Honestly is the Best Policy

â€Å"Honestly is the best policy† is the best way to live life. This aphorism is something that my parents were constantly telling me when I was younger. All throughout life you are told to tell the truth and not lie. Lying about something will only make the problem worse. In my experience prolonging the truth from your parents just creates a bigger problem then you were trying to keep covered in the beginning. Once you start lying you then need to keep up with all the lies you told and make sure you remember them so you don't get caught. Sometimes depending on the gravity of what type of situation you lied in you can cause yourself a lot of stress trying to cover up the truth. When the truth comes which it almost always does you will disappoint the people around you. Most parents mine especially don't get mad at me rather they just tell me how disappointed they are. Sometimes hearing your parents say they are disappointed in you hurts more then them screaming at you. When you lie to your parents and they find out, they may feel like you are breaking their trust. Once you have broken that trust it will take a long time for you to rebuild it. You can also feel very guilty after you have lied to someone that holds an important place in your life. No matter how many times you tell them how sorry you are it won't change what you did. If you choose to live by â€Å"honesty is the best policy† and not lie you will feel no guilt or disappointment. Without all of the guilt and disappointment that lying brings you can live a happier and less stressful life. You also will not sever the sometimes very little trust that your parents have put in you. This will allow you have strong relationships with your parents and even give you the opportunity to strengthen them. Family is super important to me, so having a healthy and genuine relationship with my parents is what I would like. You won't have to deal with all of the stress that keeping up with your lies requires. Instead of causing yourself so much heartbreak just remember honesty is the best policy.

buy custom The Use of Sex Appeal in Advertising essay

buy custom The Use of Sex Appeal in Advertising essay As a 90s baby I have grown up in a world full of diverse, creative advertisements. However, recently, I have found myself having to ask what each commercial, magazine spread, or billboard is really trying to sell. Advertisements targeting males with disposable income have slowly shifted from selling products to selling the idea of sex. This, in turn, has raised some controversies over the real objectives behind these ads. Discussion Sexual positions are of central focus in how the majority of these ads are portrayed, consequently setting a new standard for marketers. Dolce Gabbanas recently published ad selling their line of fragrances features three men and three women, all of who are naked. Whereas these sexual positions prompt many men to view the ad with an increased level of interest, deviates from the norms surrounding sexuality. The men, while showing off their bodies, stand independent of one another while the women are touching either themselves or each other. From what is observable, the manner in which the nude men and women pose does not only instantly catches the eye, but it proceeds to suggest that by using the firms fragrance, one is bound to attract attention from women. Secondly, Levis redefines the art of promoting its men jeans by giving the ideas that promote oral sex, stating that women get front row action and that their designer jeans are for her eyes. This blatant use of sexual connota tion is geared toward younger, white males and left little room for misinterpretation. For instance, individuals familiar with oral sex will most likely go for such an outfit simply because of the ideology in the message. However, it appears some large companies still advertise their products only through means of creative connotations; the mainstream ad will contain some level of sexual implication. In the majority of these ads, the models face is rarely shown. Abercrombie and Fitch show two young women gently touching a fit, shirtless man and enjoying every moment of it. Being an experience that most young men would love to have, the mans face is concealed by the arms of the women. Overall, the sole purpose of this tactic is to allow the male audience to more easily place themselves in the shoes of the model and thus by identifying themselves with the products they are likey to purchase it. . Another such example is shown in one of the many Axe advertisements, which attempt to demonstrate what they call The Axe Effect. By writing show me on the doll where the sorority girls touched you, the company indicates that the viewer of the ad is the doll whom represents a man that had been touched by several young women. This easy fabrication of reality inclines many young men to buy a product based on the presumption that it would attract young, sexy women. In addition, most of these ads, apart from going beyond the moral barriers, they fail to provide a direct link between what they show on their images and what they are promoting. This, for instance is justifiable when one looks at a young man posing as a woman squats as she gazes at the mans waist. On the image it is written Front row action and For her eyes Another ideal example to show how sex sells products is the advert by Dolce and Gabbanas depicting men and women touching and making suggestive contacts fails to create a clear relation between the lotion and what the images. Furthermore, women are known to make the most appearance in most of the ads than men do. Taking a close look and thinking outside the box, the image of a dish set in a particular manner is suggestive. One clearly understands that by placing such an image, men would want to associate with such food and in the process; his free will of decision is tilted by lust. In my opinion, these ads create the impression that nudity is the best way to get the attention of most men and women. This gives us the idea that most individuals are immoral in nature. The idea that men have relatively minimal criteria for what they desire sexually is of significant importance when it comes to most marketers deciding how their adverts meant to catch mens attention will look like. Men are said to be interested in a womans outward appearance, thus if a woman is portrayed as being young, attractive and healthy, they are considered desirable. This idea suggests that, to some extent, the male gender has a narrow view as far as beauty and sexuality is concerned. Therefore by designing an ad with a woman holding out a doll and with inscription like, show me on the doll where the sorority girrls touched you, we get the idea that there can never be any other part in a mans body to bring sexual desires as is suggested by the writings. On the other hand, it is widely believed that most women want more than appearance and looks, thus the use of sexually appealing ads on women may not yield a similar result as it does in their male counterparts. This is primarily what drives most men to spend a vast sum of their disposable income on such products. This may explain why most of the images subject to our analysis can be said to be aimed at men. Even though a mere look at a well built man on an ad, either in a billboard or on a magazine is bound to elicit some kind of sexual reaction instinctively but they are less likely to get the urge to engage in sexual activities. The society views women as objects of desire and they form a vital part of advertising world. In a social context, it suffices to say that women on the other hand are aware of mens weaknesses as far as how they affect them with their physical appearance. Furthermore, it may sound funny to conclude that the producers main objective of using an image shown by image showing a meal on a plate was to suggest to its potential consumers that just like a woman would be, the meal is equally satisfying. Such images may be considered gross but different people have different interpretations. Conclusion In the US, for example, most of the sex appealing ads have women as the captivating objects and intrinsically portray them as objects of desires. On the contrary, although a mans healthy body may be used; it is often portraying romance and not really depicts the idea of sex. This shows that for ads aimed at catching mens attention, sex is of primary focus, as it has no many obligations as commitment and difficulties. Therefore, the idea of using women as a catch for men gives a clear idea of exactly how women are regarded in the society. Advertisements although by using women more often than not, have an influence on society that ultimately objectifies women. Considering the fact that whereas for a man all it takes is a beautiful picture of a woman on a magazine, women desire more than appearance, it means that women serve the purpose of satisfying mens undying sexual desires. Buy custom The Use of Sex Appeal in Advertising essay

The Change in Male and Female Roles Before & Today Essay

The Change in Male and Female Roles Before & Today - Essay Example Speaking of social expectations for both, males are expected to provide for the family or pay for dates at all times while females are to manage the children, the household, and provide emotional support (Jaffari, TTS Holistic Counselor Mehdi, n.d.) Looking at the male and females roles in relationships today in contrast to what I have mentioned above, there has been a lot of reversal of roles. Females today are not secluded to giving signals when showing interest in a guy. Being direct and honest about the feeling, verbally or inaction is already welcome. When it comes to courtship, males are not the only ones who does the pursuing. There are a lot of aggressive girls today who will do everything to get what she wants, and taking a guy out for dates have started to be a common thing. When it comes to male and female responsibilities, males are not the only ones expected to bring in food in the table. Instead, women today are more empowered to take on a job and a journey towards self-actualization that does not stop when she finally gets married.

Marketing Planning At Just Us Cafes Case Study Essay

Marketing Planning At Just Us Cafes Case Study - Essay Example Enhancing Customer Experience and Expanding Loyal Customer Base 13 Integrating New Media to Promote the Brand 17 Conclusion 20 References 22 Introduction The case study relates to ‘Just Us’ which began its operations in the year 1996 under the Co-operative Association Act. It initiated as one of the earliest fair trade coffee roasters in Canada. ‘Just Us’ evolved as a worker-owned and operated for-profit coffee co-operative that essentially imported, roasted and sold both wholesale as well as retail fair trade, organic coffee brought from fair trade authorised coffee manufacturers from different parts of the world. The main vision of the company is to be one of the leaders in the Fair Trade business focusing upon quality along with professionalism as well as innovation so that all its stakeholders would be benefited to a great extent (Just Us, 2012). Marketing planning at Just Us is significant because it will try to identify the various challenges that the company face and thus in light of the strengths and opportunities faced by the company, it will be aimed to focus upon how the company’s performanc e can be enhanced (Just Us, 2012). The main objective of the study is to discuss the internal as well as external marketing environment of Just Us. The study will also entail the ethical issues that have been raised in the context of the case study. The significance of product life-cycle concept to Juliet and the problem that can be faced by the company due to deleting a product from the company’s product range will also be discussed in adequate detail. The study will endeavour to offer suggestions to improve the cafe’s performance and provide recommendations on how the company can update its current marketing programme. Internal and External Environment of ‘Just Us’ All the factors within the organisation that affects the strengths and causes weaknesses in an organisation are referred to as internal environment. All the factors outside the organisation that offer opportunities and thus pose threats to an organisation are referred to as external environment (Kazmi, 2008). External Analysis a t ‘Just Us’ For the purpose of creating effectual strategies Just Us Cafe needs to examine the external environment in which it tends to operate. The analyses of factors such as competitor analysis, PEST analysis, Porters 5 Forces Model are crucial in this scenario. Competitor Analysis ‘Just Us’ has numerous competitors across the product line in the local market such as Nova Scotia and also in the wider market such as Canada and the US. It is quite important for the company to comprehend the competitors’ resources in order to predict the degree of future threats. Java Factory is found to be one of the significant threats to Just Us. One of the specific competitors of Just Us has been Kicking Horse in the Canadian market. Therefore, it can be stated that competition poses a major threat to the company (Loudyi & et. al., 2009). PEST Analysis It has been evident from the case study that one of the political factors, which has been hindering the success ful operations of ‘Just Us’ was certified identification of actual fair trade. There is constant alteration in the economic environment. The case study demonstrates the fact that a few of the competitors are offering partly organic ranges along with mainstream organic coffees. It has been identified that Just Us practices premium pricing strategy. However, in the recent times the companies need to consider the disposable income of the consumers in choosing the products. Therefore, it is quite important for Just Us to be aware of the fact that consumers feeling for one particular product can be impacted by their income, despite how

Recycled toothbrushes makes sense Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Recycled toothbrushes makes sense - Assignment Example 2) In addition to advertising recycled-plastic toothbrushes through the character of Harold Crick, Recycline could make use of a variety of sports stars to help promote its products. Sports stars are instantly recognizable to many in the general public and will help consumers to identify the product with their favorite role models. Sports are a big part of most people’s lives and thus are an attractive advertising medium. 3) As the company grows larger, it will have to come up with additional ways to supply its recycled toothbrushes. Currently, the company’s operations are quite small and can cope with the influx of recycled products. If and when the company expands its influence nationwide, it will have to come up with a strategy to continue to receive recycled products. One such way could be to open up recycling centers in main cities and collect recycled products locally. From there, all the recycled materials could be sent to one large distribution warehouse and then made into the final

Floods in India and Its Control Essay Example for Free

Floods in India and Its Control Essay Countries irrigated by an adequate river system are in many ways blessed. These rivers not only help agriculture, but they provide a cheap and efficient transport system for the development of internal trade. The saying goes—land divides, seas unite. But waterways bring also a good deal of misery to the people by causing devastating seasonal floods In India, for example, the sub-Himalayan regions of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Bengal and Assam are heavily flooded by the rivers of the Gengetic basin and the Brahmaputra, almost every rainy season. It brings untold sufferings to the people of these low-lying plains. Millions are rendered homeless; men and cattle die in large numbers; the damage to property including standing crops is incalculable. Besides, floods affect the health of the locality and increase the incidence of cholera, typhoid and other water-borne diseases. In 1922 and 1998 flood in North Bengal left a trail of devastation, essentially in Malda, Murshidabad areas. Floods are caused by an excessive flow of water in rivers during the rainy seasons, due mainly to torrential rain in catchment areas. This may be due to two natural causes. First, the melting of ice in glacier on the mountains may thus supply a river with volumes of water much in excess of its containing and carrying capacity. Secondly, heavy rains on the mountains cause an excess of water supply. In either case, the excess water overflows the embankments and submerges the low-lying plains. Bursting of dams and also Bridges in protective embankments lead to inundation. This causes large-scale deforestation. As for example, in the Terai regions during the war, floods destroyed the natural embankments of a river. Occasionally earthquakes, by changing the course of a river, or by raising its basin or choking and silting the riverbed cause flood Another contributory cause is the construction of railway bridges without leaving provision for the natural outflow of flood-water. Of course, floods in an agricultural country have often been looked upon as a blessing in disguise. Floods leave behind on the submerged areas a rich alluvial or silt-deposit, which greatly increases the fertility of the soil. This soil on either side of the Nile owes its fertility to the annual flooding of the area, which submerges large regions, even after the construction of Aswan Dam in Egypt. Nehru used to say—give unto the river what naturally belongs to her, i. e. homesteads should not be built on riversides or on temporary char lands. That is a sure preventive measure, better than steps to resist after-effects. Men have tried from the earliest times to build protective embankments against the incidence of floods. Ordinarily these can be made sufficiently strong to resist the usual type of floods. A system of canals to irrigate the low-lying plains affords considerable escape route for the excess water caused by a normal rainfall. But these embankments should have to be maintained properly. Modern river engineering and hydro-dynamics, however, have led to a fundamental change in the principle. It is now realised that effective control of flood should begin at the source. Flood control, therefore, in these days has moved upstream. This includes the building of adequate reservoirs in the head stream area and the application of the principle of multipurpose river control. The building of a sufficient number of reservoirs is a long-drawn and costly process. Public sentiment may not take kindly to it; for it necessarily causes large-scale displacement of population as has been noticed in the Narmada Banchao movement of Sm. Patakar. For taming the turbulent Damodar, the age-long river of sorrow, by constructing the Tilaya, Mython and other dams across her, many Bihar villagers had to be shifted, and this was not liked by the local population. The future, no doubt, belongs to successful working of multi-purpose schemes. So petty objections, raised by individual or local interest, must give way before the larger needs of the people. In recent years, the rainy season has brought heavy floods all along the sub-Himalayan plains. The overflow of the tributaries of the Ganges and the Bramhaputra has caused untold sufferings to the people of these localities. Embankments have been broken, bridges have been washed away; villages have been waterlogged, cutting off all communications for days together. The utmost damage has been caused to the towns and villages of Assam by the Brahmaputra floods. The government must put up protective embankments; help the easy drainage of water by removing artificial obstructions, and by adopting local remedies for particular regions. It has been rightly said, Rivers that overtop their banks and flood the adjacent lowlands offer a challenge to the people who must be ready to protect their fields from inundation.

Importance of Metrics in Marketing Strategies Case Study

Importance of Metrics in Marketing Strategies Case Study Teresa A. Cochran Marketing is a fundamental responsibility for all activities related to advertising and sales strategies that are vital to the success of any organization. The ability of an organization to efficiently market its products and services is directly related to the success or failure of the company. As noted by Arikan (2011), metrics form the base of any effective marketing strategy. However, many firms fail to utilize metrics to calculate success or failure of their strategies. Most companies focus on the new leads generated overlooking other important formulas that analyze the actual success of any type of marketing strategy. As the business environment evolves, new marketing strategies and options are invented which requires marketers to stay a step ahead by understanding key metrics and what they mean for a companys marketing strategies. Ideally, these metrics are measurable values used to demonstrate the level of effectiveness of marketing campaigns on all marketing channels. Since marketers operate across many channels, their marketing strategy will involve a variety of activities, which makes it important to track progress and performance of their actions with the right performance indicators. This can help a business to reach its marketing targets and make improvements when facing challenges. Before choosing the right metrics, it is important to consider channels being used and who in the business will use the resultant information to make decisions (Arikan, 2011). For Athletics Supreme, following are five important metrics that the company should use to evaluate performance of their marketing strategies. For this assignment, 5 marketing metrics will be reviewed to display the anticipated success of the Pleasantly Plus, plus size retail boutique and consignment shop. Each factor is a subcategory of the marketing metrics main categories; sales metrics, customer readiness to buy metrics, customer metrics, distribution metrics and communication metrics. The assignment will review in detail equations used to forecast the following: sales growth, awareness, retention rate, number of outlets and response rate. Sales Metrics Strategic marketing plans are created to facilitate an elevated consumer awareness to promote and attract customers to purchase your product. Data related to sales volumes measure the rate at which sales of your product and is imperative for decision making for the overall fiscal sustainability and financial success This metric is also valuable for strategic planning and will determine future growth projects for the company. Athletics Supreme must also monitor sales data including total sales and types of products sold. Sales data must then be evaluated by the company to determine the effectiveness of the marketing strategy or to determine barriers to sales. The sales metric being utilized to determine the efficacy of the advertising methods used must be monitored with respect to creating sales through increased product awareness. In addition, this evaluation would also determine the tactics that have a negative impact on sales goals (Farris, 2010). These key indicators will be monit ored by the marketing department over multiple sales periods. Athletics Supreme can utilize sales data to monitor growth and of the new product line Sales figures for the sports apparel product line will be monitored quarterly beginning with the date of the initial release of the products. This metric will be monitored for one year with the goal of establishing sales trend lines relative to seasonal sales. Sales growth represents the variance in comparing sales from differing time periods. This data can be reflected mathematically as: (Current time period net sales- Previous time period net sales) _________________________________________ x100 (Previous period net sales) Or As applied to Athletic Supreme ($50,000 net sales qtr 2- $35,000 net sales qtr 1 _________________________________________________________________ x100 $50,000 Athletics Supreme shows a growth rate from Qtr 1 to Qtr 2 of 30% Customer readiness to buy metrics Customer awareness is a method utilized to determine the number of consumers who have been made aware of the products offered, in this case by Athletics Supreme. From a marketing viewpoint, a strong awareness of your product increases potential consumer purchase. Marketers use customer readiness such as awareness, preference, purchase intention, trial rate, and repurchase rate as performance indicators of product branding therefore these indicators have a great deal of influence over strategic planning of a company (Hanssens, Pauwels, Srinivasan, Vanhuele, Yildirim, 2014). Consumer purchases are influenced by multiple stages of product awareness before purchasing. Consideration to the consumers thought process related to decision to purchase before determining an appropriate marketing plan. Athletics Supreme enters the sports apparel market with an edge over the competition due to having a presence in the industry. The company has a reputation for quality therefore, consumers have an established recognition of the name brand. Athletic Supreme should collect behavioral purchasing data based on preferences gathered from sales databases. By evaluating consumer purchases, Athletics Supreme can gain valuable data on consumers product preferences (Kotler Keller, 2012). Periodic surveys of customers that purchase the apparel would further assist in evaluation the most effective marketing tactics. Akrin (2011), notes that the quality advertising message will make customers more inclined to purchase sportswear. Athletics Supreme objective would be to obtain favorable response rates beyond 90 percent, and adjust marketing strategies accordingly. Videos are another medium that would be used in the raising of awareness regarding the new line of sportswear products. The number of viewers of a video is an effective way of determining whether the products receive the attention of the target customers. The target customers are expected to be impacted by the viewership of the videos to engage in the purchase of the products being marketed (Arikan, 2008). Based on the viewership metrics, Athletics Supreme should determine the most efficient marketing channel that facilitates the creation of awareness regarding the product to consumers. The Greater attention of the marketing medium that is most effective should be done to ensure that there is maximum exploitation of the medium to create awareness and influence consumers to make purchase decisions in favor of the sportswear products (Farris, 2010). As applied to Athletics Supreme, an approach to quantifying product awareness is based on cost per 1,000 contacts and then calculate the spend per contact for each advertisement. Marketing Originated Customer % is a ratio that reveals the percentage of the new business that is a result of Marketing efforts. It is computed by getting the number of customers that started with a lead generated by Marketing and then dividing it with the total number of new customers that signed up in a period; the value is then multiplied by 100 (Zikmund Babin, 2013). This metric will show the portion of customers acquisition that originated from Athletics Supreme Marketing efforts in a certain period. This metric is best analyzed using a closed-loop marketing analytics system as manual computation is tiring and takes time (Kotler Keller, 2012). Customer metrics Customer metrics is collection of data that can be used to determine what matters most to the customers: past, present and future. For Athletics Supreme a key subcategory in customer metrics to analyze would be the cost of customer acquisition. Per Arikan (2011), customer acquisition cost, is the cost incurred convincing a potential customer to buy a product or service. This metric is important to a company as well as its investors. Investors use it to determine a companys profitability by analyzing the amount of money that can be extracted from potential customers and cost incurred extracting it. Marketing specialists on the other hand use the metric to optimize returns on their advertising investment. It highlights whether costs of extracting money from customers can be reduced which would help improve the companys profit margin. Mathematically, it includes all cost incurred in acquiring customers over a given period divided by the total number of customers acquired in that period. Ideally, this includes all sales and marketing costs including advertising cost, salaries, commissions, bonuses and relevant overheads in each period (month, quarter or a year) (Zikmund Babin, 2013). For example, for Athletics Supreme, the Customer Acquisition cost in the first year will be: Total Marketing costs for the whole year/number of customers acquired within the year Therefore, if the company spent $50,000 on sales and marketing in a certain month and added 50 customers CAC = $50,000/50 =$1,000 CAC will be important to Athletics Supreme, as it will indicate the effectiveness of the money invested in acquisition of new customers. A high metric will indicate the company is spending too much on sales and marketing while a low metric would indicate that the company is using low costs to gain customers (Arikan, 2011). Customer Retention Rate Customer Retention Rate is used to calculate the loyalty of customers. Acquisition of new customers usually costs more than it costs retaining current ones (Shank Lyberger, 2014). Arikan (2011) argues that evaluating the dedication of a customer towards a company enables marketers to improve their strategies. Encouraging customers to stick with ones business for long helps maximize revenues. It is calculated by subtracting the number of new customers from the total number of customers in a certain period divided by the number of customers at the start of the period and then multiplied by 100 to make it a percentage, i.e. CRR= Customers End Period (CE)-New Customers for the Period (CN)/Customers at Start of the Period (CS) x 100. For example, if Athletics Supreme starts a month with 50 customers and gains 20 new ones but lose 15 customers in that month, the CRR would be; (55-20)/50*100 = 70% This metric will help Athletics Supreme to assess the loyalty of customers for each of its brands. It will also reveal the companys ability to nurture existing customers. Customer lifetime value (CLV) This metric is used to assess the economic value brought by a customer to a business for the entire duration the person remains a customer. It evaluates everything starting with the customers first interaction with the company to the final purchase. It is a comparison of revenues generated by a customer and the costs of acquiring and maintaining the customer. Calculating this metric helps to reveal whether there is value in maintaining long-term marketing channels. If the CLV value is high, a company needs to invest more in retaining customers for the long-term (Arikan, 2011). For example, if Athletics Supreme fills 300 orders with revenue of $20,000, the companys Average Order Value (AOV) would be $66.67. To determine Purchase Frequency (PF), the number of orders is divided by the number of unique customers. Assuming Athletics Supreme had 200 unique customers, PF would then be 1.5. Customer Value (CV) would then be AOVxPF, which is 66.671.5 =$100 Once CV is determined, Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) is determined by multiplying the CV by the duration the customers have been in the company. Assuming the orders have a 4-year contract, CVL would be: CVL = Customer Value (CV) x Customer Duration with the Business =1004 =$400 This means, Athletics Supreme Customer Lifetime Value over 4-year duration is $400. Athletics Supreme will use this metric to analyze the potential value customers will bring into the company. According to Shank Lyberger (2014), a high value of the metric means customers are bringing high value which the company should aim at. A very high value would however mean the company is under spending and thus restraining growth. Distribution metrics Simon (2012) considers percentage of shelf space, or the space necessary to sell an item as an essential marketing data point. Athletics Supreme would ideally like to occupy as much of the display space as possible. By occupying a large amount of shelf space, Athletics Supreme has effectively monopolized the stores All Commodity Volume (ACV), or the rate of everything sold in the store. Despite its retail prominence, Athletics Supreme must remain effective by maintaining a successful supply chain logistics. As Simon, (2012) argues that even if Athletics Supreme obtains maximum display areas for the new product line, including overstock for internet sales, it will lose customers if the supply is not adequate. Overall, most retailers with make decisions on inventory based on the potential of selling the item quickly. Communication metrics is the gathering of data that can be utilized to determine the effectiveness of the varying forms of communication channels used. In this case, Athletics Supremes a key subcategory is effective reach. Effective reach is the subset of the target segment of the population that can be effected by an advertisement during a specified time frame. Additionally, the response rate data measures the rate of response that customers respond to information sent to the target market. Communication Metric) Per Arikan (2011), marketing influenced customer percentage is similar to Market Originated Customer %. However, it factors in all new customers where marketing efforts touched and/or nurtured the lead at any point in the sales process as opposed to only originating the lead. For example, if the sales person of Athletics Supreme found a lead who later attended a marketing event and closed, the new customer is assumed to having been influenced by Marketing. This percentage is usually higher than that of the Marketing Originated Customer % as it is more inclusive. It usually ranges from 50-99%. The retail industry is very competitive, therefore, Athletics Supreme must monitor the effectiveness of all forms of customer communication. For example, emails, coupons, and discounts offered on the next customer purchase. Increased sales figures after an email campaign would be a key indicator of the effectiveness of communication. The company can also measure its response rate via satisfaction surveys, Facebook and Twitter followers, and click through rates online. Per Kotler and Keller (2012), Athletics Supreme should focus communications based on frequency of purchase, which can manipulate response rates to double-digits. Conclusion Using metrics effectively will help Athletics Supreme understand the success of its marketing strategies. It will reveal areas where the companys marketing team excels at and where the team needs to improve. Therefore, metrics play an important role in marketing efforts and the company should use the above metrics as well as add others that are relevant to its business. References Arikan, A. (2011). Multichannel marketing: metrics and methods for on and offline success. John Wiley Sons. Farris, P. W. (2010). Marketing Metrics: The Definitive Guide to Measuring Marketing Performance. Upper Saddle River, NJ: FT Press. Hanssens, D. M., Pauwels, K. H., Srinivasan, S., Vanhuele, M., Yildirim, G. (2014). Consumer Attitude Metrics for Guiding Marketing Mix Decisions. Marketing Science, 33(4), 534-550. doi:10.1287/mksc.2013.0841 Jeffery, M. (2010). Data-Driven Marketing: The 15 Metrics Everyone in Marketing Should Know (1). Hoboken, US: John Wiley Sons, Incorporated. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com Kotler, P., Keller, K. L. (2012). Marketing management Shank, M. D., Lyberger, M. R. (2014). Sports marketing: A strategic perspective. Routledge. Zikmund, W. G., Babin, B. J. (2013). Essentials of marketing research. Australia: South-Western Cengage Learning.