Haagen Dazs Case Study Essay Example

Haagen Dazs Case Study Essay Haagen-Dazs has been successful for over half of the century. What are the sources for these successes is always challenging marketers of Haagen-Dazs itself and the competitors as well. Preparing good marketing strategies is always the policy craved deeply into marketers teams. Having an overview of the current market situation of ice cream industry and Haagen-Dazs profile will provide some new insights for the future development of the company. Along with that, market segmentation, target, and positioning determined by Haagen-Dazs are worth dwelling deeply into. Before getting any further steps, considering carefully the external and internal factors that influence the operating of Haagen-Dazs is necessary in coming up with impressive tactics. Succeed or failure in creating values for customers in order to capture back values in return depends mostly on the marketing mix that Haagen-Dazs employing into its strategies. Product, price, place, and promotion strategies are all helping Haagen-Dazs differentiating with other competitors. Maintaining the uniqueness of its business is directly relating to the survival of Haagen-Dazs in a competitively strained market. Thus, looking into its weaknesses and threats to find out new ways of doing things is critical than ever. Haagen-Dazs needs to target more segments, changing its marketing programs to fit with the new segments will never be redundant. It should also think of gaining control over those loopholes threatening its reputation and ethically consolidating its commitment to customers as a back wall for new launching. We will write a custom essay sample on Haagen Dazs Case Study specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Haagen Dazs Case Study specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Haagen Dazs Case Study specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer II. CURRENT MARKET SITUATION 1. INDUSTRY Global sales of ice cream reached 13 billion liters in 2002, an increase of 3% over the previous year. This was a significant improvement over 2001, when sales expanded by 1. 8%. This trend continues extending to the future. Growth has been driven by rising levels of disposable income, which allowed consumers to purchase non-essential foods on a more frequent basis. Demand for ice cream is also becoming less seasonal, with the product increasingly serving as a snack throughout the year. Continued product innovation was also critical in boosting demand, underpinned by increased levels of advertising expenditure from the major international players. As the result, more and more companies try to get into the ice cream competitions around the world. Recently, Unilever announced its ever ambitious investment in ice cream category. Unilever today unveiled plans to shake up the ice cream market and strengthen its global leadership by boosting its US$ 6. 6 billion global ice cream business. One of the biggest changes in ice cream industry that challenges most of the companies is the change in consumer buying behavior. Bulk ice cream used to dominate the market with 70% share, while the rest are frozen novelties. Today, the share has been reversed to 30% and 70%, in favor of frozen novelties. However, this trend seems to be favorable by some ice cream franchising companies that inherently dominate in offering frozen novelties such as Baskin Robbins-31 Flavors. Despite these changes, ice cream has still been considered as a lucrative industry. Sales and revenues grow increasingly years over years. The competition in winning the market share becomes one of the most important strategies for both existing companies and new comers. 2. COMPETITOR AND MARKET SHARE There is no doubt that Haagen-Dazs’ biggest competitor is Ben Jerry’s. These two companies are very similar but yet also very different. Both of them had control the global super-premium ice cream market. They had about 42% of the market, with the remaining 15% being divided up between a numbers of smaller firms that compete on either a local or national basis. How Haagen-Dazs compete with their competitor? In general, Haagen-Dazs are trying to create and add more values to their products offered to consumers. They clearly state that their brand stand for premium ice cream which is thicker, creamier and pricier than their competitor. At the meantime, they introduce their new product with a major advertising effort. On the other hand, Baskin Robbins is also a challenge to Haagen-Dazs. In reality, Baskin Robbins does not compete directly with Haagen-Dazs because Baskin Robbins mainly targets at different market as well as manufactures premium ice cream, not super premium ice cream. However, with strong marketing strategies, Baskin Robbins may distract the affluent young adult market Haagen-Dazs pursuing. Many adults, especially adults with children, are increasingly attracted by what Baskin Robbins is following. Based on 2002 statistic, Baskin Robbins alone took over 45% of U. S market for premium ice cream. Similar to Baskin Robbins, Dreyers is claiming up in the market share for premium ice cream, and threatening Haagen-Dazs by distorting the affluent adult market. Dreyers strongly believes that Ice Cream with half the fat and a third fewer calories than full-fat premium it offering would take the ice cream world by storm. III. COMPANY PROFILE In 1920s, Reuben Mattus, a young entrepreneur with a passion for quality and a vision for creating the finest ice cream, worked in his mothers ice cream business selling fruit ice and ice cream pops from a horse drawn wagon in the bustling streets of the Bronx, New York. To produce the finest ice cream available, he insisted on using only the finest, purest ingredients. The family business grew and prospered throughout the 1930s, 40s and 50s, and by 1961 Mr. Mattus decided to form a new company dedicated to his ice cream vision. He called his new brand Haagen-Dazs, to convey an aura of the old-world traditions and craftsmanship to which he remained dedicated. The Haagen-Dazs brand spread rapidly during this period. By 1973, Haagen-Dazs products were enjoyed by discerning customers throughout the United States. Then in 1976, Mr. Mattus daughter Doris opened the first Haagen-Dazs shop. It was an immediate success, and its popularity led to a rapid expansion of Haagen-Dazs shops across the country. In 1983 Mr. Mattus agreed to sell Haagen-Dazs to The Pillsbury Company, which remained committed to the tradition of superior quality and innovation on which Haagen-Dazs was founded. Since then, it has become a global phenomenon, available in 54 countries. Ice Cream lovers the world over now recognize the unique Haagen-Dazs logo as synonymous with the ultimate super-premium ice cream. In 1989, Pillsbury became a member brand under the control of General Mills Co, Ltd. The missions and visions of Haagen-Dazs have still remained with it until now. Haagen-Dazs was also recorded as the first to introduce the world to ice cream bars for a grown up palate, with the introduction of the Haagen-Dazs ice cream bar line in 1986. Other super premium innovations followed, with Frozen Yogurt in 1991, Sorbet in 1993, and the Italian inspired Haagen-Dazs Gelato line in 2000. In 2005, Haagen-Dazs franchised its license to Nestle group to sell Haagen-Dazs ice cream in North America. However, the market outside of North America still maintain with Pillsbury. 1. MISSION The philosophy of Haagen-Dazs is â€Å"to find the purest and finest ingredients and craft them into the best ice cream, sorbet, and frozen yogurt. Haagen-Dazs mission is to provide every customer with high quality dessert eating experience. † 2. SEGMENTATION Haagen-Dazs based on three main segmentations to target their market. These segments consist of demographic, socio-cultural and psychographic. First, we look at demographic segmentation. Haagen-Dazs splits the market into groups based on income. They focus on consumers who have higher income to spend on luxuries such as their super-premium ice cream. They also separate the market based on age and aimed on the adults. Even though they do not segregate flavors by gender, they do tend to give marks for romantic and sensuous image of ice cream. Besides, they highlight the indulgence and pleasure related to sex. The second one is the socio-cultural segmentation. Different cultures and nationalities have different needs, especially in foods. European people have preferences in alcohol drinking; Japanese people are famous for their tea arts. On the other hand, Islamic countries are negatively sensitive with luscious images while Westerners express their enthusiastic for romantic. Observing carefully the socio-cultural can really give Haagen-Dazs a good tool in catching their target markets. The third one would be the psychographic segmentation. In psychographic segmentation, Haagen-Dazs divide buyers into group based on lifestyle and have their eyes on those buyers who take pleasure in the lavishness and indulgence linked with the brand. Haagen-Dazs had established an ambience behind its cafes which uses furniture that is comfortable and in deep shades of browns, burgundy and red to add a feeling of insulate and familiarity. 3. TARGET Decide not to completely follow these segmentations; Haagen-Dazs has narrowed down its business to carter to two main target markets. The first segment is affluent, pleasure seeking adults who are generally brand conscious, innovators and trend followers. Second is the market of health conscious, young adults who are interested in desserts but prefer natural ingredients and low fat substitutes. By identifying only two target segments and focusing on a small but profitable segment of the market, Haagen-Dazs is practicing a niche market strategy. 4. POSITIONING Haagen-Dazs positioning is mostly based on its product and service differentiations. They uphold their high quality and luxurious ice cream by using special selected ingredient. They also ensured that fresh cream is used for a rich creamy flavor and there is no excess air. While most of other companies test their product quality only within their manufacturing processes, Haagen-Dazs seriously bring it a step further to ensure that quality tests take place at every stage of production by visiting and testing ingredients suppliers, checking manufacturing processes and equipment daily, tasting ice cream in-store. There is clearly strong evidence to its product quality and that value will be perceived later as a testified commitment in the market. In addition, Haagen-Dazs associates its brand with luxurious tastes by using best ingredients from around the world and ensuring fresh cream is used for a rich creamy flavor, fresh skimmed milk for body and texture and fresh egg yolk for delicate flavors. As a matter of high quality product differentiation, they advertise that their ice cream is ALL ICE CREAM. Haagen-Dazs positioning is also based on image differentiation. This company use deep maroon gold logo to provide strong brand recognition and image differentiation. This logo is communicated through advertising that conveys their brand’s personality which is various exotic flavors. Combining with the ambience of each Haagen-Dazs cafe shops, it is brought to the most exclusive status ice cream company in world. VI. SWOT ANALYSIS Marketing strategy plays an important role in the survival of a company. Coming up with a smart marketing strategy seems to be a vital point that push up the competitive advantage of the company in that market. However, the microenvironment and macroenvironment factors are always putting their influences into the decision making process of marketers. Not to be an exception, Haagen-Dazs’ marketing processes are often impacted by these factors. Before dwell into the marketing mix of Haagen-Dazs, we are going to evaluate those factors that most probably affect this company’s marketing strategy by SWOT analysis. 1. STRENGTHS Developed brand with an attached history of perfection and luxury The idea of Haagen-Dazs dates back to the early 1920’s and was founded by Reuben Mattus. It was a family business before it was sold to the Pillsbury Company in 1983. Haagen-Dazs is one of the largest international brands and it started off with only three flavors: vanilla, chocolate and coffee, and up to date its product list with more than 63 new flavors nowadays. Holding a strong brand name, Haagen-Dazs has been building a special image in the consumers’ mind. Every time, talking about Haagen-Dazs, consumers easily relate to the super premium, artful and lustful ice creams that most probably only Haagen-Dazs is taking dominance over other competitors. In fact, Haagen-Dazs’ brand equity has been expanding over and over many different markets around the world. With a high product level and product quality, Haagen-Dazs is confident in stating their philosophy â€Å"Make it like no other. † Strong market position Building up a strong brand also leads to a strong market position. The company markets its products in more than 100 countries outside the US. Taking up to 42 percent of global ice cream market, Haagen-Dazs becomes one of two main players in super premium ice cream market. Under the General Mills’ control, Haagen-Dazs continues to build and expand its fast-growing nternational businesses across the world to become a megabrand. Obviously, strong brand name and leading market position will help in generating more revenue in the near future. Intelligent market targeting While other ice cream manufacturers focused on children, Haagen-Dazs was the first companies focusing on adult ice cream lovers. Recognizin g not only children loving ice cream, but adults also love ice cream as much as any others. Quickly taking advantage, Haagen-Dazs became the first-mover into a very potential segmentation that was forgotten by other competitors. This wise strategy has been contributing to the strengths of Haagen-Dazs for long. Use the finest ingredients to deliver product excellence Another strong aspect of Haagen-Dazs is the commitment to the quality of its products. Mr. Mattus insisted on using only the finest, purest ingredients to produce the best ice-cream; and his passion for quality soon took him to the four corners of the globe. His unique ice cream recipes included dark chocolate from Belgium and hand-picked vanilla beans from Madagascar, creating distinctive and indulgent taste experiences. The old tradition and craftsmanship of superior quality and innovation remained committed even after Haagen-Dazs was sold to Pillsbury Company. By continuously searching for new flavors and improving the quality of its products, Haagen-Dazs really differentiate itself with the products of other companies. Especially, the mixing between ice cream and alcohol becomes the most famous and special ice cream that only Haagen-Dazs can innovate. The secret formulas for this mixing can be considered as one of the competitive advantages of Haagen-Dazs to other companies. Vastly invested in consumer research Understanding tastes and preferences of customers is one of the key element for development its products. Before production actually begins, Haagen-Dazs unhesitating pours large amount of money for researches based on consumer-driven philosophy to understand the consumer preferences, desires and needs. As the result, more than 65 artful and unique flavors have been introduced to the market. The most recent introducing of Haagen-Dazs consists of the six Reserve Series which are believed costing millions dollars to look for uniquely new ingredients such as Lehua Honey, Lehua Blossom imparts, Amazon Chocolate, or Brazilian Acai Berry Sorbet. Used creativity and innovativeness to support brand identity Up to now, Haagen-Dazs offers a rotating range of products from ice cream to sorbet, frozen yogurt and frozen snacks in more than 65 flavors. Haagen-Dazs also markets flavors using pieces of cookies and candies. Besides that, Haagen-Dazs have introduced limited promotion for the â€Å"Reserve Series† as an exclusive line available in limited quantities in order to get attraction of ice cream lovers on these flavors as well as to prove the product level and quality attached to its brand. Strong advertising campaigns Haagen-Dazs brand was first advertised on national television in 1981. Most print ads for Haagen-Dazs in the 1980s showed images of delicious-looking ice creams. In 1989 after General Mills (GMP) took over Haagen-Dazs Company Inc. , Haagen-Dazs brand came to symbolize desire, pleasure, and indulgence. GMP engaged the services of Bartle Bogle Hegarty to launch an ad campaign. All through the early 1990s, Haagen-Dazs ads used the same theme and structure, with only minor variations in presentation depending on the country. The print ads were placed in publications like People, Vanity Fair, Esquire, EGG, Interview, etc. The campaign also included ads on radio and outdoor media, and in-store promotions. Consumers could easily identify Haagen-Dazs through its unique design and its advertisement. 2. WEAKNESSES In spite of its strengths, Haagen-Dazs still confront with some drawbacks that are deterrent to the ambition of reaching the first position of super premium ice cream producer in the world. These weaknesses are going to be discussed respectively as follow. Regarded as high Costly The first weakness is the high prices of Haagen-Dazs’ product. Although he world is moving to a general economic trend of higher earnings, more disposable income and leisure time, they need to understand that it’s not just the affluent or upper class people eating their ice-creams but also those of the lower and upper middle-income segments desiring for tasting the uniqueness of its ice creams. Setting the price too high seems to ignore this huge segmentation. And it also means that Haagen-Dazs accepts to b e kicked out and only to become a watcher looking competitors sharing the â€Å"big pie†. Focus on a narrow range of market segment As mentioned above, Haagen-Dazs is only focusing on affluent adult segment. This market target might be attractive at first, but it’s gradually losing the competitiveness. In fact, when there are more and more companies jumping into the adult segment, Haagen-Dazs will not be the sole player in this segment any more. At that time, Haagen-Dazs must share its market with many prospective competitors who may possess better marketing strategies, or innovations. Sexual image used in advertisement and no updated advertisement campaign Haagen-Dazs ice cream main theme is more for the adult. The same ads content repeatedly used and sooner customers will fail to take notice of it; consequently, it may lose the appeal of its position in the consumer perception. The biggest problem here is some Haagen-Dazs advertisements are unsuitable in some cultures or civilizations. Especially, it may have adverse effects when using these advertisements in Islamic countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, etc. Costly Distribution The fact that Haagen-Dazs ice creams need to be kept at a temperature substantially lower than most of other ice creams in order to keep its intended firmness is making it more expensive for storage and distribution. Moreover, to keep its commitment to provide the products with finest ingredients, Haagen-Dazs has to exploit materials in many far-distant places and transport back to its plants in different areas. The result is that it takes a great deal of money for Haagen-Dazs to move ingredients and materials around. Off course, the cost production and the prices of final products must be unexpectedly high. 3. OPPORTUNITIES Market for ice cream products getting larger Ice Cream lovers in the world over recognize the unique Haagen-Dazs logo as synonymous with the ultimate super-premium ice cream. In the early of its stages, Haagen-Dazs was only available at gourmet shops in New York City, but soon distribution expanded throughout the east coast of the United States since people who tasted the distinctive ice-cream transmit the good taste all around through their mouth. Soon, the opening of their first shop led to a rapid expansion of Haagen-Dazs shops across the country. However, since The Pillsbury Company bought Haagen-Dazs; it has become a global phenomenon that available in more than 60 countries and even owning over 1,000 outlets around the world. The success of Haagen-Dazs was created by their persistence in remain the quality and using only the finest natural ingredients. As an example of the acceptance of abroad on U. S. ’s product, Japan represents the second largest ice cream market in the world, with annual sales of about $4. 5 Billion. By the way, Haagen-Dazs capturing 50% of the market in Japan following by others six Japanese super premium ice cream products. However, that is only the beginning of the game. Many other highly potential markets are still untapped waiting for Haagen-Dazs’ actions. Chinese market is the next target Haagen-Dazs should focus on expending its brand name. Malaysia still has many place for Haagen-Dazs while Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand are untapped by ice cream industry. Targets low fat demand These days, people are more emphasize on their own health. As the increasing of health consciousness, people tend to live in a healthy lifestyle by eating well and exercise regularly. On the same time, diet seems to be a trend in the society, not specific for only woman but the male nowadays do take care of their body figure. Therefore, you can find out the products all around the market are all about Light, Low Calorie, Low Fat, No Fat, Fat Free, No Sugar, Sugar free, and Zero Calorie. For Haagen-Dazs, they came out with almost fourteen flavors of light ice-cream with only half the fat. Besides that, they also have the special taste of frozen yogurt with all the goodness of yogurt, naturally a good source of calcium with live and active culture. More than that, Haagen-Dazs produce all their ice-cream with natural ingredients that their ice-cream always make consumers feel comfortable in color and tasted cool and refreshing. Yet it seems not enough for Haagen-Dazs to win their competitors in this running. There are still many spaces for Haagen-Dazs to expand their emperor in these low fat or healthy frozen desserts. The behavior of eating outside is increasing Nowadays people are more likely to increase life standard influence by their higher education and environment. Due to the income’s increasing, people tend to spend more to achieve a better standard of living. Besides, they are more able or willing to spend the amount for satisfying their own needs and wants. Moreover, as we can see these days many people rather spend their leisure times and weekends at shopping mall than stay at home. As a habit, people would stop by to purchase some dessert as a finger licking. Then, the rising number of young people who demand in fast food and ice cream do effect the situation. Moreover, shopping wasn’t still a purpose of buying things but to away from the busy life and enjoy a plentiful meal or to taste a simple kind of happiness by melting a scoop of refreshing ice-cream in mouth. Preparing well for this trend, Haagen-Dazs are holding the key to open the door of a bigger room. Rising demands for cereals Cereal stands for breakfast food which made of wheat, maize, rye, etc. In the market, we can find that many of the brand has started to add in the cereals into their product because the rise of health consciousness. Due to the demand for cereals, company could have take the chance and to come out with several Multicultural environment People are always mentioning about â€Å"global village† or whole nation this days. The term means that due to the speed of electric communication all the human society started to implode, and we have gone back to the village way of life. We all start to know each other and communicate in an nstantaneous way. Then, people from different countries, cultures, races, religion and so on will be gather and started to treat each other as their own nation. As the people more familiar with the others cultures, they would slowly influence by each other and as a result they would accept each other to create a peaceful lifestyle and take everyone as their o wn family members. Therefore, acceptance of cultural can help them to accept each other lifestyle and mainly food as well. Wisely, looking at multicultural environment as opportunities will be a strategic way to cope up with the globalization. Nestle and Haagen-Dazs in US joint venture Two of the worlds biggest names in the ice cream sector, Nestle of Switzerland and Haagen-Dazs, a unit of the US-based Pillsbury Company have joined forces in the massive US market. The companies said that Nestle USA’s novelty ice cream operations and Haagen-Dazs frozen dessert business would form the back bone of a new 50/50 joint venture with combined sales of around US$600m. Both partners otter complementary products, Haagen-Dazs strong position in the super premium category combine well with Nestle’s novelty products. Together, they will be better able to grow their respective businesses in the worlds biggest ice cream market, commented Peter Brabeck, chief executive of Nestle. The Swiss group will bring its expertise in frozen dessert technology to the venture, while sales will be boosted by Haagen-Dazs direct store delivery. The venture will lead to cost reductions though operational and distribution efficiencies. The deal is still subject to approval by the Federal Trade Commission, and will include Nestle’s production facilities in California and Maryland and Haagen-Dazs site in California. The latters chain of shops in the US and its international ice cream operations are no included in the venture. 4. THREATS Customers may displace US products with products from Asian countries How does consumer used to think about U. S. products? Of course, high quality, durable, good condition as well. However, for most of them such as Asian, they treated U. S. product as a shopping goods or luxury goods because of its selling price. If we compare the price of several U. S. imported product to some Asia made product, obviously there is a big different etween both of the price. In Asian countries which own a big population, they could easily hire labors even though the company only pays such cheap wages. Therefore, it’s easy for them to reduce the producing cost but also to producing more. More than that, the high taxes that been charged on U. S. products during the export process do cause why people can’t afford to purchase them. Diseases such as mad cow may threat the market of the ice cream industry. To make ice-cream, we will need few key ingredients such as milk, cream, egg yolk, and sugar. Therefore, mad cow disease will directly bring the ice-cream industry such difficulty because without any of the ingredient, especially milk, the ice-cream wouldn’t be produced. According to the research, the human equivalent of Mad Cow Disease causes memory loss, emotional instability including inappropriate outbursts, an unsteady gait, progressing to marked weakness, severe rapidly progressive dementia and death, often within a year of the onset of symptoms. As people noticed that how serious will the disease affect them, they will start avoiding the product made by milk or any product which related to cow as well. Political problem and regulations Political problem do cause problem to their country production. If both of the country couldn’t deal with each other or they maybe start a war, it may affect the economical and trade relations break as well. For example, USA actions in Middle East and Iraq may affect the relationship between Arab countries and USA. Besides, violent politically related acts in Middle East and gulf region could gave bad image about this region and may affect trading between countries. Besides, the regulations set out by different governments or organizations make it difficult to be conformity in managing and producing processes. Specially, following the regulations related to sanitary and healthy product practices from authority organizations such as Foods and Drugs Administration of U. S (FDA) may divert company from innovating activities. Growing Ice Cream Outlet Threats It is believed that one can find out there are different kinds of premium ice-cream brand when he or she walks on a street or inside a hopping centre, for example, Tipperary Organic, Maud’s, Mars Nestle Tubs. This has shown the market now has over saturation of Premium ice creams; and the next aiming of premium ice cream producers may be super premium ice cream. More than that, Haagen-Dazs was threatened by other brands from different way. For example, Ben Jerry has taken the lead of coming out with a creative idea that they set up Cinema Stand, there’s a brand new Australian Hom emade Ice Cream cafe in Liffey Street, Maud’s Ice Cream Mall Stands and more. Furthermore, the economic have faced a small depression these days, therefore the demand for convenience products are actually increasing by day to day while shopping and luxury products may be affected in some ways. Moreover, there’s also growing demand for private labels. Losing control through mass franchising Haagen-Dazs has been franchised its products to hundreds countries around the world. Following a centralized structure in the organization seems to be inappropriate for its size. Controlling the whole organization through one headquarter located in the U. S makes it always overloaded. The problem of quality consistence in its product cannot be testified perfectly at those outlets far from the reach of headquarter. Specifically, recent warnings of sanitary problem of Haagen-Dazs ice creams in China questioned the controlling and testing processes being applied at these franchises. If Haagen-Dazs doesn’t take any action to fix this problem, the image of the company may be destroyed aggressively. V. MARKETING MIX Marketing mix plays an important role in the overall marketing strategy of a company. Nobody can deny that a good marketing mix means a strong competitiveness of a company. In this situation, Haagen-Dazs can be considered as one of plenty successful companies employing a very tactical marketing strategy. Due to the characteristics of ice cream industry, Haagen-Dazs product is determined as a combination of physical products and services. Thus, the marketing tools being used include seven Ps that are going to be analyzed in more details below. 1. PRODUCT Haagen-Dazs offers to customers a wide range of products. Basically, there are seven different classifications for their products. It includes ice cream, reserve, light ice cream, sorbet, frozen yogurt, bar, and novelties (shop specialty). Under each classification, there are many other different sub-products with various flavors. Even though it is abundant in product types, the core products that Haagen-Dazs offering to its customers are frozen desserts. In other words, what the customers are really buying is ice cream or yogurt inside of Haagen-Dazs containers. Based on marketing concept, actual products that Haagen-Dazs offers in the markets must include many other added values such as packaging labeling, marketing, distribution, advertising efforts and many others of the company. However, the final products that Haagen-Dazs selling to each customer must be known as the augmented products which are added some kind of values consisting of delivery services, customer communication, and other kind of services at Haagen-Dazs outlets that create the feeling of indulgence and lasting pleasure. Hence, the value created and the products strategy that being applied by Haagen-Dazs must be come along the process of developing their product from the start-up of the products until reaching the consumers’ hand. The variety in the product line shows that Haagen-Dazs is following many different segments in its target market. Off course, these segments must be convergent to the general target market, affluent adults markets. The only difference in the adult segment is the differences in taste and preferences. Therefore, by pursuing various product lines helps Haagen-Dazs reach its positioning strategy. Comparing Haagen-Dazs and other ice cream manufacturers, Haagen-Dazs is obviously dominant in the product level. Its products are not the same with any normal ice cream, not premium ice cream also, but it is Super Premium ice cream. By promising the finest ingredients and the unique flavors in the products, Haagen-Dazs differentiates itself with other competitors. In reality, Ben Jerry is the main rival of Haagen-Dazs in offering Super Premium Ice Cream; however, Haagen-Dazs make them more popular than the rival by the famous mixing of ice cream and high qu

How To Say Never in Spanish

How To Say 'Never' in Spanish Spanish has two common adverbs that mean never and they can almost always be used interchangeably, the words nunca and  jams. Most Common Way to Say Never The most common way to say never is nunca. It comes from the Old Spanish word nunqua, which entered the language from the Latin word for never, numquam. Spanish Sentence English Translation Nunca olvidarà © Madrid. I'll never forget Madrid. Brittany y Pablo nunca fueron amigos. Brittany and Pablo were never friends. El presidente no ha hablado nunca a favor de imponer sanciones. The president never has spoken in favor of imposing sanctions. Nunca quiero que llegue ese dà ­a. I never want that day to come. Slightly More Emphatic Way to Say Never Less used, and perhaps a bit stronger than nunca, is the word  jams, also meaning never.  Jams could be substituted in place of the word  nunca.   Spanish Sentence English Translation Es el mejor libro jams escrito. It's the best book never written. Jams pienso en la muerte. I never think about death. Jams imaginà © que llegarà ­a este dà ­a. I never imagined this day would come. Quiero dormirme y no despertarme jams. I want to fall asleep and never wake up. When Never to Use Jams One of the very few times you cannot substitute jams for nunca is in the phrases ms que nunca and menos que nunca, which mean more than ever or less than ever. For example,  Mi hermano gasta ms que nunca, which means, My brother is spending more than ever. Double Negative Never Spanish is very comfortable with double negative sentence construction, unlike English, which shuns it. When nunca or jams follows the verb that it modifies, use a double negative sentence construction. Spanish Sentence English Translation No he visto a nadie jams tan malo. I have never seen anyone so bad. No discutas nunca con un imbà ©cil, te har descender a su nivel. Never discuss anything with an idiot; he will bring you down to his level. Never Ever in Spanish Also, nunca and jams can be used together to reinforce their meanings, or strengthen the feeling, much like never, never or never ever in English.   Spanish Sentence English Translation Nunca jams vayamos a aceptar una dictadura militar. Never, ever are we going to accept a military dictatorship. Nunca jams hablà © con nadie de esto. Never, no, never have I spoken with anybody about this. Colloquial Expressions That Mean Never There are several figurative expressions that mean never that do not use the words nunca or jams.   Spanish Phrase English Translation  ¿en serio?;  ¡no puede ser! Never! or You never did! no lleguà © a ir I never went no contaba con volverlo a ver I never expected to see him again no importa; no te preocupes Nevermind ni uno siquiera Never a one  ¡no me digas!;  ¡no me lo puedo creer! Well, I never! no dijo ni una sola palabra Never a word [did he say]

Marketing and Sales Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words - 1

Marketing and Sales - Essay Example These three concepts form the backbone of many successful marketing strategies. But, the fourth P-Place is often overlooked by most of the marketing experts and business men. Every product should actually be produced, priced and promoted according to the place it is distributed. The company should decide whether to implement large-scale distribution in the area or selective distribution, based on the economic, social and cultural influences of the place chosen. A company can choose to distribute a product in a place intestivley, selectively or exclusively. The pricing and promotional budget should be determined based on which type of distribution is selected for a particular place. The marketing concept changed phase from "make-and-sell" to "sense-and-respond" way back in the past century (Kotler, 2008). Only companies producing exclusive products catering to the needs of people living in certain places thrive. They distribute the products only where there is ample need. For example, consider the ‘Voltas all weather AC’ designed and marketed for people living in deserts exclusively. The AC keeps the room cool during the scorching mid-days and heats the rooms automatically during the biting cold nights. They are much affordable than the room heaters used in the western countries and is portable. They can be used even in tents. The product was a great hit and it surpassed several competitors in sales revenues this summer. Integration of Place and Pricing Place is directly connected with pricing. Consider Marks and Spencer an Tesco departmental stores. M &S aims in selling branded, high cost products in all its stores no matter where it is placed. Tesco sells small packets of local products at an affordable cost in rural areas. It sells branded and costly products in its urban stores . This simple place related pricing helped the company to grow enormously in a short period of time, challenging the decades old M&S in profits. "Differentiation stems fr om uniquely creating buyer value" (Porter, 1985, p 150). Tesco did just that. They created a difference by understanding the buyer value pertaining to the place. Relationship of Place with Pr

People who are under 21 should not allowed to drive Research Paper

People who are under 21 should not allowed to drive - Research Paper Example These precautions can help saving 1,700 accidental injuries and 200 deaths from speed driving in a year. Rash driving needs to be controlled, as similar driving limits also apply in countries like New Zealand, Australia, and some regions in the US as well (Triggle par. 1-3). Although overall deaths from accidents have been on the decrease but the teenage habit of listening to music while driving is a big accidental risk. This bad habit of listening to music through MP3 players and iPods while driving has been acknowledged for awareness purpose by the Tune into Traffic campaign (Triggle par. 5). Teenagers go a step ahead by not just listening to music while driving, but also texting messages, which is a relatively bigger risk on the road for causing of road accidents. Incidentally, there has been a significant check on road accidents, reaching to an all-time low, but still 2,222 deaths were reported due to road accidents the previous year (Triggle par. 5). Teenage accidents cause loss of gasoline, life, and money, as they develop a habit of driving just for the fun of driving, which is a leading cause of wastage of gasoline. Gasoline being a limited natural resource, a check on its wastage by not allowing driving licenses till they reach the age of 21 can help in saving this resource. The practice of graduated driving licensing can save many accidents from occurring. Otherwise also, road accidents cause huge loss of money as well, as a reduction in accident rates in the UK can relieve the economy from the financial burden amounting to  £890m (Triggle par. 8-11). We should stop teenagers from driving for their own benefit and for the benefit of other society stakeholders. Actually, teenagers have other alternatives to reach their destinations. Teenagers should use the available public transportation system, such as buses to reach their destination. There is no logic in going privately when buses are

Case Study: Multiple Sclerosis

Case Study: Multiple Sclerosis Kaitlyn Elliot Values and Principles Case Study Bob is 65 and has had multiple sclerosis for 15 years. He has a wheelchair and drives a specially adapted car. He lives with his wife, Jean, in a cottage in the country and they have always been involved in several community and church activates. Jean is Bobs main carer and although Bob is quite independent, Jean tends to do everything for him. Last month Jean had a slight stroke which left her with a right sided weakness and some speech difficulties that she finds frustrating. She cannot walk without a walking frame and still needs help with most personal care tasks. While Jeans been in hospital Bob has been supported by daily visits from home carers, however he is missing his outings as Jeans not been there to help him. Jean will be discharged from hospital next week and is worried about how they will manage. Suri is the hospital social worker and is going to meet jean later today to plan her discharge from hospital next week and her future care. Describe at least one individual using car services and explain at least two needs of this individual. Jean used to be an independent woman but after she had her stroke she has become more vulnerable and cant do all the daily tasks that she used to do like looking after Bob. Jeans basic essential physical needs are not being met completely. The stroke has caused her right-hand side of the body to become weaker and she also struggles to walk unsupported. Jean may have to be referred to a physiotherapist who would assess her abilities and draw up a treatment plan that will help Jean improve her muscle strength and help her to walk without the frame. An occupational therapist might also have to be introduced to assess her ability to carry out everyday tasks and may have to adapt her home to suit Jeans ability. Jean might struggle to keep a balanced diet up as she might find it hard to swallow some foods and may not be able to get access to pureed or easy to swallow food. The stroke could also be causing Jean to be extremely tired. She also might struggle to clean and dress herself and le t her good hygiene go down. Cognitive needs refer to the things that helps us to develop and maintain an active mind. Jeans stroke has cause her to have speech problems and will find it hard to communicate. She could be referred to a speech and language therapist who could do some exercises to improve the control over Jeans speech muscles. They could introduce her to some letter charts and using gestures and writing to communicate with others. Jeans memory will deteriorate as the stroke will have affected her brain. A care worker could introduce a diary or even just routines and involve her in the planning of this to help her out with daily tasks when she is discharged from hospital. Jean may also end up with dementia and if she does you could show her some family pictures or even find out what activities she used to do and encourage her to try some of them again or take her to some of her favourite places her and Bob used to go to. Without cognitive spurring, mental abilities will not develop or will deteriora te. Most of these functions will return after time and rehabilitation, but she will notice they do not return to what they used to be. Explain how two methods of assessment are used to identify needs of individuals. Needs are essential things in our lifes that we cannot live without. Needs can often be confused with wants. One way of assessing an individuals needs is using the SPECCS model. This is your social, physical, emotional, cognitive and cultural. All individuals have these types of needs. Social needs ae the need to have conversations and experience a variety of social relationships and how we interact with others. However, people who use care services may not be able to make these needs by their selfs. if they dont get any help they might not achieve a sense of acceptance and belonging and this may cause isolation and low self esteem. Physical needs refer to fresh air, food, water, warmth, shelter, hygiene, sleep and exercise. These are the basic physical needs that we need in our lives to promote wellbeing. Emotional needs are our feelings. We all experience different emotions including happiness, excitement, sadness and anxiety. Emotional needs include the need for love, security an d confidence. If we have these needs, we can express our feelings and people can also recognise them. Cognitive needs refer to our thought processes and how we make sense of the world. Cognitive abilities include the use of memory, thinking, understanding, communicating and making choices and decisions. Without these our mental abilities, will deteriorate. Care workers can play an important part in meeting an individuals cognitive needs by just even talking to them and giving opinions. The last one is cultural needs. This refers to values, beliefs language, gender, sexuality, clothing worn, and food eaten. It is important for the care worker to find out about the care users cultural needs and not make any assumptions about their culture. Another way of assessing an individuals needs is using Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. This theory is split into 5 sections. The stages in this theory are Biological and physiological needs, safety needs, belongings and love needs, esteem needs and self-actualisation.ÂÂ   Maslow believes that all humans are motivated towards achieving their full potential. He stated, People are motivated to achieve certain needs and that some needs take precedence over others. Our most basic need is for physical survival, and this will be the first thing that motivates our behaviour. Frustrated and unmet needs can lead to dysfunctional behaviour. Describe three features of positive care practice. At least one of these ways must include reference to values and principles. There are six principles to the National Care Standards, dignity, privacy, choice, safety, realising, potential and equality and diversity. Carers should value the service users and respect their space and own way of life. The service user also has the right to stop other people from seeing or knowing about their personal information. Choices help staff understand what range of options can be put in place for the user. Carers should be encouraging and help care service users to make the most of their life and achieving as much as they can with the resources available to them. In a positive care practice empowerment, should be used. All carers should help the service users to make their own choices and have some sort of control over their own lives. The carers could provide them with opportunities, information and support to help them do this. The SSSC have a code of practice to help gain a positive care practice. The code is set out in two parts. The first part if for the employers o f social service workers. Employer must make sure the social service workers are suitable for the job and help them understand their responsibilities and roles they will have. They also must have written policies in place to protect those who use the services and the carers. The employer must also promote the use of the code of practice to the social service workers. The second part is for the social service worker. They must protect and promote the rights and interests of the service users and treat them all as an individual. The worker must create trust and build confidence with the service users to allow them and you to be open and honest with each other. Promote the service users independence and help them understand their rights. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) have created a code of conduct to create a positive care practice. The nurse or midwife should be kind and respectful and putting the care and the safety of the patients first. They should also listen and take an y notes that may concern them and also respect their right to their dignity, privacy and choice and will share any information about the patients treatment or health in a way that they should be able to understand. They should always be paying attention to the patients wellbeing as well as their treatment and care. Describe how one care service creates a positive care environment. Give at least one example to explain how they meet the needs of individuals. Speirs Care Home, Beith creates a positive care environment by allowing the care service users to socialise in their lounge areas and provide spacious gardens for the users to relax in beautiful surroundings. They provide regular music entertainment for the users to allow them to have some sort of social life. They have a positive atmosphere in the care home and allow the community to be involved in their fair. They allow different types of care such as palliative care, respite care and convalescent care. The home also provide any transport the users need for going out and doctor appointments or even going out on day trips. They encourage the relatives to visit regularly to allow the users with alzheimers to familiarise their memory and hopefully try and help them not forget. Describe one way in which legislation helps promote a positive care environment. Care workers must comply with the legislation when they are carrying out work in a care environment to create a positive care environment. The legislation becomes a policy in the work place so, if the care workers fail to do this it could jeopardise their carer as legal action will be taken. The legislation is in place for the health and safety and their right to confidentiality as a care service user. Is also promotes health and wellbeing and equality of opportunity to promote a positive care practice. References http://www.carehome.co.uk/carehome.cfm/searchazref/20006048SPIA http://hub.careinspectorate.com/knowledge/national-care-standards/ https://www.nmc.org.uk/standards/code/ http://www.sssc.uk.com/about-the-sssc/codes-of-practice/what-are-the-codes-of-practice www.simplypyschology.org

Tobacco Addiction: Hookah

Jared Fujikuni Psych 22 April 5, 2013 Tobacco Addiction: Water Pipes An addiction is the compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance which is defined by physiological symptoms upon withdrawal. Addiction is more commonly referred to activities in a negative sense because the substance is often harmful to the user. One of the most addicting substances is nicotine, which is found within tobacco. The first thought that comes to mind when referencing to tobacco addiction is smoking cigarettes, but there are many other ways to consume tobacco such as: dip (chewing tobacco), cigars, and water pipes.Although the water pipe has been around for hundreds of years, it has only recently become popular. It has spread throughout the Middle East to Europe, all the way to North America, targeting pre-teens to young adults in college. There is an abundant amount of research done on the damaging effects of cigarettes, but as the water pipe craze is relatively new, there is still very littl e information on the health risks that this fresh social nicotine addiction may contain. The water pipe has many different street names which are a lot more exotic and alluring: hookah, shisha, boory, goza, nargile, arghile, and hubble bubble/hubbly bubbly.Smoking hookah is a sensual and relaxing experience which is often done with a group of people. This bonding social activity gives smoking a different dimension of appeal compared to the normal singular act of smoking a cigarette, but may also contribute to the development of addiction. The water pipe is often an elegant looking device resembling a flower vase that sits on a table in between the party. The group will usually be sitting comfortably around the hookah which encourages long sessions that often include over fifty puffs of the hookah.The type of tobacco that is smoked through the water pipe is called maassel, which is fermented in molasses and fruit essences. There are many different flavors that appeal to all smokers. The smoke is often sweet or minty and cooled by the water filter which makes it easy for even nonsmokers to enjoy. First the tobacco is placed within a clay bowl covered by aluminum foil which heads the water pipe. Coals are placed on top of the head to heat the tobacco. The vase of the hookah is filled half way with liquid (usually water). The smoker inhales through a tube that is connected to the vase.The smoke is drawn through the stem of the pipe and filtered through the water before going through the tube that the smoker is inhaling on. The smoker is able to inhale clouds of smoke while simultaneously drawing air over the coals which further burns the tobacco. There are many cafes and bars that are dedicated to smoking hookah. These cafes have become increasingly popular among college students and are popping up all over the United States. Hookahs are also easily purchased through smoke shops or online. Smoking hookah has become a very popular social event because of its slow p ace and relaxing feel.It allows people to partake in an activity which doesn’t require any concentration and allows them to socialize for an hour or so. It is more active than getting together for a coffee but not distracting enough to take away from a conversation. Yet the slow pace of the hookah experience is part of why it might be very dangerous. The total amount of exposure to nicotine through the prolonged smoking pattern is extremely unhealthy. Researchers from the American University of Beirut analyzed smoking patterns at a hookah lounge and reported that smokers inhaled ten times as often as a typical cigarette smoker would.Not only this, but each inhale contained about ten times as much smoke volume as a single cigarette puff. A single hookah session could have the smoke volume equivalent of one hundred cigarettes. To defend the health risks of hookah smoking, many argue that when inhaling, it is nott necessary to inhale all the way into the lungs, but to simply pla y with the smoke in the mouth like with a cigar. However, researchers have collected data that estimate absorption of nicotine and other substances contained in hookah smoke state otherwise. Despite the volume of exposure, hookah smokers are still exposed to fewer toxins than cigarette smokers. The studies indicate that hookah smokers are absorbing high levels of toxins and carcinogens that contribute to the development of heart disease, lung cancer, and respiratory diseases† (Harvard, 2008, p. 3). Hookah is often argued as a healthier way of smoking because the smoke is filtered through water, but clearly it does not filter out all of the toxins. There is still enough nicotine getting through to become addicted. The amount of nicotine that is produced by smoking hookah can vary depending on multiple variables: type of tobacco, number of coals, duration of use, and the inhaling technique.The number of coals which is related to the temperature that the hookah would be burning a t has a huge impact on the amount of toxins that are inhaled. If the coals are actually burning the tobacco instead of â€Å"baking† or â€Å"steaming† the shisha, the tar in the tobacco could be burned which is very unhealthy to inhale. Researchers found that chronic respiratory symptoms were found in younger hookah smokers rather than older ones which suggest that the younger users were smoking more intensely or not being as careful to not burn the tar.Saliva samples showed that carbon monoxide exposure was twice as high in hookah smokers as in cigarette smokers. As far as long-term health effects, there hasn’t been much research to make any solid conclusions but like in other tobacco related addictions, there was increased chance of periodontal disease, cardiovascular problems, increased heart rate and blood pressure and problems with the child of women who were pregnant while smoking. Despite the health risks (that the majority of smokers don’t even k now about), smoking hookah has a huge appeal.It is a social activity that gives bored young adults something to do as well as relaxes the body. The social aspect of the water pipe makes quitting the addiction much different than quitting smoking cigarettes. The hookah smoker is not only addicted to nicotine but also addicted to a fun activity that encourages socializing. It is easy to see how and why young adults would become addicted to smoking hookah. It is also easy to see why hookah lounges are rapidly popping up across the world as addiction equals profit. â€Å"While hookah is alluring, it also appears to be a health hazard.Clearly, there are safer ways to relax† (Harvard, 2008, p. 3). Two studies were recently done on hookah smokers. The first study wanted to figure out if hookah smoking encouraged cigarette addiction, while the other sought to decipher the demographics of those who smoke hookah based off a study done on female college freshmen. The first study was don e on students in Denmark. They tested men that were all non-smokers who occasionally smoked a cigarette but were not yet addicted. Through surveying, they discovered that the men that also occasionally or regularly smoked from a water pipe were more likely to become regular cigarette mokers. Although this is a rather weak study, it shows that the tobacco in hookah still contributes to nicotine addiction. A side point that the study made was that hookah could be a potential gateway for smoking cigarettes. â€Å"Special features such as the lower temperature of the smoke and the aromas of water pipe tobacco can contribute to enforcing this mechanism, leading toward smoking cigarettes regularly† (Jensen, 2010, p. 1256). The second study helped determine the appeal of smoking hookah. Syracuse University did a study on female freshmen at a private university in New York through online participation which was paid.The study based the results on the volunteers who had not smoked hoo kah before their freshman year. There were many factors that were predicted to determine whether the students would partake in smoking or not. The protective factors: high school GPA, religion, health value, and self-esteem. The risk factors: impulsivity/sensation-seeking, depression, anxiety, and social comparison. â€Å"†¦experimenting with hookah might be part of a normative process of seeking new experiences, as a rate of other substance use peak during the 18-25 age range† (Fielder, 2012, p. 64). Freshmen year is where students are insecure, seek self-discovery, and take risks. â€Å"†¦the transition to college is a likely time for hookah initiation given the increased freedom enjoyed by residential students, the popularity of hookah lounges in college towns, the ability of students under age 21 to get into hookah lounges but not regular bars, media portrayals of hookah smoking as exotic and trendy, permissive social norms about substance use typical of the co llege environment, and the developmental task of identity exploration† (Fielder, 2012, p. 46). All of these factor into the study and reasoning behind the engagement in hookah addiction. The study results showed that twenty-three percent initiated hookah use during their freshmen year which is not a huge percentage but there were many limitations to this study. A volunteer survey that took place at a private school that targeted women was the make-up for a limited study. The results showed that the biggest correlation with smoking hookah was alcohol intake.The other predicted factors weren’t strong enough to make a correlation. The study also showed that one-third of the surveys had already smoked hookah before their freshman year which shows the popularity. Despite the actual addiction to nicotine and the appeal of the head rush, one of the biggest aspects to smoking that is often over-looked is the smoke itself. Although the smoke is in some ways mysteriously uncontro llable, the art of the smoke cloud projecting out of the smoker’s mouth gives off a sense of creativity and ownership.The smoke is art whether it is blown out through technique such as a ring or simply as a cloud. The clouds achievable by smoking hookah are by far the largest. The water pipe’s allure combined with its targeted consumer is the perfect set-up for a generation of nicotine addicts. With still very little known about the long-term health risks, too many risk-seeking college students are falling into the social nicotine trap. It may start off as an innocent activity, but soon enough it could become a daily routine, henceforth an addiction.Harvard Medical School. (2008). Why waterpipe smoking raises concerns about addiction and other health problems. The Hazards of Hookah. Jensen, Poul Densoe. (2010). Waterpipe use predicts progression to regular cigarette smoking among Danish youth. Tobacco: Waterpipe Smoking. Fielder, Robyn L. , Carey, Kate B. , & Carey, Mi chael P. (2012). Predictors of initiation of hookah tobacco smoking: a one-year prospective study of first-year college women.

Pricing and Costing Methods Essay

Organizations today more than ever before must ensure that they reduce costs as well, as the time used to avail products and services to the market. Since planning as well as the estimation of costs are critical to businesses it is important that organizations chose the best pricing and costing techniques. (Seonen, 2006). The implication here is that the fundamental goal of any business concern is to minimize its costs of operation while maximizing its returns to the shareholders. In order to achieve this, there is need to put in place the best pricing policies as well as the most appropriate costing techniques. This paper will attempt to examine the various costing as well as pricing methods that are available for use by business organizations. Traditional costs estimation methods like marginal and absorption costing will be looked at. Equally the newer costing method, the activity based costing will be discussed alongside other pricing methods. (Seonen, 2006) Pricing Methods Average cost pricing One example of pricing methods is the average cost pricing. Average cost pricing as a cost method involves the calculation of average costs per unit. To obtain this, the total cost of goods available for sale is divided by the total units available for sale. The weighted average approach is applied to all the closing inventories. (Duffie, 1992) The disadvantage with this method is the fact that it ignores the effects of cost increases as well as decreases. This is usually due to the fact that cost of closing inventory calculated under this category is usually affected the prices paid in the entire year as well as the cost of the opening stock. The method thus ignores more recent costs which are more reliable in income determination and decision making. Pricing methods Cost plus pricing: this is one of the pricing methods where by the price for a given product or service is the sum of the actual cost of the product or service plus a profit margin. This method of pricing is mostly used as an interim contractual measure. (Lintner 1965) The major advantage of this method is that it’s easy to calculate and need little information in computing the project costs and thus mostly used in pricing government contracts. The other hand this method has come under sharp criticism for encouraging wasteful expenditures in government contracts coupled by corruption. The other pricing method is the option pricing method that is commonly used in the motor vehicle industry. (Birge, 1997 ) option pricing method is basically where by an organization prices its products in a way that it provides a base price for its products which in most cases is always low to attract customers who upon visiting the store find other product accessories that can be purchased and added to the product. For example most vehicle manufacturing companies will provide a base price for their cars and use their showrooms to market other product parts like the car music systems, alarms e. t. c. Capital asset pricing model (CAPM) is another pricing approach that can be used in the financial sector, (Lintner 1965, pp. 12-39) it basically based on the investors ability to invest in many other fronts (divest) without additional costs, this approach is advantageous in that any future cash flows can easily be monitored with only knowing the investments correlation with the market, market risk premium as well as the risk free rates. Comparable uncontrolled price method(CUP),this is a method that seeks to establish the ALP, through comparing the controlled and the uncontrolled transaction in relation to the asset or service that has been transferred, (Duffie,1992) this method is mostly used in provision of loan by financial institutions as well by other organizations that sell intangibles. Resale price method, this is a method that seeks to evaluate the process of activities performed or done rather than the eventual output (product) (Lintner,1965,pp. 2-37)its commonly used in instances where the reseller do not add any meaningful value to the finished product and no physical changes are made on the product, the eventual resale price is determined by the resale price of a commodity then subtracting the gross profit margin achieved from the resale as well as all the expenses incurred, before arriving at the resale price of the commodity Bid pricing: This is a method of pricing that is commonly used in the stock exchange markets. it basically involve the respective clients placing bids or prices they would like to purchase the stocks of shares, and with the buyers and the sellers, with the highest bidder purchasing the property, price movements at times in the stock market always leads to the uncertainty in the market prices. (Sharpe,1964,p. 425-442) Target pricing: This is a method of pricing where business organizations price their products differently basing on the different market segments that they target with their products, the products may not necessarily have diverse differences to justify the difference in prices but the underlying idea is to maximize on profit in market segments that can pay higher prices for the product as this helps to cover on the lower segment, where the product may be priced lower. (Dominick,2008,p. ) The basic advantage of this pricing method is that it enables a company to earn higher profits without necessarily increasing production costs since it’s the same product that is sold to different target markets, Target pricing is generally common in the mobile phone industry where the same gadgets with minor modification are actually sold to different target markets at different prices Costing Methods Marginal costing This method also known as the direct coasting method has the main characteristic of charging all the manufacturing or product costs to the product irrespective of whether the costs are variable or fixed. Lucey, 1993) This method is useful in pricing decisions that are short term in nature in determining the least price that can be charged to a product below which losses will occur. The implication here is that marginal or direct costing as a traditional costing method suffers from the major drawback of oversimplification because it tends to employ only the volume of the product. Job costing is the method of costing where the coast of a product or service is determined by allocating costs ton a particular unit, a batch or even to a lot of the product or service. It is more or less the same as batch costing. Precisely, job costing method is applicable where good and services are produced as a result of a series of continuous operations. It is thus considered a product costing technique in which case emphasis is laid on the determination of the cost of a unit product. (Sobngwi, 2007) Absorption costing It has been the practice of many firms to charge manufacturing overheads on the basis of direct costs like direct labour. The technique used tended to differ in terms of details as well as allocation bases. Some systems employ a single base like total direct cost while others use several bases like direct labour and raw materials. Absorption costing as a method of costing allocates all the costs to the objects of the cost. This usually happen based on direct costs or even physical output measures. Marginal cost allocations are important for many managerial decisions like the valuation of stock as well as calculation of profits. (Sobngwi, 2007) The method may however not be very appropriate for product range decisions since the net profit figure from this technique tends to be unsatisfactory base for product range decisions. Allocation of expenses between two departments may be difficult. One department may for example have a fully developed product which could require only a little development resources while the other department could be in need of full development. In such a case dividing the costs will thus be inaccurate. This has the implication that there is uncertainty as to whether dropping one product line would lead to a reduction of the total expenses allocated to that product. (Bjornlund & Rossini 2005). Activity Based Costing (ABC) The activity based costing (ABC) was developed as a reaction to the shortcomings of the marginal and absorption costing methods. This method gives a description of the activity in overhead departments which can be recognized by both the departmental managers as well being driven by cost factors. The cost factors are usually the characteristics of the products s well as other cost objects. ABC is usually a two step process. First, the costs of similar activities in various overhead centers are collected. In this case the total direct cost of each department is then charged to each activity based on its use of total capacity as well as the total of all the costs of all activities collected from all the departments in activity cost pools. Seonen, 2006) Second, the cost drives of each cost pool are identified after which cost drivers are quantified and the allocations to product costs derived. (Seonen, 2006) There are usually many varieties of cost drivers to choose from in an attempt to explain the costs of an object. The bottom line however is that they have to be capable of being quantified in terms of both the cost pool as well as the cost objects. Conclusion There is always need for consistency as well as standardization of the methods of financial pricing and costing methods have been recognized. Adam et el,2003) This has led to the innovations of many sets of guidelines for both economic evaluations and costs. In the final analysis therefore, variations in cost methods that are usually used in business organizations have raised many questions resulting into the inability to compare the results of various costing as well as pricing methods. However in order to achieve both the transferability as well be able to generalize results there is need to apply uniform cost pricing and estimation methods in order to minimize any chances of variations.