Marketing Research Processes-Case Study

Question: Describe the Marketing Research Processes? Answer: 1. Executive Summary This market research study was conducted to determine if Elegant magazine an exclusive luxury lifestyle magazine should expand its distribution region from UAE only into the entire GCC region. The research method uses a combination of qualitative in depth client interviews and quantitative research for competitor pricing and distribution numbers and reach. The results of the research study will be analyzed to answer the MDP "Should we expand our distribution to cover the entire GCC region?" for Elgant magazine. The study takes three components of the MRQ to derive interview questions. The research study explains the methodology used for the interviews, who and how the interviewees were selected. The summery of the results then is analyzed to determine whether it would be feasible for Elegant magazine to expand its distribution to cover the entire GCC region instead of the current UAE only distribution. The decision will be based on the perceived demand and projected financial gains. 2. Background Research Company name: Elegante magazine. History: Elegante magazine was founded in 2009 in Beirut Lebanon. In 2011 the publication was introduced into UAE. In November 2014 there were some management changes and an overall haul of the magazine. Nature of Business: Quarterly published Luxury lifestyle magazine, target audience are high net-worth individuals who are interested in luxury brands and items. The range covers UAE locals and expats, male and female readers between the ages of 35 to 60. The Elegante Magazine is engaged in covering the stories of celebrities, big business tycoons and youth figure of style. Location: IT Plaza, office 916, silicon oasis. Dubai. UAE. Size: 7 working full time staffs and freelancers when needed. Competitive position: Most luxury lifestyle magazine in the UAE covers the entire GCC region, Elegante focus is to only cover UAE. Target market: Elegante magazines target markets are the UAE high end businesses, segments which includes luxury automobiles, high end fashion and jewelry, 5* hotels, resorts and spas. The magazine is well popular among the youth and business tycoons. Therefore, it targets the big brands name and personalities to increase their sale and brand value. Company performance level: Elegante magazine's sales currently is underperforming and is not being profitable. Main competitors of Elegant are, The Rake, Esquires, and Simply Abu Dhabi magazines. Elegant has a low percentage of repeat clients which is the primary reason for poor financial performance. Therefore, the low performance of the business is affecting it to maintain their market share and customer base. Moreover, the tough challenges from the competitors are hampering the Elegante magazine to maintain its growth rate. In order for Elegant to improve sales and profitability they have to discover the reasons why most clients do not choose to place repeat adverts with them. COUNTRIES LUXURY GOODS (%) UAE 4.89 Oman 4.64 Saudi Arabia 5.17 Qatar 5.24 Kuwait 4.62 Bahrain 4.54 Graph: Percentage of use of luxury goods in GCC (Source: World Economic Forum) It can be understood from the above graph that Qatar is ahead of the other GCC nations in terms of use of luxury goods. Moreover, it can be assumed that in income of people of Qatar is higher than other GCC nations. On the other hand, UAE falls in third place as cost of goods can be high in the country due to which many people may be hesitating to invest for the luxury product. Apart from that, UAE is ahead of other GCC nations such as Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain. Therefore, there is great opportunity for UAE to provide luxury goods to its people so that they can increase their market cap and competitive strongly among the GCC countries. Management Decision Problem (MDP): Should we expand our distribution to cover the entire GCC region? Marketing Research Problem (MRP): To determine how attractive it is to clients if distribution expands to cover the entire GCC region. Components i. What are the benefits of the proposed expansion for clients? Decision outcome: upon completion of our research we will show the benefits offered to clients from expanding distribution to cover the GCC region. The expansion can be valuable for the magazine to reach out to large number of readers and customer circle can be increased. Moreover, the magazine can be able to place itself competitively in the magazine market in UAE and other areas. ii. Who are the clients interested in the expansion Decision outcome: upon completion of our research we will know which UAE clients see Elegant as a better value, when servicing the GCC region. The clients can be able to invest in the magazine that can improve the sale of the magazine in future and it help in generating profit margin. iii. Will there be an audience for Elegant in the new region Decision outcome: upon completion of our research we will have determined if there is a demand for luxury magazines in other regions of GCC. Therefore, it can be considered that Elegante can be able to pull the audience from the new region that can increase their value and visibility in the market. Research Methodology Research Approach The research approach can be effective for the research work so that purpose of the research can be fulfilled. The researcher can go for deductive approach as it can help the work to get accomplish in productive way. The existing theories can be used that can relate to the research paper and it can be modified as per the requirements. Therefore, inductive approach may not be as appropriate as the deductive approach (Bergh and Ketchen, 2009). On the other hand, the researcher may not have enough skills to introduce the new theories or concepts. Thus, the deductive approach can be effective in the practical employment of theories for the particular research paper. Research philosophy (Positivism) The chosen is positivism as subject of philosophy in applications of logic that help analyzing the hidden facts and information in scientific manner. Positivism tries to reject metaphysic so that details knowledge collections in enabled. Positivism is applied in the current context of the study which helps in better analysis of hidden facts and information related to the marketing research process along with consumer buying process (Bernard, 2011). However, nature of the study is time limited so interpretative and realism study is discarded as being the choice of research philosophy. Further, selection of positivism philosophy limits the researcher roles in manipulating or evaluating the data that leads to minimization of data errors as well. Research Design The research approach will be mostly be done in form of in depth interviews conducted with clients and potential clients of Elegant magazine. In addition there will be some quantitative research done to determine the demand and audience for luxury magazines. There will be a combination of exploratory and conclusive research. The clients of Elegant are high end brands and establishments, the point of contacts always are the organizations marketing managers and decision makers. The only feasible approach to our research study will be direct in depth interviews (Bryman and Bell, 2011). As the subjects are professional peers in the marketing field they would be aware projective techniques and trying to use them would come across as disrespectful and will be ineffective. As each of the clients is extremely busy with limited time and specific needs conducting a focus group would also be ineffective. A focus group would be too generalized and time inefficient for this group of professionals. A direct in depth interview will offer a clear and effective means to provide the clients with an opportunity to answer open ended questions, shedding light to complex needs and behaviors. In addition their input will be a great source of information as they would have no reason to hide or mask answers to their opinion on E legant expanding to a wider region. After all every marketer is interested in reducing their CPM (cost per thousand) and would want to be helpful to achieve lower CPM. Clients of Elegant are exclusive high end clients limited in number, catering to the crme de la crme of our society. When dealing with high end people and organizations service becomes a key component to attracting and closing the deal. In order to increase repeat clients for Elegant only in depth interviews can provide the necessary information to adopt strategies and solutions to meet their needs. As the readership of Elegant is the target audience the advertisers will be reaching out to, it becomes relevant to conduct qualitative research to determine the demand for luxury magazines in the rest of the GCC region. Our study will research the luxury consumer market in the rest of the GCC as well as Elegant's main competitors market share and pricing structure. The data on the GCC luxury market will be obtained from industry reports and the pricing structure data will be obtained from primary market research. The research errors will be limited as the qualitative data will come from sources that have vested interest in providing accurate information and the quantitative data will come from reliable secondary sources (Burns et al. 2008). The primary data for competitor information is data available readily to anyone interested in using their services and will be accurate. Exploratory Research Exploratory research was conducted in form of in depth interviews with twelve marketing managers who are the policy makers and project implementers in a two month period. These marketing managers act as gateways to the higher level stakeholders who the final decision power of approving or disapproving the placement of the adverts (Cooper and Schindler, 2010). However on most cases the high level stakeholders rely on the recommendation of their marketing manager for their decision regarding marketing expenditures. Elegant magazine is in a unique position compared to other high volume transaction firms. The current client database consists of approximately two hundred clients with around sixty of them being active clients (Elegant manager). The remaining clients have sporadically placed adverts with Elegant magazine. The advertisement placement cycle is long with Elegant as there are only four issues printed within a year. Due to this long cycle and the relatively small number of clients Elegant magazine sales team has ample time to meet with clients to strategize and follow up. During these meetings a strong and open relationship has been established with the clients, it is due to this relationship that each of the interviewees did not deem it necessary for Elegant to provide a confidentiality clause or consent form. Data sources (Primary and secondary) The study requires only primary sources of informations which helps the topic in extracting the information from the employees of the organizations. The first hand data collection however needs clarification of reliability and validity. In case of secondary data sources , data are used a widening the concept of research that also enables better study of the topic as it involves more data and description (Corbetta, 2009). Primary data includes interaction sections with operation managers who helped in gaining information as per the research objectives. Apart from that, literature sources of the desertions can be considered as output if information gained through secondary sources Primary data sampling techniques Information applications: data gained via topic will helpful in understanding the present trend of the marketing management strategy used by the various organizations. The manager of the Elegant has been chosen for the organizational success. However, any commercial applications of the data will be able avoided so that the findings can be strictly limited to academic purpose only. Respondents participation: The researcher tried to insert no external influence on pressure over the respondents for taking part in the feedback process of the research topic. Respondents with as sense on voluntary participation were encouraged to participate in the following topic (Burns et al.2008). Respondents secrecy: It was ensured that any form if mental or physical harassment was not involved with the respondents so the identity of respondents were covered as per the request for participants (Cooper and Schindler, 2010). Based on the above mentioned list of ethical consideration, the researcher tried to maintain the basic research ethics. Although the Elegant interviewer could have conducted their interview without announcing that they were doing so and the information needed could have been collected as part of their usual meetings, for ethical reasons the client was made aware their responses would become part of a research study and were offered a written confidentiality agreement and consent form. Every interviewee declined the written agreement and was content by verbally asking to remain anonymous. The strength of the relationship and the non sensitive nature of the interview were the reasons why the interviewees were comfortable and willing to share their answers with the Elegant interviewer. The assumption made by the interviewer is that the interviewee will have no motivation to disclose inaccurate information. This assumption is made due to two important and relevant facts, the existing positive relationship and the non sensitive nature of the interview subject. Another fact helping the integrity of the answ ers is the direct benefit to the client by expanding the distribution region which reduces the CPM. From the twelve interviews six were conducted with repeat clients and six with non repeating advert clients. From each group half of the clients have market presence in the GCC region while the other have only operate in the UAE. This sampling was done to cover the four possible combination of client specification. 1 repeat client operating only within UAE market 2 repeat client operating in the GCC market 3 non repeating client operating only within UAE market 4 non repeating client operating in the GCC market Elegant magazine interviewer had 10 questions to explore. The initially factual questions were used followed by opinionated ones, all the questions were open ended and probes were used when necessary. The protocol of the interviews was standardized, informal without using any recording devices. The interviewer used notes with follow up notes after the interviews. The opening and closing of all the interviews were also standardized to maintain a consistent format. In order to answer the three components of MRQ the following questions were asked. The four variations in the question were tailored for UAE only market, GCC market, repeat and non repeating clients. What are the benefits of the proposed expansion for clients? Decision outcome: upon completion of our research we will show the benefits offered to clients from expanding distribution to cover the GCC region. Who are the clients interested in the expansion Decision outcome: upon completion of our research we will know which UAE clients see Elegant as a better value, when servicing the GCC region. Have you found the fact that Elegant only distributes their magazines in UAE as a limiting factor for your marketing needs? Will there be an audience for Elegant in the new region Decision outcome: upon completion of our research we will show the benefits offered to clients from expanding distribution to cover the GCC region. This component used quantitative research. Time scale for the research Figure 1: Gantt chart (Source: created by author) Conclusion The present chapter described the various research tools of selection that can help in better analysis of the topic. With the help of this chapter, the researcher tried to align the nature of the study along with the available research techniques so that possibly the best research methodology is framed. The tools more appropriate to analyse the concepts of present marketing trend for the Elegant magazine. References Bergh, D. and Ketchen, D. J. (2009) Research methodology in Strategy and Management, 1st ed. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing Ltd Bernard, H. R. (2011) Research Methods in Anthropology: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. 5th ed. Plymouth: Alta Mira Press. Bryman, A. and Bell, E. (2011) Business Research Methodology. 3rd ed. New York: Oxford University Press. Burns, R. B., Burns, R. and Burns, R. P. (2008) Business Research Methods and Statistics Using SPSS, 3rd. ed. London: Sage Publications. Cooper, D. and Schindler, P. S. (2010) Business Research Methods, 11th ed. London: McGra-Hill. Corbetta, P. (2009) Social Research: Theory, Methods and Techniques, 4th ed. London: Sage Publications

Cookies vs. Doughnuts Essay Example For Students

Cookies vs. Doughnuts Essay Cookies and doughnuts are both yummy treats, but they also have their advantages and disadvantages. Cookies for instance can be produces with relative ease in any kitchen using flour, water, sugar and eggs. Doughnuts on the other hand are not usually made at home, hence all of the doughnut shops. This is one disadvantage to doughnuts; they are relatively difficult to produce. Doughnuts are made from the same ingredients as cookies, but they also have east in them to give them a more beadlike quality than unleavened cookies. Cookies are traditionally made by combining the ingredients listed and adding something like chocolate or nuts. The cookies are then baked at around 375 degrees for about eight minutes or until they are golden brown. They are then allowed to cool and then they are served. Doughnuts are not as simple as coolies. The dough must be prepared using flour, water, eggs, and then another ingredient; yeast, to add the tiny air pockets that make the dough rise and to make them so edible. After the dough has risen, it can be shaped into the familiar ring shape either by rolling it into snake-like portions or, more commonly, spreading the dough thickly over a flat surface using a device not unlike a cookie cutter. The popular doughnut shop, Krispy Kreme ÂÂ ® has developed a doughnut extrusion process that results in their distinctive rosette shape with curved vertical ridges on the sides. After the dough is shaped, it is cooked using hot oil or fat. This oil is at a much higher temperature than that used to bake cookies. The dough is then cooked to produce a golden-brown crust on the outside while still maintaining a soft core. Sugar may then be applied. This consists of little more than putting sugar and flavoring on the outside of the doughnut in the form of icing, powered sugar, or a glaze which is which is a shell of sugar coating the doughnut. Cake doughnuts are also produced this way using fewer eggs to give them a less airy, more cake-like texture. Adding fruit or nuts to the dough before cooking can change this process, or jelly or custard may be added after cooking through injection. As plainly illustrated, both cookies and doughnuts are sweet indulgences, using familiar flavoring and additives. They also have striking differences such as the cooling methods, and accepted eating times. For instance, people dont think twice about eating doughnuts for breakfast, but no one would feed their children cookies at the same time. After dinner, many people think of cookies and milk as an acceptable dessert, but not doughnuts. While the same in many respects, cookies and doughnuts still maintain a myriad of differences the keep them in their own delicious groups.

Operation Strategy of Coca Cola free essay sample

Coca Cola manufactures More than 21 different brands of beverages from bottled water to a good old coke, the most popular being coke. The Coca cola’s target market is basically everyone. However, their biggest focus are people who fall between he age group of 18-25 that accounts for 40% of the total age segment. In addition, they manufacture beverage for children like Bibo to beverages for older people like coke and soda water. Coca cola tries to satisfy anyone and everyone with the products they manufacture. Moreover, due to the vast target market, it is evident that they need a very large work force. At the end of the company’s fiscal year 2011, coca cola companies total employees was 149 200. On average the turnover for in 2010 the turnover for 2010 was $35 119 Billion according to the annual review. Not Surprising that Coca cola is sold in more than 200 countries in the world. Although, Coca cola is not manufactured in all the countries in the world, it is sold almost everywhere. We will write a custom essay sample on Operation Strategy of Coca Cola or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Coca cola’s ability to anticipate the needs of customers are how they are able to create value for their customers. In addition, the company tries to work closely with chain retailers and small retailers to help them reduces costs and improve sales.As with each successful company, there needs to be some sort of structure. Coca cola’s process flow for bottling coke is as follows; 1. Ingredients are delivered to the factory 2. New and old bottles are sort into the various sizes 3. The bottles are then washed in a special detergent 4. Afterwards, the bottles are inspected, visually to ensure they are clean 5. All the cracked and chipped bottles are removed and destroyed 6. Each bottle is then electronically inspected to ensure they meet the standard 7. All faulty , cracked, chipped or dirty bottles are removed and destroyed 8.Then the mixing and blending of the syrup takes place 9. Syrup is the mixed with concentrate 10. And then with carbonated water 11. The bottles are then filled with the liquid 12. And are then capped 13. Bottles are only then labeled 14. After the bottles have been labeled, they are coded 15. The final inspection of the products takes place before packaging 16. Then the bottles are packaged according to the size and the bottle 17. After which the products are sent to the warehouse 18. Stock is rotated to ensure freshness 19. The products are then delivered to retailers 20. Lastly, products are sold to consumers. Component 1: Process Flow We have identified that Coca Cola makes of a Continuous Process flow which allows them to produce more standardized products in a high volume. Below we will graph the process flow of the Coca Cola company and then elaborate more on the components which makes up their processes. Component 2: Operations Strategy According to Slack and Lewis, Operations strategy is the total pattern of decisions which shape the long-term capabilities of any type of operations and their contribution to the overall strategy, through the reconciliation of market requirements with operations resources.With the given definition of operations strategy we will also identify the competitive priorities of the Coca Cola company and how it relates to the above mentioned definition. Competitive priorities of an organisation includes a) low cost, b) high quality, c) fast delivery, d) flexibility and e) service. Operations strategy also depend on order qualifiers and winners, which relates to requirements for success in the market place. The above mentioned priorities are not always the same for every company. Coca Cola may have different customer requirements then the next company. Therefore we have spoken to some customers who are buyers of the Coca Cola company as well as interviews with employees to see whether their opinion of customer requirements relates to what the actual customer wants. Coca Cola’s view on customer requirements: Customers and their requirements from the Coca cola company: Based on the research we have done regarding the customers requirements for the Coca Cola company we have find that they are very specific in what they require from the company.When we talk about customers of Coca Cola we don’t just talk about the customer that walks into the retail shop and buy a few quantities of the product. We are more focused on the retailers, the restaurants and the small businesses that buy this product in bulk. So when we are focusing on the customer requirements we look into what it is that they expect from the Coca Cola company. As our findings have showed , these customers are always seeking ways to reduce costs, improve/increase sales as well as provide better quality and more diverse products to the consumers who in the ends decide whether the product meets their needs or not. Coca Cola works together with their customers trying to meet their anticipating demands and interests and to proactively deliver solutions to their businesses. As above stated, one can see that the customers (small business, restaurants and retailers) of the Coca Cola company are demanding in what they want as they also have consumers to satisfy. If the customers demands are not met then the consumer Component 3: Operational Capabilities Location Location is the geographical area where a given business is situated at . Depending on the location, the business may either be successful or unsuccessful.The business is situated in Parow, 57 Industria, Ring Road and the reason for chosen this specific Coca Cola manufacturer as it is close enough for us for interview purposes. I will now discuss the reasons for having the manufacturing business in such an area and whether the location is suitable enough for its given operations. Peninsula Beverages is a franchise Manufacturing company that operates under the name of Coca Cola. As previously stated, they are situated in Parow Industria where the manufacturing takes place.

Every AP Biology Practice Test Available Free and Official

Every AP Biology Practice Test Available Free and Official SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Practice tests can help you get familiar with the structure of the AP Biology examand feel more comfortable with the types of questions you'll be expected to answer on test day. Studying with practice tests can also give you insight into the specific struggles you might have with the material as presented on the AP test. You can then focus your studying appropriately to tackle these problems. In this article, I'll list all the practice tests for AP Biology that you can find online and give you a few tips on how to use them effectively as study aids for both the AP test and any in-class tests you have throughout the school year. Official AP Biology PracticeExams Official practice tests provide the best preparation for the AP test.You can be sure that the questions are accurate representations of what you'll see on the final exam. Unfortunately, I could only find one official practice test for the new version of the AP Biology test since the format and content changed so recently (2012).However, this practice test also has other information that makes it more helpful. It tells you how to calculate your score and includes detailed answer explanations for each question at the end. Official Practice Test #1 Don't start your practice with this test. It's the most accurate preparation you'll have forthe real AP test, so you should save it for towards the end of your second semester when you feel confident that you've mastered the material. It's better to begin studying with the unofficial tests in the next section as a warm-up! You can also access official free-response questions from 2013, 2014, and 2015 on the College Board website. Free Response Questions The free-response section of the AP Biology test is usually considered to be the most difficult part, so it’s good to have a little extra practice with these even if you’re not answering them in the context of a full practice test. In addition to these resources, all AP teachers have access to a bunch of free official practice AP tests online. You can ask your teacher if he or she will print a couple out for you to use in your studying. It might take more than one apple to get those extra practice tests out of your teacher, but ultimately everyone has a price. Want to get a perfect 5 on your AP exam and an A in class? We can help. PrepScholar Tutors is the world's best tutoring service. We combine world-class expert tutors with our proprietary teaching techniques. Our students have gotten A's on thousands of classes, perfect 5's on AP tests, and ludicrously high SAT Subject Test scores. Whether you need help with science, math, English, social science, or more, we've got you covered. Get better grades today with PrepScholar Tutors. UnofficialAP Biology PracticeExams There are many unofficial AP Biology practice tests out there that you can use to help review the material.There’s nothing wrong with using these tests to get more practice, but try not to rely on them exclusively because they are not always totally accurate representations of the real AP Biology exam.Some are aligned with the format of the pre-2012 exam, and some are just multiple-choice tests of varying lengths with no free response questions. Because the AP Biology exam has been revised, you'll get a more accurate estimate of how well you're doing if you use recent practice tests that are aligned with the new test's format. Before 2012, the AP Biology testhad 100 multiple-choice questions and four free-response questions rather than the current 63 multiple-choice questions, six grid-in questions, six short free-response questions, and two long free-response questions. The old test was also more memorization-based. On the current AP Biology exam, you'll have to answer a lot of questions that involve analyzing experimental data using your background knowledge of biology. You won't see questions that just ask you to do something like identify parts of a process in a diagram. A couple of these unofficial tests do have the same format as the current exam, including the Barron's practice test and all the tests in the "subscription needed" section. You should save these for later on in your second semester when you want to get a more accurate assessment of your readiness for the final exam (and then follow them up with the official practice test in the previous section if you feel confident that you've fixed your problem areas!). Free AP Biology Practice Tests Barron’s Practice Test Barron’s offers a free practice test online that has the same format as the current AP test. You can take it in timed or untimed (â€Å"practice†) mode. If you use practice mode, you can see answer explanations as you go along. The multiple-choice section has automated scoring, but you’ll have to self-score your free-response answers (guidelines are provided). My Max Score Practice Test This is an old-format test that includes 100 multiple choice questions and four free-response questions. It also has detailed answer explanations for all questions. Varsity Tutors Diagnostic Tests This is a list of ten multiple-choice diagnostic tests rated by difficulty level. Tests 4-10 have the same number of questions as the real multiple-choice section. Sorry, there are no free-response questions on this site. Kaplan Practice Tests There are a few unit-specific quizzes here along with two longer practice tests that have almost as many questions as the multiple-choice section on the real exam (58 and 62 as opposed to 63 + 6 grid-ins). There are no free-response questions. Learning Express 120-Question and 100-Question Practice Tests These are a couple more old-format multiple-choice tests with answers included at the end. If you just want to test yourself on the basic information in the course, these could be useful. Subscription Needed Shmoop Practice Tests (free trial available, $24.68 a month for subscription) A subscription to Shmoop will get you access to a diagnostic test plus five full AP Biology practice tests (including both multiple-choice and free-response questions, although these are of course unofficial). Shmoop tries a little too hard to relate to kids with their writing style, but if you're not put off by that, it might be a good resource for you. BenchPrep Practice Tests (with subscription that costs $30 a month) Here, you’ll get access to two full practice tests plus a ton of lessons. Practice Tests inReview Books You might also decide to order a review book to get access to more practice tests. You'll find some good resources in the books listed in my article on the best AP Biology books for 2016. Make sure you have some nice fresh erasers cuz your pencils are in for a wild ride across the treacherous terrain of the AP Biology curriculum. Wooohooooo! How to Use AP Biology Practice Tests This section is full of all the advice you need to follow to use AP Biology practice tests effectively during both your first and second semesters in the class. First Semester: Using Practice Tests for Your Class Although it might not make sense to take full practice tests yet, you can still use the materials in this article as resources for your studying.Look for free-response questions that relate to what you’ve learned so far so that you can start to get familiar with their format and expectations. There are also plenty of sites that have quizzes that touch on specific units in the AP Biology curriculum.These include Learnerator, Varsity Tutors (which I mention above for diagnostic tests, but they also have subject-by-subject quizzes), and Quizlet.These won’t be official questions, but they will help prepare you for in-class assessments and serve as a solid introduction to the types of questions you might be asked on the AP test.You should also check out my complete AP Biology review guide for more advice on how you can use online resources to study specific units of the course. Second Semester: Preparing for the AP Test By this time, you should be familiar with most of the material that you’ll see on the test.This means you can start using full practice tests to judge how you’ll score on the AP test and where your weaknesses lie.Remember to time yourself accurately when you take practice tests!Each time you take and score a practice test, you should also do an evaluation of your mistakes that will inform your studying going forward.Mistakes come in a few different forms, and things can be even more complex on the AP Biology test because there are technically four types of questions. Focus on the multiple-choice section first, including the grid-ins.Notice whether your mistakes tend to happen on straightforward questions where you just didn’t have the content knowledge or on questions that require deeper analysis.Were there specific content areas where you missed a significant number of questions?Keep track of this so that you can go back into your notes and review the appropriate unit(s).These are easy mistakes to fix. Did you have trouble interpreting and analyzing scenarios on the test even though you knew the background information?The remedy for this is more practice. There are many sites with AP Bio practice questions available.This book of practice questions is also useful because the questions faithfully replicate the new design of the test. It’s possible that your problem lies outside the specifics of the questions and more in the format of the test.Did you run out of time? Make a ton of careless mistakes?The solution to this is greater awareness of your pacing and more practice questions. Careless mistakes can be avoided by greater awareness of your surroundings. Also, how did someone even fit that big of a gum wad in their mouth? Was a giant chewing gum in this parking lot? Should we be concerned about his current location? I have a lot of questions. Grid-ins are weird, so you may have had trouble on them if you’re not big on the math aspect of biology.Try to find similar problems in your textbook, review book, or online so that you can practice your skills.The more math-oriented biology questions you do over time, the more likely it is that the questions on the test will be aligned with what you’ve already seen. After taking your multiple-choice mistakes into account, you can move onto the free response section.Notice which questions gave you the most trouble and why.Did you forget the information you needed, or were you confused about what the question was asking or how to analyze a diagram?Take these findings and apply them to your future practice! Essential AP Biology Practice Testing Tips Follow these four tips to be sure to get the most out of your AP Biology practice tests. #1: Replicate Realistic Test Conditions It’s always important to be faithful to the rules of the real test when you take practice tests so that your scores accurately reflect your potential.That means an hour and thirty minutes for each section.This is the only way to judge whether time is going to be an issue for you.You should also print out the test so that you take it in the right format. Have a calculator on hand as well.If you’re really dedicated, you can even have someone serve as your mock proctor. #2: Don’t Panic if You’re Not Familiar With Scenarios You See on the Test Even if you’ve gone over every in-class lab that you had to do for AP Biology, you will still run into examples you haven’t seen before.It’s important not to psych yourself out when this happens.Focus on the diagrams and what you can learn from them, and see if you can think of a related experiment that will clue you into what they mean.Use your common sense; many questions will depend more heavily on your ability to analyze the situation at hand than on your memorization talent. #3: Give Yourself Plenty of Time for the Grid-Ins The so-called multiple-choice section also includes six grid-in questions.These questions are at the end of the section, and they will probably take you longer to solve than most multiple-choice questions.Try not to spend more than a minute on each multiple-choice question.If you find that you’re taking too much time, you should move on and come back to it later! #4: Spend 5-10 Minutes Reading the Free-Response Questions Before You Start Writing It’s a smart idea to start with the free-response questions that you know you can answer quickly and accurately. Leading with these questions will boost your confidence and help you avoid problems with time.Use the short reading period to look over all eight free-response questions and see which ones will be easiest for you to tackle. For example, I would definitely answer a question about snails first. I love snails. My pet snail died not too long ago, and I'm scared to get another one because I don't want to feel that pain again. Want to get a perfect 5 on your AP exam and an A in class? We can help. PrepScholar Tutors is the world's best tutoring service. We combine world-class expert tutors with our proprietary teaching techniques. Our students have gotten A's on thousands of classes, perfect 5's on AP tests, and ludicrously high SAT Subject Test scores. Whether you need help with science, math, English, social science, or more, we've got you covered. Get better grades today with PrepScholar Tutors. Conclusion You should take plenty of practice tests as part of your studying for AP Biology.You can’t expect pure memorization to save you on questions that ask you to analyze scenarios you’ve never seen before. Practice questions are the key to improvement! You can use a mixture of official and unofficial tests to practice. Just be wary of major differences in your scores from test to test so that you can accurately assess your readiness for the final.You can even use these tests throughout the year to practice for specific units of the course.If you do enough serious practice, the real AP test will be a piece of cake (well, maybe not, but it will be much less traumatizing). What's Next? Check out my detailed guide to the AP Biology Exam for more information about what's on this test and how you can prepare for it. Are you taking both AP tests and SAT Subject Tests? Find out which kind of test is more important and what the major differences are between the two. Many students take AP classes in the hopes of earning credit for college coursework in high school. Learn more about how AP credit works in college. Want to improve your SAT score by 240 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Mkt mgt part 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Mkt mgt part 2 - Essay Example This paper discusses the important facets which are required within the understanding of the final deliverable – the magazine itself (McCalley 1992). The segmentation, targeting and positioning of the product is quintessential towards achieving a clear cut understanding as to what exactly the newspaper is looking forward to in the coming times. In short, there has been an endeavor to balance the strengths of the magazine alongside its grey areas so that the company benefits from the same in the long term scheme of things. The market that is chosen for this product is that of United States of America. The market is comprised of individuals who hail from the middle class segment of the society. This segment of the society basically takes into consideration those people who earn their livelihood through day jobs and hence feed their families in a very hand to mouth approach. They buy newspapers in order to remain abreast of the world situations and events. Similarly, they will be receiving this magazine without any extra cost to their pocket. The market is segmented in such a way that it will cater to the desires of the audience and hence would take care of the needs and wishes of the segment that is being spoken about here. More than anything else, the segmentation is based on the principle of bringing about a major change within the lives of the youngsters by propagating a message of love, peace and understanding that will be inculcated through this new magazine that is a part of the newspaper which t heir parents have been buying for a long period of time now. Therefore the market would be segmented in such a manner that it brings about a proper divide amongst the masses and allocates the exact individuals who would be targeted with this magazine. The aim of the magazine is to make sure that the people remain in line with their understandings of a

Research Paper for Ethics Criminal Justice Class

For Ethics Criminal Justice Class - Research Paper Example â€Å"According to Bloxham & Kushner (2005), it was very unethical for the commanders to follow the laws and orders of the Third Reich during the Holocaust.† The following quote show the hatred developed by most Germans against the Jews â€Å"A Jew is for me an object of disgust. I feel like vomiting when I see one. Christ could not possibly have been a Jew. It is not necessary to prove that scientifically – it is a fact.  I do not need to prove this with  science  or scholarship. It is so!† The Third Reich was the official Nazi designation for the regime ruling Germany from January 1933 to may 1945 under the leadership of Adolf Hitler. This Third Reich was a presumed successor of the medieval and early modern Holy Roman Empire of 800 to 1806, which was the First Reich, while the German empire from 1871 to 1918 formed the Second Reich. The Third Reich operated on laws and orders that were discriminatory to people who were of different races from the Germans, especially the Jews and the polish. As such, the obedience by their commanders of these laws and regulations to continually persecute and exterminate the Jews and polish in German concentration camps was very unethical. These laws and orders as followed by the Third Reich were extremely immoral and unethical. Furthermore, they were particularly against the Jewish people. â€Å"Bergen (2003) argues that their defense during the Nuremberg trials was utterly wrong and unsuccessful, as law or no law; it is unethical an d inhumane to persecute and execute others just to follow orders†. The word Holocaust originates from the Greeks, comprising a combination of two Greek words, â€Å"holos† which means whole, and â€Å"kaustos† which means burned. The Greek used this word historically to refer to or describe a sacrificial offering that they offered burned on an altar. However, this term acquired a new and horrendous meaning during the Nazi regime and

Adoption Of ICT In The Tourism And Hospitality Industry Essay Example for Free

Adoption Of ICT In The Tourism And Hospitality Industry Essay Abstract Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) have revolutionised the travel industry in the last decade. eTourism reflects the digitalisation of all processes and value chains in the tourism, travel, hospitality and catering industries. It emerges as a term describing the entire range of applications of ICTs on tourism and the implications for the tourism value chain. Major opportunities and challenges have emerged and need to be addressed by all industry players. However, the level of eTourism developments varies between regions, countries and continents. The tourism sector is experiencing an acceptance of ecommerce to the extend that the whole industry structure is changing .The web is used not only for information gathering but also for ordering services .A new type of user is emerging one who acts as his or her own travel agent and build a personalised travel package .This research focuses on evaluating the current status of Meikles Hotel Zimbabwe in order to study the adoption of ecommerce applications on the hospitality sector. 1. Introduction Mathieson and Wall (1982) created a good working definition of tourism as the temporary movement of people to destinations outside their normal places of work and residence, the activities undertaken during their stay in those destinations, and the facilities created to cater to their needs. The tourism industry requires a diverse range of information and lends itself well to the support offered by developing multimedia, communication technologies and information systems .The internet provides an extra ordinary connectivity and the ability to communicate efficiently and effectively directly with customers at a reasonable cost .Its potential to generate more revenue is not questionable but is acknowledged as something the tourism industry in developing countries needs. According to the World Tourism Organization 2002, Tourism in many developing and least developed countries is the most viable and sustainable economic development option, and in some countries, the main source of foreig n exchange earnings. Implications of the Internet and other growing interactive multimedia platforms for tourism promotion are far reaching and alter the structure of the industry. This research aimed to explore the impact of ICTs and the  Internet in particular for the future competitiveness of the tourism and hospitality industry. This paper explores the current state of eTourism development and examines the use of the Internet in the sector. The rapid development and commercialization of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for the travel and tourism industry has prompted hotels and other enterprises in this sector to increasingly adopt these technologies. This is based on the expectation that the new ICT based technologies and processes would lead to an improvement in their operating efficiencies and customer service levels. Buhalis, D. (2003: 77). The ICT based products and processes help the hotels to enhance the operating efficiency, improve the service experience as well as provide a means to access markets on a global basis. Brussels, 2005. Says ‘The use of ICTs is a relevant opportunity for growing and strengthening a local tourism industry, and for the development of destinations economies overall. Specifically ICTs have the potential to increase destination incomes for financing economic and social development’. While ICTs were used in the hotel industry from the late seventies in the f orm of Computerized Reservation systems and Global distribution systems, it was only in the 90s that the ICTs began to make a difference in the hospitality sector. Nowadays the internet has turned into an informative channel providing both individuals and organisations with different types of information making them aware of new tourism and old travel opportunities and offers enabling them to compare the offers, have online purchases and provide feedback. It has also turned into a source for travel agencies and organisations to promote their services and products to their potential customers. As the internet is being used worldwide it was important for Meikles hotel to implement hence the creation of its web site www.meikles.com Meikles Hotel Meikles Hotel is situated in the heart of Harare and overlooks the historic landmark and colourful flower gardens of Africa Unity Square. According to Experience Zimbabwe, Meikles is consistently voted as one of the best hotels in Zimbabwe, Meikles Hotel is a proud member of The Leading Hotels of the World, a prestigious hospitality organisation which represents some of the worlds most acclaimed hotels, spas and resorts. Established in 1928, the organisation exists to meet the needs of discerning travellers and for a  hotel to be recognised by this body, it needs to exceed every expectation and achieve exacting standards of excellence. Executive chairman Mr Onias Makamba says ‘Meikles Hotel has won the prestigious Association of Zimbabwean Travel Agents (AZTA) award for Best City Hotel in Zimbabwe for an astonishing 15 consecutive years’. This award is voted on by AZTA members and is based on feedback given to travel agents by their many clients across the world. Probl em Definition There have been a lot of changes in the rapid growing world of technology. Changes in the technological world have made organizations to change the way they conduct their day to day business in order to provide satisfactory services delivery. Effective delivery of service is defined by Martin (2004) as providing products and services that bring utility to users and customers. E-tourism is offering significant benefits for organizations that integrate the technology into their organizational information systems. This versatile technology improves information quality and accessibility, increases operational efficiency (service delivery) and enhances effective management (Maamar, 2006). Despite these highly perceived benefits of e-tourism its adoption has been relatively slow in Zimbabwe. Currently, there are no studies which have been carried out in Zimbabwe to identify the benefits and challenges of adopting ICT in the tourism and hospitality industry. Hence it is the ideal time to ca rry out an investigation on the adoption of ICT in the tourism and hospitality industry. Objectives The key objective of this research has been to examine the Adoption of ICT in the tourism industry mainly looking at Meikles Hotel in Zimbabwe .In particular the research examines the level of ICT diffusion in tourism enterprises. Another objective is to Identify the factors affecting E-tourism in Zimbabwe The paper also assesses how eTourism concepts and techniques can contribute towards the improvement of the Zimbabwe tourism competitiveness. RESEARCH QUESTIONS I. At what rate is ICT being adopted in the tourism and hospitality industry in Zimbabwe? II. What factors are encouraging or discouraging the adoption of ICT in the tourism and hospitality industry of Zimbabwe. 2. Literature  review Literature review is a â€Å"systematic, explicit and reproducible method for identifying, evaluating and interpreting the existing body of recorded work produced by other scholars† (Khan, 2008, p.41). The literature review focuses on the impacts of ICTs on tourism and the eCommerce developments in Zimbabwe. It also includes a brief section on Tourism in Zimbabwe which provides the contextual environment that determines the requirements for eTourism in the country. 2.1 ICT Developments and eCommerce in Zimbabwe There are various factors that have affected the adoption of ecommerce in Zimbabwe, these include : Software development tools are still evolving .It is difficult to integrate Internet and e-commerce software with some existing (especially legacy) applications and databases .Special web servers are needed in addition to the network servers, which add to the cost of ecommerce. The Standard June 5, 2011 says the adoption of the multiple currency system in 2009 presented a strong opportunity for the growth of e-commerce in Zimbabwe. It said Zimbabwe now had a chance to catch up with the rest of the world if the financial and retail sectors took the lead. Internet accessibility is still expensive and or inconvenient .Powertel Communications, a government owned internet provider, is one of the 12 POTRAZ licensed Internet Access Providers in Zimbabwe. In June 2014 Powertel mobile broadband price were $50/month .The price of the modem $45.Every Zimbabwean cannot afford these prices. The Fin ancial Gazette 3 Oct 2013 states Despite the growth of the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector in the country, which has seen internet penetration rising from five to 47 percent in the past five years, the cost of accessing the internet still remains high. The improved internet penetration is largely credited to the ICT Strategic Plan crafted by the then ministry of ICT under Nelson Chamisa. Customers’ attitudes towards online shopping remain skeptical, mainly because of worries about product quality, product delivery, and security and privacy issues (Ghazali et al., 2006; Scott Scott, 2008). People do not yet  sufficiently trust paperless, faceless transactions .Payment security and privacy concerns are one of the major non technological barriers that prevent consumers from completing transactions online Lack of trust in e-commerce and in unknown sellers hinders buying. Online fraud is also increasing. Some customers like to feel and touch products. They are afraid that if they purchase without actually touching the products they might not get exactly what they ordered. Also, customers are resistant to the change from shopping at a brick-and-mortar store to a virtual store. The lack of stand ­ards in technology and its applications eventually increases the cost of system integration for effective and efficient management in distribution, operation and communication worldwide. Large hospitality corporations have invested to transform their systems into a total netware system; however, small and medium-sized tourism enterprises (SMEs) struggle to integrate the systems due to a shortage of financial sources Factors Determining the Adoption of ICTs In Zimbabwean Hotels There are a number of factors that affect the adoption of ICT in hotels these will be discussed below. In the hotel industry, the geographic location of a hotel has a major impact on its operations and profitability. The geographical location of a hotel would greatly determine the profile of its visitors, the size of its market and the level of competition that it has to face. A hotel will therefore be more inclined to adopt ICTs if it expects the ICT based facilities to either provide greater competitive advantage or to blunt the advantage enjoyed by its competitors considering the characteristics of its customer profile, its market size and the intensity of competition that it has to face. Thus based on the profile of a hotel’s visitors, the size of the market, or the intensity of competition, hotels may differ in their levels of ICT adoption propensity. The market size, in terms of the number of tourists who visit the location, will also be a significant factor that affects ICT adoption , since hotels  in smaller underdeveloped destinations may need to use the internet and other ICT based technologies to a greater degree to reach out to the global population than hotels located in developed destinations. According to Bajaj and Nag (2005) a range of advanced ICT systems such as Decision Support System (DSS) can be applied to gain substantial benefits on practical levels not only by large organisations, but also by small and medium-sized business organisations as well. Bajaj and Nag (2005) argue that DSS integration by small and medium-sized organisations can assist management by generating a set of alternative solution options to management problems of various levels complexities The competition level among the hotels in a location, can also influence the adoption of ICTs. The general occupancy rate in the location is an indicator of the competitive intensity among the hotels in a location. High levels of occupancy rate at a location imply that the competition is low, and the hotels can expect to get their rooms filled with relative ease while low levels of occupancy point towards higher levels of competition to attract customers between the hotels in the location. High levels of competition may prompt the hotels to aggressively use ICT based technologies both for attracting customers as well as to increase the efficiency of its operations. The size of the hotel has an important effect on ICT adoption. Effective adoption of several ICT technologies requires a substantial investment of resources. Lack of resources may affect the inclination of small hotels to adopt costly ICTs and therefore large hotels can be expected to be more inclined to ICTs. Further the risky nature of investing in new technologies may prompt small hotels to wait till the technology has stabilized before investing in it. Another aspect of the hotel size that can influence adoption of ICTs is the inclination to change within the organization. Large hotels have been found to be more resistant to change than small firms. This fact tends to suggest that large hotels are less inclined to adopt ICTs than small hotels as long as the investment required is not a consideration. The scope of activities that the hotel is engaged in can also influence adoption of ICTs. Since ICTs enable an effective integration of activities of an organization, hotels with varied lines of activities would find more use in the adoption of ICTs than hotels with a relatively lesser span of activities. 2.2 Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the Tourism sector The internet has become a key application in the tourism industry. Tourism providers have been using the internet to communicate, distribute and market their products to potential customers worldwide in a cost- and time-efficient way. In fact, the individual company website had become the most important platform for e-commerce, followed by electronic markets. The main focus of e-business processes in the tourism industry has been on customer facing activities and services, i.e. primarily e-marketing and e-sales. Online booking and reservation services were widely accepted among consumers and business travell ers already in 2005. Similarly, online purchasing had become a relatively well-used application in the tourism sector. Parsons and Oja (2013) mention online reservations systems as one of the greatest impacts of ICT on tourism and hospitality sector. Tourism has closely been connected to progress of ICTs for over 30 years. The establishments of the Computer Reservation Systems (CRSs) in the 1970s, Global Distribution Systems (GDSs) in the late 1980s and the Internet in the late 1990s have transformed operational and strate ­gic practices dramatically in tourism .The tourism indus ­try at first focused on utilizing computerized systems (e.g., CRS, GDS) to increase efficiency in processing of internal information and managing distribution. Nowadays, the Internet and ICTs are relevant on all operative, structural, strategic and marketing levels to facilitate global interaction among suppliers, intermediaries and consumers around the world. In this section, we will provide the concepts and definitions of the key terms related to the Internet and ICTs. 2.2.1 Electronic tourism (e-tourism) It is the application of ICTs on the tourism industry (Buhalis, 2003). Buhalis (2003) suggests that e-tourism reflects the digitisation of all processes and value chains in the tourism, travel, hospitality and catering industries. At the tactical level, it includes e-com ­merce and applies ICTs for maximising the efficiency and effectiveness of the tourism  organi ­sation. At the strategic level, e-tourism revolutionises all business processes, the entire value chain as well as the strategic relationships of tourism organisations with all their stakeholders. E-tourism determines the competitiveness of the organisation by taking advantage of intranets for reorganising internal processes, extranets for developing transactions with trusted partners and the Internet for interacting with all its stakeholders and customers. The e-tourism concept includes all business functions (i.e., e-commerce, e-marketing, e-finance and e-accounting, eHRM, e-procurement, e-production) as well as e-strategy, e-planning and e-management for all sectors of the tourism industry, including tourism, travel, transport, leisure, hospitality, principals, intermediaries and public sector organisations. Hence, e-tourism bundles together three distinctive disciplines: business management, information systems and management, and tourism. II.2.2 Computer reservation system (CRS) The 1989 CRS Regulation51 defined a computerized reservation system as a system for reserving and booking seats on commercial flights electronically, as well as storage and retrieval of itineraries. Several airlines own and market such systems, which are used by travel agents. A few include: Sabre (produced by American Airlines), Amadeus, and Worldspan. It is a database which enables a tourism organisation to manage its inventory and make it accessible to its partners. Principals utilise CRSs to manage their inventory and distribute their capacity as well as to manage the drastic expansion of global tourism. CRSs often charge competitive commission rates while enabling flexible pricing and capacity alterations, to adjust supply to demand fluctuations. Airlines pioneered this technology, although hotel chains and tour operators followed by developing centralised reservation systems. CRSs can be characterised as the â€Å"circulation system† of the tourism product. II.2.3 Global distribution systems (GDSs) The business dictionary defines a global distribution system as a worldwide computerized reservation network used as a single point of access for reserving airline seats, hotel rooms, rental cars, and other travel related  items by travel agents, online reservation sites, and large corporations. The premier global distribution systems are Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre, and Worldspan. They are owned and operated as joint ventures by major airlines, car rental companies, and hotel groups. Also called automated reservation system (ARS) or computerized reservation system (CRS).Since the mid 1980s, airline CRSs developed into GDSs by gradually expanding their geographical coverage as well as by integrating both horizontally, with other airline systems, and vertically by incorporating the entire range of principals, such as accommodation, car rentals, train and ferry ticketing, entertainment and other provisions. In the early 1990s, GDSs emerged as the major driver of ICTs, as well as the back bone of the tourism industry and the single most important facilitator of ICTs globalisation (Sheldon, 1993). In essence, GDSs matured from their original development as airline CRSs to travel supermar ­kets. Since the late 1990s GDSs have emerged as business in their own right, specialising in travel distribution. 2.2.4 Intermediaries Intermediaries (brokers) play an important role in commerce by providing value-added activities and services to buyers and sellers. The most well-known intermediaries in the physical world are wholesalers and retailers. Traditionally, intermediaries of the travel industry have been outbound and inbound travel agencies and tour operators. However, the Internet restructured the entire touristic value chain, forcing the existing intermediaries to take up the new medium and to develop corresponding business models. 2.2.5 e-Travel agencies ICTs are irreplaceable tools for travel agencies as they provide information and reservation facilities and support the intermediation between consumers and principals. Andreas Papatheodorou – (2006) Travel agencies operate various reservation systems, which mainly enable them to check availability and make reservations for tourism products. Until recently GDSs have been critical for business travel agencies to access information and make reservations on scheduled airlines, hotel chains, car rentals and a variety of ancillary services. GDSs help construct complicated itineraries, while  they provide up-to-date schedules, prices and availability information, as well as an effective reservation method. In addition, they offered internal management modules integrating the â€Å"back office† (accounting, commission monitor, personnel) and â€Å"front office† (customers’ history, itinerary construction, ticketing and communication with suppliers). Multiple tr avel agencies in particular experience more benefits by achieving better coordination and control between their remote branches and headquarters. Transactions can provide invaluable data for financial and operational control as well as for marketing research, which can analyze the market fluc ­tuations and improve tactical decisions Hotels use ICTs in order to improve their operations, manage their inventory and maximise their profitability. Their systems facilitate both in-house management and distribution through electronic media. ‘Property management systems (PMSs)’ coordinate front office, sales, planning and operational functions by administrating reservations and managing the hotel inventory. Moreover, PMSs integrate the â€Å"back† and â€Å"front† of the house management and improve general administration functions such as accounting and finance; marketing research and planning; forecasting and yield management; payroll and personnel; and purchasing. Understandably, hotel chains gain more benefits from PMSs, as they can introduce a unified system for planning, budgeting and controlling and coordinating their properties centrally. Hotels also utilise ICTs and the Internet extensively for their distribution and marketing func ­tions. Global presence is essential in order to enable both individual customers and the travel trade to access accurate information on availability and to provide easy, efficient, inexpensive and reliable ways of making and confirming reservations. Although Central Reservation Offices (CROs) introduced central reservations in the 1970s, it was not until the expansion of airline CRSs and the recent ICT developments that forced hotels to develop hotel CRSs in order to expand their distribution, improve efficiency, facilitate control, empower yield management, reduce labour costs and enable rapid response time to both customers and management re ­quests. Following the development of hotel CRSs by most chains, the issue of interconnectivity with other CRSs and the Internet emerged.This reduces both set-up and reservation costs, whilst facilitates res ­ervations through several distribution channels 2.3 Tourism in Zimbabwe In the past, tourism contributed significantly to the GDP of Zimbabwe, and created many employment and business opportunities for locals in the 1990s. But it has faced a great decline since 2000. A number of Zimbabwean tourist attractions are marketed online by South African companies and they have created an impression to some international tourists that they are located in South Africa. E-tourism has always seemed like a no-brainer for Zimbabwe, as money can be paid direct to hotels and suppliers. But obstacles like the lack of access to communication in remote areas, uncertain electricity availability, high cost of bandwidth, the lack of integrated, real-time reservation systems and local online payment gateways have thus far stymied progress. However, with the arrival of voice and data-oriented telecommunications in some remote tourist areas, there is more access to information via websites by foreign tourists looking for a good holiday resort. In other parts of Africa, arrival o f cheaper bandwidth has lessened the barriers to communication and the world’s Online Travel Agencies like Expedia are showing a real interest in the continent. Ten years ago no-one was talking about online tourism. The tourism trade tended to focus on going to big trade events like World Tourism Markets, with brochures and doing support advertising in key markets. The travel agents tended to suggest where people went and to some extent picked the destinations. As a result, a great deal of the revenues went to large, international hotel chains and not much of the money was retained locally. According to The Zimbabwean (22 June 2011) 56% of travel globally is booked online and the rise of the Online Travel Agents has been unstoppable. These OTAs, as they are known in the trade, include Expedia, Travelocity, Lastminute.com and Bookings.com who have significant market share in Africa. Expedia has actually opened an office to focus on Africa. It goes on to say In 2005, less than 2% of tourism revenues in Africa came from online booking. In 2010, buoyed by the World Cup, that percentage rose to 5% and looks set to go to somewhere between 15-20% by 2016. The World Cup may have been a one-off boost but it accelerated the growth of online tourism in South Africa. 50% of Americans read an online review before booking internationally and that’s usually  either Trip Advisor or Facebook. (Trip Advisor is now owned by Expedia). Most internatio nal travellers have credit cards and increasingly expect to be able to book online for anything from the smallest travel lodge to the largest hotel chain. So what are the barriers? The missing piece was e-commerce. There used to be no route for doing online transactions in other countries in Africa including Zimbabwe. Online distribution by the OTAs requires a reservation system that offers real-time availability. OTAs won’t do business with you unless you have that. In Zimbabwe there are few tourist resorts offering e-commerce reservation and booking services. Shearwater Adventures in Victoria Falls offer online booking and payment services, which have attracted a large number of tourists over the years. The second missing piece was the ability and tools to do online marketing. The companies needed marketing skills, especially with social media. Today’s tourist wants to hear from other travellers (through Facebook and Trip Advisor) and are not that interested in what the hotel has to say. For example, hotel chains Africa Sun and Cresta Hotels have invested in websites and Facebook groups where reviews are easily accessible to prospective tourists. Now that the data oriented communication and cheaper bandwidth is slowly becoming available throughout the country, telcos and ISPs need to focus specifically on those industry sectors that are most likely to make the online transition fastest. It must be possible in the near future for a herita ge site in Binga to be marketed online to the world and attract visitors. 3. Research Methodology To fulfil the objectives of this research a number of methods were used. Both primary and secondary data were therefore essential. Given the dynamic nature of the subject area, multiple primary research approaches were adopted, including both qualitative and quantitative methods (Phillip, 1998). Bryman (1998) explains that the two methods are complementary rather than competing, especially for exploratory research. The researcher made use of the internet and some library books to carry out the research and establish the solutions to the research objectives .First a qualitative approach was adopted in order to enable the appreciation of all aspects of the subject and to develop a set of the most critical variables  to be included afterwards into a questionnaire. The main objective was to objectively establish the level of eCommerce and the on-line representation of Zimbabwean tourism. The second stage involved semi-structured interviews aimed to elicit critical issues and to explore the key factors that determine the development of eTourism in Zimbabwe. In-depth interviews are considered as the most appropriate method to obtain information about perceptions, attitudes and beliefs. Judgmental sampling was employed and interviewees were selected as pioneers in eTourism in Zimbabwe, as determined by their online presence assessed in the previous phase of the research. Owners and marketing managers of organisations that run innovative web sites, as demonstrated by the methods used to interact with their clientele, were targeted and an interview was requested. The sample was chosen to include interviewees who would be informed, reflecting their particular experience and outlook on the research area. Twenty five telephone contacts were made and 28 interviews were finally conducted, which resulted in a 51% response rate .The reasearcher also made use of the questionnaires. The questionnaires designed by the researcher had both open ended questions thus allowing a respondent to fully express the answer and closed questions which only provided simple choice of answer such as yes or no. Questionnaires were used by the researcher because they saved time and they were an inexpensive way of surveying a cross section of people. Questionnaires allowed the researcher to guide the respondent along the lines regarding the topic under study and responses obtained from closed ended questions are easy to analyze. Questionnaires allowed the respondents to give freely the confidential information since the respondents were not required to disclose their identity. The researcher favoured the use of questionnaires because the analysis of data from close-ended question was easy. However data collection through the use of questionnaires required a significant commitment, expertise, time and material resources. The researcher also noted that questionnaires were highly inflexible as they gave no room to rephrase questions, furthermore, some questions remained unanswered and it affected the research findings. The researcher used simple wording in the questionnaires so that the respondents would not fail to understand the questions, that is, the researcher used simple wording to elaborate the meanings of what was being asked and required. The researcher also used face to face interviews. The researcher employed structured interviews to obtain detailed and specific information from the Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Mr Mzembi. The questions presented to the Minister sought to determine the factors affecting adoption of ICTs in Zimbabwean hotel and also how far Zimbabwean hotels are in terms of adoption of ICTs. The interview also sought to discover challenges to implementing ICTs and compliance at different hotels. The interview process proved time consuming and required persistence since the honourable Minister was a busy person and he was not easily available. The actual interview session had a length of 15 minutes due to the Minister’s busy schedule. To avoid inconveniences, an appointment via e-mail and telephone call prior to interviewing visit was made. Goodman (2003) states that certain biases exist due to the tendency by the interviewer to ask wrong questions and be supplied with answers he expects to get. The researcher eliminated such errors by avoiding leading questions and taking a listener approach instead of providing suggestions. Probing was only applied as a means of seeking clarifications. This technique was used because interviews are highly flexible and the researcher was able to rephrase the questions to make the respondent understand better. Dennis (2003), states that an interview is whereby the researcher and the respondents discuss verbally with each other either face to face, over the phone or over the internet. Interviews allow probing on open ended questions, clarifications on ambiguous questions and sequencing of questions is easily changed. However, the researcher noted that interviews were costly to run in terms of money and they are time consuming because the interviewee was a busy person hence the need of an appointment and the need of a telephone call reminding the interviewee about the appointment before the  time. The researcher also noted that the interview failed to give anonymity to the respondent, hence, there was a greater chance of being given biased information. RESULTS Eight hotels participated in the survey Meikles hotel, Holiday inn (Bulawayo), Victoria falls, Regency Fairmile, Kadoma hotel, Midlands hotel. At the outset the author quotes from a number of previous reports, which indicate that ICT has not been implemented effectively in the hospitality industry Evidence from the literature review has shown that there are a number of factors, which affect technology adoption. These factors include organisational readiness, external pressure, internal expertise, support of owner or manager, user participation, efficient and effective use of any external expertise. The barriers which were uncovered by the research: IT management training, dependency on outside experts and size and scale of enterprise are all directly related to the ‘other’ factors which influence ICT adoption. The level of significance of these barriers varies between the tourism sub-sectors surveyed. This study has added new knowledge in terms of the significance of a n umber of further barriers to ICT adoption. They include peripheral or rural location, security concerns, cost issues, lack of capital, and personal background of the owner manager. A closer analysis of findings has revealed that although technology is available, some of it is obsolete or not necessarily functional. Hotels possessed various outdated versions of software packages which did not seem to serve them well. . The mode of Internet bookings is an important determinant of their success. A lot of Internet booking systems generates a booking in email format rather than integrating into the hotel’s reservation system online. This obviously limits the usefulness of these systems. DISCUSSION The adoption of ICTs at Meikles Hotel is proving to be growing fast; this was noted by the stakeholder preparedness to harness it. Meikles hotel being a  five star hotel recognised internationally, this pushes them to move along with technological changes. Meikles hotel is interested in improving in their service provision through the use of e-commerce, and the results of this study show that this is being done at a fast pace. The top management at Meikles hotel are quite literate hence the adoption of ICT is faster compared to other hotels .The C.E.O is a holder of an honours degree in Computer science .Although the use of ICTs has not yet revolutionalised Meikles Hotel’s service delivery; it has changed how some services such as bookings are being done. Meikles hotel has a website developed and maintained by an inhouse programmer .Their website is user friendly and they have all the information that one needs about the hotel. Meikles hotel started offering wireless network services to guest in 2006.They use Fidelio management system which integrates all the information from the reservations, banqueting, finance departments and the restaurants. They use point of sale systems. CONCLUSION It can be noted that the adoption of ICTs at Meikles Hotel is proving to be growing fast and it has been done to a very large extent. 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