...Analys the business idea Electronic online shopping: Starting an online store has advantages over having a physical storefront: there's no rent to pay, and you can reach millions of customers from the comfort of your own home. To have a shot at success, however, it's a good idea to put as much thought into starting an online store as you would for any other business. You'll need a great product, a user-friendly website, and a solid marketing plan. Read on to learn how to get started. If you want to start an online store, you probably already have an idea for a great product to sell. Keep in mind that certain things are conducive to selling well online, while other items may be more difficult to sell when they can't be viewed in person. In any case, you should believe passionately in the value of your product - otherwise, it will be hard to connect with customers. Here are some questions to consider: * Is it a physical product that needs to be shipped, or is it a digital product that can be sent through the Internet? * Are you going to have an inventory (more than one) of each product, or will they be one-of-a-kind (e.g. artwork, vintage items)? * Are you going to want to sell a wide variety of products, or do you plan to specialize, like selling just t-shirts or books? * Are you creating the product yourself? If so, make sure you'll be able to keep up with demand. Form a relationship with a reliable supplier. * If you don't plan to make the product yourself...
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...have web presence and no stores, it saves the companies from spending on expensive commercial property needed to built a store, the downside is that they might not already have the money to start the website. Bricks and clicks is when the company has physical presence in form of store or stores and also a website. 2. One of the key motivations for developing an e-commerce site is immediate access to a much larger market. Explain why an increased market reach may have benefits, and describe its limitations. (5 marks) A much larger market has numerous benefits because it can give a sudden boost to sales as a lot more people have access to the goods sold by the site. The limitations can be when the the company cannot keep up with the orders or when due to limited warehouses delivery takes a lot of time, leaving the customers unhappy. 3. What are the three most important mediation issues in e-commerce? Give an example of each. (5 marks) 4. What are the key factors that determine e-commerce success? What factors determine its failure? (5 marks) Some of the key factors that determine an e-commerce success are- requirement of a niche market, a good layout for the website which is intuitive and easy to use. Factors that can lead to its failure are high delivery price, presence of...
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...1: Routes to take in starting an internet travel company 1.1 The survival-base strategic route This route puts heavy emphasis on organisations being able to survive a hostile and highly competitive context. It does this through an emergent process, seeking out opportunities in strategy content as they occur. ”Lynch 5th edition p416 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT” As explained by Brent Hobermanin the case study that this is a scale game and you’re always facing global competitions. The real success Is to attract enough customers more than your competitors to generate more sufficient business. And with small internet business the fixed costs of operations in the early days are small no expensive office premises, no major colour printers and brochure costs, direct contact with potential customers, etc. They are two mechanisms in operation 1 adaption to the environment 2 selections among those present for survival 1.2 Network base strategic route The network based strategic route forward explores the links and degree of co-operations present in related organisations and industries and places a value upon that degree of co-operation. ”Lynch 5th edition p429 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT” They are two major aspects of networks from strategy perspective covered * Network Externalities Network externalities-these arises when an organisation is part of an external network that is seeking to standardise some aspect of operations across the industry. The key moment...
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...price changes. Starting from the current price a firm charge, elasticity of demand is measured by the percentage change in quantity demanded in response to a percentage change in price. If, for example, price is raised by 10 percent and quantity demanded decreases by 10 percent (the law of demand states the higher the price the lower the quantity demanded and vice versa), the increase in revenue from the higher price is exactly offset by the decrease in quantity demanded. Total revenue for the firm will remain the same, though profits may increase because the firm is now selling less quantity of their product and receiving the same amount of revenue. When a price change results in no change in total revenue, the elasticity-of-demand coefficient is one or unitary. The role of price change influences to a greater extent in the demand for these substitutes and compliments. This suggests that the elasticity of demand also is significant when considering compliments and substitutes that also play a role in the market trends. According to the (Travel Agents: Executive Summary-UK-December 2011) initially all the travel agency kept their prices constant and carried on as if nothing has happened. The report emphasizes on the decline of overseas holiday booked since the price of the holidays didn’t change significantly. The slowdown in the economy in the last few years has really affected the demand for overseas holiday. There is a massive decline in numbers of travel agency stores across...
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...Stay True Travel Staying True to You™ Final Strategic Plan BUS475 Week 5 Professor Dhillon February 14, 2012 Stay True Travel Staying True to You™ Final Strategic Plan Introduction Being a successful business, or corporation, is composed of more than simply having the best logo, slogan, or advertising campaigns, but rather it is about how each individual aspect of an organization is constructed and built from the ground up. With money being tight, budgets shrinking, and uncertainty with job security, for businesspersons and families alike, the tourism industry has had to truly redefine itself and adapt to continue to be sustainable. Travel and lodging has become more than a small room, an uncomfortable bed, continental breakfast, and a free morning paper that it once was. Now, clients seek personalized service, lavish design, and a unique ambiance wrapped up into an affordable package and a uniquely tailored experience. Travel agencies are beginning to face rash decisions with their outdated marketing campaigns, untrendy travel destination partnerships, and ultimately losing clientele because they can no longer do the one, single-handedly simple thing that all travelers wish for: being heard and having their individual wants and needs met without hesitation. Although it may seem as if there are no adequate travel agencies to turn to that can and will meet all needs and wants of the everyday traveler, there is indeed one agency that will not let its clientele...
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...Marketing Plan Marketing MKTG522 Group travel for Young Adults Prof: Heather Teague February 24th 2013 Table of contents Executive Summary Situation Analysis Market Summary SWOT Analysis Competition Product Offering Keys to Success Critical Issues Marketing Strategy Mission Marketing Objectives Financial Objectives Target Markets Positioning Strategies Marketing Mix Marketing Research Controls Implementation Marketing Organization Contingency Planning Conclusion Executive Summary Travel and tourism are critical to the American economy. This growing industry offers significant Potential for job creation across all regions of the country. Federal policies on matters ranging from national security to transportation and from trade to natural resources management affect travel and tourism, and its potential for growth. In a global economy, a range of businesses depend on travel and tourism policies to enable clients, customers, and colleagues to conduct business in the United States. In addition, ensuring that international visitors have a positive experience in America is an essential component of our public diplomacy and U.S. foreign policy. There are people who never left the US, there are some beautiful places that young people should visit and would enjoy visiting, being in the travel industry, I travel all over the world with my children, it is be both educational and entertaining. When you travel to the outside world, your eyes are open...
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...regime, stable political climate, effective regulatory bodies) and prima facie, the robust human capital supporting its economy has well augmented it to be an economic powerhouse (Hui, & Toh, 2014) – despite the disparity in land size compared to her neighbours and the lack of natural resources. Section one of this reflective commentary examines the factors concerning and influencing Singapore’s graduate employment opportunities (GEO) from different perspectives and viewpoints. Section two delves into my professional career pathway till date. Deliberating input from psychometric analysis, peer feedback and personal preferences, this commentary discusses on the suitability of my desired role as a Business Development Manager at an Online Travel Agency (OTA). Section three would then discuss on recommendations for personal growth and professional improvements for career advancements. The standard font size is Times Romans 12 or Calibri 12 or Arial 11. 2|Page  1. Graduate Employment Opportunities 1.1. An overview From a labour-intensive economy in the years following independence, Singapore transformed into a capital-intensive and finally a knowledge-intensive economy (Gopinathan, Yiu & Saner, 2014). Gross Domestic Product per capita has nearly doubled itself in less than a decade (The Global Competitiveness Report 2014-2015, 2014) – a clear signal of sturdy economic progression with extremely low rates of unemployment. An array of GEO are accessible across industries...
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...business plan for a new online travel agency – Tripkitchen. The business is currently in the very start up stage. The business founder is performing this research and analysis to evaluate the feasibility of moving ahead with the business. The goal of this paper is to understand what business strategies need to be employed, and what financial and resource commitments will be required to make this business a success. The objective of this study is to analyze the dynamics of online travel agency (OTA) industry and determine the key success factors to compete effectively in this industry. In addition, the paper will provide a market analysis to understand the target market and segmentation, and provide strategies for market positioning and market entry. Background The online travel distribution industry has evolved from the initial development of computerized reservation systems (CRS) by the airlines to manage airline seat reservations, with the first major system Sabre developed by American Airlines with the help of IBM in the early 1960’s, and followed shortly by United Airlines development of the Apollo system (PhoCusWright, 2009) Services offered by the company Online travel agencies are companies who provide travel reservations primarily on the internet. These companies acquire blocks of airline and hotel inventory at discounted prices and make them available to consumers on the internet. Tripkichen.com is a new start up online travel company looking to capitalize...
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...the Need for Travel Agents Totally in the Near Future? Erin Toh Temasek Polytechnic Abstract This paper will focus on the comparison between Retail Travel Agencies (TA) and Online Travel Agents/Intermediaries (OTA); and how the rise of technology has affected the business model and operations of traditional agents. Traditional TA in this paper refers loosely to those with a brick and mortar store, selling travel related services with human touch; while OTA are also selling travel related services, but without a brick and mortar store and solely relies on internet as a selling medium (Bottomley, 1997). The paper will start with an overview of the booming travel industry, followed by the main challenges facing the travel industry, namely labour crunch and human touch, discussed in the context of TA and OTA. An analysis of current consumers behaviour factors as identified by Zhou, Dai, and Zhang (2007), affecting purchase decisions will also be discussed. In addition, traditional TA roles have evolved throughout the years to offer differentiated services in order to keep within the competition. The distribution of travel products has undergone changes and in order to remain competitive, TA must take a page out of OTAs, adapt to technology and online platforms in order not to be rendered obsolete. Keywords: Travel Agents, Technology, Internet, Online Intermediaries, Online agents Will The Advent of Online Intermediaries Diminish the Need for Travel Agents Totally...
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...many different types of research over the last 20 years. As a customer of Southwest Airlines, I have personally experienced the following techniques, phone, paper, and email surveys. Representatives from Southwest request customers to stay on the line after booking travel to complete surveys on their experience with the reservation line. These surveys last 5-7 minutes on average and included the customer’s perception of the booking process. Southwest Airlines has placed surveys in the company ‘Spirit’ magazine. These magazines are available to customers both online and in the seat pocket on each flight ("Spirit", 2012). This allows customers to fill out the survey and return to the flight attendants, gate agents or mail into the company. The survey requests information on the flight and booking process. Southwest Airlines has recently starting sending email surveys to their Rapid Reward customers. After the customer travels using their reward number, a survey will be sent to retrieve the perception of the event from the traveler. This includes information on all events of the trip from booking to baggage claim. When working as a travel agent, Southwest Airlines had customer representatives that contacted the agency by phone to conduct surveys. These surveys included questions about reservations, flight status, gate staff, and baggage of the customers. If a customer complain was received, it would be forwarded to this representative with the customer’s information. There are...
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...received. - Market Definition Both the world travel market and the relocation market are forecast to expand the percentage annually. One of the markets it has been increased since 2-3 years ago, and this one is the Tourism market, now there are more tourists from Russia, which means a faster economic growth rate of the country. Therefore, what we are planning to do is operate directly with the Russian market to get closer and facilitate the entrance of the country all Russian citizen that will be interested to come to Catalonia. During the current period of strong arrival of tourist from Russia to Catalonia, "4help" can capitalize on the many significant opportunities in the relocation industries. Strategic and implementation Swot / business environment Target Customer Tourist Sector Our company is Closely related to this industry as a result of the Increasing demand of Russian tourists in the city of Barcelona. These tourists are aged between (20-55) years, both male and female of medium income and active lifestyle. Catalonia and Barcelona has become one of the first tourist destinations of Spain. Only in Catalonia since early this year 655.385 tourists has already visited the city. Most striking is the increase of tourist from Russia. In overall, this year is expected to exceed the barrier of one million Russian that will come to visit Catalonia, according to the Catalan Tourist Agency, 250,000 more than in last year, representing an increase of 40%...
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...focused on making online travel better A technology company focused on making online travel better IEOR 4550 Spring 2013 IEOR 4550 Spring 2013 Feb. 2013 Feb. 2013 Jeremy Bernier, Jingxuan Li, Zhuran Jiao Jing Wang, Kevin Wheeler, Xiaolu Yan Jeremy Bernier, Jingxuan Li, Zhuran Jiao Jing Wang, Kevin Wheeler, Xiaolu Yan KAYAK Software Corporation KAYAK Software Corporation Group Member Contributions: Business Concepts | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Market Dynamics | Figure [ 1 ]-Taken from IBISWorld Overview of Customers and Consumers | Kayak is part of an industry of fare aggregators and travel metasearch engines. Other examples of travel metasearch engines include: Google Flights, Cheapflights.com, Mobissimo.com, etc. Kayak’s main customers are the online travel agents (Priceline, Expedia, etc.). This is because Kayak is paid to bring the website’s user to the online travel agent. They also have advertising revenue from Featured Advertisements on the sidebar. The main users of Kayak’s website are people who are searching for the cheapest flight and prefer not to pay for the more personalized service of brick-and-mortar travel agencies. These are people who are looking for their airfare and hotels irrespective of brand loyalty-programs. This probably means infrequent fliers who will not benefit from airline’s mileage programs. These users also need discretionary funds for travel. | History of Market Players...
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...Art Director Research Part A: 1. What education is needed for this career? (Explain type of education, where one can get it and how long it would take.) To become an art director, you need to get at least a bachelor’s degree in art or some sort of a design subject. Entry level into this profession would be as a Junior Art Director with advancement possible after experience is gained. Necessary education could be obtained at an Art School such as The Art Institute which has 50 locations in North America which would leave you many possibilities of where to obtain your education. 2. What training is needed for this career? (Explain type of training, where one can get it and how long it would take.) To become an art director, you would usually start out as an industrial ,graphic, or set designer, or work in another field ot art. Some people obtain a Master of Fine Arts degree {MFA} or a Master of Business Administration degree {MBA} Usually 3-5 years of related experience will lead to youre being qualified for an Art Director’s job. Developing a portfolio that can show your abilities and talents is also an absolute must to be chosen for a good job in the field. 3. Who are the largest employers for this career /field? Some of the largest employers in the field of Art director careers are The Disney Company, Nordstroms, Marriot, ARAMARK Corporation , Macy’s Target, Hyatt, and major retailers such as Sears and JC Penney’s. ...
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...Vu Hoang Travel Tourist Marketing Plan MBA 652 Professor Julia Cronin-Gilmore Bellevue University Winter 2011 Sunlight Travel Tourist Marketing Plan 1. Executive Summary This document contains the marketing plan for an international travel of Sunlight Travel Tourist, a company located in California that offers a travel packages with upscale accommodations, gourmet foods to middle class and wealthy customers who seek to travel internationally. The tours will educate customers about the new environment, give them knowledge in that country and introduce them to new social environment. Initially, the tours will focus on promising markets in Viet Nam. Starting in the second year of business, Sunlight will start to enlarge its destinations to include primary business centers in Southeast Asia. This opportunity exist for two reasons: tourism is a growing industry and within industry international travel to Asia is growing much better, and there are very few providers of international travel to upscale customers. Sunlight’s target customers are high income (min. $70,000 for single person), health-conscious folks interested in popular adventure sports. They can be lawyers, bankers, executives, doctors, etc. The key buyers are located in urban areas within San Jose city of United States. Sunlight’s customers are more expected to be married. 55% are men and 47% are women. There is fast growth in the market and raising demand. In addition, more niche markets are...
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...changed to travel oversea. People do not want to travel one place many times. Even though, there are many beautiful places in Vietnam, it is still a small country. Therefore, the number of domestic tourist is not enough to fulfill the company’s schedule of opening tours. Unlike Thai Land and other countries in the area, Vietnam just opened for foreign investment in the field of tourism a couple of years ago. In the past, the foreigners could be upset about the quality of service, infrastructure, and transportation, but they could be satisfied totally through the new face of tourism industry of this country. Beside that, according to Pacific Asia Travel Association report, the growth of international arrival into Southeast Asia increased 14% and 11% in the first two months of this year 2012 respectively (Southeast Asia Continues, 2012). It is a good point of time to establish many packages of tour for the foreign tourist. Hao Phuong Travel Company has more than ten years of experiences in the field of domestic tourism. It is the right time for company to expand its business by opening feature tour package for the foreigners. 2.1 Market Summary United States is a large country and giant market for tourism. Different cultures and environments usually influence the habits of travel. Americans have their distinct habits of taking vacations in special occasions as their pleasure. An interesting statistic from Deloitte LLP stated that eighteen percent of Americans travel during Thanks...
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