Xinyi’s blog post has caught my attention because the Christmas advertisement has thawed my heart. Xinyi’s post is about the most recent released Christmas advertisement, Monty’s Christmas, which is an advertisement hoping to promote Monty’s products while telling a touching story between a little boy and his penguin Monty.

During Christmas season, it is usual that people will spend a lot of money on purchasing Christmas presents for their families and friends. The most common way that companies use to attract these customers is by offering different deals and discounts before Christmas season. Xinyi mentioned that point of difference is the reason why Monty is so successful and I totally agree with her point of view. Although there are other companies in the market that are selling similar products, the different marketing style has made Monty’s products so unique and stands out from other companies . Also, as Xinyi has mentioned, the customers segment for this Christmas advertisement is mainly parents and children. I think that this advertisement has capture public’s imagination, couples especially with young kids can easily connect their kids with the little boy in the video. This will create a chance that they will want to purchase Monty’s products for their kids. Point of difference is the main reason why people shown a higher interest in Monty’s products.

New Article

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Many studies have shown that people are now more willing to switch to support brands or companies that practice corporate social responsibility.

According to the new article, The Walt Disney Company is a perfect example that practices corporate social responsibility. In 2009, The Walt Disney Company was named as “A Leader in Corporate Social Responsibility”, which focus on different aspects including environment, community, labor standards, and volunteerism. The company itself plays a huge role in helping the society by donating money to charities; and recently the company has decided to raise their awareness on natural disasters.

It will be beneficial to the companies if they practice corporate social responsibility. Firstly, this will help to the company to strengthen its brand or company name. Company as a whole will be better known and this will help the company to build a better reputation. As the company becomes better known, this will help to increase the number of satisfied customers that support the company.

Of course, earning profits is the goal for every single business. At the same time, I think it is also important to think about helping people who needed by giving back to the society no mater how large and small the contribution is.

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Which company would be the best place for me to work at after university? Similar questions always appear in undergraduate students mind. According to a video, the survey has shown that working at Google is the top choice for commerce students, one of the top 5 choices for humanities students and even students in health and science want to work at Google.

I picked Lindsey Burke’s blog because I find her blog informative and I like the simple way she used to express her opinions. I totally agree with Lindsey where she thinks that Google’s culture is what makes Google stand out from other competitors. Lindsey also mentioned that Google offers “out-of-the-box” benefits to their employees in different areas such as covering employees’ insurance, reimburse employees’ degree program, providing convenient medical service, etc.

Organizational culture was discussed by the professor in pervious lecture (class 19), which can directly link to why everyone wants to work for Google. A company having an organization culture will help to develop a strong and close relationship between employers and employees. Employees will be willing to stay at a company where they enjoy working.

The organizational culture at Google is unique and a smart idea compare with other companies and this makes Google an attractive and fun place to work for. I think that is the key reason why everyone wants to work for Google.

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This article has caught my attention because as a big fan of 759 Store, I am curious about why is 759 Store so successful. 759 Store is a convenience chain store located in Hong Kong. Until now, 759 Store has expanded its company size up to 187 stores, which are all located in Hong Kong. 759 Stores mainly import Japanese and Korean food items and sell them to their customers at a lower price compared with other snack stores that are also located in Hong Kong.

In my opinion, I think there are three big reasons behind that make 759 Store so successful. Firstly, product differentiation is 759’s selling point.  Coils Lam (the owner of the 759 Store) chooses to start a business that is new to the market. This makes 759 Stores more attractive. Coils Lam mentioned that, “Before 759, there were no shops focusing on Japanese and Korean snacks at a reasonable price”, this makes 759 Store so unique when it is competing with other companies in the same market. Secondly, 759 Stores are really convenience; there is always a store nearby. Lastly, Coil Lam pays his employees with a reasonable salary and he hopes that his employees will enjoy themselves while working. These are the reasons why the 759 Store business is so successful when comparing with other snack stores in the market.

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In previous lecture, we have discussed about business ethics. It is important for companies to earn profits, but they should take business ethics into consideration while running their business.

Victoria’s Secret, Toys ‘R’ Us, Forever 21, Aeropostale, Apple, and Nike are the companies mentioned in the article that were found out that they were using child and slave labor.

Overvalue between short-term and long term might be the reason why companies are not running their business with ethical behavior. In short-term, it might be true that using child and slave labor will lower their production costs, but it is more beneficial if the company runs its business with ethical behavior. Firstly, in long-term, running a company with business ethics will tend to have more consumer support and this will lead to higher revenue. Secondly, running a company with business ethics will help the company to gain recognition and this will help to improve the brand name of the company. Lastly, running a company with business ethics will help to motivate the employees. Employee motivation is important because as the employees are enjoying working in the company, they will be more loyal to the company and this will help to increase their work efficiency.

In conclusion, as the company behaves ethically, customers will come atomically and they will help to increase the company’s profit.

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According to the article, the BC Hydro has planned on an 8 billion site C hydroelectric megaproject, which BC Hydro hopes to build a dam and 1,100-megawatt hydroelectric generating station on the Peace River in northeastern BC. However, the representatives of the BC First Nation chiefs highly encourage the government to reject this project due to several of reasons.

Supporting the hydroelectric megaproject will have a great impact on the First Nation’s homeland.

(1)Supporting the project will destroy First Nation’s farmland

(2)Supporting the project will cause a huge effect on fishing opportunities for the First Nation

(3)Supporting the project will use and occupy the area which belong to the First Nation people who use that area for ceremonies purposes

Personally speaking, before deciding whether to support or to reject the hydroelectric megaproject, I think the government should carefully consider both the benefits and the cost of the hydroelectric megaproject. I think that there isn’t a need to implementation the hydroelectric megaproject on the Peace River until this point. Also, since the Peace River is the homeland for many First Nation people, I think the government should show respect to them by talking and communicating with their representatives before destroying  their homeland.

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According to the news, Hong Kong government decided to raise the minimum wage of Hong Kong employees from H.K. $28 to H.K. $30 per hour on May 1, 2013. The chat is showing the minimum wages around the world, which Australia has the highest minimum wage of U.S.$16.88 per hour and Hong Kong has a relative low minimum wage of only U.S. $3.87 per hour.

In my opinion, many Hong Kong citizens, especially the low-income employees are suffering from the inflation, it is hard for employees to survive with such a low minimum wage in Hong Kong. But there are both pros and cons for raising the minimum wage.

Pros

– Raising the minimum wage will help people live out of poverty and will also help them to improve their living qualities.

–       Raising the minimum wage will help the overall economy because as people are earning a higher income, they will be more willing to consume goods and services that are in higher price.

Cons

–       Raising the minimum wage might lead to unemployment which means less job opportunities due to a decrease in demand for labour.

–       Raising the minimum encourage teenagers to spend most of their time on part- part job instead of attending school.

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Winnie’s blog is about how most of the people around the world are crazy fighting for the newest iphone 6. I totally agree with Winnie’s point of view, people are so crazy because Apple has an outstanding brand reputation. However, I don’t think this is the most critical reason, I think there are other reasons behind which make Apple such a successful company and become a threat to other companies.

I am interested in Winnie’ blog because I am a big fan of Apple’s products. As an iphone and a macbook user, there are a lot of reasons for me to purchase Apple’s products. Firstly, as Winnie has mentioned, Apple has established strong brand name and this is why people are trusting Apple’s products.  Secondly, Apple is a worldwide company, which also offers great in store customer services. You will always find an Apple store somewhere near you. Also, if you have any problem with any of your Apple products, you can always book an appointment online. Thirdly, I find Apple’s products easy to use since Apple’s products are all really similar to each other. Lastly, some people might consider Apple’s products expensive but I find Apple’s products very durable which I can use it for a long period of time. These are the reasons why I think Apple is so successful compare with other companies.

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The demand for eco-friendly products are recently increasing, more and more companies around the world are now willing to spend extra time and efforts to create and produce eco-friendly products. Although eco-friendly products might lead to a higher cost in production and a lower profit for the company, companies like Toms Shoes, Delikate Rayne in Los Angeles are stilling willing to produce eco-friendly products for their consumers.

According to the news articles (1), (2), (3), it is clear that people are now more willing to pay a higher price for eco-friendly products. There are several reasons that can explain this unusual trend. Due to promotions from government, environmental organizations and the raise in education level, people are now becoming more concern and aware about their environment. Consumers are willing to pay a higher price for eco-friendly products because they understand that this will help to reduce many environmental related issues such as global warming and pollution problems. Also, eco-friendly product has become a fashionable trend because of its special designs and packing, that’s why people are willing to pay a higher price for what they want.

I personally think that it is a great idea to support the green business because it is our responsibilities to protect our planet for our next generations and us.

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From this article, Apple admits that they were using underage labour and the audit report has also shown that Apple was using overworking staff and some staff was even paying less than the minimum wage.

From my point of view, child labour is illegal in many countries and I am strongly disagreed on child labour for several reasons. Firstly, these companies are taking away children’s childhood which they should be continuing their education. This will hugely affect the future of the children since they are not educated, it will be hard for them to compete with other people when they grow up and work in their future societies. Secondly, it is dangerous for underage labour to work in factories and also the ability for children to work is much lower than adults so this might turn down the efficiency of the factories. Lastly, since most of the children were forced to work in the factory, they might not be using their whole effort and energy to work for the factories (idea from the video-Freeman’s Stakeholder Theory).

I think the government should pay more attention on these issues and address laws to prevent factories from hiring underage labour and using overworking staff.

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