Most Popular Articles April 2008

Most Popular Articles April 2008 Most Popular Articles April 2008 Most Popular Articles April 2008 By Daniel Scocco Below you will find the most popular articles of the past month. Check them out to make sure you have not missed any. English to Become the Official and Obligatory Language of the Internet: The Central Authority for Internet Control (CAIC) announced today that they plan to make English the official and obligatory language of the Internet, and that by 2010 all the web pages should already be using English exclusively. Let’s Keep Some of the Old Verb Forms: When it comes to some irregular verbs, I really hate to see the old past participle forms â€Å"regularized† to the dominant â€Å"-ed† ending. How and Where to Publish Your Short Stories: One reader asks: â€Å"What advice would you give to someone who has bags of passion and loves life and just happens to have lots of stories and would like to know how to publish or where to publish?† That vs. Which: Before I come on to the â€Å"that†/†which† rule, just a reminder that â€Å"who† should always be used when referring to people. Five Words You Can Cut: One of the best ways to make your writing stronger is to cut unnecessary words. Many people tend to over-write, often in a similar way to how they would speak. Words creep in that add no meaning and can make a piece of writing sound vague and woolly rather than confidence and precise. Funny Images Conjured up by Web Comments: Sometimes I’m more amused than annoyed by spelling errors and incorrect word choices that I see in blogs and comments. Keeping a Writers’ Notebook: If you’ve ever had aspirations towards fiction-writing, you’ve doubtlessly heard the advice to keep a notebook on you at all times, to jot down those elusive flashes of brilliance that come at the most inopportune moments. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the General category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:The Royal Order of Adjectives 75 Synonyms for â€Å"Talk†When to use "an"

How To Write Landing Pages That Convert - CoSchedule Blog

How To Write Landing Pages That Convert Blog Writing landing pages is an art. Successful landing pages address a need, provide a solution, and (ideally) drive conversions. The challenge lies in getting your audience to convert or perform an action (sign up for a contest, subscribe to an email list, etc). Fortunately, anyone with writing skills can learn to write effective landing pages. That’s exactly what this post  will teach you to do. Download Your Free Landing Page  Resources Write better landing pages and track your performance with these three free  resources: Landing Page Writing Template Landing Page Performance Tracking Template Call To Action  GuideWhy Should You Be Writing Landing Pages? The purpose of any landing pages is to get your reader to perform a specific action. You may want your reader to complete an email sign-up form, register for an event, or start a trial for a service (just for a few examples). Whatever you consider to be your conversion step, everything write you should support that goal.  This should be the central focus of your writing. What Defines A Landing Page? By definition, a landing page is any page a user could "land on" from another page. According to Unbounce, In the purest sense, a landing page is any web page that a visitor can arrive at or â€Å"land† on. However, when discussing landing pages within the realm of marketing and advertising, it’s more common to refer to a landing page as being a standalone web page distinct from your main website that has been designed for a single focused objective. This means that your landing page should have no global navigation to tie it to your primary website. The main reason for this is to limit the options available to your visitors, helping to guide them toward your intended conversion goal. For our purposes, any solid landing page should have the following: A strong headline Body copy A call-to-action What Are Some Common Purposes  For Landing Pages? Any landing page should serve one clear defined purpose. Here are some common usages for standalone landing pages: Promote an event or webinar Gather email newsletter signups Promote a free trial Offer free coupon signup Drive signups to be alerted of a new product or feature launch Host a contest signup form How To Define A Purpose For Your Landing Page The first step is to decide what your landing page will be about. If you're promoting something specific, like an event or contest, then your topic is obvious.  In other cases, you may need to get more creative. If you're struggling to define a clear purpose for your page, try following some of these tips. Landing pages should have just one clear purpose.Identify  A Problem You Can Solve For Your Audience A great way to find a topic is to identify an issue and present your product or service as the best solution. The reason your audience is on your landing page is because they have a problem and need a solution, and that’s you! Here are some quick ways to determine what your audience could use help with: Twitter polls. Twitter's help guide can help walk you through how to set one up. Audience surveys. Tools like Polldaddy and Survey Monkey make it easy to run surveys. Quick questions posted on social media. Tweet a question for your audience asking what challenges they're facing. Then, create a page that presents a solution. Identify A Problem Your Business Needs To Solve Another approach is to start with a problem your business is facing. Unbounce did a great case study on New Balance. The shoe company's brick-and-mortar stores in Chicago weren't getting enough foot traffic, and they wanted to increase sales. So, they ran Facebook ads that directed to  landing pages promoting sales on shoes.  This approach increased sales by 200%. This is a perfect example of identifying a business problem, and solving it with effective landing page messaging. Next, Find Your Keyword If you plan on using SEO or PPC to drive landing page traffic, then it's important to properly select keywords. Selecting a keyword to target essentially means claiming territory on a certain phrase that is being searched. For example, if you’re trying to sell an ebook on how to master a job interview, you may want to target the phrase â€Å"successful job interviews.† There are great tools, both free and paid, that will help you find the traffic around any keyword. Start with these popular options: Moz Ubersuggest Google Keyword Planner Choosing a keyword goes back to your angle and topic. The content of your page should also match the search intent behind your selected keyword. You should also target synonyms for your topic and focus. TIP: In some cases, you may not need to do traditional keyword research. For example, if you're creating a landing page for an event, the name of the event would probably be your targeted keyword. Do what makes sense given how your page will be used. Do You Need An Angle? If you're writing a sales brochure-style landing page, consider your angle. Your angle  describes the perspective you're writing from. To find your angle here are some questions you can ask yourself before you get writing: What’s your unique perspective?  Showcase your original thoughts and ideas to your reader. Keep them engaged with your business’s individual view on your topic. What makes you different than your competitors?  Think in the perspective of your audience. Why would they choose you instead of your competition? Identify what makes your product or service uniquely the best solution. Catch Your Audience's Attention With  An Awesome Headline A good headline should hook your reader's interest immediately. When it comes to landing pages specifically, it should convey a clear benefit too. Whether the audience finds your landing page through social media, paid advertising, or organic search,  you need to give them a reason to care. TIP: Use our Headline Analyzer to make sure your headlines perform their best. Recommended Reading: How To Write Headlines That Drive Traffic, Shares, And Search Results Write Persuasive Body Copy Once readers get past your headline, they'll expect your body copy to deliver.  You need to follow through on the promises you made in your headline.  Writing good copy isn't easy, but following these steps should help. Start With  A Strong Intro Hook Writing an effective intro  is critical for keeping your reader on the page. It can be as simple as a sentence or two, or a full paragraph or more (depending on the legnth and style of your page). Any intro should do one thing, however: show your reader what's in it for them if they keep reading (or even convert). There should be absolutely no confusion as to what the reader will be getting from the landing page. A simple way to ensure that your audience knows what they’ll be getting out of the landing pages is to write clear value propositions. You can end your introduction by stating â€Å"you’re going to learn/see/find out how†¦.† and then list 3-5 things that the reader will get out of your landing page.  Take a look at one of our own  landing page introductions: What if your page isn't text-heavy enough to write this way?  Here's another example from WordPress.com that takes a different approach. Here, they have blocks of content, each one stating one clear benefit: The key is to hook your reader by making benefits immediately clear. Each of these six points solves a different problem, from the difficulty of building a site without knowing code, to getting customer support. It also shows they clearly know their audience. Someone using WordPress.com probably doesn't have a lot of coding skill. Therefore, all the copy here is focused on ease of use and community support.  And it's all conveyed to readers right away. Follow The Problem/Solution/Benefit Formula We've talked a lot about focusing on problems, solutions, and benefits. However, how do you actually  write in a way that conveys each of these points? Try following the Problem/Solution/Benefit formula. This isn't the only way to write copy, but it's an easy formula to follow if you're struggling. Establish a problem.  What's a common issue your audience has? Identify it and agitate it. Present a solution. Next,  state why  your product or service as the best solution to their problem. Ensure that your solution covers every detail of their problem. Show a benefit.  Now, you can  show your reader how much better life can be when their problem is solved. Here's a hypothetical example of all three of these pieces at work: Problem: Someone has  ants in their kitchen. Solution: A pest-control company offers non-toxic ant traps. Benefit: The customer won't lose any more groceries due to ant infestation. And here's a hypothetical example of what this copy could look like: "Stop letting ants ruin dinner. With BugCo's kitchen-safe ant traps, you'll be able to dine ant-free." Write better landing pages by focusing on problems, solutions, and benefits.This is obviously a rough example, but you can see the problem, solution, and benefit formula in action. TIP: Help your reader see how life could be better using your product or service. Make Your Call-To-Action Count The next step in creating your landing page is asking yourself, â€Å"What do I want readers to do?† The answer to this question should be  your call-to-action (CTA). Your CTA  is what prompts the reader to convert. For example, if you want your audience to sign up for a contest, your CTA could be â€Å"Enter to win this fabulous prize.† Your entire landing page copy would sell the reader on why they should care about you’re promoting enough to enter. Start your writing process by creating your CTA. From there, you can craft your landing page copy in a way that directs the reader to that action. Recommended Reading: How To Work With Designers (With Authentic Advice From 's Designer) 5  Landing Page Writing Tips As you plan and write your copy, here are some crucial pointers to remember. Use Clear And Simple Language Keep sentences short and clear. Focus On Benefits Your customer knows what their problem is. They probably know what kind of tool or solution they need too. Your job is to show benefits that illustrate why your solution is the best one for a given application. We keep hammering on this point, but that's because it's that important. Remember That Sometimes Less Is More Landing pages don't have to be long to be effective. Sometimes, all you really need is a headline, simple body copy, and a call-to-action button. Write as much as it takes to make your point and drive your desired action. That's it. Here's an example of a super short landing page from Pedal Train, a company that makes pedal boards for guitar players: A headline, a paragraph of body copy, and a button, all connected to one purpose (getting you to download an infographic). That's all the page needs. Analyze Performance (And Do Better Next Time) Writing high-converting copy often requires experimentation and refinement over time. As you write more landing pages,  look for the following: Which types of headlines perform best? What elements do your top-performing CTAs have in common? Does short or long copy perform best for you? Use the Landing Page Performance Tracking template included in this post to help with this task. Understand The Importance Of Message-Match If you'll be directing traffic to your landing page with PPC ads or social media ads, then you'll need to make sure your ad messaging matches your landing page messaging. Here's an example. I searched "what is kissmetrics" (an analytics software platform we use). Here's what the ad looked like: And here's the page it directs to: The headline, both on the ad and the landing page, tells us this is an analytics tool. The landing page intro  copy starts by stating benefits (the ability to monitor marketing performance across multiple digital channels). The body content blocks below go into more detail, further illustrating benefits. The call-to-action then gives us the opportunity to try it for ourselves. That sounds like this hits all the right checkboxes for a successful landing page. Make sure ad messaging matches your landing page messaging.3 More  Examples Of Awesome Landing Page Copy What do high-quality landing pages look like in the wild? Let's take a look at some examples. WordStream This sign-up page from Wordstream is fairly straightforward. It does quite a few things right though. The headline conveys a clear benefit (saving time and money). The "Start Your Free Trial" call-to-action button is bright, clearly designed, and encourages conversions from customers who might not be ready to buy yet. Scrolling down, this page also incorporates stats and user testimonials. These  help  lend authority to the page. Pocket This example is really straightforward, but effective. The headline clearly tells you what Pocket does. It also makes two different sign-up methods (re: conversion steps) clear. Square This page immediately conveys a benefit to the reader (they can start selling immediately). It then leads into more information they may want to know before making a decision to start a trial. The page continues communicating further benefits, leading readers to more information they might need: And then at the end, everything leads to their call-to-action: Analyze Your Landing Page Performance You’ve published your landing page. How do you know how successful they are? You’ll first want to decide on a (reasonable) goal for them. Start By Setting SMART Goals One great way to set goals is to use the SMART method: Specific: Clearly define your goal and ensure that it’s not vague. A good example would be â€Å"I want to have 2000 conversions this month† instead of â€Å"I want more conversions† Measureable: Make sure that you can track this goal. Attach a number to it. For example â€Å"I want my read time on my landing pages to increase by 30%† should be used instead of â€Å"I want people to spend more time on my pages.† Aspirational: Don’t sell yourself short. Push yourself. Realistic: Make sure you can still attain your goal. Take a good look at your resources and obstacles and ensure that you can manage them to meet your goals. Time-bound: Set a time you want to be finished by. Be specific, even down to the hour. Set a goal like â€Å"This will be done by 3 p.m on August 2nd† instead of â€Å"some point.† Set landing page goals using the SMART methodology.Measure Performance With Analytics Tools There are a number of analytics platforms you can use. Plus, landing page template services like LeadPages, Unbounce, and Instapage feature built-in analytics.  Google Analytics is also a must-use platform (but you probably already knew that). Here are four  key metrics to focus on: Bounce rate.  The bounce rate is the percentage of visitors who navigate away from your site after viewing only one page. Typically, marketers are trained to think high bounce rates are bad. However, landing page bounce rates are often high because they give your reader two options: convert, or leave. Time on page. Instead of worrying about bounce rates, pay attention to how long people stay on your pages. This is an important metric. The higher the time on your page, the more engaged your readers are. They’re more likely to convert if they’re engaged with what they’re reading on your page. A high time on page is a great metric to measure the quality of the content on your landing page. Conversion rate. This is one of the most important metric for landing pages. The conversion rate is the percentage of visitors who convert directly from your page. The success of your landing page will vary differently through every industry, but the higher it is, the better. Total conversions. How many form completions is your copy driving? Find out by tracking goals  in Google Analytics. Now  Master The Art Of Writing Landing Pages There’s a definite science to writing successful landing pages. Once you’ve broken the steps down into smaller tasks and set your goals, you can write a landing page that will boost your conversions.

Reasons of the speedy growing and futher problems of Indian Economic Research Paper - 1

Reasons of the speedy growing and futher problems of Indian Economic - Research Paper Example After these areas have briefly being looked at, I shall then delve closely into the major areas of discussion where I shall touch briefly on each of the following areas: i. Reasons of the speedy growing of Indian economic. ii. Further problems of India because of high speed economic growing iii. Can India exceed China economically? These two major groups of discussions shall pave way for major components of the essay to begin. Reasons for the speedy growing of Indian economy - 3 India is fast becoming a force to recon with in world economic terms. Not as before, India is more stable and growing rapidly in terms of economic growth. This of course has reasons as to every effect, there is a cause. This part of the essay shall therefore be dedicated to looking at the reasons for the speedy growing of Indian economy. To talk about the reasons, a brief background to India’s current economic status shall be given. Next, I shall dig deep into the history of Indian economy. This aspect will be very relevant because it will help readers to identify that indeed the economy of India has its own roots. The discussion of the historic background would also help in creating timelines for major achievements and events in the history of India’s economy. ... World history has it that there are nations who once had very graceful economies. Their gross domestic product grew at rapid rate, their inflationary rates where always down and the rate of their currencies were forces to recon with. However with time, due to poor economic management and because factors or reasons that led to their economic growth were not sustained. It is against this backdrop that this aspect of the essay shall not only consider the reasons for the speedy economic growth but also ways of sustaining the growth. Further problems of India because of high speed economic growing – 4 There is no denying the fact that there is an effect – positive and negative for that matter to every situation. Even though it is a good thing that India’s economy should develop at a very speedy rate, this comes not only with positive repercussions but negative ones as well. This part of the essay shall therefore be a progress of the previous aspect, which was on the r easons for the speedy growing of Indian economy. Three major problems that are likely to affect India’s economy as a result of its current economic growth shall be treated. The problems shall not just be stated but stated with possible solutions. The problems to be looked at would include: i. Unlawful migration to India – (The Indian Analyst, HVK ii. Taking advantage of booming economy to become the hub of counterfeit, low quality and fake products. – (The Lancet, Democratic Underground iii. Pressure from dependant nations – (The Economic Times, The Economic Times These problems have carefully being chosen because there are enough proofs that the problems have affected other countries that have attained economic growth and freedom. In worse cases,

Reflection Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Reflection Paper - Essay Example The role of management and leadership has now more than ever before become increasingly essential in the innate objectives of organizations and enterprises of profitability and survival within the domestic, regional and international markets. Most fundamental in this dawning is the distribution, management and role of human resource. As industries emerge elsewhere within the developing and less developed economies, there is a shift in top quality managerial and skilled labor to such regions creating shortages particularly in the already developed economies in America and Europe. This is especially because, during this transition, there has been a disproportionate increase in the number of excellent managers, workers and leaders with the number of enterprises and companies in need of these human resource skills. In this light, talent management which concerns the identification-and thereafter-deliberate steps towards empowering human resources within the organization so as to increase their capacity and competencies to meet current and future organizational growth focus and profitability concerns (Berger & Berger, 2010). James Autry talks about the need for leadership in business to be different from a mere managerial function. He argues that effective management is one that begins with self-awareness. Having been employed for thirty years and thereafter retiring to pursue his passion in writing and poetry, he has successfully within a decade transformed a print business that is worth in excess of five hundred million dollars. He is very critical of how most American companies have turned their backs on their employees in the be-guided pursuit of cost cutting measures or efficiencies. He is an example of how passion for work can intimate a career shift and which eventually leads to profitability. In his assessment of the work place, Autry is in stark contrast of the principle of separation of the work and home which is often than not a norm in most current busin ess organizations and institutions. He argues that the two items are inextricably connected; such that one influences and is affected by the other. However, I find resonance with his proposition that, leadership within organizations and, therefore, managers should be sensitive to the emotional needs of employees as identified by Abraham Maslow as a level within his hierarchy of human needs. The emotional state of the employee whether it relates to issues at work or home affects the performance of the given individual in both areas. That being the case, I find a point of departure where he attempts to erase the concept work-home balance; the two should be essentially same given that, the underlying concern is paying attention to values and living them. I find that the geographic and situational connotation creates a psychographic differentiation between home and the office such that it subsequently dictates norms, behaviors and actions suitable. I have also had the experience of work ing from home and regardless of how convenient it felt, certain aspects had to change when time to work arose and vice versa. For instance, I could not work within the comfort of the bedroom. The power of words is truly at its height in today’s society, especially, where legal solutions can be sought after for apparent misdeeds against other members within society. In organizations, the need for managers to exercise reasonable care in action or word is exceedingly critical in this regard. The mystery that surrounds

Summary of Thoughts Essay Example for Free

Summary of Thoughts Essay The purpose of tourism planning Tourism has grown through the years to become the single largest industry in the world. Tourism may not be considered as a discipline or an industry considering that it is multidimensional and leverages on several disciples in satisfying functional, aesthetic and financial needs of individuals, communities, businesses and government at different levels. In this vein, it is essential to create plans and planning tools that integrate the interest of these various stakeholders without compromising the integrity of the limited resources and ensuring they are preserved for use of future generations. In carrying out tourism planning, it is essential to reconcile the various actors involved in creating plans for harnessing and use of environmental resources in the development process. These are the business sector which primary aim for planning is profit and returns; public sector with a joint aim of regulation, marketing and promotion towards economic improvement; the non-profit sector involved in creating plans that generate revenue not for investment returns but to be plowed-back for operational and capital costs; and last of all professional consultants a group that provides the most effective assistance in accomplishing better and unbiased tourism planning. Four goals which should guide the tourism development planning process in order to achieve an all-encompassing success are: the user-oriented planning policy aimed at provision of user (visitor) satisfaction; an environmental sustainability approach towards ensuring increased economic and business returns on investment; sustainable use of resources; integration of tourism into the social and economic life of communities. For successful tourism planning, plans at three scales of on site, destination zone and regional scale should be synchronised without any being considered in isolation from the others. The tourism planning process is incomplete in the absence of individual input as well as cooperation and collaboration from the affected communities. The economic benefit of tourism is very crucial especially as its development is often the bane of some destinations. However, policies on tourism development are made by a government in order to ensure a sense of control and coordination in the overall tourism development planning process as well as a sane implementation. All three players i.e. public, market and government need to cooperate, collaborate and coordinate to avoid haphazard development of the tourism planning process. The changing dimensions of tourism planning. Tourism has continued is not static and has responded to the dynamic environment and market forces due to evolving change in values, demands and challenges of the various stakeholders associated with the industry. These changes also have translated to problems in the planning of tourism, which has been associated with (but not limited to): Non-human factors (physical environmental responses), globalisation, political paradigm shift, social and planning changes, increase in knowledge and perceptive responses. The tourism policy agenda has also changed since the upward turn of growth post World War II, which resulted in reduced government control and deregulation of the process. This transformation can be captured through five distinct phases as follows: 1945-55 institutional dismantle and streamlining; 1 955-70 government involvement in economic tourism; 1970-85 government involvement in infrastructure and regional development; 1985-2000 continued government regional development and community/individual participation; and 2000- present cooperative and collaborative planning, environmental consciousness and resource orientation. The influence of the UNWTO cannot be overemphasised through some of these phases of change and evolution. Five broad approaches have been adopted through the evolution of tourism planning with each one having its distinct functional focus. These are: Boosterism – the seeming vastness of cultural and natural resources generated exploitation of the same for the sake of tourism development Economic/industry approach – characterised by economic growth, competition, market forces and returns in examination of social and environmental issues. Physical/spatial approach – emphasis on minimising the negative impacts of tourism on the physical environment Community oriented approach – partnership and local community participation in planning and decision making process and the process itself; a bottom-up form of planning. This approach has been identified as a difficult one in the face of government control and decisions being made for the communities without recourse to communal opinion or say so. Sustainable tourism approach – coordinative, iterative, integrative and strategic incorporation of economic, community and spatial approaches for sustainable development of tourism, while relying on government for regulation. Finally, to achieve sustainable tourism planning, five key mechanisms are expedient – cooperative and integrated control system; industry coordination; increased consumer awareness; increased producer awareness; and yielding of conventional planning to strategic planning. Ebenezer Howard’s Garden City Ebenezer Howard identified the need to carry out planning of cities considering the appalling state of the cities and urban areas in the late 1800s subsequent to the industrial revolution taking place across Europe. He recognised the importance of the preparing and implementing plans while giving much consideration to the influence of liberal democracy every step on the way i.e. the success of the planning process was very much dependent its reconciliation of the social and political ramifications within the target environment. Four democratic disjoints were identified and considered and a balance created between in his attempt at creating some semblance of structure in the urban development process of his garden cities. Inclusiveness vs decisiveness Central vs local control Rights vs utility Equality vs liberty In resolving the opposing inclusiveness and decisiveness, by portending that given the right conditions, a compromise will be reached towards making appropriate and timely decisions subsequent to the adoption of community and individual participation as well as cooperation in the planning process. Local interest although very essential in planning for and with members of the community, the need for concession to interests outside the immediate community and that of a central governing body is of critical importance for success to be achieved; thus bringing a balance between central and local control. A way towards reconciling between rights and utility, included adoption of collaboration between market utility, community utility and democratically established rights, at the local level. This involved upholding utility towards the ‘greater good’ of the community while not neglecting the importance of individual rights. Finally, Howard’s ideal required for individual interest and liberty to co-exist; such that personal freedom and collective responsibility were key factors in resolving the conflict between equality and liberty. Yet land was to be seen as a collective property demanding equality of ownership. Conclusion All three materials agree on imminent salient points in the planning process whether this is for a community, city, region and activities there within such as tourism. Howard’s idea of urban planning integrates social, economic and political (government) factors as essential towards a successful attainment of an ideal city while placing high importance on the need to involve members of the community in making decisions that concern the land around them. Tourism planning is not an end in itself, rather with adequate management it leads to the attainment of individual, community, corporate and governmental goals. In this vein, collective action by all stakeholders is imminent for the continued success of the process and survival of the resources on which tourism is based while yielding returns for continued growth of tourist destinations. REFERENCES March A. (2004). Democratic dilemmas, planning and Ebenezer Howard’s Garden city. Planning Perspectives. 19, 409-433. Gunn C. and Var T. (2002). Tourism planning: basics, concepts and cases. 4th ed. Routledge, New York. Hall C. M. and Lew A.A. (2009). Understanding and managing tourism impacts: an integrated approach. 1st ed. Routledge, New York Mason P. (2012). Tourism Impacts, planning and management. 1st ed. Routledge, New York The changing dimentions of tourism planning. Extract lecture note Fall 2012-2013 for course delivered by Dr. Habib Alipour

Equivocation and Double Meanings in Macbeth :: GCSE Coursework Macbeth Essays

Equivocation and Double Meanings in Macbeth Shakespeare uses equivocation not to confuse but to either get across multiple meanings or to leave dialogue and events in the play open ended. Equivocation can be seen with the witches and whenever they talk. The witches are themselves a vague set of characters who talk in a puzzling riddle-like manner. For instance when Macbeth goes to see them for the second time they are very vague about predicting his future, intentionally confusing him and making him overly confident. An example of this riddled dialogue goes like this: All (three witches): Listen, but speak not to't. Apparition: Be lion-mettled, proud, and take no care Who chafes, who frets, or where conspirers are: Macbeth shall never vanquish'd be until; Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill Shall come against him. Macbeth: That will never be: Who can impress the forest, bid the tree ... That excerpt shows how the witches twist and play with Macbeth's mind and feelings. By the end of the Apparition's lines, Macbeth is convinced he can not be killed by anyone, and so grows in confidence till seething and almost rupturing with it. It also shows Shakespeare's use of equivocation and how, unless certain lines are studied, their true, if vague, meaning cannot be seen or understood. The quoted phrase, â€Å"fair is foul and foul is fair† is used frequently, the phrase itself is an oxymoron. Early in the play the reader sees Macbeth as the hero because he has saved all of Scotland from the Norwegians. Duncan, honoring Macbeth, says, â€Å"More is thy due than more than all can pay.† (Act 1, Scene ) Towards the middle of the play the reader suddenly begins to pity Macbeth, slowly realizing his encroaching insanity for what it is, a downward spiral of death and increased mistakes. Finally, at the end of the play, the reader's opinion of Macbeth moves more towards hate and a feeling that Macbeth is unmistakably evil. As the second witch said: By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes: (-Act 4, Scene 1) Such is Macbeth's fair to foul story in a flash. There is also Lady Macbeth, Macduff, Malcolm, and Donalbain, and perhaps even Banquo. Each of these character's development follows the â€Å"fair is foul and foul is fair† format.

Integrating Mcdonald’s Business Essay

Abstract In this case study I will describe McDonald’s business strategy and how it differentiates itself from the competition and describe the roots that make the foundations of its competitive advantage. I will uncover how they have aligned their business, human resources and staffing strategies and been successful through a recession. Finally I will discuss some possible talent-related threats that could eat away at McDonald’s competitive advantage and answer the question about a high turnover rate in a tight labor market being a problem. I will offer a recommendation based on my research for McDonald’s to maintain their competitive edge in the marketplace for the next five years. Integrating McDonald’s Business, Human Resource, and Staffing Strategies How does a multinational company like McDonald’s actually become even stronger and increase sales through one of the worst recessions in history? McDonald’s is built on a foundation that gives it a competitive advantage and a business strategy that is consistent, flexible, and specialized. McDonald’s business strategy is the specialization strategy. According to Phillips & Gully (2009), â€Å"Businesses pursuing a specialization strategy focus on a narrow market segment or niche- a single product, a particular end use, or buyers with special needs-and pursue either a differentiation or cost-leadership strategy within that market segment. Successful businesses following a specialist strategy know their market segment very well, and often enjoy a high degree of customer loyalty† ( pg. 29, para 5.) McDonald’s niche market is people, how do people and their needs and wants become the roots of a company’s competitive advantage? Kiran Chetry at CNN had a discussion with the Vice president of strategy and menu at McDonald’s and this is what she said about what changed with McDonald’s â€Å"Well, there  are two things that’s really attributed to McDonald’s success. First and foremost, listening to our customers, its menu variety, its value and affordable prices at McDonald’s and the convenience that only McDonald’s can offer. The other piece is our system alignment around one plan. You know, under the arches we have a term called the three-legged stool. It’s our franchisees, our suppliers and our corporate staff working together. Those are the two things that have worked for McDonald’s and our success.† (Chetry, 2009, para 7.) The way they are able to fuse their business, human resource and staffing strategies is by tracking key indicators. Indicators that track product, service quality, speed, accuracy, turnover, productivity, customer satisfaction, sales and profitability are the keys to a successful strategy. An article written by Janet Adamy for The Wall Street Journal stated â€Å"McDonald’s has been on a roll since 2003, when, to get out of a slump, it halted rapid expansion and instead focused on improving the food. (Adamy, 2009, para 11.) she goes on to say â€Å"Behind the effort is an increased focus on examining reams of customer data measuring everything from whether customers are trading down to smaller value meals or dropping Cokes from their orders to exactly how much they’re willing to pay for a Big Mac.† (Adamy, 2009, para 13.) McDonald’s has refocused its efforts and realized the importance of providing customers with quality food in a clean and organized environment with quick service at an affordable price. To bring all these things to their customers they need quality staff and they have built a strategy of hiring internally from referrals and marketing jobs in their restaurants. Now that the worst has seemed to pass with regards to the recession, the reality is that there could be some real talent-related threats to their labor pool. To keep a competitive advantage to offset possible turnover as more jobs open up and the labor market eventually tightens up the company has to find an incentive to keep the young and older potential applicants from going elsewhere and also retaining the quality of employees that they have. The best way for a brand like McDonalds to attract and keep quality individuals is to offer incentives for growth within the company through education and leadership training. If they can open the window for ownership through a system of mentorship and promotion, the old stigma of getting a job â€Å"flipping burgers† becomes more like an apprenticeship in entrepreneurial opportunities that every employee will  embrace. If an employee doesn’t want to eventually own a franchise but wants to lean on becoming and going into management within the company, a succession of internal promotions based on merit, longevity, production, and talent reviews would also be available for these types of employees. McDonalds is doing the right things when it comes to changing their menu and food and beverage selection to accommodate the needs of their customers. This has helped the company grow its net income from over 1 billion dollars in 2003 to over 4 billion dollars in 2008. (Adamy, 2009, para 15) The intricate parts and components of the people that McDonalds hires and the way they train them to keep the service and quality at the standards that they nee d to be at to be successful are the keys of success for this business and any business for that matter. References Adamy, Janet (2009). McDonald’s Seeks Way To Keep Sizzling. The WallStreet Journal.Digital Network, March 10, 2009. Retrieved from http://online.wsj.com/article/NA_WSJ_PUB:SB123664077802177333.html Phillips, J. & Gully, S. (2009). Strategic staffing. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall Chetry, Kiran (2009). Food for thought: Why is McDonald’s thriving? CNN.COM, March 18, 2009. Retrieved from http://articles.cnn.com/2009-03-18/us/wells.qanda_1_mcdonald-kiran-chetry-prices?