Alternative Drink Industry Analysis Essay Example for Free

Alternative Drink Industry Analysis Essay 1. Do a complete five-forces analysis of competition in the global alternative drink industry, then tell me which of the five competitive forces is strong, weak, and why. Especially in the force of rivalry (one of the 5 forces), you must identify the market size, growth rate, profit margins, what are the main categories in the alternative drink industry, who are the major competitors and their relative sizes, the competition scope, the main competition weapons) 2. Briefly identify 6 to 7 key success factors in the alternative drink industry 3. What are the other economic traits that are outside the industry but still can affect all competitors (for example, overall economy trend, long term innovation, globalization, maturity stage of the industry, relevant legislation, etc. )? Briefly explain how these factors can affect the industry. Notes: 1.   What are the strategically relevant components of the global and U. S. beverage industry macro-environment? How do the economic characteristics of the alternative beverage segment of the industry differ from that of other beverage categories? Explain. The strategically relevant components of the global and U. S. beverage industry macro-environment: †¢ Global beverage companies such as Coca Cola and PepsiCo had relied on such beverages to sustain in volume growth in mature markets where consumers were reducing their consumption of carbonated soft drinks. †¢ Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and other beverage companies were intent on expanding the market for alternative beverages by introducing energy drinks, sports drinks, and vitamin drinks in more and more emerging international markets. †¢ Beverage producers had made various attempts at increasing the size of the market for alternative beverages by extending existing product lines and developing altogether new products. †¢ Expanding the market for alternatives beverages and increasing sales and market share, beverage producers also were forced to content with criticism from some that energy drinks, energy shots, and relaxation drinks presented health risks for consumers and that some producers’ strategies promoted reckless behavior, the primary concern of most producers of energy drinks, sports drinks, and vitamin-enhanced beverages was how to best improve their competitive standing in the market place. †¢ Rapid growth in the category, coupled with premium prices and high profit margins made alternative beverages an important part of beverage companies’ lineup of brands. The Alternative Beverage Segment Help Companies to Sustain Volume Growth in Mature Markets Where Consumers Were Reducing Their Consumption of Carbonated Soft Drinks. Also the Alternative Beverage Industry Offered 2. What is competition like in the alternative beverage industry? Which of the five competitive forces is strongest? Which is weakest? What competitive forces seem to have the greatest effect on industry attractiveness and the potential profitability of new entrants? Competition from substitutes is substantial. There were many substitutes to alternative beverages such as tea, soft drinks, fruit juices, bottled water and tap water. Even though substitute products had a bigger market share in the US, consumers had tended to buy more alternative beverages. This change in customer preference had weakened the competitive power of substitute beverages. Convenience store, grocery store, and wholesale club buyers had substantial leverage in negotiating pricing and slotting fees with alternative beverage producers because of their large purchases. New brands with low market shares were most vulnerable to buyer leverage since shelf space was limited while top brands such as Red Bull were almost always assured of shelf space. Coca-Cola and PepsiCo were least vulnerable since they offered a wide variety of beverages that convenience stores, grocery stores, and wholesale clubs wished to offer to consumers. As a result of this certain appeal, the two companies’ alternative beverage brands almost always found shelf space in retail stores. The bargaining power and leverage of suppliers was the weakest competitive force. Many suppliers for alternative beverage ingredients and they fight with the others to sell their products. Packaging is readily available from many suppliers and is like a commodity. However, some rare ingredients providers had a moderate amount of leverage in negotiations with energy drink producers. Additionally, the producers of alternative beverages are important customers of suppliers and buy in large quantities. The threat of new brands varies by market maturity of each alternative beverage category. It has low threat for mature categories and moderate to strong in young categories. During the early stages of developing a category, when famous brand leaders had not been established, the threat of entry in alternative beverage categories remained strong. As a result, entrepreneurs launching new beverages with novel formulas or well-developed image campaigns could quickly gain market share among consumers. However, as the category matured, consumer preferences developed and shaped retailers’ purchasing decisions. Once the category had established, its brand leaders, it became much more difficult for new entrants to gain shelf space in convenience stores, supermarkets, and wholesale clubs. Therefore, in 2010, the threat of entry should be lower for all types of alternative beverages except energy shots and relaxation drinks. The competence among sellers of alternative beverage could be considered as the strongest competitive force. Among the sellers of energy drinks and other alternative beverages, competition is so strong and will grow stronger each year. Competition among major brands centers primarily on brand image, an appealing taste, attractive packaging, new product RD, sales promotions and endorsements, and gaining better access to shelf space and strengthening distribution capabilities. As for 2010, there was no evidence of strong price competition in any of the alternative beverage categories, which makes it difficult to argue that competitive rivalry is fierce or brutal. Factors that increase the strength of competitive rivalry included efforts on the part of industry rivals to expand the number and types of alternative beverages in their product lines, low switching costs on the part of consumers, active and aggressive efforts on the part of sellers to establish consumer brand loyalty, and strong emphasis on advertising, sales promotions, and endorsements. MLA Competition in Energy Drinks, Sports Drink, and Vitamin-Enhanced.    28 Sep. 2011. http://www.   Competition in Energy Drinks, Sports Drink, and Vitamin-Enhanced. StudyMode. com. September 28, 2011.

Development of Dental Billing System

Development of Dental Billing System

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings :: Free Essays

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings In the autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the main character Marguerite, also known as Maya is influenced a great deal by those around her. Throughout her young life, Maya watches and learns from her older brother Bailey, as well as her guardian and grandmother, Annie Henderson to whom Maya and Bailey refer as â€Å"Momma†. Though later in her preteen and adolescent years, Maya finds refuge in the strength and intelligence of Ms. Bertha Flowers and in high school Maya grows to respect and admire a teacher, Miss Kirwin, except for the sporadic presence of Maya’s Mother, Vivian Baxter, Maya most heavily depends on Bailey, Momma Henderson, and Ms. Flowers for guidance in her childhood years. First and foremost, Maya adheres to the strength of her older brother, Bailey Jr. Bailey serves as the most important role in the protagonist’s young life. In the autobiography, Maya quickly states, â€Å"I would be the major loser if Bailey turned up dead. For he was all I claimed, if not all I had.† Bailey is one year Maya’s senior; however, it makes no difference for they both share many of the same interests, such as reading poems and playing games. Maya feels comfortable asking Bailey for advice, and therefore trusts Bailey with all of her honest emotions. Even through Maya’s period of silence to the outside world following her rape, she is not afraid to speak to her brother. From Bailey Marguerite derives immense confidence over the span of their childhood together. Secondary only to Bailey, Annie Henderson influences her granddaughter as an awe-inspiring role model. Momma displays a deep faith and much self respect. In chapter 24, Momma takes Maya to a white dentist and demands that he help relieve her horrible toothache. When he refuses to help them, Momma goes inside to speak with him; Though Maya’s estimation of the encounter differs somewhat from reality, the entire incident helps to instill in Maya a

Tesco Marketing Strategy :: Marketing Business Management Essays

Tesco marketing strtegy Incomplete PART ONE STRATEGIC ANALYSIS Managers face difficulties in trying to understand the encionment. First  ¡Ã‚ °the environment ¡Ã‚ ¯ encapsulates many different influences; the difficulty is making sense of this diversity in a way which can contribute to strategic decision making. The second difficulty is that of uncertainty, managers typically claim that the pace of technological change and the speed of global communications mean more and faster change now than ever before. 1.Analysing the environment 1.1 Auditing Environmental Influence------PEST Analysis As a starting point, it is useful to consider what environmental influences have been particularly important in the past, and the extent to which there are changes occurring which may make any of these more or less significant in the future for the organization and its competitors. PEST Analysis involves identifying the political, economic, social and technological influences on an organization. It is increasingly useful to relate such influences to growing trends towards globalizations-of possible futures, to consider the extent to which strategies might need to change. 1) Political/legal - Monopolies legislation - Environmental protection laws - Taxation policy - Foreign trade regulations - Employment law - Government stability 2) Economic factors - Business cycles - GNP trends - Interest rates - Money supply - Inflation - Unemployment - Disposable income - Energy availability and cost 3) Socio cultural factors - Population demographics - Income distribution - Social mobility - Lifestyle changes - Attitudes to work and leisure - Consumerism - Levels of education 4) Technological - Government spending on research - Government and industry focus on technological effort - New discoveries/development - Speed of technology transfer - Rates of obsolescence 1.2 The Competitive Environment-------Five Force Model The next step in environmental analysis is moves the focus towards an explicit consideration of the immediate environment of the organization-for example, the competitive arena in which the organization operates. Five-force analysis provides a means of identifying the forces which determine the nature of the competitive environment, especially in terms of: 1) Barriers to entry. 2) The power of buyers. 3) The power of suppliers. 4) The threat of substitutes. 5) Other reasons for the extent of competitive intensity. 1.3 Identifying The Organization ¡Ã‚ ¯s Competitive Position---------Strategic Group Analysis STRATEGIC GROUP ANALYSIS The next major step in environmental analysis is analysis the organization ¡Ã‚ ¯s competitive position that is how it stands in relation to other organizations competing for the same resources, or customers, as it. One problem in analyzing competition is that the idea of the  ¡Ã‚ °industry ¡Ã‚ ± is not always helpful because its boundaries can be unclear and are not likely to provide a sufficiently precise delineation of competition. Strategic group analysis aims to identify organizations with similar strategic characteristics, following similar strategies or competing on similar bases.

business letters :: essays research papers

The story behind the letter below is that there is this guy in > Newport, RI named Scott Williams who digs things out of his backyard > and sends the stuff he finds to the Smithsonian Institute, labeling > them with scientific names, insisting that they are actual > archaeological finds. This guy really exists and does this in his > spare time. Here's the actual response from the Smithsonian Institution to > one such find. So, the next time you are challenged to respond in >writing..... > ____________________________________________________ > > Smithsonian Institute > 207 Pennsylvania Avenue > Washington, DC 20078 > > Dear Mr. Williams: > > Thank you for your latest submission to the Institute, labeled > "93211-D,layer seven, next to the clothesline post...Hominid skull." > We have given this specimen a careful and detailed examination, and > regret to inform you that we disagree with your theory that it > represents conclusive proof of the presence of Early Man in > Charleston County two million years ago. > > Rather, it appears that what you have found is the head of a Barbie > doll, of the variety that one of our staff, who has small children, > believes to be "Malibu Barbie." It is evident that you have given a > great deal of thought to the analysis of this specimen, and you may > be quite certain that those of us who are familiar with your prior work > in the field were loathe to come to contradiction with your findings. > However, we do feel that there are a number of physical attributes of > the specimen which might have tipped you off to its modern origin: > > 1. The material is molded plastic. Ancient hominid remains are > typically fossilized bone. > > 2. The cranial capacity of the specimen is approximately 9 cubic > centimeters, well below the threshold of even the earliest > identified proto-homonids. > > 3. The dentition pattern evident on the skull is more consistent with > the common domesticated dog than it is with the ravenous > man-eating Pliocene clams you speculate roamed the wetlands during > that time. This latter finding is certainly one of the most > intriguing hypotheses you have submitted in your history with this > institution, but the evidence seems to weigh rather heavily > against it. Without going into too much detail, let us say that: > > A. The specimen looks like the head of a Barbie doll that a > dog has chewed on. > B. Clams don't have teeth. > > It is with feelings tinged with melancholy that we must deny your > request to have the specimen carbon-dated.

The Dramatic Irony in Oedipus the King

The Dramatic Irony in Oedipus the King Before taking a closer look on the identity of the protagonist and murderer, and having in mind that Oedipus the King is a very spacious and difficult to analyze play, including opportunities for discussion on quite a few topics, I have chosen to briefly focus on the dramatic irony used by Sophocles to disclose the characters’ identity throughout the play. In general, irony is a very common technique used in every drama work and it is usually used by the author at times when something dramatic is about to happen the existence of which is cleverly suggested through ironic behavior of the main characters and often includes symbols, comparisons and contrasts pointing to the main idea of the author. In this sense, Sophocles is really famous for his well-known techniques of using irony and skillfully combining it with intricate relations and symbols such as light, dark, morning and night in order to convey his idea. In addition, a dramatic irony could be present when the audience is aware of critical information that the characters are unaware of. In this play, the readers already know the real relations between Oedipus, Jocasta and Laius. A general symbol of the irony used in the play is the exultation of both Oedipus and Jocasta over the failures of the oracles prophecies, however in both cases these prophecies come true – Oedipus leaves Corinth only to find out after that he has actually found his real parents and Jocasta kills her son in order to find him later married to her and more alive than ever. In other words, each time a character tries to neglect and push away the predictions of the oracles, the audience already knows what? that their attempts are futile and in vain. This creates a clear sense of the irony used by Sophocles. An interest thing to note is the very manner in which Jocasta expresses her disbelief in oracles, which is quite ironic by itself. She describes the oracles as powerless in an attempt to comfort Oedipus, but immediately after that she prays to the very same gods whose powers she has just mocked. However, if Oedipus doesn’t trust the power of oracles, he definitely values the power of truth and equality. He firmly believes in his own ability to seek out the truth as a riddle-solver. This is direct contrast between Oedipus’s trust in prophecy and trust in intelligence. Having in mind that those two are complete distinct terms like science and religion, it is quite ironic that they both lead to the same conclusions and outcome. The truth revealed by Oedipus actually fulfills the oracles’ prophecy. Ironically it is Oedipus’s rejection of the oracles that discloses their power. The best example of dramatic irony however, is the frequent use of references to eyes, sight, light, and perception throughout the play. The dialogue between Oedipus and Tiresias reveals it: â€Å"have you eyes, / And do not see your own damnation? Eyes, / And cannot see what company you keep? † Those words by Tiresias prove the blind man’s prophetic powers, for he already knows that Oedipus will blind himself. Moreover, he continues: â€Å"those now clear-seeing eyes / Shall then be darkened†. Where do you think the irony here is? Sophocles actually suggests two different things. Firstly, Oedipus is blessed with the gift of perception for he was the only one able to answer the Sphinx’s riddle. Yet he cannot see what is right before his own eyes. He is blind to the truth, and the truth is all he seeks. Secondly, Tiresias’s presence as a blind man amplifies the irony in Oedipus’s mocking his blindness. He is a man who does not need eye sight to see the truth and Oedipus is just the opposite – he who can see with his eyes is blind to the truth standing before him. Interestingly enough, however, is that Oedipus switches his role with Tiresias, thus becoming a man who sees the truth and loses his sense of sight. This outlines the drama in the play. In addition, the sight theme is further carried on to another level when the Chorus is disgusted and refuses to even see Oedipus. He has polluted his own sight and body but at the same time he has done the same with others’ sights by his very existence. That is why when he enters blinded the Chorus shouts: â€Å"I dare no to see, I am hiding / My eyes, I cannot bear / What must I long to see†¦Unspeakable to mortal ear, / Too terrible for eyes to see†. Ironically, Oedipus has become the same disease that he wishes to remove from Thebes and has turned himself into a sight that is more horrible than the wasted farmlands and the childless Theban women. It is dramatic that when he becomes such a monster, he is already blinded. To finish with, I have thought about the influence that this irony has on the reader and the way it touches the reader’s own perception of Oedipus and his actions. How do you correlate the dramatic irony to the character of Oedipus? Does it change your initial emotion toward him or it further bolsters it? It is important what you generally think of Oedipus: Oedipus as incapable of doing anything to change his destiny and as a mere puppet of fate or Oedipus as a flawed character who is guilty of his own actions and as an instigator of all tragic events. I personally think that in this story you cannot escape fate no matter what you do. In an attempt to do so, both Jocasta and Oedipus change the whole structure of their families and threatening to ruin them. They have set the course of the story into action. His tragic end is not his fault for he is powerless against fate. Works cited Cameron Alister, â€Å"The Identity of Oedipus the King: Five Essays on the Oedipus Tyrannus,† New York University Press, 1968 Great Books of the Western World, â€Å"Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes†, Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc, 1952 http://www. ripon. edu/academics/Theatre/THE231/PlachinskiR/oedipus/dramaticirony. html

Contributors of the Periodic Table of Elements Essay

The First International Congress of Chemists took place in September 1860 in Karlsruhe, Germany to review scientific matters that there was little agreement to. Following this congress led to the development of the periodic table of elements. Top contributors to the periodic table included Staislao Cannizzaro, Dmitri Mendeleev, Henry Gwyn-Jeffreys Moseley, John William Strutt, William Ramsay, Friedrich Ernst Dorn, and Glenn Seaborg. Stanislao Cannizzaro, born in 1826 and died in 1910, was an Italian chemist. He presented a method to measure atomic masses and to interpret the results of the measurements. Cannizzaro’s method aided scientists into agreeing standard values for atomic masses. The scientists then searched for relationships among atomic masses and other properties of the elements. Dmitri Mendeleev, born in 1834, was a Russian chemist, and is sometimes considered as the ‘father of the Periodic Table’. Mendeleev was in the process of writing a chemistry textbook and he wanted to organize the elements according to their properties. Mendeleev created a table where elements with similar properties were grouped together. Mendeleev’s table left several empty spaces because there were elements that had not been discovered yet. Then in 1871, Mendeleev predicted the existence and properties of three elements. His predictions were a success and it led to scientists accepting his periodic table. Henry Gwyn-Jeffreys Moseley, born in 1887, was an English scientist that discovered that atomic number, not atomic mass, was the basis for the organization of the Periodic Table. Moseley and Rutherford performed multiple experiments on 38 metals and Moseley discovered a pattern in which the positive charge of the nucleus increased by one unit from one element to the next when the elements are arranged as they are in the Periodic Table. His studies also led to the modern definition of atomic number and it provided justification for Mendeleev’s ordering of the Periodic Table by properties rather than just by atomic mass. Mendeleev’s Periodic Table did not include noble gases because at that time it was not discovered then. The English physicists John William Strutt and William Ramsay discovered four of he noble gases. Argon and helium were discovered by the two scientists in 1894. To fit argon and helium into the table, they proposed a new group that was placed between Group 17 and Group 1. Then, krypton and xenon were discovered by Ramsay in 1898. Radon, the final noble gas, was discovered in 1900 by a German scientist named Friedrich Ernst Dorn. Glenn Seaborg was an American scientist and he discovered all the transuranic elements from 94 to 102. With this discovery, he was the last person to majorly change the Periodic Table by placing the actinide series below the lanthanide series.