The Bible teaches us to help and serve others yet, at the same time, it also teaches us to trust our abilities, be optimistic and always believe in the power of God. A Christian home-based business is an excellent opportunity for retirees to make money in their free time, single mothers looking for ways to supplement their income and also for anyone who wants to spread the word of God, while helping themselves or their family financially.There are several good Christian home based business opportunities for Christians, all of which tie business with God. It is a wonderful means to an end and sets to seal your faith even more. Although, before you embark on this spiritual journey, it is important to understand that God is there to guide you but you must create a way for yourself. So, if you are not successful at first, don’t quit trying. He has provided wonderful ways through which you can research and learn more about building your business, contact people have done similar things or quite simply, search the Internet – you will definitely find your answers there.1) Bookstore:A good Christian home based business is creating an online Christian bookstore, which will help you spread the word of God worldwide. Of course, you will require some kind of capital, management skills and marketing skills to get it up and running and getting users to buy the books. This will need a little online advertising and some knowledge of search engine optimisation – both of which can easily be obtained through online resources.2) Marketing:Another similar service would be marketing Christian goods & services as a Christian home based business, connecting with other Christians and helping them market their products, similar to what affiliate programs do. Fund raising for the church, through a web-based medium, is also a philanthropic way to earn money while helping the church help humanity and sell services to help fellow Christians.3) Online Presence – Affiliate Programs:Both these tasks may seem a little daunting and may not work if you don’t spend a lot of time trying to make them work. A relatively simpler solution in looking for a Christian home based business is creating a blog or website, writing reviews of Christian products and services and then linking them with corresponding products on Amazon or other websites that offer affiliate programs. Again, you’ll have to write a good number of reviews to increase your blog ranking. A good option also is to submit the review rewrites on sites such as EzineArticles – these sites get really good traffic and can help your business grow.4) Network Marketing:Network marketing is also a good option for a Christian home based business; you can start building your distributor network from your church members. Companies such as Melaleuca, Amway, Xango etc offer good compensation plans and products, all designed to help people achieve financial independence while educating them about things like health, fitness etc.The key to the success of a good Christian home based business is to have a business that reflects the power and belief you have in faith & God but don’t run a business only to prove your faith to God, which would contradict the principles of Christianity.We warn you of all the many schemes and scams that are out there. One area to look for to relieve you of any concerns is a company that offers a top notch mentoring program. If there is a real flesh and blood person on the other side, to train you, to guide and to support and believe in you then it is unlikely that the company is not for real. This can be considered the most important area if you are a person looking for a Christian home based business.
Introduction to Marketing – Part Seven: Pricing Strategy
Part Seven: Pricing Strategy
Pricing and customer value are closely linked. Basically stated, the value a customer places in a product and brand is indicated by how much they are willing to give up, usually in the form of money. The price is the monetary value set by an organisation at a level they believe is worthy of their offering. However, if a customer wants a product, but the price is too high, their value analysis of the trade is lower than the price set and they won’t make a trade.
This ‘trade’ for a customer, which is the price set from the perspective of the organisation, comes in many forms, such as rent, tuition, fees, fares, tolls, premiums, commissions, incentives and even bribes. Price is the only element of the marketing mix that produces an income for an organisation in the form of revenue. It is the one part of the marketing mix that is the easiest to adjust quickly, which is as to why organisations often opt to that element to spur a customer response to their offering, over changing the product itself, its promotion, people or distribution methods.
Bribes may be illegal in certain countries and acceptable in others, however in the illegal countries, it may be classed as other things, such as perks and added bonuses.
Who Sets the Price?
It is a typical accounting argument, where an accounting department of an organisation may believe it is their responsibility given that pricing involves monetary terms. This would be all well-and-good if the price was a simple recuperation of costs for the organisation. However, it is not that simple: pricing of a product speaks volumes to consumers.
This is why the task of setting price is with the marketing department: as the consumer receives a whole lot of messaging from the setting of the price alone. It signals to a customer what positioning and image the brand and product has. If it is expensive, often consumers will use it as a surrogate indicator for a judge of quality. This is most common in the wine industry, where higher priced wines are often thought of immediately as better in consumption.
Therefore, marketing manage the price setting tasks as it indicates much more than simply cost plus profit. It isn’t a simple equation- it takes the department familiar with communicating with the target audience, as price is just another communication stream.
Price and Demand
As can be expected, the price of a particular product directly impacts on the amount of demand it receives from customers. The actual relationship is known as the economic term of price elasticity. Whilst in reality, nothing works as simply as economic models suggest, in general, a product with a high price elasticity of demand means that a change in price results in a large, corresponding change in quantity purchased. Luxury and nonessential products tend to be within this category, as a large price increase will greatly drop demand, and visa-versa.
A low price elasticity of demand means that a change in price will not greatly affect demand shifts- this is known as inelastic demand. Less substitutable products and essentials full into these categories as, within reason, when price shifts, consumers still require them.
A more realistic approach to price and demand prediction is more toward the idea of pricing points. For example, if the price is high and quantity is purchased for a luxury brand, and the price is suddenly dropped, initially, the demand would increase as consumers believe there is more value. However dropping the price further may then decrease demand, as consumers start to feel that the luxury brand is losing its exclusivity. This makes demand fall.
All of these types of factors must be taken into account by the marketing department when setting price of their products.
The Pricing Phenomena
As much as economic theory attempts to assume that consumers are rational, they just aren’t when it comes to purchasing. The perceptions of value and price given by an individual consumer is so unpredictable that it takes the function of marketing research to really delve into why consumers think and act as they do.
Take, for example, bridal products. Large organisations over charge for pretty much everything to do with ‘the big day’, however the consumer is more than willing to pay as it’s more of an emotional purchase rather than a rational, ‘utility maximisation’ purchase. A bride doesn’t want a cheaper product, even if it is the same as an expensive version, as they value feeling expensive and exclusive and therefore justify the high prices.
Pricing as an Information Cue
As discussed before, price can be used as a surrogate indicator of quality, even if it’s not true. In the customers mind, higher price raises expectations as the amount they have to trade for it is high. There are two associated pricing techniques relevant to pricing as a communicative device:
(1) Price Skimming- this refers to setting the price very high, thus skimming the very top of the market’s customers. This creates an aura of prestige and/or technologically advanced status and is a good way to recuperate research and development costs, control initial demand and supply and generate high profit. However the product must justify this image if this technique is used.
(2) Price Penetration- this is when a product’s price is set very low to attract high quantities of sales and obtain large uptake in the market before a competitor.
(3) Yield Pricing- setting the pricing to manage exact quantities of purchasing. For example, if stock is perishable, the price may be discounted to increase numbers and then when supply is short, the price rises to manage this.
(4) Volume Pricing- setting a price to ensure high sale/bulk volume purchasing over profit per unit.
(5) Loss Leader- Pricing at a loss per unit to encourage impulse, related purchasing of other products in the same offering.
Pricing strategy all depends on the organisation’s justification and rationalisation of all aspects of their marketing strategy.
Pricing and the Psychology Of Consumption
There is a directly psychological relation between pricing/cost and the consumption rationale of a consumer. Most organisations do not draw attention to the price as it represents a cost to the consumer, and they would much rather the consumer benefit from the product’s value rather than them dwelling on how much they paid for it. This makes sense. This is why some organisations offer upfront bulk payments, season passes, bundling and so on.
However, as mentioned previously, consumers aren’t always rationale and sometimes, the constant reminder of cost is motivating for them. Basically, a consumer who doesn’t utilise their purchase will actively make a decision to not rebuy it. This means that charging upfront could make the consumer forget about the product (e.g.: a gym membership), and once they forget, they will not justify a repurchase, however smaller costs more regularly are more manageable in a consumer’s mind and the constant reminder stimulates motivation for consumption, and therefore repeat purchase.
It all depends on the organisation’s product offering and pricing strategy as to what approach they take.
Internal Pricing Factors: Objective Based
There are different types of objectives of consideration when setting a price, aiming to achieve a particular goal.
(1) Financial
These are strictly about monetary goals, such as setting price to achieve a gross profit margin of 23%, or Return On Investment (ROI) by 12% this year.
(2) Marketing
These revolve around market and consumer focused goals, such as increasing market share, gaining more consumer awareness or increasing brand loyalty.
(3) Societal
Pricing is set by the organisation based on managing a societal rationale. For example, adding into the cost a donation to charity, or carbon offsetting.
Internal Pricing Factors: The Marketing Mix
Does the marketing plan and current marketing mix support the proposed price? In other words, is the price set consistent with the expectations a consumer would have given the rest of the product’s attributes. The price must be reasonably consistent and in context with the product’s design, process, distribution, people, reputation, brand and positioning.
Internal Pricing Factors: The Market Classification
Pricing is also very subject to the type of market the product exists in. In a monopoly, there is only one offering organisation, so excusing government regulation, pricing can be set at whatever they wish. In an oligopoly, where there are a two to five large main players in the market, the strategy tends to be a lead and follow pricing strategy, basing price off the movements of the main competitors.
In a perfect competition market, where the product is an identical commodity, the price solely depends on the supply and demand of the time.
In a monopolistic competitive market, which is the typically normal market where many organisations are within a market offering substitutable yet differentiated products, pricing is set based more on each organisation’s marketing plan.
Internal Pricing Factors: Organisational Considerations
Naturally, the management within an organisation decides who best to set the prices of all the elements within the product offering- this is known as the pricing process. Typically, in smaller organisations, price is usually set by management but in larger organisations, it is set by product managers within the marketing team. The most important part is that the person or people that set the price must have well informed insights into the customer and their perception of value.
Revisiting the Concept of Customer Value
Remember that customer value is total benefits over the total costs. Costs include a lot of pricing, such as the initial purchase price, maintenance and repair costs, ongoing fees, installation, training, financing and so on.
The benefits of the product, such as performance, features and quality must outweigh all of the prices and costs to be worth the value to the customer.
Approaches to Pricing
There are three main approaches to setting a price.
(1) Cost-Based
Basing the pricing barriers (such as the price floor- the lowest possible price), on how much the product costs to produce. Generally, if fixed costs are quite high, a part of the price is set lower to maximise volume sold. If variable costs are high, price can be set to maximise the per unit margin.
The issue, again, is that this pricing is based on internal measures, rather than on the target market, and could communicate the incorrect message to them. Still, the cost-based approach can be a background consideration.
(2) Competition-Based
As the name suggests, this is basing it on however the competition prices and differentiating a product based on their pricing strategy. However this assumes that the competitor has a good grasp on the target market.
(3) Value-Based
This approach bases costs on what level of value the target market places on the product itself. Then, the organisation can employ a price skimming strategy (pricing at the top value), price penetration (pricing at the lowest value) or somewhere in between. This requires a bit of research to discover what attributes and expectations the customer values the most and pricing it on this.
In reality, there should be a blend of the approaches. The price ceiling (or the price point at which demand becomes zero) should be set at the top, and the price floor (or the price point at which profit becomes zero) should be established first. The Price ceiling represents customer perception of value and the price floor represents the consideration for product cost.
The price is then set in the middle, in between these points, with all factors such as marketing strategy, objectives, competitors and market place factors taken into consideration here to find the ideal price.
The Value Based Approach
Basing pricing strategy on the target market is an obvious choice, given the impact price has in communicating with the target market. Through starting with the customer’s value and working backward, a price can be settled on that will allow an organisation to best maximise the price per segment and manage customer value perceptions.
The Gift Economy
With technology increasing so rapidly, a ‘gift-economy’ also referred to often as a ‘free-love’ economy has emerged. This is where an organisation offers their main product as free and finds another solid revenue stream to gain profit from. Search engines are a good example of this, where the search function is free, but the Google adword service and other advertisements and services are paid for.
The issue with this is the consumers lose the perception of value when products, such as music and news) are available for free, online. This shift in mind-set is a rapid game changer for a lot of organisations as consumers start to question why they are paying for specific products. For example, years ago, customers would purchase a newspaper, because they saw the value as worth the money, however today, when news is so rapidly available online, they can no longer justify paying for it.
Today, organisations are creating business models where the consumer doesn’t pay and then charges associated organisations for their access to these customers, such as YouTube or social media advertising.
This has the risk of becoming so extreme that it may get to a point where organisations will pay or reward the customer to use their product, rather the other way around, just to give them access to the customer to sell this onto other organisations for profit.
However, there is a predicted limit with this as over-exposure to secondary ads and the other revenue-gaining ‘add-ons’ will render them ineffective and these secondary organisations will avoid these business models.
The Freemium
This relates to the new pricing technique known as ‘freemium’. A freemium is when an organisation gives the basic level product to the consumer for free and then charges for the premium use of it. This is very evident in free phone apps on smart phones, where the basic app is free to download and use, however the customer must pay to get the ad-free version or open up all of the service for them to use.
The Bait-and-Hook
A pricing technique where the main product is free or extremely discounted, however then the customer must purchase an expensive associated product to utilise the main product. An example of this is office printers, where the printer is given for free, and the customer has to purchase the paper and print ink off the printer’s organisation.
Online and Distance Education
As time passes, people gets more busy and don’t have time for their selves. For successful life education has its own importance. Many people don’t get time to continue their education. But due to technological advances there are many ways to continue their education with their job. Distance learning programs and online education system is quite common now a days.
Distance learning program are specially designed for students who are not able to continue their education. In this system of education you don’t need to attend classes and lectures, they use other resources to understand their subject. Normally distance learning and online education systems provides printouts, CD, voice chat, web cameras for talking to your instructors easily. All these resources are available easily and very helpful. People think that online education system is not reliable and beneficial. But it is very beneficial system.
There are many courses which are not available at every university and every country and city. Through online education system, any person from anywhere can enroll himself in his favorite course and get degree without migrating from one country to another. Chat rooms and message boards at different forums are used as well as a important tool. People from different countries and cultures have conversation with each other and discuss their course which give them more knowledge. In face to face education system, student more rely on their teachers and almost fully dependent on them but on the other hand, in online education system students have to gather information from different resources which give them opportunity to think about the same topic with different perspective.
Another important feature of online and distance learning programs is that every student take part in classes. In face to face programs most students don’t get opportunity to discuss every topic due to limited time and other extra efficient students but in online education programs every student have to take part on discussion boards.
Before starting your online education you should be careful that you don’t get fooled yourself with any unauthentic university degrees or fake degrees. Do some research before enrolling yourself? Further more make sure that university will provide you complete assistance online during the full course because student support is very important in online education system. Analyze your cost and benefits you get from them. In online education determination and time management is very important. Obviously there is no time limit for attending classes, therefore you need to as there are no teachers for your guidance you have to be in contact with your virtual class fellows, and they are very cooperative with each other.
Besides other benefits one more benefit of online education is that there is no time period for contacting your instructor like in face to face system. If you need help you can mail your problem to your instructor or your any virtual class fellow and you will get answer within minutes. Another benefit is that it has no limited seats. In face to face classes if student want to take admission in evening class then there is a possibility that the university has limited seats.
From the above discussion we can say that online education system is very beneficial and very supporting. But it is true as well that every student and every instructor do not fit into this system and they don’t get benefited with it. But it is very convenient way of education for many students and teachers who cannot make them available for regular classes.