Mall Preferences Essay Example for Free

Mall Preferences Essay Mall Attractiveness and Shopping Preferences is a study conducted to find out what variables attract shoppers to a mall, their preferences and how mall operators should consider this significant analysis to implement an effective strategy to position their strategy. The study involved five major shopping malls in Davao City: SM City Davao, NCCC mall of Davao, Gaisano Mall of Davao, Gaisano South City Mall and Victoria Plaza. Factor analysis is applied for this study and complimented by a cluster analysis of the demographic characteristics of the respondents. The respondents composed of mall shoppers who were equally apportioned across the malls and clustered according to classifications: Traditional shoppers, Destination Shoppers and Enthusiastic shoppers. The result of the study reveals that SM City of Davao is well positioned in attracting shoppers, the mall is favored by customers in terms of mall atmospherics, service, promotion and entertainment. SM is followed closely by NCCC mall of Davao and Gaisano Mall of Davao, while Gaisano South City mall and Victoria Plaza were far behind in their market positioning and viability. Ever since its existence, shopping malls become the integral part of the shoppers’ lifestyle because of the convenience, entertainment and products’ availability it offers to the consumers, no doubt, these establishments helped enhance the day-to-day life of the people. With several malls mushroomed in the city in recent years, people have given wide choices based on their needs and leisure like where to spend time bonding with friends and love ones and where to shop . Mall operators, due to stiff competitions, must decide what positioning strategies they would implement to lure consumers and move ahead with their competitors. In this study, which factor analysis is applied, mall operators were given an idea what are the significant factors that drive shoppers to a shopping mall. The respondents of this study, which were thoroughly clustered into three categories, represent all the socioeconomic classes of the society, which is very specific for the study to have an accurate result in identifying shoppers’ preferences on what mall attributes they will be easily attracted. The study, which revealed SM City of Davao as the most preferred followed by NCC mall of Davao and Gaisano mall of Davao, tells precisely the real and actual sentiments of shoppers in the city on where they would want to go to for pleasure and for shopping activities. I do agree with the result that Gaisano mall of Davao ranked high among the top three malls in terms of accessibility because of its proximity to the downtown area where most students and professionals are living, though the study revealed that this lead is very slim, it is still a big factor for Gaisano mall operators to carefully tap their best resources in attracting customers in order to maintain its loyalty, giving them a competitive edge against NCCC and SM in attracting more shoppers. SM City clearly shows its best advantages against competitors because of implementing a good positioning and marketing strategy, it caters and answers the needs of shoppers why they want to go to the mall in the first place, because most of the respondents can be categorized as young adults, professionals and fun-loving individuals, their preferences are always be on the entertainment, convenience, elegant products and good mall atmosphere. These shoppers can be easily attracted with a mall atmosphere that is favorable to their lifestyle choices. This result of the most preferred mall in Davao does not follow that most shoppers are price conscious, this only tells that, especially the young respondents, most shoppers prefer an establishment that is highly innovative, friendly, having cool brands of products and offers a terrific environment for socializing with friends. Therefore, the recommendations presented is appropriate as young shoppers are easily attracted to an environment which offers entertainment, greater value of merchandise and stylish amenities, but the purchasing power of the shoppers should not be ignored as shoppers from class C and D are potential market. Mall operators should also balance the elements mall atmosphere innovative products and moderate pricing of the merchandise.

Double Indemnity And Touch Of Evil Film Studies Essay

Double Indemnity And Touch Of Evil Film Studies Essay Film in popular culture was under scrutiny from cultural theorists during the 1930s and 1940s. It was suggested that film lacked originality and authenticity because of the way in which organisations, such as Hollywood, were producing art by using generic formulas (Grant, 2007:5). This repetition of conventions, characters and settings was typical of the Hollywood genre system (Palmer, 1994:1). This system enabled Hollywood to make films cheaply and competitively, which was criticised further by cultural theorists because the organisation was mainly motivated by profit (Grant, 2007:7). Genre films were at the forefront of the American ideal as films were an important feature of American culture. They represented an expression of the spirit of the time and worked as an inexpensive form of entertainment (Grant, 2007:5). The generic formulas were liked and accepted which was beneficial for both consumer and institution as the Hollywood studio could cater to a large audience (Palmer, 1994:2). However, the poor economic conditions of America in the 1930s meant that cinemas had to entice their audience with a more modern form of storytelling and representation (Palmer, 1994:3). Whilst the typical Hollywood film had to follow certain principles of narrative, the film noir was able to push the boundary of conventional storytelling. The visual stylisation, storyline and dark themes describe the essence of the noir film. These conventions will be discussed with examples from Billy Wilders Double Indemnity (1944) at the beginning of the noir period and Orson Welles Touch of Evil (1958) towards the end. The distinct elements that form the noir were largely due to the contributions of those in film production. During the early 1930s directors, actors and cinematographers who were involved in German expressionist cinema moved to Hollywood (Grant, 2007:25). The stylistic qualities of noirs were heavily influenced by expressionism; German silent films were admired by the Hollywood film industry (Silver, 2004:11). The artistic roots in German expressionism are portrayed in the use of common stylistic conventions such as chiaroscuro lighting, distorted camera angles and the use of symbolic designs (Silver, 2004:11). The most visible feature of the noir style is low-key lighting; cinematographers manipulated contrasts of light and shade between day exteriors and realistic night scenes through the use of curtains or venetian blinds (Silver, 2004:16). Dramatic use of lighting was used to create tension and confirm beliefs that the noir world was uncomfortable and corrupt. In Double Indemnity the establishing scene already implies this as Walter Neff begins to confess his crimes, while his face is in shade suggesting that he is ashamed. A less apparent feature, though crucial in terms of its expressionist value, was the use of distorted camera angles. Each camera angle was used specifically to create a dramatic and symbolic meaning. Low angles were pivotal in creating the feeling of claustrophobia and paranoia, for example when ceilings of interior settings were visible in the frame (Silver, 2004:16). Double Indemnity continues to provoke uneasy feelings with low angled shots in the initial scene suggesting that Neff is trapped with no other option but to confess. The use of high angles creates disequilibrium, for example when a city street is visible far below out of a window (Silver, 2004:16). This type of feeling is also expressed by dimly lit alleyways and shadowy pedestrians in the urban landscape (Silver, 2004:16). The noir style frequently makes use of shadow and unbalanced compositions (Telotte, 1989:17). Off-angle compositions of characters in the frame were used to create the suggestion of an unstable world (Spicer, 2002:47). In Touch of Evil, Spicer (2002:62) suggests that Orson Welles is able to draw the audience into a state of confusion by not including any stabilising balance of scenes. Touch of Evil was produced after the film noir description was established which suggests that the noir features in this film were used more deliberately. The expressionist style had been developed by using scenes of limitless darkness to create a sense of claustrophobia and agoraphobia (Spicer, 2002:61). Welles primarily uses night scenes, which allows characters and shadows to merge together creating a sinister atmosphere. Vargas is unsuccessfully attacked with acid by a shadowy figure. Hank Quinlans own corruption is symbolised in Touch of Evil as he falls to his death into floating waste (Silver, 2004:169). Similarly, visual symbolism is used in Double Indemnity as Wilder carefully constructs a mise-en-scà ¨ne to provoke meaning that may not always be obvious. The character of Phyllis Dietrichson is given primary importance both in style when she makes spectacular entrances and in the narrative when she manipulates those close to her. Both Double Indemnity and Touch of Evil share similarities in their visual styles which are heavily influenced by German expressionism. The expressionist style also influences the narrative and themes of noirs. Some of the themes that are expressed in the films are developed through the narrative. Noir stories challenge the conventional linear narrative of other Hollywood films and explicitly state points of view (Telotte, 1989:3). Strategies used are the voice-over, the third person flashback style, and the subjective camera technique (Telotte, 1989:12). The voice-over narrative technique enables the audience to experience situations through the protagonist. The first person narration allows the audience to identify with the character or narrator even if they are morally wrong (Silver, 2004:20). Telotte (1989:16) suggests that the I whose most basic purpose is to provide us with a privileged and personal eye on the world. Flashbacks are used to introduce the past which is presented from the narrators point of view (Silver, 2004:16). This is clear during Double Indemnity as Neff takes the role of narrator in flashbacks through to the present day. The first person voice-over is used as he retells the crime story on the Dictaphone but third person is used in the flashback scenes. Telotte (1989:45) suggests that Dictaphone narration is used to avoid speaking directly, which conforms to the noir ideology of tricks, lies and communication difficulties. There is frequent use of the subjective camera in noirs which emphasises points of view (Telotte, 1989:17). Welles uses this technique in Touch of Evil in confrontation during interrogations between Quinlan and Vargas where the audience is constantly deciding who is the dominant figure. Noir films were generally marketed as detective, thrillers or crime melodramas. Audiences were unaware that they were watching anything that was different from the Hollywood genre system. It was only the French critics who coined this term as the films dark qualities went unnoticed by audience and industry (Palmer, 1994:6). However, these films followed the crime detective formula as most, including Double Indemnity and Touch of Evil, were based on crime fiction novels. Double Indemnity was an innovative film and perhaps therefore a more authentic film noir. By comparison, Touch of Evil was rewritten into a much darker version that deliberately played on the noir styles. Silver (2004:15) states that noir relies on the element of style not just the content and that narratives are complex and not just icons. Literature of the time contained existentialism and psychological matters that promoted the importance of the past reflecting on present actions. This was particularly meaningful given the circumstances of America during the World War and the Depression (Silver, 2004:15). Grant (2007:26) suggests that noirs depict a sense of post-war disillusionment and was a delayed reaction to the enforced optimism of popular culture during the Depression and war years. The intended purpose of Hollywood narratives was to confirm the beliefs and values of the audience. Hollywood took a conservative stance within society both socially and politically. Films had to follow censorship regulations where certain principles had to be followed such as poetic justice, unsuccessful villains and restricted sexual liaisons (Palmer, 1994:4). Film noirs, for the most part, complied with these regulations given that they were unnoticeably different. However, they did touch on certain non-traditional themes such as sexual and criminal violations (Palmer, 1994:9). The French critic Nino Frank (cited in Palmer, 1994:8) described noir having rendered obsolete the traditional detective film because noirs focussed on the psychology of the characters rather than the actual crime and criminal. According to Silver (2004:15), important themes in film noir were classified as the haunted past and the fatalistic nightmare. The haunted past suggests the protagonists escape from a traumatic incident as in Touch of Evil or, crimes committed out of passion as in Double Indemnity. Past and present circumstances are mixed within the narrative; the past is real and inescapable and the protagonist has to confront it to seek redemption. This is featured in both Double Indemnity and Touch of Evil. The second theme is the fatalistic nightmare which is based on causality where present events lead to an inevitable conclusion. Good intentions of characters can be overridden when certain factors are taken into consideration. Double Indemnity uses chance and opportunity to commit crime, whereas the structure of society affects situations in Touch of Evil. Confusion was another theme in noir. It gives a sense of ambiguity to the narrative and a sense of nightmare to the atmosphere. This is conveyed in Touch of Evil when Susan Vargas is resting in the motel and a group of Mexican youths take over which leaves the audience questioning what happened exactly. Noirs present a bleak vision of contemporary life that was populated by criminals and immoral people; all of which opposed the American ideal (Palmer, 1994:6). The protagonists are mostly male and reflect the disruption to the traditional male role that was caused by the war and post-war readjustments thereafter. Females were characterised as both domestic and bland or as femme fatales. Male powerlessness is demonstrated next to the femme fatale which was a common feeling in post-war society (Grant, 2007:26). However, post-feminist critics suggest that Phyllis Dietrichson in Double Indemnity was a strong woman in a male-dominated world where she had to use any kind of weapon, including sexuality, to become an equal (Silver, 2004:16). But ultimately, the femme fatale corrupts the protagonist. The themes in Touch of Evil also promote the sense of corruption: drug dealing, sex trade and gambling. Touch of evil represents the conflict between true justice and the prevailing norms of justice. It has a theme of good versus evil where the moral Vargas can progress through the noir world of corrupt police officers such as Quinlan (Conard, 2006:43). Unlike Neff in Double Indemnity, Quinlan is deeply flawed already. Noirs involve moral decision making, the ethics of knowing what is morally right but finding alternatives more attractive. For example, in Double Indemnity a manipulated insurance salesman plots with a married woman to murder her husband to gain financial rewards (Conard, 2006:42). Double Indemnity contains adultery, cold-blooded killing, insurance fraud and criminal activity that are blamed on a female, which went against the contemporary censorship rules of the time. However, Neff and Dietrichsons inescapable fatality that draws them into crime seems to agree with those rules (Palmer, 1994:9). This is proven as Neff begins his narrations suggesting that crime does not pay (Double Indemnity, 2005): Yes, I killed him. I killed him for money and for a woman. I didnt get the money and I didnt get the woman. Pretty isnt it? The noir categorisation occurred because of the interaction between style, narrative and theme attributions. Noirs were able to branch away from the standard Hollywood product in such a way that it still catered to a large audience but unknowingly contained influences from European cinema. The impact that German expressionism had on Hollywood was remarkable and it is clear that the expressionistic style influenced many subsequent films. Double Indemnity, the earlier film, was a good example of innovative style both in appearance and narrative and was extremely influential. Touch of Evil was made towards the end of the noir period and deliberately used noir features but to an excessive degree. Noirs were considered to be a new type of detective crime thriller that subtly changed from the standard Hollywood genre film. They were still able to maintain the industrys principles by allowing a moral outcome but incorporating a more complex body to the story. These themes reflected the feelings of the American people towards their own society which made the films acceptable. The audiences need for a new way of expressing the story was met by a different, experimental narrative technique which heightened the impact of the dark qualities in the themes. These influences together with the dramatic, expressionist style established the film noir and give it a unique element in Hollywood.

Story Truth Vs. Happening Truth Using Tim Obriens work Essays -- Tim

The Effect of "Story Truth" vs. "Happening Truth" Literature is such a beautiful thing because it does not give us an answer to it's questions. There are so many iffy spots that leave us to develop our own thoughts and feelings toward the piece of work. This is an interesting factor because at many times it affects us in a different way and can develop us as an individual. When reading a piece of literature, one person can interpret it in different ways than another person reading the same piece of work. I remember analyzing poems with my English class in the previous years and when we were asked to interpret it, we all had different answers. Sometimes what I got out of the poem didnÂ’t even go close to the direction that my classmate was going in. However, when I saw it from her view I saw more of where they were coming from I learned more about them. I read, "The Things They Carried," in last year's English class. I think that this is the only book that my class as a whole read, which means a lot coming from a class where spark notes was their way out. The way Tim O'Brien wrot...

Skate Boarding - Skate Boards and Protective Gear :: Argumentative Persuasive Essays

Skate Boards and Protective Gear The notion that protective gear reduces the injuries suffered in accidents seems at first glance to be an obvious conclusion. After all, it is the intent of these products to either prevent accidents from occuring in the first place or to reduce the injuries suffered by the wearer should an accident occur. However, the conclusion that investing in high quality protective gear greatly reduces the risk of being severely injured in an accident may mask other (and potentially more significant) causes of injuries and may inspire people to over invest financially and psychologically in protective gear. First of all, as mentioned in the argument, there are two distinct kinds of gear -- preventative gear (such as light reflecting material) and protective gear (such as helmets). Preventative gear is intended to warn others, presumably for the most part motorists, of the presence of the roller skater. It works only if the "other" is a responsible and caring individual who will afford the skater the necessary space and attention. Protective gear is intended to reduce the effect of any accident, whether it is caused by an other, the skater or some force of nature. Protective gear does little, if anything, to prevent accidents but is presumed to reduce the injuries that occur in an accident. The statistics on injuries suffered by skaters would be more interesting if the skaters were grouped into those wearing no gear at all, those wearing protective gear only, those wearing preventative gear only and those wearing both. These statistics could provide skaters with a clearer und erstanding of which kinds of gear are more beneficial. The argument above is weakened by the fact that it does not take into account the inherent differences between skaters who wear gear and those who do not. If is at least likely that those who wear gear may be generally more responsible and/or safety conscious individuals. The skaters who wear gear may be less likely to cause accidents through careless or dangerous behavior. It may, in fact, be their natural caution and responsibility that keeps them out of the emergency room rather than the gear itself. Also, the statistic above is based entirely on those who are skating in streets and parking lots which are relatively dangerous places to

Crossover Fashion Essay -- essays research papers

Men’s Fashion for Women and Vice Versa Civilizations as ancient as Jericho and as widespread as the Roman Empire have used clothing and jewelry as a form of nonverbal communication to indicate specific occupation, rank, gender, class, wealth, and group affiliation. These same material goods are used today for similar modes of communication. While some modern societies like the Taliban in Afghanistan make such distinctions with utmost conformity (the Taliban of Afghanistan) others like America have proven to be more dynamic. This dynamic nature can be seen in the emergence of crossover fashion within the last 80 years which has correlated with the changing role and social status of women in society. The effect of the gradual increase of power for women during the Industrial Revolution could be seen in the increase of crossover fashion. As a result, crossover fashion is dominate and socially acceptable in today’s society. From the 1700’s through the Industrial Revolution, regulating fashion was deemed as a way of preserving social and gender distinctions that were firmly established in the predominantly patriarchal society. During the 1850’s, the Victorian Era, there were strict guidelines on how people could behave and dress, and behaviors that they had to conform to their everyday lives. The rules were so strict that there were codes for how certain inanimate objects should be displayed; for example, table covers had to be long enough to cover the table’s legs because soci...

Try Something New for 30 Days

Try something new for 30 days. Do you believe that by doing something new for 30 days can change our life? Is this possible†¦? The great American philosopher Morgan Spurlock says that 30 day challenges or trying something new for those days will change our life. Matt Cutts was ordinary computer scientist who couldn’t make a progress in his life. Nevertheless, after reading this book he had learned many things and made changes in 30 days. The question is will his idea does work to everyone..? I like this ideas a lot and definitely support it in right way and I believe that 30 days are enough to make changes in our life.It is an opportunity to start something new, and try something that you always wanted to do. Perhaps, it is all about adding new or subtracting â€Å"bad† habits and trying to set a goal or plans to accomplish in 30 days. This article shows us how Matt has made his life better by doing simple changes. First, if we want to make our life better, we shou ld set positive goals, than move forward and work to add a new habit, than try to stop unhealthy behaviors and habits. It means that we need to make simple changes like Matt did. For example; he was a computer dupe, however he had tried new simple things in 30 day which he had never done.Certainly we also can do it and make a better life. The best way to do these 30 day s challenges is to understand what we really want, than to be in the mood of it, and last thing is just start it. As a result it will give us many positive benefits. Furthermore, people can force their self to do many activities and become an organized. People who have bad habits as a smoking or drinking can change it by adding a new one. Smoking may replaced by some healthy foods. Consequently those changes can give an opportunity to keep their money also their health.Second is adding new habits, it can be everything which people have always wanted to do, however in 30 days it might change their life. I had a friend , who had no idea about music, but he has started to sing and singing became his habit. Now he is making good music career. In conclusion I would like to mention that many people fare afraid to do something new, because they got accustomed to these things. However Matts article motivated us to do something new by giving his advices and examples from his live. We can use his idea to control our goal, to schedule tasks and projects and make our life better.

Yes Men Fix the World, Ethics of Protest and Bringing Issues to Light

AG401 Film Yes Men Fix the World, the Ethics of Protest and Bringing Issues to Light 1. What ethical/moral/philosophical constructs are the activists operating under with respect to their tactics in protest? The Yes Men use Utilitarian Ethics of Duty and Rule Consequentialism. With this mindset, they carry on pranks and hoaxes to reveal the lies of large corporations and government. In the theory of Duty-Based Ethics, people do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. These large corporate giants do nothing but take the toll on others’ misfortunes.An example of Duty-Ethics can be seen when Andy impersonates Jude Finisterra, a spokesperson for Dow Chemicals, being interviewed on BBC regarding the Bhopal Legacy catastrophe of Union Carbide and its deadly gas leaks in India. He is quoted saying, â€Å"this is the first time in history that a publicly owned company, of anything near the size of Dow, has performed an action which is significantly against its bottom lin e, simply because it’s the right thing to do. † In theory of Rule Consequentialism, it states that an action is morally right just because it is required by an optimific social rule; relating back to Duty Ethics.With the motive under Rule Consequence, the Yes Men planned to set a course of actions which might trigger a reaction so that corporate giants and government may conform to such a social rule. As long as the outcome is of a happy ending for the public, Mike and Andy will have succeeded to change and affect society in ways that money could not. To correct an action which harms society more than benefits it, sometimes ridiculing and exposing the negative aspects of it might be the only course for corrective action. 2. Do the tactics distract from the message or lend power to the message? On what ethical grounds?In theory, such pranks and hoaxes are supposed to create change as a result from negative publicity. This derives from Kantian Ethics, which actually goes against Consequentalism, kind of an oxy-moron. Although it is morally just, their actions do have negative consequences to certain parties. As far as exposure goes, their tactics seemed have to work in their favor, and the Yes Men have also defied legal repercussions in every scenario. And by bringing such important public issues into light, some objectives were achieved; transmitting the power of voice towards the public, and conveying the theory of moral duty to the companies.However, their main purpose was not accomplished, and their tactics seem to have failed again; in fact nothing significant was taken into consideration or changed by any of the targeted corporations, or even the government entities. For example, in the Catastrophic Loss Conference, Andy and Mike pose as representatives from Halliburton; which they have claimed was the top company in extracting profits from a disaster. Halliburton has made hundreds of millions of dollars off the Hurricane Katrina disaster, and now the Yes Men have arrived to presenting another invention called the SurvivaBall; again to â€Å"profit† off some disaster.Their tactic was to create the â€Å"biggest joke ever by making fun of stupid concepts with stupid ideas. † And with something as simple as the SurvivaBall being so useless, it relates to the concept of Big Corporate making money off others’ misfortunes instead of solving the problems which lay before them; the ironic part is that the SurvivaBall is actually more useful than what the government or companies like Halliburton have created for disasters. But to their shock when all was presented, their attempts of letting people know what â€Å"sucked about letting greed run our future,† was instead greeted with business cards. . What about the ethics of law enforcement in dealing with activists? If anything was taken from this documentary, it was that companies cannot learn to behave differently by themselves; government has to mak e rules to control them. To fix the world, it is going to take more than two guys, cheap suits, and fake websites; it would take millions of people. When activists begin threatening for change, law enforcement entities may only deal on legal premises; as there is a right to freedom of speech and to assemble and petition the government.If no harm and damage or rioting is caused, law enforcement may only be there to prevent incidents. An example may be observed with over two dozen people wearing SurvivaBall costumes demonstrating in the East River; where police shut down the demonstration for lack of a permit. Andy Bichlbaum was arrested on an outstanding parking ticket charge and a handful of others were served with summons and tickets for disorderly behavior and creating hazardous conditions. So they also tried this, attempting to cost HUD more money and put some out of jobs.They hope to expose to the public by making a mockery of an entity in able to stimulate a solution or action. But it never works. Mike Bonanno Andy Bichlbaum Duty-Based Ethics Jude Finisterra, faking as a spokesperson for Dow Chemicals regarding the Bhopal Legacy catastrophe of Union Barpide and its deadly gas leaks in India, quoted saying that â€Å"this is the first time in history that a publicly owned company, of anything near the size of Dow, has performed an action which is significantly against its bottom line, simply because it’s the right thing to do. However it was hilarious that he noted they were going to liquidate $12 billion in assets to provide care and compensation to the victims and their families. Halliburton #1 company in extracting profits from a disaster. Made Hundreds of millions off Katrina, and now (name) and (name) are presenting the Survivor Ball, to â€Å"profit† off a disaster. Biggest joke ever, of how to make fun of stupid ideas, well, with stupid ideas. For example, something so simple of a Survivor Ball is useless, also like the concept of mak ing money off others’ misfortune instead of solving the problem.But the ironic part of this is that the survivor ball is actually more useful than what the government or companies like Halliburton have created solutions for disasters. But what their attempts of letting people know what sucked about letting greed run our future, but instead of freaking out, they just took their business cards. Companies cannot learn to behave differently by themselves, government has to make rules to control them. So they also tried this, attempting to cost HUD more money and put some out of jobs.