Global Warming And Climate Change Essay - 1399 Words

One of the biggest debated issues today is that of anthropogenic global warming or climate change. People will argue that the earth goes through a natural cycle of warming and cooling. While this is somewhat true, the majority of what we are seeing currently is something beyond natural causes; something caused by humans. Humans produce a massive amount of waste, and air pollution is no exception. The amount of greenhouse gas emissions has only continued to rise due to population growth- which leads to an increased demand for resources, products, and industrialization. Greenhouse gases are a global issue with very potential harmful effects on ecosystems, biodiversity, the environment and the well-being of people worldwide. What is unknown to most is that livestock’s contribution to the environmental issues are massive, and its influence to the solution is just as substantial. Many people would name transportation as the biggest contributor to air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, but it s actually beaten by animal agriculture by a long shot. Two environmental advisers to the World Bank, Robert Goodland and Jeff Anhang, wrote a 19-page report on the topic. Through their research, they claim that livestock and their byproducts account for at least 32,000 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year, or 51 percent of all worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. (Goodland and Anhang 2011) , That’s more than the impact of industry and energy combined. But, theShow MoreRelatedGlobal Warming And Climate Change974 Words   |  4 Pagesabout global warming, whether it is true or false. Is there evidence to prove that global warming has impacted the climate due to the rise in the earth’s temperature? Climate change is a problem that is worldwide that should be reviewed. The rise in the earth’s temperature has caused some impact to the wea ther and climate changes to many places worldwide. This rise in temperature has the potential of causing drastic changes to the earth in many ways. It is time to view the global warming concernsRead MoreClimate Change Of Global Warming924 Words   |  4 Pages Figure 0.1 shows the different effects of global warming. Global warming is the warming of our planet at an extreme rate. The Earth’s climate has warmed by 7.8OC since 1880. (Quick facts about science, 2015). What causes global warming? The cause of global warming is the carbon dioxide. This acts like a blanket. Protecting the earth, and heating the earth. Sun rays would normally bounce around the earth, but with the blanket, the sun rays heat the blanket which heats the earth. (Petersen ScienceRead MoreGlobal Warming And Climate Change1398 Words   |  6 Pages Global warming and climate change have been frequent topics of discussion over the past several years. Although people tend to focus on the politics, it is important to look past the media aspects of it into the cold hard facts of what our Earth is currently experiencing, and what has caused it in the first place. The cause of climate change includes natural causes, but human causes are what is generating such a rapid global temperature change. It’s time that the ways in which humanity affectsRead MoreClimate Change And Global Warming1060 Words   |  5 PagesClimate change (Klaus) 1000 The terms â€Å"global warming†, â€Å"climate change† or â€Å"greenhouse effect† have become more than just parts of the popular lexicon as they rather are subject of public discussions, scientific research or political debates. Despite the popularity and the ubiquity of these terms, the public’s theoretical and conceptual understanding of them and their causal relations is often based on superficial knowledge and buzzwords or caricatures outlined and depicted in several popular mediaRead MoreClimate Change : Global Warming1194 Words   |  5 PagesDonya Curtis April 19, 2017 English 1001-rough draft Global Warming Global warming is one facet of the broader term climate change. It is the increase in the average temperature of the Earth s surface air and oceans from the mid 20th century and the projected continuation. The Global warming is primarily the consequence of building up greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere. Emission rates for most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas, CO2, have increased 120 fold in the past 140 years. WhileRead MoreClimate Change and Global Warming1074 Words   |  5 PagesClimate change and Global Warming are out of control. This means that, no matter what policies, processes or actions are implemented, the Earth as we know it will never be the same again. There is significant evidence to support this hypothesis. The dilemma becomes whether we can limit the damage and adapt to a new status quo or not. Rising sea levels and the damage caused by this phenomenon has irreversible impacts on coastlines worldwide. Damage to sensitive reef systems cannot be fixed. This alsoRead MoreClimate Change And Global Warming1022 Words   |  5 PagesWhat = Climate Change Who = Emma, Aoife, Julia, Rachael, Mariah and Cà ©line What is it? Climate Change is a change in the demographic distribution of weather patterns, and related change in oceans, land surfaces and ice sheets, happening over time scales of decades or longer. It’s the world’s greatest threat. Climate change is the change in temperature over a period of time. It involves the greenhouse effect and global warming. Where is it? It is an issue affecting everyone everywhere. ClimateRead MoreClimate Change And Global Warming1474 Words   |  6 Pagesphenomenon, known as â€Å"smog† became an often daily occurrence in big, urbanized cites across the globe. Also, Al Gore’s book, An Inconvenient Truth, popularized the issue of climate change and global warming as a result of the damage that the modern world has done to the atmosphere. He noted that people resist the facts about climate change due to the inconvenience of changing their lifestyles. But, uninhibited industrialization of several countries has led to intense modernization and revolution of theRead MoreClimate Change And Global Warming1412 Words   |  6 Pages Earth’s climate has been changed for hundreds of year dating back to the beginning of man to the ice age and today, and with that change came scientists who have been keeping track and gathering data on these changes in the climate. The climate is the source of life it provides a secure environment setting for life forms to thrive without a proper climatic setting life would begin to dwindle and eventually all life forms would go extinct. But why is the climate so important moreover exactly whatRead MoreClimate Change And Global Warming928 Words   |  4 PagesThis paper will discuss climate change and global warming on the economy. The paper also gives a description on climate change and global warming. As well as what it hold for future business owners. It will also discuss what the government is doing about climate change/global warming. Climate change is a long-term shift in the statistics of the weather (including its averages). For example, it could show up as a change in climate normal (expected average values for temperature and precipitation)

The Forbidden Game The Hunter Chapter 14 Free Essays

â€Å"Jenny?† Dee’s voice said hesitantly. â€Å"Jenny, are you okay?† I’ve had such a strange dream, Jenny thought, but when she lifted her face from her hands, it was real. She was sitting on the floor of her grandfather’s basement, in a puddle of icy-cold water. We will write a custom essay sample on The Forbidden Game: The Hunter Chapter 14 or any similar topic only for you Order Now Dee, Audrey, Zach, and Michael were standing in another puddle, looking at her. â€Å"I found these three in the hallway,† Zach said. â€Å"We fell down a shaft,† Michael said. â€Å"This hole just opened up in front of us. It took us all the way back to the first floor.† â€Å"It was a chute,† said Dee. â€Å"I fell down it, too, and then we had to walk back up here.† â€Å"We followed your crayon trail, and it ended at a door,† Zach finished. â€Å"We pressed the button and †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It let us in,† Audrey said crisply, when he stopped. â€Å"But it looks like something’s already happened.† â€Å"My nightmare,† Jenny said. She was having a very hard time bringing herself back to the present. The five-year-old in her mind seemed more real than the sixteen-year-old these people were talking to. Dee and Michael and Audrey looked like strangers. Not Zach, because Zach had been there when she was five. Zach, maybe, understood this. In any case he knelt on the floor beside her, ignoring the water soaking into his jeans. â€Å"What happened?† he said, his gray eyes steady. â€Å"I lost,† Jenny said dully, feeling strangely removed from everything. â€Å"I screwed up. I couldn’t save him. I lost.† â€Å"It’s something about Grandpa Evenson, isn’t it?† â€Å"What do you know about it?† Zach hesitated, then, looking her directly in the face, he said, â€Å"Only what my parents told me. They say he-went crazy that day. Tried to-well, hurt you.† Jenny was shocked out of her apathy. â€Å"What?† â€Å"They found you here, in the basement, with your clothes all torn and your arms all scratched. Your legs and feet were bleeding†¦.† â€Å"From the ice,† Jenny whispered. â€Å"I got dragged through the ice. And he scratched my hands to make me let him go. They were taking him. He let them take him instead of me.† Then, suddenly, she was sobbing again. She felt a movement, then a slender, hard arm around her. Dee. A rustle and a cool hand on her wrist. Audrey, heedless of her fancy clothes. An awkward, warm grip from behind on her shoulder. Michael, They were all around her, all trying to help. â€Å"You went through our nightmares with all of us,† Audrey said softly. â€Å"It’s not fair you had to face yours alone.† Jenny shook her head. â€Å"You don’t understand. All of you had nightmares about things you were scared might happen. Mine did happen-because of me. It was real. It was my fault.† â€Å"Tell us,† Dee said, her face stern and beautiful. â€Å"He was a sorcerer,† Jenny said. She looked at Zach. â€Å"You mean, all this time everybody thought he tried to hurt me?† â€Å"What were they supposed to think?† Zach said. â€Å"You were here, practically in a coma. You screamed if anyone tried to touch you, but you wouldn’t talk. And he was gone. They figured he ran away when he realized what he tried to do. And when they looked around at this place†-Zach looked around the basement himself and snorted-â€Å"well, they knew he was crazy. Paranoid. Because all this junk turned out to be-â€Å" â€Å"Charms for protection,† Jenny said. â€Å"Right. I mean, what kind of nut collects thousands of those from all over the world? And he had piles of books on the occult, all kinds of garbage____† â€Å"He was a sorcerer,† Jenny said again. â€Å"Not a black one. Maybe not a white one, either, but not black. He wasn’t trying to do evil. He was just-a little bit naive. He didn’t allow for accidents happening †¦ like a five-year-old coming down here on a day he didn’t expect her, and opening a door she knew she shouldn’t touch.† â€Å"That door?† Dee looked at the empty closet. Jenny nodded. â€Å"But what was in the closet? A monster?† â€Å"Julian.† They all stared at her. Jenny swallowed the bad taste in her mouth. â€Å"My grandfather wanted-well, the same thing those German boys in the forest wanted, I guess.† She looked at Audrey. â€Å"Power. Or maybe he was just curious. He knew there were-things – out in the darkness, and he caught some. Maybe he used runes to summon them up, I don’t know. But I know he used a rune to hold them. On that door.† â€Å"And just what,† Michael said, his voice unusually grim, â€Å"would you call the things he caught?† â€Å"Aliens,† Jenny said, looking at Dee. â€Å"Dark elves,† she said, looking at Audrey. â€Å"Demons,† she said, turning around to face Michael. â€Å"The Shadow Men,† she said to Zach. Dee hissed softly in comprehension. Once started, Jenny couldn’t seem to stop. â€Å"Dakaki. The Erlking. The old gods. The fairy folk†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Okay,† Michael said huskily. â€Å"Enough, already.† â€Å"They’re real,† Jenny said. â€Å"They’ve always been here-like genies, you know? The old name for a genie was djinn, and in his notes my grandfather called them aljunnu. Djinn-aljunnu-Julian-get it? It was a joke. They like to play with us†¦.† Her voice was rising. She felt herself gripped from all sides, but she went on. â€Å"He was keeping them trapped-but I let them out, and that changed everything. They said they had the right to take me. But he went instead. He did it for me.† She stopped. â€Å"If we’re going to get through this,† Dee said, â€Å"we’ve got to be strong. We’ve got to stand together. All right?† â€Å"Right,† Audrey said, the first to confirm it. Looking down, Jenny saw Audrey’s perfectly polished nails entwined with Dee’s slender dark fingers. Both holding on to each other, to Jenny. â€Å"Right,† Zach said with no hesitation, no distance in his winter-gray eyes. His long-fingered artist’s hand came down over Dee’s and Audrey’s. â€Å"Right,† whispered Michael, and he gripped Zach’s hand with his own square pudgy fingers, unembarrassed. â€Å"But there’s nothing to do,† Jenny said, almost crying again. â€Å"He won. I lost. I didn’t make it through my nightmare. That door†-nodding at the closet one-â€Å"was always here. It’s not the way out.† â€Å"What about that one?† Michael said, standing back and looking up the stairs. Jenny had to move around the bookcase to see it. Instead of the blank wall she had seen earlier at the top of the staircase, there was a door. Directly above them-in the room above-a clock struck five. â€Å"You must have done something right,† Dee said. Jenny’s skirt was clammy, clinging to her legs. Her hair, she knew, was in complete disarray. She was exhausted and still shaking inside, and it seemed like years since she had slept. â€Å"I’ll go first,† she said and led them up the stairs, trying to look like Dee, proud as a princess. She found her slip of paper on the top step and stepped on it. â€Å"If that’s the turret-the top of the house-we’ve won,† Audrey said. â€Å"Right?† Somehow Jenny didn’t think it was going to be that easy. She twisted the knob and pushed, and the door swung back on oiled hinges. They all stepped into the room above. It was much larger than any turret could possibly be. It was the More Games store. Well, more or less, Jenny thought. There were the same shelves and racks and tables with the same uncanny games on them. There was the same small window-quite dark-and the same lamps with shades of purple and red and blue glass. But there were differences, too. One was the grandfather clock standing near a corner, ticking loudly and steadily. The other was Tom. Jenny ran to him. He was huddled against the clock, chained to it somehow. Her mind registered fury at the humiliation of that, then went on to more important things. â€Å"Tommy,† she said, reaching with both hands for him. He turned weakly, and Jenny was shocked. There were no bruises on his face, but he looked-ravaged. His skin was unhealthily pale, and there were black circles under his eyes. He gave her the ghost of his own rakish smile. â€Å"Hey, Thorny,† he said painfully. Jenny put her face against his shoulder and cried. The faded-photograph memory had disappeared. What Jenny remembered now was the day of their first kiss, in second grade, behind the hibiscus bushes at George Washington Elementary School. They’d both gotten detention, but it had been worth it. That kiss, she thought. Everything innocent. Everything sweet. Tom hadn’t been arrogant, then, hadn’t taken anything for granted. Tom had loved her. â€Å"Tommy,† she said. â€Å"I missed you so much. What did he do to you?† Tom shook his head. â€Å"Hardly anything †¦ I don’t understand. There were the rats†-his haunted eyes skittered around the floor-â€Å"but they’re gone now.† Rats. So that was what Tom had seen in the parlor-the invisible things that had tried to climb up his legs. In second grade Tom had owned a turtle, and his older brother Greg had owned a pet rat. One morning they woke up to find that the rat had eaten the turtle-eaten it right out of the shell. I knew how upset that made him-how much he hated rats after that, Jenny thought. Why didn’t I realize what they were in the parlor? Because it hadn’t seemed bad enough. Tom had been so afraid. But one thing Jenny had learned: Everybody’s nightmare was scariest to them. You had to see it with them, get into their shoes, to understand just how scary. â€Å"I’m sorry,† she whispered. â€Å"But, oh, Tom, your wrists-† They were torn, bleeding. He was wearing shackles like the kind his brother Bruce used in police work. The rest of him was wrapped up like Marley’s ghost. â€Å"I kept trying to get away,† he said. â€Å"Not because of the rats. Because I saw you. He would come and hold up a mirror, and I could see you and what was happening to you. I saw you go through everything. When Summer died †¦Ã¢â‚¬  He stopped to get control of himself, his face twisting. Saw we? Jenny thought in horror. Pictures of what Tom might have seen when she and Julian were together flashed through her mind. Then she felt a backwash of relief. If Julian had been standing here holding a mirror, he must have been showing Tom the times when he-Julian-wasn’t with Jenny. Still, she had to know. â€Å"Did you ever see-him-in the mirror?† â€Å"No. But he told me-he told me he was doing things to you. To all of you. He laughed about it.† Jenny gripped both his hands. â€Å"Don’t you worry about him, Tom. He can’t hurt us anymore. We’re free, Tom-we’ve won. Now we just need to find the way out of here.† Tom looked at her, then nodded behind her. Jenny turned. She’d missed it before, because Tom had so quickly captured her attention. There was a door, just like the door in the More Games store that led out onto Montevideo Street. But this door was partly open, showing darkness outside. Standing before it, completely blocking the way, were a giant coiled snake and a large wolf. â€Å"The Creeper and the Lurker. At last,† Dee said. â€Å"Just a slight problem,† Michael said nervously. They weren’t real animals exactly-they looked more as if they’d been painted with luminous paint on the darkness. Like some special effect Zach might make for a photo. But the wolf breathed and the snake’s fluorescent tongue flicked in and out. Jenny felt sure that they could move-and do harm. She fingered Tom’s chains. â€Å"He has to let us go. The rules were that if we got to the top of the house, we could go free.† â€Å"Not exactly,† the liquid, elemental voice said from the back of the store. He was dressed the way he had been in the More Games store, in that weird combination of cyberpunk and Byronic poet. The snake tattoo was back on his wrist. He looked as laconic as he had in the store, and as beautiful. His hair was like moonstone, white with a shimmery blue glow inside. In this dim light his eyes were midnight blue. He looked-charming, sinister, and slightly mad. A demon prince with the face of an angel. Jenny was suddenly very frightened. And much more alert. Seeing Julian cleared the cobwebs out of your brain instantly. She straightened her back, still kneeling. The others were gathering themselves, too. What light there was caught Zach’s light hair and the gold clasp of Audrey’s Brunetti calfskin belt. Jenny could see by their faces that they knew Julian better now-not because they’d seen him in the Game but because they understood what he was. Julian smiled his strange, sweet smile. â€Å"You all wanted to know who I am. Well, I’ll give you a final riddle,† he said. â€Å"I’m a Visitor from the stars. I’m the Erlking. I’m Loki. I’m Puck. I’m the Hunter. I’m the Shadow Man. I’m your nightmares come true.† â€Å"We figured that out,† Jenny said, quietly, steadily. â€Å"And we played your game and won. Now we want to go home.† â€Å"You didn’t let me finish,† Julian said, turning the smile on her. â€Å"Do you remember, when you first came in the game store, I showed you the ancient Tibetan game of goats and tigers?† He gestured, one of his easy, flowing motions, and Jenny saw the bronze board on a table. Tiny figures, also bronze, sat on it somewhat like chess pieces. â€Å"Well, that’s what you’ve really been playing,† Julian said, and at the sound of his voice Jenny felt the walls closing in. He smiled at her particularly. â€Å"You are all the innocent little goats †¦ and I’m the tiger.† Tom’s hands were gripping Jenny’s numbingly. Dee was in the forward stance, left leg forward, right leg back, ready for action. Zach looked bleak, and Audrey and Michael had moved closer together. â€Å"You didn’t really think,† Julian said to Jenny, â€Å"that I would let you go.† Jenny felt dizzy. Smothering. â€Å"You said †¦ you were playing the Game fairly,† she got out, with barely the breath to say it. â€Å"You promised me-â€Å" â€Å"I’m not hidebound by tradition. And I am playing fairly-I said if you got to the turret before dawn, you’d find the door home standing open. It is open-it’s just that I won’t let you get to it.† Jenny looked at the animals guarding the door. What could even Dee do to fight them? â€Å"By the way, Tommy, here, hasn’t even faced his real nightmare yet. But there’ll be plenty of time. We’ve got something like eternity ahead of us, you know,† Julian said. His eyes were like liquid cobalt -and ravenous. Hungrier than the wolf’s as he looked at Jenny and Tom together there. God help me, Jenny thought. Please, someone help. She looked at Tom, but Tom was looking at Julian, with such hatred and fury that it made Jenny afraid for him. â€Å"Then this whole ‘Game’ has been a farce,† Tom said, almost spitting the words. His hazel eyes were burning. Julian spread his hands and inclined his head slightly-almost a bow. As if someone had complimented him on a job well done. But it was Jenny he spoke to. â€Å"I told you I’d do whatever was necessary to get you. At first I was sure you’d lose the Game-most people do. Then, when I saw you had a chance of winning, I figured I could make you turn to me for help. But you wouldn’t. She’s very strong, you know,† he added, flicking a heavy-lidded glance at Tom. â€Å"Much too good for you.† â€Å"I know,† Tom said, and Jenny looked at him, astonished. â€Å"But she’s a thousand times too good for you.† â€Å"I want her for goodness’ sake,† Julian said and smiled. â€Å"Light to my darkness. You’ll see-Tommy. You’ll have years and years and years to see how well she and I fit together.† He turned back to Jenny. â€Å"In any case, you’ve gotten this far, and I’m afraid I have to tell you the truth. Which is that the whole Game has been just-a game. The kind a cat plays with a mouse.† â€Å"Before eating it?† Dee said in a voice like a knife. Julian barely glanced back at her. â€Å"I’m only hungry for one thing at the moment, Deirdre. But my friends by the door have strange appetites. I wouldn’t go near them if I were you. And of course there are all the other Shadow Men-all my elders, those ancient, bone-sucking, lip-licking wraiths-they’d all like to get hold of you. This house keeps them outside-but you wouldn’t get far if you opened a window.† Jenny felt the trembling in Tom’s clenched fists and bowed her head. She was thinking of the poem in her grandfather’s room. Like the other fools/Who’ve slipped on these same stones and played and lost. . Did everyone lose to the Shadow Men? The dice are loaded, she thought. You can’t win. All bets are off. â€Å"They’d love to sink a tooth in you,† Julian was saying to Dee. â€Å"Do you know you’re the image of Ankhesenamun, one of the greatest beauties of Egypt?† Even as he spoke, Dee snapped her right leg up in a high kick, pulling her toes back at the last minute to deliver a devastating blow with the heel. At least, that was how it should have happened. Julian, with the reflexes of a rattlesnake, caught her foot as it came at him and jerked up, flinging Dee on her back. â€Å"Rule One in this Game,† Julian said, smiling. â€Å"Don’t mess with me. I’ll beat you every time.† Dee got up, obviously in pain-there was no way to break a fall like that-and Julian turned back to Jenny. Jenny met his ravenous eyes and felt something inside her change forever. â€Å"Let the others go,† she said clearly and softly, â€Å"and I’ll stay with you.† Julian stared at her. Everyone stared at her. Then somebody-she thought it was Michael-started to laugh. Julian smiled, very slightly, just one corner of his lip up. Not an amused smile. His eyes had gone the blue of gas flames. â€Å"I see,† he said. Jenny detached her hands from Tom’s. She stood up. â€Å"I’m serious. Let them go †¦ and I’ll stay †¦ of my own free will. And you know what that means.† She was thinking of the darkroom, of the boy masquerading as her cousin who’d held her in his arms. The boy she’d kissed-of her own free will. She was hoping Julian remembered, too. She thought he did. He looked intrigued. A strange, sensuous smile curved his lips. â€Å"Willingly?† he repeated, as if testing the word. â€Å"Willingly.† â€Å"No †¦Ã¢â‚¬  Tom whispered. â€Å"Willingly,† Jenny repeated, looking only at Julian. Julian looked charmed-but wary. â€Å"You’d have to make a promise-seal the bond. In a way that couldn’t be broken.† â€Å"Yes.† She could see she’d startled him. He’d expected her to play for time, to argue. Didn’t he understand that she’d changed? She raised her eyebrows at him, ironically. â€Å"The sooner the better,† she said. Julian blinked, then said slowly, â€Å"Beautiful Deirdre can leave, and Audrey. So can Zach and Michael. But Tommy stays. I’ll keep him as a hostage for your good behavior.† Looking up at him, Jenny felt her lip twitch, not quite a smile. â€Å"I don’t think you’ll need that. †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"All the same.† â€Å"All right. It doesn’t matter to me.† Then, stepping close to him, she spoke quietly, for his ears alone. â€Å"Julian, don’t you know that I’ve changed? Can’t you see that? I still care about Tom, but†¦ it’s not the same. He’d seem tame after you. Anything would seem tame after you.† His eyes widened slightly in fascination. Jenny took a deep breath. â€Å"I probably would have come to you a lot earlier if you’d just straight out asked me. Didn’t that ever occur to you? That you could just appear at my front door, no games, no threats, and just ask me?† He looked disconcerted. â€Å"Not exactly. †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You’re too cynical. Do you know, I think the way you look at things has made you blind. You’ve gotten so hardened that you think you have to fight the universe to get what you want. To-sort of wrestle it out of people.† â€Å"And-don’t I?† â€Å"Not always,† Jenny said. Meeting his gaze directly, she said, â€Å"Sometimes there’s a much simpler solution. There are some things you can’t force, Julian, and you can’t buy them, either. They have to be given, for free. That’s what I want to give you.† His fascination was complete. â€Å"Then promise yourself to me,† he said, and with a motion like a sleight-of-hand trick, he held something between his fingers. A gold circlet. Jenny reached for it automatically, taking it between forefinger and thumb. It was a simple ring, with a design she couldn’t quite make out on the outside. Inside the band something was written in fancy script. She tilted the ring toward one of the small lamps. All I refuse Thee I chuse, she read. â€Å"Put this on your finger and you’re sworn mine,† Julian said. â€Å"No way to break the promise, no way to change the bond. It’s a short ceremony. Do you want to go through with it?† How to cite The Forbidden Game: The Hunter Chapter 14, Essay examples

Market Planning SWOT Analysis Company

Question: Discuss bout the Market Planning for SWOT Analysis Company. Answer: Introduction Developing a market plan is an important aspect of business organizations. Marketing is the spine of a business. It determines the turnover and profitability of the company. It is important to develop a strategic marketing plan for an organization, which determines not only the profitability of the organization but also the growth and success of the organization. The following report is made on Costco Wholesale Retailer. The report studies the SWOT analysis and studies the marketing objectives of the company and also devises a marketing strategy of the company. The companys objectives and mission are studied and strategies and recommendations are provided. SWOT Analysis Strengths Costco Wholesale Retailer enjoys certain benefits. The strengths of the company are: The market presence of the company. The company enjoys customers demands and is widely recognised. The company enjoys significant supply chain. It allows the company to achieve economies of scale. The company also enjoys customers loyalty because of the Kirkland Brand Signature. The public infers as that as a symbol of quality and standard. Therefore, these factors lend significant strength to the company. The company has significant turnover number, which contribute to the high profit the company enjoys. The company also has significant inventory turnover mixed with high sales number. Since the revenue is high due to economies of scale, the sales per unit is low that attracts demands from customers (www.costco.com, 2016) Weakness The company also suffers from shortcomings and limitations. These are: Costco has limitations in the product mix compared to the competitors. There is not enough option for the customers, who seeks wide array for goods. The company allows only members to purchase from its warehouse and limits the entry to non-members. This might not be accepted by public and also limits the profitability of the company. According to the business model of the company, the low profit margins do not allow flexibility in adjustment of price. These factors pose as the weaknesses of the company and limit the profitability aspect of the company. Opportunities One of the opportunities of the company is the diversification aspect of the company. The company has open up a new business in a different sector. It can add new services or features to the business. The company can increase the variety factor in the product mix. It can increase the types of product it produces. This will create satisfaction among customers and help it compete with its rivals. The company can also expand its locations by establishing new warehouses and shop across the geographical locations. The company can extend its operational activities in different and foreign countries with developed economies. This will allow the company to achieve expansion policy and achieve growth and success (www.costco.com, 2016) These factors are some of the opportunities for the company to better its operational activities and further substantiate its chances for success. Threats The company faces stiff completion from rival companies and supergiant like Walmart. The company faces competition from the intense marketing policies of the rivals. The company faces rivalry from online marketing. Online marketing allows many small and medium sized enterprises to sell goods at very low prices, which provides threats of substitutes and competitive rivalry. The power of animal rights acts tends to pose certain threats to the product of the company. Marketing Objectives High number of turnover per warehouse: The company is a one of the dominant retailers in the world and enjoys good reputation. It was recorded that the sales in one of the warehouse clocked to $300 million. The average sales in the warehouse were seen to be $127 million. It is seen that the sales of the company is seen to double and triple in comparison to competitors (Bozarth Handfield, 2015). Incur the lowest cost in operation: There are various factors, which revolve around the fact that the company produce at a low cost and are one of the leading players in wholesale and retail. There are minimum frills present in the operational activity of the company. The products are left in the original packages and material before being shipped to the store. This saves variable and indirect costs of the company. It is also observed to save time for the company. The company is efficient in this regard. The company has a significant purchasing power and can purchase quantities in large number to achieve economies in scale. Since the company purchases in large number, their cost of production also reduces to a minimum level and the company can achieve high profit margin by maintaining low sales price per unit (Howell Market, 2013). Establishment of new warehouses: The company intends of establishing around 33- 35 new warehouses in the quest of diversifying location. The company has planned an expenditure of $1.4- $1.6 billion and this allow the company to incur necessary expenditure on real estate, establishment, restructure and purchase of equipment for new warehouses and ancillary operations related to it. Thus, the company aims of diversifying location in the United States and Canada. This will expand the scope of profitability for the company (Kerzner, 2013). Expanding the club warehouse membership: The company follows the policy of increasing the sales by increasing the membership per warehouse. The company believes that following this policy would allow them to purchase in large quantities and also transfer the benefit to the customers. The customers believe that large scale purchase would allow them to have low purchase price per unit and also facilitate economical buying (Bozarth Handfield, 2015). Strategies The main target market of Costco is small business. The marketing team of the company get in touch with local owners of firms and try to convince them to purchase a membership of the company when they establish a new warehouse in an area. The marketing team uses a direct mail service to prospective buyers and try to create a customer base if it matches the customer profile of the company. The remaining strategy revolves around the word of mouth theory. The company follows the theory that if the members are satisfied with the product and service of the company, they would advertise and recommend the company to others. This is seen from the fact that Costco does not follow aggressive advertisement strategies. Costco provides quality and standard goods at lower prices to customer. This is one of the major and primary marketing objectives of the company. The company provides quality goods and cost leadership in order to achieve customer satisfaction and high sales for the company. The companys core objective is cost effectiveness. The company employs the lowest price possible to attract customers. Increasing membership facility in terms of low priced goods would be ideal for the company. The Company could provide discounting factors along with the membership facility to customers. This allows them discounting facilities and allows the customers and members to avail products at low price. The company needs to amalgamate value with convenience and focuses on increasing sales to achieve its profit maximisation and the objective of the company. The membership club allows financing and refinancing facility, identity protection to customers. The company provides free samples and also utilizes act ive sales promotion techniques to achieve higher sales value. The company stresses on customer satisfaction and stresses on customer service and after sales service to the customers. The company focuses on sustainability development and stresses on making environmental friendly condition in its production process. The environment awareness allows the company to create goodwill and positive image of the company (Bozarth Handfield, 2015). Marketing Mix Product The company follows the policy of offering low price goods on selected and limited nationally branded products. The company deals in 330 products. The company offers only those products that offer great benefit to customers. It is critical for the company that the customers utilise from the product. The company maintains low active stock keeping unit and products shift out of the warehouse based on seasons and other factors. However, the company needs to diversify its products and increase the range of goods that the company offers to its customers. This would provide an edge over its customers. A critical market research needs to be carried out and the taste and preferences of the customers need to the studied to evaluate the demand pattern and increase more variety to the stock (www.costco.com, 2016) Place The company has established warehouses around the globe. The company has 371 warehouses in the United States, 5 in Japan, 5 in South Korea, 4 in Taiwan, 19 in the United Kingdom and 30 in Mexico. The company depends on low price rather than diversified locations in achieving high sales. However, due to aggressive marketing strategies of competitors, the company needs to make certain amendments. The company needs to diversify location in more developed economies. The company needs to adopt aggressive strategies and policies to advertise their goods and forms a strong hold on the new target market to consolidate and expand the new target market (Li, 2013). Promotion The company does not follow aggressive advertisement policy and depends on word of mouth of members. However, the company needs to strengthen it advertisement policy and utilize e-commerce sites for diversifying its services and sales through the use of internet retailing. The company needs to use social media platform to create more awareness among customers along with the word of mouth (Li, 2013). The company allows the members of the warehouses to have a demonstration of the product through sampling and eliminate the risk factors on the part of the customers. The company can increase the membership count in the warehouses and also allow non-members to shop product, which could benefit the company by increasing the customer base. The company needs to expand its generous policy to the customer and provide more refund and guarantee policies on products. The discounting policies also should be evaluated and amended. The company needs to be aware about the perfect relationship it needs to maintain with employees, customers and investors in the company. The company needs to make sure that it looks after the stake of the stakeholders. The personal selling aspect of the company is impressive. However, the company needs to make sure that the information system is strong and market research allows the company to locate prospective customers. Sales promotion technique should move out direct mail techniques to email marketing, marketing on social media and also indulge in press release. Product launch techniques need to be evaluated so that it catches the eye of the masses. Price The company follows a policy of 14% mark up on the price of goods and offers low price. This is a highlighting factor the company as it not only low price to the customers but also cause inflexibility to the price adjustments. The company needs to achieve more economies of scale by increasing the membership of warehouses and buying in more bulk, which could allow increase in mark up to increase profit margin. This would strengthen the economies of scale for the company. Implementation The company utilises strategic locations and use prime location for their warehouse as it can generate significant turnover for the company. The company should continue to strive in diversifying their products and services so that the customers can maximise its benefits. The company should focus more research on customer needs and wants and should do extensive research on current market trend and consumer behaviour. This will allow the company to achieve greater customer satisfaction. The company needs to implement its strategies of providing greater customer satisfaction through strategic location and diversification of products and services The company, in order to achieve its mission should observe the code of ethics in every aspect. The company needs to observe all legal requirements and rules. The company needs to increase its consideration towards customers and members. More benefit should be given to customers through diversification of products and services and low prices. More care should be given to employees through better remuneration with significant minimum wage and better work environment. The company needs to keep the suppliers satisfied and overall the company provide proper return to shareholders. The stakeholders need to be satisfied from the treatment meted out by the company. The company has direct purchase ties with many producers of national brand and the company needs to purchase from different and alternative sources without hampering the operation. The company needs to rapidly increase the stock turnover by adopting lean management process, in which the time period involved in deportment of goods to the stores is reduced. The company needs to indulge in purchasing in high quantities, effective distribution and reduce handling of goods. The time period involved in shipment of goods needs to be reduced, which will reduce indirect costs and also increase operational efficiency (www.costco.com, 2016) The company needs to diversify its locations by increasing the stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The company intends to increase the stores in the United Kingdom and establish warehouses globally in most of the developed economies of the scale. Conclusion On concluding the report it can be seen that the company has great scope for growth and expansion. The company enjoys business strength in form of market awareness and has strong national brand signature, which draw customers. The company faces weakness in terms of strong rivalry from the firm. The company needs to follow diversification policy to expand its business and achieve growth and success. The company needs to open new warehouses in diversified locations. Overall, the company is a supergiant and needs to follow certain remedial procedures to strengthen its market conditions. Reference List Bozarth, C. C., Handfield, R. B. (2015).Introduction to operations and supply chain management. Prentice Hall. Downey, W. S., Cochran, A. (2016). AGEC 429--AGRIBUSINESS MARKETING STRATEGIES AGEC 498ADVANCED MARKET PLANNING PROJECT SPRING 2016.Instructor. Gaskill, L. R., Van Auken, H. E., Kim, H. S. (2015). Impact of operational planning on small business retail performance.Journal of Small Business Strategy,5(1), 21-36. Hemmati, R., Hooshmand, R. A., Khodabakhshian, A. (2014). Market based transmission expansion and reactive power planning with consideration of wind and load uncertainties.Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews,29, 1-10. Howell, R., Market, N. S. (2013). Succession planning. Ilic, M., Galiana, F., Fink, L. (Eds.). (2013).Power systems restructuring: engineering and economics. Springer Science Business Media. Jain, N., Singh, S. N., Srivastava, S. C. (2013). A generalized approach for DG planning and viability analysis under market scenario.Industrial Electronics, IEEE Transactions on,60(11), 5075-5085. Jenabi, M., Fatemi Ghomi, S. M. T., Smeers, Y. (2013). Bi-level game approaches for coordination of generation and transmission expansion planning within a market environment.Power Systems, IEEE Transactions on,28(3), 2639-2650. Kerzner, H. R. (2013).Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley Sons. Kerzner, H. R. (2013).Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley Sons. Li, X. I. (2013).Environmental and economical analysis in electricity market planning and management(Doctoral dissertation, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University). Munoz, F. D., Hobbs, B. F., Ho, J. L., Kasina, S. (2014). An engineering-economic approach to transmission planning under market and regulatory uncertainties: WECC case study.Power Systems, IEEE Transactions on,29(1), 307-317. Phokha, A., Nonsrimuang, N. (2013). The effects of entrepreneurial orientation, learning orientation, market driving approach and strategic market planning capability on firm performance.Journal of International Business Economics,13(3), 187-204. Welcome to Costco Wholesale. (2016).Costco.com. Retrieved 27 May 2016, from https://www.costco.com Ziser, C. J., Dong, Z. Y., Wong, K. P. (2012). Incorporating weather uncertainty in demand forecasts for electricity market planning.International Journal of Systems Science,43(7), 1336-1346.

Market Planning SWOT Analysis Company

Question: Discuss bout the Market Planning for SWOT Analysis Company. Answer: Introduction Developing a market plan is an important aspect of business organizations. Marketing is the spine of a business. It determines the turnover and profitability of the company. It is important to develop a strategic marketing plan for an organization, which determines not only the profitability of the organization but also the growth and success of the organization. The following report is made on Costco Wholesale Retailer. The report studies the SWOT analysis and studies the marketing objectives of the company and also devises a marketing strategy of the company. The companys objectives and mission are studied and strategies and recommendations are provided. SWOT Analysis Strengths Costco Wholesale Retailer enjoys certain benefits. The strengths of the company are: The market presence of the company. The company enjoys customers demands and is widely recognised. The company enjoys significant supply chain. It allows the company to achieve economies of scale. The company also enjoys customers loyalty because of the Kirkland Brand Signature. The public infers as that as a symbol of quality and standard. Therefore, these factors lend significant strength to the company. The company has significant turnover number, which contribute to the high profit the company enjoys. The company also has significant inventory turnover mixed with high sales number. Since the revenue is high due to economies of scale, the sales per unit is low that attracts demands from customers (www.costco.com, 2016) Weakness The company also suffers from shortcomings and limitations. These are: Costco has limitations in the product mix compared to the competitors. There is not enough option for the customers, who seeks wide array for goods. The company allows only members to purchase from its warehouse and limits the entry to non-members. This might not be accepted by public and also limits the profitability of the company. According to the business model of the company, the low profit margins do not allow flexibility in adjustment of price. These factors pose as the weaknesses of the company and limit the profitability aspect of the company. Opportunities One of the opportunities of the company is the diversification aspect of the company. The company has open up a new business in a different sector. It can add new services or features to the business. The company can increase the variety factor in the product mix. It can increase the types of product it produces. This will create satisfaction among customers and help it compete with its rivals. The company can also expand its locations by establishing new warehouses and shop across the geographical locations. The company can extend its operational activities in different and foreign countries with developed economies. This will allow the company to achieve expansion policy and achieve growth and success (www.costco.com, 2016) These factors are some of the opportunities for the company to better its operational activities and further substantiate its chances for success. Threats The company faces stiff completion from rival companies and supergiant like Walmart. The company faces competition from the intense marketing policies of the rivals. The company faces rivalry from online marketing. Online marketing allows many small and medium sized enterprises to sell goods at very low prices, which provides threats of substitutes and competitive rivalry. The power of animal rights acts tends to pose certain threats to the product of the company. Marketing Objectives High number of turnover per warehouse: The company is a one of the dominant retailers in the world and enjoys good reputation. It was recorded that the sales in one of the warehouse clocked to $300 million. The average sales in the warehouse were seen to be $127 million. It is seen that the sales of the company is seen to double and triple in comparison to competitors (Bozarth Handfield, 2015). Incur the lowest cost in operation: There are various factors, which revolve around the fact that the company produce at a low cost and are one of the leading players in wholesale and retail. There are minimum frills present in the operational activity of the company. The products are left in the original packages and material before being shipped to the store. This saves variable and indirect costs of the company. It is also observed to save time for the company. The company is efficient in this regard. The company has a significant purchasing power and can purchase quantities in large number to achieve economies in scale. Since the company purchases in large number, their cost of production also reduces to a minimum level and the company can achieve high profit margin by maintaining low sales price per unit (Howell Market, 2013). Establishment of new warehouses: The company intends of establishing around 33- 35 new warehouses in the quest of diversifying location. The company has planned an expenditure of $1.4- $1.6 billion and this allow the company to incur necessary expenditure on real estate, establishment, restructure and purchase of equipment for new warehouses and ancillary operations related to it. Thus, the company aims of diversifying location in the United States and Canada. This will expand the scope of profitability for the company (Kerzner, 2013). Expanding the club warehouse membership: The company follows the policy of increasing the sales by increasing the membership per warehouse. The company believes that following this policy would allow them to purchase in large quantities and also transfer the benefit to the customers. The customers believe that large scale purchase would allow them to have low purchase price per unit and also facilitate economical buying (Bozarth Handfield, 2015). Strategies The main target market of Costco is small business. The marketing team of the company get in touch with local owners of firms and try to convince them to purchase a membership of the company when they establish a new warehouse in an area. The marketing team uses a direct mail service to prospective buyers and try to create a customer base if it matches the customer profile of the company. The remaining strategy revolves around the word of mouth theory. The company follows the theory that if the members are satisfied with the product and service of the company, they would advertise and recommend the company to others. This is seen from the fact that Costco does not follow aggressive advertisement strategies. Costco provides quality and standard goods at lower prices to customer. This is one of the major and primary marketing objectives of the company. The company provides quality goods and cost leadership in order to achieve customer satisfaction and high sales for the company. The companys core objective is cost effectiveness. The company employs the lowest price possible to attract customers. Increasing membership facility in terms of low priced goods would be ideal for the company. The Company could provide discounting factors along with the membership facility to customers. This allows them discounting facilities and allows the customers and members to avail products at low price. The company needs to amalgamate value with convenience and focuses on increasing sales to achieve its profit maximisation and the objective of the company. The membership club allows financing and refinancing facility, identity protection to customers. The company provides free samples and also utilizes act ive sales promotion techniques to achieve higher sales value. The company stresses on customer satisfaction and stresses on customer service and after sales service to the customers. The company focuses on sustainability development and stresses on making environmental friendly condition in its production process. The environment awareness allows the company to create goodwill and positive image of the company (Bozarth Handfield, 2015). Marketing Mix Product The company follows the policy of offering low price goods on selected and limited nationally branded products. The company deals in 330 products. The company offers only those products that offer great benefit to customers. It is critical for the company that the customers utilise from the product. The company maintains low active stock keeping unit and products shift out of the warehouse based on seasons and other factors. However, the company needs to diversify its products and increase the range of goods that the company offers to its customers. This would provide an edge over its customers. A critical market research needs to be carried out and the taste and preferences of the customers need to the studied to evaluate the demand pattern and increase more variety to the stock (www.costco.com, 2016) Place The company has established warehouses around the globe. The company has 371 warehouses in the United States, 5 in Japan, 5 in South Korea, 4 in Taiwan, 19 in the United Kingdom and 30 in Mexico. The company depends on low price rather than diversified locations in achieving high sales. However, due to aggressive marketing strategies of competitors, the company needs to make certain amendments. The company needs to diversify location in more developed economies. The company needs to adopt aggressive strategies and policies to advertise their goods and forms a strong hold on the new target market to consolidate and expand the new target market (Li, 2013). Promotion The company does not follow aggressive advertisement policy and depends on word of mouth of members. However, the company needs to strengthen it advertisement policy and utilize e-commerce sites for diversifying its services and sales through the use of internet retailing. The company needs to use social media platform to create more awareness among customers along with the word of mouth (Li, 2013). The company allows the members of the warehouses to have a demonstration of the product through sampling and eliminate the risk factors on the part of the customers. The company can increase the membership count in the warehouses and also allow non-members to shop product, which could benefit the company by increasing the customer base. The company needs to expand its generous policy to the customer and provide more refund and guarantee policies on products. The discounting policies also should be evaluated and amended. The company needs to be aware about the perfect relationship it needs to maintain with employees, customers and investors in the company. The company needs to make sure that it looks after the stake of the stakeholders. The personal selling aspect of the company is impressive. However, the company needs to make sure that the information system is strong and market research allows the company to locate prospective customers. Sales promotion technique should move out direct mail techniques to email marketing, marketing on social media and also indulge in press release. Product launch techniques need to be evaluated so that it catches the eye of the masses. Price The company follows a policy of 14% mark up on the price of goods and offers low price. This is a highlighting factor the company as it not only low price to the customers but also cause inflexibility to the price adjustments. The company needs to achieve more economies of scale by increasing the membership of warehouses and buying in more bulk, which could allow increase in mark up to increase profit margin. This would strengthen the economies of scale for the company. Implementation The company utilises strategic locations and use prime location for their warehouse as it can generate significant turnover for the company. The company should continue to strive in diversifying their products and services so that the customers can maximise its benefits. The company should focus more research on customer needs and wants and should do extensive research on current market trend and consumer behaviour. This will allow the company to achieve greater customer satisfaction. The company needs to implement its strategies of providing greater customer satisfaction through strategic location and diversification of products and services The company, in order to achieve its mission should observe the code of ethics in every aspect. The company needs to observe all legal requirements and rules. The company needs to increase its consideration towards customers and members. More benefit should be given to customers through diversification of products and services and low prices. More care should be given to employees through better remuneration with significant minimum wage and better work environment. The company needs to keep the suppliers satisfied and overall the company provide proper return to shareholders. The stakeholders need to be satisfied from the treatment meted out by the company. The company has direct purchase ties with many producers of national brand and the company needs to purchase from different and alternative sources without hampering the operation. The company needs to rapidly increase the stock turnover by adopting lean management process, in which the time period involved in deportment of goods to the stores is reduced. The company needs to indulge in purchasing in high quantities, effective distribution and reduce handling of goods. The time period involved in shipment of goods needs to be reduced, which will reduce indirect costs and also increase operational efficiency (www.costco.com, 2016) The company needs to diversify its locations by increasing the stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The company intends to increase the stores in the United Kingdom and establish warehouses globally in most of the developed economies of the scale. Conclusion On concluding the report it can be seen that the company has great scope for growth and expansion. The company enjoys business strength in form of market awareness and has strong national brand signature, which draw customers. The company faces weakness in terms of strong rivalry from the firm. The company needs to follow diversification policy to expand its business and achieve growth and success. The company needs to open new warehouses in diversified locations. Overall, the company is a supergiant and needs to follow certain remedial procedures to strengthen its market conditions. Reference List Bozarth, C. C., Handfield, R. B. (2015).Introduction to operations and supply chain management. Prentice Hall. Downey, W. S., Cochran, A. (2016). AGEC 429--AGRIBUSINESS MARKETING STRATEGIES AGEC 498ADVANCED MARKET PLANNING PROJECT SPRING 2016.Instructor. Gaskill, L. R., Van Auken, H. E., Kim, H. S. (2015). Impact of operational planning on small business retail performance.Journal of Small Business Strategy,5(1), 21-36. Hemmati, R., Hooshmand, R. A., Khodabakhshian, A. (2014). Market based transmission expansion and reactive power planning with consideration of wind and load uncertainties.Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews,29, 1-10. Howell, R., Market, N. S. (2013). Succession planning. Ilic, M., Galiana, F., Fink, L. (Eds.). (2013).Power systems restructuring: engineering and economics. Springer Science Business Media. Jain, N., Singh, S. N., Srivastava, S. C. (2013). A generalized approach for DG planning and viability analysis under market scenario.Industrial Electronics, IEEE Transactions on,60(11), 5075-5085. Jenabi, M., Fatemi Ghomi, S. M. T., Smeers, Y. (2013). Bi-level game approaches for coordination of generation and transmission expansion planning within a market environment.Power Systems, IEEE Transactions on,28(3), 2639-2650. Kerzner, H. R. (2013).Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley Sons. Kerzner, H. R. (2013).Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley Sons. Li, X. I. (2013).Environmental and economical analysis in electricity market planning and management(Doctoral dissertation, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University). Munoz, F. D., Hobbs, B. F., Ho, J. L., Kasina, S. (2014). An engineering-economic approach to transmission planning under market and regulatory uncertainties: WECC case study.Power Systems, IEEE Transactions on,29(1), 307-317. Phokha, A., Nonsrimuang, N. (2013). The effects of entrepreneurial orientation, learning orientation, market driving approach and strategic market planning capability on firm performance.Journal of International Business Economics,13(3), 187-204. Welcome to Costco Wholesale. (2016).Costco.com. Retrieved 27 May 2016, from https://www.costco.com Ziser, C. J., Dong, Z. Y., Wong, K. P. (2012). Incorporating weather uncertainty in demand forecasts for electricity market planning.International Journal of Systems Science,43(7), 1336-1346.