I. MARKETING AND ADVERTISING

Check your knowledge: What is marketing?

What is marketing? Marketing is the of satisfying customer needs

What is the marketing mix? It consists of the four Ps: providing the customer with the right P at the right P., presented in the most attractive way (P.) and available in the easiest way (P.)

What is a product? A product is not just an assembled set of components: it is something customers buy to a they feel they have. The . and the . of the product are as important as its specification.

What is price? The product must be priced so that it competes effectively with products in the same market.

What is promotion? The product is presented to customers through advertising (TV commercials, .etc.) packaging (design, ., etc) publicity, P.R and personal selling.

What is place? Your product must be available to customers through the most cost-effective channels of . A consumer product must be offered to . in suitable retail .., or available on or by..

What is meant by SWOT? A firm should be aware of its S..and W. and the O.. and T.. it faces in the market place.

Why are firms becoming more customer-oriented and less? Because new products must be created to meet the changing..of customers needs a frim cant rely on the success of its existing . of products. The customer and his or her needs must come.

Marketing is the process of identifying customers needs and satisfying those needs with appropriate products. There are several aspects to good marketing. The first is market research: finding out what people want. Secondly the company must provide consumers with suitable products, which means selling existing products, and when necessary, creating new ones through new product development. The company must regularly examine its product range in relation to the actual and potential market. It has to promote the products so customers know about them, and then organise distribution so the products actually reach the customers. Last but not least, it must make sure that profit is generated for shareholders.

Market research is a part of a customer-based approach, which tries to find out what customers want and makes products which match those requirements. A product-based approach tries to persuade customers to buy what the company produces.

The marketing mix is all the things a company does to market its products, including:

a)       product offering, i.e. the product range, the style of product and the ability to provide new products when needed.

b)      The pricing structure, including bulk discounts.

c)       Promotion, including advertising, introductory offers, loss leaders, packaging, sales promotion, merchandising and public relations.

d)      Distribution

e)       Customer services, especially after sales service and guarantees.

Advertising is the business of informing customers about the existence and qualities of products or services, principally hrough written and visual presentation in the media or on hoardings. The advert is successful if customers buy the advertisers product rather than products of competitors. Advertising also aims to encourage brand loyalty in order to increase or maintain market share.

Integrated marketing is an approach to business which sees attracting and retaining customers as the most important fucntion. It emphasises that all the activities of a company have marketing implications, from the way the telephone is answered, to the time it takes to make a delivery. All other functions (production, finance and personnel) are therefore subordinate to the marketing function.

Consider these products. Which methods are used to promote them? Which methods would probably not be suitable?

new houses a conference centre cheese an airline

a magazine computers bicycles cigarettes

rail travel medicines petrol a zoo

II. ADVERTISING AND MARKETING

The name is the game

Interbrand earns up to 5 milion by dreaming up names such as Fruit Jaspers for a new McVities biscuit and Fruit Burst for an orange juice. There were some 350 such naming projects which, according to simple arithmetic, means that Interbrand names average out at 14,000 each. Or, in the case of Fruit Jaspers, at 7,000 a word; 1,116 a letter. Thats a lot of biscuits.

Interbrands managing director Michael Birkin explains how Interbrands staff of market researchers, linguists, psychologists and trademark lawyers gather to create new names.

To stress the value of a name, he says that if hw were to put an unmarked glass of Coca-Cola among 10 unlabelled rivals he very much doubts whether wed be able to select the Real Thing. The moral is that we dont buy the brown fizzy stuff itself but the name and the packaging. That is why the Coca Cola Corporation spends millions of pounds every year attacking anyone who dares to plagiarise its precious identity. The brand name can be a companys most precious asset says Mr.Birkin.

Brand names can also be an international liability. Among banal products with names unfit to mention in a family publication are Super Piss antifreeze from Finland and Krapp toilet rolls from Sweden. In the annals of unintentional scatology are also the Vauxhall Nova which hasnt done too well in Spain, where Nova translates as no go ; The Rolls-Royce Silver Mist seemed a fine successor to the Silver Shadow and Ghost, but a driver would feel foolish in such a car, because of the significance of the name in colloquial German. That these international misunderstandings can be avoided is an important part of Interbrands sales.

The company was founded in the early seventies and now bills itself as the worlds leading brand specialists.

Typically the naming of a product takes a couple of months and it combines three approaches: in-house consultants, brainstorming sessions and plundering a computer database. At brainstorming sessions, products are unlocked from a special cupboard and given to creation groups. For 15, free alcoholic refreshments and travel expenses, panels of six or seven housewives, young people or other likely representatives of consumer groups shout out suggestions for the name of Brand X. The most imaginative people get asked back more times a year. Suggestions are written on a flip chart and subsequently mulled over by consultants and copywriters. Finally comes the registration. While it takes six months to launch a name, it can take two years to register it.

It may seem bizzare that people draw a wage to do this sort of thing but the money at stake is staggering.

1.How important can a brand name be?

2. What is scatology? Give examplex of (other) brand names which may be suitable in one country but unsuitable in another.

3. Explain how a brand name is created. Describe a brainstorming session.

III. ENDORSEMENTS

Manufacturers of sports goods often use sports personalities to help sell their products. Sportsmen and women who agree to endorse a companys range of products usually sign a contract outlining the exact terms of their agreement.

Contracts vary depending on how well-known the personality is and the nature of the endorsement. Typically, a company might expect a personality to:

make promotional appearances in person e.g. in-store, at trade fairs or other events

wear a companys product or logo when in action in their sport

appear in advertising and/or mail-order catalogues

personalise products with their signature or photograph.

In return a company may offer:

fees in the form of e.g. lump sums, stage payments

free products

bonuses, e.g. for winning, setting a new record

royalties on product sales.

Endorsements can be very profitable, both for the sporting personalities and for the companies which sign them. Take the case of the famous American basketball player, Michael Jordan, one of the most graceful and charismatic players ever to appear on a basketball court. In one year alone, his endorsement of Nike helped sell one and a half million pairs of shoes and earned him an estimated 20m dollars.

1.Which sports personalities do you associate with different sports manufacturers?

Complete the following sentences with an appropriate word from the list in the correct form:

develop 1.Three US companies.a need for more stylish sports shoes.

dictate  2. Sports shoe manufacturers do a lot of market research before theya new product.

dominate  3. The multinationals have lost control of the market it is the consumer whowhich styles will sell.

identify  4. By..a system of sub-contracting in the Far East, the multinationals have been able to reduce their manufacturing costs.

launch 5. It is in the inner cities that new trends are ..

place  6. Because sports shoe manufacturersthen orders so far in advance, they cannot always.quickly to changes in demand.

set 7. Slow-selling shoes wil probably be..from the market and

replaced by new styles.

respond 8. The market for sports shoes is ..by a handful of multinationals.

withdraw

VOCABULARY

TRANSLATION

1. Pagina de reclame in culori se adreseaza unui public tanar si dinamic, caruia ii place sa se amuze.

2. Un ambalaj bine gandit contribuie enorm la succesul unui produs recent lansat

3. Din ce in ce mai multe panouri publicitare de buna calitate apar si la noi.

4. Publicitatea la locul vanzarii este o strategie veche si moderna in acelasi timp.

5. Studiul de piata trebuie sa-l informeze pe producator asupra clientelei susceptibile de a-i cumpara produsul.

6. Pragul de rentabilitate nu trebuie confundat cu rata rentabilitatii

7. Cat de rentabil ar fi pentru dumneavoastra daca vi s-ar deschide piata spaniola si reteaua de distributie a acesteia?

8. Rezultatele sondajului sunt surprinzatoare: se credea ca marca e mult mai bine cunoscuta.

9. Vom contracta spatiu publicitar in mai multe reviste si poate chiar o reclama TV difuzata la ore de maxima audienta.

ACCOUNTING

A PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT

NOTES

Investment income

Dividends and interest receivable

Staff costs and numbers

Wages and salaries, social security costs, other pension costs

Interest

Interest payable and similar charges: debenture stocks and loans repayable.

TaxationCurrent taxation: current taxation on profits for the year. U.K.Corporation tax; Overseas tax.

FIND translations for the following:

venituri pe actiune dobanda

profit nedistribuit  actiune ordinara

costuri sociale  salarii

actionari  obligatiune

cont de profituri si pierderi costuri de exploatare

profit inaintea impozitarii  dividend preferential

cifra de afaceri  pensie

impozit pe firma

COMPANY ACCOUNTS

Vocabulary

Match up these words with the definitions below

a companys owners

all the money received by a company during a given period

all the money that a company will have to pay to someone else in the future, including taxes, debts, and interest and mortgage payments

the amount of business done by a company over a year

anything owned by a business (cash investments, buildings, machines, and so on) that can be used to produce goods or pay liabilities

the reduction in value of a fixed asset during the years it is in the use (charged against profits)

sums of money owed by customers for goods or services purchased on credit

sums of money owed to suppliers for purchases made on credit

the value of raw materials, work in progress and finished products stored ready for sale

the various expenses of operating a business that cannot be charged to any one, product, process or department

Types of accounting

Match up the terms on the left with the definitions on the right:

Now read the figures given and complete the graph:

Profits

82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91

Im sure that before we talk about the possibility of a joint venture, you would like to know something about the financial background of our firm over the last few years. From 1982 to 1984, profits rose from 300million at a steady rate of 10% a year to reach 363 million in 1984. This figure was maintained in 1985 but, in the following year, because of the nationwide recession, profits fell sharply to 1982s figure. Increased production costs and a rise in the price of raw materials gave us some problems between 1987 and 1989, profits inching up very slowly to 340 million in 1987, 354.8 million in 1988 and 360.7 million in 1989. Since then, however, the rise has been substantial - 413.8 million in 1990 to a record figure of 590.6 million in 1991.

Read the given figures and complete the table:

Last years figures reflect the healthy state of the company and explain oru desire to launch our product on the European market. In the financial year ended last February, turnover increased by 7.3% to 680.7 million. Pre-tax profit improved by 13.4% from 65.3 million to 74.05 million and earnings per share rose from 19.98p. The Board is recommending a final dividend of 6.9p per share. If this is approved in the annual meeting in July, the total dividend for the year, including the interim dividend of 3.2p per share paid last January, will be 10.1p per share, an increase of 17.9% over last year.

Exercise. MATCH each term with the appropriate definition:

1.accelerated  A. a document that shows how much a company

depreciation makes or loses over a given period. It does not

include such features as land, goodwill, etc.

2. balance sheet  B. The amount of money a company has availa-

ble to reinvest in its business.

3. breakeven point  C.An intangible asset which includes the value

of a firms clientelle, trademark, patents, experi-

ence of its staff.

4. cash flow  D.The profits of a company divided by the num-

ber of shares issued.

5.to consolidate  E.A system of calculating depreciation that

attributes higher amounts to the wear and tear of

an item in the years immediately following its

purchase than it does in subsequent years.

6.earnings per shareF.The value of a share on the Stock Exchange

divided by net profit per share

7.goodwill G.A document showing the value of a company

at a set date expressed in terms of assets and

liabilities.

8.fixed assets  H. A system of calculating depreciation whereby

the price of an item is divided by the number of

years it is expected to last

9.straight line depreciation I. The point at which the firm covers all its ex-

penses and begins to make a profit

10.price-earnings ratio J.Items that figure on a balance sheet such as

land and machinery, lorries, etc.

11. profit and loss account K. To present the financial documesns of several

separate legal entities together.

IV. METHODS OF PAYMENT

When goods are exchanged for goods, the transaction is called barter. But when some commodity is used both as a medium of exchange and as a measure of value, it is called money.

Money. Coins and notes are almost entirely used in direct payments. However, most financial transactions are not conducted in money but through methods provided by banks or Post Office.

The payments through Post Office can be made by means of stamps, postal orders, money orders, including telegraphic money orders and Giro. The last profides a low-cost current account banking and transfer services.

Payments through Banks. The cheque is a written order to a bank, given and signed by the person having money deposited there, to pay the amount mentioned on the cheque, to the person named on it. The person who writes out the cheque is called the drawer, the one to whom the payment is made is the payee, while the bank on which it is drawn is the drawee.

The bearer cheque needs no endorsement and is paid to anyone presenting it to the bank.

The Bill of Exchange is an unconditional order in writing addressed by one person to another. It requires the person to whom it is addressed to pay on demand or at a fixed date a sum of money to, or to the order of a specified person, or the bearer. It is used only in special cases such as hire purchase transactions or as a security for a loan. Through it, usually a buyer wants credit extension for his supplier..

The Promisory Note differs from the B/E as it is not an order but a promise to pay. It is an unconditional promise in writing signed by the maker engaged to pay on demand or at a fixed date a certain amount of money to, or to the order of a specified person or to bearer.

The Current Account is the most usual type of account into which a person can pay money and cheques received, and from which he can make payments by drawing cheques. The banks pay no interest on the credit balance of a current account.

The Deposit Account. For larger amounts of money, a customer may open a deposit account. He can only draw on his account by giving a certain number of days notice to the bank (usually 7 days) and the bank in turn pays him a small amount of interest. At regular intervals or on demand, the bank gives the customer a statement of account showing the balance of his account.

Loans. A businessman can make arrangements for either an overdraft, if the money is needed for a short period, or a loan. When arrangements are made fro a loan, a loan account is opened. This is debited while the current account is credited with the amount granted by the bank. Before a bank grants an overdraft or a loan, it may ask for security. The borrower may thus transfer to the bank as security:

Bonds

Titles of goods

A debenture, which is a first charge on a companys assets

Mortgages on land or houses.

TRANSLATION

Fondul de rulment se calculeaza scazand obligatiile curente din activele curente.

Activele imobilizate sunt formate in principal din terenuri, constructii si utilaje.

Ni s-a spus ca avem dreptul la niste scutiri fiscale considerabile.

Profiturile inaintea impozitarii obtinute de companiile americane au crescut cu 15% in primul semestru al anului 1989.

Costurile de exploatare din acest an sunt in crestere fata de anul 1990.

Angajatilor li s-a oferit posibilitatea de a investi in propria lor companie.

Filiala franceza a inregistrat o crestere a venitului net de 132% fata de 1989, iar profitul inaintea impozitarii s-a triplat.

Firma constata o crestere cu 12% a cifrei de afaceri la sfarsitul lunii iunie

Profitul pe anul 1991 a fost raportat si va fi impozitat in urmatorul an financiar.

Contributia la asigurarile sociale se calculeaza asupra totalului brut al salariilor.

In activul bilantului, contul stocurilor se imparte in trei grupe: materii prime, semifabricate si produse finite.

Fondul de rulment nu va mai fi de ajuns pentru a acoperi cheltuielile generale.

De cat timp este descoperit contul dumneavoastra?

In Anglia conturile curente purtatoare de dobada exista doar din 1990.

Banca va va acorda un imprumut doar daca aveti un loc de munca stabil.

Mai mult de30% din personal lucreaza cu jumatate de norma.

Am verificat bilantul si contul de rezultate fara sa gasesc nici cea mai mica eroare. As dori sa verific din nou cifrele activului imobilizat.

V. DESCRIBING GRAPHS

A substantial rise to level off

A steady fall to soar/ro rocket

to top to plummet/nosedive

Match the description with their Romanian equivalents:

DRAW graphs according to the following descriptions:

Stock market prices fell slightly in the first quarter of the year before levelling off at what was widely believed to be an unrealistically high rate. However, rising US interest rates forced prices down again, somewhat more sharply, with a slight upturn appearing only at the end of the quarter.

An upswing at the beginning of the year sent stock market prices rocketing to an all-time high before plummetting again following the poor midterm results. Prices then levelled off before declining steadily throughout the third quarter. Fortunately the fall in interest rates in October encouraged more stock market activity and prices have been rising sharply ever since.

Stock market prices fell sharply in the first quarter of the year after the intense activity of last year. However, with the upsurge in aggressive take-overs in the third quarter, prices soared before entering another period of steady decline.

The early downturn in stock market prices following last years record activity continued steadily throughout the first two quarters, reaching a low towards the end of June. Prices then picked up sharply to reach a peak in mid-November.

Write a description of one of the graphs below:

BUSINESS VOCABULARY PRACTICE

1. HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW THE STOCK EXCHANGE?

Match the following definitions with the terms:

1. bull 2.gilts 3. closing price 4.par 5.redemption date 6.equity 7.preferential form 8.yield 9.P/E

2. Choose the most suitable word for each space:

Someone once described the age we live in as that of a vanishing world, one in which the familiar is constantly disappearing for ever and technological change is often difficult to (1). with. So it should come as no surprise to most of us to hear that yet another part of every day life is (2). to go for ever. Still, when I read recently that within the next decade money as we (3).. it will probably cease to exist in technologically advanced countries, I had to read the article twice to make sure it wasnt April 1st. (4). to Professor Gerry Montague of the Institute for Economic Reform, the familiar (5)..and banknotes will soon be replaced entirely by credit cards of various kinds. And the shop of the future (the retail outlet as Prof.Montague puts it) will be (6) directly to the network of banking computers. The assistant will simply key in your bank account code number and the (7) you have spent, and thank you politely. You wont have to dig deep in your (8) for change or pretend at the pub that you have left your money at home. You may not even have a number for your (9). as such, as the computer may by then be able to read your handprint. So no more credit card frauds (10). But I am afraid that I shall (11). money. I have felt strongly attached to it, ever since I received my first pocket money when I was five, and kept it in a money-box. Even if my credit card of the future will be able to tell me exactly how much (12) power I have left in the computer files, even if it lights up and plays a happy (or sad) tune at the same time, nothing will be able to replace the sheer pleasure I gained from (13). the coins in my money-box. Not to (14).. the other obvious problems which will be caused by (15).. of real money like how to start a football match, for example!

1)A keep B. Manage C.cope D.survive

2)A.about B.almost C.ready D.tending

3)A.earn B.know C.use D.need

4)A.Thanks B.Contrary C.According D.Accustomed

5)A.banks B.coins C.change D.pence

6)A.taken B.alone C.responsible D.linked

7)A.money B.charge C.cost D.amount

8)A.pockets  B.wallet C.cheque book D.cash

9)A.wealth B.savings C.account D.payment

10)A.arrested  B.either C.stolen D.however

11)A.miss B.spend C.waste D.borrow

12)A.more B.financial C.economical D.spending

13)A.rattling  B.withdrawing C.estimating D.throwing

14)A.tell B.confront C.guess D.mention

15)A.shortage  B.an expense C.an absence D.a replacement

3. In each sentence choose one or more appropriate words:

a)       Harry gains/gets/makes over 20,000 pounds a year.

b)      Mary was awarded a grant/scholarship/subsidy to study child psychology.

c)       How much did you give/pay/take for your new car?

d)      Their house fetched/produced/sold for a lot more than they expected.

e)       Im going to the bank to get out/remove/withdraw the money for the rent.

f)        The manager disappeared with the receipts/taking/wages from the concert

g)      By the time Kate retired she was a fortunate/prosperous/wealthy business woman.

h)       We had a good holiday but it was rather costly/expensive/valuable.

i)         We would appreciate it if you would close/settle/pay your bill as soon as possible.

j)         Unfortunately the old painting I found turned out to be priceless/valueless/worthless.

4. Complete each sentence with one of the words given

John became rich by playing the stock.

We have decided to turn our business into a limited.

This government believes firmly in the value of free.

I am interested in buying the property, but I find the .. too high.

I am saving money to make the down.. on a new car.

We put in an insurance.. after our house was damaged in a storm.

Everyone was impressed with the sales.. for the new product.

Margaret lost a lot of money in an unwise business

I keep most of my money in a savings.

Our company receives a lot of payments in foreign

5. Match the following:

6. Choose the most suitable word or phrase:

a)       I inherited 10,000 in my uncles ..

a)legacy  b)inheritance c)will d)testament

b)      The price is always lower than the retail price.

a)wholesale b)bargaining c)cut d)budget

c)       I still have three more.. to pay on my motorbike

a) shares  b)donations c)instalments d)contributions

d)      We had to give the customs officials a not to inspect our suitcase

a) fee  b)reward c)bonus d)bribe

e)       After my business failed, I was declared.. by the court.

a)profitless b)bankrupt c)insignificant d)uneconomical

f)        As soon as you buy a car, it starts falling in

a)cost  b)worth c)value d)price

g)      A multinational company has made a/an . to take over our firm.

a)bid  b)venture c)investment d)estimate

h)       We demanded pay rises to take account of the . of inflation.

a)figures  b)percentage c)price d)rate

i)         Things are going well. In fact, business is..

a)soaring  b)booming c)leaping d)rolling

j)         I.. you dont make as much profit this year!

a)assure b)challenge c)bet d)doubt

7. Replace the words underlined by one of the words given:

a)       Sheila made a lot of money selling used cars

b)      When Mark took his new job, his earnings nearly doubled.

c)       The cost of moving house was another problem for us.

d)      We need someone else to be in charge of the meeting.

e)       I am afraid this product is temporarily out of stock.

f)        We usually count the money we have made when the shop closes.

g)      Do you like my new dress? It was a very good price.

h)       We dont deal with goods of that kind in this company.

i)         Dont forget to draw up the list of items to be discussed for the next meeting.

j)         We make no request for payment for delivery in the London area.

8. Replace the phrase underlined in each sentence with one of the phrases. Do not use any phrase more than once.

Weve decided to put our house up for sale.

Jean has inherited a lot of money.

At the meeting Peter said he thought the amounts were wrong.

No one believes that the shop will ever be a business success.

I am the possessor of a healthy balance at the bank.

Sue and Jane went to America with everything paid for by their company

We dont believe you have the money to take over this company

All employees can stay at the hotel without paying.

We bought our new electric cooker by instalments.

Harry became rich after he managed to put his money in the right place.

9. In each sentence, replace one or more words with one of the words given, so that the sentence has an opposite meaning:

a.       The precious stones our company mines are now known to be priceless.

b.      Nigel cannot get used to being an unsuccessful businessman

c.       The company has decided to sell the premises in East Road

d.      I like living in this part of town. Of course, its very cheap.

e.       Jim inherited 20,000 and managed to save it all.

f.        We were poor when I was young and my father was very thrifty.

g.      At he moment house values tend to go down in this area.

h.       The workers were given a cut in wages when the takeover was announced

i.         Nobody thought that the company would lose a lot of money.

j.         Richards family is incredibly well-off.