Men and women struggle with gender expectations when balancing family Essay

Men and women struggle with gender expectations when balancing family and work - Essay Example The women participation rate increased but still lower than for men. The growth in women participation as put forward by Worell (1182) includes; improved education attainment, declining wages for men, declining family size, liberalization of perception of roles performed by men and women within the family as well as increased cost of living. Men and women take up different jobs at the work place. Most women are employed in the service sector with lowly paid wages and are rarely offered management positions. Men on the other hand, work in sectors that require a lot of skills such as engineering and construction where they are highly paid and also take up senior positions in the organizations. Gender pay gap also exists in the workplace where women are paid less than men in performing the same tasks. This can be attributed to gender stereotyping of roles which also leads to women taking up much workload at home and at the workplace. Women thus encounter more challenges than men while t rying to balance family and work. Gender Gender differences play an important role in determining the challenges faced by men and women in balancing family and work and how the challenges are negotiated. Traditionally, men performed heavy tasks such as hunting and gathering while women performed simple tasks and this continues to impact on their daily lives and modern occupational activities where jobs are offered in line with gender stereotype and role (Powell & Graves, 69). Women also were supposed to take care of their families while the men worked to provide for the family; the men were regarded as breadwinners and the women as care givers. This was attributed to biological factors where men are considered masculine and have good leadership skills. Women on the other hand are feminine in nature hence are caring and nurturing and always want to help others. As a result, women are employed in service sector where they interact with people and help them such as education, health an d as care givers. Men get jobs in sectors such as defense, construction, electrical work and engineering and take up leadership roles just as expected by the society (Powell & Graves, 76). Gender thus plays a role in determining occupational preferences of couples. Gender stereotyping also affects employer’s attitudes towards employees. It affects the HR procedures such as hiring, training and development, and promotion. There are those roles expected to be played by men and others for women and this affects recruitment decisions although discrimination based on gender is prohibited. Some employers view women as having more activities at home and therefore work for shorter time than men hence hindering their training and career advancement and consequently promotion decisions. The much emphasis put on women as homemakers affects their job preference whereby they prefer flexible working schedules and shorter working days as compared to men. Men as breadwinners are supposed to work and hence are accorded much search time for jobs and eventually get well paying jobs. Women on the other hand, have limited time to search for jobs and thus end up in lowly paid jobs and this affects work life balance as they don’t have enough to provide for their families (Powell & Graves, 79). Challenges Men and women are faced with various challenges as they struggle with

Analysis of Video The Birth of Modern Dance Essay

Analysis of Video The Birth of Modern Dance - Essay Example The Birth of Modern Dance†, we come to understand that the choreography of modern dance drew inspiration from themes of everyday life because it was influenced by human activity on a day – to – day basis. In fact, I understood it to be a sort of reflection of society as a whole. However, Modern dance did not remain static during any given period but it evolved and changed shape as changes took place in society, but nevertheless, its roots remained steeped in rebellion or breaking away from anything traditional. â€Å"The Birth of Modern Dance† shed light on how the art of dancing broke its traditional shackles and emerged with a whole new meaning that reflected the Modern dance of today. New thoughts and ideas that evolve as society changes are seen reflected in the Modern dance of today. I also learned that Modern dance is a reflection and expression of oneself and all that they stand for in addition to drawing inspiration from other various dance forms. Modern dance comprises of the freedom of spirit and an exploration.

The Intersection of Gender, Conflict and Development Shape Patterns of Essay

The Intersection of Gender, Conflict and Development Shape Patterns of Forced Migration - Essay Example veloped nations, but are also getting spread to developed nations where people are forcefully uprooted from their home countries or regions and transported to a different place, due to various factors including political, cultural, religious as well as ethnic persecutions, which at times, result in gender conflicts. It is worth mentioning in this context that forceful migration is not only conducted by people due to the lack of humanitarian ideologies in the society, but are often identified to be a consequence of natural disasters such as earthquake, tsunami, flood or any other natural disaster (Bouta & et. al., 2005). According to the report published by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), it has been signified that around 45.2 million people were under the conditions of displacement in the year 2012, as compared to 42.5 million by the end of 2011, indicating a 0.5 million difference in the aggregate amounts (UNHCR, 2013). Intersection of Gender in Forced Migrati on Notably, two major reasons were identified concerning the forced migration activities, which included sex marketing and household labour. However, in the modern era, the primary reason for forced migration has become majorly concentrated on sex crimes, to which, women and children are identified to be the common victims. Hence, forced migration can be examined to impose significant negative effects on social contexts, in today’s so called developed society. Various economic and political factors can also be identified as adjacent to the forced migration conducts, where social exclusion and poverty play a primitive role to motivate such conducts. Moreover, long terms displacements of a particular gender, commonly women, at a large volume from one particular economic region, is also... Conclusively, it should be noted that numerous policies as well as norms are being formulated and implemented with the objective of increasing awareness among people concerning forced migration, which are often conducted through bribing the victim either emotionally or financially or through physical threats. Legal actions are also being considered with regards to preserve gender equality for offering equal employment as well as income opportunities to both men and women. Such initiatives are quite likely to reduce conflicts in the society and thereby control intersection of gender as well as conflict in the encouraging the trend of forced migration. Nevertheless, irrespective of such initiatives, the rate of forced migration tends to rise steadily at certain parts of the world. In this respect, right-based strategies should be implemented with the aim of providing justice to feminist groups, both in formal and informal peace processes by global organisations as well as political ins titutions. In this context, with effective human right movement as well as liberal rights, conflicts and inequalities of gender can be minimised to certain extent which will facilitate in reducing forced migration or displacement.

Men and women struggle with gender expectations when balancing family Essay

Men and women struggle with gender expectations when balancing family and work - Essay Example The women participation rate increased but still lower than for men. The growth in women participation as put forward by Worell (1182) includes; improved education attainment, declining wages for men, declining family size, liberalization of perception of roles performed by men and women within the family as well as increased cost of living. Men and women take up different jobs at the work place. Most women are employed in the service sector with lowly paid wages and are rarely offered management positions. Men on the other hand, work in sectors that require a lot of skills such as engineering and construction where they are highly paid and also take up senior positions in the organizations. Gender pay gap also exists in the workplace where women are paid less than men in performing the same tasks. This can be attributed to gender stereotyping of roles which also leads to women taking up much workload at home and at the workplace. Women thus encounter more challenges than men while t rying to balance family and work. Gender Gender differences play an important role in determining the challenges faced by men and women in balancing family and work and how the challenges are negotiated. Traditionally, men performed heavy tasks such as hunting and gathering while women performed simple tasks and this continues to impact on their daily lives and modern occupational activities where jobs are offered in line with gender stereotype and role (Powell & Graves, 69). Women also were supposed to take care of their families while the men worked to provide for the family; the men were regarded as breadwinners and the women as care givers. This was attributed to biological factors where men are considered masculine and have good leadership skills. Women on the other hand are feminine in nature hence are caring and nurturing and always want to help others. As a result, women are employed in service sector where they interact with people and help them such as education, health an d as care givers. Men get jobs in sectors such as defense, construction, electrical work and engineering and take up leadership roles just as expected by the society (Powell & Graves, 76). Gender thus plays a role in determining occupational preferences of couples. Gender stereotyping also affects employer’s attitudes towards employees. It affects the HR procedures such as hiring, training and development, and promotion. There are those roles expected to be played by men and others for women and this affects recruitment decisions although discrimination based on gender is prohibited. Some employers view women as having more activities at home and therefore work for shorter time than men hence hindering their training and career advancement and consequently promotion decisions. The much emphasis put on women as homemakers affects their job preference whereby they prefer flexible working schedules and shorter working days as compared to men. Men as breadwinners are supposed to work and hence are accorded much search time for jobs and eventually get well paying jobs. Women on the other hand, have limited time to search for jobs and thus end up in lowly paid jobs and this affects work life balance as they don’t have enough to provide for their families (Powell & Graves, 79). Challenges Men and women are faced with various challenges as they struggle with

The Intersection of Gender, Conflict and Development Shape Patterns of Essay

The Intersection of Gender, Conflict and Development Shape Patterns of Forced Migration - Essay Example veloped nations, but are also getting spread to developed nations where people are forcefully uprooted from their home countries or regions and transported to a different place, due to various factors including political, cultural, religious as well as ethnic persecutions, which at times, result in gender conflicts. It is worth mentioning in this context that forceful migration is not only conducted by people due to the lack of humanitarian ideologies in the society, but are often identified to be a consequence of natural disasters such as earthquake, tsunami, flood or any other natural disaster (Bouta & et. al., 2005). According to the report published by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), it has been signified that around 45.2 million people were under the conditions of displacement in the year 2012, as compared to 42.5 million by the end of 2011, indicating a 0.5 million difference in the aggregate amounts (UNHCR, 2013). Intersection of Gender in Forced Migrati on Notably, two major reasons were identified concerning the forced migration activities, which included sex marketing and household labour. However, in the modern era, the primary reason for forced migration has become majorly concentrated on sex crimes, to which, women and children are identified to be the common victims. Hence, forced migration can be examined to impose significant negative effects on social contexts, in today’s so called developed society. Various economic and political factors can also be identified as adjacent to the forced migration conducts, where social exclusion and poverty play a primitive role to motivate such conducts. Moreover, long terms displacements of a particular gender, commonly women, at a large volume from one particular economic region, is also... Conclusively, it should be noted that numerous policies as well as norms are being formulated and implemented with the objective of increasing awareness among people concerning forced migration, which are often conducted through bribing the victim either emotionally or financially or through physical threats. Legal actions are also being considered with regards to preserve gender equality for offering equal employment as well as income opportunities to both men and women. Such initiatives are quite likely to reduce conflicts in the society and thereby control intersection of gender as well as conflict in the encouraging the trend of forced migration. Nevertheless, irrespective of such initiatives, the rate of forced migration tends to rise steadily at certain parts of the world. In this respect, right-based strategies should be implemented with the aim of providing justice to feminist groups, both in formal and informal peace processes by global organisations as well as political ins titutions. In this context, with effective human right movement as well as liberal rights, conflicts and inequalities of gender can be minimised to certain extent which will facilitate in reducing forced migration or displacement.

Barriers to entry into foreign markets Essay Example for Free

Barriers to entry into foreign markets Essay It is completed near the end of your first year of entry into the country market. One must identify and prepare for Trade Events. Trade shows, international buyer programs, matchmaker trade delegations programs or a catalog exhibition program can lead to tremendous international opportunities . Methods of foreign market entry Methods of foreign market entry include exporting, licensing, joint venture and off-shore production. The method you choose will depend on a variety of factors including the nature of your particular product or service and the conditions for market penetration which exist in the foreign target market . Exporting can be accomplished by selling your product or service directly to a foreign firm, or indirectly, through the use of an export intermediary, such as a commissioned agent, an export management or trading company. International joint ventures can be a very effective means of market entry. Joint ventures overseas are often accomplished by licensing or off-shore production. Licensing involves a contractual agreement whereby you assign the rights to distribute or manufacture your product or service to a foreign company. Off-shore production requires either setting up your own facility or sub-contracting the manufacturing of your product to an assembly operator. Barriers to entry into foreign markets The main trade barriers to any foreign market include: Psychological barriers in foreign exchange markets Traders adjust their anchors in two ways. Some believe that exchange rates move toward (perceived) fundamentals, while others bet on a continuation of the current exchange rate trend. The behavior of the traders causes complex dynamics. Since the exchange rate tends to circle around its perceived fundamental value, the foreign exchange market is persistently misaligned. Central authorities have the opportunity to reduce such distortions by pushing the exchange rate to less biased anchors, but to achieve this; they have to break psychological barriers between anchors. High import tariffs inclusive of restrictions related to national security Tariffs are taxes that raise the price of a good when it is brought into another country. Tariffs and import quotas form the toughest barriers. Seventy percent of respondents say tariffs on goods and services are the most effective form of protectionism, followed closely by import quotas (68%). But this is by no means the whole story: 45% say that artificially undervalued exchange rates do much to boost the competitiveness of local firms, while 59% cite subsidized competitors as a major barrier. Many also noted the challenges of informal protectionism, such as local firms convincing government officials to block the approval of licenses. Quota systems in Japan: The tariff quota system charges a lower duty rate (primary duty rate) on imports of specific goods up to a certain quantity, but a higher duty rate (secondary duty rate) on quantities exceeding that volume. This system protects domestic producers of similar goods but also benefits consumers with the lowest tariff rates possible. The tariff quota volume for each allocation can be applied in one of two ways: according to the order in which the request was received, or according to prior allocations. Japan utilizes the prior allocation method. The tariff quota system does not restrict direct imports, since imports can be made without a tariff quota certificate, provided high duty is paid. Regarding footwear, quota allocations to individuals or companies are based on historical trade performance in the importation of footwear. Japan has allocated quota not to quota traders but to footwear importers, so business can take place as per footwear importers requirements. At the same time, new importers can acquire special quota for new importers. The Government of Japan implements this system in accordance with governmental regulation. Therefore, Japan believes that new importers have opportunities to obtain quotas under the current quota allocation system. Unfavorable foreign rules regulations Voluntary export restraints limit the quantity of a good brought into a country, but they are initiated by the country producing the good, not the country receiving the good. Federal, state, and local governments sometimes restrict entry into markets by requiring firms to have licenses. The Federal Communications Commission, for example, grants licenses to radio and television stations; there simply arent enough frequencies for an unlimited number of firms to broadcast in any area. For safety reasons, all nuclear power plants are licensed as well. Governments also bar entry by giving firms exclusive rights to a market. The U. S. Postal Service, for example, has an exclusive right to deliver first class mail. Firms are sometimes given exclusive rights to do things like operate gas stations along toll roads, produce electricity, or collect garbage in a city. Exclusive rights are granted if a government believes that there is room for only one firm in a market. Until the 1980s, the federal government also restricted entry into the airline, trucking, banking, and telecommunications industries. Many of the laws that restricted entry into these industries were put into place in the 1930s, when many people believed that large firms needed to be protected from cutthroat competitors. Many economists now believe that these laws did more harm than good. In 1938, for example, the Civil Aeronautics Board, or CAB, was established to regulate the airline industry for interstate flights. For the forty years that it existed, it didnt allow a single new firm to enter the market, although it received over 150 applications for routes. In 1978, despite protests from the airlines, President Carter ordered the deregulation of the industry and the phasing out of the CAB. Within five years, 14 new firms entered the industry. Many experts believe that airline fares after deregulation were well below what they would have been had regulation continued. For instance, take China as an example. China’s government has set policies that are posing great challenges for foreign investors. China’s regulatory framework for cross-border remains a complex and incomplete patchwork of laws, regulations and policy decisions made by various ministries and government agencies. A lack of transparency, coupled with low standards of corporate transparency and disclosure, makes it difficult for potential investors to carry out due diligence to accepted international standards. Valuing the potential liabilities of a firm is especially difficult. At the same time, the Chinese government continues to close off so-called â€Å"strategic assets† to cross-border without specifying which sectors are defined as strategic, or why. To address these issues and remove other obstacles to cross-border deals, it is recommended for China to: †¢ Streamline the approval process for cross-border and make it more transparent; †¢ Put in place a sound competition framework; †¢ Further open its capital markets to foreign investors; †¢ Encourage its firms to increase corporate transparency and provide more up to date and accurate financial information to make it easier to value a potential acquisition, especially regarding a firm’s liabilities; Relax foreign ownership restrictions. In particular, revise existing catalogues that list the type of firms that can or cannot be acquired by foreign investors. The report also recommends that China pilot these recommendations in the North-East of the country before rolling them out nationwide. This region, China’s historical industrial heartland, has a high concentration of state-owned firms in need of restructuring and technological upgrading, as well as high unemployment and low productivity. Cross-border could help rejuvenate the region’s economy. Free Trade Policy Policy in which a government does not discriminate against imports or interfere with exports. A free-trade policy does not necessarily imply that the government abandons all control and taxation of imports and exports, but rather that it refrains from actions specifically designed to hinder international trade, such as tariff barriers, currency restrictions, and import quotas. The theoretical case for free trade is based on Adam Smiths argument that the division of labor among countries leads to specialization, greater efficiency, and higher aggregate production. The way to foster such a division of labor, Smith believed, is to allow nations to make and sell whatever products can compete successfully in an international market.

Innocent Ltd Integrated Marketing Plan

Innocent Ltd Integrated Marketing Plan Currently Innocent can be considered as the colossus of natural fruit drinks in the smoothie manufacturing industry. Innocent is headquartered in London with a workforce about 273 people and a global network of more than 10, 000 traders over 13 European countries (Datamonitor, 2009). Innocents product portfolio has been recently expanded to almost 40 different product selections and thus companys success over the competition is the natural ingredients that used in its products and also the aspiration to conserve the nature in its products until the end user (Innocent, 2010). Potential Market Analysis and Resultant Marketing Objectives Regarding Pickton and Broderick (2005), PRESTCOM analysis can help the business in building up the best possible knowledge of the internal and external environment in which the company is preparing to enter. Consequently, an analysis has been carried out and can be viewed below: Considering the Political and Regulatory factors, the UK Department of Health has launched 5-a-day campaign, as a way to influence peoples life in order to be healthier (NHS, 2009). Therefore, the governments goal is to increase peoples knowledge of the benefits of healthy consumption as well as to buy more fruit and vegetables. Additionally, legislations that occasionally come from various governmental health and food departments can also affect the market. A good example is that of the Food Standards Agency which has altered a new labelling legislation where people can be aware of the level of trans-fats used in the product they consume (BBC, 2007). Recession can be characterised as one of the most influential factors of UKs Economic environment. The high amount of unemployment and the low peoples income are significant factors for the market. Such economic conditions, people are more aware of their expenses that mainly spend money on necessary daily items (LaForey, 2010). Finally, the recent rise of ice cream taxes, oil and milk prices can also affect the market at a great extent (Jofre, 2010; BBC, 2010). Lifestyle, value, trends and ethics are some elements that characterise the Social window of the externals environment. In instance, Mintel (2010) states that ice cream consumption is not seasonable anymore but for the whole year. In addition, most adult consumers buy ice cream for pleasure where a high number of people are aware and care of healthy consumption. The Technological concept has recently taken another dimension as social networks and brand communities have gave the ability for consumers to give-and-take opinions for products and services (Mitchell, 2001). In order to understand the Competitive environment of an industry Johnson et.al (2008) suggest that the five forces framework can assists the process. Taking a brief Porters 5 forces analysis of the company, the bargaining power of the suppliers have been assessed to be moderate to high since the company hires a small yet diversified supply chain as the fruits are being provided by suppliers across the world (Annual report, 2008). Thus a possible concentration of suppliers makes this power stronger. The bargaining power of the buyers has been assessed to be high for three reasons: a) buyer concentration due to premium priced products, b) small target market, and c) product standardization. Threats of substitutes has also been assessed to be moderate to high due to current pricing strategy of the products that provides opportunities for cheaper substitutes products. Barriers to entry in the UK market has been assessed to be low due to external threats to the country such as terrorism, recession etc. all discouraging foreign investors entering into the UK market. Lastly, rivalry amongst the competitors has also been assessed to be high due to leading competitors Haagen-Dazs and Ben Jerrys (Mintel, 2010). The evolving changes in the external environment of the businesses today are evidently observed since businesses have been under strict scrutiny for ethical business practices. Additionally the adapted ethical business practices have also been assessed to be competitive advantage of the company along with its strong product portfolio, continue to provide the company with critical success factors in the competitive market (Annual Report, 2008). The strategic advantage of the company capitalizes on savvy and busy customers with little time for taking a meal during the mid-day (Innocent, 2010). Hence, the food products offered by Innocent Ltd. promises healthy and balanced diet options using healthy ingredients such as oats, yoghurt, fresh fruits etc. Finally, the corporate social responsibility policy practiced by Innocent Ltd. as reported in the annual report (2008), continuously indicates towards the importance of the implied approach of the business ensuring that business initiative s shouldnt mess up with the planet (Annual report, 2008). Such elements reflect the current environment of the Organisation. Aaker and McLoughlin (2010) recommend that an examination of the Market can benefit to determine Innocents current and future attractiveness. Even the recent negative period of recession, is expected a positive growth for the market in the next few years. According to Mintel (2009) is expected that the market will have a growth from annual sales of  £0.2 billion until the end of the year 2014. In addition, the weather instability of the ice creams seasonal nature (summer) has made manufactures to seek on developing take-home ice cream (Mintel, 2009). With Unilever controlling up to 43% of the markets share, ice cream has struggled to be as a special treat. Marketing Objectives Brassington and Pettit (2006) define marketing objectives as the goals that companys marketing strategy must be able to achieve. In order to come up with the best possible strategy, Fill (2009) argues that objectives must be SMART such as the company can ensure that its goals are clearly and well defined. Regarding the SMART concept, marketing objectives have been carried out and can be view to the table 1 below. Table 1: Marketing objectives based on SMART mode Specific Innocents main business objective is to promote and launch Innocent Ice Sorbets in the established UK market Measurable Aim for an overall increase of 15 per cent in the market share of Innocent Ltd. in the UK market Achievable The company has to continue with relationship building initiatives with stakeholders of the company so that 20 per cent of existing customers that is accountable for 80 per cent of business revenues, can be retained Realistic The firm has to develop marketing campaign creating awareness and desire of the Ice Sorbets through advertising and relationship marketing and also to develop the brand image, loyalty and awareness Time-able The companys objectives have duration of one year; this means that Innocent is expected to complete its objectives until the end of the year 2011 Integrated Marketing Communications Objectives Integrated marketing communications objectives are usually related with the sales or aims that the company required in order to attract the attention of consumers. They can be also characterised as part of the overall marketing plan development (Moss and Warnaby, 1998). Such objectives can be generated base on AIDAs model (Awareness, Interest, Desire, Action) which involves the buyers process before the decision of purchase is made (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Therefore, integrated marketing communications objectives have been produced and can be viewed below: To create an awareness and increase the demand of the product with in the defined target market. To persuade the target market to purchase and re- purchase the product. To be clear and concise with the marketing communication message so that the marketing objectives can be achieved. Target Audience Description and Justification Target segments can be chosen on the basis of their psychographic, behaviouristic, and demographic characteristics. Nevertheless, consumers in such segments may have different needs, attitudes and preferences (Kotler, 2003). Once the marketing plan has been executed, further information concerning the target market can also be extracted by means of organizing marketing initiatives such as marketing surveys, focus group, customer etc. so that the process of re-defining the target market can take place, if needed. Identifying the current target audience for Innocents product are those people who are health conscious and seek taste and health benefits at the same time. In addition, the target audience are 20 per cent of the current customers of the company, who have been assessed to be generating 80 per cent of the business revenues (Annual report, 2008). Therefore, it is important to tightly define the scope of the marketing plan so that the allocated marketing budget can be justified. In order to reach the target market, the marketing communication plan proposes to stabilise and establish communication channels mainly through advertising and marketing initiatives in a valuable approach (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Conclusively, the target market of this IMC plan comprises of people ranging within age bracket of five years to 45 + years, coming from mostly educated backgrounds male and female both (working men / women, students, housewives, retired people etc.) who are well aware of the disadvantages of processed ingredients, preservatives, added sugar and salt etc. Table 2: Target Market Integrated Marketing Communications Strategy After defining businesss objectives and audiences it is essential to create a communication strategy. For instance, Innocent can use a combination of push and pull strategies as Pickton and Broderick (2005) suggest that a combination of those can reduce any potential dangers. Considering pull strategy, the company can focus its promotion activities to increase demand for the product at the end consumer while push strategy seeks to boost the trade channel to drive and promote the product until the end user (Fill, 2009). In order to create awareness and desire to purchase the product in the target market, the audience should be approached with a persuasive marketing communication message that emphasizes on the importance of the pure ingredients laden with health benefits that are used in the Ice Sorbets (Palmer et.al, 2007). In addition, the target market should also be informed about the product and its ingredients and how the product can be a no-added sugar and sweeteners, concentrates and preservative. The marketing communication messages should embrace 100per cent fruit quality of the product. Develop a unique selling proposition (USP) for the Ice Sorbets and promote the USP throughout the marketing campaign (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). The identified USP of product has been identified as 100 per cent fruits that are being used in making of the product, unlike other similar or substitute products that use artificial ingredients. The USP of the product makes the product safe to be consumed by children as young as five years old so that parents dont have to worry about any unnatural ingredient used in the product. It is very important that the marketing communication message should be persuasive and compelling so that the audience can easily memorize the message since Ice Sorbets may be highly consumed during the summer months (June- August) only. Hence a strong marketing communication message is crucial to the success of the product and the marketing communication plan. The marketing communication plan should be developed while making considerations of relationship marketing as suggested by Peelen (2005). These are: obtaining knowledge of the customers; establish strong relationship with the customers, and lastly persuasive communication along with value proposition of the customers. The marketing communication plan should also embrace a combination of exciting and validating plead, persuasive enough for the target audience. An exciting or emotional plead can be formed through connecting the product with peoples hearts such as care for the family by giving them 100 per cent healthy product made only with fruits. This can even extend to family members who are diabetic. Similarly, it is imperative that any element of mass marketing should be avoided. For that reason, the advertisements designed for the marketing plan should be able to connect to the customers (Dashlen, 2010). Apparently, extensive marketing research initiatives should be undertaken prior to the development of the marketing campaign. While identifying the validating plead, the communication message should converse the functional advantages of the product such as healthy and full of fruits nutritional value (Peelen, 2005). In addition to above, it is equally significant to note that the marketing cam paign is build from the consumers viewpoint rather than from the standpoint of the company. Subsequently, the target audience should be able to connect the rationale and emotional side of their personality with the product. Out of the defined target market, 70 per cent should be reached with in the first four months of launching of the marketing campaign whereas the remaining 30 per cent should be reached in the following months of the marketing campaign. However, repeat messages should be broadcasted and any tweaking of the communication message should also be carried out if necessary. The marketing communication campaign should be reviewed and monitored periodically (Schultz and Schultz, 2004). Additionally, in order to select an effective communication mix of IMC, the AIDAs model (illustrated in Table 3 and Table 4) has to be assessed. Table 3: AIDA model and IMC mix Low Awareness Integrated Marketing Communications Tactic In order to implement that above proposed strategies, following tactical approach has been projected (Blythe, 2006). The tactics take the shape of the marketing communication plan that is categorized as the 4 Ps of the marketing: place, product, price and promotion. Place: Even though the existing distribution channel of the enterprise seems to be adequate to assist this particular element of the marketing mix, however some additional retailers need to be employed while distributing the product. Such retailers have been identified as food retailers like Waitrose and Sainsbury, due to the comparatively high priced products sold by these retailers, suitable to sell premium priced products sold by Innocent Ltd (Mintel, 2010). Additionally, some coffee retailers such as Starbucks, Costa Coffee etc. will also be approached. The coffee shops have been chosen because they are eager to sell low fat / healthy food options unlike their high- calorie bakery items (Mintel, 2010). Similarly, the existing services of the company such as inventory management; logistics, transportation and warehousing will be used to store and manage the availability and transportation of the product. Product: The product is called Innocent Ice Sorbets and is fully concentrated with fruits i.e. no air whipping technique is used to make the product dense as compare to its competing products. This product promises 100 per cent flavour and nutritional content of the fruits. The product initially comes in three flavours: Mango Passion Fruit; Banana Raspberry; and Strawberry. The product will be sold in eco friendly packages whereas the copy on the packages will carry on the marketing communication message that emphasizes upon the natural ingredient laden with health benefits. Price: The pricing strategy of the product should be competitive against the luxury ice cream brands. Hence, the pricing strategy will enable the company to continue with its market leading position (Brassington and Pettitt, 2005). The competitive pricing strategy will also aim to take over the market share of its competitors in this regard such as Ben Jerrys, Haagen-Dazs, Solero and Carte DOr Moreover. The product has high potential in doing so because of its USP i.e. no added sugar, sweetener, preservatives and 100 per cent fruit content. However, it is very important that the pricing strategy must deliver product value to its consumers so that objectives of the marketing communication plan i.e. relationship building relationship with its customers can be attained (Blyth, 2006). Promotion: This element of marketing mix has been categorized into different elements of the communications mix which is basically a tool for the achievement of companys IMC objectives (illustrated in Table 4) (Smith and Taylor, 2004). Table 4: The Communication Mix Advertising: The product will mainly be advertised through different media as explained below: magazines; Vogue, OK, Grazia, Hello! etc, newspapers; The Times, Evening Standard, Metro etc., television channels; Channel 4, ITV etc, internet and, outdoor; billboard, tubes, buses, bus stands shopping malls, etc. Collateral advertising: The product promotion will also be done through designing product literature such as pamphlets, posters, mail shots etc. Direct mail: The product literature will be directly distributed to the target market to ensure the reach of the message to its target audience. Trade shows: To provide a further boost to the product promotion, trade shows will be arranged specifically targeted to business- to- business customers. The objective of trade shows will be a) to educate the supply chain partners / stakeholders about the product and its associated health benefits so that their confidence and trust can be instil in to the product and b) to build relationship with stakeholders so as to internally strengthen the enterprise. Sales promotion: The product will be offered to its business-to- business customers on sales promotion offers such as 15 per cent price reduction in the total bill with the purchase of X amount of volume etc. Branding: Along with branding the product Ice Sorbets, the brand development of the product portfolio will run side by side. Some of the proposed brand development initiatives are developing online networks and communities so that the company / products can stay closer to the target audiences through listening and valuing their opinions, advertising, customer relationship building and so on. Costed Media Plan The costed media plan and budget allocation has been carried out based upon the following tables (Table 4 and 5). The budget allocation amongst the choice of the media has been carried on the designated priority level i.e. TV adverts and print adverts gain 64% of priority whereas out door adverts get 36% of the priority. Table 4: Media plan budget Calculation Total budget is 8 per cent of anticipated sales i.e.  £ 5,000,000 calculated as: 6 per cent of anticipated sales for marketing  £ 4,00,000 + Total budget