Using RSS To Promote Your Website

You have the website, the product, and compelling content to attract readers to purchase your book, your CD, or whatever items you choose to sell. You may notice a surge in traffic as you build your site and employ various search engine optimization tactics, but are not wholly satisfied.

You know you can attract more visitors if you could just reach them. You have a weblog attached to your site, and you write wonderful articles which receive much praise. What else is there to do?

Have you considered syndicating your content and products to users with an RSS feed? Do you even know what RSS is?

Simply defined, RSS is an XML-based format. XML, for the novice, stands for Xtreme Markup Language, a special coding language that represents information for resources in the World Wide Web. Using the XML, one can permit the distribution, or syndication, of content to users who collect such data through specialized aggregators, or readers. RSS stands for Real Simple Syndication, and once you get used to the idea it really can be simple.

By creating an RSS “feed” (think of a news ticker on a cable network, providing up-to-date information in real time), one can distribute product content, articles, pictures, and even embedded video, audio, and links. This information is used to entice users to click through to the host site.

RSS allows a person’s computer to fetch and understand the information, so that all of the lists that person is interested in can be tracked and personalized for them. RSS differs from a traditional website in that the information is usually presented elsewhere. Say for example an Internet user has a personalize start page with My Yahoo! On this start page is information on various sports teams so the user can keep track of the playoffs. Yahoo allows the user to edit what information is displayed so only the information the user wants is visible. The user may aggregate information from various sports websites that offer RSS data, and place it on the Yahoo page.

When the user visits his start up page, he will see headlines from the many sports websites fed into the page. If there is a headline that appeals to the user, a click on the link will direct him to the site. Think of RSS feeds as puzzle pieces, brought together to create custom designs for Web users all over the world.

Sites that allow for the opportunity to generate updated, fresh content can benefit from offering an RSS feed. Whether you sell products or services, want to promote a new book or film, an RSS feed attached to your site can extend your site’s reach and increase traffic. Having an RSS feed attached to a site also allows for the opportunity to submit to RSS specific search engines, thereby increasing awareness of the site. As you research RSS, you may find there are feeds for just about every subject of conversation, from sports to movies, multi-cultural issues to religion. Shopping sites use RSS to advertise sales, while travel site promote discount airfares for frequent flyers. There is no limit to what you can promote with RSS.

Creating an RSS Feed

Now that you have decided to promote yourself and your products with RSS, it is time to create a feed and attract the traffic you want. Creating a feed is different from creating website. Though there is content involved, you do not need to worry much about presentation and design, as different RSS readers tend to presently only the text and links associated with the feed content.

If you are unfamiliar with hand-coding XML, it would be best to create your RSS through either special software or through a third-party website that creates and hosts feeds. A quick Internet search on “RSS builders” and “RSS host sites” will lead you in the right direction.

If you have a weblog with a third-party host, you may note that this content is already being syndicated. If so, you may want to consider changing the focus of your blog to better sell your products, or create a second feed for better sale emphasis.

Once you have decided on the method of production, it’s time to produce!

Writing RSS content can be likened to ad copy. You want to use attention-getting headlines that will entice readers to click through to your site. As some RSS readers display only the headline rather than an abstract of the content, you want to be concise and compelling. “Save now on special purchase,” “Buy one, get one free!” Make the reader want to click to read more.

Depending upon the RSS aggregator, the reader will immediately click-through to your site, or be taken to your RSS content. Either way, it is important that all clicks eventually lead to the point of sale. Keep RSS posts short and direct. Tempt the reader to click through to your site to learn more about buying your book, CD, or product. Link to the sale page rather than the home page so a reader won’t become frustrated with having to navigate your entire site. Hot link a photo of the item using the IMG tag to give your feed an attractive look. If you use an RSS software or third party site, you may be able to use such coding, be sure to check.

Promoting with an RSS Feed

As search engines become more adept at collecting information, they are devising new ways to get this data. Some engines, like Google, have special spiders that mine the Internet solely for RSS-based information. If you want your RSS feed to be found, whether you host it on your site as an RSS or XML file, or host through a third party website, you will need to have the URL of the feed on your front page so people can subscribe to it.

Clicking on the link will not open the feed like a website, but depending upon the browser being used to view the feed it may take the user to an option that allows him to save your feed’s information. A quick Internet search on RSS tutorials will give you a special code you can put on your site to alert spiders to your feed, too. Also, there do exist RSS search engine where you can submit your feed for inclusion.

The one advantage to having an RSS feed is that what content you provide remains available to users who find it during search. To improve the likelihood of traffic increases, add to your RSS feed regularly, advertising all news and specials related to your books, music, or services. Your ability to prove Internet savvy can attract a new audience to your site, and in turn improve your sales.

Internet Marketing Advice For Newbies

Have you been to sales and marketing in the past 3 or more years? Have you ever graduated from a business or marketing course back in college? Have you ever tried any internet marketing activity before?

Most online jobs and home-based businesses involve sales and marketing on the internet. If you are not a business graduate or have never been to the business world before, then things might go on a trial and error process once you decide to shift to an internet marketing career or business agenda.

Internet marketing is a modern online internet marketing tool to get more potential clients or customers for more profits. You may have heard of other popular marketing strategies like email marketing, article marketing, affiliate marketing and other modern marketing tools online. A mixture of these marketing strategies is usually used by most marketers to boost profits and revenues. In some cases, however, a single marketing strategy may be enough to handle a certain type of business efficiently.

So how does the internet marketing process usually start? If you are a new guy in the online marketing world, then perhaps you have already encountered an unsolicited email or spam that talk more about making money on the internet through some kind of investment opportunities. This system gives you some advertising links and even uses Google and Google Ads to generate revenue.

Well, if you are not that familiar with Google Ads, it states that you just have to post advertisements to Google search engine so more people could buy your products or services. Google Ads may be so simple here yet may appear somewhat difficult to accomplish to an inexperienced marketer.

Starting fresh in the world of internet marketing does not mean you have to take the plunge for Google Ads right away, especially if this will mean a pure game of chance or gambling for your hard-earned money. As a newbie, this internet marketing attempt should be dealt with caution. If you are willing to lose a certain amount of money whenever things go wrong in the end, then it is the only time you can try this marketing adventure. But if you think you cannot afford to lose your most valued funds, then do not ever dare to gamble.

Research or a careful analysis of your preferences is a wiser step to do before you jam into this new world. Learn how to perfectly tame the various marketing strategies and make them work for you to generate more profits and greater revenues. If ever you find yourself just getting more confused on the online marketing concepts you are dealing with, keep asking the experts. Read more e-books, newsletters, ezines and other updates. Take all the ideas you find relevant to your current research and discard any confusing concept. Practice really makes everything perfect with your marketing strategies and you will soon learn that there are no real secrets to online marketing but just bare facts and techniques to your success.

The basic question to your success definitely lies on you. What are your interests? Focus on these interests as these will be your raw materials to make money online and sustain a successful business through the years. Remember that internet marketing mainly involves promoting products you can find online or creating your own products to sell.

Be open to all possibilities. Keep on asking experts to understand confusing techniques and master the art of effective and dynamic marketing for optimized results. However, if you think of internet marketing as something that is not right for you after all this time, then just cheer up. You still have a lot more ways to make money online. Just learn how deal with your aesthetic tastes and unique preferences then redirect your focus to some online opportunities ahead.

What to Look For? – Home Based Businesses

The thought of working from home is quite luring. Many people are earning sitting at home in present scenario. Being your own boss, own schedule, flexibility, close to family and earning seems very interesting. But there is a need to look much deeply into the concept of home based business before jumping into it right away. No doubt there are good promising benefits of it yet you should be well aware of the harsh realities you’ll encounter when you are at home.First of all there are various personal issues that you may come across while working at home. Remember you should be 100 percent committed to your work. Take it as a normal job that you do outside your home. So, ask yourself if you can be fully committed towards your work and want to move forward for it. You should have a proper schedule of working hours along with giving quality time to our family. All the members of the family, relatives and friends must be aware of your working hours and must not think that as you are available anytime they drop in.If you take your business only as pastime, interest and enthusiasm for something new you’ll not land anywhere and will surely reduce productivity. So you must be totally committed to be successful at your home business and look into yourself if you are ready to do so. There will be no end of distractions at home but be sure to stay on the right track and be disciplined.Risk is involved in every business and same goes for any home based business. Though you do not have to answer any boss but your priority after every month will be profit. But losses go side by side and you should be well prepared for it. If you make a mistake you’ll have to bear the consequences so try taking calculated risks. Look at the deals and prospects from every angle while initiating towards them. Take into account this factor too while choosing for working at home.Look if you have enough to invest as every business needs a boost in beginning. And if it is slow initially you ought to invest a little. So take care to have the cash reserves for odd situations. And if you do not have enough money begin part time business till you start reaping profits. Routine jobs may offer various perks and bonuses but keep in mind in home based businesses you are your own boss and forget about all extra innings. Also take into account as to who will take care of your business set up while you are away.Be ready to work hard and extra hours even sitting at home. Do not take it for granted as you’ll have to meet some deadlines in it too. If you think that you can earn sitting idle at home you should give it a deeper thought again. You may have your own family responsibilities so just check out all these before setting up a home based business. Although you’ll be with you kids and family all the time but work has to be given sufficient and needed attention to get results.So, there may be numerous wonderful aspects of home based business but a few real life challenges are there too. It may be not your cup of tea. So just look into all the above mentioned points and make sure if you’ve made the right choice. Look into your time, reason of the choice and determination before finally jumping into the conclusion.

Start a Home Based Business: Five Tips to Ensure Success

The following tips are relevant for any home-based business as they encourage a business-focused approach. This is important, particularly as many home-based businesses grow out of hobbies.SpaceAllocate appropriate space and organize it for the tasks you have to perform. You need somewhere to work and where you can focus on the tasks to develop and maintain the business. Also, like any job there are times when you may need to get away from it.Separate ResourcesSharing resources like the telephone offers obvious cost advantages to home-based businesses.However, separating business and personal resources can make accounting easier and more importantly, protect items that are mission-critical for the business. For example, sharing a computer with the kids should be avoided.AttitudeThe harsh reality for most home-based businesses is there is much to do but often there is only one person to do it.Therefore, set a work schedule and stick to it. As your own boss you have to manage yourself. Just getting started in the morning can be tough when working from home so maintain a routine. Get up, get showered, get dressed and go get a coffee at Starbucks if that’s how you start your normal working day.ApplicationYour job is to run a home-based business so you need to be working at it. You are not the housekeeper, babysitter, gardener or any other form of domestic help, at least, not while you are supposed to be working.It is easy to slip into this mode, particularly when you have a business task that you do not really relish but this does not pay the bills.RevenueJust because the overheads are comparatively low, home-based businesses still have to make money. The business may have grown out of a hobby that hopefully you still enjoy. But remember, it is a business and now needs to generate revenue to cover costs and to thrive. Otherwise, it is still just a hobby and you need to find other means to earn a living.

Five Things To Look Out For When Picking A Home-Based Business

Interested in starting a home-based business? Why not? They can be lucrative, offer you the luxury of working from your house and provide you with great flexibility. All of these reasons make home-based businesses quite appealing. However, there are a few things you need to look out for as you venture forward in selecting which company is right for you.TRAINING – Many of the home-based business companies out there sign you up, send you a manual, offer a couple of conference calls and then you are on your own. There are many challenges that arise from this independent “self starter” training approach, the least of which is not being armed with enough basic knowledge or the foundation to really get behind your product or service. In an effort to avoid this, it is recommended to interview the potential companies you are exploring. Don’t be afraid to ask lots of questions and get a sense of everything they offer in terms of training. Do they offer frequent webinars, are they available at every rank/level? Are their training programs free or do they charge for them? Do they provide one-on-one training calls? Is the company’s corporate office available if you have questions to ask? Are there training videos available online?Without a comprehensive hands-on training method that begins the day you start your venture and continues throughout your career, your chances for will be slim. Look for companies who don’t charge and offer an array of training options from day one, including live seminars in your area, weekly webinars, unlimited direct access to corporate office and progressive training throughout your career without costs or limitations. Ask the prospective company all these questions…they will either have the answers you are looking for or you will know to move on.SPONSORSHIP – When signing on to a home-based, direct sales company such as a party plan, new recruits are paired with sponsors. Those sponsors are supposed to guide you in your first few parties , offer you their ‘tricks of the trade’ and be an ongoing resource of information. However, the majority of companies’ compensation plans only pay sponsors on average, a commission equal to 1-3% of the Retail Sales achieved by their team members. So why would a sponsor want to take the time to go to your first party and subsequent parties to train you, when if you achieve $1000 in Retail Sales, she would only gets $10 to $30? Instead, her time is better served doing her own parties whereby she can earn $200, $300 or more.When exploring a home-based business, look for the company that, in addition to the traditional downline commission programs which pay you overrides, also provides robust incentives to the sponsor for helping their new recruit. Miami-based company Ultimate Nights, for example, offers sponsors 40% of the first $1000 their new recruit earns. That’s more than 10 times what the other companies offer. Therefore, it behooves them to train you and guide you. Although you may think, “Well, I’m just getting started, this doesn’t apply to me,” it will pretty quickly when you get your first recruit. You can also count on your sponsor to give you unparalleled support in the startup phase of your business, because she is being properly compensated for it.DIVERSITY – Home-based businesses typically offer a product or service. Your job becomes that of getting people interested in that product or service. Most of your prospective customers are the people around you – friends, family, neighbors, parents at the school, etc. That is your core center of influence.The more products you have to offer these people, the more opportunity that can arise and the more repeat business you can get. If, for example, you only sell cookware, then you are limited in the amount of times you can go back to your core group of potential “hostesses.” If you carry only cosmetics, then you are limited to selling your products to women who are looking for new cosmetics to try. Diversity of products allows you to entice your customers and hostesses over and over. This month, they may want facial products, but next month they are looking for a birthday present and decide to buy a candle.Look for companies that highlight LIFESTYLE product lines. These are in high demand and never get old. People are spending money on cost-conscious products that elevate or enhance their lifestyle, so when searching for the right company, DIVERSITY & LIFESTYLE is the key.NO INVESTMENT REQUIRED – Many companies have an array of startup costs from signup fees, starter kits, ongoing monthly costs for websites, fees for credit card processing and more. When starting any new business, we all look to lower our startup costs and keep our overhead low. Party plan companies usually offer a sample kit that can range from $100 to as high as $1,000. Although you will probably benefit from the purchase of a mid-level business/sample kit, look for companies who offer you a low-entry or zero product investment option for women who simply can’t afford to spend several hundred dollars to start their business. These options should include a viable program for “earning” that business kit and moving up the ladder as they build sales and build confidence. Ultimate Nights was the first company to offer an EARN YOUR KIT option, whereby the new consultant earns 30% business credit on their first $1000 in sales, which can then be used to purchase the business consultant kit.COMPENSATION – The key to making money in a home-based business is based on the structure of your compensation plan. Many companies promote heavy recruitment and base your compensation on getting and maintaining a large number of recruits. However, according to studies done on direct sales, the national average (based on all MLMs and Network Marketing companies) over the past 40 years, shows that the average number of team members recruited is 2.5. Therefore, expecting and dictating any number over that would be not only unfair but unrealistic. Although many people can recruit new people every month, it shouldn’t be a requirement. Seek a company that knows your value and bases your pay on that value, not on recruiting numbers.Additionally, beware of compensation plans that offer downline commissions to entice you, but that make the requirements to reach and maintain those so difficult that the commission is never paid to you.
Use this information as a guide to seek out the best company and at the end, find something that fits with your personality and belief system.

What Is an Internet Marketing Agency and Can It Really Help Your Business?

A simple search on the internet will reveal many reports of scams and fraudulent companies claiming to be internet marketing experts, so how does a business identify the good ones?

It is very easy these days, to build a website and fill it with eye-catching designs, qualifications and examples of good work. Anyone who knows how to build a website can create anything they wish.

In order to find a good, professional internet marketing agency, you should look for real recommendations from other businesses. It is the only ways to be sure you really are dealing with professionals who understand what internet marketing is, and know how to implement it for any type of online business.

A good internet marketing agency will spend time working with you to develop a strategy of tactics to help promote your business brand. They will have a wealth of experience and know exactly how to generate new leads, build brand recognition and help you develop a bigger and stronger customer base. They will also know how to dovetail the internet marketing communications with mobile marketing and offline marketing so that all the promotion done for your business is complementary and works well together.

Most healthy businesses do not have the tie or expertise to devote to marketing and they hire a professional team to do the work. Those businesses who claim to understand how marketing works, and decide to do it themselves, are not always successful. Effectively marketing your business online can be a full time job in itself. For some businesses, they have been lucky and hit on the right tactics to succeed. For others it is not so easy and it can seriously affect the health of their business.

Here’s the difference between good marketing and bad, or no marketing at all. With good marketing, you put yourself right in the view of customers, and they become qualified leads and come to you. With little to know proper marketing, you will spend a great deal of your time pitching for work, or trying to sell your products and services, which is harder, takes longer and is less fruitful.

The most successful businesses operate a combination of both, where they market themselves properly and have a sales strategy to keeping seeking work and customers.

If you come across someone who says marketing is just jargon and not necessary, take some time to find out why they are saying this. For the majority, it will be because they had a bad experience with a so-called marketing professional. By choosing the right team of professionals, and employing a reputable and experienced internet marketing agency, you are more likely to see results and have a positive return on investment.

Many business people do not understand that in marketing there are no guarantees, and this is the biggest problem. They are expecting an internet marketing agency to make promises and achieve specific things, so they pick an SEO company which makes these promises and then, they are disappointed. Good internet marketing is not cheap but fairly priced and it provides a hug return on investment. Ban internet marketing costs a fortune and will give you no results whatsoever.

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.