A Hand Guide to Successful Internet Marketing and Site Promotion

OK, I’m hot. I’m not complaining because back in the winter when it was the very opposite of hot, I swore I wouldn’t complain when it got hot. The fan on my computer seems to have a brain of its own and it is humming away at an unusually fast pace. I think the computer is hot.

So why oh why would want to be reading an article about eMarketing in the aftermarket? It gives you an excuse to put your feet up on the desk, sip that iced tea and learn something that can move your company forward in the branding and marketing arena at a very low cost. When your boss sees the increases in requests coming off the ‘Net and he knows he didn’t have to add bodies to the budget, he will think you have been working very, very hard. That’s a good thing.

A couple of weeks ago, I was asked to lead the eMarketing Panel at the Aftermarket eForum in Chicago. Some of the information herein was to be presented there, but due to scheduling and time conflicts, I had to move through it pretty quickly. So, if you attended the eForum and missed out, here’s your chance to catch up.

Let’s skip right to the goodies, now. Our project for today is foundational. If you haven’t already done so, (and you probably haven’t) you need to create a spreadsheet. Don’t fret, there isn’t any math involved. This spreadsheet is the basic tool you are going to use to track two things for the rest of your eMarketing career, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay Per Click (PPC).

Do this.

First, write a list of all the key phrases that you can think of for your product mix. Let’s use my favorite as an example; Sparkplugs. Your key phrase list would consist of thing like spark plugs, sparkplugs, spark plug, sparkplug, Honda sparkplug, igniter, iridium spark plug, iridium sparkplug, etc. In the first column of the spreadsheet, enter all of these key phrases. Note that I have included sparkplug as one word and as two words.

Next, Set up an account at Overture.com. This is a part of Yahoo! and is actually now called Yahoo! Search Marketing. You can use your own credit card for this if the boss is out of town, because we aren’t going to spend any money with it. We are going to use it to track down some additional key phrases and get the numbers of actual searches per month for each of these key phrases. Once you are in and have established an account, go to keyword tools and start entering your brainstormed key phrases one at a time. The Overture key word tool will tell you how often searches are performed for your key phrases and suggest additional key phrases. Add the additional ones to your spreadsheet. In the second column of your spreadsheet enter the number of times per month that each key phrase is searched for.

Finally, Create columns to track your rankings on some of the search engines. There are a number of tools available that you can use or you can actually go to each site and type in the key phrase. I like http://www.googlerankings.com, where you can enter up to ten key phrases at a time and check them against, Google, Yahoo and MSN. This does take some time. Each search is about 20 seconds or so. You will need to get your Google API number to do this. Go here to get that puppy, https://www.google.com/accounts

You are going to check your rankings on each of the search engines you choose. Heres an example of words I have tracked, from 1/5 to 6/5

-NGK Spark Plug with 3862 searches

-Performance Plug with 4190 searches

-Honda Sparkplug with 5583 searches

-Champion Spark Plug with 5600 searches

-Oxygen sensor with 6325 searches

-spark plug with 10456 searches

These are clearly important key phrases for this business as evidenced by the number of searches/month being performed for each. In the example above, through a combination of great SEO, appropriate Pay Per Click and a bit of luck we moved up 1 point for “NGK Spark Plugs” over five month period at Google. We went from non existent to first at Yahoo for “Champion Spark Plug”, climbed two points for “spark plug” at Google and also did very well for the same key phrase at Yahoo.

Again, these charts you will create are the foundation for everything you do. If you want to build traffic to a number of different websites that you own, then you need to build a sheet for each website.

Some 75% of users will find your websites through directories and search engines. That means they are going to type in XM Radio or Running boards, as in our previous example or motor oil or whatever and then click on one of the results that are presented. If you have done your Pay Per Click effectively (look for the PPC article in a future installment or go to http://www.digstrat.com and view the PPC Webinar I did for SEMA in June), at least you can be guaranteed of a presence in the paid results. But what about the natural search results?

In May of ’04, a Search Engine User Attitudes Survey by iProspect indicated:

*60.5 percent of Google, Yahoo!, MSN and AOL users selected a natural search result over paid search advertisements as the most relevant on a sample query. We can’t ignore 60+ percent of users, so how can we work to make sure that we show up as high as possible on the page in the natural search results for our chosen key words? It all starts with measuring, as in the spreadsheet example above. The folks at Lund International says, “If it’s worth doing, its worth measuring” (I have that from a very good inside source, who shall remain anonymous).

Basic Search Engine Optimization

Search engines vary in the way they use the information on your website to rank your pages in natural search results. Google, for instance, no longer uses Meta Tags (see below) to determine relevance. Most other search engines still do. Let’s keep this simple by talking about the 3 most important SEO issues.

Page titles. What does it say in the blue bar at the top of your webpage? The title tag is an important way that search engines determine the relevance of your website to a particular search. The earlier the key words appear in your title bar, the higher your ranking (generally) for that key word. If your title bar says, Welcome to the fantastic website of Wingding Industries, maker of all kinds of tail lights for your car and truck. Then your title tags are optimized for the words “Welcome, to, the, fantastic” and not much else. Use your keyword master spreadsheet to position your important keywords toward the beginning of your title tag. If tail lights is your important keyword, then try “Tail lights for your car and truck made by Wingding Industries”.

Meta Tags. Despite the fact that Google no longer uses Meta Tags to determine relevancy to a particular search, almost all of the other search engines do. In your web page code there is an HTML tag called, “Meta Tags”. This is an area of the code where you can list all of your important key words or phrases, thereby increasing the possibility of a higher position when someone searches on those words and phrases. It is recommended that you don’t use a particular key word more than 3 or 4 times as you will be penalized by the search engines for trying to spam them.

Content. Content has become increasingly important for a number of reasons. First, it is our belief from monitoring all of the various search engine commentators that key words that appear high on the webpage in text format are utilized by the search engines to determine relevancy of the site for those key words. In other words, if you are a site whose important key words include sparkplugs and oxygen sensors, that those words should be used in the text that appears near the top of your web page.

Secondly, the more content you have about a particular subject, again let’s use sparkplugs as the example, the more relevant the page actually is to the person searching for information about sparkplugs. Your site will gain in popularity among those looking for sparkplug information and will therefore be ranked higher by the search engines when they display results for sparkplug-related searches. This is true for content that in the form of chats, forums and blogs as well.

This brings up the point that the popularity of your website also plays an important part in your search standings. The more popular your website is for a given topic, the higher your listing will appear on the search results page.

One further point about search relevancy. It is a process. If you do a really great job on your page titles and meta tags and provide valuable content for a particular topic, over time, your website will continue to rise in the search results. Success begets success for search results ranking.

Let me mention one further idea. You can’t rank highly for a huge amount of diverse keywords, but you can build web pages targeting a specific topic. If you sell Sparkplugs and Oxygen sensors, you might want to build a set of pages devoted to sparkplugs and a second set of pages devoted to oxygen sensors. You can build these within a single URL or develop separate URL’s for each topic.

Next quarter (I hope it doesn’t take me that long) we will take a look at how to stay top of mind with our customers through an almost free little trick called email Marketing.

Internet Marketing Assistant – The Four Vital I’s of Internet Marketing

Electronic marketing, web marketing, online marketing or internet marketing whatever you choose to call it, is the buzz of today.

To understand why, let us explore the four vital I’s of Internet Marketing:

Internet - Internet is ‘the place’ for you if expansion of your business territory is a prime objective. Internet has redefined marketing in more ways than one and brought about some amazing innovations in the field of web marketing. Today, we have internet marketing companies working hand-in-hand with their global partners and helping them achieve success.

Interactivity - One of the strongest attributes of weaving a sound marketing strategy around the internet is the fact that it is one of the most interactive of mediums available today. All the communication happening over the internet is instant. You get immediate reactions to your campaign strategies and also enjoy the luxury of revisiting the strategy to make it even better without any time lag.

Innovation - Even if drifting away from your core competency areas is a concern and you aren’t able to devote the time required for this religious exercise there is help available in the form of virtual assistant services. Now an internet marketing assistant can be engaged from any corner of the globe to assist you in your online marketing campaigns. So get innovative with your internet marketing campaign and hire one today.

Increase - Whether you find time to handle it yourself or you hire an internet marketing assistant to do it for you the end result will surely put your business on a bigger market territory. You are bound to witness an increase in sales if the strategies followed are in sync with the changing times. An expert internet marketing company can help you in this regard by following best global practices when it comes to online marketing.

If you haven’t already introduced internet marketing strategies for you business, it is high time you hit on that gas pedal and do it now. For the world has already witnessed the power of the internet and its immense potential in capturing new and unchartered territories for a business.

Elements For Home Based Business Recommendations

Home based businesses seem to be among the favorite business recommendations currently as options to most business-minded people at this time of recession. This can be attributed to the fact that this is more convenient compared to its counterparts. For this reason, many recommendations are available today. This article aims to give the essential elements that these business recommendations should have.How do people take home based business recommendations as part of their options in their solution set for recession? This is very useful and informative in gaining access toward getting the right business for you while you are in the comfort of your home. Hence, you should give time to read the various recommendations currently available in the market.As part of your business research, in the following paragraphs are the 6 essential elements that you should look for in whatever home based business you choose among the recommendations you are considering.First, find out the initial start-up cost. This is important since you have to take into consideration your financial readiness. Is the start-up cost within your means? If not, are there financing options available for you? Consider your financial capacity to know if the recommended home based business fits for you.Second, identify the home based business offering to know if the products or services offered are truly marketable and have unique features. It is also important for you to determine the target customers and the consistent availability of the business offering.Third, ask if there are available trainings to educate you on how to carry out the marketing strategy effectively to gather customers consistently. Your marketing skills should be enhanced by these trainings. This is a major concern to ensure maximum revenues and to increase investment returns.Fourth, know the compensation plan. How is the remuneration implemented? Look for the criteria that determine the amount of compensation. Are there incentives available for any successful or impressive sales achievement?Fifth, research on the effectiveness of the home based business system in place. Does it show good performance and stability in the market? Is it managed by experienced people with competitive skills, integrity, and credibility?Finally, familiarize yourself with the recommended marketing tools. Do these marketing tools facilitate distribution and sales of the products or services offered? How are these products or services promoted? You should be able to figure out the applicability and effectiveness of these tools in reaching out to your target customers and in generating revenues.The above-stated elements are essential for you to ensure that the home based business recommendation you have chosen has profitability and has the potential to gain sustainable success.

It’s Time to Take Your Home Based Business to the Masses With Social Media

You’ve heard the buzz words social media. You know that sites such as Facebook and Twitter are trendy right now. In fact, you probably even have personal pages on these popular sites. But, as a home based business owner, how do you make the most of social media for your business?The latest trend in promotions is the advent of social media tools that allow home based business owners like you to build relationships with thousands of potential customers through social media networks such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. These sites are no longer simply for people looking to post photos and chat with friends or relatives – many Fortune 500 companies and small businesses alike have discovered the value of social media, and have established a presence through corporate pages and consistent interaction with prospective clients.As a home based business owner, you need to be there too.Social media is a critical component of any good marketing strategy because it allows you to build online fans and followers, and develop a loyal base of devoted customers who can receive instant updates each time you post updates to your business page. Social networking in many respects puts the power in the hands of the consumer, and mediums such as Facebook and Twitter can provide you with direct access to consumers who are looking for your specific product or service.One critical point to remember, however, is that social media is exactly what the name represents – a social tool that is only fully effective when the home based business owner to returns to their page frequently enough to provide real-time updates. Social media is effective when used regularly, because outdated information or infrequent interaction will cause followers or fans to lose interest. Home based business owners must also remember to be consistent across all social networking sites. For example, if you plan to use your home based business logo as your avatar on one site, be consistent and use your logo on every site where you have a corporate presence – this will help to establish your brand in the mind of consumer.It’s also important to consider that your ability to access and control what is said by your customers is limited; therefore, you’ll want to ensure that you are monitoring your pages on a consistent basis to see what others are writing about your home based business. You’ll also want to use restraint when communicating on social networks.The nature of social networking allows people to build on-line relationships with others, which can lead to the sharing of too much personal information, particularly if you are already accustomed to using social networking sites for personal interaction with family and friends. A good rule of thumb is to remember the old adage, “Never write down anything that you wouldn’t want to see in the newspaper the next day.” Simply put, social networking sites are very public forums, so be sure that what you are communicating is appropriate for the masses.The good news is that social networking can provide you with an avenue to manage your reputation and have very positive effects on how your home based business is viewed.

Home Based Business Readiness

People from all generations have long wanted to start a home based business. Being your own boss instead of punching a time clock has a lot of appeal for most. Sadly, many will never get beyond the place of dreaming about owning their own home based business. There are many reasons to start your own business especially from home; you can have more flexibility in your schedule, more time for family and best of all no boss breathing down your neck. That being said, there are a few things you should know when looking for your home based business opportunity.DemandToo often people get creative and start a business based on what they like or want, and while this is not a bad idea there is a better way. You should first try to determine a need or demand and then fill that demand. When you create a product or service and then have to drum up interest, your success will be much slower. Therefore, the first rule of starting a home based business is to find a need or demand and satisfy it.Re-Create the WheelThere is something to be said for not re-creating the wheel. You will be miles ahead of the game when you use tried and true methods. Being a pioneer can be fun and challenging but when you are trying to get a business off the ground there are going to be plenty of trying and challenging moments without going off the trails blazed by others. In fact, if you look around a bit, you can find complete systems that will take you step by step through the process.MethodsThere are as many home based business ideas, as there are people. Nevertheless, one of the fastest growing home opportunities is in internet marketing. When the price of gasoline skyrocketed over the past few years’ people began looking for ways to do more from home. This led to a rise in internet usage and sales that opened the floodgates on a new home based business opportunity. Today with a little ingenuity and time, you can achieve a decent income from the comfort of your own home with a home computer and an internet connection.PersonalityAll of the opportunities in the world will do you little good if you do not have the wherewithal to see it through. The up side of a home based business, no boss, is also the down side. With no boss, there is no one to motivate you toward success. Be sure you are ready to motivate yourself especially during the difficult times that are sure to come along.Part and parcel to this is self-discipline, you will be required to set goals for you and your business and then push through to meet them. Whether you start your own pressure washing business or delve into internet marketing, you will want to set schedules, make calls and do all of the follow through on your home based business.FinallyThere are many things to consider when creating a home based business and this is by far not a definitive list. The bottom line when it comes to working for yourself, is to consider many avenues and then prepare yourself mentally and physically for the tasks at hand. You can create wonderful opportunities for your home based business success with just a little help.

Why Use Small Business Payroll Software for Your Business?

For a small business, the task of processing payroll for employees can be complicated and time consuming. However, this arduous task can be made simpler by employing the use of small business payroll software. For example, this type of small business finance software is capable of performing the task of withholding taxes, updating vacation and sick pay, and deducting employee-contributed payments for benefits. Convenience is one of the primary reasons why numerous small businesses software for handling payroll functions. Furthermore, incorporating the use of this software in your weekly payroll runs can reduce the cost of performing it manually, in house by potentially more than half.

Payroll software’s functionality is to be desired and can handle a lot of your employee related responsibilities. Many these also provide the capability of handling tracking contributions to retirement plans, as well as managing direct deposits. Most small business accounting software designed with payroll functionality can also generate monthly, weekly, or daily reports for the entrepreneur whenever you need them. Other capabilities of this finance software include calculation of employee tax obligations and preparation of W-2 forms for the business’s employees as well as 1099s for vendors.

Accuracy and compliance are the final two reasons why you should consider using payroll software in your organization. For instance, the manufacturer of a small business payroll software program knows that their product must be reliable if they would like to retain the business of their clients. Compliance in this sort of payroll programs ensures that your business complies with an array of state and federal legal obligations. This ultimately saves your business money on legal fees.

Here are some tips for choosing your software for the payroll function of your small business:

When purchasing business finance software, try to research at least three or four different programs before making your investment. Most manufacturers offer demos giving you a chance to see how their software works and if it meets your business requirements.

It could also prove beneficial for you to speak with other business owners who have previously used the software you are considering purchasing. This will allow you to gauge a consumer’s previous experiences with one particular brand.

You should ensure that the software program you choose has a reputation for complying with federal and state laws, to protect you against any future legal problems.

When you choose the right small business payroll software, you will encounter a world of convenience and functionality that you might not have known existed.

When it comes to entrepreneurship, you can easily sink into financial disaster or swim your way to success. Small business payroll software [http://www.financialsoftwareforsmallbusiness.com/why-use-small-business-payroll-software/] helps you to effortlessly keep track of your employees pay, payroll taxes, and other employee relations functions.

Outdoor Education Camps With Programs

Summer camps are special camps arranged for people to enjoy their vacation or tour in any adventures. Summer camps comes up with special offers outdoor education camp, leadership camp, science camp, awareness camp and many other social welfare schemes are offered to the public for reasonable prices. Outdoor education forms major part of the education and it is more required for people. Outdoor education is considered has important and essential requirement for most of the people and they fetches more demand among the people. Outdoor education is created and offered specially for kids, children and adults.

The main purpose of estimating and offering outdoor education is to develop self confidence and self esteem among the people. The outdoor education activities, outdoor education courses, outdoor education programs are offered to kids, children, adults by outdoor education schools or outdoor education centers. Outdoor education camps are conducted either inside or outside classrooms. Outdoor education forms major part of the education system and it is more important to be known by the people to come up with every possibility in life. Most of the parents feels better that their children should be aware of outdoor education programs offered and they should compete with outside world.

Outdoor education activities or outdoor education courses are provided by more number of outdoor institutes or adventure outdoor schools. An outdoor education course, outdoor education programs initiates cooperation, coordination, team building, goal settings and spirituality among the students and others. Outdoor education camps are provided by more number of outdoor education institutes or outdoor education schools for reasonable and affordable prices. The outdoor education camp provided will be more worth and valuable for the students who obtains and they are provided under complete knowledge and experience.

Generally, adventure outdoor school or outdoor education schools provides outdoor education activities, outdoor education courses, outdoor education programs to kids, children and adults under prescheduled, guidance and procedures. With regards to qualified, professional and expert outdoor education instructor, outdoor education programs will be offered. Under proper guidance and precautions, outdoor educations will be offered to the people to enable them to know the required outdoor education provided. More number of kids, children and adults are obtaining the outdoor education programs offered.

The outdoor education professionals, experts or instructors guide the kids, children and adults in efficient manner. Generally, outdoor education programs and outdoor education courses are offered to students based on age group, duration of course offered and kind of outdoor education program selected. The outdoor education camp offered will be creative, enthusiastic, innovative and technical appraisement for the students hindering. Outdoor camps will be offered to the students for reasonable price consideration and they are offered by more number of adventure outdoor schools.

Ethics in Business

Sustainable advantage of an organization can be determined by its ethical capability. Ethical capability of an organization is its duty to do what is right. Some organizations such as Enron, Sathyam, and Tyco etc have made false statements in their accounts and cheated both the stakeholders and government. These kind of issues gave rise to the importance of business ethics in business schools all around the world.

Sustainable advantage can be defined as the beneficiary element that determine the long term objectives of an organization, where objectives would be the economic development that generates wealth and meets the needs of the current generation while saving the environment, so future generation can meet their needs as well. There are number of factors that determine the sustainability of an organization, which are its ethics, strategy, employees, financial capital etc. in present scenario, human resource of an organization considered to be its competitive advantage, but it will not provide sustainability. Sustainability of an organization will depend on the impact it has on the people, in the form of trust, honesty, integrity, respect, quality and responsibility. Organizations with poor sustainability will fall back as happened in case of Enron and Sathyam.

Enron was an American energy company founded in 1985 by Kenneth Lay after merging Houston natural gas and internorth( citetation). In early 1990′s Enron sold electricity at market price. At around the same time US congress passed a bill regarding the deregulation sale of natural gas which favored Enron to sell energy at higher prices. In 1992 Enron was the largest merchant of natural gas in North America. Online trading model developed in November 1999 known as Enron online has developed and extended the abilities to negotiate and manage its trading business. By 2001 Enron had both owned and operated gas pipe line, pulp and paper plants, broad band assets, electricity plants and water plants internationally. Enron stock was priced at US $ 83.13 and market capitalization exceeded US$60 billion, and Enron was rated the most innovative large company in America in fortunes most admired companies survey. By the end of 2001 the Enron scandal was revealed. The CEO Jeffrey Skilling with some of the executives have hidden billions in debt from failed deals and projects. Chief financial officer Andrew Fastow and the other executives were able to mislead the board of directors and audit committee by presenting them psydo account statements. Once the scam was published the Enron stock priced at $90 per share in 2000 plummeted to less than $1 by the end of November 2001. This fall in stock value has caused at $11 billion loss for its share holder. The employees of the organization received a limited amount of their salary and pension when it was bankrupted. Several law suits were filed against the company CEO and other executives.

Similar is in case of Sathyam computers, which is termed as the Indian Enron scandal. Sathyam computers were an information technology company which produces software’s headquarters at hyderbad, India. Its chairman Ramalinga Raju produced an account sheet which has a 7000 crore fraud. The chief auditors were also not able to identify this adjustment. As a result of this scam the employees lost their job and chairman was jailed for fraud.

These two cases throw a light on how an organizations as well as economy of the country or in large the world can be impacted with their unethical practices. That, if the organization does not practice ethics will not have sustainability.

Need for the business ethics: for the following

1. Business operates with in the society

2. Every business irrespective of size exists more on ethical mean or in total regard to its social concern to survive long.

3. Business needs to function as responsible corporate citizens in the country.

Business is a part of subsystem of a society, therefore its functioning should contribute to the welfare of the society. If the business earns social sanction of the society, where it exists then it would be able to survive, develop and excel in activities, because only through earning social sanction the business can get loyal customers. Loyal customers are sustainable advantage and therefore can survive in market without which it will collapse and die away. Large organizations put more interest on public, the managers are eager to have public opinion and always seek to maintain a proper image of company in their minds.

Now a day’s minimizing profit is not the only priority of business, it should have sustainability, which can only be achieved through ethical practices. Any organization big or small should follow ethical practices as it brings in a sense of social responsibility which eventually provides sustainability to the organization. Business should also be a responsible corporate citizen which does not allow narrow mentality goals and motives.

Cross culture variability

Ethical practices in a country or society will depend on various factors such as religious, beliefs, historic, traditions, social customs, and existing political and economic rules or policies. For example in Asian countries such as Japan, China etc loyalty to work groups and corporations has strong ethical values. This kind of ethics has been brought down through centuries long traditions, therefore one does not think of oneself but rather think of family, government and others involved with him, thus providing social responsiveness.

Nature of ethics

The concept of ethics deals only with human beings, as they only have the freedom and means to choose free will. Human being can distinguish between good and evil, right and wrong, and just and proper. For example a Japanese employee believes that it Is unethical on his part to attend an interview with other company when he is still with the current company. So human can fix a goal and the means to achieve it. Ethics is also science that nowadays has become a set of systematic knowledge about moral behaviour and conduct. Ethics deals with human conduct which is voluntary and not forced by any person at any circumstances.

Business ethics and profits

The cases of Enron and Sathyam makes a point that ethics and profits are opposed to each other, as when an organisation is ethical it makes short term profit and if the organisation is unethical it makes huge profit. The same cases prove us one more thing that is it makes huge profit unethically but will not sustain in the market. Ethical companies not only make profit but also overcome their competitors and other turbulent changes happening through out the years and have contributed to social welfare. Ethical companies have social responsibilities which allow them to flourish undiminished and make profit. Tata group of companies is one company which follows ethical practises. It is said that the chief executive officer of Tata is also its chief ethics officer. Some of the ethical policies followed by the company include national interest, support from open market economy, gift and donation for social cause, political non alignment, health safety and environment care, quality product and service and regulatory compliance etc. Ratan Tata the present chairman of Tata group has declined from airline industry because he was told to bribe then minister to enter the business, which he claimed to be unethical and against the policies the group follows. His predecessor JRD Tata had set up the first commercial airlines ‘Tata Airlines’ in India which was later overtaken by the government of India and named it as Indian airlines. So besides being a pioneer in airline industry they were not able to procure it because they felt it would not sustain them and it would bring a bad image for the company. This is the reason why people have great respect for Tata group and their ethical practices and policies have created brand loyalty which has helped them to survive in market even though many competitors came.

Cross cultural contradictions

Ethical policies become a problem when the companies are not able to do business at home, therefore the other societies where the ethical policies are liberal or works in their favour. At home they are not allowed to sell products because it is unethical to use unsafe products but they may sell it in other countries where the ethical standards allow them to sell these products. It happens especially with pharma products. Some factories which emit pollutant gases are set up in neighbouring countries because ethical standards at home do not allow the factory to run business. These pollutant gases emitted are dangerous for people and the environment. Still it is ethical in certain countries. These kinds of issues give rise to cross cultural contradiction and exploitation. These issues which arise become difficult for the managers and firms to solve. Therefore the business has responsibility for their country but to four major groups they are society, employees, customers or consumers and investors.(example drugs)

Factors influencing business ethics:

Leadership, strategy and performance, individual characteristics, corporate culture and environment

Leader is a person who leads the people towards achieving a common goal. Leader can be good or bad, great or small they arise out of the needs and opportunities of a particular time and place. Not all leaders are considered to be perfect in their decision making because each and every decision they make will depend upon the character of person which differ from person to person. Character of a person includes their inborn talents, learned and acquired traits which were imposed upon them by life and experience. Leaders are models and mentors to their followers therefore they follow the path way set by their leaders. In a large organisation the top level managers or CEO are considered to be the executive and supervisory leader. The CEO should have strong commitment towards ethics and ethical conduct and should give a constant leadership in renewing the values of an organisation. They play a key role in creating, maintaining and changing the ethical culture. It is necessary for the leader to set good examples, and follows ethics. One such good leader is JRD Tata who set a good example for his successor and they still follow it. Where there are good leaders there will be good ethical practices in business.

Corporate governance: is the set of systems and processes that a company follows to ensure that it is in the best interest of the stake holders. Stakeholders are the shareholders, employees, customers, creditors and the community.

Sustainability has three components according to john elkington’s triple bottom line concept they are economic, social and environmental. According to elkington the business does not have one single goal of attaining profit but to extend the goal set by adding environmental and social values. Thus sustainability has become the new goal set by the organisation.

Environmental perspective: natural resources.

Economic perspective: about the future generation.

Social perspective: over exploiting of employees and not providing equality in gender employment, caste creed and religion based employment employing child labour.

Organisational culture: is the set of shared values, beliefs, goals, norms etc that prevails within an organisation. The organisational culture emphasis on ethics but as it grows it may change, as in the case of tyco where its organisational culture supports unethical practices. If the company makes huge profits in unethical way then individual who joins the organisation would also have to practice unethical things to survive in the company. As in the case of enron where many executives and managers knew that the company was following some illegal and unethical practices, but the executives and the board of directors did not know how to make the ethical decisions and corporate ethical culture. Thus they fall back and managers have to pay in the form of fines and imprisonment.

Business ethics is the application of ethical principle in the organization or business. An organization should produce or make its own ethical cultures, but this ethical culture formulated should be drawn from the concept of what is ethical to all and not what is right for the organization itself. The employees of the organization, also has to follow the same ethical principles. The organisation being ethical will provide certain social responsibilities such as they do not harm the stake holders, the general public and the society as well. “business that treat their employees with dignity and integrity reap rewards in the form of high moral and productivity” (Frederic, Post and Davis).

There are three major types of ethical issues that arise in a business they are, face to face ethics, corporate policy ethics and functional area ethics. Face to face ethical issues happen between the employees of an organization in their day to day organizational life. the employee face these ethical conflicts when their personal standards differs from what their job demands. Corporate policy ethical issues happen in the basic operations of a company. The top level management including the board of directors and CEO’s are responsible for ethical practices of the organization. Functional area ethics issues arise at all functional levels of the organization. For example in the accounting department, if unfair pressure is put on employees to deliver an audit report which has been altered or not showing current accounts of the organization would be un ethical, as it does not follow the standards and policies set by the organization.

Causes for unethical issues:

There are many reasons for an organization to follow unethical practices they are personal gain and selfish interest, competitive pressures on profits, business goals and personal goals, cross cultural contradictions. When an employee gives more importance to his greed or concern for his personal gain rather than any other concerns, irrespective of the harm it can bring to the organization is termed as unethical practices that arise due to personal gain and selfish interest. When a company has tough competitors in a limited or static market; it may engage some unethical practices just to be in business or to protect their profits. If the organization uses some unethical means to achieve its goal that is unaccepted by its stakeholders will give rise to ethical issues under business goal and personal goal. Here the organisaiton has set a goal that would conflict with the personal goal of its stake holders. Under such conditions the individuals involved have two choices either to follow the ethical ways of the organization or “blowing the whistle” on organization.

Environmental perspective relates to the exploitation of natural resources in business. The company should make sure that the natural resources are not exploited; it should sustain the resources so that the future generation can also enjoy them as we did. One such example is the restriction of fishing in the North Sea, to sustain the availability of diminishing cod fish to the consumers.

Economic perspective of sustainability relates to the economic growth and fall in the society. The short term adjustments made by the companies such as bribes and cartels will only be for a short period of time, it will never achieve a long time sustainability the organizations attitude towards the environment in which it is embedded. If the organization does not pay taxes are said to behave unethically similar in the case of organization that does not give donations to public institutions such as schools, hospitals, police and other justice systems.

What Can You Do With A Degree In Nutrition?

Earning a degree focused in nutrition can have many potential career paths other than becoming a nutritionist. There are six main types of nutrition paths to choose from, including teaching nutrition, public health nutrition, nutrition consulting, clinical nutrition, food science, and food service management. Most nutrition jobs should fall within one of these categories.

A degree in nutrition could help individuals land employment as a public health official, dietetic consultant, school food service director, quality control manager, food distributor, or wellness coordinator. Individuals may be employed through health maintenance organizations, school systems, food manufactures, wellness centers, and exercise and fitness centers. Government agencies also have the potential to employ those with degrees in nutrition. Some of the government agencies could include Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Nutrition Program, SNAP- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Department of Health, and U.S. Public Health Services.

While earning a college degree, individuals will most likely be required to study a wide range of courses to gain a well-rounded education. Students could be expected to take courses related to nutrition, consisting of anatomy and physiology, introduction to food science, sociology, bacteriology, chemistry, and biochemistry. By completing an internship, individuals are able to gain hands on experience in the nutrition field before committing to a job or while still in school. Internships can serve as a great way to determine where your interests are, and if obtaining a career in this field is a good fit.

It is important for individuals wanting to succeed in a career in nutrition to possess skills such as organization and planning, strong verbal and written communication, proficient math skills for weights and measures, and interest in the well-being and health of others. To be successful working in nutrition, individuals may be required to advise patients in practicing good nutrition, monitoring diet modifications, and assessing health plans. Those with a degree in nutrition should also be able to monitor food safety conditions and create menus for specific dietary needs.

Depending on your place of employment and job description, individuals with a nutrition degree may be asked to create visuals aids and nutrition manuals that could be useful in teaching. Companies dealing with food service may hire nutrition graduates to create meal plans, ensure food safety, or develop new food products. Salary potential can depend on more than the actual job, but also education level, years of experience, and location of employment.

How to Pursue Online Nutrition Programs

Nutrition science a popular topic

One of the popular subjects in the curriculum of various educational institutions is nutrition science. With increased awareness of nutrition for the upkeep of the health of the individual, now more and more people pay regular visit to the nutrition experts to seek their valuable advice on various issues like nutritious diet, calorie oriented food and on such other related topics. As a result, nutrition technology has become one of the preferred subjects for study.

Nutrition program as a profession

Of course, there are several colleges and other organizations which teach nutrition technology as a part of the curriculum. At the same time, many institutions have started online nutrition programs for the benefit of those who are unable to attend the in house training programs. These online programs are conducted under the supervision and guidance of experts in the field. Many of these institutions teaching online nutrition programs have been accredited to appropriate government bodies. These online institutions teach as per the syllabus prescribed by the concerned authorities.

Course content

The curriculum normally is based on the credit hours. The credit hours depend on the course the student has chosen. For example, a diploma in nutrition science has 30 credit hours. On the other hand a bachelor course has 45 credit hours. These online programs also allow for specialization in nutrition science. Some of the popular fields of specialization include nutrition for sportsmen, nutrition for children, and nutrition for elderly people and so on. There are also several therapeutic nutrition programs like for those suffering from high blood pressure or for those who are obese or diabetic. Normally, students taking up online nutrition programs are taught by using the digital canvas. This helps to create a virtual classroom atmosphere for the student. The student is taught on various issues like human anatomy and physiology, application of nutrition principle for treating various ailments, nutritional therapy and also on counseling patients.

Offers better prospects

The duration of the course is normally nine months to one year. This of course, depends on the course the student has opted. At the end of the course, the students will have to undergo comprehensive examination. Normally, the student is required to undertake the examination in person at the designated place, date and time. Eligible students can opt for higher studies in nutrition technology like masters degree. The course fee varies from institution to institution. Some of the institutions also help the student in finding a suitable placement. Many of the students who have completed the online program on nutrition are of the opinion those who have taken up course at an accredited institution will have brighter chances of securing a suitable placement.

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