Night Creature Crescent Moon Chapter 6 Free Essays

The tinkling of the shop ringer interfered with our discussion. â€Å"Excuse me,† Cassandra said. â€Å"I need to go in any case. We will compose a custom exposition test on Night Creature: Crescent Moon Chapter 6 or then again any comparative theme just for you Request Now † I attempted to restore the gris-gris, yet she wouldn’t take it. â€Å"That’s for you.† â€Å"I don’t think so.† â€Å"It’ll shield you against the magic from the flower.† â€Å"Sure it will.† She inclined her head. â€Å"What can it hurt?† â€Å"Depends on what you put in here. Bats’ wings? Pup hound tails? I’m allergic.† Cassandra chuckled. â€Å"Nothing so inauspicious. A few herbs, red pepper. Residue from the grave of a believer.† I scowled. â€Å"Kidding,† she said. â€Å"I likewise put in a touch of something to keep the monsters of the marsh away.† â€Å"Right. That oughta work.† Along with a firearm and a homerun stick. â€Å"If you’re going to be working in the marsh, I question you’ll need the crocs hanging around.† I pushed the gris-gris into my pocket. â€Å"In the days of yore, individuals set charms in their left shoes,† Cassandra proceeded, â€Å"but the past times are the explanation a great deal of people twisted up lame.† â€Å"I can’t envision why.† â€Å"Just keep the gris-gris on you by day and under your cushion around evening time. Ensure you take it out before the house keeper sees. Some will in general get a little cracked in the event that they find them.† I couldn’t tell on the off chance that she was prodding or not. Presumably not. â€Å"Let me know how things work out,† she said. â€Å"I appreciated conversing with you.† I’d delighted in conversing with her, as well. I didn’t have numerous companions. For hell's sake, I didn’t have any. Once I’d discovered Simon, I’d let the couple of I had float away. I was in a peculiar calling, which didn’t fit fellowship. I vanished at the ring of the telephone, never knew when I’d return, overlooked get-togethers, could think less about motion pictures. What's more, the other cryptozoologists†¦ All things considered, they’d as before long take your Loch Ness Monster as take a gander at you. Showing up back at the lodging, I found the house cleaner had tidied up my room and left. I dropped my garments on the floor, left a solicitation for a reminder for an hour before nightfall, at that point pushed the gris-gris underneath my pad. After the fantasy I’d had last night†¦ Well, as Cassandra said †couldn’t hurt. I rested like the dead, waking with a howl when the telephone shrilled close to my ear. A recorded voice helped me to remember my reminder. No endowments on the bed. My gris-gris was correct where I’d left it. Whoopee. I got dressed, stashed the appeal, got my camera, my mobile phone, and a tote pack to place them in, at that point went to meet Charlie. He was holding up when I pulled up at the dock. The sun cast orange beams through the trees and over his face. I squinted. For a moment the light had assumed the shade of new blood. I pushed aside the upsetting idea. I was the moon goddess, not a prophet, in the event that I trusted Cassandra’s name-dropping. However, what did a moon goddess do? I presumably didn’t need to know. The gris-gris weighed vigorously in my pocket, and I was enticed to toss the charm into the beverage. Be that as it may, I didn’t need Charlie to see it. The way he’d carried on this evening at the chateau, anything abnormal may scare him away for good. â€Å"Ready?† he inquired. In lieu of an answer, I moved into the vessel, and we took off. Night settled over us like a cool velvet window ornament. The stars came out, and the sickle moon rose. Charlie turned on the spotlight connected to the front of the pontoon, and I gazed, transfixed, at what appeared to be a hundred sparkling circles in the water. â€Å"Gators,† he said. â€Å"They like the dark.† In the daytime it was anything but difficult to accept the crocodiles were moderate and pleasant. Not a lot of them over here by any means. Yet, in the night, encompassed by their shining eyes, all of which appeared to gaze legitimately at me, they appeared to be exceptionally compromising in reality. I ached to be back on strong ground. â€Å"Where are we going?† I inquired. â€Å"Thought you needed to see where the body was found.† â€Å"I do.† Charlie pointed straight ahead. â€Å"Right there.† â€Å"Who found it?† â€Å"Me.† â€Å"You?† I gazed at him warily. â€Å"You said you hadn’t seen the wolf.† â€Å"Friend of mine did.† â€Å"So it didn’t fundamentally slaughter the man.† â€Å"Guy’s throat was torn. Paw prints all around him.† â€Å"Not a coyote?† â€Å"Coyotes are foragers and weaklings. They wouldn’t murder a man.† â€Å"Neither would a wolf.† Charlie shrugged. â€Å"Me and my companion was huntin’ nutrias, found the body. I stayed, while he glanced around. Said he saw a wolf vanishing into the tall grass.† â€Å"He’s sure he saw a wolf?† â€Å"Huge, dark, large head, long legs. He shot it, however the thing disappeared.† â€Å"He’s sure he hit something?† â€Å"Found a touch of blood. Nothin’else.† : â€Å"Isn’t it unlawful to shoot a wolf ?† The species was as yet jeopardized in certain territories, compromised or ensured in others, however their numbers had expanded adequately in a couple of northern states for them to be delisted. At the end of the day, wolves could be killed by specific individuals with great purpose, not by any old individual at whatever point they felt like it. â€Å"No law around here like that,† Charlie said. â€Å"Ain’t no wolves.† I went quiet, thinking, as Charlie pointed the vessel at the shore. â€Å"I’d like to get a look at that body.† I didn’t acknowledge I’d stood up noisy until Charlie a swered. â€Å"Already in the tomb, I’m sure.† â€Å"Crypt?† â€Å"Whole city’s underneath ocean level.† Ok, the solitary internment practices of New Orleans. While I wasn’t a specialist, I had perused a whole manual that I’d purchased at O’Hare before jumping on the plane. For a long time, residents of the Crescent City stacked their dead on racks inside block landmarks known as stoves. Following a year and a day, the body was disintegrated enough to dump into a well with all the other people who had gone previously, preparing for the following participant on the mechanical production system of death. A great many people decide to be covered in a family tomb. Better to go through endlessness blended in with Gramma than the psycho nearby. I was pulled from my contemplations when the vessel knock against the bank. â€Å"You stay here,† Charlie said. â€Å"I’m going to get the gators out of the way.† â€Å"Swell.† I considered the gazing eyes. â€Å"What on the off chance that one of them needs to climb aboard?† My hand crawled to the pocket that held my gris-gris. I sure trusted the thing worked, and wasn’t that an adjustment in disposition? â€Å"I question they could, however †† He hung over, flicked the catch on the bureau underneath his seat, and pulled out a handgun. â€Å"There ye go.† Getting a bat, he walked into the night. The heaviness of the weapon felt great in my grasp. Had I taken self-protection classes, however I’d figured out how to shoot both a rifle and a handgun. I wasn’t half-terrible. Water lapped against the vessel in a beat that would have been tranquil in the event that it weren’t for the bouncing armed force of eyes. I started to feel chilled, and it wasn’t absence of the sun. Something was watching me once more. I looked at the tributary. A ton of somethings. A stir from the bank made me start. â€Å"Charlie?† I paused, however Charlie didn’t show up. â€Å"Charlie?† I called somewhat stronger, alarming the gators that had swum right up front. The brush appeared to wave in a nonexistent breeze. I crawled to the front of the vessel and moved the spotlight. The glare bursted over the highest point of the grass, sprinkled off the slanted appendages of the cypress trees, and uncovered a space in the vegetation, as though a huge body was moving consistently toward†¦ â€Å"Charlie!† His answer was a shout, a sputter, at that point quiet. I leaped out of the pontoon, not in any event, considering the crocodiles, not in any event, mindful. In any event I recalled the weapon. The spotlight lit my way as I traveled toward the shout. Charlie more likely than not disposed of the considerable number of crocs in the region, except if they’d smelled my gris-; gris, or possibly they’d crawled once more into the water to avoid†¦ Whatever the damnation had come after Charlie. I stopped, tuned in, got a black out thunder to one side Tightening my fingers around the weapon, I dashed through the excess, yelling Charlie’s name. A few creatures will run in the event that you alarm them. On the other hand, some won’t I’d overcome much enough that the light from the vessel was blurring. At the point when I burst through a knot of weeds and into a little clearing, I needed to squint to see. Or on the other hand possibly I simply needed to squint since I couldn’t accept my eyes. Charlie was on the ground. Dead from the presence of the throat wound. A man bowed close to him, fingers squeezed to Charlie’s neck. From the outset I thought he’d been assaulted, as well. Blood all over an uncovered chest will give that impression. In any case, with that much blood, I should see a hole, a tear, an extraordinary enormous opening. He unquestionably shouldn’t have had the option to remain, to move, to stroll toward me. I terrified and lifted the firearm. â€Å"Stop.† My voice sounded thick, as though I were talking through bog water. The man continued coming †quick †his long, dull hair flying around his face, giving me tempting looks at a nose, a jaw, teeth. He grabbed the gun, and

The ABCs of RFPs - The Writers For Hire

THE ABCS OF RFPS New to proposition composing? It assists with learning the language. In the event that you’re new to the universe of recommendations, it’s very simple to lose all sense of direction in an ocean of abbreviations, industry language, arranging rules, and accommodation rules. What’s the distinction between a RFI and a RFP? How would you react to a RFQ? What is a SOW? Is your organization a WOSM or a SDVO? When do you send a LOI? Furthermore, WTH (what the hell) is SAM? This snappy guide will assist you with interpreting and comprehend the absolute most normal RFP language. RFP versus RFI versus RFQ: What’s the distinction? Before we jump into what makes them unique, let’s talk about what RFPs, RFIs, and RFQs share for all intents and purpose: They all assistance organizations, government elements, and associations discover sellers that will give the best administrations or items, at the correct cost. (Obviously, there’s somewhat more to it than that. Be that as it may, for the motivations behind this blog, we’re going to keep things basic.)The significant contrast here is the length, the sort of data, and level of detail you’ll need to give in your response.An RFQ †or demand for citation is about the primary concern. At the point when an association conveys a RFQ, they realize they need certain items or administrations conveyed over a specific timeframe †and they’re searching for a seller who can give those items or administrations to the best cost. Note: a RFQ is basically equivalent to an IFB, or â €Å"invitation for bid† †don’t let the names distract you. They’re requesting the equivalent thing.An RFI †or demand for data †resembles a scaled down RFP. Associations frequently put out RFIs as an approach to assemble huge picture data and answer addresses that will assist them with refining their inquiry, all the more plainly characterize their necessities, and vet potential merchants. The RFI procedure is similar to speed-dating in that it offers a fast, no-responsibility route for associations and potential merchants to figure out one another, choose if they need very similar things, and make sense of if there’s potential to take things to the following level. At this phase in the game, it’s about the comprehensive view. On the off chance that your association gets a RFI, you’ll most likely be relied upon to give the accompanying data: An organization diagram that incorporates things like to what extent you’ve been doing business, any accreditations, licenses, or grants you’ve got, and your specialized topics An organization graph, in addition to profiles and additionally continues for your key work force A general financial plan/quote References or potentially contextual investigations from comparative occupations and customers A RFI reaction is regularly a lot shorter than a RFP reaction †and now and again, there may even be a greatest page check. Reactions ought to be clear, compact, elegantly composed, and not very longwinded. A RFP †or â€Å"request for proposal† is the biggest, generally point by point, and generally far reaching of the three. A run of the mill RFP joins components of a RFQ and a RFI, in addition to explicit data about the extent of work (SOW) and the vendor’s capacity to play out the work or offer the types of assistance delineated in the SOW. At the point when you react to a RFP, you ought to be prepared to address nitty gritty inquiries concerning everything from your company’s recruiting and staffing procedures to innovation and safety efforts to your monetary standing.In expansion to responding to questions, you’ll likely need to give documentation, for example, A letter of credit from your bank Proof of protection inclusion Employee preparing materials and documentation A usage plan and a progress plan Case examines and additionally letters of reference from past or current customers Depending on the association giving the RFP, your reaction could shift long from 50 pages to well more than 100. Notwithstanding guaranteeing that you’ve addressed each question and reacted to each thing on the RFP, you’ll additionally need to ensure that you adhere to designing directions precisely and allow for editing and actuality checking before the deadline.Note: In numerous cases, the backer of the RFP will necessitate that merchants send a letter of intrigue (LOI) before reacting to a RFP. A LOI is a basic, to-the-point letter that officially declares your goal to plan and present a proposition. Where You Can Find RFPs ? Open and privately owned businesses and not-for-profit associations normally send RFPs and RFIs legitimately to a pre-chosen rundown of merchants. Government organizations, be that as it may, are required to freely issue RFPs to guarantee a reasonable and straightforward offering process (this is particularly uplifting news for littler or more youthful organizations who might not have the name acknowledgment essential for private welcomes). In the event that you’re searching for circumstances, look at your neighborhood city or state government sites. You can likewise utilize accessible databases that order and keep up arrangements of open government RFPs. Not certain where to look? Here are a couple of beginning stages: The Request for Proposal Database. This free, accessible site lets you peruse several legislature and charitable RFPs in the U.S., C anada, and Europe. You can look by the sort of administration required, and by area, and you can even get a couple of tips for making a triumphant proposition. Government Business Opportunities. Search government contract openings worth $25,000 or more. On the off chance that you’re new to the site (or to the RFP procedure when all is said in done), make certain to look at their helpful client guides. GovernmentBids.com. Search more than 35,000 RFPs and openings arranged by classification and state. The best piece of this site? You can likewise pursue free email alarms redid to your industry and area, which implies you’ll never pass up on a chance. GSA Acquisition Gateway. Despite the fact that this site is essentially planned for helping government offices find qualified sellers and administrations suppliers, it has some really incredible assets for merchants. Also, make certain to look at their related site, the GSA Vendor Support Center for considerably more instrum ents and data. Private venture set-asides On the off chance that you’re an entrepreneur, you’re likely mindful of the government’s independent company set-asides, which guarantees that little or under-used organizations have the chance to offer for †and win †government contracts. Some set-asides are available to every single independent venture, and others are saved for organizations that fit certain standards or hold explicit affirmations, for example, 8(a) Business Development: This program is for organizations that are at any rate 51 percent possessed and worked by socially and monetarily distraught people.HUBZone Program: This program energizes financial advancement in truly underutilized business zones.Women Owned Small Business (WOSB) Program: This program is for private companies claimed by women.Service Disabled Veteran Owned (SDVO) Program: This program is for organizations possessed by debilitated veterans. In the event that your association fits into any of these classifications, you may increase a little preferred position. It’s certainly worth a look. A last note on this: If you need to see an (obscurely) entertaining interpretation of private venture set-asides, look at the 2016 film, â€Å"War Dogs.† Based on a genuine story, the film follows a couple of firearm vendors who seek after government weapons contracts through little government set asides. Prepared to begin? We could, truly, compose a book about RFPs. A few books, presumably. The expectation to absorb information required to compose a triumphant proposition †joined with the frequently scary rundown of required materials and documentation †can be somewhat scary regardless of whether you’ve experienced the RFI or RFP process a couple of times. All things considered, the way toward making a strong, elegantly composed proposition gets simpler †particularly on the off chance that you know the language.

That fear of falling behind

That fear of “falling behind” Class started today and before we know it, a lot of us on campus will be engulfed in the so-called MIT bubble. Which basically means, getting so into the hectic rhythm of classes, psets, extracurricular commitments, that soon its like, Oh yeah! The rest of the world! I forgot it existed! People live in houses! Dogs exist! Babies exist! Here, I am quoting fellow blogger Elizabeth.  Every time I see a baby on campus, its like Whoa, little creature, what are you. Anyways, besides just missing things outside the bubble, Im increasingly feeling like its also easy to get too-focused inside bubble. People who come to MIT are usually ambitious, have goals and dreams, and are willing to commit to making those dreams happen. For me, being an architect was not my childhood dream, or teenage dream. Ive just always loved art and design and cities, and in the last year of high school, somehow synthesized those likes into architecture and thought studying architecture @ MIT would be really cool. (And so far, it has been really cool.) But still, its like, Ive been trying so hard to do well in school, be productive in the summers and you know, keep moving towards that architect goal. But this summer, interning in China allowed me to really step back and re-evaluate what I want to do. And I finally understood the appeal of a semester or year off. Because once you get into the MIT momentum, it seems like theres only pushing forward. You dont want to ever feel like youre falling behind. And really, you cant afford to (with the default fear of not graduating on time, etc.) The fast-paced nature of MIT makes big changes an intimidating task. But being in China this summer was really inspiring in a way, because this was a country with soooo many people (still an understatement) in a wide variety of career fields. People are really practical but also literal in terms of their career choices. People who want to cook learn to be chefs, people who like to draw practice to be artists, people who want to make a lot of money go into the financial sector, people who care about research or want job stability go into academia and people who find out they dont like a field or said field is not faring so well change fields in a moments time. I guess thats basically the case everywhere, but it was just highly visible in the current Chinese culture where people are reconciling the pragmatic need to be employed with the newer, perhaps more modern/Western mindset that one can and even should follow his or her passions. Its not that my internship made me like architecture less. In fact, I actually really like and admire the process of designing and turning concepts into real constructed spaces where people can use.  But the fact that billions of lives in China were changing every second just reminded me how its never too late to be in charge of what you want to do. And that on the flip side of fearing falling behind is being constrained by the pressure of following a well-planned path that may or may not still be what you want. I picked Architecture before I came in to MIT, looked around, and liked it. I declared course 4 with no hesitation and was relieved that the decision came so easy (whereas my friends were having dilemmas with 7 or 10 or 20 or 15 …or 21 or 2? or some combination of those).  Im not even a senior yet, but at this half-way point, I would tell my freshman self to explore more and dont be rigid for convenience sake. Right now, Im enthusiastic about finishing my major in Architecture, minor in Management. But Im also looking into Comparative Media Studies. There are so many possibilities with all of those. I met with my advisor yesterday, and at some point he said, When the time comes, Ill tell you why its better to work before grad school. I think he by time he means registration day in the spring term. Meanwhile, its going to be a constant calibration process. P.S. Im not especially advocating a gap year or a semester off, but just that dont let the fear of falling behind keep you from stopping to explore other options. I honestly really love the entire design process, especially the design mentality of looking at things through different lenses and rehashing them until theyre just right. And its exactly this mentality I want to share with everyone.

Personal Statement My Coaching Philosophy - 1456 Words

Overcoming the fact that one day you will not be able to play your sport is one of the hardest things all athletes must one day go through. It is a fact of the game that one day your eligibility runs out or if you are one of the lucky few who play professionally, your body’s years of health do not last forever. Coaching just to be around the sport and spread the joy that sport gave you for so many years. My coaching philosophy relies extremely heavily on this information. I have always been a person who is passionate about the things I love because I do not believe in not putting your whole heart into something. The most critical component to success in whatever sport you love lies in honoring the game that so many before you loved and excelled at. Excelling and honoring the game means having respect for everyone involved with the sport. Giving respect to your coaches is something I learned from the beginning. Being respectful and having a positive attitude learned at a young age is something completely taken for granted until you have adults who can neither adapt nor be flexible when something does not go their way. Sport is a form of education in that it teaches you similar life lessons that will be useful for far longer than the amount of time that you spend actually playing it. Making the connection between health of the mind and health of the body has been around for centuries. The first great thinkers lived in a time when the the Olympics games had already been aroundShow MoreRelatedThe Philosophy Of Leadership And Leadership914 Words   |  4 Pagescom as â€Å"the power or ability to lead other people†. This definition is weak at best. Throughout my career, I have witnessed this form of leadership applying control of power, simply leading by giving direction, guidelines and instruction. There never seemed to be any care for if they were actually inspiring the next generation to follow in their footsteps. This seems counterproductive at best. In my experience, I have found that I always worked harder for and trusted more in a leader who I wasRead MorePhilosophy Is What You Know1314 Words   |  6 PagesBritish logician Bertrand Russel once opined, â€Å"Science is what you know. Philosophy is what you don t know†. Russell’s log ic assumes philosophical discussion to be mere speculation. Russell’s logic aside, philosophies serve to provide an academic field its notional base. Serving as overarching theories, hypothetical philosophies are comprised of foundational principles and precepts. 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I would also like to thank all of my professors at Concordia Irvine for their patience and superb motivation in gearing me in the right path and always making time for my questions. I would like to thank the following professors - Reardon, Davis, Brown, Burch , Ramirez, Glover, Hannah, Mailhiot, and lastly Professor Cowen who served as my portfolioRead MorePersonal Statement On Educational Leadership1423 Words   |  6 PagesWill Hardin 5040 Create a personal, professional mission statement summarizing philosophy, knowledge and skills of instructional supervision from which to guide future leadership actions. Assessment: Students will articulate a personal theory of instructional leadership and specify a personal, professional mission statement as a guide to socially responsible, ethical leadership behavior. Mission Statement â€Å"We are all in this together. Once we know that we are, we’re all stars and we see thatRead MoreBenefits Of A Subordinate Taking On More Self Management1481 Words   |  6 Pages In this students experience in the workplace, most leaders use counseling as a form of corrective action only when a negative events have taken place. Counseling can actually be used in both mentorship and coaching. Counseling the employee periodically throughout an evaluation period, affords the employee the opportunity to understand how they are doing either in a negative or positive way. Counseling also affords the leader the opportunity to provide and receive information that can facilitateRead MoreSupport Systems Play A Major Role For A Patient s Recovery Of An Illness884 Words   |  4 PagesPatient Y’s philosophy or meaning of life, I believe is to be the utmost best â€Å"professional† soccer coach he could be. His passion for soccer was truly conveyed to me throughout t he conversation with him. Our conversation even began by him calling me over by saying â€Å"come here soccer player.† He mentioned that he wanted to be discharged from the hospital in order to get back on the field and continue his training sessions. I believe his drive for soccer is what is keeping him alive and coaching is what

I First Visited The Virtual Holocaust Museum Website And...

When I first visited the virtual Holocaust Museum website and researched the bodies of the site it represented discrimination and bigotry. The action taken upon the innocent the dominant leader Adolf Hitler and the members of his group carried out Jews. The website classified the term Genocide to commit violent crimes against groups with the intent to destroy the existence of the group. The central issue raised by the site is informing people the awareness of Genocide. When I was looking into the cases mentioned on the website many of the cases are â€Å"racial profiling† against culture, religion and race. During the Holocaust the Nazis were a group that had wealth and power. According to Koppelman, during slavery, African Americans dead bodies were tossed overboard for the sharks to eat (pg106). From reading this example, the Nazis were torturing the Jews and throwing their lifeless bodies around. This site raises awareness about genocide and how it occurred during the Ho locaust. My schema has changed tremendously because I knew very little facts about the Holocaust. I thought that the Jews were just being hated on and not being killed and slaughtered by the Nazis. I read the Anne Frank passage and she expressed how she felt during the time of the Holocaust and how it was a disgrace and how the Nazis were destroying the values and beliefs of the Jews. This reminds me of how immigrants come into the United States and were forced to be Americanize because of the United StatesShow MoreRelatedOrganisational Theory230255 Words   |  922 Pagesdebates on modernism and postmodernism, and provides an advanced introduction to the heterogeneous study of organizations, including chapters on phenomenology, critical theory and psychoanalysis. Like all good textbooks, the book is accessible, well researched and readers are encouraged to view chapters as a starting point for getting to grips with the field of organization theory. Dr Martin Brigham, Lancaster Uni versity, UK McAuley et al. provide a highly readable account of ideas, perspectives and practices

Women in Business Free Essays

Women are becoming more involved in the business world by having well established careers and businesses that are performing very well all over the world. Their businesses are growing and contributing significantly to the economies of their countries. They have been able to develop careers and businesses in areas that were initially regarded as the domain of men. We will write a custom essay sample on Women in Business or any similar topic only for you Order Now As they enter this environment, they have developed new styles of carrying out business and come up with ways that are different from those that were being used by men in the past. There are various reasons that have inspired the women to start their own businesses and join the male dominated territory. Some of these reasons are derived from the needs that these women have. Financial security and the need to achieve something in their lives are some of these reasons that have inspired the women to come up with various businesses. Other reasons include seeking independence and flexibility to allow then to determine how they want to work and when they want to work. One of the major challenges that women face as they carry out their business is the ability to balance their work and their family. The women face this challenge as they are not able to separate the business side of things and the family side. However, there are various steps that these women can carry out to ensure that they strike a balance between their business work and their family roles. Some of the steps include coming up with a schedule of events and time that can help the women manage their time. They can also talk to their families and make them understand the importance of the jobs and how much it means to them. Their families can then be in a position to respect the business and value it. Developing a work cycle that fits the family life cycle can also help the women to create more opportunities and chances of spending time with their families without affecting the performance of the business. 1. 0 Introduction Women in the recent past have become more involved in business with many of them starting up their own businesses. The rate of women starting their own businesses is increasing with the rate being twice that of the national average. Some of these women have more than a hundred employees in their businesses (Ericksen Young, 1999). They have been going forward in their ventures and succeeding. These women have been able to prove that the world of business is not only a man’s world. They have gone and succeeded in areas that are considered male territory in business such as real estate, moving, restaurant business among others. The women have also maintained their characteristics and experiences of being mothers, daughters and wives as they carry on business. This paper discusses the experiences of women in business including the entrepreneurs and how they balance their work and family. 2. Women in Business In the past, men have been involved in business establishing rules and structures to be followed in organizations. However more women are getting involved and becoming part of the business world in one way or another. They have been able to enter this male dominated environment and they have been changing the way things are done and making positive contributions to the development of businesses and org anizations. They have introduced new methods and styles of doing things that are very different from the methods were being followed by the men. Most of these women have formed their own businesses which they have developed from their own unique ideas and talents that they possess. In the United States alone, there are more than ten million businesses that have been started by women. These businesses have employed over 13 million people (Gunelius, The Importance of Women-Owned Business Certification, n. d). In 2008, such businesses were able to impact the national and local economies greatly and significantly generating sales of over $1. 9 trillion (Gunelius, n. d). Women have been inspired to work hard in their businesses pushing them to great heights and reaching new levels. These women are persistent and they leave undeniable marks on the economy they impact. Most of these women have made plans and they continue to make plans for the future of their businesses with about 37% of them planning to leave their businesses in the hands of their daughters (Gunelius, Statistics About Women Business Ownders from Center for Women’s Business Research, n. d). This will help ensure that such businesses owned by women will be here to stay. 2. 1 Reasons for Joining Business. There are various factors that make the women to join the world of entrepreneurship and leave their current employment levels. Other women who are merely stay at homes have been driven to start their own businesses. These women have been inspired to start their own business that range in all sorts of industries. Other women have been inspired to start businesses that they are able to operate from home. Some of the women use their professional skills and competencies to start their own businesses while others use their hobbies and talents as the foundation and acquire the skills that are needed. Majority of these women when starting these businesses do not have any business knowledge or background but due to their passion and ambition they are able to succeed. (a) Financial Security There are various reasons that make women get involved in business with some starting their own businesses. Most of these women usually state economic necessity as one of the reasons that they start their own businesses. They start this business as they look for a source of income to make ends meet. The income they get is used to sustain their family and provide for the needs of their family. Financial security is the major driving force for most women who join business starting their own businesses (Lake, Conway, Whitney, 2005). (b) Flexibility and Independence Most of these women are mothers and they like to work using their own schedules so that they are able to spend more time with their children and family. They then choose the option of starting their own businesses that will allow them to be flexible and juggle their personal lives with their work. Having their own business allows them to freedom and independence to decide when to work and where to work from (Lake, Conway, Whitney, 2005). Most of the women entrepreneurs choose to work from their homes and just create an office in one of the rooms in their houses. (c) Corporate Glass Ceiling Some women experience a situation where they are not able to proceed further in their careers. Corporate glass ceiling is a situation where certain careers in business cannot exceed a particular level in growth. In that career there are simply no other levels that can be achieved above the current level. Women who experience such a situation end up starting their own businesses that give them more options in their careers and more fulfillments. The women are driven by this inspiration and they become their own boss (DeYoung, n. d). (d) Solving a Problem Some women entrepreneurial spirit is started off by the need to solve a particular problem that they experience and others in the society as well. They then develop a solution to the problem and then make money out of it as they help solve the problem effectively. Some of these women include Julie Clark. She came across a problem of lack of educational videos for small children and from then started to make them for her babies. She later founded a company by name The Baby Einstein that was involved in production of educational videos for young children (DeYoung, n. d). (e) Personal Achievement Some women are driven to start their own business by the desire to achieve some goals or achievements professionally (Lake, Conway, Whitney, 2005). For most of the women who are driven by this desire, tangibles are not part of their quest. They are driven by perseverance and the desire to achieve something on their won with their own knowledge and abilities and operate a business. From the business they start they are able to achieve and make a significant impact in their lives, their families and the people around them. 2. 2 Challenges Faced In Business Entrepreneurs face several challenges when they are starting off and as the businesses grow. Women however face more challenges and obstacles as they carryout their own business (Gunelius, Challenges Facing Women in Business, n. d). These challenges although they are many they are not able to deter them from carrying out their businesses and becoming successful. They have been able to overcome these challenges and continue growing their businesses. One of these challenges is the lack of equal opportunity in the business environment. (a) Gender Discrimination The business environment has for a very long time been male dominated. It has drawn very clear lines on gender, and these lines have extended in all business areas. There are very few businesses that have been regarded to be for women. Most women when they start of their businesses in areas that were not regarded for them, they face a lot of gender related discrimination (Gunelius, Challenges Facing Women in Business, n. ). This mostly happens to women who are of a different race or color than the men. Studies have shown that more women who are of African American origin are discriminated in the business environment (Lake, Conway, Whitney, 2005). (b) Family Pressure Some of the women who start of their own businesses they are overwhelmed by the activities that are involved in their busi nesses and they are not able to maintain a balance between their businesses and their families. This is one of the challenges that face women all over the world who are also mothers and have families to take care of. The balance between the business and the family life becomes hard to achieve and in most cases their family life suffers. The family pressures then take a toll on their relationships and their roles as mothers (Gunelius, Challenges Facing Women in Business, n. d). (c) Unequal Opportunities One other challenge that faces many women, who start of their own businesses especially in an area that is highly dominated by men, is the lack of opportunities that are equal (Gunelius, Challenges Facing Women in Business, n. d). They face these challenges as they carry out their daily business activities and seek funds for their businesses. These challenges interfere with their businesses and they are not able to move and grow as expected. Studies have shown that most women do not receive equal opportunities in the business environment especially in financial institutions with over 67% of them reporting difficulties when accessing funds (â€Å"Women Entreprenuers,† n. d). 3. 0 Work/Family Balance As women become more involved in the business environment developing their businesses, they are constantly faced with the challenge of managing their time properly between their business and their family. They are constantly seeking ways to manage and balance these two important sides of their life. Entrepreneurship on its own enables the women to manage their time and develop schedules that suit their life and their families as well (Women entrepreneurs, n. d). They are able to attend to family matters and other family activities and still be able to carryout their businesses. The flexibility and independence allows to allocate more time when need be to the family in various stages of her life and make up for any time lost with her family. 0% of most of the working women are driven to start their own businesses in order to enjoy this flexibility and independence (Business Women and Challenges of Work, Family, n. d). Even though the women entrepreneurs have the freedom to be flexible and spend time with their families some are not able to balance the two. There are various steps that women can follow to ensure that they are able to balance their lives and manage their time properly be tween their work and their life and hence create a balance. 3. 1 Developing a Mindset and Keeping Perspective. The women who have difficulty managing their time properly and balancing their family life and work should be able to keep a proper perspective and mindset. They should stay focused in their relationships in their family as they are valuable aspects of their life. The relationships should be maintained at all times and decisions made should be able to maintain them. These relationships are very important as they are the sources of happiness and they influence how the work is done and the quality that is maintained (Ericksen Young, 1999). The perspective and mind set taken should put this relationships first and the business second. Businesses and work should be seen as ways of supporting the relationships. This mindset when grounded can help in the decision making process and ensure that the decision s that are made focus on maintaining these relationships above all else. Work should also be treated with respect and the family should also be advised to respect the business time and value it. The women should show the families the importance of the work and what it means to them. They should also strive to do everything they can to make the work succeed. When they treat the work with a lot of respect and value the families are also able to see this and they in turn develop the same respect and value in that business (Isidro, 2010). 3. 2 Developing a Schedule A schedule can be made that can help the women to manage the time effectively. The schedule when followed can help the women to allocate enough time for the family and the business and avoid conflicts. Regular working hours can be established and maintained and any unexpected occurrence of events can be handled carefully and time compensated appropriately (Isidro, 2010). The schedule can also include frequent time breaks for the women to spend some time with the children during those breaks. The breaks can be used as a way of relaxing and spending time with the family and giving them undivided attention at this time. A schedule can also be made for the family vacations and weekends. Some women find it difficult to work when their families are at home during the summer and other holidays. Therefore a schedule can be made to include the time the family should take vacations and holidays together. The family can be involved in the making of the schedule to ensure that they are able to understand the importance of the vacation and the impact it has on the business (Business Women and Challenges of Work, Family, n. d). They will be able to offer their support and allow the women to work undisturbed and respect the working hours. 3. 3 Outsourcing and Delegating Women should not see themselves as super heroes and tend to take on all the activities of the business on their own. They can allocate some of the activities and tasks to some of the employees they can trust and then handle the more complex tasks. They can also outsource some of the work from other businesses to be able to save on time to spend with their families. They can stick to accomplishing only what they need to do on their own to ensure that the business remains productive. The faster they do their work the more time they have with their families. Getting a personal assistant when the business activities increase can allow them to spend more time with their families and still be able to make the businesses successful. Through networking the women can be able to identify other businesses that can be able to handle some of the activities of their business and outsource it to them (Lake, Conway, Whitney, 2005). 3. 4 Being Fit and Healthy A woman managing her own business should strive to keep herself healthy and fit to ensure that she is able to carry out the business and the family as well. She should stay healthy and take good care of herself in a way that she is able to take care of her family. If she is able to take care of herself then she will be more likely to be in a position to take care of her family. When working she should only take up jobs that do not strain her mentally and physically. Once she feels that she is almost burning out she should relax and take a break. Prioritizing her activities and tasks should help her deal with only what is important. She should also learn to say no in certain circumstances and avoid feeling guilty when she says no. She should just strive to do her best and deal with her life one day at a time. She can also join support groups that can help her deal with some of the issues in her business. Such support groups can be identified through networks both in the community and online (Isidro, 2010). . 5 Match the Life Cycle and the Business Cycle Women entrepreneurs can seek to match the work cycle with that of the family in order to spend more time with them. They should not be in a hurry to accomplish so much in their business and forget their families (Gunelius, Challenges Facing Women in Business, n. d). They should instead work hard where they ca n and use the slow road since it will still get them there. They should also be gentle with themselves and come up with ways that will allow them to spend time with their families. The women can for example wake up early enough and perform some of the work that is needed urgently in order to ensure that they are able to spend some time with their family during breakfast. They can also use the weekend to recover some of the time that is lost during the week as they also take a break. Another way to ensure that she is able to spend more time with the children is to work late at night when the children are asleep and it is quiet since they are able to concentrate more and accomplish more tasks then. During the day they can then spend the time with their children and play with them. The women can also avoid answering phone calls when they are spending time with their families or replying to email. When they are with their families they can switch off their mobile phones to avoid interrupting the time they are spending with their families (Isidro, 2010). 3. 6 Family’s Commitment The family should be made to understand the importance of the business and how it is operated. Making them understand will ensure that they are supportive and committed to ensure that it is successful. It is important to teach them and let them know how the business is doing, whether the money is tight and when it is doing well. They can help and come up with ideas that can be used to improve and make it better and offer moral support when things are not going well (â€Å"Women entrepreneurs,† n. d). The women should also consider the needs of their families and support them when they need the support (Isidro, 2010). Some of the needs of the family can be handled at a later time while others need urgent attention. Women should be able to identify some of the needs that are urgent and handle them immediately. Several minutes can be used to solve a problem and avoid severe consequences. The several minutes can also portray concern to the family and the issue at hand. This is importantly helpful as it helps strengthen the family relationships. Constant communication with the family should help the women identify issues that are affecting the family and the needs that they are going through. 4. 0 Conclusion Women are becoming more involved in the business environment and performing very well. They have opened up their own businesses out of ideas they have developed. From these ideas they have been able to generate a lot of money for the national economies and contributed significantly to the society. Their businesses are driven by the need to help and the desires and passion of these women. Despite the challenges the women have faced that are unique to the business environment, they have been able to overcome them through perseverance and a lot of hard work. The women who have made it are able to inspire and motivate the other women to come up and develop their own businesses and succeed. They have also become role models in their society and all over the world through their achievements and successes. How to cite Women in Business, Papers Women in Business Free Essays WOMEN IN BUSINESS Course: HRMG 5000 Managing Human Resources Term: Summer, 2011 Paper #1: Women in Business Student: Daphne Westerlaken – van Westen Contact information: daphne. van. westen@fluor. We will write a custom essay sample on Women in Business or any similar topic only for you Order Now com University: Webster University Leiden Instructor: Arthur De La Loza -2Abstract There is a direct correlation between corporate finance performance and women in leadership roles. The number of female college graduates and overall percentage of females in the workforce is increasing. Therefore the pipeline of women has greatly increased and companies have to capitalize on this to ensure these companies are going to retain, attract and develop this pool of talent. An equal balance of qualified men and women can only be achievd when top management focus on what women want in their company, work-life balance, talent management and equal compensation. Therefore the performance of top management should be judged partly on their ability to groom and promote female talent. -3Introduction The numbers of female college graduates and overall percentage of females in the workforce is increasing. In order to ensure that companies continue to appeal to the best and the brightest men and women, companies need to promote the fact that there is equal access to opportunity for both genders. Catalyst, the leading nonprofit organization working globally with business to build inclusive workplaces and expand opportunities for women and business, has found that there is a direct correlation between corporate finance performance and women in leadership roles. Studies show a more equal balance of qualified men and women drives innovation, engagement and business success. This research paper will focus on the involvement of Human Resource Management to increase the number of women in leadership roles. What Women Want The majority of the women and especially Generation Y (born 1978 – 1994) are concerned about the impact of their life-work balance (e. g. family, child care) decision will have on their careers. BPW (Business and Professional Women’s) Foundation did research on this topic and found out that the most important employer characteristics for women are: 1. Opportunity for employees to self-manage 2. Emphasis on meeting goals, as opposed to how, when or where people do the work 3. Availability of and focus on career advancement opportunities Furthermore BPW found out that women are disconnected with employers when: -41. Employees judge each other based on the number of hours worked and not results produced 2. Employees at the top have more freedom than employees at the bottom. The overall percentage of females in the workforce is increasing and the Generation Y women are the workforce for tomorrow. Because of this, women will ensure the long term business successes. Therefore corporations have to retain, attract and develop women by fulfilling their needs by a multipronged approach: 1. Organizational level: Examine and adjust the prevailing mind-set of inputs over outputs. An environment that rewards a person’s presence is not conducive for encouraging people to apply tools that might improve their performance. 2. Management level: Managers need to be coached in and held accountable for the ways in which their practices enable or limit the effectiveness of their direct reports. 3. Individual level: Each individual should be encourages to identify where and when they work best. Quotas Regulation Currently women occupy is just 12% of the seats on the boards of large European companies. The European Union warns that if listed European businesses have not made significant progress in raising that percentage by next year March, the European Union will consider mandating that they do through measures such as boardroom measures gender-quotas of the kind already in place in France, Spain and Norway. The proportion of women occupy the seats on the board of the listed France’s companies is expected to hit 20% next year, up from 7% two years ago. The pool of qualified women is finite and therefore the pressure is to prevent that pool from drying up. One of the reasons that -5qualified women are not in that pool, is because there are not visible to companies. Therefore companies and also women need to take actions like: 1. Develop and introduce mentoring programs (pairing senior women with company chairmen as mentors) 2. Build up systematically contacts (networking inside and outside the company) 3. Women have to inform company bosses of the progress in their developments 4. Chief executives have to promote women to their executive committees Regulatory back-up, like quotas, are required, because some men over 60 think that suitable females don’t exist because they have never had women as their peers, and they think women can’t take the pressure involved in serving on a board. Furthermore, these quotas forces companies to develop strategies and programs to retain, attract and develop high qualified women, who can enter the boardroom. But there is also a down side of quotas. Companies have to avoid pushing too low qualified women into boardrooms only to meet these quotas. This will harm the qualified women more than the quotas will help. Work – life Balance With women now making up almost half of the labor force in the Unit States and Europe, they are increasingly juggling work with care giving responsibilities at home. The solution for this dilemma is work flexibility and scheduling. There are several solutions and possibilities to increase the work-life balance: 1. Employees working at home. This can be achieved by teleworking. Telework means that employees work via electronic, telecommunications and Internet means. -62. Compressed work week. A compressed work week is a work week in which a full week’s work is accomplished in fewer than five 8-hour days. Example: four 10hour days. 3. Flextime: Scheduling arrangement in which employees work a set number of hours a day but vary starting and ending times. 4. Job-sharing: Scheduling arrangement in which 2 employees perform the work of one full-time job. Researches have shown that the approach of work flexibility and schedule not only help a company’s business success, it leads to increased employee productivity and retains and attracts the best employees. Equal Compensation The US labor statics for 2009 shows that women’s median full-time earning is 78. 7% of what men earn. The level of education doesn’t make any differences. The reasons for wage differences are complicated. Part of it has to do with many traditionally male-dominated professions, paying better than female-dominated professions. Part of it has to do that women choose to spend more time with family care than with their careers. But that is not whole story. A study showed that when all things are equal (other than gender), women faculty members get paid less their mail colleagues. Women earn on average 6. 9% less than men in similar situations, when the long careers of male faculty members, the relative productivity of faculty member and where male and female faculty members tend to work are taken in account. Why the difference? 1. 2. Sexism and discrimination Women don’t negotiate better salaries for themselves 7There’s not a lot women can do about sexist employers, but salary negotiations are under their control. These negotiations can be a stumbling block, because women are not well trained to negotiate assertively on their own behalf. But if they do, they may be penalized, particularly if the other negotiator is male. A study observed that men were more inclined to work with nicer and less de manding women who accepted their compensation offers without comment than they were with women who attempted to negotiate for higher compensation. Both women were equaled competent for the job. So that’s the double bind for women: if they don’t ask for a higher salary, they likely won’t receive one, but if they do, they may not be hired or promoted. Talent Management Catalyst, a nonprofit women’s research group, mentioned that only 11 chief executives of Fortune 500 companies are women, down from a peak of 15 in 2010. The McKinsey study showed that 37% of lower-level and middle management are female, while just 26% of vice presidents and other senior manager are women at Fortune 500 companies. McKinsey researchers found that female ambition declines at middle age. About 64% of women ages 45 to 54 old expressed a desire to advance professionally, compared with 78% of the men in the same age range. The comparable figures were 92% and 98% respectively, for women and men aged 23 to 34. The decrease of the desire to advance professionally of middle aged women is caused by their experience of not well fitted Talent Management Systems. Corporations can improve the odds for building diversity in the top management by increasing the number of women who make it from middle management to the vice presidential level. There are several opportunities, which companies can implement: -81. Companies need to spend more time coaching women and offering more leadership training and rotation through various management roles. 2. Companies should watch the women at the middle management level systematically and putting these women in programs that would help them to develop and get the next (promotion) hurdle. 3. Companies should be actively grooming women, making sure they have mentors and actively promoting their careers. 4. The performance of top management should be judged partly on their ability to groom and promote female talent. Conclusion Recommendations Research has shown that there is a direct correlation between corporate financial performance and having a mix of women and men in senior leadership roles. Statistics show that the number of female college graduates and overall percentage of females in the workforce is increasing. Therefore the pipeline of women has greatly increased and companies have to capitalize on this to ensure these companies are going to retain, attract and develop this pool of talent. To capitalize the women talents, companies need to change their (masculine) corporate culture. In the majority of the companies, female employees don’t have same access to opportunities as their male colleagues. To increase the corporate financial performance, companies need to improve their corporate culture and the equal access to opportunities for both female and male employees. -9Every business and company is different and therefore companies need to found out what the needs are from their (future) female employees. In general, the most important employer characteristics for women are: 1. 2. 3. Opportunity for employees to self manage Emphasis on meeting goals, as opposed to how, when or where people do the work Availability of and focus on career advancement opportunities The work-life balance becomes more important for both female and male employees; due to that the number of women participates in the workforce is increasing. There are several solutions and possibilities which companies can implement to increase the work-life balance: 1. 2. 3. 4. Employees working at home (teleworking) Compressed work week Flextime Job-sharing Besides attract and retain female employees, development of these qualified women is important, because they will ensure the mix of women and men in senior leadership roles. Therefore it is recommended that companies improve their talent management with: 1. Coaching women, offering leadership training and rotations through various management roles 2. Watch the women at middle management level systematically and putting these women in programs that would help them to develop and get the next promotion hurdle . Actively grooming women, making sure that they have mentors and actively promoting their careers – 10 Without equal compensation, women will leave the company or are not interested to start their career with a company. Therefore is important that companies need to make sure that both women and men are equal compensated for the work they do. The final recommendation is more means of putting p ressure on companies. A regulatory back-up, like quotas, forces companies to develop strategies and programs to retain, attract and develop high qualified women, who can enter the boardroom. Unfortunately there is also a down-side of quotas. Companies have to avoid pushing too low qualified women into boardrooms only to meet these quotas. This will harm the qualified women undeserved. An equal balance of qualified men and women can only be achieved when top management focus on what women want in their company, work-life balance, talent management and equal compensation. Therefore the performance of top management should be judged partly on their ability to groom and promote female talent. – 11 References Mathis, Robert L and Jackson, John H (2011). Human Resource Management. South-Western, a part of Cengage Learning Jolis, Anne (2011, May 19). What Women Want. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved May 23, 2011, from http://www. WSJ. com SHRM Online staff (2011, April 26). What Gen Y Women Want: Autonomy and Self-Direction. Society for Human Resource Management. Retrieved May 3, 2011, from http://www. shrm. org Boulton, Leyla (2011, May 10). UK headhunter pledge new focus on gender. Financial Times. Retrieved May 19, 2011, from http://www. ft. com Manzano-Diaz, Sara (2011, May 20). Helping Women Advance in the Workplace. Council on Women and Girls. Retrieved May 25, 2011, from http://www. whitehouse. gov/administration/eop/cwg Peggy (2011, April 12). Equal Pay Day: Why don’t women just ask for more? Retrieved May 25, 2011, from http://www. scientopia. org/blogs/everydaybiology/ Lublin, Joann S, (2011, April 4). Coaching Urged for Women. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved June 14, 2011, from http://www. WSJ. com Prime, Jeanine and Moss-Racusin, Corinne A (2009). Engaging men in gender initiatives: What Change Agents Need To Know. Catalyst Zahidi, Saadia and Ibarra, Herminia (2010). The Corporate Gender Gap Report 2010. World Economic Forum How to cite Women in Business, Papers

Influence of Brand Loyalty on Consumer Sportswear free essay sample

We owe a debt of gratitude to (professors name), for the vision and foresight which inspired us to conceive this research project on topic Influence of Brand Loyalty on Consumer Sportswear as for providing necessary information regarding the project also for her support in completing the project. We would like to express our gratitude towards member of (institute name) for their kind co-operation and encouragement which help us in completion of this project. Our thanks and appreciation also goes to all the respondents who took time to fill the questionnaires and helped us out with their abilities. INDEX S. NO CONTENTS PAGE NO. 1 Statement of the problem 4 2 Background of the Problem 5 3 Purpose of the Study 6 4 Setting for the Study 6 5 Research Questions 7 6 Definition of Terms 7 7 Factors of Brand Loyalty 8 8 Grass roots marketing 11 9 Hypotheses 12 10 Methodology 12 11 Hypothesis Test 13 12 Sample Questionnaire 14 13 Respondents’ Information 16 14 Graphs 18 15 Analysis 20 16 Research Questions Analysis 20 17 Conclusion 21 Statement of the Problem This study focuses on various aspects of building brand loyalty towards youth consumers and how current marketing strategies in the clothing company industry are used. We will write a custom essay sample on Influence of Brand Loyalty on Consumer Sportswear or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Typically marketing and public relations professionals have used branding and mass media as a way to increase visibility of a brand allowing them to stand out and create loyalty to said brand. Brand is an identifiable product, service, person or place augmented in such a way that the buyer or user perceives relevant, unique added values, which match their needs most closely. Furthermore, its success results from being able to sustain these added values in the face of competition. Brand awareness is the ability to identify the brand under different conditions and it consists of brand recognition and brand recall. It is important as it can increase the likelihood of the brand being part of, and selected from, a consideration set and ultimately strengthens brand associations and the resultant brand image. A wide variety of programs have been developed and implemented to increase customer loyalty. The majority of these programs target customers functional and economic benefits (e. g. price-discounts, coupons, mileage programs, etc. ). However, these types of loyalty programs are necessary but not a sufficient condition to simultaneously increase multifaceted customer loyalty. Increasing customer loyalty entirely requires a customized marketing strategy that varies by each different type of loyalty. By using a type of grass roots consumer marketing as opposed to mass media marketing a longer lasting brand loyalty can be built with youth consumers. Background of the Problem The existing literature regarding grass roots marketing in regards to brand loyalty is relatively minimal. It mainly focuses on the benefits of branding through the use of mass media marketing. The literature is also lacking in the area of targeting youth consumers with grass roots marketing efforts and the benefits that are possible in creating brand loyalty. The importance of reaching children at a young age with specific tactics to build brand loyalty is huge. It is suggested that decision-making skills emerge throughout childhood and that brand reliance is firmly established in children as young as two years old. Brands provide firms with an opportunity to distinguish their product offerings and provide consumers with information about the product, particularly quality and self-identity. Youth consumers are searching to build their self-identity and brands can capitalize on that. Although significant research into adult buying behaviour and branding does exist, it is not appropriate to assume that this can be applied to younger consumers. Purpose of the Study According to current trends in the field of lifestyle clothing and marketing, mass media is the chosen route. The influence of grass roots marketing to build brand loyalty is down played as a strategy to reach consumers effectively. Shifts in culture have proved that response to mass media marketing is declining and there are other alternatives to build your brand. Lifestyle clothing companies have started to implement strategies to reach youth consumer markets in a personalized way. Through the use of grass roots consumer marketing brands can capitalize on the growing field of youth consumers to build brand loyalty and create returning customers for life. By investigating the current strategies used to market clothing brands to youth it will benefit marketing, public relations, and clothing companies who consistently develop and manage brands. Setting for the Study This study was done in colleges and in shopping malls with sports brands showrooms. Questionnaires were filled by 50 respondents which includes males and females of different age groups between 20 to 30 and with different occupations. Research Questions The study used following research questions that were designed to answer fundamental gaps in the existing literature on the topic development and evaluation of grass roots marketing towards youth consumers to build brand loyalty. Each question was created after investigating the existing information on the topic in order to acquire additional pertinent and necessary data from professionals in the fields of marketing, public relations, and clothing for the study. 1. How does one create loyalty through the use of branding? 2. How do product-branding efforts affect different aged demographics? 3. How does branding in sports goods affect younger consumers? 4. Why is brand loyalty incorporated in the grass roots marketing of sports goods? 5. What is the success of grass roots marketing in sustaining youth consumer loyalty to the established brand? Definition of Terms The following terms are defined to clarify several of the terms on the topic and assist the reader and provide context to the remainder of the study. Brand: An identifiable product, service, person or place augmented in such a way that the buyer or user perceives relevant, unique added values, which match their needs most closely. Furthermore, its success results from being able to sustain these added values in the face of competition. Brand Community: defined in terms of the relationships in which the customer is situated, including relationships between the customer and the brand, between the customer and the company, between the customer and the product in use, and among fellow customers. Brand communities create loyalty, causing the consumer to intend to keep the relationship and ultimately repurchase your product. Brand awareness: the ability to identify a brand under different conditions, it consists of brand recognition and brand recall. Brand awareness is important as it can increase the likelihood of the brand being part of, and selected from, a consideration set and ultimately strengthens brand associations and the resultant brand image. Brand Alliance: the short-or-long term association of both tangible and intangible qualities associated with brand partners in order to increase visibility of one or both brands. Brand Loyalty: the increased profits or benefits of a branded product, corporation or person compared to those with no brand name attached. Factors of Brand Loyalty Brand Name Famous brand names can disseminate product benefits and lead to higher recall of advertised benefits than non-famous brand names. There are many unfamiliar brand names and alternatives available in the market place. Consumers may prefer to trust major famous brand names. These prestigious brand names and their images attract consumers to purchase the brand and bring about repeat purchasing behaviour and reduce price related switching behaviours. Furthermore, brand personality provides links to the brand’s emotional and self-expressive benefits for differentiation. This is important for brands which have only minor physical differences and are consumed in a social setting where the brand can create a visible image about the consumer itself. On other hand, fashion magazines and fashion press elaborate on the designer’s collections to the full extent and thus reinforce better images to facilitate consumer recognition. Consumers are usually able to evaluate each of the products and brand name attributes. It is noteworthy that this information is essential for marketing managers to make informed decisions concerning product positioning, repositioning and differential advantages. Brand name is the creation of an image or the development of a brand identity and is an expensive and time consuming process. The development of a brand name is an essential part of the process since the name is the basis of a brand’s image. Brand name is important for the firm to attract customers to purchase the product and influence repeat purchasing behaviour. Consumers tend to perceive the products from an overall perspective, associating with the brand name all the attributes and satisfaction experienced by the purchase and use of the product. Product Quality Product Quality encompasses the features and characteristics of a product or service that bears on its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs. In other words, product quality is defined as â€Å"fitness for use† or ‘conformance to requirement†. Consumers may repeat the purchase of single brands or switch around several brands due to the tangible quality of the product sold. The components of product quality of fashion merchandise include size measurement, cutting or fitting, material, colour, function and the performance of the merchandise. Fitting is a crucial aspect in garment selection because some fitted garments such as swimsuits and aerobic wear can ideally enhance the consumers’ general appearance. Material is important in product quality because it affects the hand feel, texture and other performance aspects of the product. Further, consumers relate personally to colour, and could select or reject a fashion because of colour. If the colour does not appeal to them or flatter their own colour, they will reject the fashion. Functional attributes in sportswear include quick-dry, breathable, waterproof, odour-resistant, lightweight, and antimicrobial and finally, durability which is the use life of garments. For instance, some consumers wear their sportswear for heavy work and some for leisure and sports, as they need a lot of movement, while durability is an important consideration in purchasing sportswear. Perfectionist or quality consciousness is defined as an awareness of and desire for high quality products, and the need to make the best or perfect choice versus buying the first product or brand available. This indicates that quality characteristics are also related to performance. Price Price is probably the most important consideration for the average consumer. Consumers with high brand loyalty are willing to pay a premium price for their favoured brand, so, their purchase intention is not easily affected by price. In addition, customers have a strong belief in the price and value of their favourite brands so much so that they would compare and evaluate prices with alternative brands. Consumers’ satisfaction can also be built by comparing price with perceived costs and values. If the perceived values of the product are greater than cost, it is observed that consumers will purchase that product. Loyal customers are willing to pay a premium even if the price has increased because the perceived risk is very high and they prefer to pay a higher price to avoid the risk of any change. Basically, long-term relationships of service loyalty make loyal customers more price tolerant, since loyalty discourages customers from making price comparison with other products by shopping around. Price has increasingly become a focal point in consumers’ judgments of offer value as well as their overall assessment of the retailer. Price significantly influences consumer choice and incidence of purchase. He emphasized that discount pricing makes households switch brands and buy products earlier than needed. Price is described as the quantity of payment or compensation for something. It indicates price as an exchange ratio between goods that pay for each other. Price also communicates to the market the company’s intended value positioning of its product or brand. Price consciousness is defined as finding the best value, buying at sale prices or the lowest price choice. Additionally, consumers generally evaluated market price against an internal reference price, before they decide on the attractiveness of the retail price. Style Style is visual appearance, which includes line, silhouette and details affecting consumer perception towards a brand. A composite list of apparel attributes has been generated and one of the conceptual categories is style. Consumers’ judgment depends on the consumers’ level of fashion consciousness, so judgment will be conditioned by their opinion of what is currently fashionable. Brands that supply stylish sportswear attract loyal consumers who are fashion conscious. Fashion leaders or followers usually purchase or continue to repeatedly purchase their fashion garments in stores that are highly fashionable. They gain satisfaction from wearing the latest fashion and style which also satisfies their ego. A research investigated the niche market in women’s sportswear results showed that sportswear shoppers were becoming more fashion conscious and were demanding products with more style; furthermore, consumers have a tendency to wear different attires for different occasions. Fashion consciousness is generally defined as an awareness of new styles, changing fashions, and attractive styling, as well as the desire to buy something exciting and trendy. Store Environment The store environment is the single most important factor in retail marketing success and store longevity. Positive attributes of the store, which include store location, store layout, and in-store stimuli, affect brand loyalty to some extent. Store location and number of outlets are crucial in altering consumer shopping and purchasing patterns. If consumers find the store to be highly accessible during their shopping trip and are satisfied with the store’s assortment and services, these consumers may become loyal afterwards. Thus, a store’s atmosphere is one of the factors that could influence consumer’s decision making. The stimuli in the store, such as the characteristic of other shoppers and salespeople, store layout, noises, smells, temperature, shelf space and displays, sign, colours, and merchandise, affect consumers and serve as elements of apparel attributes, which may in turn, affect consumer decision making and satisfaction with the brand. On the other hand, background music played in the stores affects attitudes and behaviour. The slow-beat musical selection leads to higher sales volume as consumers spend more time and money in a conducive environment. There are many advantages to retailers having loyal customers. Customer loyalty could yield a favourable operating cost advantage for retailers. Furthermore, they stressed that obtaining new customers cost five to six times as much as retaining current customers. Loyal customers can increase their purchase spending, they are low cost for retailers as compared to obtaining new customers; they accept price premiums and they have customer longevity. The channel convenience of the brands had significant influence on buying behaviour. This means that the accessibility to this product/brand in the store is important when purchasing low involvement products. Consumers will not go to another store just to find the brand. Instead, they will stay put and choose another brand. Promotion Promotion is a marketing mix component which is a kind of communication with consumers. Promotion includes the use of advertising, sales promotions, personal selling and publicity. Advertising is a non-personal presentation of information in mass media about a product, brand, company or store. It greatly affects consumers’ images, beliefs and attitudes towards products and brands, and in turn, influences their purchase behaviours. This shows that promotion, especially through advertising, can help establish ideas or perceptions in the consumers’ minds as well as help differentiate products against other brands. Promotion is an important element of a firm’s marketing strategy. Promotion is used to communicate with customers with respect to product offerings, and it is also a way to encourage purchase or sales of a product or service. Sales promotion tools are used by most organisations in support of advertising and public relations activities, and they are targeted toward consumers as final users. Promotion has a key role in determining profitability and market success and is one of the key elements of the marketing mix which includes advertising; direct marketing; sales promotion; public relations and publicity; personal selling and sponsorship. Service Quality A common definition of service quality is that the service should correspond to the customers’ expectations and satisfy their needs and requirements. Service quality is a kind of personal selling, and involves direct interactions between salespeople and potential buyers. Consumers like to shop at specific stores because they like the services provided and are assured of certain service privileges. The impact of salespeople-consumer relationships will generally result in long term orientation of consumers towards the store or brand. Trust in salespeople appears to relate to overall perceptions of the store’s service quality, and results in the consumer being totally satisfied with the stores in the end. Additionally, personalisation (i. e. reliability, responsiveness, personalization and tangibles) significantly influence consumers’ experience and evaluation of service, and in turn, affects the brand loyalty of consumers (To and Leung, 2001). The quality of a service as perceived by customers had three dimensions: functional (or process) dimension, technical (or outcome) dimension, and image. Utilising only functional quality attributes to explain and/or predict consumers’ behaviour might be a misspecification of service quality and had low predictive validity. Grass roots marketing Brand loyalty incorporated in the grass roots marketing of lifestyle fashion. Grass roots marketing approaches are about reaching customers on a more personal level. Example of successful grass roots marketing campaign for sustaining youth consumer loyalty to established brands. First of all, it is clear that a companys brand community marketing activities have the power to influence the strength of the relationships among community participants, the brand, and the company. Accordingly, companies recognizing the important role of brand community should make every effort to actively manage a brand community. Second, the provision of a space in which customers can directly participate would be very effective in enhancing customers loyalty toward a brand. Brand communities are useful spaces where consumers get involved, exchange relevant information among members, and broaden their understanding about brands. Since customers participation often leads to brand loyalty activities, brand communities should be considered as a tool to improve marketing effectiveness. Third, the noted importance of brand communities offers new insights for customer relationship management and related marketing activities. Following the trend of companies making the most of customers positive word-of-mouth in their marketing strategies, suggestions on ways to increase community commitment should make valuable contributions to companies customer relationship marketing. Fourth, it is suggested that trust and affect are vital factors in enhancing customers brand community commitment, raising the question as to how a company might increase trust and affect in the minds of its brand community users. Brand community managers should help users to develop an emotional bond with the brand community and the brand. Sustained efforts to make users feel pleasure and enjoyment will enhance the affective atmosphere of the brand community. In addition, brand community mangers should engage in careful knowledge management to ensure that all the available information is trustworthy. Considering that trust is more influential than affect on brand community commitment and loyalty behaviours, as identified in this study, brand community managers should take precautions to enhance the level of trust toward the brand community. Likewise, the brand community website and community user activity should be designed to facilitate the enhancement of trust and affect toward the brand community. Hypotheses This article focuses on the factors that influence consumers’ brand loyalty towards a particular brand. Based on the factors that influence brand loyalty, the following hypotheses are derived. H1: There is a significant and positive relationship between brand name and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. H2: There is a significant and positive relationship between product quality and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. H3: There is a significant and positive relationship between price and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. H4: There is a significant and positive relationship between style and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. H5: There is a significant and positive relationship between promotion and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. H6: There is a significant and positive relationship between service quality and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. H7: There is a significant and positive relationship between store environment and brand loyalty on consumer sportswear. Methodology The Sample Respondents include 25 males and 25 females from different age groups between15 to 30. They are all students of Chandigarh. A total of 50 sets of questionnaires were distributed to respondents. Data collection method To conduct the study, primary data and secondary data are used by the researcher to analyse brand loyalty on sportswear. Primary data was collected by using self-administered questionnaires which were distributed to respondents who were briefed on the purpose of the study. The structure of the questionnaire is clear, easy to understand, and straightforward to ensure that the respondents could answer the questions with ease. Research Instrument A self-administered questionnaire in English was developed and divided into three sections: brand loyalty, consumer’s favourite sports brand and factors which influence brand loyalty. Hypothesis Test Brand name was found to have significant positive relationship with brand loyalty. The research results showed that consumers favoured brand image when they perceive positive benefits or function from the product. They would then recommend the brand, have positive reaction on the price premium and are willing to accept brand extensions to other product categories within the same brand. Product quality was shown to have positive relationship with brand loyalty. This finding indicates that product quality is significant in the consumer decision making process. The research findings showed that price and brand loyalty had a positive relationship. Price was an important consideration for the average consumer. However, consumers with high brand loyalty were less-price sensitive. The result suggested that as long as the respondents were satisfied with a particular brand, they would repurchase the product with the same brand name even if it was highly priced. However, the findings showed that there was no relationship between style and brand loyalty. From the seven variables identified, style was not considered an important factor for students to be loyal to particular sportswear brand. The results showed that promotion and brand loyalty were positively related. Promotion was considered as one of the most important factors in determining a consumers’ brand loyalty. It includes the use of advertising, sales promotion, personal selling and publicity. From the study conducted, it was seen that female respondents actually spent more time reading product labels before buying products. The finding also showed that service quality and brand loyalty had a positive relationship. Service quality was an important factor in influencing and encouraging consumers to patronise a store. The results indicated that the salesperson-consumer relationship will generally result in long-term orientation of consumers toward a store. At the same time, trust in the salesperson appeared to relate to the overall perception of the store’s service quality which resulted in the consumer’s total satisfaction with the store. Store environment was positively related to brand loyalty. The Store environment is considered one of the factors that can influence consumer brand loyalty. From this study, it is observed that consumers paid much attention to store attributes such as merchandise display, variety of selection, parking space, easily accessible by car and the reputation of the store in purchasing products. SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE Questionnaire On Brand Loyalty 1. Name___________________ 2. Sex____________________ 3. Age ___________________ 3. Occupation______________ 4. Income__________________ 1. Do you experiment with different brands? a) Yes b) No c) Sometimes 2. Please select the Brand you are loyal to? a) Adidas b) Puma c) Reebok d) Fila e) Nike f) Others 3. What do you look for in the product you choose? a) Price b) Quality c) Quantity d) Packaging e) Brand Image of the company f) Others_________________ 4. To what extent has the product been successful to meet your needs? a) To the fullest extent b) More than 80% c) 50% – 80% d) Less than 50% e) Can’t say 5. Please select the campaigns which will enhance your loyal to the brand? a) Sponsorship (e. g. sports event, sports-player) b) Customization (e. g. design your own product) c) Cross-over with fashion designer d) Specialization Function of Product e) Provide High Quality of Service f) Attractive Store Decoration and Location g) Advertising h) Attractive Price 6. How many times you purchased the sportswear last year? a) Maximum(10 and above) b) Average(5-10 times) c) Minimum(Below 5) 7. Do you switch to other Brands while buying? a) Yes b) No 8. The price of the Brand you prefer a) Is as per your expectations b) Is more than your expectations c) Is less than your expectations d) Can’t say 9. What are the sources of your product brand information? a) Friends b) Family c) TV ads d) Website e) Other__________________ 10. Rank the after sales service of the brand you chose (1= least and 5 = highest) a) 1 b) 2 c) 3 d) 4 e) 5 11. Can you list some areas of improvement of the branded product ? ___________________________________________________ Respondents’ Information NAME GENDER AGE OCCUPATION INCOME AAKANSHA VOHRA FEMALE 16 STUDENT 5000 ARSH KHARBANDA FEMALE 18 STUDENT 5000 CHAHAT SINGH FEMALE 15 STUDENT 5000 HARSH SURI MALE 26 STUDENT 10000 HEMANT KOHLI MALE 27 STUDENT 14000 VAIBHAV SHARMA MALE 22 STUDENT 8000 SIMRAN DHALIWAL FEMALE 21 STUDENT 9000 POONAM DEEP FEMALE 23 STUDENT 6000 VISHAL MAHINDRU MALE 21 STUDENT 7000 GURLEEN CHABBRA MALE 22 STUDENT 5000 ANKUSH JOLLY MALE 22 STUDENT 10000 RITAMBHRA KHANEJA FEMALE 21 STUDENT 8000 SHILPA SONDHI FEMALE 23 STUDENT 12000 SAMDISHA KOHLI FEMALE 29 STUDENT 15000 RAVNEET SHERGILL MALE 23 STUDENT 12500 NIDHI GILL FEMALE 30 STUDENT 10000 GAURAV SETHI MALE 28 STUDENT 17000 HARDIK KOHLI MALE 15 STUDENT 5000 REYAANSH SURI MALE 16 STUDENT 8000 AARAV SINGH MALE 16 STUDENT 7000 KANAV CHABBRA MALE 17 STUDENT 10000 KAASHVI JUNEJA FEMALE 16 STUDENT 5000 DIZA GILL FEMALE 15 STUDENT 8000 SONIA AARYA FEMALE 26 STUDENT 11000 PAARTH SONDHI MALE 25 STUDENT 12000 PALLAVI GUPTA FEMALE 23 STUDENT 18000 PANKURI SUNDRA FEMALE 29 STUDENT 10000 KAMAYANI JAIN FEMALE 24 STUDENT 7000 SARANSH CHOPRA MALE 23 STUDENT 13000 SURKHAAB ANJUMAN FEMALE 23 STUDENT 15000 HARLUVLEEN BOPARAI FEMALE 20 STUDENT 8000 ISHRAT GILL FEMALE 18 STUDENT 9000 TARANNUM CHAWLA FEMALE 16 STUDENT 5000 ANHAD SADANA MALE 20 STUDENT 6000 RISHAB GUPTA MALE 19 STUDENT 8000 KAMAKSHI PURI FEMALE 15 STUDENT 5000 LEISHA SINGH FEMALE 23 STUDENT 9000 SHIVI SAHNI FEMALE 28 STUDENT 10000 SWATI SURI FEMALE 25 STUDENT 6000 HITESH SINGH MALE 27 STUDENT 9000 NEHA JINDAL FEMALE 26 STUDENT 8000 SHILPA JOSHI FEMALE 21 STUDENT 5000 ANSH GARG MALE 22 STUDENT 7000 ANIMESH SAHNI MALE 29 STUDENT 10000 AARYAN AHUJA MALE 23 STUDENT 6500 ABHINAV SOOD MALE 27 STUDENT 7000 UDAY WARAICH MALE 26 STUDENT 9500 NISHANT GARG MALE 28 STUDENT 8000 SAKSHAM BHASIN MALE 25 STUDENT 8000 Graphs ANALYSIS ON THE BASIS OF GENDER GENDER NUMBER MALE 25 FEMALE 25 ANALYSIS ON THE BASIS OF INCOME INCOME NUMBER ABOVE 10000 10 5000-10000 40 ANALYSIS FOR MALES AGE NUMBER 15-20 6 21-30 19 ANALYSIS FOR FEMALES AGE NUMBER 15-20 8 21-30 17 Analysis Both males and females of 15-20 years category are experimental in nature as they keep on switching to different brands. This means that their loyalty factor varies from brand to brand because of various factors. Brand image and quality is the main criteria followed by them. Their purchase is irregular for different products of varied brands. The main sources of information for them are their friends and relatives followed by social media. They also rely on television advertisements. The monthly income of these youngsters range between 5000 to 10000. 21 to 30 years age group youngsters are not really that experimental in nature as compared to the people falling in 15 to 20 age group category. In spite of having a moderately good income they like to be loyal to a particular product of a specific brand quality and price is the main focus for these people followed by brand image. As they are loyal so specific brand for a particular product they are all satisfied with the quality, price and other schemes provided by that brand they are loyal to. That is the sole reason that they are not experimental in nature and do not switch brands. Research Questions Analysis For this project, the following five research questions were designed to answer fundamental gaps in the existing literature on the topic development and evaluation of grass roots marketing towards youth consumers to build brand loyalty. Each question was created after investigating the existing information on the topic in order to acquire additional pertinent and necessary data from professionals in the fields of marketing and public relations. Research question 1: How does one create loyalty through the use of branding? Increasing customer loyalty entirely requires a customized marketing strategy that varies by each different type of loyalty. Research question 2: How do product-branding efforts affect different aged demographics? The age at which brand importance becomes significant to young consumers is the keystone for marketers as it allows them to better predict the evaluative judgments and purchase decisions made and influenced by children when they become adults. Although significant research into adult buying behaviour and branding exists, it is not appropriate to assume that this can be applied to younger consumers. Research question 3: How does branding in sports goods affect younger consumers? Customers express themselves through the brands they like, and they are favourable and attached to brands having higher congruity with their self-image. As a result, they are highly likely to repurchase such brands consistently. A positive attitude toward a brand is formed when consumers self-image and brand image are congruous. Research question 4: Why is brand loyalty incorporated in the grass roots marketing of sports goods? Commitment as a psychological attachment leads to customers proactive behaviour, such as positive word-of-mouth. Specifically, when customers are affectively committed to a service company, they identify themselves with the companys vision and value, and in turn they are interested in the growth of the company. As a result, they demonstrate proactive behaviours such as positive word-of-mouth In short, customers sense of unity with a brand community leads to their active word-of-mouth. Research question 5: What is the success of grass roots marketing in sustaining youth consumer loyalty to the established brand? Grass roots marketing is a successful tool. Total creative expression is a defining quality of a brand and remains paramount in the execution of the tours. In the same fashion, this is how the tours began, incubated by passion, creativity and a straightforward approach. CONCLUSION The purpose of this research is to investigate how the respondents are influenced by factors of brand loyalty towards sportswear brands. Brand loyalty is important for an organisation to ensure that its product is kept in the minds of consumers and prevent them from switching to other brands. The research showed that it was not easy to obtain and maintain consumer loyalty for a company’s product because there were many forces drawing consumers away such as competition, consumers’ thirst for variety, etc. From the analysis of this study, it was shown that there are six factors of brand loyalty that were appropriate in the Indian environment which are, the brand name, product quality, price, promotion, service quality and store environment. The findings revealed that product quality plays a significant role in influencing consumers to be brand loyal customers. Interestingly, it is noted that this factor of product quality also plays a vital role. Additionally, the overall findings of this study also show that amongst others youngsters prefer brand name, product quality, price, promotion, store environment and service quality as relevant factors attributable to brand loyalty. All these factors showed positive relationships with brand loyalty except style which had no relationship. Undeniably, the sportswear industry is one area which offers vast potential in the consumer market where there is increase in sporting activities. More reliable and positive findings on this topic would impact on consumers, marketers and policy makers.