstate the rise in the true cost of living because it does not properly consider sales and bulk purchasing. According to our measures, the extent of this bias might be of the same or even greater magnitude than the better-known substitution and outlet biases. 10. Indian consumer will seek value(By Arvind Singhal) Some of the trends listed below may look contradictory but then, at this time, the Indian consumer, especially the urban, middle income, and relatively young segment (and this classification will probably cover about 200 million individuals) is showing some seemingly contradictory buying behaviour. * Consumers will move beyond basic needs to discretionary spending. * They will seek value in products that serve basic needs such as food and grocery. * The definition of value will be different for different products. For instance, they will seek the lowest price for products that serve basic needs, whereas in others the determinants will range from aspiration to convenience to brand name. * There will be more visible consumption for products having bling value and consumers will continue to pay a premium for them. * We will see rise in indulgence with more desire for enjoyment and experience. * Consumers will seek more instant gratification. * We will also see the culture of throughout-the-year consumption rather than festival- or occasion-led spendings in the past. * We will see increasing fear of being ordinary. Consumers would want to be extraordinary though still within current social norms. * Consumers will get more conscious about their health and well being. * They will begin getting concerned with the surrounding environment—including nature, society, politics and public policy CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY RESEARCH METHODOLOGY SOURCE AND TYPE OF DATA COLLECTION 1 Primary Data Primary data is that data which is collected for the first time. It is original in nature in the shape of raw material. For the purpose of collection of primary data, a well structured questionnaire was framed which was filled by the respondents. The questionnaire comprises of close ended as well as open ended questions. In close ended questions dichotomous, ranking, checklist questions and multiple choice questions are used. 2 Secondary Data Secondary data is the data which is already collected by someone. They are secondary in nature and are in shape of finished product. Secondary data was collected so as to have accurate results. Required data was collected from various books, magazines, journals and internet. SAMPLING DESIGN Sampling refers to selecting some of the elements in a population by which one can draw conclusions about the entire population. 1 Universe Universe is the infinite number of elements which the researcher is targeting in his study. Since the study is restricted to VVISM students only the universe for the study consists of all the soft drink consumers in VVISM . 2 Population Population is finite number of elements which the researcher is going to target in particular area. All the soft drink consumer students in VVISM college form the population for the study. 3 Sampling Unit Sampling Unit is the single unit of the population. A single individual who consume soft drink form the sampling unit of the study. 4 Extent Extent refers to the geographical area where there is a scope of population. The extent of the study is VVISM,Hyderabad. 5 Sampling Technique The selection of the respondents was done on the basis of convenience technique based on the non probability method of sampling. 6 Sample size Sample size is the size of sample drawn from the population which is the true representative of the research. The number of respondents included in the study was 50 for convenience in evaluating and analyzing the data and because of time constraint. RESEARCH INSTRUMENT Questionnaire This instrument is more popular. The questionnaire is sent to the person concerned to answer the questions formatted and return the same soon. A questionnaire consist of a number of questions printed and typed in definite order on a form or set of forms. The questionnaire is sent to the respondents. In order to achieve the research objectives it is necessary to collect accurate and relevant data,secondary data are already published data collected for purposed other than specific research needs at hand. Primary data that are collected specifically for the research situation at hand,were collected by surveys using respondents surveys is one of the ways of collecting primary data namely observations,experiments and surveys. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS DETAILS QUESTIONNAIRE Q 1. Do you like to have soft drinks? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 42| 8| Q 2. Do you think that soft drinks that are available in the market are harmful for your health ? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 29| 21| Q 3. Do you think that soft drinks are good for refreshment? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 37| 13| Q 4. Which is your favourite flavour? a. Cola b. Orange c. Mango d. Lemon e. Others Cola| Orange| Mango| Lemon| Others| 26| 10| 10| 4| 0| Q 5. Are you satisfied with the price of your favourite soft drink? a. Satisfied b. Highly Satisfied c. Dissatisfied d. Highly dissatisfied Satisfied| Highly satisfied| Dissatisfied| Highly dissatisfied| 21| 29| 0| 0| Q 6. Are you influnenced by the advertisement given by your favourite soft drink company? a. Yes b. No c. May be Yes| No| May be| 24| 19| 7| Q 7. Do you think that endorsement by the celebrities can increase the sell of the soft drinks? a. Yes b. No c. May be Yes| No| May be| 28| 7| 15| Q 8. Is your favourite soft drink available in all/most of the retail store in your city? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 39| 11| Q 9. Do you feel that soft drinks should contain less calories so that those can be taken by the diabatese patients also? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 32| 18| Q 10. How many times in a week you go for soft drinks? a. 0-3 times b. 4-6 times c. 7-10 times d. More than 10 times 0-3 times| 4-6 times| 7-10 times| More than 10 times| 20| 22| 5| 3| Q 11. If you are an alcohol consumer,then at the time of consuming alcohol do you consume soft drinks also for making the taste of alcohol better? a. Yes b. No c. Sometimes Yes| No| Sometimes| 8| 5| 6| Q 12. Do you store soft drink at the refrigerator of your home? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 33| 17| Q 13. According to you what is the main USP of the soft drinks available in the market? a. Less costly than other drinks b. Taste c. Availability d. More refreshing Less costly than other drinks| Taste| Availability| More refreshing than other drinks| 4| 39| 0| 7| Q 14. Do you feel that inspite of using artificial flavours soft drink companies should go for natural flavours? a. Yes b. No c. May be Yes| No| May be| 21| 18| 11| Q 15. How do you rate the promotional strategies used by the soft drink companies? 1| 2| 3| 4| 5| 6| 7| 8| 9| 10| | | | | | 2| 12| 15| 19| 2| CHAPTER 4 DATA ANALYSIS DATA ANALYSIS CROSS TABULATION,GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION AND INFERENCE QUESTIONNAIRE Q 1. Do you like to have soft drinks? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 42| 8| Interpretation Since the survey is done among the youth,from the statistics we can say that consumption of soft drink is very popular among youth. Q 2. Do you think that soft drinks that are available in the market are harmful for your health ? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 29| 21|. Interpretation Out of 50 people 21 people think that having soft drinks is harmful for their health. Inspite of that most of them consume soft drinks. Q 3. Do you think that soft drinks are good for refreshment? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 37| 13| Interpretation Most number of people feel that soft drinks are good for refreshment. Q 4. Which is your favourite flavour? a. Cola b. Orange c. Mango d. Lemon e. Others Cola| Orange| Mango| Lemon| Others| 26| 10| 10| 4| 0| Interpretation Majority of the people prefer to have cola. Q 5. Are you satisfied with the price of your favourite soft drink? a. Satisfied b. Highly Satisfied c. Dissatisfied d. Highly dissatisfied Satisfied| Highly satisfied| Dissatisfied| Highly dissatisfied| 21| 29| 0| 0| Interpretation There is no dissatisfaction among the consumer regarding the price of the soft drinks. Q 6. Are you influnenced by the advertisement given by your favourite soft drink company? a. Yes b. No c. May be Yes| No| May be| 24| 19| 7| Interpretation Most of the people are influenced by the advertisement given by the companies. So we can say that advertisement plays a major role in influencing soft drinks consumer. Q 7. Do you think that endorsement by the celebrities can increase the sell of the soft drinks? a. Yes b. No c. May be Yes| No| May be| 28| 7| 15| Interpretation Majority of the people are influenced by the celebrity endorsement Q 8. Is your favourite soft drink available in all/most of the retail store in your city? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 39| 11| Interpretation Since most of the people’s favourite soft drinks are available throughout their city,we can assume that distribution system of those companies are quite good. Though in some cases better distribution is required. Q 9. Do you feel that soft drinks should contain less calories so that those can be taken by the diabatese patients also? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 32| 18| Interpretation Most of the people are satisfied with the calory level in the soft drinks. Though some people want less calories. Q 10. How many times in a week you go for soft drinks? a. 0-3 times b. 4-6 times c. 7-10 times d. More than 10 times 0-3 times| 4-6 times| 7-10 times| More than 10 times| 20| 22| 5| 3| Interpretation Majority of the people consume at least 4-6 times in a week. So we can assume that high demand for soft drink is there. Q 11. If you are an alcohol consumer,then at the time of consuming alcohol do you consume soft drinks also for making the taste of alcohol better? a. Yes b. No c. Sometimes Yes| No| Sometimes| 8| 5| 6| Interpretation There exists a derived consumption of soft drinks. Q 12. Do you store soft drink at the refrigerator of your home? a. Yes b. No Yes| No| 33| 17| Interpretation Now a days most of the people store soft drinks in their home. So we can assume that the popularity of consuming soft drinks is increasing day by day. Q 13. According to you what is the main USP of the soft drinks available in the market? a. Less costly than other drinks b. Taste c. Availability d. More refreshing Less costly than other drinks| Taste| Availability| More refreshing than other drinks| 4| 39| 0| 7| Interpretation Majority of the people consume soft drinks because of it’s taste. Price doesn’t matter that much to them. Q 14. Do you feel that inspite of using artificial flavours soft drink companies should go for natural flavours? a. Yes b. No c. May be Yes| No| May be| 21| 18| 11| Interpretation Most of the people feels that natural flavours would be better than the artificial/synthetic flavours. Q 15. How do you rate the promotional strategies used by the soft drink companies? 1| 2| 3| 4| 5| 6| 7| 8| 9| 10| | | | | | 2| 12| 15| 19| 2| Interpretation Majority of the consumer are very much satisfied by the promotions being done by the companies. CHAPTER 5 FINDINGS RECOMMENDATIONS CONCLUSION FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FINDINGS * Most of the consumers are influenced by those brands which represents their characteristics. In this case we have found that cola drinks are preffered by most of the boys,since those drinks are stronger than other drinks and most of the girls preffer to have orange and mango flavoured drinks as those are mild in taste compare to the cola drinks. * Most of the consumers are influenced by those brands which are being endorsed by the celebrities. * Promotion plays a very important role in case of increasing the sell,penetrate the market and holding the current market share. RECOMMENDATIONS * Now a days consumers are becoming health conscious. So keeping that in mind,companies should think about using natural flavours in spite of those synthetic ones. * To increase the market share companies should think about the people like diabatese patients also as they cannot consume high calories. Though some companies are manufacturing diet soft drinks but they are very few in numbers. CONCLUSION * From the survey it can be conclude that majority of the consumer like to purchase cola , flavor. * Consumers like to purchase soft drinks because of refreshments * In this scenario consumer buying behaviour is changed, because they are more health conscious . REFERENCES * http://www. helium. com/items/656129-consumer-buying-behavior-and-market-segmen tation * http://sbinformation. about. com/od/advertisingpr/a/behavior. htm * http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/19593/marketing_factors_consumer_buying_behavior. html? cat=35 * † http://www. WorldThinkTank. net/wttbbs/†. * http://ideas. repec.org/a/aea/jecper/v23y2009i2p99-120. html * http://www. livemint. com/2008/12/24222258/Buying-behaviour-Indian-consu. html * www. google. co. in * www. yahoo. co. in ANNEXURE QUESTIONNAIRE Q 1. Do you like to have soft drinks? a. Yes b. No Q 2. Do you think that soft drinks that are available in the market are harmful for your health ? a. Yes b. No Q 3. Do you think that soft drinks are good for refreshment? a. Yes b. No Q 4. Which is your favourite flavour? a. Cola b. Orange c. Mango d. Lemon e. Others Q 5. Are you satisfied with the price of your favourite soft drink? a. Satisfied b. Highly Satisfied c. Dissatisfied d. Highly dissatisfied Q 6. Are you influnenced by the advertisement given by your favourite soft drink company? a. Yes b. No c. May be Q 7. Do you think that endorsement by the celebrities can increase the sell of the soft drinks? a. Yes b. No c. May be Q 8. Is your favourite soft drink available in all/most of the retail store in your city? a. Yes b. No Q 9. Do you feel that soft drinks should contain less calories so that those can be taken by the diabatese patients also? a. Yes b. No Q 10. How many times in a week you go for soft drinks? a. 0-3 times b. 4-6 times c. 7-10 times d. More than 10 times Q 11. If you are an alcohol consumer,then at the time of consuming alcohol do you consume soft drinks also for making the taste of alcohol better? a. Yes b. No c. Sometimes Q 12. Do you store soft drink at the refrigerator of your home? a. Yes b. No Q 13. According to you what is the main USP of the soft drinks available in the market? a. Less costly than other drinks b. Taste c. Availability d. More refreshing Q 14. Do you feel that inspite of using artificial flavours soft drink companies should go for natural flavours? a. Yes b. No c. May be Q 15. How do you rate the promotional strategies used by the soft drink companies?