Education

The immense increase in e-commerce websites denotes their even greater success. This success rate is linked with an important thing, the launch of mobile apps. Mere existence of such apps will not help in reaping success, but introducing new features and ensuring that they are well updated with the latest technology has got more significance.  The major reason why mobile apps clicked over websites is because of personalization. Retail apps are the most frequently surfed apps on a normal user’s device. And, with optimum usage of this facility you can build a direct and strong link between the brand and its customers. Here are a few reasons why e-commerce brands must consider having a mobile app for their own: Mobile apps help in getting clarity of the current market scenario and also study on consumer behavior which helps them form better marketing strategies.  Mobile apps are highly personalized and provides for a better engagement or user experience with th...

Technologies and software platforms which are designed for marketing departments and organizations in order to market effectively on different online channels like social media, email or websites and to automate repetitive tasks is called as marketing automation. Consultants, marketing departments and part-time marketing employees benefit through marketing automation by specifying criteria and outcomes for processes and tasks. It then interprets, stores and gets executed by software. This helps in increasing efficiency and also reduces chances for human error.  It was originally focused on email marketing automation, but now it refers to a much broader range of automation and analytic tools used for marketing especially inbound marketing. This platform is used as a hosted/ web-based solution and does not require any software installation by a customer. Marketing automation platforms lets marketers plan, coordinate, manage and measure their entire marketing campaigns which...

The Project Management Body of Knowledge or PMBOK is a document that contains best practices, standard terminologies and process guidelines around project management which is as defined by the Project Management Institute (PMI). This body of knowledge was created to evolved over time and it is recognized internationally to be an essential resource for project managers.  The PMBOK outlines 49 processes which are categorized into ten knowledge areas and five process groups in a matrix structure. The guide covers majority of the topics which are specific to project management but does not include broader themes like management science, staffing, budgeting, planning, financial forecasting and organizational behavior. According to PMBOK, the phases of a project are inputs, tools and techniques and outputs. These are used to create a general lifecycle of a project in order to find the project techniques and management steps. PMBOK plays a vital role for aspiring and continuing proj...

Preparing for an event of emergency, system failure or a disaster is what contingency management is all about. Utilizing risk management, it intends to identify vulnerabilities and threats to a business and implements countermeasures in order to prevent an incident or to limits the impact of its occurrence. The key components of contingency management include planning for operational continuity and disaster recovery. A business must operate without excessive interruption to improve efficiency and be successful. To support this, businesses use contingency management by creating plans, procedures and technical measures which lets businesses to recover efficiently after a business disruption or disaster. To identify the vulnerabilities of a business is a vital step in contingency management and its implementation. It could be their weakness, internal controls, security procedure, etc. which can be exploited through a source of threat. And it can include natural calamities like floo...

A plan-based strategy which aims at identifying, assessing, and preparing for chances of any danger, hazards, and other potential for physical and figurative disaster which may interfere the operations and objectives of an organization is called as Enterprise Risk Management (ERM). This not only makes corporations identify all risks that they face and decide which one to manage actively, but also involves creating a plan of action that is available to all shareholders, stakeholders and potential investors, as a part of the corporation’s annual reports. Various industries like construction, public health, aviation, international development, finance, insurance and energy, all utilize ERM. Professionals and project managers who are working with ERM focuses on assessing the risks that are relevant to their business or industry and prioritizes those risks to make informed decisions on handling them. Risk management plans developed by them create an estimated value of impact of variou...

Pay for performance, also known as Performance-related Pay in context of human resources is a paid system for salary or wages based on positioning the team or individual, on their pay according to their performance level. For example, car salesmen or production line workers are paid using this system or through commission. This standard is used by many employers to evaluate employees and also for setting salaries. Such types of standards-based methods are used for commission-based sales staff, where the more they sell gets them more salary whereas low performers do not earn enough. Based on the performance, salary would be re-evaluated, either an increase or decrease. Professor Yasser and Dr Wasi, business theorists, support this payment method and Professor Yasser believes that the main incentive that could result in increased productivity is money and also introduced the concept of piece work. Pay for performance helps in setting a level of standardization in employee evaluati...

A term used for valuing the underlying assets in a derivatives trade is called as national value. It could be the total value of a position or the value a position controls or an amount which is agreed-upon in a contract. The term notional value is used to describe derivative contracts in the futures, options and currency markets. The notional value of derivative contracts is higher than that of its market value because of a concept called leverage. Leverage lets one to use a certain amount of money to control a much larger amount, theoretically. So, this helps in distinguishing the total value of a trade from its market value or cost of taking up that trade. The amount of leverage utilized is calculated using the below formula: Leverage = Notional Value/ Market Value Notional values are often discussed in currency transactions and derivatives as those transactions often involve hedging i.e., a small amount of money which influences a large investment. 

An intentional seasonal cleanse helps in bringing balance, deeper self-awareness and harmony in your life. If done correctly, it restores digestion, clears clutter from mind, reconnects yourself with inner wisdom and rebuilds the body with nourishment and love. Here are some common mistakes you should avoid while cleansing: The time you choose to set the stage for cleansing will have an impact on the whole experience. The essential process of preparing the body and mind for deep cleansing is called as Purvakarma. It is a process to slowly eliminate inflammatory elements like alcohol, caffeine, refined sugar and processed food. It also lets the person get rid of inconsistent food habits and thereby, increase agni .  It is crucial to keep time away from your normal life routine for cleansing in order to get optimum results from the process. When your schedule is packed with work commitments, stimulation and social events, the cleansing process would turn out to be a deplet...

Business metrics that are used by corporate executives and managers in order to track and analyze factors that are deemed crucial to an organization’s success is called as Key Performance Indicators or KPIs. An effective KPI is said to focus on the processes and functions of a business that senior management sees as most important for measuring progress towards meeting performance targets and strategic goals. It differs from one organization to another based on the priorities of a business. For instance, one of the KPIs for a public company would likely be its stock price whereas for a privately held startup, the KPI may be the number of new customers added to each quarter. Even the direct competitors in an industry can monitor the KPIs which are tailored according to their individual business strategies and management philosophies. The significance of KPIs is that it shows how well a business is performing. Without this metric, it would have been difficult to evaluate...

The process of buying or selling the stock of a publicly traded company by someone who has non-public, material information regarding the stock is known as insider trading. It can be legal or illegal which depends on when the insider makes the trade and it becomes illegal when material information is still non-public. Material information, in this context, refers to any information that could substantially impact the decision of an investor to buy or sell security. And, information that is not legally available to the public is referred to as non-public information. Insider trading is considered to be legal as long as the process conforms to the rules put forward by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). For example, former Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) financial analyst Brett Kennedy was charged with insider training in the year 2017 on account of giving information on Amazon’s 2015 first quarter earnings before its release to his fellow University of Washington alumni Maz...

A mentality found in an individual that is distinguished by a lack of decision-making or introspection by his own causing people to think and behave similarly to those around them is called as herd instinct. In finance, it relates to instances where investors gravitate towards an investment which could be same or similar, based on the fact that many others are buying those securities. The driving force behind this mentality is the fear of missing out on a profitable investment. Also known as herding, herd instinct plays a crucial role in driving the asset bubbles in financial markets. By nature, humans desire to be a part of a community where people have shared culture and socioeconomic norms. At the same time, they cherish their individuality and also make them responsible for their own welfare.  In the world of investments it is common to find herd instinct. For example, when a group of investors starts worrying about stock prices, this concern would also spread rapidly am...

A collection of financial incentives that serves the purpose of encouraging employees to remain with a company for a stipulated time period is called as golden handcuffs. This type of incentives is offered by employers to their existing employees to hold onto key employees and also increase the rates of employee retention.  Golden handcuffs are commonly used in industries where employees who are highly-compensated are likely to move from one company to another like that in IT or hi-tech industry where skill sets are in demand. Employers invest their time and resources in hiring, training and retaining key employees and such incentives work in order to reap positive results for their investment. Other forms of golden handcuffs include a contractual obligation which specifies an action that may or may not be performed by an employee. For instance, a contract that forbids a TV host from appearing on a competing channel, and Supplemental Executive Retirement Plans (SERPS) which ...

An individual who owns a large block of shares and/or bonds in a company is termed as a blockholder. These owners, in terms of shares, are often able to influence the company using their voting rights that is a part of their holdings.  Due to the significant block of stocks or bonds held by the blockholder in a company he is considered to be an influential shareholder. And that significant number cannot be defined in specific numbers and a company is alerted of such individuals through Form 13D, which is filed with SEBI when their ownership block in a company’s outstanding shares reaches 5%.  Common and preferred stock is issued by companies which come along with varying provisions and privileges. They get voting right, which is one vote per common share and can also have other voting rights with other share types. Preferred shareholders do not enjoy voting rights. Shareholders who accumulate more shares to increase their voting rights in a company and raises concerns...

An individual who owns a large block of shares and/or bonds in a company is termed as a blockholder. These owners, in terms of shares, are often able to influence the company using their voting rights that is a part of their holdings.  Due to the significant block of stocks or bonds held by the blockholder in a company he is considered to be an influential shareholder. And that significant number cannot be defined in specific numbers and a company is alerted of such individuals through Form 13D, which is filed with SEBI when their ownership block in a company’s outstanding shares reaches 5%.  Common and preferred stock is issued by companies which come along with varying provisions and privileges. They get voting right, which is one vote per common share and can also have other voting rights with other share types. Preferred shareholders do not enjoy voting rights. Shareholders who accumulate more shares to increase their voting rights in a company and raises conc...

Placing ads at unusual places or on unusual objects/items which is generally not seen in ads is called as Ambient Advertising. It can be found anywhere and everywhere and is not limited to outdoor space. The success of an ambient media campaign is the selection of the best media format available combined with the delivery of an effective message. Also, it pushes people to think on why such ads are placed in those spots. A common trend noticed is to convert regular things into an abnormally huge or small thing, gathering the attention and curiosity of people. Display of Scotch-Brite's larger version of its product, being hung on the side of a popular building near to Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid. This not only does bring it to the attention of prospective customers but also makes them think on why such placement and ad. Though the objective of this advertising is to integrate ads into the our daily life environment, one of the major risk or controversy due to this stra...

A strategy used when competition for a product is low or nil in a market is called as Blue Ocean Strategy. It revolves around searching for a business that is operated by a few firms and one which does not have any pressure regarding pricing.  Blue Ocean Strategy is not limited to any one type of business and can be applied to all businesses belonging to any sector by bringing in innovative products or services. In the present scenario where competition level is high and market is saturated, businesses are striving hard and doing everything to gain market share. In such a situation, the product or business comes under the pressure of pricing which always has a possibility of putting the firm’s operations under threat.  Businesses that step out of this competition with an expectation to grow look for verticals or avenues that have less competition and where they can enjoy uncontested market share or otherwise known as Blue Ocean. The first-mover here enjoys all ...

Placing ads at unusual places or on unusual objects/items which is generally not seen in ads is called as Ambient Advertising. It can be found anywhere and everywhere and is not limited to outdoor space. The success of an ambient media campaign is the selection of the best media format available combined with the delivery of an effective message. Also, it pushes people to think on why such ads are placed in those spots. A common trend noticed is to convert regular things into an abnormally huge or small thing, gathering the attention and curiosity of people. Display of Scotch-Brite's larger version of its product, being hung on the side of a popular building near to Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid. This not only does bring it to the attention of prospective customers but also makes them think on why such placement and ad. Though the objective of this advertising is to integrate ads into the our daily life environment, one of the major risk or controversy due to this stra...

Bitcoin is a digital payment currency that utilizes cryptocurrency (a digital medium of exchange) and peer-to-peer (P2P) technology to create and manage monetary transactions as opposed to a central authority .  Bitcoin is a kind of electronic cash , Bitcoin pioneers wanted the seller to be in charge, In this transactions there is no middle men –that means banks have no role in it , to make the transactions transparent  and to hack corruption and cut fees. It is carried out collectively by the network.   Bitcoins can be used to buy merchandise anonymously. It may be considered as a money, but not as a legal currency. Bitcoin is not recognized as a legal tender by any of the government, it can be used as payment, only if both the parties agree to use as a form of a payment. The transactions done are been verified by network nodes through Cryptography. These are recorded in a public ledger known as blockchain. Like in real life , you keep your wallet secured ,...

Making the use of the internet, cell phones,  social media , search engines, and other channels to reach  out to the consumers in a timely, relevant, personal and cost effective manner.   Digital marketing is entirely  a new way of approaching customers and understanding how they behave compared to traditional marketing. Traditional marketing areas such as direct marketing  by providing the same method of communication with an audience but in a digital fashion. As the reality speaks, consumer spend twice there time online as they used to do few years back. Nowadays, the way consumer purchases have really changed, which means offline marketing isn’t as effective as it used to be. Marketing has always been about connecting with the your audience in the right place and at the right time. Today you need to meet them, where they are already spending their time on the internet. Internet marketing is the major source of digital marketing. Different ...

Ephemeral Content is an impermanent content that helps in sustaining traffic in most of the social media platforms. It is a marketing strategy that  regarding content that elicits an immediate response from its users.  Ephemeral content can take up two meanings - firstly, it refers to creating contents which disappears after a specific time period like that in Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat stories. Or it refers to the purpose of creating content that catches the attention of users for a short time period and then gradually fades away.  The most obvious goal of this type of content is to strike an immediate response from the user or viewer either to make a quick purchase or sign-up decision, like or share content, subscribe or view contents, etc. It works on the Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) by creating a sense of urgency.  Businesses take up this strategy to impress and engage in the brand or in its products and services on a personal level. It also...