BEC作文话题扩展

1. Marketing
Marketing is the process of planning, designing, pricing, promoting and distributing ideas, goods and services, in order to satisfy customer needs, so as to make a profit.
2. The Main Factors Affecting the Size of a Product's Target Market
►characteristics of the human population, such as age and income levels;
►geography. For example, the demand for spicy foods is higher in southern china than in other areas;
►economic factors, such as economic growth. During a recession, firms may promote necessities rather than specialty products;
►changes in social values, such as a decline in demand for products perceived to be unhealthy.
3. The Main Steps Involved in Creating a New Product
►develop a product idea, which may be in response to changes in consumer needs or preferences;
►assess the feasibility of the product idea, which entails comparing the expected benefits with the costs of the product;
►design the product and test it with some consumers in the target market;
►distribute the product so that it is accessible to the target market, and promote the product to ensure that consumers are aware of it;
►post-audit the product to determine whether the product needs to be revised in any way.
4. Some Common Methods Used to Differentiate a Product
►unique design, in which the product produced is safer, more reliable, easier to use, or has some other advantages;
►unique packaging, which can enhance convenience or contain advertising;
►unique branding, which may enhance consumers' perception of the product's quality.
5. The Key Factors that Influence the Pricing Decision
►cost of production, so the price charged can recover costs incurred;
►inventory supply, so the price can be lowered to remove excess inventory;
►prices of competitors, so the price may be set below those of competitors to gain an advantage (penetration pricing) or above those of competitors to create an image of high quality(prestige pricing).
6. Other Pricing Decisions
►discounting, which involves deciding whether to give discounts to specific customers;
►sales prices, which entails deciding whether to put some products on sale for all customers periodically, and what the sales price should be;
►credit terms, which involves deciding whether to provide credit to large customers that buy the product in bulk, and what the credit terms should be.
1. The Objectives of Staff Appraisal
►Better clarify and define job functions and responsibilities;
►Increase staff's self-esteem and motivation to perform effectively;
►Gain new insight into staff and supervisors;
►Distribute rewards on a fair and credible basis;
►Clarify organizational goals so they can be more readily accepted.
2. Steps for Proper Performance Evaluation
►Supervisors should communicate job responsibilities to employees when they are hired. Supervisors should also communicate any changes in employee job responsibilities over time.
►When supervisors notice that employees have deficiencies, they should inform the employees of those deficiencies. Employees should be given a chance to respond to the criticism. Supervisors may also allow a short period of time for employees to correct the deficiencies. Supervisors should also communicate with employees who were evaluated favorably so that those employees recognize that their efforts are appreciated.
►Supervisors should be consistent when conducting performance evaluations. That is, two employees who have a similar deficiency should be treated equally in the evaluation process.
3. Actions for Supervisors to Take After the Appraisal
►Employees who receive a very favorable evaluation may deserve some type of recognition or even a promotion. If supervisors do not acknowledge such outstanding performance, employees may either lose their enthusiasm and reduce their effort or search for a new job.
►Employees who receive unfavorable evaluations must also be given attention. Supervisors must determine the reasons for poor performance. If the employees were unaware of their own deficiencies, the unfavorable evaluation can pinpoint the deficiencies that employees must correct. In this case, the supervisor may simply need to monitor the employees closely and ensure that the deficiencies are corrected.。