Monday, April 20, 2020

The Essential Element for Marketing Your Business Online

By: Eric Hoppe, Ecommerce Manager Marketing has always been about persuading people as they go about their daily lives to give a product or service a try. This used to mean placing flashy advertisements in newspaper, on television or on the radio. But as competition for peoples’ attention rises and people increasingly spend more time online instead of focusing on more traditional media channels, different methods of marketing are becoming more effective. Specifically, this new reality of people spending more time online is one of the major reasons behind the phenomenal rise of content marketing in recent years. If you haven’t embraced content marketing yet, you are likely missing out on a lot of online revenue. What Does Content Marketing Actually Mean? Put simply, it’s about creating and distributing various types of content (articles, blog posts, emails, white papers, videos, social media posts and more) to attract and engage an audience you want to market your products and services to. Because it’s more focused on offering useful information and less about â€Å"promotion,† content marketing can build a bridge between consumers and brands. Ultimately, the idea is that people will buy from you, because you’ve earned their respect. Why Content Marketing is Essential in Today’s Digital Marketplace Valuable content creates loyal fans. When you deliver content that truly resonates with your audience, it’s much easier to build a community around your brand and get people talking about your business. If someone has to choose between two companies, they’re more likely to do business with the one that provides them with a regular stream of relevant, entertaining and informative content It’s fundamental to SEO. It’s no secret that Google and other search engines prefer to deliver results that best answer searchers’ queries. When you create high-quality, useful content, you’ll be rewarded by Google and other search engines with higher search engine rankings, resulting in more traffic to your website and more qualified leads for your business When people consume quality content, it doesn’t feel like advertising and people are more likely to remember – and trust – your brand The Unstoppable Growth of Content Marketing According to the PQ Media study Global Content Marketing Forecast 2015-2019, both content marketing spend and revenue are projected to more than double in the next five years. In 2014, the revenue was calculated at around $26 billion; by 2019, this is expected to hit $54 billion. If you need more convincing about the growth and influence of content marketing, take a look at the following stats from the Content Marketing Institute’s 2016 Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends report: . 77 percent of B2C businesses are using content marketing . 69 percent of marketers are producing more content than they did one year ago . 76 percent of B2B marketers will create more content in 2016 versus 2015 From articles, blog posts, how-to guides, white papers, ebooks and case studies to email newsletters, social media content, videos and infographics, there is no shortage of formats to choose from when building a content strategy. The trick is to deliver a mix of content that not only resonates with your target audience, but also suits your brand. The Changing Face of Content Marketing As more businesses are seeing the positive (and measurable) results from their content marketing efforts, spending on content creation is also growing as a proportion of overall marketing budgets. Alongside growing content marketing spend, businesses are having to adapt to new content strategies. Four trends are dominating the content marketing arena: With more measurement tools and analytics data available from social media sites, businesses are delivering more effective, more personalized content As more people consume content on mobile devices, delivering more localized content (relevant to specific locations) is key The ubiquitous influence of social media means brands are focusing on delivering more quality content to the most appropriate social media channels To keep up with consumer demand and industry competition, an increasing number of businesses are finding it necessary to hire external content writers and content strategy specialists Getting Started As the digital landscape evolves into a more complex marketplace with increasingly savvy consumers, finding new and creative ways to reach out to potential customers has become an essential strategy for businesses that want to stand out from the competition. If you don’t have the time or staff to get started, working with outside agencies and freelance writers can be a liberating experience that will not only fulfill your content marketing aspirations, but also bring a fresh perspective to your work. Businesses that will find more success in the long term are those that are seen by consumers as credible. So, as a business owner or marketer, you should listen carefully to your existing and potential customers, get involved in the conversation and respond with meaningful content. This deeper relationship with your audience will put you in the best position to grow as a business for years to come.

Sunday, March 15, 2020

The Unexpected Presidency of Gerald R. Ford

The Unexpected Presidency of Gerald R. Ford Becoming vice president or President of the United States are no small feats. But between 1973 and 1977, Gerald R. Ford did both- without ever getting a single vote. How did he do that? In the early 1950s, when Michigans Republican Party leaders urged him to run for the  U.S. Senate  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ generally considered the next step to the presidency – Ford declined, stating that his ambition was to become  Speaker of the House, a position he called the ultimate achievement† at the time. â€Å"To sit up there and be the head honcho of 434 other people and have the responsibility, aside from the achievement, of trying to run the greatest  legislative  body in the history of mankind,† said Ford, â€Å"I think I got that ambition within a year or two after I was in the House of Representatives.† But after over a decade of putting forth his best efforts, Ford continually failed to be chosen as a speaker. Finally, he promised his wife Betty that if the speakership eluded him again in 1974, he would retire from Congress and political life in 1976. But far from returning to the farm, Gerald Ford was about to become the first person to have served as both Vice President and President of the United States without being elected to either office.   Suddenly, its Vice President Ford In October 1973, President  Richard M. Nixon  was serving his second term in the White House when his Vice President  Spiro Agnew  resigned before pleading no contest to federal charges of tax evasion and money laundering related to his acceptance of $29,500 in bribes while governor of Maryland. In the first ever application of the vice-presidential vacancy provision of the  25th Amendment  to the U.S. Constitution, President Nixon nominated then House Minority Leader Gerald Ford to replace Agnew. On November 27, the Senate voted 92 to 3 to confirm Ford, and on December 6, 1973, the House confirmed Ford by a vote of 387 to 35. One hour after the House voted, Ford was sworn in as Vice President of the United States.   When he agreed to accept President Nixons nomination, Ford told Betty that the Vice Presidency would be a nice conclusion to his political career. Little did they know, however,  that Fords political career was anything but over.   The Unexpected Presidency of Gerald Ford As Gerald Ford was getting used to the idea of being vice president,  a spellbound nation was watching the  Watergate scandal  unfold.   During the 1972 presidential campaign, five men employed by President Nixons Committee to Re-elect the President had allegedly broken into the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington D.C.s Watergate hotel, in an attempt to steal information related to Nixons opponent, George McGovern. On August 1, 1974, after weeks of accusations and denials, President Nixons Chief of Staff Alexander Haig visited Vice President Ford to tell him that the smoking gun evidence in the form of Nixon’s secret Watergate tapes had been exposed. Haig told Ford that conversations on the tapes left little doubt that President Nixon had taken part in, if not ordered, the cover-up of the Watergate break-in. At the time of Haigs visit, Ford and his wife Betty were still living in their suburban Virginia home while the vice presidents residence in Washington, D.C. was being renovated. In his memoirs, Gord would later say of the day, Al Haig asked to come over and see me, to tell me that there would be a new tape released on a Monday, and he said the evidence in there was devastating and there would probably be either an impeachment or a resignation. And he said, Im just warning you that youve got to be prepared, that these things might change dramatically and you could become president. And I said, Betty, I dont think were ever going to live in the vice presidents house.   With his impeachment almost certain, President Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. According to the process of presidential succession, Vice President Gerald R. Ford was immediately sworn in as the 38th President of the United States.  Ã‚   In a live, nationally televised speech from the East Room of the White House, Ford stated, I am acutely aware that you have not elected me as your president by your ballots, and so I ask you to confirm me as your president with your prayers.   President Ford went on to add, My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over. Our Constitution works; our great Republic is a government of laws and not of men. Here, the people rule. But there is a higher power, by whatever name we honor Him, who ordains not only righteousness but love, not only justice but mercy. Let us restore the golden rule to our political process, and let brotherly love purge our hearts of suspicion and hate.   When the dust had settled, Fords prediction to Betty had come true. The couple moved into the White House without ever living in the vice presidents house.   As one of his first official acts, President Ford exercised Section 2 of the 25th Amendment and nominated Nelson A. Rockefeller of New York to be vice president. On August 20, 1974, both Houses of Congress voted to confirm the nomination and Mr. Rockefeller took the oath of office December 19, 1974.   Ford Pardons Nixon On September 8, 1974, President Ford granted former President Nixon a full and unconditional presidential pardon absolving him of any crimes he might have committed against the United States while president. In a nationally televised TV broadcast, Ford explained his reasons for granting the controversial pardon, stating that the Watergate situation had become â€Å"a tragedy in which we all have played a part. It could go on and on and on, or someone must write the end to it. I have concluded that only I can do that, and if I can, I must.† About the 25th Amendment Had it happened prior to the ratification of the 25th Amendment on Februayr 10, 1967, the resignations of Vice President Agnew and then President Nixon would have almost certainly triggered a monumental constitutional crisis.The 25th Amendment  superseded the wording of Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 of the Constitution, which failed to clearly state that the vice president becomes president if the president dies, resigns, or otherwise becomes incapacitated and unable to perform the duties of the office. It also specified the current method and order of presidential succession. Prior to the 25th Amendment, there had been incidents when the president was incapacitated. For example, when President Woodrow Wilson suffered a debilitating stroke on October 2, 1919, he was not replaced in office, as First Lady Edith Wilson, along with the White House Physician, Cary T. Grayson, covered up the extent of President Wilsons disability.  For the next 17 months, Edith Wilson actually carried out many presidential duties.   On 16 occasions, the nation had gone without a vice president because of the vice president had died or had become president through succession. For example, there was no vice president for almost four years after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. The assassination of President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963, prompted Congress to push for a constitutional amendment. Early, erroneous reports that Vice President Lyndon Johnson had also been shot created several chaotic hours in the federal government. Happing so soon after the Cuban Missile Crisis and with Cold War tensions still at a fever pitch, the Kennedy assassination forced Congress to come up with a specific method of determining presidential succession. New President Johnson experienced several health issues, and the next two officials in line for the presidency were 71-year-old Speaker of the House John Cormack and 86-year-old Senate President Pro Tempore Carl Hayden. Within three months of Kennedys death, the House and Senate passed a joint resolution that would be submitted to the states as the 25th Amendment. On February 10, 1967, Minnesota and Nebraska became the 37th and 38th states to ratify the amendment, making it the law of the land.

Thursday, February 27, 2020

Comparing city planing,green policy between city of beijing China and Assignment

Comparing city planing,green policy between city of beijing China and city of Seoul, Korea. providing suggestions to Seoul Metropolitan Government - Assignment Example The city planning and the green policies enacted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government are meant to address these challenges. This paper explores the city planning measures and green policies enacted by Seoul Metropolitan Government and makes suggestions on how they could be improved. The paper then briefly explores Beijing’s city plans and green policies and draws lessons that could be learned by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to help improve Seoul. Seoul has had a series of urban plans since it started flourishing in the 1960s. Like most cities, the population has continuously been growing during this period. As people move towards the city, the space has continuously become a determining factor necessitating measures to be put in place so as to ensure right planning that supports sustainable development and growth of the city (SMG, 2006). The first plan was implemented between 1972 and 1981 and was geared towards growing the city’s facilities and infrastructure. The second plan was enacted between 1982 and 1991 and the thematic issue was distribution network. The third city plan was implemented between 1992 and 1999 and was geared towards the local development. The current Seoul’s city plan started being implemented in 2000 and is to be implemented until 2020. The current city plan is geared towards increasing Seoul’s international competitiveness (SMG, 2013). Seoul’s fourth city plan is known as the Master Plan. It has taken a different approach towards urban development. The Master Plan represents a paradigm shift from the traditional growth-driven models which focus on quantitative growth to a growth-management model which focuses on qualitative growth (SMG, 2013). The previous growth models that were implemented by Seoul Metropolitan Government were designed to achieve rapid growth. This was understandable given the fact that Seoul still had untapped potential and had not reached its optimal growth level. But now, faced with

Tuesday, February 11, 2020

Is population growth affect on our environment Research Paper

Is population growth affect on our environment - Research Paper Example It is worth noting that between the years 1960 and 1999, the earth’s population increased from three billion to around six billion people. Between the years 1960 and 1999, the earth’s population increased from three billion to around six billion people. The increase reflected an important era in humanity. This is because life expectancy increased, child mortality rates dropped, and individuals were on average healthier and nourished than any period in history. However, several changes in the global environment began to happen. Pollution increased, resource depletion persisted, and the risk of rising sea levels was obvious (Rand 1). Population growth has a number of features, which include urbanization, changing demographics, and persistent international migration. All these features are thought to affect the environment in a negative manner. In the feature urbanization, majority of the people will live in the cities. It is estimated that by 2035, close to 60% of the glo bal population will be living in the urban areas. Most of the cities in the developing nations are already experiencing problems in offering basic services such as waste treatment and transport. It is thought that the new urban residents will largely inhabit regions that defy nature such as the low-lying regions in the coast, and this will be a significant environmental risk (Collodi and M’Cormack 1). In the feature changing demographics, it is estimated that the overall world population is ageing despite the fact that the current population is very young (majority of the people in the world are below the age of 28). Majority of these people (the ageing population) are found in the developed nations, however, by 2050 a third of the population in the developing nations is estimated to be over the age of 60 years, and close to 80 percent of them will be living in the developing nations. On the other hand, some of the developing nations and regions will experience an increasingl y young population. Both trends indicate a decreasing working population, considerably changing the balance between economically inactive and active members (Collodi and M’Cormack 1). In the feature persistent international migration, the number of individuals living outside their nation of origin will likely to grow or increase to 230 million from the present 175 million by the year 2050. Migration will mostly happen between the developing nations and will grow in response to the environmental pressures, natural disasters, and extreme poverty. The aforementioned features will be motivated by the impacts of climate change, uneven distribution of resources, environmental changes, the consequences of disease, the incapability of the authorities to respond, and climate change (Collodi and M’Cormack 1). The accessibility and flow of energy, water, and food will be very important. Resource challenges will increase in regions where population growth has the greatest conseque nce, relative to economic growth and local resources (Collodi and M’Cormack 1). It is expected that by 2035 that the Sub-Saharan Africa population will grow by around 81% and that 15 percent of them will likely to be under-nourished. Competition for all forms of resources will increase and the threat of humanitarian catastrophe will also increase in most of the vulnerable areas because of climate change (C

Friday, January 31, 2020

Belonging Related Text Essay Example for Free

Belonging Related Text Essay George Orwell’s essays – related text ‘Marrakech’ explores the notion of ethnocentricity through a Eurocentric perspective, in which one is isolated at the consequence of differing morels. Orwell succeeds in doing so through various anecdotes â€Å"What does Morocco mean to a Frenchman? An orange-grove or a job in government service. † In essence this displays the failure of a migrant to withhold a deeper connection to the land. Orwell emotively describes the crippled elderly women who â€Å"answered with a shrill wail, almost a scream, which was partly gratitude but mainly surprise†, as a response to the charity he provided her with. The dramatic reaction displays her sense of alienation from her own homeland, at fault of those who are foreign, yet awfully powerful. This is furthered through the description of â€Å"the shy, wide-eyed Negro† where through his ignorance, he â€Å"has been taught that the white race are his masters, and still believes it. † A sense of melancholy pervades this essay through the harsh truth â€Å"How much longer can we go on kidding these people? † displaying the indigenous peoples disconnection to a place that was originally theirs. While ‘Marrakech’ explores the notion that one does not belong to their homeland. This is juxtaposed through ‘Shooting an Elephant’ with Orwell’s alternative experience of belonging. Through Orwell’s ambivalence we see the highly controversial understanding of â€Å"the hollowness.. of the white man’s dominion in the East. † It is ironic that a â€Å"sub-divisional police officer† should feel self-conscious with such authority. Controversially he â€Å"was all for the Burmese† juxtaposed to the grotesque imagery of his deepest desire to â€Å"drive a bayonet into a Buddhist priest’s guts.

Thursday, January 23, 2020

Book Review of Jody Azzounis Tracking Reason Essay -- Azzouni

Jody Azzouni, Tracking Reason In many ways, Tracking Reason resembles Jody Azzouni’s previous book, Deflating Existential Consequence. The subject matter of each lies at the interface of metaphysics, logic, philosophy of mathematics, and philosophy of language. The style is both entertaining and clear. The positions argued for are so controversial as to sound almost insane. And yet the arguments provided are illuminating, and manage to make the positions seem almost like common sense. Both books are worth reading both for specialists and those interested in a clarifying (if idiosyncratic) take on these issues. In the previous book, Azzouni argued for a type of fictionalism about mathematics. But rather than following Hartry Field in denying the indispensability of mathematics, he simply argues that the indispensability of a form of discourse (and even the truth of existentially quantified sentences!) is not a sign of ontological commitment. This position helps motivate some of the positions in the current book, but I think it isn’t necessary. Tracking Reason advances several separate, but related positions in its three parts. However, for some reason the subtitle has them in the wrong order - Part I argues for a special deflationary account of truth (and deals at length with the semantics and regimentation of natural language); Part II argues that the role of mathematical proof is to â€Å"indicate† a derivation in some mechanical deduction system; and Part III argues that these two positions are (despite appearances) compatible with a non-syntactic view of consequence as a type of truth-preservation. Parts I and II are relatively independent, and I think can profitably be read on their own. Part III depends mo... ...f semantics (topological and Kripke) that are sound and complete for S4 modal logic. The fact that we only know of one semantics for propositional logic has misled us into thinking that its models are more significant than they really are. As I mentioned earlier, this book is modular enough that it may be worth reading parts of this book independently of the whole thing. Although Azzouni says that much of the material of the nine chapters of this book derives from ten 3 papers (cited in the introduction to each of the three parts), they seem to have been edited and unified enough that a reader interested in just one topic may prefer to read the relevant Part (I or II) of this book rather than the separate papers that it is based on. But for anyone interested in the relationships between truth, proof, and consequence, I recommend reading the entire thing.

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Compare and Contrast the Classical and Positivist School

Compare and contrast the ideas of Classical criminologist (e. g. Beccaria and Bentham) with those of the early Positivist (e. g. Lombroso, Ferri Garofolo). IntroductionDuring the mid to late seventeenth century explanations of crime and punishment were embraced by many philosophers Thomas Hobbs (1588-1679), John Locke (1632-1704), and Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) and such theorist as Beccaria (1738), an Italian who was highly recognised by his great success through his essay ’Dei delitti e delle pene’ (On Crimes and Punishment) publicised in translations of 22 languages, effectively leaving huge impressions on the legal thoughts on members of the European and US society (Hopkins Burke 2009), developing the theory of ‘Classical criminology’ and Lombroso (1835) an Italian psychiatrist and a physician who brought forth the theory of the ‘Positivist’s criminology’. This essay will present the two contrasting theories within criminology, these are ‘the Classical’ and ‘the Positivist’ theory of criminology, presenting a brief introduction to each school of thought with the theories and their theorist, comparisons will drawn presenting contrasts to each theory’s principle, with their methodological, scientific and philosophical approaches to crime, with the same aim to reduce and control crime. Hale,C. ,et al (2005 p. 62).The school of thought ‘Classical criminology’ developed during the times of enlightenment through the ideas of a theorist named Cesare Beccaria (1738-94), who studied crimes, criminal behaviour and punishments, with beliefs that those who commit crime hold responsibility for themselves and are uninfluenced by external factors building the foundations for other successful proponents and advocates such as Cesare Lombroso (1836-1909), an Italian psychiatrist aspirant who presented theoretical explanations to crime and criminality though scientific methodolo gy adapting the contrasting theory of the positivist Contrastingly, the positivist school believed that the decisions people make when committing a crime are principally affected by ‘means' out of their control. These ‘means' that affect an individual's condition to make rational decisions can be based on physical, that is for example their race, social, such as weak social bonds at school or the amily, biological, that is having genetic abnormalities and psychological factors such as mental health disorders (Pond p. 23).. Through Beccarias’ observational studies witnessed many discrepancies within the government and public affairs, and ostracized the inhumanity and inequality shown to individuals within society, where the punishment of crimes were judged on the social status of an individual (Hopkins Burke 2001). Beccaria believed the ‘Criminal as Calculator’ highlighting the importance that every criminal is an individual and is aware of what is goo d from bad, what is right from wrong, understanding definitions of criminal behaviour in society therefore each individual is competent n the calculations that he or she makes, presenting the notion of ‘Free will Choice’ and the ‘Hendonistic Calculas’ principle where the distinct actions of an individual are measured through a pleasure and pain scale, with this Beccaria made further contributions towards Bentham’s theory of Ulitiarianism (which is based on the assumption that the ultimate aim of all human activity is happiness), disputing that creating new legislations indicating that a clear law should set out which is easily deciphered by its societal members to understand and set by legislators, Beccaria views that the prevention of crime is better than the punishment, however, punishment must be dealt with swiftly not limiting or exceeding what is necessary for the prevention and deterrence of crime, therefore resulting in the greater happiness o f the majority (McLaughlin and Muncie, 2006), however there should be impartial judges fixing strict punishments in proportion to the seriousness of the crime, for example, petty crimes and theft should be dealt with fixed fines and penalties and more serious crimes administered with corporal punishment and labour (Hopkins Burke, 2009).With this Beccaria developed further studies within the ‘Social contract’ theory, the voluntary agreement of the members of an organised society and its government securing mutual protection and welfare regulating the relation among its members, explaining that the previous methods of torture through capital punishment was unnecessary, he deemed these barbaric and inhumane, through this Beccaria began developing ideas that the crime itself should be dealt with efficiently not the criminal, thus the individual should be penalised for the crime committed. Each and every individual member of society whether an abiding member or criminal has equal rights and this always remains.Beccaria’s classical school of thought brought about scholars Bentham (1748) an English juror and philosopher who defensively argued that punishment should be a deterrent for criminals, that penalties be fixed to inflict the sum of pain in surfeit of the pleasure that had derived from the criminal act (Hale, Hayward Wahidin and Wincup, 2005) and Howard (1726) who was influential upon Prison reform (1779), However crime and criminal behaviour continuing to present itself still necessitated explanations as to why crime was still on the uprise Lombroso provided foundations for many other proponents such Ferri (1856), a biologist who wrote a new penal code for Mussolini which was instantly revoked due to his positivist approach and Garofolo (1852). Conclusion References Hopkins Burke, R. (2009) An Introduction to Criminological Theory, (3rd ed. ) Cullompton, Devon: Willan Publishing Hale, C,. Hayward, K,. Wahidin, A and Wincup, E. (2005) Crimi nology, Great Britain: Oxford University Press